Observation and Institutional Ethnography: Helping Us to See Better

Observation is a staple data collection method, which is used in many qualitative approaches, including both traditional and institutional ethnographies. While observation is one of the most used data collection methods in traditional ethnography, less is written about its use by institutional ethnographers. Institutional ethnography is an approach to social research where the aim is to explicate how peoples' every activities are coordinated or ruled by different institutions. In this article we explore uses of observation as a data collection method, focusing on its use in institutional ethnography. We use examples from the health care literature to show how observation can be beneficial and help institutional ethnographers see better.

Automated summary

Observation is a commonly used data collection method in both traditional ethnography and institutional ethnography, but there is less written about its use in the latter. This article uses examples from healthcare literature to demonstrate how observation can be beneficial for institutional ethnographers in better understanding coordination of activities by different institutions.