Homework #4 - Ethnography Overview Reading

It is human nature to be curious, especially about other people and groups of people. An Ethnography capitalizes on this aspect of human nature by extensively studying a group of people. Ethnographic studies are usually conducted over a long time period, averaging a year or more. During this time, the researcher immerses themselves in the lives of the group of people they are studying. This allows them to gain a more in depth understanding about different aspects and daily interactions of the people in question. Also, the researcher typically engages in the normal group-specific social activities. Today, I will attempt to highlight some major concerns surrounding ethnographies, discuss how my findings relate to the ethnography that we will conduct in class, and explain my opinions regarding ethnographies in general.

Despite all of the obvious advantages of Ethnographies, concerns have been raised about ethnographies and the accuracy of the results. One main concern is that in studying the group, they might act differently because they know that the researcher is observing them. Also, other concerns have been raised regarding the ability of researchers to maintain objectivity while submersing themselves in the culture and daily lives of people for such an extended period of time. Furthermore, there are three main cases that an ethnographic researcher falls into regarding their emotions toward the focus group of their research. First, a researcher can be “kindly,” seeming to be more sympathetic than they may actually be. This is a concern because this is considered to be deceptive by the researchers presenting themselves in a different way than they would normally be. The second case is the “friendly” ethnographer, which is friendly and accepting to all subjects of their research, even if the subjects are actually despised. Finally, there is the “honest” ethnographer, who divulges the intent of their research upfront. This approach might sound great, but it seems as though this approach has the potential to ruin the results, because if the subjects understand the goal of the study, then they might act differently during the course of the study.

I believe that ethnographies are an invaluable way to gain insight into a foreign group or culture. However, after reading the three articles assigned I realize that there are obvious flaws. The back-and-forth arguments between Margaret Mead and Derek Freeman, is infuriating because it is hard to know who actually has a better understanding of the Samoan population. If I had to choose, based on the small articles read, I would have to guess that Margaret Mead had the more thorough research and therefore her results are most accurate. However, interpreting personal accounts of events and beliefs can be exhausting because many times the person who is the more skilled writer or orator will win the hearts of the readers or listeners. The infuriating part is this choice is usually made regardless of technical/moral/ethical merit. It is because of this that I have a tough time reflecting on opposing views.