Ethnoology In Qualitative Research

Absolutely, it is difficult to identify which method would best serve an intelligence study. In like manner, “Cline's folk theory of organizational design emphasized the difficulty of building and rebuilding the structure of the Intelligence Community over a long period of time”.1 The importance of theory in quantitative research begins with “interrelated set of constructs (or variables) formed into propositions, or hypotheses, that specify the relationship among variables (typically in terms of magnitude or direction)”. 2 In quantitative research, researchers often test theories as an explanation for answers to their questions, however, by comparing the use of theory in qualitative research is “more varied, the inquirer may generate a theory

In ethnography, you immerse yourself in the target participants’ environment to understand the goals, cultures, challenges, motivations, and themes that emerge.6 Ethnography has its roots in cultural anthropology where researchers immerse themselves within a culture, often for years! Rather than relying on interviews or surveys, you experience the environment first hand, and sometimes as a “participant observer.”8 For example, one way of uncovering the unmet needs of customers is to “follow them home” and observe them as they interact with the product. You don’t come armed with any hypotheses to necessarily test; rather, you’re looking to find out how a product is

Often interviews are conducted over weeks, months, or even years, but the final narrative doesn’t need to be in chronological order.10 Rather, it can be presented as a story (or narrative) with themes, and can reconcile conflicting stories and highlight the tensions and challenges which can be opportunities for innovation. For example, a narrative approach can be an appropriate method for building a persona. While a persona should be built using a mix of methods—including segmentation analysis from surveys—in-depth interviews with individuals in an identified persona can provide the details that help describe the culture, whether it’s a person living with Multiple Sclerosis, a prospective student applying for college, or a working mom.

When you want to describe an event, activity, or phenomenon, the aptly named phenomenological study is an appropriate qualitative method. In a phenomenological study, you use a combination of methods, such as conducting interviews, reading documents, watching videos, or visiting places and events, to understand the meaning participants place on whatever’s being examined.12 You rely on the participants’ own perspectives to provide insight into