Cross-boundary and cross-discipline creation of scientific knowledge. The case of economic anthropology/ business ethnography

Robert Geisler

University of Opole, Institute of Sociology
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0218-980X

Abstract

This paper aims to show business ethnography, or economic anthropology, as a field of science that is interdisciplinary in theoretical, methodological and subjective terms, i.e. it makes use of sociology and management sciences. What this means in practice is that it is simultaneously regarded a part of sociology, social and cultural anthropology, and management sciences. Additionally, this paper addresses the fusion of science and business in case of an ethnographer as an entrepreneur. The paper presents theoretical considerations of the new entrepreneurship model for collecting knowledge based on ethnographical research. It recommends ethnographic study as the most appropriate approach for doing in-company research. Such research can yield a deeper knowledge of the organization, its management and decision-making process. Observation, in-depth interviews and visual analysis produce case-specific insights. Even subjectivism and a lack of hard data may be less important given the efficiency of such research. Case studies on this type of research in business environments, especially in the USA on customer environments, could be reproduced at many levels of organizations.

Keywords:

economic anthropology, business ethnography, knowledge transfer