UChicago charts future of ethnographic research

UChicago News

In the early 20th century, the University of Chicago was known as the epicenter of ethnography, a method of study in which researchers immerse themselves in a social setting to observe its inner workings. Many of sociology’s landmark works emerged from such research, positioning ethnography as an essential tool for understanding individuals and communities. A series of projects by faculty members in the UChicago’s Department of Sociology are bringing new attention to the method, putting a spotlight on the University as a leading proponent of ethnography. Those efforts now include the Chicago Ethnography Incubator, a two-day, annual symposium bringing together scholars and graduate students from around the country to advance ethnographic methods, provide hands-on mentoring and further build an interdisciplinary community of ethnographers.













“We really want Chicago in the center of the ethnographic conversation, but do that in a way that reflects where the discipline and the world has gone in the last 40 years or so,” said Forrest Stuart, assistant professor of sociology. 

Stuart, Asst. Prof. Kimberly Hoang and Assoc. Prof. Kristen Schilt held the incubator’s first symposium in March, which included a forum titled “Ethnographic Reflections” and a workshop that brought together the first class of faculty and graduate fellows.

Stuart is one of several UChicago faculty who place ethnographic methods at the core of their work. His first book, Down, Out and Under Arrest: Policing and Everyday Life in Skid Row, was drawn from ethnographic research, as is his current work investigating how digital social media are transforming gang violence on Chicago’s South Side.













Hoang, another young ethnographer whose work takes an in-depth and often personal look at sex workers and their clients, is author of Dealing in Desire: Asian Ascendancy, Western Decline and the Hidden Currencies of Global Sex Work.  She was especially gratified by the mix of student and faculty fellows at ...

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