Ethnographic studies aren’t always costly and time-consuming

Ethnographic research is a qualitative method where researchers observe and/or interact with a study’s participants in their real-life environment. Ethnography was popularised by anthropology but is used widely within the field of usability, user-centered design,?service design, and?organization architecture.

Ethnographic research help?understand how both a brand and its wider product category fit into people’s lives. Social networks like Facebook, Instagram, Linked In, Youtube, and Weixin, taking this a step further by providing powerful new ways to explore consumers’ lives and opinions demonstrated the effectiveness of the method.

This type of?research is often times associated with being time-consuming and costly, however, there has been a rise in researchers and designers taking a smart approach by learning information that will support their reasoning on a specific design problem. For instance, in order to study how a sales and marketing team operates, a usability consultant might conduct an ethnographic study by working and socializing with its employees and stakeholders for a month or two.

In contrast, this method also depends on the skill and experience of the?researcher?(the individual who designs, conducts, and analyses the study’s findings) and the?subject?i.e. it is possible that subjects may not act naturally during a short study which might, in turn, result in false positives.

Let us know your thoughts on small ethnographic research in the comments.

Click this link to learn how?Sokorro Group’s researchers use ethnographic research to reengineer?Camel International’s Sales & Marketing Department.

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