Qualitative approaches in nursing research and practice

¶ … Nursing -- Observing and LISTENING

The setting for this study was a downtown Starbuck's Coffee shop about a quarter mile from the financial district. It is a residential area as well as a center for small businesses on the perimeter of the financial district. This observation was conducted on a Tuesday morning between 7:15AM and 9:45AM. Each subject chosen was observed for thirty minutes from the moment of their selection. It was a cool overcast morning with intermittent rain showers. The observer took a position in the corner closest to the entrance with the best view of customers as soon as they enter the establishment.

The Daily Grind:

One middle aged gentleman chosen for observation had apparently been caught in a downpour during some part of his morning commute to work. He wore business clothes and deposited his umbrella in the umbrella stand near the entrance and proceeded to the counter and placed his order without ever looking up at the menu board. That, combined with the fact that he seemed to know exactly where to reach for sugar packets and butter for his pastry, and the fact that he paid with a five dollar bill and then left all his change (a single dollar bill and several coins) suggested to the observer that he placed this same order regularly.

He then took a table and sat facing a wall with his back to the counter and the main seating area after removing his drenched raincoat. Since nobody who lived within walking distance would likely have chosen to walk to Starbucks during the brief August rain shower, the observer concluded that the subject probably commuted from uptown or the nearby suburbs and regularly stopped at the coffee shop on his way to his office. He barely raised his eyes from his newspaper and continued reading after finishing his coffee and pastry. He never checked his watch until after he had already gathered his possessions and turned toward the door, further suggesting that he stopped for breakfast at the same shop regularly enough that he had incorporated it into his morning routine.

The Available Woman:

woman appearing to be in her early twenties entered the shop and removed a wet hooded windbreaker. She simultaneously made a gesture, seemingly intended as a pantomimed commentary about the weather, because she shook her hands as if flinging water from her fingertips while laughing in an exasperated manner, directed at anybody within observable range. She then proceeded to fluff out her hair, using the reflection of the window and seemed to make eye contact with several people who had apparently turned in her direction after noticing her movements. Before proceeding to the counter, she opened her cellular phone and apparently checked messages while making gestures (such as laughing or feigning boredom) as though to communicate her reaction to her messages to observers. She then put away her phone, and in pivoting toward the direction of the counter, she did so in an exaggerated manner that resulted in her hair momentarily flying away from her in a circular pattern after which she used her fingers to push it behind her ears and away from her face. The observer was able to smell her perfume after she spun around.

She approached the counter still preening her hair into a ponytail and greeted the counter person more loudly than most customers had. She then asked several questions about various items on the menu while giggling periodically and also making eye contact with other customers, both in line and seated at a table. In general, her end of the entire conversation seemed designed to be overheard rather than kept private. After receiving her order, she fumbled several times for some of the items at the sugar layout, and again laughed while making eye contact with everyone in her vicinity every time she did so.

When she took a seat, she chose the table nearest to the center of the room and repeated the hair spinning maneuver followed by ponytail preening in the process of sitting down.

After taking a seat that faced the counter and entrance, she opened her cellular phone again and seemed to send text messages while rhythmically swinging one leg that she had crossed over the other leg. She looked up at every person who passed within her vicinity, some of whom had not even noticed her. The observer was not able to identify anything about her likely occupation or the circumstances that lead to her choosing this particular coffee shop, except that her confusion at the counter suggested that it was not part of her daily routine.

The Unavailable Woman:

Another woman entered the coffee shop. She had apparently not been caught in the rain because she was completely dry and her umbrella was still neatly wrapped in its case. Her hair was longer than the previous subject, but instead of allowing it to swing out when she changed her physical orientation, she moved in a much less exaggerated motion that did not impart any inertia to her hair. Instead of repeatedly preening her hair away from her face, she allowed it to cover her ears and seemed to carry herself in a manner designed not to attract attention. She did not make eye contact with anyone except for the one counter person who served her. She did not seem to make unnecessary conversation and the observer was not able to hear her end of the conversation. Her gestures seemed appropriately polite to the counter person and the observer was able to lip read the words "thank you very much" after she received her order.

She then selected the table opposite the observer on the other side of the entrance, but she took a seat that looked out of the window and away from the main seating area.

She also turned around the other vacant chair opposite her and placed it adjacent to her before piling her belongings on it. She removed a textbook and a highlighter from her bag and proceeded to read in a manner suggesting that she was probably a college or postgraduate student. She seemed to purposely obscure the cover of her book by not raising it high enough for the observer to see the cover surface.

Narcissism Alert: A gentleman in his mid twenties entered and seemed to carry himself in much the same manner as the first female subject, except that his body language was more appropriate for a male. He also seemed to make eye contact with everyone in the room while making his way to the counter. His dress was casual but professional, and he wore the collar of his leather jacket up despite the fact that it was no longer raining outside (or inside, for that matter). He greeted the counter person loudly enough for the observer to hear and placed his order in a similarly audible voice. His hair was too short to preen, but he did repeatedly run his thumbs around the inside of his waistband, tucking in his (already tucked) shirt with his back to the counter, looking around the room while waiting for his order.