the group he wishes to join. He may decide to become an 'overt' participant observer, in which the researcher will join the group as a participant and does not hide the fact
that he is observing, or he may decide to become a 'covert' particpant observer, in which he becomes a normal participant in the setting while consealing the fact that the
research is being done. Sometimes the researcher may use degrees of overtness, for example, in Whytes study "Street corner society" (1955), he became friendly with
"Doc" and was overt with him while consealing his true identity to the rest of the gang members.
There are both advantages and disadvantages to participant observation. Participants face the problem of objectivity, it is often very time consuming, for example,
Beverly Skeggs (1997), spent 12 years researching the lives of women on a 'caring' course in England. Participants also face dangers and can also find themselves in
situations they find morally unacceptable or illegal. Quantitative researchers samples are too small and while the researcher may get the bulk of his/her information from
structured questions, they are not getting peoples true opinions. The conclusions can only apply to the specific group which the researcher has studied and cannot be
generalised or replicated. The observer himself decides what information to select or omit and the fact that the observer is present in overt observations, it is believed that
the group will not act naturally. This therefore questions the validity of the data collected. There are also many advantages to participant observation compared with other
research methods. By preparing a questionaire, the researcher has already decided what questions he wants to ask and what information is important to the study. The
researcher also gains the advantage of being able directly able to observe and be part of the group. An example of this can be seen in Whytes study into street corner
gangs (1955). " As i sat and listened, I learned the answers to questions I would not have had the sense to ask, if I had been getting my information on an interviewing
basis." ( Whyte 1955.)
The main reason that interpretivists use participant observation is validity. Validity refers to how accurate and authentic the data collected is, although some
positivist sociologists believe that participant observation should not be used, even when the data is more valid, it is neither a reliable or representative form of research.
The researcher who decides on an overt participant observation, may influence the study, as the group which is being studied may acy differently, due to the
researchers presence, which then makes it less reliable. David Hargreaves (1967), "Study of secondry school teachers", found that some teachers he observed altered
their behaviour, some refused to talk to the class as a whole when he was present, but others appeared to carry on as normal
