Wasson2000

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Wasson2000
BibType ARTICLE
Key Wasson2000
Author(s) Christina Wasson
Title Ethnography in the Field of Design
Editor(s)
Tag(s) EMCA, design, consumption, video ethnography, conversation analysis, activity theory, research methods
Publisher
Year 2000
Language
City
Month
Journal Human Organization
Volume 59
Number 4
Pages 377–388
URL Link
DOI 10.17730/humo.59.4.h13326628n127516
ISBN
Organization
Institution
School
Type
Edition
Series
Howpublished
Book title
Chapter

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Abstract

Members of the design profession help develop new products and services of many kinds, and they are centrally concerned with satisfying the needs of users of their products. Ethnography appeals to designers because it provides a window onto the ways consumers interact with products in their everyday lives. The paper provides an overview of this extension of applied anthropology to a new domain. It traces how ethnography became known to designers and the transmission of particular research traditions that have shaped the practice of "ethnography" in the design field. Ethnomethodology, conversation analysis, and activity theory have been prominent theoretical influences. Most data-gathering methods are characterized by the use of videotape. As an example, I describe the research practices of one design firm, formerly known as E-Lab LLC, now part of Sapient Corporation.

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