Ethnomethodology studies how people interact with the world and make sense of reality. It explores societal conventions and rules people use to locate themselves and others in social contexts. It has useful applications in communication problems and cultural exchanges. Harold Garfinkel coined the term in 1967, and it is taught in colleges and universities worldwide. Ethnomethodologists may work in government agencies, private consulting firms, and sociological research organizations.
Ethnomethodology is a branch of the social sciences concerned with exploring how people interact with the world and make sense of reality. It is not designed to provide people with judgments about human behavior or its causes, but rather to explain how people interact with each other and with society at large. Many people engage in a small degree of ethnomethodology every day, even if they are unaware of it; for example, a parent explaining a concept to a child typically thinks about the child’s approach to the world and processes the information to express the concept in terms the child will understand.
Researchers in this field are often interested in societal conventions and the rules people use to locate themselves and others in social contexts. An ethnomethodologist might, for example, look at the social cues people use to determine social class and occupation when interacting with someone for the first time. People in this field are also concerned with general social knowledge and concepts that are widely understood in both larger societies and small subsets of society.
This field of study owes much to Harold Garfinkel, the researcher who coined the term in 1967 and began to define some of the basic rules and concepts that continue to be used in ethnomethodology today. Besides being a topic of general interest to sociologists and other social sciences, this field also has a number of very useful applications.
Communication problems between people and organizations, for example, can sometimes benefit from an ethnomethodological analysis. For example, the social conventions of a company that manufactures scientific instruments are likely to be very different from those of a government agency that regulates laboratory chemicals. If a conflict arises between the two groups, an analysis of how these micro-corporations function could help both sides work together and reach a state of common understanding. Ethnomethodology can also be helpful during cultural exchanges where people have difficulty understanding the cultural norms of the people they are trying to work with.
People who are interested in studying this field can do so in different colleges and universities around the world. Some may choose to pursue graduate-level work so that they have a chance to get involved in ongoing research and for the purpose of earning a higher degree that makes them more employable. Ethnomethodologists may be employed in settings such as government agencies, private consulting firms, and sociological research organizations.
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