Beyond What Are Given as Givens: Ethnography and Critical Policy Studies

Abstract

This commentary argues for the importance of a move from ethnography to theory to a critical stance on public policy and welfare reform. Two examples illustrate the vital role of ethnography in creating social policies that respect the variety of human experiences. One is a study of block grants in the rural south, the other of fast‐food service workers in Oakland. These examples show the importance of using similar methods but with differences in ethnographic focus in order to address specific empirical problems and policy questions.