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Steps in Participant Observation:
D. Integrating Data Collection and Analysis
• Organizing field notes into different types of files facilitates
data analysis
• Master field file – complete journal of field notes; number
pages and include entry dates
• Background, history file – subfile organizing background
material
• Key character files – subfiles on key players in the group
or organization
• Analytic files – subfiles for different types of observations
or relationships
Data Collection Methods:
2. In-depth Interviews
• Some studies cannot employ the participant observation
method
• E.g., Desroches’s study of bank robbers
• In-depth interviews allow participants to describe their
experiences and the meaning of events taking place in
their lives
• Verbatim quotes capture the language and meaning expressed by
participants
• Interviews are flexible and allow for probing
• Interview method is quite diverse, adaptive