NCJ Number
166667
Journal
Substance Use & Misuse Volume: 32 Issue: 9 Dated: special issue (1997) Pages: 1155-1173
Date Published
1997
Length
19 pages
Annotation
An overview of ethnographic research is presented, key aspects of the research process and the underlying logic of ethnography's abductive epistemology are examined, ethnography is contrasted with the usual tradition of social research, and the use of ethnography and epidemiology in drug use research is discussed.
Abstract
Ethnography, the former province of anthropologists and sociologists, is now entering the mainstream of social research in the United States. One of the strengths of ethnography is the flexibility to adapt methods to historical contingencies. A process referred to as "frame resolution" is used to represent a holistic point of view and to show how larger frames are constructed to characterize group life. Ethnography is considered to be an alternative to social research, with differences in the two methods occurring at several levels. In the area of drug research, ethnography interacts with epidemiology to explain drug abuse. Ethnography is characterized as a sophisticated research approach, an approach whose rich points, grounded theories, and abductive logic typically challenge and complicate prior theoretical and programmatic frameworks. 19 references and 3 figures