ethnographic essay

15 Great Ethnography Examples

Chris Drew (PhD)

Dr. Chris Drew is the founder of the Helpful Professor. He holds a PhD in education and has published over 20 articles in scholarly journals. He is the former editor of the Journal of Learning Development in Higher Education. [Image Descriptor: Photo of Chris]

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ethnography examples and definition, explained below

Ethnography is a research method that involves embedding yourself in the environment of a group or community and recording what you observe. It often involves the researcher living in the community being studied. This leads to a much richer understanding of the people being examined than doing quantitative research.

The thing I love about ethnography is that it paints a thorough picture of people’s lives. It is, in its own way, the most raw, honest, and detailed form of academic research.

In my previous blog posts, I have discussed my admiration for thick description as a way to pierce beyond stereotypes and view the world through the lens of our subjects.

And there’s no doubt that ethnographic research has helped us learn so much more about how people navigate their cultural circumstances.

Below are some examples of ethnography – both abstract (with the hope that it helps students think about some ways they can do ethnography) and real-life (with the hope that you will read some inspiring ethnographic studies).

Ethnography Examples

To start, here are some ways you could potentially do ethnography:

Ethnography of Indigenous People: There are many examples of ethnographic studies that look at indigenous cultures and how they’re similar or different to Western culture. Beware of the trap of colonialism during this work.
Mundane Ethnography: Remember, ethnography doesn’t have to happen in a far off land. You can do autoethnography where you study yourself , or a study of somewhere very banal, like your workplace or home.
Educational Ethnography: There is a rich history of teachers and researchers using ethnographic methods in classrooms to explore how learning happens.
Ethnography in a Shop: Be the ethnographer within a supermarket by interacting with the people there on a daily basis (maybe as the cashier) and observe how people interact and collide within the space.
Working-Class and Immigrant Ethnography: Many sociologists use ethnographic methods to take an inside look at how people on the margins of society grapple with global concepts like capitalism, globalization, and race.
Digital Ethnography: Since the rise of the internet, there have been many researchers interested in the digital lives of people. Some of my favorite studies have revealed how we create our identities online.

My Favorite Ethnographic Research Books

1. learning to labour.

Author: Paul Willis

One of my favorite ethnographic works, Learning to Labour follows working-class ‘lads’ in the British Midlands as they participate in counter-cultural and ‘anti-social’ behaviors.

The most fascinating aspect of this book is the rich elucidation of how these working-class boys reject narratives of upward mobility and revel in rejecting mental work at school. But at the same time, they create their own value hierarchies.

In fact, the boys don’t even leave school when they are legally allowed, despite giving a veneer of being anti-school. Instead, they remain there, because there is their own social and even educational value they can get out of it. They prize the manual labor they do in class and, after leaving school, continue to prize physical labor in the workplace while deriding and dismissing mental labor.

2. Being Maori in the City

Author: Natacha Gagné

When indigenous people live in urban environments, their authenticity as indigenous peoples is often brought into question.

Thus, Gagné’s examination of Maori identity in Auckland presents a valuable insight into how people continue to live out their indigenous identities in a changing, urbanized, and colonized landscape.

Gagné spent two years living with Maori people in Auckland and highlights in the book how their identity continues to be central to how they interact both with one another and with broader society.

3. Ethnography of a Neoliberal School

Author: Garth Stahl

While a wide range of academic research has looked at how neoliberalism can affect education, an ethnographic approach allows Stahl to demonstrate how it turns up as lived experience.

Neoliberalism is an approach to governance that focuses on the corporatization of society. In education, this means that schools should be run like companies.

There is no better example, of course, than charter schools .

In my favorite chapter, Stahl demonstrates within one anonymized charter school how teachers are increasingly subjected to performance quotas, KPIs, and governance that narrow down the purpose of education and give them very little freedom to exercise their expertise and provide individualized support to their students.

4. Coming of Age in Samoa

Author: Margaret Mead

Margaret Mead’s groundbreaking ethnography, Coming of Age in Samoa , had implications for two important reasons:

It highlighted the importance of feminist perspectives in ethnographic research.
It challenged a universalizing stage-based conceptualization of human development.

Mead’s work was conducted at a time when the Western world was in a moral panic about adolescents’ stress and emotional behaviors. The prevailing idea – promoted mainly by male psychologists – was that most of those behaviors were a natural part of the developmental cycle.

Mead, however, saw that female Samoan adolescents had much different experiences of adolescence and would not have fitted into the western mold of how a female adolescent would behave or be treated.

The Samoan society’s liberal ideas around intimacy and the lower levels of academic stress placed on the girls meant they lived very different realities with far less stress and social pressure than their Western counterparts.

5. Ghetto at the Center of the World

Author: Gordon Mathews

Mathews’s Ghetto at the Center of the World explores a multiethnic high-density housing complex in Hong Kong.

While seen by many locals as a ghetto (despite its relative safety!), Mathews shows how the motley group of residents, migrants, and tourists in the building live rich lives at what appears to be ground zero of globalization.

For the people in the building, globalization has offered opportunities but hasn’t solved all their problems. Each person that Mathews follows has their own story of how they navigate a globalized world while maintaining hope for a better future.

Additional Influential Ethnographic Studies

Argonauts of the Western Pacific – This study was notable because it presented a turn toward participant observation in ethnography rather than attempts at fly-on-the-wall objectivity.
The Remembered Village – A study of caste systems in India, this study is most notable for its methodological influence. Srinivas, the author, lost his field notes, but he continued on with presenting his findings, causing widespread controversy about its methodological merits.
Space and Society in Central Brazil – This study explores the experiences of the Panará indigenous people of Brazil as they attempt to secure protected space from the colonialization occurring around them. It’s notable for its insights into how the Panará people organize themselves both culturally and spatially.
White Bound – This book follows two groups, a white anti-racist group and a white nationalist group, and explores how each deals with whiteness. While the groups have fundamentally different goals, even the anti-racist group continue to contribute to white privilege .
City, Street and Citizen – Suzanne Hall’s study of the mundane city street explores how multiethnicity is played out in globalized cities. It is a fascinating look at how lives take place within shared spaces where social contact occurs.

Ethnography is, in my humble (and of course subjective) opinion, the most exciting form of primary research you can do. It can challenge assumptions, unpick social norms, and make us all more empathetic people.

Chris Drew (PhD) https://helpfulprofessor.com/author/chris-drew-phd-2/ 10 Reasons you’re Perpetually Single
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3 thoughts on “15 Great Ethnography Examples”

Thanks very much for that. I am an early childhood teacher, already published on the topic of bilingual and multilingual children in our sector. One of my lecturers has suggested an ethnographic study of some of our immigrant children. Not sure where to start with that, but this has put me in the right frame of mind. Thanks again

Dear Chris,

Any suggested topic on ethnographic research i can start with here in the hospital where i am working. I am a nurse for cardiovascular patients undergoing open heart surgeries.

As you’re in a high risk setting, you might be best asking your managers at the workplace about this one. You could also consider an autoethnography where you do a study on yourself within the settings.

Best of luck with the study.

Regards, Chris

130 Ethnographic Essay Topic Ideas & Examples

Inside This Article

Ethnographic research is a method used by anthropologists and sociologists to study and understand different cultures and societies. This type of research involves immersing oneself in the culture being studied, participating in everyday activities, and observing social interactions. Ethnographic essays are written based on this research, providing a detailed and in-depth analysis of a particular culture or community. If you are looking for inspiration for your ethnographic essay, here are 130 topic ideas and examples to consider:

The impact of globalization on a remote indigenous community
Gender roles in a traditional African tribe
Rituals and ceremonies in a Mexican village
Youth culture in urban Japan
Food traditions in a Middle Eastern country
Religious practices in a Hindu temple
Family dynamics in a Hispanic immigrant community
Education system in a rural African village
Healthcare practices in a Native American tribe
Social hierarchy in a Southeast Asian society
Dating and courtship rituals in a European country
Art and music in a Caribbean island
Traditional healing methods in an Aboriginal community
Political activism in a South American country
LGBTQ+ rights in a Middle Eastern society
Indigenous land rights in Australia
Community festivals in a European city
Language preservation in an African tribe
Traditional crafts in a Southeast Asian village
Environmental conservation practices in a Pacific island
Indigenous storytelling traditions in North America
Street food culture in a South Asian city
Marriage customs in a Middle Eastern country
Urban migration in a Latin American city
Traditional dance forms in an African country
Social media use in a Western society
Traditional clothing in a South Asian culture
Teenage subcultures in a European city
Aging population in a developed country
Indigenous governance in a Pacific island nation
Homelessness in a North American city
Gender equality in a Scandinavian country
Cultural assimilation in an immigrant community
Folklore and mythology in an Asian country
Climate change adaptation in a coastal community
Music festivals in a Western country
Indigenous resistance movements in a Latin American country
Traditional farming practices in an African village
Youth activism in a Southeast Asian society
Cultural appropriation in a Western society
Traditional medicine in an Asian country
Community policing in a Caribbean island
Dance clubs in a European city
Gender identity in a South American culture
Traditional architecture in a Middle Eastern city
Street art in a North American city
Indigenous languages in a Pacific island nation
Social welfare programs in a Scandinavian country
Refugee integration in a European country
Youth unemployment in a developing country
Indigenous art forms in an African tribe
LGBTQ+ representation in a South Asian society
Urban planning in a Middle Eastern city
Environmental activism in a Pacific island nation
Indigenous rights movements in Australia
Traditional music in a Caribbean island
Social media influencers in a Western society
Traditional healing practices in an Asian country
Community gardens in a Latin American city
Gender-based violence in a Southeast Asian society
Cultural heritage preservation in a European city
Traditional clothing in a North American indigenous community
Peer pressure in a Western high school
Indigenous storytelling traditions in a Pacific island nation
Urban gentrification in a Scandinavian city
Refugee camps in a Middle Eastern country
Indigenous land disputes in a South American country
Traditional dance forms in an African village
Social media activism in a Western society
Gender roles in a South Asian family
Traditional crafts in a Caribbean island
Cultural diversity in a European city
Youth empowerment programs in a Latin American country
Indigenous education initiatives in Australia
Traditional music in a Southeast Asian village
Gender equality in a Pacific island nation
Community policing in a North American city
LGBTQ+ representation in a Scandinavian society
Traditional medicine in an African tribe
Climate change adaptation in a South American community
Music festivals in a Middle Eastern country
Indigenous resistance movements in an Asian country
Traditional farming practices in a Pacific island nation
Youth activism in a European city
Cultural assimilation in a North American immigrant community
Folklore and mythology in a South Asian culture
Street food culture in a Latin American city
Marriage customs in a Caribbean island
Indigenous governance in a Western society
Homelessness in an African village
Gender equality in a Southeast Asian

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6- Drafting Your Ethnographic Essay

Chapter 6 provides a step-by-step process for developing, writing, and revising your ethnographic research essay.

Finding a Focus, Choosing a Controlling Idea for Your Research

The first step in finding a focus is to read through all of your fieldnotes two times. As you read, notice when and where you become particularly interested in what you have written. Circle, mark or note these passages in some way. Write a brief summary of each idea/passage on a separate sheet. After you identify what interests you most, move on to search for patterns that will lead you to focus.Â You can follow the step-by step-process below as a path to create a kind of umbrella or guiding focus statement for your essay:

Read through the list you compiled from your fieldnotes and identify which parts of your fieldnotes interest and engage you most. Look at the larger arc. Are most of your points taken from your thoughts and feelings or are you more interested in the analysis observation?
Search for patterns in your list, and make a new list of those patterns. Keep an eye out for things that strike you as meaningful and interesting and that happen again and again.Â As you explore patterns, also look for things connected to those patterns.Â Find patterns within patterns. how do you connect ideas with language?Â Do you seem to repeatedly use the same phrases?Â When and with respect to what observations?Â This may help identify relevant patters of observation.
From your list of patterns and connections, select the ONE larger idea/pattern that interests you most. You know youâ€™re on to something if you find a pattern and can see how it connects to other observations youâ€™ve made during your research and /or to what other scholars or writers have said.
Take that one interesting idea/pattern and develop an â€œumbrellaâ€ statement or a broad focus statement. You can start, for drafting purposes, with something as simple as â€œIn this paper, I willâ€¦(discuss, explore, explain, analyze, etc.).â€Â Here you are articulating the big idea for your essay. You can always return to the statement to make is more sophisticated in the context of a focus paragraph later,
Expand that statement by breaking the pattern that you are focusing on into any number of supporting observations. Follow your initial broad or umbrella focus statement with that break down. â€œFirst, I willâ€¦.Secondâ€¦Thirdâ€¦.â€ with each of those statements specifying the supporting material. These first, second, and third statements provide the framework for the body sections of your research essay.

As you examine patterns you find in your own comprehensive observation list and look for an idea, theme, or metaphor to connect them, keep in mind the ways in which a focus moves from observations to a more developed discussion of the ideas you note.Â As you connect the dots of your pattern, you may begin to understand where your essay could â€œland,â€ which implications become most compelling to you, and which elements for discussion could make clear the complexity of reality and truth.Â When you identify some of these more powerful elements, take the time to write about any connections you see between those patterns or expand on any unfinished thoughts. From this list, you need to choose the idea/pattern that interests you most, that you think you can really write about, and that you can support with other observations from your notes. You have found your focus!