Structured Observation



Structured Observation of a Location

Introduction

We have entered into an 'Observational Society' in which observing has become a significant activity. Moreover, watching and analyzing is a part of our cognitive modes. One of the advantages is that, a person does not need to ask question, however, observes only.

A non-participant observer is an eavesdropper, who attempts to observe people without any interaction and their consent. This is due to the fact that, if they know about an observer, it will make them behave differently from normal. Moreover, one cannot be sure that they do the same things, if they were not being observed (Cooper, 2004).

In every observation, there are some observable aspects that are being observed such as, culture, behavior, attitude, expressions, language, dress code and diversity of environment.

This report is about the observational research I conducted for star bucks corporation (Cooper, 2004).

Discussion

Time Sampling

A time sampling strategy is observing for short intervals and observing the key points. An observer notices the target for a specific interval of time.

Choosing a location to observe

The location that is to be observed should represent 'average behavior' of community. For this reason, I chose star bucks, as I would be able to observe diversity. Coffee shop is a place where one can readily observe everything without getting noticed.

Interval Length

The whole observing process is divided into different intervals. Starting interval observes the location, setting of the place. Later, the observation focuses on the people who are sitting there and the environment.

Observation Process

The focus of my observation was usual coffee shop behavior. For this reason, I spent 2 hours sitting in star bucks during lunch time. The outside was quite attractive, had two illuminating star bucks signs, which were not prominent in daylight as they would have been in the night. This star bucks had a drive through, and the line was not more than 3-4 cars long, however, when I entered, there were two lines of more than 4-5 people. As the day I chose was Saturday, there were few corners left to be seated. While I walked to the corner, from where I chose to start my observation process, I heard a group of adults gossiping about the music that was being played in star bucks. The music was quite loud, and people had to talk to each other louder than usual.

It was my first experience to star bucks. I sat in the corner and looked around. The environment was quite comfortable. The average age of people that day seemed to be early thirties, with few senior citizens and kids. The teenager either took away their deal or used drive-through. Most of the customers were women. Another noticeable thing was that most of the people did not sit down. They came in, took their drink and went back. Those who sat down stayed there for much longer period that usually one takes to consume their coffee. More than 70% of the people, who chose to sit, had a laptop with ...