`Getting Out' in Ethnography

Abstract

In ethnography and related qualitative research that relies on naturalistic observation or fieldwork, 'getting in', or accessing a research population or site, receives considerable attention, as do data collection and analysis and writing-up. Yet despite the recent increase in ethnographic publications and methodological sophistication across the globe, scant attention is paid to 'getting out', or leaving the field. The exploration in this article stems from unexpected challenges to 'getting out' that a team of nine researchers experienced during a five-year, five-city ethnographic research project in the USA. Given the growing emphasis on reflexivity in ethnography, the expanding mandates of institutional review boards, and the vigorous theoretical and methodological debates taking place in many countries, increased attention to 'getting out', from multiple theoretical and epistemological perspectives and locations, could enrich the ethnographic research enterprise.

Moments of homecoming among people with advanced dementia disease in a residential care facility

“…Reflecting on getting out of a field study is important and could be done from various perspectives (Iversen, 2009). As we studied residents with ADD the most urgent concern was leaving in a way that would not make them feel abandoned.…”

In the shadow of the ivory tower: An ethnographic study of neighborhood relations

“…The one factor that complicated the researcher's exit from the neighborhood -the small size of both the University and the community -was also the factor that facilitated her entry into the neighborhood. Consequently, rather than 'getting out' altogether (Iversen, 2009), the researcher simply took off her 'research hat' by sharing the findings with members of the community and the University.…”

A Qualitative Method Proposal for the Study of Strategy as Practice

“…Copious material has been written about different aspects related to the first and second moments. Authors have detailed methods to negotiate access to the field (Cunliffe & Alcadipani, 2016), to establish and maintain relations with the study population (Rosen, 1991), to write a diary (Emerson, Fretz, & Shaw, 1995), and to decide when to leave the field (Iversen, 2009). However, little has been published regarding data analysis and about the methods by which the researcher transforms their raw data into the final narrative in an intermediate moment (Snow et al, 2003).…”