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Title: Behavioral Observation

Citation Type: Book, Section

Publication Year: 2014

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Abstract: The goal of direct observations of behavior is to produce quantitative descriptions of behavior in a variety of natural settings. This approach is relatively new and uncommon in anthropology compared to behavioral biology, where researchers cannot rely on informant accounts of behavior. As noted by Johnson and Sackett (1998), what people actually do on a daily basis and who they interact with are not accurately reported in standard ethnographic literature or textbooks, and this is especially true of the activities of women and children. To a large extent, the development of behavior observations has been initiated and developed by researchers who are ecologically and economically oriented. This is not surprising, given the importance of quantitative behavioral data (e.g., hours worked in various tasks) required for adequate descriptions and tests of hypotheses in those fields. Recently, the scope of behavioral research has broadened to examine non-economic topics such as child and caretaker interactions, doctor-patient dynamics, and visiting patterns.

Url: https://books.google.com/books?id=HJv_AwAAQBAJ&dq=%22ATUS-X%22&lr=&source=gbs_navlinks_s

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Authors: Hames, Raymond; Paolisso, Michael

Editors: H.Russell Bernard, Clarence C. Gravlee

Pages: 293-312

Volume Title: Handbook of Methods in Cultural Anthropology

Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield

Publisher Location: Lanham, MD

Volume: 1

Edition: 2

Data Collections: IPUMS Time Use - ATUS

Topics: Methodology and Data Collection

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