Fieldnotes
Encyclopedia
Fieldnotes refer to various notes
recorded by scientist
s during or after their observation
of a specific phenomenon they are studying. Fieldnotes are particularly valued in descriptive sciences such as ethnography
, biology
, geology
, and archaeology
, each of which have long traditions in this area.
Emerson (1995) defines fieldnotes in ethnography (a term referring generally to descriptive writing in anthropology
, and also to subfield of sociology
) as 'accounts describing experiences and observations the researcher has made while participating in an intense and involved manner'. A key source, containing case materials about fieldnote writing—for example, about the relationship between fieldnotes and memory, and about the interconnections among field research process, fieldnotes and post-fieldwork ethnographic work—is the 1990 collection edited by Roger Sanjek, Fieldnotes: The Making of Anthropology.
Fieldnotes are one means employed by qualitative researchers whose main objective of any research is to try to understand the true perspectives of the subject being studied. Fieldnotes allow the researcher to access the subject and record what they observe in an unobtrusive manner.
However one major disadvantage is that field notes are recorded by an observer and are subject to (a) memory and (b) possibly, the conscious or unconscious bias of the observer.
NOTES
Natural orifice transluminal endoscopic surgery is an experimental surgical technique whereby "scarless" abdominal operations can be performed with an endoscope passed through a natural orifice then through an internal incision in the stomach, vagina, bladder or colon, thus avoiding any external...
recorded by scientist
Scientist
A scientist in a broad sense is one engaging in a systematic activity to acquire knowledge. In a more restricted sense, a scientist is an individual who uses the scientific method. The person may be an expert in one or more areas of science. This article focuses on the more restricted use of the word...
s during or after their observation
Observation
Observation is either an activity of a living being, such as a human, consisting of receiving knowledge of the outside world through the senses, or the recording of data using scientific instruments. The term may also refer to any data collected during this activity...
of a specific phenomenon they are studying. Fieldnotes are particularly valued in descriptive sciences such as ethnography
Ethnography
Ethnography is a qualitative method aimed to learn and understand cultural phenomena which reflect the knowledge and system of meanings guiding the life of a cultural group...
, biology
Biology
Biology is a natural science concerned with the study of life and living organisms, including their structure, function, growth, origin, evolution, distribution, and taxonomy. Biology is a vast subject containing many subdivisions, topics, and disciplines...
, geology
Geology
Geology is the science comprising the study of solid Earth, the rocks of which it is composed, and the processes by which it evolves. Geology gives insight into the history of the Earth, as it provides the primary evidence for plate tectonics, the evolutionary history of life, and past climates...
, and archaeology
Archaeology
Archaeology, or archeology , is the study of human society, primarily through the recovery and analysis of the material culture and environmental data that they have left behind, which includes artifacts, architecture, biofacts and cultural landscapes...
, each of which have long traditions in this area.
Emerson (1995) defines fieldnotes in ethnography (a term referring generally to descriptive writing in anthropology
Anthropology
Anthropology is the study of humanity. It has origins in the humanities, the natural sciences, and the social sciences. The term "anthropology" is from the Greek anthrōpos , "man", understood to mean mankind or humanity, and -logia , "discourse" or "study", and was first used in 1501 by German...
, and also to subfield of sociology
Sociology
Sociology is the study of society. It is a social science—a term with which it is sometimes synonymous—which uses various methods of empirical investigation and critical analysis to develop a body of knowledge about human social activity...
) as 'accounts describing experiences and observations the researcher has made while participating in an intense and involved manner'. A key source, containing case materials about fieldnote writing—for example, about the relationship between fieldnotes and memory, and about the interconnections among field research process, fieldnotes and post-fieldwork ethnographic work—is the 1990 collection edited by Roger Sanjek, Fieldnotes: The Making of Anthropology.
Fieldnotes are one means employed by qualitative researchers whose main objective of any research is to try to understand the true perspectives of the subject being studied. Fieldnotes allow the researcher to access the subject and record what they observe in an unobtrusive manner.
However one major disadvantage is that field notes are recorded by an observer and are subject to (a) memory and (b) possibly, the conscious or unconscious bias of the observer.
Example fieldnotes
- a photo-journal of some of my recent fieldwork in Basque dance
- FieldNotes: Notes on the Anthropology of British Columbia
Further reading
- Robert M. Emerson, Rachel I. Fretz, Linda L. Shaw, Writing Ethnographic Fieldnotes, University Of Chicago Press, 1995, ISBN 0-226-20681-5
- Roger Sanjek, Fieldnotes: The Making of Anthropology, Cornell University Press, 1990.