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Research questions
When we think about research there’s basically two things we need to consider: what we are
interested in finding out and how we are going to find out the answer. These two things are
otherwise known as research questions and research methods. Let’s take a closer look.
Research is really about asking questions. What are we interested in finding out? Joralemon
(2017) states that because fieldwork is a dynamic process there is no generic list of questions a
medical anthropologist would ask.
Questions themselves can be grouped into different types, but broadly speaking there are
exploratory questions and confirmatory questions.
Exploratory questions are those that seek to understand how and why things work the way
that they do. Confirmatory questions on the other hand are those that seek to test the
hypothesis based on new or existing theory. These two types of questions represent a
continuum which corresponds to the degree of structure of the research methods (Gravlee, 2011).
Gravlee points out that this is a very useful framework to use because it ensures that decisions
about research design are founded in the research questions themselves.
Chavez et al.’s work (1995, 2001) illustrates the use of these different types of questions.
Chavez et al. (1995) were interested in studying beliefs about breast and cervical cancers in
Orange County, California among different groups of individuals. To explore this topic, they
asked “Do Latinas, Anglo women, and physicians have cultural models of breast and cervical
cancer risk factors?” And “if so, how similar or different are their models?” Exploratory
questions are therefore appropriate whenever there is insufficient existing theory or evidence to
establish expectations (Gravlee, 2011).
On the other hand, when there is prior evidence and specific expectations are present for
testing, confirmatory questions are more appropriate. Confirmatory questions can build on
the exploratory phase. Chavez et al. (2001) built on their previous research and sought to
investigate how the beliefs about cancer were associated with behaviour, specifically the use of
Pap exams, to test for cervical cancer. In order to investigate this, Chavez et al. (2001) used
ethnographic interviews and survey research to address the question “to what degree do cultural
beliefs matter in the use of medical services?” They found that under certain circumstances, they
matter a lot (Gravlee, 2011).
Research methods
Now we have decided on our research questions we need to get collect some data; we need to
decide on which research method(s) to use. What is a method? Basically speaking, a method or
methodology is a way of studying something. Anthropologists use a variety of research
methods. Good research design requires researchers to be explicit about the methods and logic
used to connect the theory to the data so that others can evaluate the validity of their claims (i.e.
peer review).
Some things to think about when it comes to choosing a research method:
Qualitative or quantitative, which is better? The traditional approach is to pick one or the other,
but that might actually be counterproductive. Researchers should use whatever works best or
may even combine them. It is possible to combine these to do quantitative analysis of qualitative
data for instance (Gravlee, 2011). It is also important to remember that quantitative and
qualitative are not only types of data, but they are also types of analysis.
What are some examples of qualitative and quantitative data in medical anthropology?
Structure means the amount of control researchers impose on data collection. Structure for
example could mean the likelihood that all participants respond to the same questions in the
same order. Basic idea, the less we know about something, the less structure should impose
on it to remain open for discovery. As we learn more, can impose more structure to test our
ideas (Weller 1998).
Data Collection:
According to Gravlee (2011), data collection falls into three broad categories:
1. Participant observation
2. Systematic observation
3. Interview methods
Do anthropologists use all these techniques for the same study? Usually not. The reason is that
each technique is time consuming and doing a few even exhausts the researcher of time and
energy. This is a practical decision, based on the research question and available resources
(Salzman and Rice, 2011).
Spotlight on participant observation
In medical anthropology participant observation represents the foundation of data collection

because it is a classic research tool in anthropology. Participant observation is heavily used
and can be defined as data collection in the natural settings by an ethnographer who observes
and/or takes part in the common and uncommon activities of the people being studied (DeWalt
and DeWalt 2002:2). Participant observation involves the researcher living within a given
culture for an extended period of time, often learning the language, to take part in its daily life in
all its richness and diversity. The anthropologist in such an approach tries to experience a culture
“from within,” as a person native to that culture might do. Researchers doing participant
observation often take part in the daily life of the culture (Lambert et al., 2002), but there may be
aspects they choose not to or cannot participate in. Why might a researcher not be able to
participate in a cultural aspect? Why might they choose not to participate?
The most important aspect of participant observation is to create a systematic record of everyday
life, this can be done by writing field notes or recording video about informal observations,
interactions and conversations (Gravlee, 2011).
According to Salzman and Rice (2011) there are two basic strategies to participant observation:
1. one is long term residence among the people that you are trying to understand,
2. the other is using a variety of information-gathering techniques to collect a diverse kind
of information and then check and cross check the information you collected. This is
because people often say they do one thing and then actually do another. By asking
questions about the behaviours observed it allows for clarification.
Systematic observation:
Systematic observation is best suited for use with confirmatory research questions because it
imposes greater structure on sampling and measurement. Methods associated with
systematic observation include continuous monitoring, spot sampling, and time allocation.
Systematic observation is particularly useful in answering questions about what people do, not
just what they say.
An example of systematic observation is Vitzthum’s (1994) study on breastfeeding. Initially she

interviewed women and asked them to estimate how often and for how long they breastfed each
day. Then she monitored the frequency and duration of breastfeeding in ten women. When she
compared the two data sets, she found the women under reported the frequency but over report
the duration of their breastfeeding.
Summary
In this module you were introduced to the work of some medical anthropologists to understand
the research questions and methods used in this field. We talked about the importance of
observation to collecting data and you tried it out in your discussion exercise. The research
methods of medical anthropology are tools which illustrate the importance of immersion in a
culture to understand it. We also learnt about the importance of ethnography and explored two
ethnographic films that dealt with healers.

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Research questions

Some things to think about when it comes to choosing a research method:

Spotlight on participant observation

In medical anthropology participant observation represents the foundation of data collection

An example of systematic observation is Vitzthum’s (1994) study on breastfeeding. Initially she

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