Individual Field
Research
Project
Choose a social group to which you do not
belong (gender, age, racial, ethnic, religious, campus group, etc.) and
which
you will be able to observe in PUBLIC PLACES without endangering your
own
safety. This means that the group’s activities should not be based on
illegal
or criminal activities and that everyone should have (potential) access
to
these observations and not only, for example, the members of the social
group.
Every week for a total of six weeks, starting
after September 11, you will observe the
group of your choice for AT LEAST one hour per week without
manipulating or
intruding on the events. If the
group is relatively small and consists of steady members (e.g., a
religious
group), you should approach the group leader and ask for permission to
observe
the group for a limited time. Observations should be written down in as
much
detail as possible but make sure that all participants and observed
places
remain anonymous. All conversations should be quoted verbatim. DO NOT
USE
INDIRECT SPEECH! ALWAYS USE DIRECT SPEECH!
The fieldnotes
of one hour of observation should be AT LEAST 8 full pages long (typed and double-spaced;
insert page numbers!), i.e. each page
should have AT LEAST 24 lines (Times New Roman, 11 font). In addition, you should write an
analysis of your observations at the end of each set of fieldnotes
(notes on
notes). The analysis should be AT LEAST
one full page long, i.e., AT LEAST 24 lines (Times New
Roman, 11 font), and contain your ideas, hypotheses, assumptions,
impressions, etc.
You will first write a STATEMENT OF INTENT.
That is, you need to decide (1) which social group you want to study,
(2) what
your overall research topic will be, and (3) where you will observe
this group
(description of public places). Either compare subgroups of your chosen
social
group or different settings. For example, if you want to study ethnic
groups,
half of your group may observe Hispanics and the other half Asians. Or
if you
want to study homeless people, you might want to observe them on the
street in
the morning and in the evening, in the soup kitchen, around homeless
shelters,
etc. A comparison of subgroups and different settings will emphasize
the
similarities and differences between the subgroups and settings and,
therefore,
facilitate the analysis of the fieldnotes. The statement (typed and
double-spaced) is due on Wednesday, September 10, at noon at the latest
(place
the statements in my mailbox). I will comment on the statement and
might make
further suggestions.
Between September 12 and September 17, you
will write your first set of FIELDNOTES and ANALYSIS, which
will be due
on Wednesday, September 17, at noon (again, place the notes and
analysis in my
mailbox). I will review the fieldnotes and the analysis and return them
to you
with my comments.
Between September 19 and September 25, you
will write your second set of FIELDNOTES and ANALYSIS. Keep the
analysis
and the fieldnotes.
Between September 25 and October
1,
you will complete the
Between September 26 and October 2, you will
write your third set of FIELDNOTES and ANALYSIS. Keep the
analysis and
the fieldnotes.
Between October 3 and October 9, you will
write your fourth set of FIELDNOTES and ANALYSIS. Keep the
analysis and
the fieldnotes.
Between October 10 and October 16, you will
write your fifth set of FIELDNOTES and ANALYSIS. Keep the
analysis and
the fieldnotes.
Between October 17 and October 23, you will
write your sixth set of FIELDNOTES and ANALYSIS. Keep the
analysis and
the fieldnotes.
Between October 24 and November 6, you will
conduct, record, and transcribe two 30-minute INTERVIEWS with two
members of
your chosen social group. In addition, you will write NOTES surrounding
each
interview and an ANALYSIS of each interview. Your two
INTERVIEW NOTES and the ANALYSIS of the two interviews should
be AT LEAST one full page long each (i.e., AT LEAST 24 lines each,
Times New
Roman, 11 font). Keep the analyses, the interview notes, and the
interviews.
The following are guidelines for writing
INTERVIEW NOTES.
1. Write down the date and time of the interview, length of interview, and location of interview.
2. Describe the environment.
3. Describe the respondent in detail, i.e., age, gender, race, physical appearance, clothes, etc.
4. Make sure that all participants remain anonymous, i.e., use only pseudonyms as names.
5. Give your impression of the participant – (mental alertness, physical demeanor, etc.)
6. Describe events that seem noteworthy during the interview in chronological order (e.g., visits from other persons, interruptions, etc.)
7. Include any information that you think might be noteworthy.
Please refer to the summary table below for
the time table and due dates.
REMEMBER: Write down your name on
EVERYTHING you write! TYPE and DOUBLE-SPACE everything you write!
Decide on a topic and several subtopics for
your overall analysis of the fieldnotes and interviews. Do a literature
review
of your chosen research topic(s), start to re-analyze the data, go back
to the
literature, re-analyze your data, and so on, until a coherent picture
(a
theoretical model) emerges. Remember: evidence that does not fit into
the model
cannot be discarded. Rather, the model has to be changed until all the
data fit
into the model.
The final term paper will consist of an
academic literature review and the overall analysis of ALL fieldnotes
and
interviews with regard to your chosen research topic. It should be
15-20 pages
long (it can be longer if necessary), excluding references and the
appendix.
You should examine at least five different academic references
(academic books
or journal articles – not web sites), which should be included in the
paper. The paper is due on Thursday, December 4,
at 3 p.m. together with ALL sets of fieldnotes, interview notes,
interviews, and analyses as the appendix. For each accomplished task
(i.e.,
fieldnotes, interview notes, interviews, and analysis of your
fieldnotes and
interviews) you will earn points for your final grade for a total of
46% of
your final grade (see below).
Instructions
for submitting the term paper:
Place the term paper in an envelope or folder with
the research topic and your name on it. Place the appendix in a
separate
envelope or folder with your name on it. Get a large rubber band or a
string
and submit the term paper together with the appendix as one package.
I will grade the term paper
according to the following criteria:
Form
·
Is the paper
typed and double-spaced?
(Exception: lengthy quotes should be single-spaced and indented on both
sides.)
·
Is there a
title page that includes the
title, your name, and the course title?
·
Is the paper
organized in a logical way
(i.e. introduction, method, results, and conclusion)?
·
Were headings
and subheadings used?
·
Does the
paper have 1-inch margins on the
left, top, and bottom of the page and a 1.5-inch margin on the right
side of
the page?
·
Is the font
size either 11 or 12?
·
Except for
the title page, are all pages
numbered?
·
Does the
paper contain any grammar and
spelling errors?
Content
1.
Introduction
·
Describe your
research topic.
·
Explain why
it is important to
investigate this particular research topic.
·
Include a
brief literature review and
explain how your paper fits into previous theoretical or empirical
research or
goes beyond prior work in that area.
·
Give an
overview of your paper.
2. Method
·
Procedure:
Describe exactly what you did
to get your “data” (fieldnotes).
·
Setting:
Describe the setting(s) and the
people you observed.
·
Sample:
Describe the interview
respondents.
·
Analysis:
Describe what you did to
analyze the data.
3. Results
·
Describe your
findings in detail. Give
evidence from your fieldnotes/interviews to illustrate your points. Be
explicit! Quote from your fieldnotes/interviews.
·
Were you
surprised by any of your
findings? If yes, why? What did you discover that was different from
you
initial assumptions and preconceptions. Which findings confirmed your
initial
assumptions and preconceptions? It is possible that the analysis of one
set of
fieldnotes/interviews is not applicable to another set of
fieldnotes/interviews. In this case you should try to find the reasons
for the
discrepancies.
4. Conclusion
·
Present a
short summary of your major
findings and insights.
·
How do those
findings relate to past
research? Do they confirm or contradict prior research?
·
Make
suggestions for further research
based on your findings and, if appropriate, recommendations for social
policy
and practice.
5. References
·
List all the
articles and/or books that
are cited in the paper, using APA or ASA format (a minimum of five
academic
references – web sites do not count).
Oral presentations
of the research findings will be held on December 4. Students will be assigned a
specific time for their oral presentations, according to their research
topic.
If you encounter any problems pertaining to
this field research project (choosing a topic, writing the fieldnotes,
analyzing the fieldnotes, conducting the interviews, etc.) come and
talk to me.
Summary for Individual Field Research Project
|
Time Table |
Task |
Due Date |
Required Action |
% of Final Grade |
|
09/05-09/10 |
Write statement of intent. |
W, 09/10, at noon |
Place in my mailbox. |
1% statement |
|
09/12-09/17 |
Write 1st set of fieldnotes and analysis. |
W, 09/17, at noon |
Place in my mailbox. |
3.5% fieldnotes 1.5% analysis |
|
09/19-09/25 |
Write 2nd set of fieldnotes and analysis. |
Th, 09/25, at 3 p.m. |
Keep analysis and a copy of your fieldnotes. |
3.5% fieldnotes 1.5% analysis |
|
09/25-10/01 |
Complete IRB form and write informed consent form, demographic questions, and the interview guide. |
W, 10/01, at noon (earlier if possible) |
Place completed IRB form, informed consent form, demographic questions, and the interview guide in my mailbox; keep a copy. |
3% IRB |
|
09/26-10/02 |
Write 3rd set of fieldnotes and analysis. |
Th, 10/02, at 3 p.m. |
Keep analysis and a copy of your fieldnotes. |
3.5% fieldnotes 1.5% analysis |
|
10/03-10/09 |
Write 4th set of fieldnotes and analysis. |
Th, 10/09, at 3 p.m. |
Keep analysis and a copy of your fieldnotes. |
3.5% fieldnotes 1.5% analysis |
|
10/10-10/16 |
Write 5th set of fieldnotes and analysis. |
Th, 10/16, at 3 p.m. |
Keep a copy of the critique and analysis. |
3.5% fieldnotes 1.5% analysis |
|
10/17-10/23 |
Write 6th set of fieldnotes and analysis. |
Th, 10/23, at 3 p.m. |
Keep a copy of the critique and analysis. |
3.5% fieldnotes 1.5% analysis |
|
10/24-11/06 |
Conduct, record, and transcribe two 30-minute interviews; write separate interview notes and analyses for both interviews. |
Th, 11/06, at 3 p.m. |
Keep interview notes, analyses, and a copy of interviews. |
8% interviews 4% interview notes 4% analyses |
|
11/06-12/04 |
Finish writing of term paper. |
Th, 12/04, at 3 p.m. |
Submit term paper. |
30% paper |
|
12/04 |
Research presentation. |
Present research findings. |
10% presentation |
Recommended
Writing the term paper : Maimon, Peritz and Yancey; Bernard, pp. 87-92; Emerson, pp. 306-315
Oral presentation : Maimon, Peritz and Yancey: pp. 158-163