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Encountering Middleborough: Impressions, Methods, and Tacit Knowledge

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An Ethnography of Household Energy Demand in the UK

Part of the book series: Palgrave Studies in Anthropology of Sustainability ((PSAS))

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Abstract

How to address tacit knowledge in ethnographic research is the focus of this chapter. The first part is an arrival story; the field site is situated in relation to conceptualizations of locality and place in the anthropology of Britain, and reflections are developed on the tacit knowledge that emerged from the ethnographer’s everyday experiences outside the applied research. The position of the author in relation to the “academic-applied divide” in anthropological research is outlined. A specific methodological approach to ethnographic research that addresses tacit knowledge—“sensory ethnography”—is discussed. A set of participant-led and arts-based methods—the Tactile Time collage, the Evening Times video diary, and the Five Cups of Tea self-interviewing with video activity—are described in relation to the knowledge that emerged through their employment.

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Moroşanu, R. (2016). Encountering Middleborough: Impressions, Methods, and Tacit Knowledge. In: An Ethnography of Household Energy Demand in the UK. Palgrave Studies in Anthropology of Sustainability. Palgrave Macmillan, New York. https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-137-59341-2_3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-137-59341-2_3

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  • Print ISBN: 978-1-137-59340-5

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-137-59341-2

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