Copyright © 2008 by Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. John W. Creswell Educational Research: Planning, Conducting, and Evaluating Quantitative and Qualitative Research, third edition Chapter 15 Ethnographic Designs

Copyright © 2008 by Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. John W. Creswell Educational Research: Planning, Conducting, and Evaluating Quantitative and Qualitative Research, third edition 15.2 By the end of this chapter, you should be able to: Define ethnographic research and identify when to use it Describe the development of ethnographic research Identify types of ethnographic designs Describe the key characteristics of ethnographic research Identify the steps in conducting an ethnography study Describe how to evaluate an ethnography study

Copyright © 2008 by Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. John W. Creswell Educational Research: Planning, Conducting, and Evaluating Quantitative and Qualitative Research, third edition 15.3 What Are Ethnographic Designs? Ethnographic designs are qualitative research procedures for describing, analyzing, and interpreting a culture-sharing group’s shared patterns of behavior, beliefs, and language that develops over time.

Copyright © 2008 by Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. John W. Creswell Educational Research: Planning, Conducting, and Evaluating Quantitative and Qualitative Research, third edition 15.4 When to Conduct Ethnographic Research When the study of a group helps you understand a larger issue When you have a culture-sharing group to study When you want a day-to-day picture of the events and activities of a group When you have long-term access to a culture- sharing group

Copyright © 2008 by Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. John W. Creswell Educational Research: Planning, Conducting, and Evaluating Quantitative and Qualitative Research, third edition 15.5 How Ethnographic Research Developed Ethnography has been shaped by cultural anthropology with an emphasis on writing about culture 1928 Mead’s study of childbearing, adolescence, and influence of culture on personality in Samoa 1920s–1950s Single-case emphasis at University of Chicago

Copyright © 2008 by Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. John W. Creswell Educational Research: Planning, Conducting, and Evaluating Quantitative and Qualitative Research, third edition 15.6 How Ethnographic Research Developed (cont’d) 1980s Educational Ethnographies 1997 Publication of Writing Culture that highlighted two major issues –Crisis of representation: How ethnographers interpret the groups they are studying –Crisis of “legitimacy”: Standards do not come from “normal science.” Studies must be evaluated by standards within the participants’ historical and cultural influences and interactive forces of race, gender, and class

Copyright © 2008 by Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. John W. Creswell Educational Research: Planning, Conducting, and Evaluating Quantitative and Qualitative Research, third edition 15.7 Types of Ethnographic Design: Realist Ethnography Realist ethnographer narrates study from the third-person voice reporting what is observed. Researcher reports objective data free from personal bias, political goals, or judgment. Researcher produces the participants’ views through closely edited quotes and has the final word on how the culture is to be interpreted and presented.

Copyright © 2008 by Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. John W. Creswell Educational Research: Planning, Conducting, and Evaluating Quantitative and Qualitative Research, third edition 15.8 Types of Ethnographic Designs: Case Study Definition: An in-depth exploration of a bounded system (time, place, physical boundaries) Subject for case studies –Individual or several individuals –Series of steps that form a sequence of activities Researcher develops understanding of the case by collecting multiple forms of data Researcher locates the “case” or “cases” within their larger context

Copyright © 2008 by Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. John W. Creswell Educational Research: Planning, Conducting, and Evaluating Quantitative and Qualitative Research, third edition 15.9 Types of Qualitative Case Studies Intrinsic Case Study Unusual Case Study an intrinsic, unusual case Instrumental Case Study Issue Case Study a case that provides insight into an issue or theme Multiple Instrumental Case Study (also called a Collective Case Study) Case Issue Study several cases that provide insight into an issue (or theme)

Copyright © 2008 by Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. John W. Creswell Educational Research: Planning, Conducting, and Evaluating Quantitative and Qualitative Research, third edition Common Types of Ethnographies: Critical Ethnography Used by politically minded researchers Advocate for the emancipation of marginalized groups Seek to change society Identify and celebrate research bias: All research is value laden Challenge status quo and ask, “Why is it so?” Create literal dialogue with participants

Copyright © 2008 by Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. John W. Creswell Educational Research: Planning, Conducting, and Evaluating Quantitative and Qualitative Research, third edition Critical Ethnography: Procedural Characteristics Social issues include power, empowerment, inequity, dominance, repression, hegemony, victimization Collaborate actively with participants and negotiate final report Self-conscious about their own interpretation Reflexive and self-aware of their role Non-neutral Uses contradictions, imponderables, and tension (Denzin 1997)

Copyright © 2008 by Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. John W. Creswell Educational Research: Planning, Conducting, and Evaluating Quantitative and Qualitative Research, third edition Key Characteristics of an Ethnographic Design Cultural themes from cultural anthropology A culture-sharing group Examination of shared patterns of behavior, belief, and language Data collection through fieldwork Description, themes, interpretation Group context or setting Researcher reflexivity

Copyright © 2008 by Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. John W. Creswell Educational Research: Planning, Conducting, and Evaluating Quantitative and Qualitative Research, third edition Key Characteristics: Cultural Themes Cultural Theme: General position, declared or implied, that is openly approved or promoted in a society or group Drawn from cultural anthropology or literature Seen in purpose statement or research questions as a central phenomenon Examples: –Persistence –Identity development –Social skills –Enculturation

Copyright © 2008 by Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. John W. Creswell Educational Research: Planning, Conducting, and Evaluating Quantitative and Qualitative Research, third edition Key Characteristics: Culture-sharing Group Individuals who have shared –Behaviors –Beliefs –Language Groups vary in size Individuals interact on regular basis Individuals interact over a period of time Representative of a larger group

Copyright © 2008 by Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. John W. Creswell Educational Research: Planning, Conducting, and Evaluating Quantitative and Qualitative Research, third edition Key Characteristics: Discerning Shared Patterns A shared pattern is a common social interaction that stabilizes as tacit rules and expectations of the group –Behavior: Action taken by an individual in a cultural setting –Belief: How an individual thinks or perceives things in a cultural setting –Language: How an individual talks to others in a cultural setting

Copyright © 2008 by Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. John W. Creswell Educational Research: Planning, Conducting, and Evaluating Quantitative and Qualitative Research, third edition Key Characteristics: Discerning Shared Patterns (cont’d) Types of patterns –Ideal: What should have occurred –Actual: What did occur –Projective: What might have occurred

Copyright © 2008 by Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. John W. Creswell Educational Research: Planning, Conducting, and Evaluating Quantitative and Qualitative Research, third edition Key Characteristics: Doing Fieldwork Fieldwork: The researcher gathers data in the setting where the participants are located and where their shared patterns can be studied Types of data –Emic data (data supplied by the participants) –Etic data (ethnographer’s interpretation of participant’s perspectives) –Negotiation data (information participants and researcher agree to use in a study) Forms of data: observations, interviews, documents

Copyright © 2008 by Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. John W. Creswell Educational Research: Planning, Conducting, and Evaluating Quantitative and Qualitative Research, third edition Key Characteristics: Description, Themes, and Interpretations Description: Detailed rendering of individuals and scenes in order to depict what is going on in the culture-sharing group (detailed, thick, rich) Themes: How things work and naming the essential features in themes in the cultural setting (shared patterns of behavior, thinking, talking) Interpretation: –Inferences and conclusions about what was learned –Relates descriptions and themes back to what was learned

Copyright © 2008 by Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. John W. Creswell Educational Research: Planning, Conducting, and Evaluating Quantitative and Qualitative Research, third edition Key Characteristics: Context or Setting Setting, situation, or environment that surrounds the cultural group being studied History, religion, politics, economy, the environment, physical location

Copyright © 2008 by Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. John W. Creswell Educational Research: Planning, Conducting, and Evaluating Quantitative and Qualitative Research, third edition Key Characteristics: Reflexivity Researchers –Openly discuss respect for participants and sites –Talk about themselves –Share their experiences –Identify how their interpretations shape their discussions about sites and groups

Copyright © 2008 by Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. John W. Creswell Educational Research: Planning, Conducting, and Evaluating Quantitative and Qualitative Research, third edition Steps in Conducting Ethnographic Research 1. Identify intent and type of design and relate intent to your research problem 2. Seek approval and access considerations 3. Collect appropriate data emphasizing time in field, multiple sources, collaboration 4. Analyze and interpret data within a design 5. Write report consistent with your design

Copyright © 2008 by Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. John W. Creswell Educational Research: Planning, Conducting, and Evaluating Quantitative and Qualitative Research, third edition Evaluating Ethnographic Research Is the group or case clearly identified? Are there patterns of behavior or belief identified? Is detail provided about the group? Is the context that surrounds the group specified?

Copyright © 2008 by Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey All rights reserved. John W. Creswell Educational Research: Planning, Conducting, and Evaluating Quantitative and Qualitative Research, third edition Evaluating Ethnographic Research Is the author reflexive? Are broader interpretations given? Does the ethnography convey how the culture works? Is the accuracy checked?