Ethnography

by Wolcott, Harry F.

• ISBN13: 9780759111691
• ISBN10: 0759111693
• Edition: 2nd
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2008-01-28
• Publisher: AltaMira Press

Summary

One of anthropology's leading writers on ethnographic methods, Harry F. Wolcott, discusses the fundamental nature of ethnographic studies. Tracing its development from its disciplinary origins in sociology and anthropology, he points out what is distinctive about ethnography and what it means to conduct research in the ethnographic tradition. In this engaging and thought-provoking book, Wolcott distinguishes ethnography as more than just a set of field methods and practices, separating it from many related qualitative research traditions as "a way of seeing" through the lens of culture. For both beginning and experienced ethnographers in a wide range of disciplines, Wolcott's book will provide important ideas for improving research practice. Book jacket.

Author Biography

Harry F. Wolcott is professor emeritus in the Department of Anthropology at the University of Oregon

Table of Contents

Preface to the Second Edition	p. xi
Introduction	p. 1
Where We've Been
Ethnography in the Good Old Days	p. 11
Where in the World Do You Think You Are Going?	p. 15
The Problem of Where? A Personal Account	p. 16
In Place of Place	p. 21
Keeping Ethnography in Perspective	p. 28
A Watershed: Spradley and McCurdy's The Cultural Experience	p. 32
Where Do You Think You Are Going?	p. 36
A Way of Looking and a Way of Seeing
Ethnography as a Way of Looking	p. 43
Participant Observation-The Catch-All Label	p. 46
Experiencing, Enquiring, and Examining	p. 48
Experiencing: Distinguishing between Observers and Participant Observers	p. 50
Enquiring: When Researchers Ask	p. 54
Examining: Archival Strategies	p. 62
The Appeal of an Ethnographic Approach to Research	p. 65
Ethnography as a Way of Seeing	p. 69
Ethnography as More Than Method	p. 71
Following the Ethnographic Tradition in Anthropology	p. 72
What Is an Ethnographic Question?	p. 73
The Scale of the Ethnographic Project	p. 76
Great Expectations or Mission Impossible?	p. 79
On Finding Difference Enough	p. 80
Attributing Culture	p. 82
More Expectations	p. 83
On Getting Enough Detail	p. 84
A Cross-Cultural Perspective	p. 88
Ethnography as Idiosyncratic	p. 94
The Ethnographer's Task	p. 95
Culture and Ethnography Under Siege	p. 100
Ethnographic Applications
Traditional Ethnography and Ethnographic Tradition	p. 105
Ethnography by the Numbers	p. 108
Replicating or Adapting an Existing Model	p. 111
Combining Features from Several Models	p. 115
Working from a Standard Plan	p. 118
Proposing One's Own Set of Categories	p. 121
Other Alternatives	p. 126
The Introductory Text as Informal Field Guide	p. 127
A Modular Approach	p. 131
Getting a Start and Building On Later	p. 132
Meeting Ethnographic Criteria the Low-Risk Way	p. 133
Ethnography from Inside Out	p. 137
How Critical Is "Difference" in Doing Ethnography?	p. 139
Emic and Etic	p. 141
Insiders and Outsiders	p. 143
The Ethnographer Tells the Story of a People	p. 145
The Anthropological Life History	p. 150
Working with One Informant	p. 156
The Ethnographer Helps People Tell Their Story	p. 158
The Ethnographic Autobiography	p. 159
The People Tell Their Own Story	p. 160
The Difficulties with Native Ethnography	p. 164
The Native Goes Anthropologist	p. 169
Coda	p. 171
Ethnographic Matters
Hurried Ethnography for Harried Ethnographers	p. 177
How Having Too Much Time Can Work Against the Ethnographer	p. 178
Working Within Rigorous Time Constraints	p. 181
Ethnographic Reconnaissance	p. 187
Incorporating Ethnographic Reconnaissance as a Research Strategy	p. 190
Systematic Data Collection	p. 195
Stepwise Research	p. 198
Ethnography's Many Faces	p. 201
Ethnographic Fiction: The Don Juan Capers	p. 202
Ethnographic Fiction: A Broader Look	p. 206
Taking the "Ethnographic Approach"	p. 208
Ethnographic Evaluation	p. 209
An Attractive Appendage to Other Fields	p. 210
Autoethnography	p. 211
So Far	p. 212
Does It Matter Whether or Not It's Ethnography?	p. 215
Seven Reasons Why It Matters	p. 217
Can You Do Ethnography Without Embracing the Culture Concept?	p. 225
Ethnography as a Piece of Cake	p. 227
Analogy to the Rescue, One More Time	p. 230
Essential Ingredients and Ethnography	p. 231
Writing with Culture	p. 239
Cultural Patterning	p. 244
Culture Revisited	p. 246
A Piece of Cake?	p. 252
Writing Ethnography	p. 255
Getting Started	p. 256
The Editing Process	p. 260
Care and Feeding of Budding Authors	p. 261
A Few Pointers on Writing	p. 261
You and the Computer	p. 262
Editing for Publication: Surprise, Surprise	p. 263
End of the Line	p. 264
Ethnography Matters: Looking Ahead, Looking Back	p. 265
Ethnographic Futures and the Future of Ethnography	p. 266
Ethnography in the Professional Career	p. 271
Ethnography as Occupation and Preoccupation	p. 277
Everybody an Ethnographer?	p. 280
The "Ethics" Shadow	p. 282
References and Select Bibliography	p. 291
Name Index	p. 325
Subject Index	p. 331
About the Author/About the Book	p. 337
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