Research assistants play a very instrumental role in conducting researches at the field level. In their line of duty, they encounter a myriad of challenges in hardship areas that include informal settlements, arid and semi-arid areas, etc. This has posed a challenge to research assistants who are not assertive and thus soft hearted; as compared to…

This paper reports on the process of a participant observation. Its focus is its process, not on what was observed. This report provides the following: (1) an overview of this observation, (2) the purpose of this observation, (3) the site and situation of this observation, (4) two samples of reflective field notes from this observation, and (5) an…

The conduct of fieldwork is an adventure, a voyage into the unknown. The author has several times had the opportunity to reflect on his fieldwork, which was most often conducted among remote Indigenous groups, initially in Australia and then wider afield in Thailand, the Philippines, and Africa. He is struck by the significant amount of time,…

Qualitative research methodologies employed by the Center for the Study of Evaluation (CSE) Evaluation Use Project over the last six years are reviewed. The report is neither a paean to qualitative methods nor an attack upon them. It represents a self-examination by CSE of its attempts to apply qualitative techniques to an important, and…

The relation of research to politics is described in three stages: (1) securing the contract in response to a request for proposals (RFP) format; (2) conducting the actual field research on site and in a university setting; and (3) securing final sign off on the completed research product. A second purpose of this paper is to compare the…

This paper presents some insights about the rigors of ethnographic fieldwork gained in the conduct of an ethnographic study of the Muscogee people of Oklahoma (called "Creek" by European settlers). The difficulties and issues discussed include: (1) gaining entry; (2) selection of key informants; (3) ways informants tested the investigator; (4)…

This paper addresses the specific concerns of gaining entry into formal and complex organizational settings, specifically businesses, to conduct field research. Accounts of other researchers' experiences and the authors' own field data are analyzed and viewed within an open systems organizational framework. Through the use of metaphors relating to…

Conducting collaborative fieldwork between American researchers and foreign scholars in developing countries is a difficult prospect for political scientists. Yet, we can use our knowledge and position at an American university to contribute to the academic community in our areas of study and establish lasting personal and institutional ties with…

Presents a case study of anthropological field work in Jamaica to illustrate difficulties in carrying out this type of research. Argues that the anthropologist's failure to analyze and communicate field difficulties is a major barrier to establishing anthropology as an objective science. (MK)

This paper provides a general overview of the type of problems encountered in the field of research so that individuals who are contemplating conducting research in an underdeveloped country for the first time are better prepared, and hence, better able to complete their research. The paper recounts a female researcher's personal experiences in…

Comments on the preceding article by Bogdan, and discusses how to help college students in qualitative methods courses to develop analytic and synthetic skills in the presentation and formulation of research problems. (GC)

This report explores the field research experience of the Documentation and Technical Assistance Project, an activity of the Center for New Schools in Chicago, Illinois. Using ethnography as a major research tool, DTA studied nine school sites, documented information on how the schools solved problems to bring about school improvement; and…

It is difficult to conduct randomized field experiments. In the past decade, the use of alternative randomization plans and incentives has contributed to their operational feasibility; legal, ethical, and professional arguments for experimentation have matured; and expectations have become better aligned with practical constraints that are likely…

Four ethical problems arose during the conduct of a fieldwork investigation of the life experience of three student teachers: acquiring permission to begin the study; limits on digging into personal lives; pitfalls of collaborative research; and the endangerment of participant image or position as a result of personal revelation. (Author/GPM)

The desire to abolish the gap between research theory and classroom practice has sparked an increasing interest in field-based research among science educators. Although most researchers are aware of the standard meanings of informed consent and confidentiality, and there are some codes of ethical principles published by such groups as the…