Phenomenology and Ethnography essay

Phenomenology

The purpose of this method is to illuminate the specific component by identifying certain phenomena through the way they are perceived by corresponding actors in a situation. This approach can be applied to both deliberately selected samples and to single cases. This research aims to take deeper and further insights into the subject experiences.

Considering the types of research questions that are best answered by this method would be finding out the reason why something happened. The other possibility is to ask why certain tendencies or circumstances exist regarding certain process.

The data that are most appropriate for this method shall be rich, real, and very deep for better understanding of the explored subject. Considering the instruments of primary data collection, they can be, for example, various types of experiences of a person.

The data can be collected and analyzed by a participant or direct observation, work with documents, conducting interviews, and collecting physical artifacts. The most appropriate method that is used for the phenomenological analysis, however, is considered the case-study analysis.

Grounded Theory

The scientific method of grounded theory is concerned with the validation, elaboration, and generation of the theory of social science. Thus, the product discovered has to follow the canons of generalization, reproducibility and consistency. The purpose of grounded theory is to construct certain theories with the aim of understanding certain phenomena.

Considering the types of research questions that can be answered best by this method, is about the relations of a scholar's ideas to the existing data. For example, what if everything that the researcher feels, sees and thinks really fits the data reality? What is the situation in this case?

As for the types of data, the researcher needs to remember that his or her own ideas of what is going on really matches to what the data tell. All those hypotheses and theoretical explanations regarding the data shall be considered as preliminary, and shall be checked out against the data but never taken into the consideration as a simple fact.

Research procedures, such as data collection and its analysis, are aimed to give accuracy and precision to the explored topic. Thus, it is essential that the correct research procedures are followed, which will help to reach an accurate conclusion.

Haig (2005), when considering an appropriate method used for grounded theory analysis, considers the one that is associated with generating theories by appraising them. In other words, in this case we deal with the best explanation of inference, which philosophers reached. Thus, Haig (2005) calls this scientific method as 'abductive explanatory inferentialism'.

Ethnography

The purpose of the ethnographical method is the provision of a real way of looking at the researched question by applying cultural and social comprehension to the explored issue. This method provides many answers which shall be properly analyzed.

Ethnographical method includes a very strict data collection and analysis process by using the scientific method that would ensure that all of the findings are carefully examined.

The analysis of ethnographic data is not merely a compilation of anecdotal information. It is a systematic framework, which consists of various theoretical tools. Moreover, it is important that ethnographers are able to discuss their process of data analysis and be able to provide the details on how they are going to interpret the results of the collected data.

Appropriate methods that I would use for ethnographic analysis would be inductive interviews and participant observation. However, it is essential to remember that most of ethnographers usually utilize a number of various methodologies.