Considerations about the use of participant observation in nursing research

Abstract

This paper presents a study which deals with participant observation as an instrument for collecting data during qualitative research in nursing based on the experience of the authors in their Master´s dissertations and Doctorate thesis. It describes the phases of field work, in which theory and practice are worked together. From their experience they considered seven aspects of a practical nature related to participant observation, which arose during the study. These aspects can help those that use them. They include the exploratory phase, as well as the observer in the group, the appropriate schedule of accomplishment, duration, field notes and the destination of that which is produced by participant observation. The study was significant in demonstrating the value of participant observation as an instrument in nursing investigation, capable of exposing aspects of the phenomenon which would otherwise not have been possible.