Observing Another (Static Environment)

Exercise 5

• Field notes

• Personal evaluation

The purpose of this exercise was to observe another person for a specific period of time. I happened to be in a group of three and was observing Fiona, while she observed Jenny who was observing me. We were to take notes about what we saw. As this was exercise number five I had gotten into the swing of things and knew what I was looking for and what I was to write. However I was still not in the habit of using the field notes format that gives a space for observations AND a space for process and thoughts I noticed while carrying out the exercise.

I am now convinced that this is essential, as I need to read through all these notes to see if there are any notations that fit into this category, rather than being able to look directly at that section of the page. It seems to be quite a skill to recognise your thoughts in the moment of observation and decide which column they belong in. This is something I still need to work on developing.

Something I notice about my observations of Fi are that they have no particular organisation or pattern. I don't start big and move into the detail or the other way around. I just dive in and then note random things as I go along. I do get a lot of detail but focus mostly on Fi herself with nothing of the room or our situatedness in it. I am aware of a vague fear that if I spend time on the circumstances and our relation to them then I will miss the more important things about Fi herself. What is the more important aspect? Could this always be determined before the 'observation session'? I think so. If there was a purpose to the research rather than just an exercise for us to learn from, then surely I would know or could set some parameters.

I started noting the time about half way through and wonder if this would be a good standard practice. Would it have been helpful in the apple juice exercise? maybe. In the anger workshop - perhaps more so. Yes I think noting the time through my observations or field notes might add some useful info when interpreting the data, so it would be useful to do.

The observation itself was relatively easy and I think I could have gone on quite a bit longer getting into more and more detail of my observations. I consider myself to be quite observant in every day life, particularly noticing small details and aesthetic perspectives that others never notice. I am also very aware of my own feelings and internal reactions. These will likely be good skills for research involving observations.

I was aware that I knew Fi before the exercise and wondered if my previous knowledge of her would colour the observations. This led me to consider if someone could possibly recognise Fi if they read my notes alone. Firstly I don't write in full sentences so that might be a barrier, but as I look back now I have not even written a description of what Fi looks like - there are relevant facts scattered throughout the field notes but no full description anywhere. I have not included reference to her age/height/size/colour of her skin etc. These are probably important things I have neglected. I wonder if my updated Field Notes Form will help me to avoid these omissions.

I am finding it difficult to identify any possible biases in this exercise. Could the fact that I like Fi influence what I noticed or wrote about her? I suppose if I disliked her I might notice annoying things about her more, or I might quickly pass over observations that didn't fit with my perception and so it is possible for the reverse to happen. I tend to be less judgmental than most people due to my counselling background and while I do still notice judgments creeping in occasionally, in general I notice things without placing good or bad value on them. This will be a good attribute in observations.