网络民族志的田野工作析论及反思

Analysis and Reflection on the Fieldwork of Netnography

随着网络社会的到来,基于网络而存在的虚拟社区逐步纳入人类学田野调查的视野。传统的民族志研究方法面临挑战,网络民族志应运而生并日渐凸显其重要性。研究者如何融入所研究的虚拟社区及进行参与观察成为值得探索和思考的问题。本文认为,研究者可能回归“摇椅”进行田野工作,以虚拟身体实现到场,但为了确保融入虚拟社区,应满足“浸染”的规范性要求,即长时间持续专注虚拟社区中的互动。研究者可以通过“非参与式”浸染的方式成就民族志,但“参与式”浸染即“参与观察”依然是居于主导的方法和要求。“浸染”及在此基础上进行的“参与”是网络民族志的关键所在。

With the rise of network society,virtual community has attracted the attention of anthropologists and has been taken as a research field.Traditional ethnographic methods are facing challenges,and netnography has become increasingly important.How ethnographers could engage themselves into virtual community and how they could conduct participant observation become prominent questions.This article argues that the researcher can“sit on the chair”and conduct fieldwork,with a virtual body presented in a virtual community.Prolonged mental absorption is necessary in order to make sure the researcher has immersed into the community.The researcher can achieve ethnography by“non-participant”immersion,however participant immersion or participant observation is still the dominant method and requirement.“Immersion”and“participation”are the key characteristics of netnography which distinguish itself from other methods such as content analysis.