ETHNOGRAPHY
QUALITATIVE | ADAPTED | EXPLORATORY | OBSERVATIONAL
Ethnography is a method that integrate inquiry and observation to the subject in certain environment. It requires deep and comprehensive record for the researcher.
01 Definition
Design ethnography approximates the immersion methods of traditional ethnography, to deeply experience and understand the user’s world for design empathy and insight.
---- Universal Methods of Design
Ethnography is a research method designed to explore cultural phenomena where the researcher observes society from the point of view of the subject of the study. An ethnography is a means to represent graphically and in writing the culture of a group.
---- Wikipedia
02 NATURES
Notes:
- It's fully participant - first-hand exploiter
- Long-term engagement
- Inductive - collect info, find pattern
- Truthful, watch do people actually do - it’s different from they said to what they are doing - there exists a gap
Suited Context:
- Have a long term time span: it need time to build up trust between researchers and subjects. Also, it takes time to study people in their natural settings from comprehensive aspects.
03 PROCEDURES
- Define problem space and the goal of ethnography.
- Find the subject related to the goal.
- List general questions to lead the conversation flow.
- Be in the place earlier to explore the environment and layout.
- Set up audio/video recording.
- Observe subject and dig deep for interesting topics.
- Take notes of behavior, facial expression and time during the session.
- Write down immediate reflection of the fieldnotes.
- Transcribe and summarize insights.
04 REFLECTION
Limitation
- It might result in bias when observing the context
- Topics and theme should be captured on site, instead of prepare ahead. Researchers should find out the meaningful part and explore further.
- Sometimes it takes months or even years, so it's time consuming
Strengths
- Researcher could experience and observe the subject and the context in person.
- Fieldnotes is first-hand information and reflection on site. It's useful for future data analysis.
- Usually, it requires for a long term, which makes data more comprehensive.
05 Case Document
