Participant Observation

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finished sociology (Sociological Methods) Flashcards on Participant Observation, created by *Ellie* on 19/05/2013.
*Ellie*
Flashcards by *Ellie*, updated more than 1 year ago
*Ellie*
Created by *Ellie* over 11 years ago
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Question Answer
Types of observation; non-P, P, covert, overt a structured observational schedule may be used Eg how often a girl uses a certain toy A P observation 1 Getting in; Making contact whihc may depend on personal skills having connections or chance Eg Fairhurst was hospitalised +conducted a study on being a patient Acceptance-making friends though age, gender, race etc may be a barrier but some have overcome these Eg Griffin painted himself black Observer's role should be one that doesn't disrupt the group's patterns+ offer a good vantage point 2 Staying in; Going native, over-identifying=biased but by being detached they risk not understanding= balance needed also the longer a researcher spends with the group the less strange the ways appear-not noteworthy 3 Getting out which presents fewer problems, some can just leave Eg Patrick abruptly abandoned the study as he was sickened by the violence Re-entering the normal world can be difficult Loyalty may also prevent them from disclosing everything
Overt observation avoids ethical problems Eg deceit It allows naive q's to be asked The observer can take notes/use interviews However the group may refuse permission/prevent them from seeing everything It risks creating the hawthorne effect Covert observation; Advans; reduces risk of altering behaviour especially with secret activities Eg Humphreys studied gay men's sexual experiences in public toilets Disadvans; have to keep up the act, their cover may be blown and this may lead to physical harm, cannot take notes openly, can't ask naive q's, a new member may disrupt normal activity, deceit, no consent, they may have to participate in imoral/ilegal activities
Advans of P observation; rich+detailed =valid data, gives researcher insight+ empathy, very flexible, a researcher can produce a grounded hypothesis, this open mindedness allows the researcher to discover things other methods may miss, this may be the only method for studying certain groups+ it enables the researcher to build rapport Disadvans; 1 It's time consuming, researcher needs to be trained, can be stressful, requires observational+ interpersonal skills+many groups have the power to make access difficult 2 deception+ilegal/imoral activities 3 small sample, selected haphazardly=unrepres 4 Can't be replicated+as it is qualitative=hard to compare=unreliable 5 Can lack objectivity-going native, loyalty, sympathy 6 They can be biased as it is reported how the observer sees it+ hawthorne effect 7 It ignores the wider structures such as inequalities
Used to study classroom interactions Structured observations; Eg Flanders system of interaction analysis categories, which is used to measure interactions quantitatively-quicker, cheaper, requires less training+easily repliacted=reliable but it lacks validity Less structured observ; 1 schools-complex+time consuming places Observations restricted eg timetable Privacy is hard to gain 2 covert in schools is unethical Observers may know info that could get a pupil into trouble (ilegal?)=hard to decide what to do Protection of ID! 3 Hard to reveal real attitudes+behaviours of children-trust needed Teachers-skilled at hiding feelings Language of pupils is different=hard to understand 5 Few covert roles=overt=hawthorne King tried to avoid contact by hiding in wendy house 6 small scale (edu is very large)=unrep 7 hard to replicate =unreliable Personal characteristics= pupils act differently to each observer
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