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   Ethnography

   

   Michael Clouser, Jun 22nd, 2005 @ 6:34am

   
   

   The ethnographic research method is underutilized in general. A research method from the science of anthropology (others include archeology, map making, historical document searching, etc.) its a powerful tool to understand cultural and sociological factors better and create new knowledge. Much more than just observation, it entails the researcher "becoming one of the tribe" and participating in the culture. I'm glad to see that firms such as Intel, Intuit and now Microsoft have recently begun deploying ethnographers. My hope is that the academic community in the US will once again lend favor to this method that it has shunned since the Chicago School popularized it, for a short time. Ethnography has the power to awaken us to new understandings, new knowledge, and theory creation, which can then be tested by traditional American academics.
   
   Good book:
   
   Global Ethnography
   http://www.ucpress.edu/books/pages/8849.html

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