FIELD OBSERVATION ASSIGNMENT 2
Introduction
Driving into the eatery's parking lot parking lot, of the eatery, this first one noticed how
packed the vehicles were. A crowd of customers is always an excellent measure of how good the
food is—vehicles of every make and model from various surrounding New England states. The
parking lot serves as an impromptu meeting area for people to gather to enter the eatery or
existing right before entering the vehicles and driving off. Families and individuals quickly
shuffle in and out in the ebbs and flows of human beings. Observation as a method makes
substantial demands on the researcher and may be one of the most difficult forms of inquiry to
apply to one’s own environment (Tjora, 2016).
As customers entered the restaurant's front waiting area, they entered a restaurant's
Christmas souvenir shop. Here, customers can find Christmas ornaments, Christmas trees,
Christmas theme clothes, and snow globes displayed on glass. The color scheme of choice is
white and in various shades. All the favorite Christmas characters from Elf on the shelf,
nutcrackers in the different uniformed regalia candies, some of which are the more popular
brands among children from past decades.
The restaurant was buzzing with activity, with individuals and families scrambling to find
seats and get comfortable for their evening meals. The air was awash with the smell of
Thanksgiving dinners and all the associated side dishes that are the hallmarks of the holiday.
Tables and chairs made of wood aligned the dining area with the aisle just wide enough for the
serving staff to walk back and forth. Laughing and talking can be heard throughout the area, with
the primary focus being the feast they are about to enjoy. multigenerational gathering. The event
appeared to be a family event that gave the matriarch a day off.
FIELD OBSERVATION ASSIGNMENT 3
African-Americans also visited the restaurant during this time, however, at a smaller
num-
As individuals were sitting and enjoying their food, if one looked up, they were adorned
with items and articles from the preceding decade in America. Photos of children and adults
provided the backdrop of the restaurant's attempt to capture the visual evolution of Americans.
The front of the place's huge windows provides a picaresque view of the sun setting behind the
hills covered in fall foliage indicative of a New England Fall.
The eatery dining area was divided by a wall, providing a medium-sized room for the
customers to have dinner while giving them a more home-like environment. A mock fireplace
adorned with pictures and a cast-iron pot gave it the look of an almost western frontier-like
motif. Each half of the dining area has a staff of about ten waitresses of both sexes. The new
serving staff donned their white aprons preparing for a busy shift.
Every five to ten minutes, a new exchange of people enters as others leave while others
enter, and the choreographed ballot replays itself in a never-ending loop. People walk around the
eatery, led by a uniformed server who directs her group to the table. Once there, they move
around to get comfortable. The moving of the chairs indicates that they have gotten comfortable
and are preparing to review the menu and order their meals.
The demographics of the customers varied, with seniors composing a significant number
of the customers at the time of the observation. The racial makeup of the crowd was significantly
Euro-American, with ages ranging from 40 to 70. Some in the upper age range have mobility
issues that require assisted apparatus like wheelchairs and walkers. Many males wore baseball
caps, indicating the various conflicts the United States was involved in in the middle and latter
parts of the 20th century. The women accompanying the men were in the same age range and
FIELD OBSERVATION ASSIGNMENT 4
racial makeup. Although some women were moving around without the assistance of mobility
apparatus, a few.
required such mechanisms.
For many, prosthetics were not visible during this period of monitoring. Other racial
demographics were present. However, their numbers for this observation could have been more
significant.
The organizational structure of the family was evident in the seating arrangement. Euro-
American fathers tend to sit in the middle of the table, with the wives sitting directly on opposite
sides. The children were seated next to the sides, depending on the size of the family. The
parents allowed the children to interact freely with their siblings during the meal. The parent's
body language was that of acceptance by the children. The body is not just a physical object; it is
a social object (Glesne, 2016).
In contrast to the African-American families, the father sits near the top of the table,
indicating his position in the family organization. The wife sat at his side, with the children
sitting at the sides of the table in an arrangement that allowed them to interact among
themselves; however, the patriarchal leader frowned upon overly inactive behavior. The African-
American parents' body language delivered the message to all that the behavior during mealtime
is structured and other behaviors are not accepted.
Conclusion
As the night ended, the observer transitioned into an observer-participant as he joined the
mass exodus, leaving the restaurant. Customers uttered traditional goodbyes as they departed for
their various destinations. Fieldnotes are an oft-neglected yet fundamental part of ethnography.
FIELD OBSERVATION ASSIGNMENT 5
They serve the crucial role of connecting researchers and their subjects in the writing of an
ethnographic report (Wolfinger, 2002).
Christian Worldview
Teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you
always, to the end of the age (English Standard Version, Matthew 28:20).
References
Glesne, C. (2016). Becoming qualitative researchers: An introduction. (5th Ed.).
Pearson.
The English Standard Version Bible (2001). Crossway.
Tjora, A. H. (2006). Writing small discoveries: an exploration of fresh observers’ observations
Qualitative research, 6(4), 429-451.
http://doi.org/10.1177/1468794106068012
Wolfinger, N. H. (2002). On writing fieldnotes: collection strategies and backgrounds
expectancies.
Qualitative research, 1(1), 85-93
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