Media Research in Applied Anthropology

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Media Research in Applied Anthropology

• Society for
• Applied Anthropology
• Wednesday, March 28, 2007

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Session Format

• Introduction to session Media Research in
  Applied Anthropology
• Presentations
• Amy Goldmacher, Wayne State
• Diane Pawlowski, Wayne State
• Themes
• Methods to consider and use from Anthropology
• Methods to consider and use from other
  disciplines
• Roundtable discussion

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Virtually an Anthropologist Negotiating
Distributed Work

• by
• Amy Goldmacher,
• PhD Candidate
• Wayne State University
• Department of Anthropology

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Virtually An Anthropologist

• How to conduct research project on distributed
  work?
• How to conduct a remote project remotely?
• How to research technology use in remote
  settings?
• What other methods should be considered?

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The Role of Culture in Managing Change in a
Global Auto. Co.

• Design a project using anthropological theory and
  methods
• Cultural ecology (Steward 1955) differences in
  work groups created and maintained by complex
  relationships among diverse populations (Baba
  1995)
• Change directed from the top down assumes
  organizational similarity

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Design and Methods

• Global Automotive (GA) undergoing several
  concurrent significant changes
• Regional reorganization
• Info. Tech. Svcs. (ITS) separation
• Change Management (CM) team (part of ITS)
• 8 members
• Participant observation (n7) and informal
  interviews (n3)
• Work group interdependencies
• Organizational cultural beliefs or values
• How culture enables or inhibits change

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Findings

• Interdependence of individuals, work groups, and
  work processes
• Coordination is important for connecting parts of
  org. system
• One part of system cannot be changed without
  affecting rest of the system
• Cultural beliefs and values
• Conflicting models mean no shared understanding
  about org. values across groups
• Differences in beliefs constrain implementation
  of change
• Supporting implementation of change will be
  unique to discrete groups because each work group
  and local work context is different

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Levels of Culture
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Limitations of the Study

• Not embedded in research context
• Project constrained by pace and content of
  academic course
• Conflicting demands of CM teams goals, methods,
  time, and budget
• Small sample size of study population
• Additional methods and analytical techniques
  would complement anthropological approach (and be
  more obvious to client)

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Virtually an Anthropologist

• Listserv Anthrodesign
• Members share common interest of applying
  ethnographic techniques and social sciences
  theory to industrial, software, and other types
  of product design
• Discussion on remote methods

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Remote Methods

• Digital photos
• Remote screen sharing
• Online usage diaries
• Casting participants as storytellers of their
  own narrative - e.g., the 17 haircut
• in the process of moving from a work around to a
  distinct research medium with its own
  conventions, strengths, weaknesses, and methods
• How you do it (method) vs. when and why you do it
  (theory)
• the more technological fields (HCI, product
  design) seem to be exploring remote or
  technologically-mediated methods

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The Virtual Ethnographer

• Ruhleder (2000)s description of two studies of
  technology-mediated work
• New work practices around shared online databases
  and video teleconferencing
• Ethnographers needed to develop technical
  competence in database
• Videotaping of videoconferences at multiple sites
  to capture multi-sited event
• Virtual classroom
• Participating in virtual forums
• Analyzing text archives
• Dull videos, but useful when participants
  think aloud
• Call for strong practice around virtual
  ethnography

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Ethnographers on the Run Working with the
Working Press?

• by
• Diane R. Pawlowski, PhD
• Wayne State University
• Department of Anthropology

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Why the interdisciplinary ill-will?

• Why dont reporters quote more anthropologists?
• Why dont they see anthropologists as experts?
  
• Why arent anthropologists recognized for our
  important research and knowledge?

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What can we teach, learn from each other?

• Need to finally recognize similar methods
• Both try giving voice to the voiceless
• When Anthropology fails to communicate
• Anthropologys voice muffled ?
• Informants voices stilled lost

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Provocative Anthropology-Journalism Parallels

• Both writing disciplines
• Journalists write to pay the rent
• Anthropologists write to pay academic dues
• Is this difference why we cloak our findings,
  almost hiding them from the general public?
• Do we fear only unlucky students, reviewers and
  editors ever read what we write?

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Anthropologys hidden role teaching journalists

• After Introductory, Cultural Anthropology
  courses
• Reporters cultural trend spotters
• Feature writers find, test, document new words
• Once written, new language enters the lexicon
• Their villages our cities, businesses, etc
• Reporters ethnographers on the run

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Finding new keys to open anthropological writing

• Nurture relationships with journalists
• Initiate joint collaborative projects
• Reporting history on the run? No way!
• its ethnography on the run

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A brief self-examination of anthropological
conscience

• Interviewing make interviewers uncomfortable
• No, theyre not doing it our waybut could we
  learn to be better ethnographers from reporters?
• Working press Working anthropologists share
  worlds of editors, deadlines
• No, we are not consummate experts!
• Anthropology does NOT have all the answers,
  but we can help reporters find good solutions

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Lessons anthropologists need to learn

• Reporters work on deadline
• they love scientists who will help them
• Anthropologists refusing access cause harm
• to cities, to individuals, to our discipline
• Collaboration and trusting relationships help
• both disciplines build a better world

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Open Discussion

• Questions?
• Methods of data collection and analysis to
  consider and use
• experimental or remote methods?
• when and why?
• Other disciplines methods?
• Global insecurities, global solutions, and
  applied anthropology in the 21st century?