Sociologists conduct research to collect information about society and they apply their findings to better understand the human condition. Sociologists can investigate people in their natural environments by becoming part of their everyday settings to observe and study participants.

In this assignment, you will observe groups of people in social settings to better understand social patterns and group dynamics and then you will write about your findings.

Complete Parts 1 and 2 below.

1. Part 1: Social Group Observation

Imagine you are a sociologist who is researching the behavior of social groups in social settings.

Conduct an in-person observation in a setting where a group of people gather. Examples of places with groups include malls, grocery stores, libraries, restaurants, coffee shops, parks, schools, employee break rooms, parking lots, pubs, sporting events, or your local neighborhood.

Station yourself in a safe location where you can observe people for 30-60 minutes without having to approach or engage them. You will just observe people, not interact with them.

Use the Social Group Observation Template to collect field notes on the following data about the individuals in your observation, as you perceive it:

• Gender/sex
• Race/ethnicity
• Age

Note: Your numbers do not need to be exact but try to make them as accurate as possible. You do not need to submit your field notes with your assignmentthey are for you to reference as a guide during your observation explanation of your observation findings. Do the following information in your discussion:

• Describe the setting for your observation, including the location, time of day (morning, afternoon, evening), and the weather, if relevant.
• Describe the patterns of group behavior you observed that may have been influenced by each of the following factors:
• Setting
• Gender/sex
• Race/ethnicity
• Age
• Describe any cultural norms you may have observed in the social groups.
• Explain any social or economic factors that may have influenced the dynamics of the social groups.
• Explain how observing social patterns and group dynamics may help you succeed in culturally diverse environments.

Social Group Observation Template

Below are 3 examples of how a sociologist might take field notes to record their observations. Use any of these styles to guide your note-taking during the observation portion of this assignment. The charts or story journal are optional, and your observation notes do not need to be turned in with your assignment. If you wish, you may create your own chart or use another method that works best for you.

Change or add the categories or labels as needed for your group of subjects.

Example Observation Notes

Example 1: Table of Subjects

Subject	Estimated Age	Estimated Race or Ethnicity	Estimated Gender or Sex
1	Around 12	Hispanic	Male
2	Maybe 40	Black	Female
3	Late 20's	White	Other
4
5
6
7
8
9
10

Example 2: Category Totals

Category	Variable	Mark X for Number Observed
Age	Young/Child	X
Age	Teen
Age	Adult 20-40's	XXXX
Age	Adult 40-60's	XX
Age	Senior
Race/Ethnicity	African American	XX
Race/Ethnicity	Asian
Race/Ethnicity	Caucasian	XXXXX
Race/Ethnicity	Hispanic/Latino	X
Race/Ethnicity	Biracial/Other	X
Gender/Sex	Female	XXXXXX
Gender/Sex	Male	XXXXXXXX
Gender/Sex	Other	X

Example 3: Story Journal

Saw the following: A family of five (White, mother and father look middle-aged, 3 kids: 2 boys, 1 girl, all young children). An African-American woman around 50 with a 5-year-old girl. An adult male appears to be Asian. Two teen girls, likely Hispanic/Latino. Group of four middle-aged women (1 Native American, 1 biracial, 2 White).

Your Observation Notes

Collect your field notes in the space below, using one of the field note examples from above or another method that works best for you. You might also want to include notes on any patterns of behavior and cultural norms that you observe in groups based on age, gender/sex, and race/ethnicity.