Digital Ethnography: Principles and Practice

by Sarah Pink

This sharp, innovative book champions the rising significance of ethnographic research on the use of digital resources around the world. It contextualises digital and pre-digital ethnographic research and demonstrates how the methodological, practical and theoretical dimensions are increasingly intertwined. Digital ethnography is central to our understanding of the social world; it can shape methodology and methods, and provides the technological tools needed to research society. The authoritative team of authors clearly set out how to research localities, objects and events as well as providing insights into exploring individuals’ or communities’ lived experiences, practices and relationships. The This is the ideal introduction for anyone intending to conduct ethnographic research in today’s digital society.  

Genres: Anthropology, Ethnography, Research Methods, Grad School, Research, Sociology

216 pages, Hardcover

First published December 14, 2015

About the author

Sarah Pink is Professor in the School of Media and Communications at RMIT.

Reviews

[Anélie Štrbenc · Rating 4 out of 5]

Overall the book gives valuable insights on important literature and interesting ways how you can do digital ethnography in ‘real life’. However, it is not a manual. A lot of questions are left unanswered. I didn’t mind that but I would recommend reading Christine Hine’s Ethnography for the Internet first as sort of a practical ‘how to do’ digital ethnography. This book comes as a great follow up read to contextualise digital ethnography and the many ways it can be done as well as to provide questions for deeper problematisation and understanding of the topic.

[Morgan · Rating 2 out of 5]

DNF

This is more of an explanation of what digital ethnography is, rather than how to do it. It just wasn't what I was looking for or needed.

[Gabriel Tamaș · Rating 4 out of 5]

It gets the point accross. The entographies in each chapter help illustrate the premises brilliantly and most of them make a very interesting read.
Downside is that this is more like a summary or brief antology of previous studies by other anthropologists than a study in itself. But this isn't necessarily a bad aspect, especially for beginers on the topic (such as myself)

[pauureads · Rating 3 out of 5]

Se explica distintas aproximaciones de varios autores al estudio de la etnografía digital, pero no se centra en sí en la forma de hacerla. Enlista los conceptos que se consideran importantes en su práctica.

[Erkan Saka · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is a review of contemporary research that could be classified as digital ethnographies. Not a fundamentally innovative one but it provides a substantive brainstorming about the current state of affairs in the field.