How will it advance your project? Why is this method more suitable than another for your particular choice of topic?

Media and Communication (2^nd Year)

Module: Research Methods.

Assignment: Portfolio.

Word count: 2000 words [Note: word count does NOT include the bibliography].

AIM:

To produce a portfolio that analyses research methods ‘in practice’, providing a critical reflection on research approach and application to a Mass Observation project.

Learning Outcomes for this Assessment

Reflect critically on research practice and investigative strategies.
Evaluate different research approaches for media, cultural and communication research.

For this Assignment, you are carrying forward your research question from Assignment 1. It can be adapted/tweaked in line with feedback from Assignment 1 but the fundamental choice of research area should be the same.

There are 4 distinct components to the Portfolio:

Component 1 (250 words): Outline how you would go about developing your research focus on Mass Observation from Assignment One. (NOTE: Assignment 1 is attached below and I failed in that assignment so please keep this in your consideration to develop that).
Component 2 (500 words): Choose ONEof the methodological approaches we have used in seminars to develop your project – observation, interviews OR focus groups. Write a short component on what the approach entails, what the ethical issues are and what your experience of the approach has been – NOTE this component is based solely on work conducted in the corresponding workshop. (NOTE: I am using the OBSERVATION and the methodological approaches for Participant Observation are attached below).

Component 3 (750 words): Then, reflect on why you have chosen this methodological approach for your Mass Observation project. How will it advance your project? Why is this method more suitable than another for your particular choice of topic (you will need knowledge of all three approaches to make this comparison)?.

Component 4 (500 words): Finally, consider the ultimate viability of your project in line with the Hansen & Machin (2019) model of the Research Process. Are you ready to proceed forward to data collection and analysis? If not, why not? What has this exercise taught you about the importance of a structured and staged approach to defining Research Projects? How will this be useful to you in Level 6?

Marking Criteria

Students should be able to demonstrate:

An awareness of their own individual strengths and weaknesses in academic research and project design.

A breadth of knowledge of different methodological approaches that they could choose from ( research solely on the one method they have chosen to use is not sufficient, they need to be able to draw informed comparisons between the different approaches)
An understanding of key ethical issues that a researcher faces in designing a research project and selecting the most appropriate methodological approach.
An evaluative critique of the Hansen & Machin (2019) Research Process model.
Quality of organisation, expression, referencing to Harvard APA standard and editing. NOTEThis marking criteria is carried forward from Assignment 1. So I will be looking to see if you have developed this skill and then setting you targets for Level 6 accordingly.

Assignment 1

Bibliography

Catto, Rebecca. “Sociology of Religion in Great Britain: Interdisciplinarity and Gradual Diversification.” Sociologies of Religion , 2015, doi:10.1163/9789004297586_007

Religion is the most basic element of society and culture and it is telling that Mass Observation viewed it from the same distant perspective that other nations did. The sociology of the day recognised that individuals had certain attitudes toward the inexplicable phenomenon of religion. Through Mass Observation, researchers were able to derive their views of British society that determined the meaningfulness of their views from an external viewpoint. Catto traces the history of this approach through its beginning in the Enlightenment. It would therefore be especially useful to apply this argument in this research to justify the view of British society as ruled by those who read and used Mass Observation.

Downs, Carolyn. “Selling Hope: Gambling Entrepreneurs in Britain 1906–1960.” Journal of Business Research, vol. 68, no. 10, 2015, pp. 2207–2213., doi:10.1016/j.jbusres.2015.03.022

This article shows how Mass Observation noted the nature of gambling as a source of entertainment and innovation, while the media used it to communicate certain ideas common to the upper class society in Britain. Gambling was the basis of many struggles within the communities of the first half of the twentieth century in Britain. The role of Mass Observation was to observe different elements of British society. This social observation mode was necessary because it took this part of British society, separated from the rest of the nation solely by income, and treated them like a foreign oddity. This source will therefore link in well with the argument of the research showing that Mass Observation was a principally upper class phenomenon that treated the rest of humanity as mysteriously subhuman. The specific confusion with which society viewed this pursuit of normal human entertainment will be uniquely significant.

Hilliard, Christopher. “Popular Reading and Social Investigation in Britain, 1850s–1940s.” The Historical Journal, vol. 57, no. 1, 2014, pp. 247–271., doi:10.1017/s0018246x13000332

This investigation into the reading practices of the masses of Britain shows the snobbishness and elitism of Mass Observation. The argument raised by the whole view of this analysis, personified by George Orwell, shows the general detachment with which the sociologists at Mass Observation viewed society. Fundamentally, the view analysed the reading tendencies of British society through the lens of their chosen leisure reading material. This analysis had a classist basis looking at individuals earning below 4 pounds a week. Using this diversionary reading as the basis for the analysis, these sociologists confirmed their previous suspicions that the working class was in trouble given the benighted nature of its literature. The distance with which this approach looks at the rest of British society is significant and meaningful enough to establish the case made through the research that Mass Observation had a dominant elitist foundation.

Hogan, J Michael. “The Road Not Taken in Opinion Research: Mass-Observation in Great Britain, 1937–1940.” Rhetoric and Public Affairs, vol. 18, no. 3, 2015, p. 409., doi:10.14321/rhetpublaffa.18.3.0409

This source compares the other alternatives to Mass Observation and justifies the argument that society that Great Britain under this regime was at the forefront of modernity. The vision of Mass Observation came from the idea that society would be better understood if one took the time to observe the behaviour of its constituents. The importance that this society placed on understanding people through a direct observation of their behaviour and interactions set it apart from the previous view that assumed a view of all the views the public held. While this new vision had unmistakeable elitist elements, it was also remarkable as a new scientific method for learning what a group believed. Its modern descendant is opinion polling. For this reason, it provided an unexpected clarity to the views that British society developed of itself, even among the wealthy upper class.

Irving, Henry. “Paper Salvage in Britain during the Second World War.” Historical Research, vol. 89, no. 244, 2016, pp. 373–393., doi:10.1111/1468-2281.12135

Mass Observation was a uniquely significant phenomenon that changed the way British society related with itself. It took over the local preferences for certain phenomena in terms of reading and writing what dominated the nation at the time. Fundamentally, it prioritised the importance of the attitudes rippling through the society at the time. While it had elitist overtones, it placed a special value on knowing what people thought at a given time. This source is useful for showing these dual realities. First, it shows how the government during the war took special and comprehensive efforts to understand the current public attitudes toward the war. At the same time, it also shows how the elitist approach concurrently looked to change these attitudes toward a vision that was more appropriate to the interests they valued higher than individual autonomy.

Lovell, Kristopher. “The ‘Common Wealth Circus’: Popular Politics and the Popular Press in Wartime Britain, 1941–1945.” Media History, vol. 23, no. 3-4, 2017, pp. 427–450., doi:10.1080/13688804.2017.1353908

The Common Wealth Party is another critical example of the fashion in which the national realities uncovered by Mass Observation and similar techniques were not instructive but descriptive. The ruling authorities in British society remained consistently focused on achieving their goals and enforcing their preferred approach to societal challenges. At no point in this whole process did they consider replacing their goals with those of the public. This source shows how the British press did not consider or focus on the Common Wealth Party, a powerful, grassroots organization that threatened the traditional status quo. Instead of recognising this as a further example of the voice of the people, the media simply chose to ignore it, only reporting on it when it became impossible to ignore. This intentional vision came about because the ruling class saw no reason to prioritise the opinions of the working class, even when they understood them.

Moss, Jonathan, et al. “Golden Age, Apathy or Stealth? Democratic Engagement in Britain, 1945–1950.” Contemporary British History, vol. 30, no. 4, 2016, pp. 441–462., doi:10.1080/13619462.2016.1180982

This source is significant because it shows something of the modern contrast to the past, as well as the internalised views of British society. Historically, the only way the high handed approach of the British ruling class has succeeded has been the attitudes among the working class that there were experts in government who genuinely knew what was best. Mass Observation showed that the common people have always been aware that the elites do not listen to them or apply their views. However, the reason the lower classes do not revolt is they believe that the ruling class genuinely does know what is better for everyone. Once this vision of the trustworthiness of the wealthy and powerful ends, the society falls apart. The election of 2015 is contrasted as an example of one of these situations and how the common population no longer holds the same views Mass Observation first discovered.

Noakes, Lucy. “A Broken Silence? Mass Observation, Armistice Day and ‘Everyday Life’ in Britain 1937–1941.” Journal of European Studies, vol. 45, no. 4, 2015, pp. 331–346., doi:10.1177/0047244115599146

This source is especially poignant because it shows how the society of pre-war Britain took a diverse view to the Great War. Despite holding these diverse views, the government of the day proceeded to involve Britain in another war because the elites determined that this second war was worth the effort. Observation of the Armistice Day celebrations was remarkably standard all over Britain in the aftermath of the Great War. However, Mass Observation revealed that while this observation was disparate, there was a greater degree of internal disputes between individuals in terms of the practical application view of the war. Some viewed it as proof that there should be another war to finish the past business. Others saw their participation in these rituals as a way to prevent any future such war from occurring. Nonetheless, the government, standing in for the elites and having the knowledge of national attitudes, proceeded with their preferred choice of action nonetheless.

Nott, James. “The Dancing Front: Dancing, Morale, and the War Effort in Britain during World War II.” Journal of Social History, 2016, pp. 387–406., doi:10.1093/jsh/shw112

Morale during the Second World War was a major focus of the government. The intentional application of the different choices applicable on the day was intentional to guarantee local success in the war. However, recognising the realities of this war, the government had little to no choice but to change local attitudes to the war once it had begun. While historically the remembrance of the war has focused on how propaganda in used dancing in the United States, the reality is that the British government used these techniques as well. Comparing the efforts from the local preferences and attitudes revealed by Mass Observation, the government proceeded to work to incorporate dancing and other techniques to help the war effort. This utilization of dancing to raise morale is a key example of how the use of these observations was not always nefarious.

Pollen, A. “Research Methodology in Mass Observation Past and Present: Scientifically, about as Valuable as a Chimpanzees Tea Party at the Zoo?” History Workshop Journal, vol. 75, no. 1, 2013, pp. 213–235., doi:10.1093/hwj/dbs040

This source is significant because it highlights the radical nature of Mass Observation as a technique for responding to the research methodology of the day. Compared to the traditional methods of dealing with research, it examined the population comprehensively. It took the ideas that were simply entering the mainstream from social sciences and implemented them in a radical and unprecedented fashion. For this reason, many of the observations that Mass Observation produced are considered ground-breaking even today. On the other hand, the way this new technique impacted the society means that there remain significant caveats on how one can respond to the revelations that Mass Observation produces. The real debate that continues today, exemplified in this research, is what the data produced by Mass Observation means. While some look at it as a direct view into a world previously unseen, others see it as a violation and a highly biased view of the attitudes of British society at in the first half of the twentieth century.

Sharpies, Caroline. “Holocaust on Trial: Mass Observation and British Media Responses to the Nuremberg Tribunal, 1945–1946.” Britain and the Holocaust, 2013, pp. 31–50., doi:10.1057/9781137350770_3

This book serves as a counterpoint to the argument showing how the local views in British society concerning the Holocaust were shaped by the Nuremburg trial. The ability of this highly publicised trial was significant because the government of the day was able to trace the way the arguments raised through public discourse. Therefore, the common attitudes found themselves shaped in national sentiment going over the next few years through this direct imposition on British society. Mass Observation in this case observed how the media worked to establish a correct and realistic view of the events of the Second World War to facilitate a meaningful resolution of the results of the war moving forward. While making an argument it is important to present the counterpoints against the argument faithfully, and the accurate observation impact of the Nuremburg on British society is one of the strongest argument for Mass Observation.

Smith, Malcolm. Britain and 1940: History, Myth, and Popular Memory. Routledge, 2000

This book is important because it traces the history of early Second World War Britain in a way that relates significantly to the research. Using the information from Mass Observation as well as other contemporary sources Smith compares the present memory of Britain at this time with the historical vision. This contrast is especially poignant because it shows how individuals from this time had certain views that were significantly different from the present day memory of the time. As a record of the time it shows how useful Mass Observation was in giving a record that runs until the present day in its value as a record of the views that dominated British society versus the current politically tinted memory of that time.

Sutcliffe-Braithwaite, Florence. “Discourses of ‘Class’ in Britain in ‘New Times.’” Contemporary British History, vol. 31, no. 2, 2017, pp. 294–317., doi:10.1080/13619462.2017.1306199

This source is significant because it shows how British society had already developed strong anti-class sentiments by the second half of the twentieth century. This formation of these prejudices is important for showing how Mass Observation tracked the changes in British working class approaches toward the structures of the past and the implicit trust that one’s superiors knew what was better for oneself. It also notes the intentional change among the whole population where individuals sought to distance themselves from a specific class appellation. The use of these class appellations begun to symbolise a specific superciliousness that was in itself considered impolite to hold. It therefore also shows how Mass Observation tracked the upper class morphing in its attitudes toward the rest of British society during this period having recognised developments in the working class sentiments.

Webster, Wendy. “‘Fit to Fight, Fit to Mix’: Sexual Patriotism in Second World War Britain.” Womens History Review, vol. 22, no. 4, 2013, pp. 607–624., doi:10.1080/09612025.2012.751770

This source matters because it shows how comprehensive the insights of Mass Observation remain even today. Mass Observation and the Home Office recorded the Second World War as a time when racial admixture played an unprecedented in the development of Britain as it is today. During the war, there was a significant increase in the number of women who entered British society from different cultures and races. Because of the changed realities of this time, they intermarried with men and helped develop the new face of the British nation. Despite holding shockingly racist views toward these individuals, there were clear changes in local preferences despite the lamenting of the Home Office about moral laxity. This source therefore shows the optimistic element of Mass Observation discoveries: the inability of the British elite to control a people who did not want to be controlled.

Reference