{"id":13679,"date":"2021-08-25T20:23:38","date_gmt":"2021-08-25T19:23:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/uxstudioteam.com\/?p=13679"},"modified":"2022-05-19T14:33:49","modified_gmt":"2022-05-19T13:33:49","slug":"digital-ethnography","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/timemachine.uxstudioteam.com\/ux-blog\/digital-ethnography\/","title":{"rendered":"Pushing Ethnographic Research at the Times of Remote Work"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Digital<\/p>\n

With the COVID-19 pandemic and the world changing around us, <\/b>I began to wonder how the work we do as UX Researchers is impacted and,<\/b> more importantly, what we can do to improve the world through human-centered design.<\/b><\/p>\n

The enormous impact of the coronavirus outbreak on UX Research<\/b> got explored in innumerable<\/b> blog posts<\/b><\/a>,<\/b> articles in journals<\/b><\/a>, and online workshops that have appeared over the year.<\/b>
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\nWhat I am concerned with is finding answers to some urgent questions: How do we conduct <\/b>ethnographic research<\/b><\/a> at the time of the pandemic? And how do we make sure that this crisis does not force the next generation of UX Researchers\u200a\u2014\u200awho have had to interrupt their field research or were prevented from beginning it\u200a\u2014\u200ato cease activities altogether or hinder them from properly learning the tools of our trade?<\/b><\/p>\n

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With all the talk of economic impact, budget cuts, and businesses shutting down entirely, I expected that there would be a slowdown in the research process. It turns out that, even with all the disruptions to work and to the economy as a whole,<\/span> budget cuts aren\u2019t always a concern<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

Due to the pandemic, we can expect<\/span><\/a> that contextual studies will be off, and everything will be forced into a remote setting<\/span> at least until<\/span><\/a> 2022<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

Despite the limitations and disruptions posed by these troubled times, there is an opportunity for organizations to increase their level of remote research to ensure that the quality of research satisfies business needs. Now is the time for researchers to refine the methodologies and procedures that can make the research successful until it can be face-to-face again.<\/span><\/p>\n

Understanding the pandemic and its implications<\/b><\/h2>\n

Due to the pandemic, people are <\/span>spending more time<\/span><\/a> than ever on their devices.<\/span> This also has an impact on how users interact with<\/span> apps<\/span><\/a> and technologies in general. The question is no longer whether users are spending more time on their devices \u2014 they are. It\u2019s how much their usage behaviors have already changed.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cPrior to March 11th 2020 (the date when the WHO declared the spread of Covid-19 a pandemic and the US imposed strict travel restrictions), people in the US were<\/span> averaging 5 hours and 58 minutes of device time a day<\/span><\/a>. But just a month later, that number jumped to 6 hours and 54 minutes a day and continues to climb.<\/span><\/p>\n

While 56 minutes a day might not seem like much, if this average increase held up across\u00a0<\/span>the population of US knowledge workers<\/span><\/a>, we\u2019re talking about 5.6 million hours of extra screen time <\/span>a day. <\/span><\/i>These numbers aren\u2019t likely to change any time soon (according to countries that got hit earlier)\u201d\u200a\u2014 <\/span>\u200aRescue Time<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

\"Average<\/p>\n

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Source: RescueTime<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

What can research do in times like this?<\/h3>\n

The good news for UX Researchers who have to conduct ethnographic research at this time is that users are also spending more time at home and on their mobile or computer screens. At this time, when people leave prints of their daily activities online\u200a\u2014\u200aremote work, communication, ordering groceries, clothes, food \u200a\u2014 research must depend heavily on online ethnographic research.<\/span><\/p>\n

So how can we conduct digital ethnographic research that feeds business needs and UX Design on the go?<\/span><\/p>\n

We will do what we can do with all the limitations. We can admit that online <\/span>research methods<\/span><\/a> cannot, over the long term, substitute field research on site. But since the pandemic has relocated social life to the virtual space of the internet, we have to adapt our methods to online research. Digital ethnography can provide insights into the very specific spaces of the online world, where other rules apply than in the realm of offline social interactions.<\/span><\/p>\n

Thinking ethnographically even in the times of the remote work<\/b><\/h2>\n

The ubiquity of smartphones, increase in screen time, and<\/span> mobile app<\/span><\/a> usage provides an opportunity for remote ethnographic research. At the time of the pandemic, this method is a feasible and scalable solution.<\/span><\/p>\n

Screen time provides businesses with a sea of quantitative data and analytics. Mobile and virtual ethnography offer the ability to interpret the data, find the signal in the noise, and surface actionable insights.<\/span><\/p>\n

Big data and analytics are great at surfacing the what and the when and sometimes the where. But they fall short when it comes to explaining why people behave the way they do. Let\u2019s dive into some methods and online ethnographic observations that grasp the why.<\/span><\/p>\n

1. Mobile ethnography<\/b><\/h2>\n

Before Uber and Lyft, if you wanted to get a taxi, you had to find and hail one. Now the taxi comes to where you are.<\/span><\/p>\n

In the same way, 4G powered mobile ethnography, and<\/span> empowers researchers<\/span><\/a> and brands to understand in-the-moment, in-context consumer behaviors across multiple countries at scale.<\/span><\/p>\n

Instead of flying around the world to observe how consumers behave in their everyday contexts, mobile ethnography enables researchers to do remote qualitative research and bring these cultural insights to design, at scale, and in real-time.<\/span><\/p>\n

Although different types of digital ethnography methods have been utilized in <\/span>social sciences in the past 25 years<\/span><\/a>, it is still a novelty to use such methods in UX Research. And therefore, there are no standard practices for remote ethnography\u200a\u2014\u200abe it mobile or virtual ethnography\u200a\u2014\u200ain UX.<\/span><\/p>\n

Considering the fact that people have become so comfortable using smartphones, asking them to snap a photo or record a quick video is no longer a big deal. It\u2019s second nature.<\/span><\/p>\n

Advantages<\/span><\/h3>\n

Mobile ethnography provides an exceptional advantage over in-person ethnographic research. All in-person methodologies require a researcher to be physically present, and hence, they are invasive and interruptive. In some shape or form, they suffer from the \u201c<\/span>researcher effect<\/span><\/a>.\u201d No matter the technique, the presence of a researcher is likely to skew or bias the results by the very fact that they are altering or interrupting the normal behaviors of your participants.<\/span><\/p>\n

Instead of interrupting their normal behaviors, mobile ethnography enables us, researchers, to align with them. It allows us to directly experience the real-life moments that matter to users. In-the-moment feedback provided by participants is reliable and highly insightful.<\/span><\/p>\n

One of the key benefits of mobile ethnography is the rich and engaging insights that it generates.<\/span> In addition to answering traditional research questions<\/span><\/a>, users can use their smartphones to capture videos and photos of their experiences. The research findings will tell a story and provide the project team with a greater understanding of the consumer.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"digital<\/b><\/h2>\n

2. Virtual ethnography<\/b><\/h2>\n

\u201cAn approach to ethnography which is almost but not quite like the real thing\u201d\u200a\u2014\u200aHine<\/span><\/p>\n

By <\/span>virtual ethnography<\/span><\/a>, researchers can study culture, online communities, and culture through digital artifacts (e.g. pictures, texts, and videos).<\/span><\/p>\n

The digital space holds some advantages for user research over physical ones. For instance, users are more emotionally expressive and open about their needs in digital spaces than they would be in real life; a phenomenon called the \u201c<\/span>online disinhibition effect<\/span><\/a>.\u201d This allows researchers to find insights that would be impossible to find with in-person user <\/span>research methods<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

The process<\/span><\/h3>\n

Conducting a virtual ethnography in UX Research has five steps:<\/span><\/p>\n

Step 1. Defining the process:<\/strong><\/p>\n