St. John's University
department of
sociology & Anthropology
IDEAS | ACTION | JUSTICE
Issue #5
Spring 2025
Informed Observations
What happens when we are fully present and really see the world around us?
This foundational linguistic anthropological text explains how Apache elders convey ancestorial wisdom and moral guidance through reference to specific Apache place names. Descriptive names of venerated sites implant images of well-known allegories in order to instruct, warn, or guide.
Using this cultural and linguistic practice as inspiration, Language & Culture students identified a place that reminded them of a moral or lesson from their own past. They shared photographs of the place and briefly explained the moral lesson or guidance of which they are reminded of when you think of this place.
Participant observation, a staple research methodology for sociologists and anthropologists, connects the researcher to the most basic of human experiences: discovering through immersion and participation the hows and whys of human behavior in a particular context. The challenge is that when we do participant observers for research purposes, we need to be fully present and active while mentally and physically taking notes; recording voices, sounds, and images; and asking questions that are designed to uncover the meaning behind the behaviors we're interested in studying.
Majors completed two participant observation exercises for their research methods course. First, they were asked to participate as students in DAC (an open space for student use at SJU) and write their own observations about being in that space, people’s behavior and interactions. Second, they were asked to write their observations while participating as audience in a Law School panel on "Discrimination on College Campuses."
IDEAS | ACTION | JUSTICE
Issue #5
Spring 2025