Using participant observation in the workplace
Be a participant observer in the workplace to better understand group dynamics.
Participant observation is a qualitative technique of field research where the investigator gains acceptance into a group by building rapport, establishing trust, and sharing in the group’s activities. While a participant observer doesn’t have to be a complete insider for this method to be effective, people must feel they can be themselves in front of you, and you must be viewed with enough trust that those you are observing will not alter their normal behavior when you’re present. This allows the investigator to better understand a group’s internal structure.
Strategic planning is an ideal workplace opportunity to use participant observation. My co-facilitator and I spent 8 months on the “listening” phase of planning, which included talking with constituent groups from board members to executives, clients to donors, staff to event attendees. We used individual interviews, focus groups, surveys, and document analysis. I, however, also used participant observation. There’s a multitude of data one can gather by being in a room as a peer, observing body language, and witnessing first-hand interactions. I was already an “insider” with trust and acceptance into groups that met dozens of times. During these meetings, I was aware of interactions and behavior such as:
Who spoke?
When did they speak?
Did they yield to their superior? (i.e. was there a noticeable shift in tone or language that presumed fear or comfort?)
Who looked overwhelmed?
Who looked bored?
Who was disengaged? (i.e. on their phone or continually leaving the room)
Who was engaged? (taking notes, eye contact with presenter, asking and responding to questions)
Who admitted responsibility or shifted blame?
Who looked like they were having fun/enjoying the content?
I accrued a wealth of information about the nature of various jobs and which interactions might be affecting progress, morale, and decision making. Although my participant observation experiment won’t yield any meaningful organizational change in this instance, I used it as an opportunity to better understand workplace behavior and organizational processes.
Organizations can benefit from having an on-site researcher, perhaps even an internal communications or HR professional, who can spend ample time observing staff interactions with peers, managers, and customers. This will yield a truer understanding of what is occurring in the organization. When we rely only on personal accounts, whether through surveys or interviews, we receive information that is inherently biased.
Participant observation, by the way, is a natural fit with organizational behavior management principles and workplace strategy. The organization that seeks to be aware of and understand behavior, culture, technology, policy impact, and physical workspace will identify areas for improvement in efficiency, productivity, performance, and staff satisfaction.