Ethnography

Interpersonal Ethnography
Melissa M Mata
Communication II
November 14, 2012
Fresno City College

Interpersonal Ethnography The concept studied in this ethnography was based on my own interpersonal communication over a 24 hour period. Interpersonal communication is the process of sending and receiving information between two or more people. When studying my interpersonal communication I will be addressing characteristics, patterns, emotions and encounters displayed over the time period. Based on the encounters I engaged in during the 24 hour period, I would characterize &

define most of my encounters as personal and intimate conversations, whether it was felt on my

end, their end or both. I believe my own personal definition for communication involves one-on-

one or face-to-face involvement to have any impact on myself or the other party. During the

study I found that other conversations I had throughout the time period were not of value and

insignificant when there wasn’t a one-on-one or face-to-face connection. I put more value and

effort into communication when the setting and atmosphere was intimate and confidential. An

example is when looking at my Interpersonal Ethnography Graph, I noticed that five out of six

conversations took place within very close quarters.

Close quarters was one example of patterns I found during my evaluation. Another

revelation during the ethnography was the pattern of triggered emotion. Emotions ranged from

relaxation, worry, excitement, interest, confusion, discouragement and surprise just to name a

few. Without these felt emotions I more than likely would have found little value to these

occurrences. Another pattern I noticed was that I did a lot of listening. With the exception of the

conversation I had with my mother, I did little talking except when inquiring for additional

information. Listening, asking questions and gathering data helps me to really immerse myself