Direct Observation and Ethnography

Nicolas Fischer (1)

1 CESDIP - Centre de recherches sociologiques sur le droit et les institutions pénales

Direct observation or ethnography is a qualitative method that consists in directly observing the social situation under study-for example, the implementation of a public policy-implying a physical presence of the researcher in the situation at hand. It is a demanding method in terms of the commitment it requires (long-term physical presence in the field, systematic note-taking). It is particularly useful to account for the reality of practices and interactions, at a distance from official discourse.

Mots clés: ethnography; direct observation; policy implementation; semi-structured interview; interactions; case study; qualitative method

Domaines: Sciences de l'Homme et Société; Science politique

Nicolas Fischer. Direct Observation and Ethnography. LIEPP Methods Brief n°8, 2023. ⟨hal-04097828⟩