ABSTRACT
Tracing through the history of ethnographic/ethnographically inspired research in physical cultural studies (PCS) reinforces Clair's basic timeline. This chapter explicates the major strands of ethnographic and ethnographically inspired research focused on various aspects/dimensions of physical culture. Along the way, it points to specific research projects that have utilized (extensive) fieldwork components to provide descriptive and critical accounts of cultural phenomena. The chapter provides some considerations of the weakness/limitations of the extant research, and points to possible future research directions. Ethnography certainly requires constant analysis and interpretation, about who and what to study and 'making sense' of it all. The difficulties of physical and emotional detachment from a research site are amplified when the ethnographer engages in reciprocity, participatory action research, or even outright activism. The goals in researching marginalized sub-cultures are often the most clear. Another developing body of (auto)ethnographic research focusing on marginalized bodies centers on the evolving place(s) women, femininity, and feminism has in sport and physical culture.
