CHANCES AND LIMITATIONS OF PARTICIPANT OBSERVATION AS A METHOD OF SOCIAL INVESTIGATION

Participant observation means active interaction in a community or society under study. The question arises of which roles offer the res'er close enough contact & the necessary distance to function in 2 ways: as participant & as O. It is argued that the role of 'the stranger' offers the best possibilities in both directions. A special advantage of participant observation as against other methods of soc res is seen in the DGserendipity-pattern-effect,' ie the chance for the participant O to come across unexpected data. This advantage is of special value in the soc sells, which have not yet developed a resstructuring & investigation-focusing theory in the strict sense of the term. AA.