scholarly journals Doing digital ethnography in the digital age

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Annette Markham
Keyword(s):  
Social Research ◽  
Single Case ◽  
Social Contexts ◽  
Digital Culture ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Social Environments ◽  
Working Paper ◽  
Digital Devices ◽  
Starting Point ◽  
Key Issues

This working paper introduces key issues and challenges for ethnographic research of digitally saturated social environments, online social contexts, or digitally-mediated phenomena. It focuses on empirical approaches used by ethnographers and sociologists studying digital culture. In the context of digital social research, this may involve observing or collecting actual behaviors and actions in social networking platforms or studying use and interactions with and around digital devices, technologies, and media in naturalistic environments. It might also involve recording and observing in contrived settings, like workshops, focus groups, experiments, or interviews. The target of one’s study could include people in their physical forms or just data produced through human behaviors, movements, or flows of information. The study might seem small scale, whereby one is looking at a single case, instance, individual or small group, or largescale, when exploring patterns in aggregated datasets, analyzing upswells or shifts of interest in events or crisis, examining how ideas flow or emerge through various groups, platforms, or networks. With such a broad range of topics, approaches, choices, there will obviously be different theories, concepts, methods, ethics, and best practices. This paper provides a good starting point. It is a variation of a chapter for a forthcoming Handbook of Qualitative Research.

Indirect Assessment of Attitudes with Response-Time-Based Measures

2006 ◽  
Vol 37 (3) ◽  
pp. 131-139 ◽  
Author(s):  
Juliane Degner ◽  
Dirk Wentura ◽  
Klaus Rothermund
Keyword(s):  
Social Cognitive ◽  
Incremental Validity ◽  
Self Report ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Implicit Measures ◽  
Scale Theory ◽  
Starting Point ◽  
Self Reports ◽  
Predicting Behavior ◽  
Social Cognitive Theories

Abstract: We review research on response-latency based (“implicit”) measures of attitudes by examining what hopes and intentions researchers have associated with their usage. We identified the hopes of (1) gaining better measures of interindividual differences in attitudes as compared to self-report measures (quality hope); (2) better predicting behavior, or predicting other behaviors, as compared to self-reports (incremental validity hope); (3) linking social-cognitive theories more adequately to empirical research (theory-link hope). We argue that the third hope should be the starting point for using these measures. Any attempt to improve these measures should include the search for a small-scale theory that adequately explains the basic effects found with such a measure. To date, small-scale theories for different measures are not equally well developed.

Justifying the data analytical choice in single case research in relation to the expected data pattern

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rumen Manolov
Keyword(s):  
Data Analysis ◽  
Visual Analysis ◽  
Multilevel Models ◽  
Single Case ◽  
Analytical Techniques ◽  
Real Data ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Data User ◽  
Single Case Research ◽  
User Friendly

The lack of consensus regarding the most appropriate analytical techniques for single-case experimental designs data requires justifying the choice of any specific analytical option. The current text mentions some of the arguments, provided by methodologists and statisticians, in favor of several analytical techniques. Additionally, a small-scale literature review is performed in order to explore if and how applied researchers justify the analytical choices that they make. The review suggests that certain practices are not sufficiently explained. In order to improve the reporting regarding the data analytical decisions, it is proposed to choose and justify the data analytical approach prior to gathering the data. As a possible justification for data analysis plan, we propose using as a basis the expected the data pattern (specifically, the expectation about an improving baseline trend and about the immediate or progressive nature of the intervention effect). Although there are multiple alternatives for single-case data analysis, the current text focuses on visual analysis and multilevel models and illustrates an application of these analytical options with real data. User-friendly software is also developed.

Student Perceptions of Community: A Different Perspective

NASPA Journal ◽  
1998 ◽  
Vol 35 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jackie Clark ◽  
Joan Hirt
Keyword(s):  
Student Perceptions ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Research University ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Social Environments ◽  
Common Assumption ◽  
Small Communities ◽  
Public Research University ◽  
The Common ◽  
Using Data

The creation of small communities has been proposed as a way of enhancing the educational experience of students at large institutions. Using data from a survey of students living in large and small residences at a public research university, this study does not support the common assumption that small-scale social environments are more conducive to positive community life than large-scale social environments.

The Science and Art of Interviewing

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kathleen Gerson ◽  
Sarah Damaske
Keyword(s):  
Social Research ◽  
Research Question ◽  
Research Process ◽  
Social Contexts ◽  
Science And Art ◽  
The Social ◽  
Interview Guide ◽  
Hidden Patterns ◽  
User Friendly ◽  
Depth Interviews

Qualitative interviewing is one of the most widely used methods in social research, but it is arguably the least well understood. To address that gap, this book offers a theoretically rigorous, empirically rich, and user-friendly set of strategies for conceiving and conducting interview-based research. Much more than a how-to manual, the book shows why depth interviewing is an indispensable method for discovering and explaining the social world—shedding light on the hidden patterns and dynamics that take place within institutions, social contexts, relationships, and individual experiences. It offers a step-by-step guide through every stage in the research process, from initially formulating a question to developing arguments and presenting the results. To do this, the book shows how to develop a research question, decide on and find an appropriate sample, construct an interview guide, conduct probing and theoretically focused interviews, and systematically analyze the complex material that depth interviews provide—all in the service of finding and presenting important new empirical discoveries and theoretical insights. The book also lays out the ever-present but rarely discussed challenges that interviewers routinely encounter and then presents grounded, thoughtful ways to respond to them. By addressing the most heated debates about the scientific status of qualitative methods, the book demonstrates how depth interviewing makes unique and essential contributions to the research enterprise. With an emphasis on the integral relationship between carefully crafted research and theory building, the book offers a compelling vision for what the “interviewing imagination” can and should be.

Housing Evaluation Methodology in a Situation of Social Poverty to Guarantee Sustainable Cities: The Satisfaction Dimension for the Case of Mexico

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (20) ◽  
pp. 11199
Author(s):  
Pilar Mercader-Moyano ◽  
Oswaldo Morat-Pérez ◽  
Carmen Muñoz-González
Keyword(s):  
Social Inequality ◽  
Social Research ◽  
Theoretical Models ◽  
Evaluation Methodology ◽  
Social Aspects ◽  
Sustainable Cities ◽  
Starting Point ◽  
Emergency Scenarios ◽  
Urban Conditions ◽  
Qualitative Characteristics

Currently, one in eight people live in neighborhoods with social inequality and around one billion people live in precarious conditions. The significance of where and how to live and in what physical, spatial, social, and urban conditions has become very important for millions of families around the world because of mandatory confinement due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Today, many homes in poor condition do not meet the basic requirements for residential environments in the current framework. Theoretical models for the urban evaluation of this phenomenon are a necessary starting point for urban renewal and sustainability. This study aims to generate a model for evaluating homes in a situation of social inequality (hereinafter Vrs) with indicators on physical, spatial, environmental, and social aspects. The methodology used in this study evaluates housing, taking into consideration habitability factors (physical, spatial, and constructive characteristics), as well as the qualitative characteristics assessing the satisfaction of users with the adaptation and transformation of the housing and its surroundings. The application of 51 indicators distributed in four previous parameters was established for this study. This quantification identifies the deficiencies of the dwellings and sets the guidelines for the establishment of future rehabilitation policies for adapting the dwellings to current and emergency scenarios. The innovation of this study is the construction of a tool for social research surveys designed to include individual indicators from the dwellings’ users, to provide a more dependable representation of the problems found in Vrs. The results of this research identified the deficiencies of precarious housing and could be used for applying effective proposals for improvement of habitability and their surroundings in the future. Furthermore, the results showed that when all the indicators were considered, the level of lag reached would be similar to that of a real housing situation, further confirming the suitability of the methodology applied in this investigation.

Two facets of returnees’ entrepreneurship in Romania: Juxtaposing business owners and self-employed return migrants within a multi-method research framework

2021 ◽  
Vol 32 (2) ◽  
pp. 175-194
Author(s):  
Alin Croitoru
Keyword(s):  
Return Migration ◽  
Capital Accumulation ◽  
Social Research ◽  
Business Owners ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Self Employment ◽  
Original Survey ◽  
And Migration ◽  
Depth Interviews ◽  
European Migration

This paper contributes to the growing literature on the diversity of return migration by analysing the different types of small-scale entrepreneurship among returnees. Data from an original survey conducted among Romanian returnees and in-depth interviews with returnees in entrepreneurship are combined to reveal distinct profiles of returnee entrepreneurs and to illustrate their specific ways of thinking about entrepreneurship and migration. Currently, Romania is one of the most fertile settings to research intra-European return migration due to its important flows of temporary international migrants. The paper highlights that there are major differences between business owners and self-employed returnees in terms of entrepreneurship. Returnees who are business owners are those who benefited significantly more from migration than non-entrepreneur returnees—in terms of economic savings, human capital accumulation, and enhancement of their stocks of social capital; while returnees in self-employment reveal no significant differences for these migration outcomes compared to non-entrepreneur returnees. The distinction between the two groups of entrepreneurs has certain implications for origin states’ policies oriented towards stimulating return migration through programmes oriented towards returnees’ entrepreneurship. Keywords: Return Migration; Intra-European Migration; Entrepreneurship; Self-Employment; Multi-Method Social Research. „„„„ Articolul contribuie la literatura dedicată diversității migrației de revenire prin analiza unor tipuri diferite de antreprenoriat în rândul migranților reîntorși în țara de origine. Pentru a documenta profilurile specifice ale migranților care sunt antreprenori după revenire, sunt combinate date culese printr-un sondaj cu migranți reveniți în România și interviuri de profunzime cu migranți care au statutul de antreprenori după revenirea din străinătate. În prezent, România reprezintă unul dintre contextele excelente pentru cercetarea migrației de revenire datorită fluxurilor importante de migranți temporari internaționali. Lucrarea subliniază o serie de diferențe majore între migranții reveniți care au deschis mici afaceri și cei care lucrează pe cont propriu (de exemplu, sub formă de persoană fizică autorizată). Pe de o parte, migranții reveniți care dețin mici afaceri sunt cei care au beneficiat semnificativ mai mult din experiența de migrație comparativ cu reveniții non-antreprenori, în termeni de bani economisiți din migrație, acumulare de capital uman în străinătate și reconfigurarea capitalului social. Pe de altă parte, compararea profilurilor celor care lucrează pe cont propriu cu non-antreprenorii nu arată diferențe semnificative între cele două categorii în termeni de resurse acumulate prin experiența de migrație. Distincția dintre cele două tipuri de antreprenori poate avea implicații pentru politicile statelor de origine orientate către stimularea migrației de revenire prin programe centrate spre antreprenoriatul migranților reveniți. Cuvinte-cheie: migrație de revenire; migrație intra-europeană; antreprenoriat; angajare pe cont propriu; cercetare multi-metodă.

Informed Evaluation of Pathology Residency Programs

2000 ◽  
Vol 124 (6) ◽  
pp. 853-858
Author(s):  
Rebecca F. Yorke
Keyword(s):  
Web Sites ◽  
Recent Literature ◽  
Training Programs ◽  
Data Extraction ◽  
Clinical Pathology ◽  
Study Selection ◽  
Starting Point ◽  
Key Issues ◽  
Pathology Training ◽  
Pathology Education

Abstract Objectives.—To identify resources and summarize important issues in anatomic and clinical pathology training and to assist the pathology resident candidate in evaluating potential training programs. Data Sources.—Published guides for medical residency applicants, recent literature discussing pathology education, and World Wide Web sites. Study Selection.—Resources perceived by the author as valuable for the pathology resident candidate. Data Extraction.—Key issues in pathology education are identified. Data Synthesis.—Issues are discussed from the perspective of a pathology resident candidate, and resources for further information are provided. Conclusions.—The pathology residency candidate faces unique challenges in the residency search process because of the breadth of pathology training and the limited exposure to the practice of pathology in medical school. General guides for residency applicants include little discussion of pathology-specific issues. Recent literature discussing pathology education is fragmented but provides invaluable insights for resident candidates. This review seeks to identify a wide variety of issues and resources as a starting point for evaluating potential training programs.

On turbulent separation in the flow past a bluff body

1992 ◽  
Vol 241 ◽  
pp. 443-467 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Neish ◽  
F. T. Smith
Keyword(s):  
Large Scale ◽  
Bluff Body ◽  
Separated Flow ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Supporting Evidence ◽  
Turbulent Regime ◽  
Trailing Edge ◽  
Flow Past ◽  
Starting Point ◽  
Turbulence Factor

The basic model problem of separation as predicted by the time-mean boundary-layer equations is studied, with the Cebeci-Smith model for turbulent stresses. The changes between laminar and turbulent flow are investigated by means of a turbulence ‘factor’ which increases from zero for laminar flow to unity for the fully turbulent regime. With an attached-flow starting point, a small increase in the turbulence factor above zero is found to drive the separation singularity towards the trailing edge or rear stagnation point for flow past a circular cylinder, according to both computations and analysis. A separated-flow starting point is found to produce analogous behaviour for the separation point. These findings lead to the suggestion that large-scale separation need not occur at all in the fully turbulent regime at sufficiently high Reynolds number; instead, separation is of small scale, confined near the trailing edge. Comments on the generality of this suggestion are presented, along with some supporting evidence from other computations. Further, the small scale involved theoretically has values which seem reasonable in practical terms.

scholarly journals The World in the Post-Truth Era or How Too Much Love of TINA Will Kill You

2017 ◽  
Vol 1 (2) ◽  
pp. 7 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jarl K Kampen
Keyword(s):  
Fossil Fuels ◽  
Design Research ◽  
Social Research ◽  
Global Level ◽  
Global Context ◽  
Starting Point ◽  
Alternative Facts ◽  
Research Domains ◽  
Research Domain ◽  
The Eu

Aim: The temptation to provide simple answers to complex problems exists for politicians and scientists alike. This essay attempts to briefly outline the complexity of present day problems at global level, taking as a starting point the question “how quick will the EU collapse?” Design / Research methods: Brief discussions are given of separate yet interconnected, causally related and overlapping natural and social research domains, illustrating the need for qualified multidisciplinary spokesmen able to separate facts from “alternative facts.”Conclusions / findings:  Making the simple anthropological observation that people can choose policies that are self-destructive does not make social science politicized or value-biased. A society that considers global warming, depletion and pollution caused by fossil fuels as mere externalities makes a demonstrable erratic choice. Because one of the major goals of science is to establish (in)validity of “common sense,” it is duty of academics to tell our students that societies, including entire scientific departments, can make consistent erratic choices.Originality / value of the article: This essay may help scholars and practitioners to start to look at their research domain in a (much) wider global context.

Micro-Firms and the Margins of Entrepreneurship

2007 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. 281-292 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dieter Bögenhold ◽  
Uwe Fachinger
Keyword(s):  
Labour Market ◽  
Social Stratification ◽  
Integrated Approach ◽  
Small Business Owners ◽  
Wide Field ◽  
Job Seeking ◽  
Starting Point ◽  
Experimental Market ◽  
Key Issues ◽  
The One

This paper deals with the margins of entrepreneurship at which small business owners are working almost on their own with no or very few employees, and where some work for low returns and run firms that lack stability and/or prosperous dynamics. However, even the area of ‘entrepreneurship at the margins’ is a wide field, embracing not only the broad margins of entrepreneurship but also the fluid borders between entrepreneurship and the informal sector on the one side and the labour market system on the other. New firms – even those that are ultimately very successful – may be more or less created in an experimental market and product testing phase, in which business founders are still employed or registered as unemployed before becoming self-employed. In such cases, the practical starting-point of an entrepreneurial existence is part of a fluent continuum of different activities closely connected to the entrepreneur's sphere of dependent work as an employee or job-seeking during a period of unemployment. The paper addresses this area of entrepreneurship within an integrated framework, which combines entrepreneurship analysis with labour market research and studies on social stratification and social mobility. It contributes to the debate on entrepreneurship at the margins by combining selected empirical information on the case of Germany with conceptual ideas of a labour market perspective. The integrated approach highlights some key issues and raises further questions about the field of entrepreneurship.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document