Author Question: Which of the following are the general purposes of ethnographic research? (Select all that apply.) ... (Read 62 times)

cnetterville · **on:** Jul 8, 2018

Which of the following are the general purposes of ethnographic research? (Select all that apply.)

a. To describe events within a culture in the distant past
b. To describe a culture
c. To construct theories that explain cultural interactions
d. To measure the effect of living conditions on human care, health, and nursing process
e. To explore meanings of social actions against a cultural backdrop

Question 2

A research study about holiday celebrations is based on a philosophy or philosophical perspective.

In the analysis, the authors state that they reflected upon the data for several weeks, reading and re-reading interviews, in order to capture their meaning. Aside from descriptive statistics addressing the sample, the results are all presented in narrative form. Which of the following statements are true? (Select all that apply.)
a. The philosophy for the study is logical positivism.
b. The sample size was decided upon using power analysis.
c. In this method, meaning emerges from the data.
d. The data analysis process seems to be inductive.
e. The method was shaped by the authors' philosophical perspectives.

DylanD1323 · **Reply #1 on:** Jul 8, 2018

Answer to Question 1

ANS: B, E
Ethnographic research provides a framework for studying cultures. The word ethnography is derived by combining the Greek roots of ethno (folk or people) and graphy (picture or portrait). Ethnographies are the written reports of a culture from the perspectives of insiders. These reports were initially the products of anthropologists who studied primitive, foreign, or remote cultures. Now, however, a number of other disciplines, including social psychology, sociology, political science, education, and nursing, promote cultural research. Anthropologists seek to understand people: their ways of living, believing, acquiring information, transforming knowledge, and socializing the next generation. Studying a culture begins with the philosophical values of respecting, appreciating, and seeking to preserve the values and ways of life of the culture. The philosophical bases of ethnography are naturalism and respect for others. The purpose of anthropological research is to describe a culture and explore the meanings of social actions within cultures.

Answer to Question 2

ANS: C, D, E
Quantitative studies are based primarily on the philosophy of logical positivism that values logic, empirical data, and tightly controlled methods. Power analysis is a quantitative method of setting the sample size. Inductive thinking involves perceptually putting insights and pieces of information together and identifying abstract themes or working from the bottom up. From this inductive process, meanings emerge. In qualitative research, the philosophy directs the research questions and the collection and interpretation of the data.