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Ethnography
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Ethnography (from Greek ἔθνος ethnos "folk, people, nation" and γράφω grapho "I write") is the systematic study of people and cultures. It is designed to explore cultural phenomena where the researcher observes society from the point of view of the subject of the study. An ethnography is a means to represent graphically and in writing the culture of a group. The word can thus be said to have a double meaning, which partly depends on whether it is used as a count noun or uncountable.[1] The resulting field study or a case report reflects the knowledge and the system of meanings in the lives of a cultural group.[2][3][4]
Ethnography, as the presentation of empirical data on human societies and cultures, was pioneered in the biological, social, and cultural branches of anthropology, but it has also become popular in the social sciences in general—sociology,[5] communication studies, history—wherever people study ethnic groups, formations, compositions, resettlements, social welfare characteristics, materiality, spirituality, and a people's ethnogenesis.[6] The typical ethnography is a holistic study[7][8] and so includes a brief history, and an analysis of the terrain, the climate, and the habitat. In all cases, it should be reflexive, make a substantial contribution toward the understanding of the social life of humans, have an aesthetic impact on the reader, and express a credible reality. An ethnography records all observed behavior and describes all symbol-meaning relations, using concepts that avoid causal explanations.
Contents
[hide]
1 History and meaning
2 Origins
3 Forms of ethnography
4 Features of ethnographic research
5 Procedures for conducting ethnography
6 Ethnography as method
7 Data collection methods
8 Differences across disciplines
8.1 Cultural and social anthropology
8.2 Sociology
8.3 Communication Studies
8.4 Other fields
9 Evaluating ethnography
10 Challenges of ethnography
11 Ethics
11.1 Classic virtues
11.2 Technical skills
11.3 Ethnographic Self
12 Examples of studies that can use an ethnographic approach
12.1 Notable ethnographers
13 See also
14 References
15 Further reading
16 External links
History and meaning[edit]
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The word 'ethnography' is derived from the Greek ἔθνος (ethnos), meaning "a company, later a people, nation" and -graphy meaning "field of study". Ethnographic studies focus on large cultural groups of people who interact over time. Ethnography is a set of qualitative methods that are used in social sciences that focus on the observation of social practices and interactions.[9] Its aim is to observe a situation without imposing any deductive structure or framework upon it and to view everything as strange or unique.[10]
The field of anthropology originated from Europe and England designed in late 19th century. It spread its roots to the United States at the beginning of the 20th century. Some of the main contributors like EB Tylor (1832-1917) from Britain and Lewis H Morgan (1818-1881), an American scientist were considered as founders of cultural and social dimensions. Franz Boas (1858-1942), Bronislaw Malinowski (1858—1942), Ruth Benedict and Margaret Mead (1901-1978), were a group of researchers from the United States who contributed the idea of cultural relativism to the literature. Boas's approach focused on the use of documents and informants, whereas, Malinowski stated that a researcher should be engrossed with the work for long periods in the field and do a participant observation by living with the informant and experiencing their way of life. He gives the viewpoint of the native and this became the origin of field work and field methods.
Since Malinowski was very firm with his approach he applied it practically and traveled to Trobriand Island which was located off the eastern coast of New Guinea. He was interested in learning the language of the islanders and stayed there for a long time doing his field work. The field of ethnography became very popular in the late 19th century, as many social scientists gained an interest in studying modern society. Again, in the latter part of the 19th century, the field of anthropology became a good support for scientific formation. Though the field was flourishing it had a lot of threat to encounter. Postcolonialism, the research climate shifted towards post-modernism and feminism. Therefore, the field of anthropology moved into a discipline of social science.
Origins[edit]
Gerhard Friedrich Müller developed the concept of ethnography as a separate discipline whilst participating in the Second Kamchatka Expedition (1733–43) as a professor of history and geography. Whilst involved in the expedition, he differentiated Völker-Beschreibung as a distinct area of study. This became known as "ethnography," following the introduction of the Greek neologism ethnographia by Johann Friedrich Schöpperlin and the German variant by A. F. Thilo in 1767.[11] August Ludwig von Schlözer and Christoph Wilhelm Jacob Gatterer of the University of Göttingen introduced the term into the academic discourse in an attempt to reform the contemporary understanding of world history.[11][12]
Herodotus known as the Father of History had significant works on the cultures of various peoples beyond the Hellenic realm such as nations in Scythia, which earned him the title "Barbarian Lover" and may have produced the first ethnographic works.
Forms of ethnography[edit]
There are different forms of ethnography: confessional ethnography; life history; feminist ethnography etc. Two popular forms of ethnography are realist ethnography and critical ethnography. (Qualitative Inquiry and Research Design, 93)
Realist ethnography: is a traditional approach used by cultural anthropologists. Characterized by Van Maanen (1988), it reflects a particular instance taken by the researcher toward the individual being studied. It's an objective study of the situation. It's composed from a third person's perspective by getting the data from the members on the site. The ethnographer stays as omniscient correspondent of actualities out of sight. The realist reports information in a measured style ostensibly uncontaminated by individual predisposition, political objectives, and judgment. The analyst will give a detailed report of the everyday life of the individuals under study. The ethnographer also uses standard categories for cultural description (e.g., family life, communication network). The ethnographer produces the participant's views through closely edited quotations and has the final work on how the culture is to be interpreted and presented. (Qualitative Inquiry and Research Design, 93)
Critical ethnography: is a kind of ethnographic research in which the creators advocate for the liberation of groups which are marginalized in society. Critical researchers typically are politically minded people who look to take a stand of opposition to inequality and domination. For example, a critical ethnographer might study schools that provide privileges to certain types of students, or counseling practices that serve to overlook the needs of underrepresented groups. (Qualitative Inquiry and Research Design, 94). The important components of a critical ethnographer are to incorporate a value- laden introduction, empower people by giving them more authority, challenging the status quo, and addressing concerns about power and control. A critical ethnographer will study issues of power, empowerment, inequality inequity, dominance, repression, hegemony, and victimization. (Qualitative Inquiry and Research Design, 94)
Features of ethnographic research[edit]
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Involves investigation of very few cases, maybe just one case, in detail.
Often involves working with primarily unconstructed data. This data had not been coded at the point of data collection in terms of a closed set of analytic categories.
Emphasizes on exploring social phenomena rather than testing hypotheses.
Data analysis involves interpretation of the functions and meanings of human actions. The product of this is mainly verbal explanations, where statistical analysis and quantification play a subordinate role.
Methodological discussions focus more on questions about how to report findings in the field than on methods of data collection and interpretation.
Ethnographies focus on describing the culture of a group in very detailed and complex manner. The ethnography can be of the entire group or a subpart of it.
It involves engaging in extensive field work where data collection is mainly by interviews, symbols, artifacts, observations, and many other sources of data.
The researcher in ethnography type of research looks for patterns of the group's mental activities, that is their ideas and beliefs expressed through language or other activities, and how they behave in their groups as expressed through their actions that the researcher observed.
In ethnography, the researcher gathers what is available, what is normal, what it is that people do, what they say, and how they work.[10]
Procedures for conducting ethnography[edit]
Determine if ethnography is the most appropriate design to use to study the research problem. Ethnography is suitable if the needs are to describe how a cultural group works and to explore their beliefs, language, behaviours and also issues faced by the group, such as power, resistance, and dominance. (Qualitative Inquiry and Research Design, 94)
Then identify and locate a culture-sharing group to study. This group is one whose members have been together for an extended period of time, so that their shared language, patterns of behaviour and attitudes have merged into discernible patterns. This group can also be a group that has been marginalized by society. (Qualitative Inquiry and Research Design, 94)
Select cultural themes, issues or theories to study about the group. These themes, issues, and theories provide an orienting framework for the study of the culture-sharing group. As discussed by Hammersley and Atkinson (2007), Wolcott (1987, 1994b, 2008-1), and Fetterman (2009). The ethnographer begins the study by examining people in interaction in ordinary settings and discerns pervasive patterns such as life cycles, events, and cultural themes. (Qualitative Inquiry and Research Design, 94-95)
For studying cultural concepts, determine which type of ethnography to use. Perhaps how the group works need to be described, or a critical ethnography can expose issues such as power, hegemony, and advocacy for certain groups (Qualitative Inquiry and Research Design, 95)
Should collect information in the context or setting where the group works or lives. This is called fieldwork. Types of information typically needed in ethnography are collected by going to the research site, respecting the daily lives of individuals at the site and collecting a wide variety of materials. Field issues of respect, reciprocity, deciding who owns the data and others are central to Ethnography (Qualitative Inquiry and Research Design, 95)
From the many sources collected, the ethnographer analyzes the data for a description of the culture-sharing group, themes that emerge from the group and an overall interpretation (Wolcott, 1994b). The researcher begins to compile a detailed description of the culture-sharing group, by focusing on a single event, on several activities, or on the group over a prolonged period of time.
Forge a working set of rules or generalizations as to how the culture-sharing group works as the final product of this analysis. The final product is a holistic cultural portrait of the group that incorporates the views of the participants (emic) as well as the views of the researcher (etic). It might also advocate for the needs of the group or suggest changes in society. (Qualitative Inquiry and Research Design, 96)
Ethnography as method[edit]
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The ethnographic method is different from other ways of conducting social science approach due to the following reasons:
An ethnographer conducting field interviews, Valašské muzeum v přírodě
It is field-based. It is conducted in the settings in which real people actually live, rather than in laboratories where the researcher controls the elements of the behaviors to be observed or measured.
It is personalized. It is conducted by researchers who are in the day-to-day, face-to-face contact with the people they are studying and who are thus both participants in and observers of the lives under study.
It is multifactorial. It is conducted through the use of two or more data collection techniques - which may be qualitative or quantitative in nature - in order to get a conclusion.
It requires a long-term commitment i.e. it is conducted by a researcher who intends to interact with people they are studying for an extended period of time. The exact time frame can vary from several weeks to a year or more.
It is inductive. It is conducted in such a way to use an accumulation of descriptive detail to build toward general patterns or explanatory theories rather than structured to test hypotheses derived from existing theories or models.
It is dialogic. It is conducted by a researcher whose interpretations and findings may be expounded on by the study’s participants while conclusions are still in the process of formulation.
It is holistic. It is conducted so as to yield the fullest possible portrait of the group under study.
It can also be used in other methodological frameworks, for instance, an action research program of study where one of the goals is to change and improve the situation.[10]
Data collection methods[edit]
Izmir Ethnography Museum (İzmir Etnografya Müzesi), Izmir, Turkey, from the courtyard
Ethnography museum, Budapest, Hungary
According to the leading social scientist, John Brewer, data collection methods are meant to capture the "social meanings and ordinary activities"[13] of people (informants) in "naturally occurring settings"[13] that are commonly referred to as "the field." The goal is to collect data in such a way that the researcher imposes a minimal amount of personal bias in the data.[13] Multiple methods of data collection may be employed to facilitate a relationship that allows for a more personal and in-depth portrait of the informants and their community. These can include participant observation, field notes, interviews, and surveys.
Interviews are often taped and later transcribed, allowing the interview to proceed unimpaired of note-taking, but with all information available later for full analysis. Secondary research and document analysis are also used to provide insight into the research topic. In the past, kinship charts were commonly used to "discover logical patterns and social structure in non-Western societies".[14] In the 21st century, anthropology focuses more on the study of people in urban settings and the use of kinship charts is seldom employed.
In order to make the data collection and interpretation transparent, researchers creating ethnographies often attempt to be "reflexive". Reflexivity refers to the researcher's aim "to explore the ways in which [the] researcher's involvement with a particular study influences, acts upon and informs such research".[15] Despite these attempts of reflexivity, no researcher can be totally unbiased. This factor has provided a basis to criticize ethnography.
Traditionally, the ethnographer focuses attention on a community, selecting knowledgeable informants who know the activities of the community well.[16] These informants are typically asked to identify other informants who represent the community, often using snowball or chain sampling.[16] This process is often effective in revealing common cultural denominators connected to the topic being studied.[16] Ethnography relies greatly on up-close, personal experience. Participation, rather than just observation, is one of the keys to this process.[17] Ethnography is very useful in social research.
Ybema et al. (2010) examine the ontological and epistemological presuppositions underlying ethnography. Ethnographic research can range from a realist perspective, in which behavior is observed, to a constructivist perspective where understanding is socially constructed by the researcher and subjects. Research can range from an objectivist account of fixed, observable behaviors to an interpretive narrative describing "the interplay of individual agency and social structure."[18] Critical theory researchers address "issues of power within the researcher-researched relationships and the links between knowledge and power."
Another form of data collection is that of the "image." The image is the projection that an individual puts on an object or abstract idea. An image can be contained within the physical world through a particular individual's perspective, primarily based on that individual’s past experiences. One example of an image is how an individual views a novel after completing it. The physical entity that is the novel contains a specific image in the perspective of the interpreting individual and can only be expressed by the individual in the terms of "I can tell you what an image is by telling you what it feels like."[19] The idea of an image relies on the imagination and has been seen to be utilized by children in a very spontaneous and natural manner. Effectively, the idea of the image is a primary tool for ethnographers to collect data. The image presents the perspective, experiences, and influences of an individual as a single entity and in consequence, the individual will always contain this image in the group under study.
Differences across disciplines[edit]
The ethnographic method is used across a range of different disciplines, primarily by anthropologists but also occasionally by sociologists. Cultural studies, (European) ethnology, sociology, economics, social work, education, design, psychology, computer science, human factors and ergonomics, ethnomusicology, folkloristics, religious studies, geography, history, linguistics, communication studies, performance studies, advertising, nursing, urban planning, usability, political science,[20] social movement,[21] and criminology are other fields which have made use of ethnography.
Cultural and social anthropology[edit]
Cultural anthropology and social anthropology were developed around ethnographic research and their canonical texts, which are mostly ethnographies: e.g. Argonauts of the Western Pacific (1922) by Bronisław Malinowski, Ethnologische Excursion in Johore (1875) by Nicholas Miklouho-Maclay, Coming of Age in Samoa (1928) by Margaret Mead, The Nuer (1940) by E. E. Evans-Pritchard, Naven (1936, 1958) by Gregory Bateson, or "The Lele of the Kasai" (1963) by Mary Douglas. Cultural and social anthropologists today place a high value on doing ethnographic research. The typical ethnography is a document written about a particular people, almost always based at least in part on emic views of where the culture begins and ends. Using language or community boundaries to bound the ethnography is common.[22] Ethnographies are also sometimes called "case studies."[23] Ethnographers study and interpret culture, its universalities, and its variations through the ethnographic study based on fieldwork. An ethnography is a specific kind of written observational science which provides an account of a particular culture, society, or community. The fieldwork usually involves spending a year or more in another society, living with the local people and learning about their ways of life. Neophyte Ethnographers are strongly encouraged to develop extensive familiarity with their subject prior to entering the field; otherwise, they may find themselves in difficult situations.[24]
Ethnographers are participant observers. They take part in events they study because it helps with understanding local behavior and thought. Classic examples are Carol B. Stack's All Our Kin,[25] Jean Briggs' Never in Anger, Richard Lee's Kalahari Hunter-Gatherers, Victor Turner's Forest of Symbols, David Maybry-Lewis' Akew-Shavante Society, E.E. Evans-Pritchard's The Nuer, and Claude Lévi-Strauss' Tristes Tropiques. Iterations of ethnographic representations in the classic, modernist camp include Joseph W. Bastien's "Drum and Stethoscope" (1992), Bartholomew Dean's recent (2009) contribution, Urarina Society, Cosmology, and History in Peruvian Amazonia.[26]
Bronisław Malinowski among Trobriand tribe
Part of the ethnographic collection of the Međimurje County Museum in Croatia
A typical ethnography attempts to be holistic[7][8] and typically follows an outline to include a brief history of the culture in question, an analysis of the physical geography or terrain inhabited by the people under study, including climate, and often including what biological anthropologists call habitat. Folk notions of botany and zoology are presented as ethnobotany and ethnozoology alongside references from the formal sciences. Material culture, technology, and means of subsistence are usually treated next, as they are typically bound up in physical geography and include descriptions of infrastructure. Kinship and social structure (including age grading, peer groups, gender, voluntary associations, clans, moieties, and so forth, if they exist) are typically included. Languages spoken, dialects, and the history of language change are another group of standard topics.[27] Practices of childrearing, acculturation, and emic views on personality and values usually follow after sections on social structure.[28] Rites, rituals, and other evidence of religion have long been an interest and are sometimes central to ethnographies, especially when conducted in public where visiting anthropologists can see them.[29]
As ethnography developed, anthropologists grew more interested in less tangible aspects of culture, such as values, worldview and what Clifford Geertz termed the "ethos" of the culture. In his fieldwork, Geertz used elements of a phenomenological approach, tracing not just the doings of people, but the cultural elements themselves. For example, if within a group of people, winking was a communicative gesture, he sought to first determine what kinds of things a wink might mean (it might mean several things). Then, he sought to determine in what contexts winks were used, and whether, as one moved about a region, winks remained meaningful in the same way. In this way, cultural boundaries of communication could be explored, as opposed to using linguistic boundaries or notions about the residence. Geertz, while still following something of a traditional ethnographic outline, moved outside that outline to talk about "webs" instead of "outlines"[30] of culture.
Within cultural anthropology, there are several subgenres of ethnography. Beginning in the 1950s and early 1960s, anthropologists began writing "bio-confessional" ethnographies that intentionally exposed the nature of ethnographic research. Famous examples include Tristes Tropiques (1955) by Lévi-Strauss, The High Valley by Kenneth Read, and The Savage and the Innocent by David Maybury-Lewis, as well as the mildly fictionalized Return to Laughter by Elenore Smith Bowen (Laura Bohannan).
Later "reflexive" ethnographies refined the technique to translate cultural differences by representing their effects on the ethnographer. Famous examples include Deep Play: Notes on a Balinese Cockfight by Clifford Geertz, Reflections on Fieldwork in Morocco by Paul Rabinow, The Headman and I by Jean-Paul Dumont, and Tuhami by Vincent Crapanzano. In the 1980s, the rhetoric of ethnography was subjected to intense scrutiny within the discipline, under the general influence of literary theory and post-colonial/post-structuralist thought. "Experimental" ethnographies that reveal the ferment of the discipline include Shamanism, Colonialism, and the Wild Man by Michael Taussig, Debating Muslims by Michael F. J. Fischer and Mehdi Abedi, A Space on the Side of the Road by Kathleen Stewart, and Advocacy after Bhopal by Kim Fortun.
This critical turn in sociocultural anthropology during the mid-1980s can be traced to the influence of the now classic (and often contested) text, Writing Culture: The Poetics and Politics of Ethnography, (1986) edited by James Clifford and George Marcus. Writing Culture helped bring changes to both anthropology and ethnography often described in terms of being 'postmodern,' 'reflexive,' 'literary,' 'deconstructive,' or 'poststructural' in nature, in that the text helped to highlight the various epistemic and political predicaments that many practitioners saw as plaguing ethnographic representations and practices.[31]
Where Geertz's and Turner's interpretive anthropology recognized subjects as creative actors who constructed their sociocultural worlds out of symbols, postmodernists attempted to draw attention to the privileged status of the ethnographers themselves. That is, the ethnographer cannot escape the personal viewpoint in creating an ethnographic account, thus making any claims of objective neutrality highly problematic, if not altogether impossible.[32] In regards to this last point, Writing Culture became a focal point for looking at how ethnographers could describe different cultures and societies without denying the subjectivity of those individuals and groups being studied while simultaneously doing so without laying claim to absolute knowledge and objective authority.[33] Along with the development of experimental forms such as 'dialogic anthropology,' 'narrative ethnography,'[34] and 'literary ethnography',[35] Writing Culture helped to encourage the development of 'collaborative ethnography.'[36] This exploration of the relationship between writer, audience, and subject has become a central tenet of contemporary anthropological and ethnographic practice. In certain instances, active collaboration between the researcher(s) and subject(s) has helped blend the practice of collaboration in ethnographic fieldwork with the process of creating the ethnographic product resulting from the research.[36][37][38]
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Sociology is another field which prominently features ethnographies. Urban sociology, Atlanta University (now Clark-Atlanta University), and the Chicago School, in particular, are associated with ethnographic research, with some well-known early examples being The Philadelphia Negro (1899) by W. E. B. Du Bois, Street Corner Society by William Foote Whyte and Black Metropolis by St. Clair Drake and Horace R. Cayton, Jr.. Major influences on this development were anthropologist Lloyd Warner, on the Chicago sociology faculty, and to Robert Park's experience as a journalist. Symbolic interactionism developed from the same tradition and yielded such sociological ethnographies as Shared Fantasy by Gary Alan Fine, which documents the early history of fantasy role-playing games. Other important ethnographies in sociology include Pierre Bourdieu's work on Algeria and France.
Jaber F. Gubrium's series of organizational ethnographies focused on the everyday practices of illness, care, and recovery are notable. They include Living and Dying at Murray Manor, which describes the social worlds of a nursing home; Describing Care: Image and Practice in Rehabilitation, which documents the social organization of patient subjectivity in a physical rehabilitation hospital; Caretakers: Treating Emotionally Disturbed Children, which features the social construction of behavioral disorders in children; and Oldtimers and Alzheimer's: The Descriptive Organization of Senility, which describes how the Alzheimer's disease movement constructed a new subjectivity of senile dementia and how that is organized in a geriatric hospital. Another approach to ethnography in sociology comes in the form of institutional ethnography, developed by Dorothy E. Smith for studying the social relations which structure people's everyday lives.
Other notable ethnographies include Paul Willis's Learning to Labour, on working class youth; the work of Elijah Anderson, Mitchell Duneier, and Loïc Wacquant on black America, and Lai Olurode's Glimpses of Madrasa From Africa. But even though many sub-fields and theoretical perspectives within sociology use ethnographic methods, ethnography is not the sine qua non of the discipline, as it is in cultural anthropology.
Communication Studies[edit]
Beginning in the 1960s and 1970s, ethnographic research methods began to be widely used by communication scholars. As the purpose of ethnography is to describe and interpret the shared and learned patterns of values, behaviors, beliefs, and language of a culture-sharing group, Harris, (1968), also Agar (1980) note that ethnography is both a process and an outcome of the research. Studies such as Gerry Philipsen's analysis of cultural communication strategies in a blue-collar, working-class neighborhood on the south side of Chicago, Speaking 'Like a Man' in Teamsterville, paved the way for the expansion of ethnographic research in the study of communication.
Scholars of communication studies use ethnographic research methods to analyze communicative behaviors and phenomena. This is often characterized in the writing as attempts to understand taken-for-granted routines by which working definitions are socially produced. Ethnography as a method is a storied, careful, and systematic examination of the reality-generating mechanisms of everyday life (Coulon, 1995). Ethnographic work in communication studies seeks to explain "how" ordinary methods/practices/performances construct the ordinary actions used by ordinary people in the accomplishments of their identities. This often gives the perception of trying to answer the "why" and "how come" questions of human communication.[39] Often this type of research results in a case study or field study such as an analysis of speech patterns at a protest rally, or the way firemen communicate during "down time" at a fire station. Like anthropology scholars, communication scholars often immerse themselves, and participate in and/or directly observe the particular social group being studied.[40]
Other fields[edit]
The American anthropologist George Spindler was a pioneer in applying the ethnographic methodology to the classroom.
Anthropologists such as Daniel Miller and Mary Douglas have used ethnographic data to answer academic questions about consumers and consumption. In this sense, Tony Salvador, Genevieve Bell, and Ken Anderson describe design ethnography as being "a way of understanding the particulars of daily life in such a way as to increase the success probability of a new product or service or, more appropriately, to reduce the probability of failure specifically due to a lack of understanding of the basic behaviors and frameworks of consumers."[41] Sociologist Sam Ladner argues in her book,[42] that understanding consumers and their desires requires a shift in "standpoint," one that only ethnography provides. The results are products and services that respond to consumers' unmet needs.
Businesses, too, have found ethnographers helpful for understanding how people use products and services. Companies make increasing use of ethnographic methods to understand consumers and consumption, or for new product development (such as video ethnography). The Ethnographic Praxis in Industry (EPIC) conference is evidence of this. Ethnographers' systematic and holistic approach to real-life experience is valued by product developers, who use the method to understand unstated desires or cultural practices that surround products. Where focus groups fail to inform marketers about what people really do, ethnography links what people say to what they do—avoiding the pitfalls that come from relying only on self-reported, focus-group data.
Evaluating ethnography[edit]
The Ethnographic methodology is not usually evaluated in terms of philosophical standpoint (such as positivism and emotionalism). Ethnographic studies need to be evaluated in some manner. No consensus has been developed on evaluation standards, but Richardson (2000, p. 254)[43] provides five criteria that ethnographers might find helpful. Jaber F. Gubrium and James A. Holstein's (1997) monograph, The New Language of Qualitative Method, discusses forms of ethnography in terms of their "methods talk."
Substantive contribution: "Does the piece contribute to our understanding of social life?"
Aesthetic merit: "Does this piece succeed aesthetically?"
Reflexivity: "How did the author come to write this text…Is there adequate self-awareness and self-exposure for the reader to make judgments about the point of view?"[44]
Impact: "Does this affect me? Emotionally? Intellectually?" Does it move me?
Expresses a reality: "Does it seem 'true'—a credible account of a cultural, social, individual, or communal sense of the 'real'?"
Challenges of ethnography[edit]
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Ethnography, which is a method dedicated entirely to field work, is aimed at gaining a deeper insight of a certain people's knowledge and social culture.
Ethnography's advantages are:
It can open up certain experiences during group research that other research methods fail to cover.
Notions that are taken for granted can be highlighted and confronted.
It can tap into intuitive and deep human understanding of and interpretations of (by the ethnographer) the accounts of informants (those who are being studied), which goes far beyond what quantitative research can do in terms of extracting meanings.
Ethnography allows people outside of a culture (whether of a primitive tribe or of a corporation's employees) to learn about its members' practices, motives, understandings, and values.
However, there are certain challenges or limitations for the ethnographic method:
Deep expertise is required: Ethnographers must accumulate knowledge about the methods and domains of interest, which can take considerable training and time.
Sensitivity: The ethnographer is an outsider and must exercise discretion and caution to avoid offending, alienating or harming those being observed.
Access: Negotiating access to field sites and participants can be time-consuming and difficult. Secretive or guarded organizations may require different approaches in order for researchers to succeed.[45]
Duration and cost: Research can involve prolonged time in the field, particularly because building trust with participants is usually necessary for obtaining rich data.
Bias: Ethnographers bring their own experience to bear in pursuing questions to ask and reviewing data, which can lead to biases in directions of inquiry and analysis.
Descriptive approach: Ethnography relies heavily on storytelling and the presentation of critical incidents, which is inevitably selective and viewed as a weakness by those used to the scientific approaches of hypothesis testing, quantification and replication.
Ethics[edit]
Gary Alan Fine argues that the nature of ethnographic inquiry demands that researchers deviate from formal and idealistic rules or ethics that have come to be widely accepted in qualitative and quantitative approaches in research. Many of these ethical assumptions are rooted in positivist and post-positivist epistemologies that have adapted over time but are apparent and must be accounted for in all research paradigms. These ethical dilemmas are evident throughout the entire process of conducting ethnographies, including the design, implementation, and reporting of an ethnographic study. Essentially, Fine maintains that researchers are typically not as ethical as they claim or assume to be — and that "each job includes ways of doing things that would be inappropriate for others to know".[46]
Fine is not necessarily casting blame at ethnographic researchers but tries to show that researchers often make idealized ethical claims and standards which in are inherently based on partial truths and self-deceptions. Fine also acknowledges that many of these partial truths and self-deceptions are unavoidable. He maintains that "illusions" are essential to maintain an occupational reputation and avoid potentially more caustic consequences. He claims, "Ethnographers cannot help but lie, but in lying, we reveal truths that escape those who are not so bold".[47] Based on these assertions, Fine establishes three conceptual clusters in which ethnographic ethical dilemmas can be situated: "Classic Virtues", "Technical Skills", and "Ethnographic Self".
Much debate surrounding the issue of ethics arose following revelations about how the ethnographer Napoleon Chagnon conducted his ethnographic fieldwork with the Yanomani people of South America.
While there is no international standard on Ethnographic Ethics, many western anthropologists look to the American Anthropological Association for guidance when conducting ethnographic work.[48] In 2009 the Association adopted a code of ethics, stating: Anthropologists have "moral obligations as members of other groups, such as the family, religion, and community, as well as the profession".[49] The code of ethics notes that anthropologists are part of a wider scholarly and political network, as well as human and natural environment, which needs to be reported on respectfully.[49] The code of ethics recognizes that sometimes very close and personal relationship can sometimes develop from doing ethnographic work.[49] The Association acknowledges that the code is limited in scope; ethnographic work can sometimes be multidisciplinary, and anthropologists need to be familiar with ethics and perspectives of other disciplines as well.[50] The eight-page code of ethics outlines ethical considerations for those conducting Research, Teaching, Application and Dissemination of Results, which are briefly outlined below.[51]
Conducting Research-When conducting research Anthropologists need to be aware of the potential impacts of the research on the people and animals they study.[52] If the seeking of new knowledge will negatively impact the people and animals they will be studying they may not undertake the study according to the code of ethics.[52]
Teaching-When teaching the discipline of anthropology, instructors are required to inform students of the ethical dilemmas of conducting ethnographies and field work.[53]
Application-When conducting an ethnography, Anthropologists must be "open with funders, colleagues, persons studied or providing information, and relevant parties affected by the work about the purpose(s), potential impacts, and source(s) of support for the work."[54]
Dissemination of Results-When disseminating results of an ethnography, "[a]nthropologists have an ethical obligation to consider the potential impact of both their research and the communication or dissemination of the results of their research on all directly or indirectly involved."[55] Research results of ethnographies should not be withheld from participants in the research if that research is being observed by other people.[54]
Classic virtues[edit]
"The kindly ethnographer" – Most ethnographers present themselves as being more sympathetic than they are, which aids in the research process, but is also deceptive. The identity that we present to subjects is different from who we are in other circumstances.
"The friendly ethnographer" – Ethnographers operate under the assumption that they should not dislike anyone. When ethnographers find they intensely dislike individuals encountered in the research, they may crop them out of the findings.[56]
"The honest ethnographer" – If research participants know the research goals, their responses will likely be skewed. Therefore, ethnographers often conceal what they know in order to increase the likelihood of acceptance by participants.[56]
Technical skills[edit]
"The Precise Ethnographer" – Ethnographers often create the illusion that field notes are data and reflect what "really" happened. They engage in the opposite of plagiarism, giving undeserved credit through loose interpretations and paraphrasing. Researchers take near-fictions and turn them into claims of fact. The closest ethnographers can ever really get to reality is an approximate truth.
"The Observant Ethnographer" – Readers of ethnography are often led to assume the report of a scene is complete – that little of importance was missed. In reality, an ethnographer will always miss some aspect because of lacking omniscience. Everything is open to multiple interpretations and misunderstandings. As ethnographers' skills in observation and collection of data vary by individual, what is depicted in ethnography can never be the whole picture.
"The Unobtrusive Ethnographer" – As a "participant" in the scene, the researcher will always have an effect on the communication that occurs within the research site. The degree to which one is an "active member" affects the extent to which sympathetic understanding is possible.[57]
Ethnographic Self[edit]
The following are commonly misconceived conceptions of ethnographers:
"The Candid Ethnographer" – Where the researcher personally situates within the ethnography is ethically problematic. There is an illusion that everything reported was observed by the researcher.
"The Chaste Ethnographer" – When ethnographers participate within the field, they invariably develop relationships with research subjects/participants. These relationships are sometimes not accounted for within the reporting of the ethnography, although they may influence the research findings.
"The Fair Ethnographer" – Fine claims that objectivity is an illusion and that everything in ethnography is known from a perspective. Therefore, it is unethical for a researcher to report fairness in findings.
"The Literary Ethnographer" – Representation is a balancing act of determining what to "show" through poetic/prosaic language and style, versus what to "tell" via straightforward, 'factual' reporting. The individual skills of an ethnographer influence what appears to be the value of the research.[58]
According to Norman K. Denzin, ethnographers should consider the following eight principles when observing, recording, and sampling data:
The groups should combine symbolic meanings with patterns of interaction.
Observe the world from the point of view of the subject, while maintaining the distinction between everyday and scientific perceptions of reality.
Link the group's symbols and their meanings with the social relationships.
Record all behavior.
The methodology should highlight phases of process, change, and stability.
The act should be a type of symbolic interactionism.
Use concepts that would avoid casual explanations.
Examples of studies that can use an ethnographic approach[edit]
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To study the behavior of workers at a store in a mall - when the manager is present, and when he is not.
To observe the kind of punishments children are given for not completing their homework at a particular school.
To follow hygiene patterns of adolescents in a particular dormitory.
To study altruistic behavior members of a particular church display for each other.
To examine health habits of sex workers from a particular locality.
Notable ethnographers[edit]
Thor Heyerdahl (1914-2002)
Gerhard Friedrich Müller (1705-1783)
Adriaen Cornelissen van der Donck (c. 1618 – 1655)
Manuel Ancízar Basterra (1812-1882)
Franz Boas (1858–1942)
Sergey Oldenburg (1863-1934)
Edward Sapir (1884–1939)
Raymond Firth (1901–2002)
Margaret Mead (1901–1978)
Gregory Bateson (1904–1980)
Mary Douglas (1921–2007)
Napoleon Chagnon (born 1938)
Marilyn Strathern (born 1941)
Elijah Anderson (born 1943)
Veena Das (born 1945)
Kristen R. Ghodsee (born 1970)
Zuzana Beňušková (born 1960)
Zalpa Bersanova
Alice Goffman (born 1982)
Jaber F. Gubrium
Katrina Karkazis
Mary Kingsley (1862–1900)
Diamond Jenness
Ruth Landes
Edmund Leach
José Leite de Vasconcelos
Claude Lévi-Strauss
Bronisław Malinowski
David Maybury-Lewis
Nicholas Miklouho-Maclay
Nikolai Nadezhdin
Lubor Niederle
Dositej Obradović
Alexey Okladnikov
Richard Price
August Ludwig von Schlözer
Lila Abu-Lughod
Barrie Thorne
Sudhir Venkatesh
Susan Visvanathan
Paul Willis
James Spradley (1933-1982)
See also[edit]
Area studies
Critical ethnography
Ethnography of communication
Ethnology
Ethnosemiotics
Realist ethnography
Online ethnography: a form of ethnography that involves conducting ethnographic studies on the Internet
Participant observation
Ethnoarchaeology
Video ethnography
Living lab
References[edit]
Jump up ^ "Technical definition of ethnography", American Ethnography
Jump up ^ Geertz, C. (1973). Thick description: Toward an Interpretive Theory of Culture.
Jump up ^ In The Interpretation of Cultures: Selected Essays (pp. 3-30). New York: Basic Books, Inc., Publishers
Jump up ^ Philipsen, G. (1992). Speaking Culturally: Explorations in Social Communication. Albany, New York: State University of New York Press
Jump up ^ "Ethnology" at dictionary.com.
Jump up ^ Токарев, Сергей Александрович (1978). История зарубежной этнографии (in Russian). Наука.
^ Jump up to: a b Ember, Carol and Melvin Ember, Cultural Anthropology (Prentice Hall, 2006), chapter one.
^ Jump up to: a b Heider, Karl. Seeing Anthropology. 2001. Prentice Hall, Chapters One and Two.
Jump up ^ "What is Ethnography? « ERIAL Project". www.erialproject.org. Retrieved 2017-06-20.
^ Jump up to: a b c Preece, J., Sharp, H., & Rogers, Y. (2015). Interaction Design: Beyond Human-Computer Interaction (4th edition). Wiley.
^ Jump up to: a b Vermeulen, Han F., 2008, Early History of Ethnography and Ethnology in the German Enlightenment, Leiden, p. 199.
Jump up ^ Vermeulen, Hans (2008). Early History of Ethnograph and Ethnolog in the German Enlightenment: Anthropological Discourse in Europe and Asia, 1710-1808. Leiden: Privately published.
^ Jump up to: a b c [Brewer, John D. (2000). Ethnography. Philadelphia: Open University Press. p.10.]
Jump up ^ [1]
Jump up ^ [Nightingale, David & Cromby, John. Social Constructionist Psychology: A Critical Analysis of Theory and Practice. Philadelphia: Open University Press. p.228.]
^ Jump up to: a b c Garson, G. David (2008). "Ethnographic Research: Statnotes, from North Carolina State University, Public Administration Program". Faculty.chass.ncsu.edu. Retrieved 2011-03-27.
Jump up ^ Genzuk, Michael, PH.D., A Synthesis of Ethnographic, Center for Multilingual, Multicultural Research, University of Southern California
Jump up ^ S. Ybema, D. Yanow, H. Wels, & F. Kamsteeg (2010). "Ethnography." In A. Mills, G. Durepos, & E. Wiebe (Eds.), Encyclopedia of Case Study Research. (pp. 348-352). Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications, Inc.
Jump up ^ Barry, Lynda. "Lynda Barry: The answer is in the picture". YouTube. INKtalks. Retrieved 5 May 2015.
Jump up ^ Schatz, Edward, ed. Political Ethnography: What Immersion Contributes to the Study of Power. University Of Chicago Press. 2009.
Jump up ^ Balsiger, P., Lambelet, A., Participant Observation. In D. Della Porta (Ed.), Methodological Practices in Social Movement Research (pp. 144-172). Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2014
Jump up ^ Naroll, Raoul. Handbook of Methods in Cultural Anthropology.
Jump up ^ Chavez, Leo. Shadowed Lives: Undocumented Workers in American Society (Case Studies in Cultural Anthropology). 1997, Prentice Hall.
Jump up ^ Burns, Janet M.C. (1992). Caught in the Riptide: Female Researcher in a Patricentric Setting. Pp. 171-182 in Fragile Truths: 25 Years of Sociology and Anthropology in Canada. D. Harrison, W.K. Carroll, L. Christiansen-Ruffman and Raymond Currie (eds.). Ottawa, Ontario, Canada: Carleton University Press.
Jump up ^ Stack, Carol B. (1974). All Our Kin:Strategies for Survival in a black community. New York, New York: Harper and Row. ISBN 0-06-013974-9.
Jump up ^ "University Press of Florida: Urarina Society, Cosmology, and History in Peruvian Amazonia". Upf.com. 2009-11-15. Retrieved 2011-03-27.
Jump up ^ cf. Ember and Ember 2006, Heider 2001 op cit.
Jump up ^ Ember and Ember 2006, op cit., Chapters 7 and 8
Jump up ^ Truner, Victor. The Forest of Symbols. remainder of citation forthcoming
Jump up ^ Geertz, Clifford. The Interpretation of Culture, Chapter one.
Jump up ^ Olaf Zenker & Karsten Kumoll. Beyond Writing Culture: Current Intersections of Epistemologies and Representational Practices. (2010). New York: Berghahn Books. ISBN 978-1-84545-675-7. Pgs. 1-4
Jump up ^ Paul A. Erickson & Liam D. Murphy. A History of Anthropological Theory, Third Edition. (2008). Toronto: Broadview Press. ISBN 978-1-55111-871-0. Pg. 190
Jump up ^ Erickson & Murphy (2008). A History of Anthropological Theory, Pgs. 190-191
Jump up ^ Kristen Ghodsee, "Writing Ethnographies that Ordinary People Can Read." http://www.anthropology-news.org/index.php/2013/05/24/writing-ethnographies-that-ordinary-people-can-read/
Jump up ^ Literary Ethnography http://literary-ethnography.tumblr.com/
^ Jump up to: a b Olaf Zenker & Karsten Kumoll. Beyond Writing Culture: Current Intersections of Epistemologies and Representational Practices. (2010). New York: Berghahn Books. ISBN 978-1-84545-675-7. Pg. 12
Jump up ^ Luke E. Lassiter (2001). "From 'Reading over the Shoulders of Natives' to 'Reading alongside Natives', Literally: Toward a Collaborative and Reciprocal Ethnography", in Journal of Anthropologcal Research, 57(2):137-149
Jump up ^ Luke E. Lassiter. "Collaborative Ethnography and Public Anthropology". (2005). Current Anthropology, 46(1):83-106
Jump up ^ Rubin, R. B., Rubin, A. M., and Piele, L. J. (2005). Communication Research: Strategies and Sources. Belmont, California: Thomson Wadworth. pp. 229.
Jump up ^ Bentz, V. M., and Shapiro, J. J. (1998). Mindful Inquiry in Social Research. Thousand Oaks, California: Sage. pp. 117.
Jump up ^ Salvador, Tony; Genevieve Bell; and Ken Anderson (1999) "Design Ethnography," Design Management Journal (pp. 35-41). p.37
Jump up ^ [2] Practical Ethnography
Jump up ^ Richardson,L. (2000). "Evaluating ethnography," in Qualitative Inquiry, 6(2), 253-255
Jump up ^ For post-colonial critiques of ethnography from various locations, see essays in Prem Poddar et al, Historical Companion to Postcolonial Literatures--Continental Europe and its Empires, Edinburgh University Press, 2008.
Jump up ^ Monahan, Torin, Fisher, Jill A. (2014). "Strategies for Obtaining Access to Secretive or Guarded Organizations". Journal of Contemporary Ethnography. doi:10.1177/0891241614549834.
Jump up ^ Fine, p. 267
Jump up ^ Fine, p. 291
Jump up ^ American Anthropology Association Code of Ethics http://www.aaanet.org/issues/policy-advocacy/upload/AAA-Ethics-Code-2009.pdf, p.1
^ Jump up to: a b c American Anthropology Association Code of Ethics, p.1
Jump up ^ American Anthropology Association Code of Ethics, p.2
Jump up ^ American Anthropology Association Code of Ethics, p.1-8
^ Jump up to: a b American Anthropology Association Code of Ethics, p.2-3
Jump up ^ American Anthropology Association Code of Ethics, p.4
^ Jump up to: a b American Anthropology Association Code of Ethics, p.5
Jump up ^ American Anthropology Association Code of Ethics, p.5-6
^ Jump up to: a b Fine, p. 270-77
Jump up ^ Fine, p. 277-81
Jump up ^ Fine, p. 282-89
Further reading[edit]
Agar, Michael (1996) The Professional Stranger: An Informal Introduction to Ethnography. Academic Press.
Burns, Janet M.C. (1992) Caught in the Riptide: Female Researcher in a Patricentric Setting. pp. 171–182 in Fragile Truths: 25 Years of Sociology and Anthropology in Canada. D. Harrison, W.K. Carroll, L. Christiansen-Ruffman and Raymond Currie (eds.). Ottawa, Ontario, Canada: Carleton University Press.
Clifford, James & George E. Marcus (Eds.). Writing Culture: The Poetics and Politics of Ethnography. (1986). Berkeley: University of California Press.
Douglas, Mary and Baron Isherwood (1996) The World of Goods: Toward and Anthropology of Consumption. Routledge, London.
Erickson, Ken C. and Donald D. Stull (1997) Doing Team Ethnography : Warnings and Advice. Sage, Beverly Hills.
Fetterman, D. (2009) Ethnography: Step by Step, Third edition, Thousand Oaks CA, Sage.
Fine, G. A. (1993). Ten lies of ethnography: Moral dilemmas of field research. Journal of Contemporary Ethnography, 22(3), p. 267-294.
Geertz, Clifford. The Interpretation of Cultures.
Ghodsee, Kristen (2013) [3] Anthropology News.
Gubrium, Jaber F. (1988). "Analyzing Field Reality." Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Gubrium, Jaber F. and James A. Holstein. (1997) "The New Language of Qualitative Method." New York: Oxford University Press.
Gubrium, Jaber F. and James A. Holstein. (2009). "Analyzing Narrative Reality." Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Hammersley, M. and Atkinson, P. (2007) Ethnography: Principles in practice, Third edition, London, Routledge.
Heath, Shirley Brice & Brian Street, with Molly Mills. On Ethnography.
Hymes, Dell. (1974). Foundations in sociolinguistics: An ethnographic approach. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press.
Kottak, Conrad Phillip (2005) Window on Humanity : A Concise Introduction to General Anthropology, (pages 2–3, 16-17, 34-44). McGraw Hill, New York.
Marcus, George E. & Michael Fischer. Anthropology as Cultural Critique: An Experimental Moment in the Human Sciences. (1986). Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
Moelker, Rene (2014) "Being one of the Guys or the Fly on the Wall? Participant Observation of Veteran Bikers." in (eds.) J. Soeters, P. Shields, S Rietjens. Routledge Handbook of Research Methods in Military Studies New York: Routledge. pp. 104–114.
Miller, Daniel (1987) Material Culture and Mass Consumption. Blackwell, London.
Spradley, James P. (1979) The Ethnographic Interview. Wadsworth Group/Thomson Learning.
Salvador, Tony; Genevieve Bell; and Ken Anderson (1999) Design Ethnography. Design Management Journal.
Van Maanen, John. 1988. Tales of the Field: On Writing Ethnography Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
Westbrook, David A. Navigators of the Contemporary: Why Ethnography Matters. (2008). Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
External links[edit]
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Ethnography.
Human Relations Area Files
100 of the Most Influential Ethnographies and Anthropology Texts
Ethnographic Praxis in Industry Conference
Genzuk, Michael (2003) A Synthesis of Ethnographic Research
Division of Anthropology, American Museum of Natural History - Over 160,000 objects from Pacific, North American, African, Asian ethnographic collections with images and detailed description, linked to the original catalogue pages, field notebooks, and photographs are available online.
Ross Archive of African Images
Ethnographic material collection from Northern Anatolia and Caucasus -Photo Gallery
Ethnography.com A community based Ethnography website for academic and professional ethnographers and interested parties
New Zealand Museum Images of objects from Pacific cultures.
University of Pennsylvania's "What is Ethnography?" Penn's Public Interest Anthropology Web Site
American Ethnography -- Definitions: What is Ethnography? A collection of quotes about ethnography (Malinowski, Lévi-Strauss, Geertz, ...)
Doing ethnographies (Concepts and Techniques in Modern Geography)
Cornell University Library Southeast Asia Visions
Ethnography for the masses 2CV's Practical Application of Ethnography in Market Research
Scott Polar Research Institute Arctic Material Culture Collection
Texts on Wikisource:
Mason, Otis Tufton (1905). "Ethnography". New International Encyclopedia.
"Ethnology and ethnography". Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). 1911.
"Ethnography". Encyclopedia Americana. 1920.
"Ethnography". Collier's New Encyclopedia. 1921.
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Negotiable instrument
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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A 1939 bill of exchange, Rangoon, Burma.
A negotiable instrument is a document guaranteeing the payment of a specific amount of money, either on demand, or at a set time, with the payer usually named on the document. More specifically, it is a document contemplated by or consisting of a contract, which promises the payment of money without condition, which may be paid either on demand or at a future date. The term can have different meanings, depending on what law is being applied and what country it is used in and what context it is used in.
Contents
[hide]
1 Definition
2 History
3 Distinguished from other types of contracts
3.1 The holder in due course
4 Classes
4.1 Promissory note
4.2 Introduction of bill of exchange
5 In the United States
5.1 Negotiation and endorsement
5.2 Usage
5.3 Exceptions
6 Modern relevance
7 See also
8 References
9 External links
Definition[edit]
In the Commonwealth of Nations almost all jurisdictions have codified the law relating to negotiable instruments in a Bills of Exchange Act, e.g. Bills of Exchange Act 1882 in the UK, Bills of Exchange Act 1908 in New Zealand, Bills of Exchange Act 1909 in Australia,[1] the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881 in India and the Bills of Exchange Act 1914 in Mauritius. The Bills of Exchange Act:
defines a bill of exchange as: 'an unconditional order in writing, addressed by one person to another, signed by the person giving it, requiring the person to whom it is addressed to pay on demand, or at a fixed or determinable future time, a sum certain in money to or to the order of a specified person, or to bearer.
defines a cheque as: 'a bill of exchange drawn on (behalf of) a banker, which is payable on demand (by banker)'
defines a promissory note as: 'an unconditional promise in writing made by one person to another, signed by the maker, engaging to pay on demand, or at a fixed or determinable future time, a sum certain in money to or to the order of a specified person or to bearer.'
Additionally most Commonwealth jurisdictions have separate Cheques Acts providing for additional protections for bankers collecting unendorsed or irregularly endorsed cheques, providing that cheques that are crossed and marked 'not negotiable' or similar are not transferable, and providing for electronic presentation of cheques in inter-bank cheque clearing systems.
History[edit]
Common prototypes of bills of exchanges and promissory notes originated in China, where special instruments called feitsyan were used to safely transfer money over long distances during the reign of the Tang Dynasty in the 8th century.[2][self-published source]
In the mid-13th century, the Ilkhanid rulers of Persia printed the "cha" or "chap" which was used as paper money for limited usage for transactions between the court and the merchants for about three years before it collapsed. The collapse was caused by the court accepting the "cha" only at progressive discount.
Later, such documents were used for money transfer by Middle Eastern merchants, who had used the prototypes of bills of exchange – suftadja/softa from the 8th century to present. Such prototypes came to be used later by the Iberian and Italian merchants in the 12th century. In Italy in the 13–15th centuries, bills of exchange and promissory notes obtained their main features, while further phases of their development have been associated with France (16–18th centuries, where the endorsement had appeared) and Germany (19th century, formalization of Exchange Law). The first mention of the use of bills of exchange in English statutes dates from 1381, under Richard II; the statute mandates the use of such instruments in England, and prohibits the future export of gold and silver specie, in any form, to settle foreign commercial transactions.[3] English exchange law was different than continental European law because of different legal systems; the English system was adopted later in the United States.[4]
The modern emphasis on negotiability may also be traced to Lord Mansfield.[5] Germanic Lombards documents may also have some elements of negotiability.[6]
Distinguished from other types of contracts[edit]
An 1870 Bill of Exchange payable in London with British Foreign Bill revenue stamps attached.
A negotiable instrument can serve to convey value constituting at least part of the performance of a contract, albeit perhaps not obvious in contract formation, in terms inherent in and arising from the requisite offer and acceptance and conveyance of consideration. The underlying contract contemplates the right to hold the instrument as, and to negotiate the instrument to, a holder in due course, the payment on which is at least part of the performance of the contract to which the negotiable instrument is linked. The instrument, memorializing: (1) the power to demand payment; and, (2) the right to be paid, can move, for example, in the instance of a "bearer instrument", wherein the possession of the document itself attributes and ascribes the right to payment. Certain exceptions exist, such as instances of loss or theft of the instrument, wherein the possessor of the note may be a holder, but not necessarily a holder in due course. Negotiation requires a valid endorsement of the negotiable instrument.
The consideration constituted by a negotiable instrument is cognizable as the value given up to acquire it (benefit) and the consequent loss of value (detriment) to the prior holder; thus, no separate consideration is required to support an accompanying contract assignment. The instrument itself is understood as memorializing the right for, and power to demand, payment, and an obligation for payment evidenced by the instrument itself with possession as a holder in due course being the touchstone for the right to, and power to demand, payment. In some instances, the negotiable instrument can serve as the writing memorializing a contract, thus satisfying any applicable statute of frauds as to that contract.
The holder in due course[edit]
The rights of a holder in due course of a negotiable instrument are qualitatively, as matters of law, superior to those provided by ordinary species of contracts:
The rights to payment are not subject to set-off, and do not rely on the validity of the underlying contract giving rise to the debt (for example if a cheque was drawn for payment for goods delivered but defective, the drawer is still liable on the cheque)
No notice need be given to any party liable on the instrument for transfer of the rights under the instrument by negotiation. However, payment by the party liable to the person previously entitled to enforce the instrument "counts" as payment on the note until adequate notice has been received by the liable party that a different party is to receive payments from then on. [U.C.C. §3-602(b)]
Transfer free of equities—the holder in due course can hold better title than the party he obtains it from (as in the instance of negotiation of the instrument from a mere holder to a holder in due course)
Negotiation often enables the transferee to become the party to the contract through a contract assignment (provided for explicitly or by operation of law) and to enforce the contract in the transferee-assignee’s own name. Negotiation can be effected by endorsement and delivery (order instruments), or by delivery alone (bearer instruments).
Classes[edit]
Promissory notes and bills of exchange are two primary types of negotiable instruments.
Promissory note[edit]
Although possibly non-negotiable, a promissory note may be a negotiable instrument if it is an unconditional promise in writing made by one person to another, signed by the maker, engaging to pay on demand to the payee, or at fixed or determinable future time, certain in money, to order or to bearer. (see Sec. 194)[clarification needed] The law applicable to the specific instrument will determine whether it is a negotiable instrument or a non-negotiable instrument.
Bank notes are frequently referred to as promissory notes, a promissory note made by a bank and payable to bearer on demand. According to section 4 of India's Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881, "a Promissory Note is an writing (not being a bank note or currency note), containing an unconditional undertaking, signed by the maker to pay a certain sum of money only to or to the order of a certain person or the bearer of the instrument".[citation needed]
Introduction of bill of exchange[edit]
A negotiable instrument or "draft" is a written order by the drawer to the drawee to pay money to the payee. A common type of bill of exchange is the cheque (check in American English), defined as a bill of exchange drawn on a banker and payable on demand. Bills of exchange are used primarily in international trade, and are written orders by one person to his bank to pay the bearer a specific sum on a specific date. Prior to the advent of paper currency, bills of exchange were a common means of exchange. They are not used as often today.
Bill of exchange, 1933
A bill of exchange is essentially an order made by one person to another to pay money to a third person. A bill of exchange requires in its inception three parties—the drawer, the drawee, and the payee. The person who draws the bill is called the drawer. He gives the order to pay money to the third party. The party upon whom the bill is drawn is called the drawee. He is the person to whom the bill is addressed and who is ordered to pay. He becomes an acceptor when he indicates his willingness to pay the bill. The party in whose favor the bill is drawn or is payable is called the payee. The parties need not all be distinct persons. Thus, the drawer may draw on himself payable to his own order. A bill of exchange may be endorsed by the payee in favour of a third party, who may in turn endorse it to a fourth, and so on indefinitely. The "holder in due course" may claim the amount of the bill against the drawee and all previous endorsers, regardless of any counterclaims that may have disabled the previous payee or endorser from doing so. This is what is meant by saying that a bill is negotiable. In some cases a bill is marked "not negotiable" – see crossing of cheques. In that case it can still be transferred to a third party, but the third party can have no better right than the transferor.
In the United States[edit]
In the United States, Articles 3 and 4 of the Uniform Commercial Code (UCC) govern the issuance and transfer of negotiable instruments, unless the instruments are governed by Article 8 of the UCC. The various state law enactments of UCC §§ 3–104(a) through (d) set forth the legal definition of what is and what is not a negotiable instrument:
§ 3–104. NEGOTIABLE INSTRUMENT.
(a) Except as provided in subsections (c) and (d), "negotiable instrument" means an unconditional promise or order to pay a fixed amount of money, with or without interest or other charges described in the promise or order, if it: (1) is payable to bearer or to order at the time it is issued or first comes into possession of a holder; (2) is payable on demand or at a definite time; and (3) does not state any other undertaking or instruction by the person promising or ordering payment to do any act in addition to the payment of money, but the promise or order may contain (i) an undertaking or power to give, maintain, or protect collateral to secure payment, (ii) an authorization or power to the holder to confess judgment or realize on or dispose of collateral, or (iii) a waiver of the benefit of any law intended for the advantage or protection of an obligor. (b) "Instrument" means a negotiable instrument. (c) An order that meets all of the requirements of subsection (a), except paragraph (1), and otherwise falls within the definition of "check" in subsection (f) is a negotiable instrument and a check. (d) A promise or order other than a check is not an instrument if, at the time it is issued or first comes into possession of a holder, it contains a conspicuous statement, however expressed, to the effect that the promise or order is not negotiable or is not an instrument governed by this Article.
Thus, for a writing to be a negotiable instrument under Article 3,[7] the following requirements must be met:
The promise or order to pay must be unconditional;
The payment must be a specific sum of money, although interest may be added to the sum;
The payment must be made on demand or at a definite time;
The instrument must not require the person promising payment to perform any act other than paying the money specified;
The instrument must be payable to bearer or to order.
The latter requirement is referred to as the "words of negotiability": a writing which does not contain the words "to the order of" (within the four corners of the instrument or in endorsement on the note or in allonge) or indicate that it is payable to the individual holding the contract document (analogous to the holder in due course) is not a negotiable instrument and is not governed by Article 3, even if it appears to have all of the other features of negotiability. The only exception is that if an instrument meets the definition of a cheque (a bill of exchange payable on demand and drawn on a bank) and is not payable to order (i.e. if it just reads "pay John Doe") then it is treated as a negotiable instrument.
UCC Article 3 does not apply to money, to payment orders governed by Article 4A, or to securities governed by Article 8.[8]
Negotiation and endorsement [edit]
Persons other than the original obligor and obligee can become parties to a negotiable instrument. The most common manner in which this is done is by placing one's signature on the instrument (“endorsement”): if the person who signs does so with the intention of obtaining payment of the instrument or acquiring or transferring rights to the instrument, the signature is called an endorsement. There are five types of endorsements contemplated by the Code, covered in UCC Article 3, Sections 204–206:
An endorsement which purports to transfer the instrument to a specified person is a special endorsement – for example, "Pay to the order of Amy";
An endorsement by the payee or holder which does not contain any additional notation (thus purporting to make the instrument payable to bearer) is an endorsement in blank or blank endorsement;
An endorsement which purports to require that the funds be applied in a certain manner (e.g. "for deposit only", "for collection") is a restrictive endorsement; and,
An endorsement purporting to disclaim retroactive liability is called a qualified endorsement (through the inscription of the words "without recourse" as part of the endorsement on the instrument or in allonge to the instrument).
An endorsement purporting to add terms and conditions is called a conditional endorsement – for example, "Pay to the order of Amy, if she rakes my lawn next Thursday November 15th, 2007". The UCC states that these conditions may be disregarded.[9]
If a note or draft is negotiated to a person who acquires the instrument
in good faith;
for value;
without notice of any defenses to payment,
the transferee is a holder in due course and can enforce the instrument without being subject to defenses which the maker of the instrument would be able to assert against the original payee, except for certain real defenses. These real defenses include (1) forgery of the instrument; (2) fraud as to the nature of the instrument being signed; (3) alteration of the instrument; (4) incapacity of the signer to contract; (5) infancy of the signer; (6) duress; (7) discharge in bankruptcy; and, (8) the running of a statute of limitations as to the validity of the instrument. The holder-in-due-course rule is a rebuttable presumption that makes the free transfer of negotiable instruments feasible in the modern economy. A person or entity purchasing an instrument in the ordinary course of business can reasonably expect that it will be paid when presented to, and not subject to dishonor by, the maker, without involving itself in a dispute between the maker and the person to whom the instrument was first issued (this can be contrasted to the lesser rights and obligations accruing to mere holders). Article 3 of the Uniform Commercial Code as enacted in a particular State's law contemplate real defenses available to purported holders in due course. The foregoing is the theory and application presuming compliance with the relevant law. Practically, the obligor-payor on an instrument who feels he has been defrauded or otherwise unfairly dealt with by the payee may nonetheless refuse to pay even a holder in due course, requiring the latter to resort to litigation to recover on the instrument.
Usage[edit]
While bearer instruments are rarely created as such, a holder of commercial paper with the holder designated as payee can change the instrument to a bearer instrument by an endorsement. The proper holder simply signs the back of the instrument and the instrument becomes bearer paper, although in recent years, third party checks are not being honored by most banks unless the original payee has signed a notarized document stating such.
Alternatively, an individual or company may write a check payable to "cash" or "bearer" and create a bearer instrument. Great care should be taken with the security of the instrument, as it is legally almost as good as cash.
Exceptions[edit]
Under the Code, the following are not negotiable instruments, although the law governing obligations with respect to such items may be similar to or derived from the law applicable to negotiable instruments:
Bills of lading and other documents of title, which are governed by Article 7 of the Code. However, under admiralty law, a bill of lading may either be a negotiable or 'order' bill of lading or a nonnegotiable or 'straight' bill of lading.
Deeds and other documents conveying interests in real estate, although a mortgage may secure a promissory note which is governed by Article 3
IOUs
Letters of credit, which are governed by Article 5 of the Code
Modern relevance[edit]
Although often considered foundational in business law, the modern relevance of negotiability has been questioned.[10] Negotiability can be traced back to the 1700s and Lord Mansfield, when money and liquidity was relatively scarce.[5] The holder in due course rule has been limited by various statutes.[5] Concerns have also been raised that the holder in due course rule does not align the incentives of the mortgage originators and the assignees efficiently.[5]
See also[edit]
Bearer instrument
Hundi
Negotiable cow
References[edit]
Jump up ^ Bills of Exchange Act 1909 (Cth)
Jump up ^ Moshenskyi, Sergii (2008). History of the Weksel. Xlibris Corporation. ISBN 978-1-4363-0693-5.
Jump up ^ Adam Anderson, An historical and chronological deduction of the origin of commerce: from the earliest accounts to the present time. Containing, an history of the great commercial interests of the British empire..., Vol. I, p.209–210 (1764)
Jump up ^ Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Bill of Exchange". Encyclopædia Britannica. 3 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. pp. 940–943.
^ Jump up to: a b c d Greenlee MB, Fitzpatrck IV TJ. (2008). Reconsidering the Application of the Holder in Due Course Rule to Home Mortgage Notes. Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland.
Jump up ^ Jacob J. Rabinowitz (May 1956). "The Origin of the Negotiable Promissory Note". University of Pennsylvania Law Review. 104 (7): 927–939.
Jump up ^ "Uniform Commercial Code – Article 3". Law.cornell.edu. Retrieved 2014-06-23.
Jump up ^ "Articles of the Uniform Commercial Code". Uniformcommercialcode.uslegal.com. Retrieved 2014-06-23.
Jump up ^ "Article 3, Sections 206(b)". Law.cornell.edu. Retrieved 2014-06-23.
Jump up ^ Mann RJ (1996). Searching for Negotiability in Payment and Credit Systems. UCLA Law Review.
External links[edit]
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Bills of Exchange.
Bill of Exchange FAQ on TheBenche.com
Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881, India
Authority control
NDL: 00565251
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Negotiable_instrument&oldid=820761834"
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