Using emic and etic ethnographic technique in a grounded theory study of information use by practice nurses in New Zealand

Hoare, Karen J., Buetow, Stephen, Mills, Jane, and Francis, Karen (2013) Using emic and etic ethnographic technique in a grounded theory study of information use by practice nurses in New Zealand. Journal of Research in Nursing, 18 (8). pp. 720-731.

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Abstract

This paper draws lessons from the use of an emic–etic ethnographical technique in a grounded theory study of how New Zealand practice nurses use information. The technique was used to heighten theoretical sensitivity in this study. As a nurse practitioner, I (the lead author) could not step out of my emic perspective to provide an etic perspective of my own general practice. From my emic embodied subjectivity I constructed my work environment to fit with best practice. Conversely, in four other general practices, my lack of personal connection protected an etic sense of disembodiment. New insights into mental models guiding the emic and etic roles of ethnography are suggested. Emic and etic perspectives, along with embodied and disembodied feelings, are not binary opposites but rather sit along a philosophical continuum. Their position on this continuum depends on the role and relationships of the researcher(s) in the social and cultural context of the area of inquiry.

Item ID: 24494
Item Type: Article (Research - C1)
ISSN: 1744-988X
Keywords: emic and etic; embodied and disembodied; grounded theory; theoretical sensitivity; practice nurses; New Zealand
Date Deposited: 10 Jan 2013 22:45
FoR Codes: 11 MEDICAL AND HEALTH SCIENCES > 1110 Nursing > 111099 Nursing not elsewhere classified @ 100%
SEO Codes: 92 HEALTH > 9299 Other Health > 929999 Health not elsewhere classified @ 100%
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