02 March 2012

Ethnographic Design


Another qualitative research design is the ethnographic research. According to Creswell (2001) ethnographic research examines “culture-sharing groups shared pattern of behavior, beliefs and language” (p.436.)
Ethnography take its roots from the anthropology, however it is re-shaped for its use in educational research. The original form of ethnography is named as the realist ethnography. Creswell ads two more types of ethnography which are the case study and the critical ethnography. Let me explain those three types in brief:

  • Realist ethnography: The researcher examines a person or a group of people or a situation and reports it objectively, as a third person. An example realist study examines “the process a school selection committee experiences as they interview candidates.” The researcher is more like a reporter reporting the facts.
  • Case studies: In this type, researchers aim at in depth exploration of the actual case. (an activity, a event, process or individuals) The case is discriminated from the others by time, place or other separate boundaries. But how this special case should be selected?  The answer of this specific question is given with the aim of the study. A case might be selected because it is “unusual” or it might be selected because it illustrates a broader phenomenon. Or the case/cases might illustrate an issue. However this case study as a form of ethnography research makes me question the difference between “case study as a research design” and “ethnographic design”. In this research report the writers explain their point of view regarding this question. In fact, the answer to this question can only be given by discussing the world view behind the research design. This question should be elaborated in another discussion.
  • Critical ethnographies: This type of ethnographic studies aim at advocating against inequality, that s why the critical researcher is not neutral, rather he/she is political. They seek to create a literal dialogue with the participants (minorities, people from different social classes)

To sum up, I should note that, in ethnographic research there is a “cultural theme” and a “culture sharing group”. Of course conducting a study with ethnographic design is not that much easy. It has lots of details and important points. But they’re beyond the scope of this text!

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