Ethnography and Public Scholarship: Ethical Obligations, Tensions, and Opportunities

Session Type: Symposium

Abstract

Public scholarship has become an increasingly popular ideal. As researchers embrace emergent technologies and interact with diverse audiences, ethnography has the potential to contribute multiple perspectives to promote social justice. Public engagement, however, invites scrutiny. Recent examples involving scholars Alice Goffman and Sudhir Venkatesh illustrate the ambiguity of research ethics and potential backlash from critics. At issue are ethnographers’ unconventional practices and assumptions (epistemological, methodological, axiological), which frequently contrast with mainstream beliefs about research. The purpose of the session is to re-assess the ethical obligations, tensions, and opportunities of ethnography as public scholarship. The symposium explores issues such as representation of marginalized populations, compliance with regulatory agencies, protection of participants’ rights, and documentation and sharing of data.

Sub Unit

• Division D - Measurement and Research Methodology / Division D - Section 3: Qualitative Research Methods

Chair

• Antar Akari Tichavakunda, University of Southern California

Papers

• The Role of Ethnography as Ethical and Policy-Relevant Public Scholarship - Randall F. Clemens, Saint John's University; William G. Tierney, University of Southern California

• Going Digital: The Affordances and Ethical Challenges of Virtual Ethnographies - Jessica Nina Lester, Indiana University

• What Do We Want to Tell? And to Whom Do We Want to Tell It? The Ethnographer's Ethical Dilemma - Yvonna S. Lincoln, Texas A&M University - College Station

• Ethnography and the Role of Intersectionality and Complex Methodologies - Laurence Parker, University of Utah

• "Whales Tales, Dog Piles, and Beer Goggles" Redux: An Exploration of Ethnographic Ethics - Robert A. Rhoads, University of California - Los Angeles

Discussant

• Michelle Fine, City University of New York