social science writing -01
Question Description
Conduct and write up a short ethnographic study
IMPORTANT: Read this whole exercise before starting the Assignment.
Task: I have identified several 1 to 3 minute videos of people engaged in some activity. View all and pick one with which you are NOT familiar. Assignment: try to understand what the people are doing and why they choose to do it.
Goal: To understand ethnographic research.
Paper requirements are in red below
- Paper requirement: – 1,200 words or less NOT counting citations/references, word count at least 1000
- Paper requirement: Read and cite at least two of these syllabus readings on ethnographic research. Penalty of 10% of paper grade for citing less than 2 of these readings.
- Geertz, C. 1973. Thick Description: Toward an Interpretive Theory of Culture. The interpretation of cultures: selected essays: 6-9. New York: Basic Books.
- (Links to an external site.)Richard Fenno. 1978. Homestyle: House Members in Their Districts, Little, Brown and Co., “Introduction,” pp. xi-xv (5 pages).
- Tilly, C. 2006. Afterword: Political Ethnography as Art and Science. Qualitative Sociology 29(3): 409-412.
- Fota, A. 2019. What’s Wrong With This Diorama? You Can Read All About It. New York Times. 20 March 2019 (accessed: 20 March 2019 (Links to an external site.)).
- Freeman, R. 2008. How to ‘do’ history, or the ten ‘C’s of historical understanding.
- Palmer, D. 2014. Explainer: What is post-modernism? The Conversation. 2 January 2014 (accessed: 23 March 2019 (Links to an external site.)).
- Tannenwald, N. 1999. The nuclear taboo: the United States and the normative basis of nuclear non-use. International Organization 53(3): 433-468. [Note how Tannenwald interprets what is NOT happening.]
- Eriksson, P. and A. Kovalainen. 2008. Chapter 12: Ethnographic Research. Introducing Qualitative Methods: Qualitative methods in business research, edited by P. Eriksson and A. Kovalainen: 138-153. London: SAGE Publications. (Links to an external site.)
- Sangasubana, N. 2011. How to Conduct Ethnographic Research. The Qualitative Report 16(2): 567-573. (Links to an external site.)
- View ALL these videos briefly. Select the ONE that you know NOTHING (or the least) about.
- NONE of these has sound (audio was not recorded).
- Video link 1
- Video link 2
- Video link 3
- Video link 4
- Video link 5
- Do NOT do ANY searching to determine what is actually going on. This assignment only works if the video is your ONLY source of information. The assignment is to act like an ethnographer, trying to understand why people behave as they do by interpreting how they behave. I will identify the sources AFTER the assignment is due.
- Avoid assumptions. Do NOT try to prove some theory. Ethnographers come to their research questions and their explanations as they observe, not beforehand.
- Observe: Watch your selected video several times. Take detailed notes on what you observe. Assume you do NOT know why these people are doing what they are but, instead, describe what they are doing and consider all possible explanations. Write down whichever things you observe, such as:
- What “type” of people are interacting (e.g., do they appear to be from one social group or different social groups)
- How people are dressed (e.g., differences across genders or groups)
- Are all people engaged or are some involved and some observers
- Other concrete details of behavior
- Paper requirement: Describe the “context” of what is happening (see rubric below for details).
- Paper requirement: Describe four (4) major things you observe that “didn’t make sense” to you when you first watched the video.
- Paper requirement: Make an interpretive argument: What do these behaviors mean for the people involved. Make a thesis statement about “what the people were doing”, in the sense of how they would have made sense of their behavior given the social context. Select observations that best support your explanation. Help your reader see that your interpretation captures something that is NOT obvious but IS visible to a good observer.
- NOTE: In ethnographic research, conducting research ethically requires: protecting people’s privacy, not observing without people’s consent, stopping observing if people are uncomfortable, etc. When using video, ensure your writing shows respect for the people you are observing on video and the activities they are engaged in, even if you cannot understand it. Do a FINAL read-thru of your paper and ensure you avoid bias — do not describe these behaviors as “weird,” “strange,” or otherwise judge the people involved.
Some Rubric
| Criteria | Ratings | Pts | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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This criterion is linked to a Learning OutcomeResearch ContextDescription of the research context. Consider the following as things you might include in your description: what were you able to, and not able to observe? How was the camera positioned and how does this affect your ability to observe? Approximately when does it appear that these videos were created? You might also consider questions like: in what space were these observations conducted? what is that space like? was it loud? were there many or a few people in the video? did they seem comfortable? what, in general, was the atmosphere like? etc. THESE ARE SUGGESTED DIRECTIONS FOR EXPLAINING THE RESEARCH CONTEXT |
|
200.0 pts |
||
|
This criterion is linked to a Learning OutcomeMajor ObservationsAfter having painted an overall picture of the research context, focus on 4 **major** things you observed with respect to the group. Select elements to include that will focus your reader on the most important, or key, aspects of what you saw and heard. This section of the paper should be **purely descriptive** – simply, and as accurately as you can, **describe** what happened. Don’t make assumptions; don’t bring in your opinions. Throughout, be detail-oriented and stick to “the facts”. |
|
300.0 pts |
||
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This criterion is linked to a Learning OutcomeInterpretationUse the observations elaborated in the previous section as a basis for an interpretation / explanation of “what the people were doing,” in the sense of how the people involved would have made sense of their behaviour given the social context. **This explanation should be presented as a thesis statement.** The explanation – your thesis – should be non-obvious, and supported by evidence from the observations. That is, show how your specific and detailed observations support your interpretation of “what the people were doing.” After doing this, **describe how you came to your view that this is how they would have made sense of what they were doing.** |
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300.0 pts |
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This criterion is linked to a Learning OutcomeCourse MaterialsMake sure the paper includes material from at least two readings from the list given in the prompt. Include citations and a bibliography. This is graded not JUST on the inclusion of citations, but how well you use them/they fit with your paper |
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100.0 pts |
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This criterion is linked to a Learning OutcomeStyleWell-structured (uses headings), well-written, no typos, creativity in interpretation. |
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100.0 pts |
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This criterion is linked to a Learning OutcomeCurveThese are the points added to your score to achieve a fair curve. |
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0.0 pts |
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This criterion is linked to a Learning OutcomeLate PenaltyThese are the points subtracted from your score for late submissions. This is assessed as a 2% deduction per day. |
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0.0 pts |
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Total Points: 1,000.0 |
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