Secondly it allows observation of social behaviour in a natural setting. This means that the participants act more naturally and relaxed giving honest reliable answers. This in turn gives a true picture of what is being studies and provides a view of the world created from a participant’s point of view.
Valene Hey (1997) ‘the company she keeps’ was a small scale study on girls friendships and how they are affected by various different factors. Hey spent time with the girls in their natural setting which allowed her to have close relationships with them.
Although an advantage, studying a group in their natural setting can also be seen as a disadvantage. It can be perceived as deceitful and dangerous because in order to carry out the study, the real identity of the researcher must not be revealed as this could trigger the Hawthorne effect.
A study by James Patrick ‘A Glasgow Gang’ is renowned for being dangerous. The purpose of the research by Patrick was to discover what life was like in a Glasgow gang. To be part of the gang, he had to involve himself in the gangs’ activities. This included taking drugs and carrying weapons. Patrick refused to carry the weapons which caused suspicion among the gang which could have resulted in him getting hurt if he had got found out. James Patrick did take the drugs though, which meant that he was performing an illegal act. Consequently this study is very unethical.
Other disadvantages include the fact that the researcher may become too involved and be unable to record data accurately (go native). The researcher may form personal relationships with the group leading to bias results and unreliable statistics.
It is also not possible to generalise the results as it only gives information about one small group. The observer also has to find a way of entering, staying and leaving the group without arousing suspicion.
The researcher being there may also affect how the group acts. If they know that they are being observed then this may generate the Hawthorne effect. This means that the group may change their behaviour from what they normally do because they know they are being watched. This will give imprecise results and an untrue picture of the study.
In conclusion to the usefulness of participant observation as a sociological method, the disadvantages outweigh the advantages. The reasons above have shown that although useful in providing true pictures of group behaviour and views, the research can be seen as dishonest, dangerous and above all unethical.
