Participant Observation Sociology

Sociology Term Paper

Participant Observation in Social Research

Sheikh Daniyal Ahmed
BS Accounting and Finance
Section B
L14-5567

Executive Summary:

Participant observation is considered one of the most renowned methods of data collection in social research as the term perfectly collects a general opinion of the public as we see, sociologists all over the world confirm this as the gist of all qualitative research. It is the way to collect important information about a specific topic based upon the public eye. Various methods are subdivided by this type of observation as when fieldwork is required there are interviewing, questioning etc. The definition of this pertinent topic would be "the systematic description of events,
There are many reasons why a participant observation is seen as a very useful way to gather research. This is because you are taking part with the observation and would therefore be able to really get an insight into the topic you’re studying. Participant observation is what making sociologists think outside the box as there is this advantage of actually viewing people and learning first hand what this society is coming to and what its leading towards. This method of observation mostly relates more to Anthropology and Ethnology rather than to sociology, so moreover sociologists may not make use of this technique but may develop an upper hand by establishing this method as their main technique.

"Participant observation is the process enabling researchers to learn about the activities of the people under study in the natural setting through observing and participating in those activities. It provides the context for development of sampling guidelines and interview guides" (DeWalt and DeWalt, 2002) As both authors describe participant observation as observing and more importantly also participating in these natural settings to which overt participant observation is
"They provide researchers with ways to check for nonverbal expression of feelings, determine who interacts with whom, grasp how participants communicate with each other, and check for how much time is spent on various activities." (Schmuck, 1997). A certain boundary is always established when participation observation takes underway and it is the researchers limits that have the audacity to par this certain boundary or not. This method allows researchers to define terms used by participants during situation, events and practices. It also helps record specific information straight from the individual or group and that certain information maybe tallied with the ,if available, informant employed to gather information and from this we may be able to distinguish on the basis of proof that which argument was