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SAGE Journal User Guide

Article 1

McCurdy, P. & Uldam, J. (2014). Connecting participant observation positions: Toward a reflexive framework for studying social movements. Field Methods 26(1), 40-55.

1. What different approaches to participant observation are discussed in this article?
2. What approach to participant observation are the authors advocating?
3. What do they mean by “a reflexive framework” and why is it important?
4. What is the particular value of participant observation for studying social movements?

Article 2

Negrón, R. (August 2012 ) Audio recording everyday talk. Field Methods, 24(3), 292-309.

1. Why are direct recordings important for high quality fieldwork?
2. What is “everyday talk” and what is the value of recording “everyday talk”?
3. What different kinds of research and research situations are presented and discussed?
4. What is “informed consent,” why is it important, and how is informed consent managed in the situations described in this article?

Article 3

Fleming, J., Beresford, P., Bewley, C., Croft, S., Branfield, F. Postle, K., & Turner, M. (September 2014). Working together – innovative collaboration in social care research. Qualitative Social Work, (13(5),706-722.

1. What innovative approach to fieldwork is advocated in this article? Why?
2. What are the strengths and weaknesses of this form of collaborative fieldwork?
3. How does this approach affect the quality of qualitative data collected?
4. What particular skills are needed to undertake this kind of fieldwork?

Article 4

Smith, A. (June 2014). Old fieldwork, new ethnography: Taking the stories out of the bag. Qualitative Inquiry, 20(5), pp. 699-708.

1. What conflict is illustrated and discussed between open, emergent qualitative fieldwork and the “rules of the academy” that affect completing a dissertation?
2. What is meant by “taking stories out of the bag”?
3. What made the fieldwork experience so emotional?
4. How do memoir, poetry, and conversations intersect and interact as qualitative data?