Ethnological Research

Submitted By Sabia Naz

Roll No
11

ETHNOLOGY
The comparative and analytical study of cultures.
Also known as cultural anthropology.
Aims to describe and interpret aspects of the culture of
various groups e.g. The hunter gatherers of the Kalahari,
rice villages of the Chinese canton Delta etc.
Topics of particular interest include religious beliefs ,
kinship arrangements, farming technology,etc.

Cont..
Ethnology is primarily based on the
fieldwork(Ethnography)through which
ethnographer/ anthropologist immerses himself or
herself in the daily life of a local culture and
attempts to piece together a description and
interpretation of aspects of the culture.

ETHNOGRAPHY
Ethnography is the first hand understanding of the
cultural setings.

Ethnography usually involves observing the target

groups in their natural , real world settings .
The aim is to gather insight into how people live, what
they do, how they use things or what they need in their
every day or professional lives.

DEFINITION AND PURPOSE

Ethnographic research
Definition
A qualitative approach that studies the cultural
patterns and perspectives of participants in their
natural settings

Purpose
To describe, analyze, and interpret the culture of a
group over time to understand the groups shared
beliefs, behaviors, and language

DEFINITION AND PURPOSE

Ethnographic research
Culture is the set of shared attitudes, values, concepts,
beliefs, and practices that can be attributed to the members
of the group being studied
Three broad areas to help focus on tangible cultural
behaviors
Cultural orientation where the people are situated
Cultural know-how how a group goes about daily
activities
Cultural beliefs why a group does what it does

THE ETHNOGRAPHIC PROCESS

The Ethnographic Process

Describe the site and sample selection

The use of purposive sampling techniques
The use of key informants
Describe the researchers role
Entry to the site
Reciprocity
Ethics

CONT..

Describe the data collection methods

Participant observation
Field notes
Interviews
Artifacts
Describe appropriate strategies for the analysis and
interpretation of data
Use the methods discussed in the chapter on data
collection and analysis
Write the ethnographic account

Types of Ethnographic Research

Two differentiating features
The product itself, that is, the ethnography
The researchers intent
Three common types
The realist ethnography
The author studies the culture of schools
Written in an objective style
Uses common categories for cultural
description, analysis, and interpretation

Cont
The ethnographic case study
The focus is on describing a specific case
Descriptions of the activities undertaken by the group and
the shared patterns of behavior that develop over time
The critical ethnography
The author is interested in advocating for the
emancipation of groups marginalized in our society
Highly politicized
Advocates against inequities and domination of particular
groups in society
Addresses issues of power, authority, emancipation,
oppression, and inequity

Characteristics of Ethnographic Research

Conducted in a natural context

Involves intimate face-to-face interactions with
participants
Reflects participants perspectives and behaviors
Uses inductive, interactive, and recursive collection
of unstructured data
Data is collected primarily through fieldwork
experiences

TECHNIQUES

Ethnographic Techniques
Three major techniques
Triangulation
Participant observation
Field notes
Triangulation
Collecting data using many sources rather than a
single one
Multiple sources
Interviews
Observations
Artifacts

Cont..
Participant observation
The researcher is immersed in the research
setting in order to get close to those studied as a
way of understanding what their experiences and
activities mean to them.
Field notes
A record of the researchers understanding of the
lives, people, and events that are the focus of the
research.