The Advantages And Disadvantages Of Ethnographic Studies Media Essay

The Advantages And Disadvantages Of Ethnographic Studies Media Essay Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of adopting an ethnographic approach to the study of society. Answer with detailed reference to at least one ethnographic study. Essay outline: Introduction the ethnographic approach to the study of society has its advantages and disadvantages; some of the disadvantages can be avoided if the researcher is made aware of the risk of encountering them I will first try to define the ethnographic studies and then analyse this approach from different perspectives, namely regarding the researcher, the participants and, respectively, the research process and, thusly, the final result Contents definition of the ethnography and briefly naming a few distinctive characteristics of the ethnographic approach, which basically comprises conducting interviews and doing fieldwork three perspectives from which one could look at the advantages and disadvantages of adopting an ethnographic approach to the study of society: regarding the researcher time-consuming requires sustained effort and engagement personal safety of the researcher in peril however, it is rewarding regarding the subjects privacy preciseness of the information which could be affected either by the way the researcher records information, or by the participants themselves regarding the research process and, thus, affecting the final result, the complexity and accuracy of the information from the ethnography first hand data unavoidable subjectivity covert research issues related to social identities, which leads to prejudice data which cannot be generalised -practical use of ethnographic studies Conclusion Despite noting more possible flaws than strong points in using an ethnographic approach to study the social world which are due to the fact that the ethnographic approach is a more complex way of studying reality because it poses diverse problems offering a complex final study as well, its main advantage stands out: to describe and discuss in its complexity the way in which a part of society manifests itself. The Advantages and Disadvantages of Ethnographic Studies Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of adopting an ethnographic approach to the study of society. Answer with detailed reference to at least one ethnographic study. The grade of complexity and accuracy of the results of a social research depends on adopting the most appropriate method. Every research method has its advantages and disadvantages, this also being the case of ethnographies. However, some of the disadvantages can be avoided if the researcher is made aware of the risk of encountering them. In order to outline and discuss some of the most relevant characteristics of an ethnographic approach to the study of society, I will first try to define the ethnographic studies and then analyse this approach from different perspectives, namely regarding the researcher, the participants and, respectively, the research process and, thusly, the final result. The theoretical aspects presented throughout the essay will be supported with methodological observations from Sidewalk, Mitchell Duneiers ethnography of the people who earn a living on Sixth Avenue, in Greenwich Village. Before proceeding to analyse the characteristics of an ethnographic study, we should cast our attention on one general definitions of ethnography. One should bear in mind that there are multiple understandings of the ethnographic approach, influenced by different schools of thought (Atkinson and Hammersley, 2007). Nevertheless, the most complete definition of the ethnography I have encountered is the following: [E]thnography at least (in its minimal definition) is iterative-inductive research (that evolves in design through the study), drawing on a family of methods, involving direct and sustained contact with human agents, within the context of their daily lives (and cultures), watching what happens, listening to what is said, asking questions, and producing a richly written account that respects the irreducibility of human experience, that acknowledges the role of theory, as well as the researchers own role, and that views humans as part object/part subject (OReilly, 2005: 3). Therefore, by using an ethnographic approach to the study of society, the social researcher enters a particular social environment in order to understand the participants in-depth, also employing open-ended interviews with the help of which to comprehend more thoroughly the participants social behaviour. After having established the broad distinctive features of ethnographic studies, we can now look at the advantages and disadvantages of adopting this social research method from the perspective of the researcher itself, namely how conducting an ethnographic research influences him or her. Doing an ethnographic research is time consuming, requiring the fieldworker to spend enough time in order to be accepted into a particular social system and then observe and reliably interpret the social relations which develop in that specific environment, as an insider (OReilly, 2005), and so to understand other peoples own worldview (Taylor, 2002: 3); it is also important to regard the normal as unfamiliar (May, 2001: 157). The research Mitchell Duneier (2001) conducted for Sidewalk lasted, for example, more than four years. This aspect also enables ethnographers to conduct open research, such being the case for Duneier, as well, at the beginning of his research, according to the methodological s ection of Sidewalk: I had only approximate notions about what I would do with the data I collected and what I sought to learn (2001: 336); however, during his fieldwork the leading questions became clear. Engaging in doing ethnographic research has other consequences for the researcher as well. Having to adopt a different role than when using quantitative research methods, the researcher becomes instrumental in the process of collecting the data to be analysed (Padgett, 1998; Marshall and Rossman, 2006). Thus, doing fieldwork requires more effort and commitment from the researcher, as May argues: participant observation is the most personally demanding and analytically difficult method of social research to undertake (2001: 153). Furthermore, after collecting information, the ethnographer has to analyse it, so that to elaborate categories for the relevant social issues denoted by the subjects (Padgett, 1998). This happened to Duneier (2001) in the process of writing Sidewalk, when after spending two years studying Hakim, the main participant in the research, he realised, helped by the useful feedback given by Hakim after reading the manuscript of the study, that he had omitted several important aspects from the social life on the sidewalk. Another effect on the fieldworker discussed here is related to his or her personal safety. If dealing with dangerous subjects, and mainly if undergoing covert research, i.e. research that has not gained the full consent, and is not conducted with the full knowledge, of the participants (OReilly, 2005: 60), the safety of the fieldworker could be jeopardized, such being the case if one studies criminals or other deviant people, especially in their own environment. Moreover, in order to better understand the participants, the ethnographer could engage in dangerous activities, for example drug dealing or smuggling, or in activities which would normally be considered morally degrading if judged by the current social norms. Duneier (2001) could have decided, for example, to buy and consume drugs himself, like some of the participants; this, he could have thought, would have enabled him to better understand their perspective on society. As a conclusion to this section of the essay, one could note that the work of an ethnographer has more disadvantages than advantages. However, the researcher who engages in such an effort should be willing to make some sacrifices in order to achieve a more lively and accurate account of how a part of society functions, this being what ethnographies offer, some would argue. Furthermore, despite the possible inconvenients, the work of an ethnographer can be rewarding because ethnographic studies always have at least one named author. For example, Mitchell Duneier (2001) has received an award for his first ethnography, Slims Table, and also numerous critical acclaims for Sidewalk. The participants in an ethnographic research are affected in various ways by the admittance of the fieldworker in their social environment. One of the aspects which should be considered is the privacy of the people involved as subjects. It should be noted that in an ethnographic research, the right of human subjects to privacy comes into conflict with other rights such as the right of the public to know (Homan, 1991: 65). The main disadvantage for the subjects of ethnographies is that the researcher intrudes in their lives and perturbs them. Although this happens especially when the ethnographer overtly assumes the role of a participant observer, i.e. openly conducted research, he or she can consent and even enjoy taking part in an ethnographic study, as Hakim and Keith do, two participants in Duneiers ethnography. In this situation, however, in the case of interviews, the subject has the chance to present as clearly as possible the information the ethnographer wants to know, not bei ng constrained by pre-defined answers, even if this means that they can distort information (Padgett, 1998). In qualitative research projects, participants remain individualities in the final result of the study, this being the reason why an ethnographer should always seek informed consent for using the real identities of the people observed and exact information, as Duneier did: I have received permission to quote almost all the people who were taped without their knowledge (2001: 13). Mitchell Duneier (2001) made sure that the people presented in his ethnography were content with the way they were presented in the book by having several meetings with each of them in which he showed them the pictures and read them the passages in which they appeared. In case the participants do not agree with their identity being revealed, information about their lives can still be found in the ethnography; however, this poses ethical questions. The problem becomes more important when the researche r is a covert participant observer. In this case, the subject is not made aware of the fact that aspects of his or her life will be made public through an ethnography, this raising more ethical issues, as OReilly asserts: ethical considerations are arguably most likely to be overridden when research is covert (2005: 60). Finally, we will cast our attention on the positive and negative aspects of doing fieldwork and its result: the ethnographic study. In order to do so, it should be noted that adopting an ethnographic approach to the study of society implies participating in a natural process which takes place in a dynamic and unforeseen reality, where people act in different and complex ways (Padgett, 1998). Being a participant observer means collecting first hand data, a part exact, recorded by technical devices as tape recorders or photo cameras, another part filtered by the ethnographer (Bourgeois, 2002). Hence, de facto, writing an ethnographic study is a very subjective process, as Duneier admits: [l]ike all observers, I have my subjectivities. [†¦] [However,] I try to help the reader recognize the lens through which the reality is refracted (2001: 14). Subjectivity can be identified as well in the fact that the researcher observes only what is caught in his eyesight and has to select the g athered information. However, by using technical devices to accurately register the words of the participants, the level of subjectivity could diminish: the meanings of a culture are embodied, in part, in its language, which cannot be grasped by an outsider without attention to the choice and order of the words and sentences (Duneier, 2001: 339); therefore this possible disadvantage of the ethnographic approach can be eliminated. In order to be a good participant observer, one has to gain the trust of the other participants, either overtly or covertly. The advantage when researching covertly is that people can be observed in natural circumstances in their environment; however, this raises ethical issues. Undertaking overt research, as the case of Duneier in Sidewalk, has the advantage of being honest with the participants, but it influences the normal state of the social relations observed; in this particular situation, Duneier emphasises the fact that there are many things members of the different races will not say in one anothers presence (2001, 338). Hence, issues of social identity rise in cases similar to the one presented in Duneiers Sidewalk (2001): the differences of race, class and social status (and in other situations of age and sex as well) between the ethnographer and the participants in the research not only made the people observed be more reserved in what they told Duneier, but also posed pro blems to the ethnographer who had to surpass his prejudices which were due to his social background. This could affect the researchers goal [which] is to describe the symbols and values of such a culture without passing judgment based on his cultural context (Marshall and Rossman, 2006: 82). Another critique of the ethnographic approach is related to the qualities of the research process, to the unsystematic way of conducting the fieldwork and collecting data (Atkinson and Hammersley, 2007; Padgett, 1998). However, social life itself is guided by unknown laws which are not systematic, so this is an adaptive method of studying it. The critics would continue by stating that this approach [is] using small, non-representative samples to produce impressionistic findings vulnerable to almost any bias one could imagine (Padgett, 1998: 12). Nevertheless, ethnographic studies reveal and explain the complexity of the human relations in a limited particular environment, which goal Duneier (2001) achieves in his ethnography, after a long lasting labour and several versions of manuscripts. As Taylor writes, an ethnographic study is said to produce situated knowledge rather than universals and to capture the detail of social life (2002: 3) and, according to Gray, some critics argue th at the findings are inadequate in representativeness and generalisability, two key criteria of validity in sociological research (2003: 15). Moreover, due to the fact that ethnographies are the result of a researchers work carried throughout long periods of time, they show a more accurate image of society, unlike the quantitative methods which register the reality of a particular moment in time. Moreover, by having contact with the world the interviewee is referring to, the ethnographer can discern what is true or plausible in his or her statements (Weinberg, 2002). Furthermore, the researcher can also make use of information related to aspects of their lives which are considered unimportant by the research participant. Duneier (2001) recalls a situation when he was rendered confused by an interviewee, without his intention; the ethnographer could realise which was the real situation because of his findings. The last point to be highlighted in this essay regards the practical use of ethnographic studies in comparison to quantitative analysis. If the latter is more useful for developing strategies, the work of an ethnographer resembles more the work of a writer; its use is not often that of changing policies, one of its critiques being concerned with its lack of impact on policy-making and practice, its limited payoff in the everyday worlds of politics and work (Atkinson and Hammersley, 2007: 17). Duneier (2001) emphasises in Sidewalk the importance of using the conclusions drawn from the ethnography to change policies and prejudices; apart from the measure he suggests the authorities should take, Duneier states that only by understanding the rich social organization of the sidewalk, in all its complexity, might citizens and politicians appreciate how much is lost when we accept the idea that the presence of a few broken windows justifies tearing down the whole informal structure (2001: 3 15). Besides the ineffective attempt to change policies, ethnographies can determine the readers to think in a different manner about what is happening around them, i.e. to think sociologically; I would say that the use of ethnographies is more personal, as is their subject. After reading Sidewalk, for example, it is desirable that people should start looking at least at the street vendors and panhandlers with different eyes, not expressing ready-made assumptions about them. To conclude, in this essay I have analysed a small part of the possible advantages and disadvantages of adopting an ethnographic approach to the study of society. I have looked at the effects of the decision to employ this research method on the researcher him/herself, on the participants and on the process and result of the research, drawing on examples from Mitchell Duneiers Sidewalk (2001). Despite noting more possible flaws than strong points in using an ethnographic approach to study the social world which are due to the fact that the ethnographic approach is a more complex way of studying reality because it poses diverse problems, offering a complex final study as well, its main advantage stands out: to describe and discuss in its complexity the way in which a part of society manifests itself. Word count: 2399 Mark: 65 (Mid Upper 2nd)

Death Advantages vs Disadvantages

Death can be taken as an advantage or disadvantage, a blessing or a curse. It is an advantage or blessing as one is aware of his approaching death and can prepare himself for it. It is a disadvantage or a curse as since one is aware of approaching death, he realizes that human existence is pointless, which makes him unhappy, anxious and anguished. Among other things, Don DeLillo seems completely preoccupied with death and the difficult task of living with the knowledge of death in his novel White Noise. Rather than discuss the unavoidable mortality that connects all humankind with broad, generalized strokes, DeLillo is concerned with the particular late 20th century cultural and psychological mechanisms that attempt to define the unclear relationship between self and death. Perhaps, the character most responsive to death is Jack Gladney. Jack is so consumed by his fear of death that his ordinary thought processes are often interrupted by the question: â€Å"Who will die first† (DeLillo 15)? In Jack’s mind: â€Å"This question comes up from time to time, like where are the car keys† (DeLillo 15). Jack finds the aura of death to be very noticeable and real, and he relies on his consumer lifestyle as an escape from his fear of death. DeLillo uses Hitler to as a major component of his theme, death. Hitler has lived on past his death through the media. He lives because the Holocaust is probably the most tragic event in the history of the earth. In the novel Jack is obsessed with Hitler’s ability to live forever, Hitler’s power, Hitler’s self confidence, and the aura that surrounded Hitler and still surrounds Hitler. Jack is the total opposite of Hitler in the novel. He is terrified of death, has no power over anything in his life, and has zero self confidence. Jack has no way to capture these things, but through Hitler. Jack is a character with a major identity problem; Jack has no idea about who he is. No matter if a person is rich or poor, smart or foolish; he/she will sooner or later leave this world because of death. As no one can experience death until he/she dies, everyone fears it at some stage. For the most part, man fears death because he does not understand what death is, how it feels and if it is really the end of thought. On top of that, death is a stage of life, it does not mean the end of life – there may be a place where everyone goes when they are dead just as people go from teenagers to adulthood. Simply denying this fact is not the right route to take. DeLillo, through this novel, is trying to send a message to his readers that facing death is the best solution to its fear. Death is something beyond our control and so it is not a thing that we should worry that much about. Taking medication, and of course, killing others will not prevent death. Thinking and being afraid of death is an ordinary thing for a man to ponder about but too much can lead to more negatives than positives. Furthermore, taking a step to an unknown world can be extremely challenging for man. That is why they fear death so much. Fear of death does not prolong anyone’s life; in fact, it may shorten someone’s life. In the end, man must face death for all men are mortal. Babette, wife of Jack, is also a prime example of a person in life that suffers from her frequent fear of death. Both Jack and Babette fear death very much but their denial of this is very visible in chapter 20 when they had a long discussion in their bed. Both of them had informed the other that if it is their choice that they want to die first as if they are not afraid of death at all. â€Å"[Babette] says she wants to die first because she would feel unbearably lonely and sad without [Jack], especially if the children were grown and living elsewhere† (pg. 100). Jack also tells her more or less the same thing and they would argue whose death leaves a bigger hole in the other's life. By saying this, both of them want hope that they will at least seem to have no fear of death and thus can try to believe in it and avoid the fear. Unfortunately, this has not worked at all. Both of them have never felt less frightened from death even when they pretend they didn't. Babette says, â€Å"I do want to die first,†¦. But that doesn't mean I'm not afraid. I'm terribly afraid. I'm afraid all the time† (pg. 198). Her fear of death is further demonstrated when Babette by chance discovers an article about fear of death and she decides to go to the firm. Jack’s reaction to Babette’s fear seems misplaced. He is more upset that she could possibly be more afraid of death than him than he seemed to be about her sleeping with Mr. Gray. He goes on trying to tell Babette that maybe she isn’t sure that she is afraid of death, â€Å"death is so vague. † He tries to tell her that it might be her weight or height that is her problem. He cannot accept that she is scared of death. Much of this could stem that he depends on Babette mostly for psychological support. The major theme of the novel is that death lurks everywhere, especially in the White Noise of the modern world, specifically in the waves and radiation with which we surround ourselves. The airborne toxic event makes visible this submerged death, and also heightens Jack's already dominating fear of death when it infects his bloodstream. DeLillo outlines several possible solutions to humanity's natural fear of death: by embracing and confronting it, as Tibetans and other Eastern religions advise; by blocking fear through â€Å"mystical†; science, as Babette attempts through the drug Dylar; by using consumerism to deny it; and by ignoring it, although only Wilder seems able to do this, whereas in the hands of adults it becomes a weakened form of cruelty. We try to face death through crowds, through safety in numbers, but we must ultimately face death alone. Even to the end of the novel not much about the role of death in the eyes of Jack and Babette changes. The book ends when Wilder is crossing the road on his tricycle and cars are honking and swerving to not to hit the little boy while he is in a state of oblivion, he doesn’t hear the cars, and he doesn’t hear the women yelling at him to stop that’s all just White Noise to him. Suddenly he falls into a puddle off of his tricycle and begins to cry and he realizes that he brushed death for the first time. Throughout the story Wilder represented a kind of innocence not found in any character. He was the only one who was not concerned with death or dying, he didn’t even understand the concept of death. But soon his innocence fades away, and he becomes and starts thinking like everyone else surrounding him.

Medical Essay Topics Fundamentals Explained

Medical Essay Topics Fundamentals Explained The Appeal of Medical Essay Topics You might also get in touch with your writer to supply some added recommendations or request information regarding the order's progress. Also, introductions ought to be relevant to your healthcare essay topics to help you keep on track by offering the perfect answer. If you think that you'll hardly succeed making your own topic, consider looking for good ideas on the net, at resources that provide useful guidelines on effective essay writing strategies. If you wish to acquire high high quality research and thesis papers punctually and for a sensible price, you should probably attempt using EssaySupply.com. If a student plans to develop into a distinguished author of the health-related literature, it's important to select several relevant healthcare research difficulties and conduct independent studying to provide new solutions to the present problems. A superb topic can help you discover the field in the most efficient way and show your research abilities. Evaluating the topic can help to comprehend what the question requires and assists in providing the suitable answer. Finding an intriguing topic in the health care field is simpler than you think because so many facets of the medical profession lead to controversial troubles. What Does Medical Essay Topics Mean? At any time you catch yourself feeling captivated by an individu essay or article, take a good look at it. It's not sufficient to select a topic which everybody agrees on. When being requested to compose a controversial topic in the health care field, it might not be effortless to immediately produce an appropriate top ic. An excellent topic is essential for such a paper. Get the Scoop on Medical Essay Topics Before You're Too Late It's thus crucial for students to go through medical school essays examples to obtain a notion of what it is that they are predicted to do. Academic papers cannot contain any signals of plagiarism. Your paper must have a totally one-sided conclusion stating your own stance is good while that of your opponent is wholly bad. The main reason for writing such a paper isn't only to discuss it. Medicine and health is a complicated area of study. Life is far better than it was 50 decades ago. People need to be more cancer-aware today. Students ought to be permitted to pray in school. Because medical treatment differs widely around the Earth, there are a lot of comparison topics within the topic. Students aren't supposed to learn to compose a cause and effect essay alone. Yearly driving tests ought to be mandatory over a specific age. Of course, when you were g iven a very clear job to write on a specific topic you won't need to wreck your brains looking for something exciting and crucial to dwell on. If it's the very first time you're likely to use our article writing service, you most likely have plenty of questions. 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Naturally, you won't always have a true situation to discuss for each topic sometimes you must borrow ideas from different people or merely apply your imagination. In the standard sense, it should be your own idea against a standard assertion which you're attempting to dispel. For me, in case you go to the extent acknowledging that numerous things are good with what they're saying, then you've weakened your own argument. Ruthless Medical Essay Topics Strategies Exploited Teens should have to take parenting classes. Parents should speak to kids about drugs at a youthful age. Children spend the majority of their waking hours in school. They should be required to read more.

descartes Essay - 684 Words

Descartes—Meditation III nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;In Meditation III, Descartes presents his argument for the existence of God. He makes this argument here because it is one of his stronger arguments. In this essay, I will summarize and critically assess this argument. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;Descartes begins this meditation with a review of what he is certain of so far. He is skeptical of the existence of bodily things, but s certain that he exists and that he is a thinking thing. He decides that he could not be as certain of his existence unless all clear and distinct perceptions are certain. Therefore, whatever he perceives clearly and distinctly must be true. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;Descartes thought he was certain†¦show more content†¦nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;Descartes continues to reason that all ideas are really just thought. All ideas have the same amount of formal reality, so they are all equal. On the other hand, what these ideas actually represent differs. SO the reality of things they represent, their objective reality, differs as well. Therefore, the idea of the existence of God has more objective reality than the idea of a tree. A tree, in turn, has more objective reality than the idea of a color. Descartes comes to the conclusion that all of these ideas are just idea, and all have the same level of formal reality. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;Of all of Descartes arguments, I believe his arguments of formal and objective reality to be his weakest. My reason being that a tree, for example, exists. There are actual, physical components that make up a tree. Not just ideas. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;Descartes then continues to say that no effect can have a greater amount of reality than its cause. He means that everything that exists must be made to exist by something that has an equal or greater amount of reality. An example of this is that a small rock can be made by chipping it from a bigger rock. 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