A Guide to Field Research

by Carol Bailey

This book is designed to assist undergraduate students and other beginning field researchers in carrying out their first qualitative studies. Its rich examples from classic ethnographies, as well as examples generated by the author herself, help bring alive the abstract principles of field research.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0803990588
• ISBN13: 9780803990586
• Release Date: August 1995
• Publisher: Sage Publications, Inc
• Length: 152 Pages
• Weight: 0.55 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.4" x 6.0" x 9.0"

Customer Reviews

Had to read it For a Class, Better Than Most on the Subject

I thought that this book was helpful. Bailey gives ten ways to analyze data collected during field research. She also has an extended discussion of ethics on the field. She gives many exmaples of situations where it would appear that it would be all right to break confidentiality, and then she says "no." Yet she does acknowledge extraordinary exceptions to the rule. Better than most books I have come across, this one helps a person to think through the possible circumstances that could come up during field research and ultimately, whether or not a person would want to do a certain project. Recommended.

A Guide to Field Research

"The Big Picture: A Guide to Field Research" gives the beginner researcher a manual to follow when conducting an ethnographic project. Carol Bailey uses real life examples throughout her book to illustrate ideas. The book is nicely written and easy to read with a subtitle for each new idea presented. Bailey explains step-by-step research strategies to guide the student ethnographer through the processes of "selecting a project" to "writing the final paper." This book covers fundamentals of field research and is a good guide for the student ethnographer. I would recommend reading this book prior to beginning any ethnographic field research project.