photo by !borghetti
by :: Cate
When I was learning how to do ethnographic research I had to develop keen observational skills.
One of the things my classmates and I did to become better observers was to make the familiar strange.
In one activity, for example, we chose a situation or environment that we knew very well (e.g. a classroom, the check-out line in a supermarket, eating dinner, etc.). Then we observed and described the situation as if we were seeing it for the first time.
Doing this helped us uncover latent interpretations and assumptions. This was important because in collecting ethnographic data one strives to document meaning as determined by the observed, not the observer.
The practice of making the familiar strange taught us how to observe with the goal of understanding the perspectives of others.
If you want to be cross-culturally effective, develop keen observational skills.
Most of us go through a large part of our day on auto-pilot, quickly interpreting and categorizing what we see and experience. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Every day we’re inundated with a huge amount of information, and we simply can’t stop and ponder every single thing we come into contact with.
But in order to be effective in cross-cultural situations, we need to disengage our cultural auto-pilot.
Instead of automatically interpreting what see or experience, we need to carefully observe it. We need to uncover our latent assumptions and interpretations. Making the familiar strange in our daily lives can help us develop the keen observational skills necessary to be cross-culturally effective.
Ask these 3 questions to improve your cross-cultural observation skills.
Even if you’re not in a cross-cultural situation right now, this simple practice can help you develop the observational skills that will come in handy the next time you are.
As you go through your day, look at everything and everyone with new eyes. Pay close attention to interactions between people (e.g. greetings, a heated discussion, a parent-child interaction, etc.) and get in the habit of asking yourself these 3 questions:
- What do I see?
Describe what you see concretely and objectively. Avoid interpreting or evaluating.
- Who do I see?
What experiences and perspectives might they bring to the interaction that’s influencing their behavior? - How might the where influence the what?
If the context changed, would the interaction between these people change?
What questions do you ask in order to better understand cross-cultural situations?
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