Designing and Conducting Ethnographic Research

by Lecompte, Margaret Diane; Schensul, Jean J.

• ISBN13: 9780761989752
• ISBN10: 0761989757
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 1999-09-01
• Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield Pub Inc

Summary

The Ethnographer's Toolkit series begins with this overview volume, which defines the qualitative research enterprise, links research strategies to theoretical paradigms, and outlines the ways in which an ethnographic study can be designed. Using practical, straightforward language, the authors of this volume introduce readers to the research process, identifying issues, choices, and techniques covered in greater depth in other kit volumes, including chapters on the personal qualities of a good researcher and on research ethics. As a guide to the contents of the Toolkit series, or as a stand-alone introduction to the qualitative enterprise, this volume will be extremely valuable to novice researchers.

Table of Contents

List of Tables and Figures	vii
List of Examples	ix
Introduction	xiii
What Is Ethnography?	1	(28)
Ethnography as Science	1	(8)
Characteristics of Ethnography	9	(12)
What Ethnography Is	21	(8)
When and Where Is Ethnography Used?	29	(12)
Conditions Calling for Ethnographic Research	29	(6)
Which Settings Are Most Appropriate for Ethnographic Research?	35	(6)
Paradigms for Thinking About Ethnographic Research?	41	(20)
What Are Research Paradigms?	41	(1)
The Positivist Paradigm	42	(3)
The Critical Paradigm	45	(3)
The Interpretive, Phenomenological, or Constructivist Paradigm	48	(3)
The Ecological Paradigm	51	(1)
The Emerging Social Network Paradigm	52	(3)
A Paradigmatic Synthesis	55	(6)
An Overview of Research Design	61	(36)
What Is Research Design?	61	(1)
Planning a Research Design as a Blueprint for Action	62	(6)
Quantitative Survey and Experimental Designs	68	(14)
Qualitative Designs	82	(15)
Choosing and Designing an Ethnographic Research Project	97	(30)
Deciding What to Investigate	99	(5)
Elaborating Research Questions	104	(5)
Selecting Populations and Units of Analsysis	109	(18)
Collecting Ethnographic Data	127	(20)
Data Collection Techniques	127	(7)
Resource Logistics	134	(13)
Data Analysis: How Ethnographers Make Sense of Their Data	147	(14)
Analysis as a Cognitive Process and a Technical Procedure	148	(3)
The Item Level of Analysis	151	(3)
The Pattern Level of Analysis	154	(1)
The Constitutive or Structural Level of Analysis	155	(2)
Complex Analysis With Multiple Levels and Sources of Data	157	(4)
Who Should Do Ethnographic Investigation?	161	(22)
Important Personality and Stylistic Requisites for Ethnographers	162	(6)
Identifying Good Field-Workers	168	(3)
Collecting Data With a Research Team	171	(5)
Building Research Partnerships	176	(7)
Ethical Treatment of Research Participants and Care for Human Relationships	183	(22)
The History of Concern for the Ethical Treatment of Research Participants	184	(4)
Institutional Review Boards	188	(5)
Special Concerns and Ethical Responsibilities of Ethnographers	193	(7)
The Ethical Responsibilities of Ethnographers in the Absence of an IRB or Formal Institutional Constraints	200	(1)
Dissemination of Research Results	201	(3)
Conclusion	204	(1)
References	205	(6)
Index	211	(7)
About the Editors, Authors, and Artists	218