At-home ethnography: a method for practitioners

Abstract

Purpose-A reflection on at-home ethnographic (AHE) practice is employed to unpack the backstage messiness of an account to demonstrate how management students can craft finegrained accounts of their practice and develop further our understanding of management practices in situ. Design, Methodology, Approach-The paper reflects upon an example of AHE from an 18 month period at a chemical plant. Through exposure and exploration the paper outlines how this method was used, the emotion involved and the challenges to conduct "good" research. Findings-The paper does not seek to define 'best practice', it highlights the epistemic and ethical practices used in an account to demonstrate how AHE could enhance management literature through a series of practice accounts. More insider accounts would demonstrate understandings that go beyond distant accounts that purport to show managerial work as rational and scientific. In addition, such accounts would inform teaching of the complexities and messiness of managerial practice. Originality/Value-Ethnographic accounts (products) are often neat and tidy rather than messy, irrational, and complex. Reflection on ethnographer (person) and ethnographic methodology (process) is limited. However, ethnographic practices are mostly unreported. By reflecting on ethnographic epistemic and ethical practices the paper demonstrates how a largely untapped area has much to offer both management students and in making a fundamental contribution to understanding and teaching managerial practice.

“Is it safe?” – Doing ethnography on safety cover ups

“…Employing AHE explicitly is even more rare in management settings (e.g. Vickers, 2019, 2020) The physical and mental fatigue associated with AHE should not be underestimated, and the HR professional nature of copious note taking and observation of people was utilised and by the end of data gathering there were also thousands of documents (e.g. all his e-mails, weekly safety bulletins, policies, procedures, note books, etc).…”

“…The reader decides upon the “trustworthiness” (Czarniawska, 2008) or otherwise of the account and if and how the story has contextual resonance and transferability. Whilst “reflexivity is not a panacea… it is a vital part of ethnographic integrity [as] it enables the reader to engage with events described and to challenge interpretations and claims made by the researcher” (Vickers, 2019, p. 13). First is a reflexive consideration of the role as HR manager followed by his role as AHE.…”

“…In organizational studies shades of grey exist as well as black and white, ambiguities remain and “often there's no simple answer”. Here a hegemonic safety account at a chemical site is used alongside at-home ethnography (AHE) (Alvesson, 2009; Vickers, 2019) to explore co-existence of meanings. In addressing the aims of the special issue, the paper asks three questions – is it safeto employ AHE ethically without intervention to prevent unsafe practice?to employ AHE morally in the context it is here to contribute to a more general understanding of unseen managerial practices?for AHE to engage in partiality , taking sides in a conflict to develop different organizational understandings and shine a light on wrongdoing and cover ups?…”

Katse sisäänpäin

“…Kotietnografia korostaa tutkimuskirjallisuudessa enemmän tutkijan aktiivista refleksiivisyyttä (Alvesson ym. 2008;Alvesson 2009;Vickers 2017), jolla voidaan päästä tavanomaisia tutkimuskeinoja syvemmälle esimerkiksi muuttuvaan organisaatioon. Kotietnografian erottaa autoetnografiasta pyrkimys aktiivisesti laajentaa kokemuksien kartoitusta koko organisaation kontekstissa (Järventie-Thesleff ym.…”

“…Pohjalainen 2012) tai yhteisön kipukohdat, joita haastatteluissa voidaan hedelmällisesti luodata (Alvesson & Sandberg 2003). Niin ikään "samassa venees-sä" oleminen voi tehdä kotietnografista haastatteluissa helpommin lähestyttävän (Vickers 2017).…”