The Ethnography: What it is and How to Write It

The ethnography is a tool, frequently used in sociology and anthropology writing, which summarizes notes on a particular group of people, gathered from an observer over a period. It requires nothing but you, your senses, your pen and paper (or laptop, if you have one), a subject(s) to observe and some of your time. An ethnography can be done in a short one or two hours, or it can encompass months of hourly observations.

One of the side topics in my research paper, titled "NCLB and Commercialism in Schools" was marketing. "What makes some businesses so attractive to consumers?" "How do companies go about selling their products?" Those were just two of the many questions I had written in my writing journal. One of the best ways to find out about a subject is to personally observe it. I chose Starbucks as the subject in writing my own ethnography for my paper. It was convenient, met the qualification of a successful business and definitely took marketing coffee to an art form.

"The way we do things around here": the culture of ethnography by Alexander Massey BA PGCE MA MSc, is an interesting paper on ethnographies. I definitely recommend bookmarking that web site for further reading. One point I particularly liked in the article, was his statement of two questions one must ask when creating an ethnography: " 'What does it mean to be a member of this group?' and 'What makes someone an insider or an outsider here?'." His elaboration on these questions is just as interesting.

Massey writes, "Answering those questions requires an openness to learning from those who inhabit that culture, and a willingness to see everything and suspend premature judgment on what should be selected as data. The usefulness of the information may not be immediately apparent, but is often collected and stored anyway. This quality of openness lies at the heart of ethnography, in its processes, purposes and ethics"

Think about these two concepts: "openness to learning from those who inhabit that culture" and "suspend premature judgment." These two things are true keys to writing a good ethnography. You must consider yourself as a "fly on the wall." You try to hold your assumptions and simply watch what happens. This allows you to learn what really happens, rather than what you assume happens.

Steps in Writing an Ethnography

The first phase of an ethnography is to select your subject(s). Sometimes the most difficult part of the assignment, you select preferably a group of individuals who relate to a topic, or side-topic of your research area. This can be family members, stores, other businesses, schools and so forth. Only you can decide which group most touches your subject and will be convenient for you to work with.

Tip: In this day and age, if you select a store, business or school, I strongly recommend speaking with the manager or principal, informing him you are doing a creative writing paper, and asking their permission to hang around. You may even be required to assure them that people's names will be kept anonymous. Please use integrity in your dealings with these individuals.

The second phase of the ethnography is the observation period. Remember the two questions by Alexander Massey. " 'What does it mean to be a member of this group?' What is required to be a part of this group? Observe with all of your senses. What do you see? What do you smell? What do you hear? What do you taste? What does it feel to the touch? What time is it? Keep all of this in mind, while practicing the "fly on the wall" routine. You want no assumptions, no pre-drawn conclusions, no opinions while observing. Simply take detailed notes with your sensory data until you are finished observing.

The last phase of an ethnography is to compile your notes into a paper, sharing what you have observed and what conclusions you came to after observing them. In this phase you are telling a story, starting with why you chose the subjects(s), what happened during your observations and what surprised you. Finally, what conclusions did you come to after observing your subject(s)?

The short ethnography I wrote on Starbucks is titled, "Ethnography: Carnation Starbucks". When you read it, notice how many pictures you can make with the sensory notes. Your goal is to allow the reader to see what you saw, hear what you heard and so on. Try to get these details into your own ethnographies.

Writing Exercise:

1. From either the topic of a paper you wish to write, or a side-topic, select an object to observe.

2. Spend at least one hour in your observation period. Any less and you will not have enough data to do a good analysis of the subject. If you have to split your observations due to time constraints, try to alter the periods of observation so you can capture any variations you find. While observing, withhold judgments. Remember that you are only "a fly on the wall". Also, keep checking your senses and put these images in your notes for later review.

3. Write an ethnography on your observation, including the following information in your paper:

Hypothesis - What did you expect to learn from your subjects? Why did you choose this subject? (In my ethnography on Starbucks, this was the section titled "The Quest")

Observation - Describe what happened during your observation in essay form. Use imagery to create a richly textured section that allows the reader to "be there with you."

Conclusion - After the observation section, wrap up your essay with what you discovered from the analysis of your notes. What opinions did you form? What surprised you? What opinions did you start with that changed after your observation? Which stayed the same and why?

Have fun with this! Writing an ethnography is not only a great exercise in Engaged Writing, but it can also give you a depth of experience you can use for future writing projects.