Comparar métodos

	Investigación etnográfica	Investigación-acción	Observación Participante
Campo	Investigación cualitativa	Investigación cualitativa	Investigación cualitativa
Familia	Process / pipeline	Process / pipeline	Process / pipeline
Año de origen	1920s–1970s	1946	1922
Autor original	Anthropology (Malinowski, Boas); applied in health and sociology (Geertz)	Kurt Lewin; expanded by Kemmis, McTaggart, Reason & Bradbury	Bronislaw Malinowski
Tipo	Method	Method	Method
Fuente seminal	Geertz, C. (1973). The interpretation of cultures: Selected essays. Basic Books.	Lewin, K. (1946). Action research and minority problems. Journal of Social Issues, 2(4), 34–46.	Geertz, C. (1973). The Interpretation of Cultures. Basic Books. ISBN: 978-0465026432
Alias	Ethnography, Participatory Observation, Field Research	Participatory Action Research, PAR, Collaborative Inquiry	ethnographic observation, participatory observation, overt observation, immersive observation
Relacionados	4	1	4
Resumen	Ethnographic research is an immersive qualitative methodology in which researchers spend prolonged time in a community, organization, or social setting, combining participant observation, interviews, and document analysis to develop a rich, contextual understanding of a group's beliefs, practices, and social structures. Grounded in anthropology and refined for health, organizational, and social research, ethnography produces 'thick description' (Geertz 1973) that reveals the meaning and context underlying observable behavior.	Action research is a collaborative research methodology in which researchers work with practitioners and community members to investigate a problem, implement change, and evaluate outcomes, cycling through reflection, action, and learning. Developed by Kurt Lewin (1946), action research bridges research and practice, aiming simultaneously to produce knowledge and practical improvement.	Participant observation is a qualitative research method in which the researcher embeds themselves within a community, organization, or social setting for an extended period, engaging in the activities and relationships of the group while systematically observing and documenting behavior, interactions, and cultural meaning. Pioneered by Malinowski in the 1920s and developed in anthropology, the method has been adopted across sociology, education, health sciences, and organizational research. The researcher functions as both insider (participating in group activities) and outsider (maintaining analytical distance), generating thick description—rich accounts of context, behavior, and meaning that reveal how people actually live and interact.