Fieldwork In Human Geography

Fieldwork has long been recognized as an important activity for geographers, in both teaching and research. Carl Sauer, one of the most influential geographers of the 20th century, stated that the principal training of a geographer should come from doing fieldwork. One of the most rewarding and enjoyable aspects of being a geographer is spending time understanding the world through direct experience, gathering data about the world, and leading field experiences as a method of geographical education. This entry briefly reviews the history of fieldwork, examines its characteristics, and considers its role in geography today.

However, despite the recognized importance of fieldwork, many have lamented its decline, particularly in the field of human geography. Wilbur Zelinsky, a respected human geographer, finds the basic explanation to be the ever-greater availability and sophistication of substitute means for gathering physical and social data. He criticizes those who avoid leaving the comfort of the library and believes that the importance of fieldwork will return once again as academic fashion swings the other way. The decline of fieldwork has been attributed to a number of factors, including stringent educational budgets, safety and insurance concerns, pressure for research output in universities, and a growing emphasis on GIS analysis. A further result of this decline in field education is the dwindling opportunity to acquire formal training in field instruction. This lack of formal training is particularly acute at the university level, although one bright spot is the increasing use of computer technologies to provide “virtual fieldtrips.”

Fieldwork in human geography is often linked to the classic work of the Chicago School, which refers to the body of research that emerged during the 1920s and 1930s in urban sociology and geography that combined theory and fieldwork. This early work aimed at understanding the daily world experienced by different subpopulations in Chicago through field research, including, for example, Louis Wirth's vivid description of life in the ghetto. The fusion of studying spatial form [Page 1104]and more subjective styles of living created the Chicago School's distinctive interactionist sociology, which viewed society not as a stable or fixed structure but one constructed on interaction.

Perhaps one of the best examples of a geography of the human experience is David Ley's description of the inner city as a frontier outpost. Using a wide range of research techniques, including fieldwork, Ley explored the variety of images of an African American inner-city neighborhood in Philadelphia, using those from outside and from within. He viewed the neighborhood as a frontier outpost, having an external environment of hostility and uncertainty and an internal environment that focused on connectivity and cultural separation as a way to meet the challenges imposed by the external environment.

Graham Rowles used fieldwork to explore the geographical experience of the elderly. He went beyond observation in the field to becoming involved. Rather than remaining as the traditional dispassionate observer, he became involved in the experience. Rowles's research techniques involved sharing conversations with older people in their homes, at community meetings, and in other everyday life experiences. The outcome was a collection of five vignettes describing the geographical experiences, combined with a developed theoretical perspective. Rowles discusses five elements of conducting experiential fieldwork. The first element is involvement with participants: Unlike more traditional research, in which no attempt was made to minimize the role of the researcher, emphasis was placed on mutual understanding through dialogue rather than simply observation. The second element is the lengthy time investment required to allow individuals to express themselves in their own way. The third element is the limited number of participants. Because of the small sample size, breadth of generalization is sacrificed for depth of insight. The fourth element is the emphasis on induction as opposed to deduction. The last element is the presentation of the text, which Rowles argued is best presented in a format emphasizing a subtle sensitivity to expression.

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