The Benefits of Ethnographic Research

The Benefits of Ethnographic Research To get to know your subject, one must be immersed with the subject in order to gain valuable information regarding the customs, culture, and systems of life from another culture other than your own. Immersing oneself can be a tedious project that lays ahead. But, if you are careful and well educated regarding the study of ethnography, then this task at hand should not be as tedious as one may think. Ethnography is the study of other cultures with clear and critical rules to engage interaction among non-Western societies. We will first describe the study of ethnography in this paper to form the basis of what ethnography really is as opposed to what the study could be. The study of ethnography has had three important changes in the formation of ethnography which will also be a focus in this discussion in this paper so that we can better understand and use the study of ethnography as anthropologists. There are similarities and differences between the three changes which will examined to fully gather the importance of the changes. We will also review an example of a real life ethnographic study to provide the discussion with evidence that the ethnographic study has clear rules and guidelines to describe other cultures. To add to our discussion, we will take an evaluation of ethnography whereby we will look at the pros and cons of using this method of inquiry. The purpose of this paper is to review the importance of learning the study of ethnography to do the best way to study other cultures other than our own which includes the participant observation method. The next section will define what ethnography is, how anthropologists use ethnography, and carefully discuss why anthropologists use ethnography when studying other cultures. The Study of Ethnography? We often take for granted the importance of learning about other cultures and peoples who live outside our communities, however, if there are efforts to learn about others, we can begin to understand the importance of similarities among human civilizations and societies. There is a study that studies the importance of other cultures as well as during the process we learn about ourselves. We come from a place of extravagance, where the modern world allows us Westerners to have everything at our disposal; therefore we must be cautious when we learn about other cultures especially from places with non-Western ways of doing things. There are however certain forms and guidelines that are used for this purpose specifically. These guidelines are developed by anthropologists who use these guidelines to study other peoples cultures in non-Western nations. Anthropologists determined that the study called ethnography would be the basis for studying other cultures than their own. Ethnography is the systematic study of other cultures by use of observation, participation- observation, and what I will coin the term, participation-observation-inclusion. Ethnography is mainly used to gather in a scientific manner the evidence to show that how and why groups of people chose to live as they do. Ethnography is more importantly used in purposes to perform a logical and laid out script to guide all ethnographic work. Some examples were provided in our textbook by Schultz. Ethnography is essentially the form of observation, whereby the anthropologist observes the actions, rituals, and customs of a society. Three Changes in Ethnography We have now examined and defined what ethnography is and why we use such a method of inquiry when studying other cultures that may differ vastly from our own ways. Early founding anthropologists used specifically observation to study cultures around the world which laid the foundation for learning about human culture, which lead to the first change in ethnography. The first change involved not being exclusively objective, rather they became aware of their biases. These early anthropologists knew that there were forms of subjective-ness in their works produced and published; therefore, partly tarnished. This first change also involved not being able to be completely invisible. The subjects were aware of the anthropologist studying them from afar (Schultz:2005). The second change come from the first change where the subjects were studied as above but the anthropologists also included participation of the subject. They were now aware of the benefits of asking questions in order to compare to the actually actions of the subjects. When we ask the participants, we are including the subjects with the research which is more sophisticated than just learning from a distance. Anthropologists using this method of inquiry became more susceptible to more information that helped them understand the similarities and differences of other cultures among ourselves. Lastly, the third major change in ethnography was the usage of multiple sites for locations of gathering information. Many anthropologists were unaware of the multiple sites of locations that participants participated in that this information of multiple sites may have been gathered when anthropologists asked participants questions of daily living. We have reviewed the three changes in ethnography and we can conclude that there are significant changes that led to the modern day ethnography that is still being perfected as we speak. Similarities and Differences of the Three Changes in Ethnography There are several similarities and differences among the changes of ethnography. The similarities are they all require the study of the subjects, they all still gather evidence to support their arguments, and the last similarity is that they all try their best to study the best way possible. The differences were lightly touched above but to get further in discussion, we can view the differences as ways of improving.   One major difference is that the first change and the second change came out of misleading society about other cultures.   The ramifications occurred due to the discriminatory practices from the outcome of the anthropologists.   Another difference is that the third change became more inclusive than the other previous two changes in ethnography. Both similarities and differences are important to outline to provide a critical overview of the topic of ethnography and its changes to improve the method of inquiry. Impacts of the Three Changes There were impacts of the three changes in the study of ethnography, which include having a more sound method of inquiry, more elaborate detailed descriptions of the societies they studied, and there is more sensitivity towards subjects.   The method of inquiry, participant observation, was improved with the three changes by ways of including participants themselves.   This allows the researcher/anthropologists to fully engulf their selves into the society they are studying. Previous anthropologists who laid the groundwork for anthropology were Malinowski and Varandeh (Classnotes:2010).   They both developed ethnographical fieldwork to better study the cultures they were interested in.   One major impact was the introduction to Reflexivity.   When an anthropologist is reflexive, they are more aware of their assumptions and position they are working and imposing on (Classnotes:2010).   An Example of Ethnography that should have utilized the Three Changes The anthropologist, Jean Briggs, studied the Utkuhikhalingmiut (Utku, for short) in northern Canada in efforts to gather ethnographic research (Schultz; 2005). She was inducted into the community however there was a misunderstanding that prevented her from proceeding with her ethnographic study.   The Utku were unable to fully communicate with the anthropologist and thus became frustrated with the anthropologists actions and misunderstandings.   In short the anthropologist had a very difficult time in gathering valuable information that she ended up seeking help from a local Utku who could help her with the communication process.   The anthropologist needed more than just the study of ethnography; Schultz suggests that there should be more work like this (2005).   The Utku is a great example of how the anthropologist should have utilized the three changes in ethnography, which are participant observation and multiple sites.   The example of the ethnographic study above was provided in this essay to provide a detailed explanation of how ethnography can still require improvements.   The use of sensitivity is critical to understand others regardless of different cultures or races.   The use of sensitivity allows researchers to understand that we are human beings with feelings, responses, and thoughts that the anthropologist would act very suspicious if there were no human effects of doing such research. For example, Briggs, the anthropologist discussed above, was not sensitive to the fact that these people of the north do speak a native language that would never have the same meanings in English.   So there should have been some sort of awareness of this prior to going out and doing fieldwork in ethnographic methods of inquiry.   Soon there will be educated native people performing ethnographical studies who enter into their own communities speaking their own languages that will make the ethnographic research more viable.   These three changes have had a great impact on ethnography. Critical Evaluation of Ethnography We have learned that there are three major changes in the way anthropologists conduct ethnographic research and that there must be an understanding from all areas of the research spectrum. Ethnography is the study of other cultures and there were significant changes in the way anthropologists perform observations of the other cultures.   These changes benefited mostly the society the anthropologists were studying but the anthropologists also gained a modified form of gathering information.   The impacts are important to study as well as the history of the ethnographic study whereby the impacts are also ways to improve the method of inquiry of other nations from the perspective of the anthropologist who happens to be subjected to Western ways of life.   The perspective of the anthropologist is now a function in the reflexive process.   Reflexive is the key to successful ethnographic research as now the research has a foundation to build on.   When the anthropologist includes their view of life and how it differs from the group they are studying, the work that is produced is more truthful.   Let me explain so that there is no confusion.   This is what we learned in other classes that there is a method called grounded approach.   The researcher goes back and forth between the researchers assumptions and the subjects evidence in order to compare and modify the results that are being recorded and published.   The grounded approach is a sensible way of conducting research by constantly checking and rechecking the data that is developed out of observation.   The grounded approach verifies information as it is being recorded, as there is no other way to take apart a cultures complex systems of living.   Overall, the ethnographic study of other cultures has many points that the evaluation of the three changes only proves that the study is improving. Conclusion   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   This paper has examined the use and benefits of utilizing the study of ethnography to better understand the world we live in and the people who live in this world.   There were three major changes that occurred over the course of the period of the development of ethnography, which included participant observation and multiple sites for gathering data.   These three changes gave ethnography the substance to continue as a valuable and trustworthy method of inquiry that all anthropologists should be aware of these three changes.   For a final thought, we should ask the subjects themselves which is the best method to inquire learning about their culture.

Cold war: bridging the gap to peace Essay -- essays research papers

Cold War: Bridging the Gap to Peace   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  One might argue that the Cold War divided the world which is still present today. It also pulled countries’ ties with other countries further apart. However, these people fail to realize that the main superpowers of the Cold War are closer together than ever before. Both The United States and Russia (former U.S.S.R.) are now working together to limit the number of strategic arms further from what was settled at SALT I and SALT II. There are also numerous other areas where both the United States and Russia have become closer in relations than ever before. This created a stable world peace for the time being.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The Arms Race in the Cold War brought about plenty of newly designed weapons capable of massive destruction. By 1969, both the United States and U.S.S.R. have developed over one thousand missiles to be used at their disposal. At the end of the Cold War and the fall of the U.S.S.R., both countries looked for ways to reduce the number of arms to prevent this atrocity from every happening again. In 1979, SALT-II was signed by the two countries but was lost over a quarrel over Afghanistan. What people don’t realize was that the talks resumed and created a new program to further limit the number of ICBMs and other weapons of mass destruction. This program was entitled START (Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty). Besides including the two countries, Soviet satellite countries joined the ...

Alternative communication system during disaster Essay

PSTN or the public switched telephone network is the prime network responsible for transmitting and receiving voice, fax and data. All government and private offices, police stations, fire stations, hospitals and majority of homes and business places are serviced by the PSTN line. . Amateur Radio operation does not use ground based infrastructure. Moreover these have limited power needs which can easily be met by batteries and generations. Therefore, it has been experienced that Amateur Radio has worked successfully when no other communication worked. A radio wave is an electromagnetic wave propagated by an antenna. The floods in 2004 in Assam and Bihar submerged telephone exchanges and damaged telephone exchanges thereby disrupting roads and railways communication. This is the reason why the district headquarters got totally out off from the state headquarters and neighbouring districts. A major natural disaster or emergency situation like earthquake, cyclone, flood, etc., leaves the public wired and wireless mobile telephone infrastructure damaged and non-functional. This is a transmission towers or disrupted power supply to operate telephone exchanges and cellular transmission towers also affect the radio communication network of police and civil authorities. Satellite based communication systems refer to communication systems designed for users on the earth but have some equipment in space called a satellite. Various jobs such as taking weather pictures or finding accurate positions are amongst the different job performed by different satellites. These are sometimes refered to as COSMAT’s and are essentially radio relay stations in space. Geo-stationary orbit satellites are stationed above the earth at a position around 36000 kms above the equator. The images of weather forecasts and cyclone observations that we see on our television are made with the help of images from weather satellites. A major disaster (flood, earthquake, etc.) or emergency situation affects telephone exchanges and communication networks thereby disconnecting the affected areas from other parts of the world. In such situations, the urgent needs of disaster affected population are not communicated to government authorities, voluntary organizations and other unaffected people. This result in severe loss of human lives, livestock, property etc. This situation calls for reliable alternate communication links, to ensure that the right resources are provided to the right people at the right time. Asynchronous Orbit Satellites – These satellites are positioned in the lowerorbits around the earth. These continuously change their position with respect to the earth. The different kinds of asynchronous orbit satellites are : a) Science satellites: These orbit in altitudes of 4800 to 9700 kms. These send their research data to earth via radio telemetry signals. b) Observation Satellites: These are used for tasks like search and rescue satellites, photography. These act as relay stations to rebroadcast emergency radio-beacon signals from a downed aircraft or ship in trouble. These orbit at altitudes from 480 to 970 kms. c) Global Positioning System Satellites: Orbiting at altitudes of 9600 to 19200 kms, these are used to determine in terms of latitude ad longitude to determine the exact geographic location. The two prime communication networks of government of India are NIC and BSNL. Following are the functions of them: NIC or the National Information Centre, an organization of the Government of India is a premier science and technology organization of the Government of India is a premier science and technology organization in the field of informat ics services and information technology applications. To facilitate information and communication applications in government departments at central, state and districts, it has established a nationwide ICT network i.e. NICNET. The Government has designated NICNET as the Government Network. It has gateway modes in Central Government Departments, 35 state and union territories secretariats and 602 district collect orates of India for IT services. BSNL : The Department of Telephone Operations, Government of India was incorporated on 1st October, 2000 and was named Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited. BSNL is today the largest public sector undertaking in India with a network of over 45 million lines, covering 5000 towns with over 35 million telephone connections, it has become the country’s leading telecommunication company expansion of telecom network, improvement of the quality of telecom in rural areas are some of its major responsibilities.

When to Walk Away

When to Walk Away A few years ago I saw an announcement for the Tony Hillerman contest. Named after the great mystery novelist, the contest has very specific rules, including where the novel must take place. The winner receives a publishing contract with St. Martins and a nice advance. With the deadline three months away, I dove in and wrote Wink of an Eye like a madwoman. But forty-thousand words into the manuscript, I realized there was no way I could complete it, have it edited, and polish it for submission in such a short time. I was not going to submit a very rough first draft. So I chucked the contest but kept the manuscript, kept working with it, hoping to submit somewhere, someday. My critique group edited the story, but I wound up shelving the book for a while as I moved on to other projects. Then two years ago at a conference, I had the opportunity to pitch to an agent. The agent loved Wink of an Eye, saying the voice had tremendous potential. But her next words made me blink. â€Å"I know I can sell this to a small press.† At the risk of sounding arrogant, I knew I could sell it to a small press. But when the agent told me to send the entire manuscript, excitement urged me to oblige. A week or so later, I received an email from the agency intern saying, yes, she loved it too! But we had a few problems. Good voice, but too much dialogue. Excessive description because it was too visual; per the intern, having readers say they can â€Å"see it as a movie† isnt a good thing. Oh, and the beginning had to change. But they loved it and knew it would sell to any number of small presses. I scratched my head at what was supposed to be my big break. A real agent wanted to represent my work. So why wasnt I doing back flips? I went to work on the suggested revisions and soon had several documents named Wink rewrite, Wink rewrite2, Wink rewrite3, and so on . . . until I said enough. Some of the changes I agreed with- like changing a passive verb- but the dialogue and descriptive imagery stayed. This story was my ba So what happened to Wink of an Eye? I submitted it to the St. Martins Press/Minotaur Books Best 1st Private Eye Novel Competition and the darn thing won. With all its dialogue and descriptive imagery and even the occasional passive voice. It will be released November 18, 2014. I knew I had something good, and I stood

New Role for Women in the Early Church Essays

New Role for Women in the Early Church Essays New Role for Women in the Early Church Essay New Role for Women in the Early Church Essay Church History I Theme Report New Role for Women in the Early Church This theme report analyzes how Jesus sent a new revolutionary message laying the groundwork for the elevation of the social status of women in the early church. The cultural norm of the day was that women were restricted to subordinate roles in society and the church. Jesus broke boundaries in his dealing with women and led his disciples to challenge those same boundaries as they took over leadership of the church. Luke’s Gospel story of Jesus in the home of Martha and Mary tells how Jesus was on the side f recognizing the full personhood of women. Mary’s sitting at Jesus feet in Luke 10:39 shows a violation of the social norms of the day. â€Å"She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet listening to what he said. † Lesly Massey states in her book, Women and the New Testament, of critical importance is the fact that Jesus would be willing to sit in conversation with women in such a manner, or that he might have instructed them privately as a rabbi might instruct a promising student. This very fact, regardless of the spiritual depth of their talk, reveals an attitude toward women which was ncommon among Jews of Jesus day and reflective of his revolutionary manner. Massey asserts that Jesus is rejecting the second-class status of women in his society because according to the social laws of the day, only men were supposed to sit at the feet of a religious teacher and listen to his teaching. Women were supposed to stay out of sight and appear only to wait on the men. Jesus clearly rejects this double standard laying the groundwork for the elevation of women to a higher status in the new Christian church. According to the Gospels, the world was changing in 1st century Palestine, Martha and Mary represented the growing number of people who were responding to Jesus teachings. Both sisters attentiveness to Jesus as a guest in their house was not only an act of hospitality, but also a sign that they sought to understand his teachings. Their attentiveness shows the sisters as part of the movement as learners. † 1 The take away here is that this story does not show subordination of women and it shows boundaries being broken. Another insight on the same story with a focus on Martha is Satoko Yamaguchi’s Mary and Martha: Women in the World of Jesus, Yamaguchi identifies Martha as the leader of a house-church, that is, someone who cares for the practicalities needed for Jesus and his disciples to meet at her home. According to Yamaguchi â€Å"the context of the scripture implies that she frequently welcomed traveling missionaries and gave them food, shelter and possibly even financial support. In other words, Martha was one of the first church administrators (in Christian parlance, ad-minister is taken to mean in the service of ministry). Scholars now recognize that without women such as Martha to provide material support, the traveling ministry of Jesus and his followers could not have happened as effectively. † 2 Another theologian, Bonnie Thurston in Women in the New Testament says: â€Å"as I read the Gospels, under the reign of God, men and women are intended to work together in a discipleship of equals†. Thurston cites Constance Parvey’s essay â€Å"The Theology and Leadership of Women In The New Testament† in Religion and Sexism and states that â€Å"The New Testament gives two messages with regard to women. First it presents a theology of equality in Christ, a vision of equality on the theological level. But in practical parenesis many New Testament passages support woman’s subordination; that is they present a status quo ethic on the social level. Part of the power of Jesus’ proclamation of the reign of God had to do with the fact that it ushered in an entirely new mode of human existence. The fact that Jesus broke boundaries in his dealing with people led his disciples to challenge those same boundaries in their dealings with each other†. 3 Summary In the earliest days of the church, Jesus was taking steps to elevate women above their subordinate roles which was the not the cultural norm of his time. In Luke’s story of Jesus at the house of Martha and Mary, Jesus broke boundaries and broke with the status quo. The two sisters were full participants in his ministry and study. Mary elevated herself above her subordinate role by sitting at the feet of Jesus, clearly a sign of the elevation of women to a higher status in the new Christian church. Martha becomes a church leader by offering her house as a home church and by assisting in the traveling ministry of Jesus and his entourage. This story and the assertions of theologians quoted above shows Jesus breaking boundaries and breaking the cultural norms of the day which was to put women in a subordinate role unequal to men. 1 Lesly F. Massey, Women and the New Testament: An Analysis of Scripture in Light of New Testament Era Culture (Jefferson, N. C. : McFarland Co. , 1977, 19 2 Satoko Yamaguchi, Mary and Martha: Women in the World of Jesus (Maryknoll, N. Y. : Orbis Books, 2002, 46-47. 3 Bonnie Thurston, Women in the New Testament Questions and Commentary (New York, N. Y. : Crossroad Publishing Company, 1998, 160-161.

Germanys Healthcare System Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3750 words

Germanys Healthcare System - Research Paper Example While it is a system not without faults, numbers do reveal it succeeds in enhancing overall quality of life where other systems fail. Some noted factors of why this system has worked so well can be seen in the fact the system is not a government run plan but a mandatory system carried by extracting funds directly from the workers. Regulations put forth by the government to maintain quality of care and services, but in some cases these regulations fail to serve their purpose. In all when the system is assessed alongside many countries who have similar plans and those who currently avoid a public option Germany proves to be a benchmark when it comes to healthcare. Germany notably has the oldest universal health care system in the world (Geyer, 2009). Everyone in Germany is promised high-quality comprehensive health care and over 90% of the population is covered under the universal option. Statutory health insurance has provided structure for the release of public health care, and has molded the payers positions, insurance, illness funds, suppliers, physicians, and hospitals since the Health Insurance Action was taken on in 1883. In 1885, medical defense has been provided for 26 per cent of the lower-paid labor force departments, or 10 per cent of their habitants. As with social insurance, health insurance exposure was gradually widened by including more work-related groups in the plan and by progressively lifting up the profits ceiling. In Richard Knox's article "Most Patience Happy with German Health Care," he talks about the German Health Care system and points out how it has matched up with Health Care provided in other countries over the years. In the article he notes, "The health care system that takes such good care of its citizens is not funded by government taxes. But it is compulsory (Knox, 2008)" Here Knox points out how it is a mandatory requirement for all citizens to have health care. Germany's system has historically become the benchmark for universal healthcare.This is the core element of the German Health Care System that defines what the world recognizes universal health care to be today.Germany's Plan Verses the U.S. Germany has caused many to make comparisons pertaining to healthcare systems. In most cases health statistics between Germany and the US don't match up and Germany wins out. When looking at the World Health Organization's Core Health Indicators, Germany has an 80year life expectancy to the United States' 78year life expectancy. Hospital beds available per 10000 people is 83 in Germany while it's 32 in the US, and there are 34 physicians per 10000 people in Germany verses the United States' 26.What are the socioeconomics of the population Are there population problems Germany has over 81 million inhabitants, with over 230 inhabitants per square kilometer. Urbanization is a major part of the population resting at a high

Google Case Study Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Google Case Study - Essay Example Employees at Google work in teams, and are rarely assigned to an independent office.   In fact, even cubicles are frowned upon.   Teams are encourage to work together in what is dubbed ‘cubes, yurts, and huddle rooms’ where each person can share ideas with one another.   There is no competition to do better than the next person, as the teams success is what really matters.   To engage employees, the atmosphere is pleasant and conducive to discussions and conversations taking place everywhere.   Even going from one place to another within the same facility is made a bit entertaining, and time efficient, as bicycles or scooters are provided throughout.   In addi-tion, there are items such as lava lamps, massage chairs, and large inflatable balls to help em-ployees feel comfortable in whatever work environment they may find themselves in.   Google is also different from many large companies in that all levels of staff are really treated equally.   In fact, e ven new employees are encouraged to make decisions that even upper management will buy into.   Upper managers are approachable and do not use titles.   In essence, Google is naturally like any other company in that they have a hierarchy and system of seniority, but it is not utilised in the daily decision making process.   If one individual needs assistance, they will engage the employee that they feel can provide them with the best possible assistance, without considering one’s actual job title or time of service with the company.   This has worked to fully engage em-ployees that work for Google.