POL 2156 Study Guide - Midterm Guide: Quota Sampling, Sampling Frame, Participant Observation
15 Apr 2017
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2 types of observational research: direct observation a) In order to avoid a situation where subjects alter their behaviour because they know they are being observed, the research has two options a. i) Ex. drug smuggling: context driven and less structured than direct observation = making it useful for descriptive and exploratory research f) Field notes are detailed descriptions of events and their subjective meaning. Who speaks to whom and for how long. What people do, who does what, who interacts with whom, who is not interacting. People who enter, leave and spend time at the observation site. Gain an understanding of: physical, social and cultural context of the participants. People"s behaviours and activities uncover factors important for understanding of the research problems that were unknown when the study was designed. Difficult to document all data that is important. Must rely on memory and personal discipline to write down and expand on observations.
