¶ … components of field research are observations and interviews. Ideally, observations should take place in the natural setting or environment of the subjects that are being observed. Observations are key not only in field research, but also in life. Observing is a greater challenge than most people may think. Even though, to a certain extent, all people are observers, observation for the sake of field research takes training and research. The observer should make use of as many sense as possible when making observations of the subjects. The data should be as complete as possible, meaning, observations for field research can include what is seen with the eyes, heard by the ears, and smelled by the nose. It is possible for observation to include as much sensory information as possible. The observations that the field researcher makes is the source of the data that will be used later on in the study. This is why observation should be complete and the field notes should be as detailed as possible. Direct observation is ideal, but it is not always...

Direct observations lend themselves to more data, more details, and a more informed context in which the observations will be considered and analyzed. Interviews are essentially series of questions that the field researcher asks the subjects. Interviews are essential to field research because though field observations are very important and very illuminating, they are also limited. Interviews give the subject(s) the chance to contextualize him/herself and the observations in their own words. Interviews are an essential aspect to field research because the researcher is in the process of becoming an expert upon the subject and the subject is already the expert on him/herself. The information provided by the subject to the field researcher proves invaluable for the research/study. Interviews should be conducted with the subjects in a natural setting for the subject whenever possible, and observations should be taken not only of the content of the responses to the interview questions, but also observations of the behavior, tone of…