John Lofland – författare

The authorative and richly detailed handbook is divided into three parts: (1) procedures for studying SMOs; (2) propositions or generalizations about them; and (3) perspectives or wider considerations relating to them. Included are discussions of such basic questions as: What causes SMOs and why do people join them? What are the beliefs and practices of SMOs? What effect do SMOs have, and what are the social reactions to them?

The authorative and richly detailed handbook is divided into three parts: (1) procedures for studying SMOs; (2) propositions or generalizations about them; and (3) perspectives or wider considerations relating to them. Included are discussions of such basic questions as: What causes SMOs and why do people join them? What are the beliefs and practices of SMOs? What effect do SMOs have, and what are the social reactions to them?

`I wish the Handbook of Ethnography had been available to me as a fledgling ethnographer. I would recommend it for any graduate student who contemplates a career in the field. Likewise for experienced ethnographers who would like the equivalent of a world atlas to help pinpoint their own locations in the field, the Handbook of Ethnography is it' - Journal of Contemporary Ethnography

`This wonderful Handbook establishes the central, and complex place ethnography now occupies in the human disciplines. All future work will begin here' - Norman K Denzin, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign

`A marvellous achievement! The Handbook has all the marks of a winner - compelling writing, comprehensive coverage and very useful discussions. This is a real benchmark for ethnography. It will set the background for debate and point to new directions for years to come. My graduate students will love it' - Jaber F Gubrium, University of Florida, Gainesville

`The Handbook of Ethnography compiles invaluable, original, critical essays on ethnographic work, earning it a place on everyone's must-have bookshelf' - Virginia Olesen, University of California, San Francisco

`The Handbook is a remarkable synthesis of existing thinking in and around ethnography' - Forum for Qualitative Social Research - follow the link below to read the complete review

`No self-respecting qualitative researcher should be without Paul Atkinson (et al's) handbook on ethnography. This really is encyclopaedic in concept and scope. Many "big names" in the field have contributed so this has to be the starting point for anyone looking to understand the field in substantive topic, theoretical tradition and methodology. The chapters on visual ethnography and semiotics expand the field marvellously, while those on field notes and on ethics are accomplished surveys of the field' - SRA News

Ethnography is one of the chief research methods in sociology, anthropology and other cognate disciplines in the social sciences. This Handbook provides an unparalleled, critical guide to its principles and practice.

The volume is organized into three sections. The first systematically locates ethnography firmly in its relevant historical and intellectual contexts. The roots of ethnography are pinpointed and the pattern of its development is demonstrated.

The second section examines the contribution of ethnography to major fields of substantive research. The impact and strengths and weaknesses of ethnographic method are dealt with authoritatively and accessibly.

The third section moves on to examine key debates and issues in ethnography, from the conduct of research through to contemporary arguments.

The result is a landmark work in the field, which draws on the expertise of an internationally renowned group of interdisicplinary scholars. The Handbook of Ethnography provides readers with a one-stop critical guide to the past, present and future of ethnography. It will quickly establish itself as the ethnographer's bible.

This volume addresses three major issues: What are the circumstances in which people elect to protest; what are the forms of such action; and how do people organize to do so? Phrased differently, what are the contexts of protest (collective behavior), personal readiness for protest (conversion), and finally joining together for protest in movement organizations and movement strategies.The key to the book's value is its theoretical sophistication. These studies address in a systematic way fundamental alternatives to organizing protests and outline in detail options for structuring units of social movement. The author deals especially with movement organization locals, including "corps" and "cells." Such units are examined in terms of how they coexist and how they exist sequentially through time. Several case studies of movement organization are included, such as the Unification Church and Mankind United.The work places a heavy emphasis on protest action or strategy. In the final section four chapters examine the entire gamut of strategic possibilities, ranging from polite politics to violent action. Protest is a distinctive and complex strategy. The work carefully evaluates varieties of protest that have become significant in the 1980s. In each section of the book Lofland draws out underlying themes and issues that interrelate the studies and places protest in the larger context of political and social change and theories to date.

The sociology of deviance was in its heyday when Prentice-Hall published this book in 1969. John Lofland traces the field from pre-World War II to the late sixties and pioneers the application of 'grounded theory' to the study of deviant behavior. In his new prologue, Joel Best writes, 'More than thirty years after the book first appeared, we have no better synthesis of the labeling approach.' From the Prologue to the Percheron Press Edition: 'In 1969 John Lofland sought to organize the sociology of deviance.  He presented a synthesis, a framework, and invited sociologists to evaluate it. That invitation still stands and it deserves to be accepted.'

This volume addresses three major issues: What are the circumstances in which people elect to protest; what are the forms of such action; and how do people organize to do so? Phrased differently, what are the contexts of protest (collective behavior), personal readiness for protest (conversion), and finally joining together for protest in movement organizations and movement strategies.The key to the book's value is its theoretical sophistication. These studies address in a systematic way fundamental alternatives to organizing protests and outline in detail options for structuring units of social movement. The author deals especially with movement organization locals, including "corps" and "cells." Such units are examined in terms of how they coexist and how they exist sequentially through time. Several case studies of movement organization are included, such as the Unification Church and Mankind United.The work places a heavy emphasis on protest action or strategy. In the final section four chapters examine the entire gamut of strategic possibilities, ranging from polite politics to violent action. Protest is a distinctive and complex strategy. The work carefully evaluates varieties of protest that have become significant in the 1980s. In each section of the book Lofland draws out underlying themes and issues that interrelate the studies and places protest in the larger context of political and social change and theories to date.

"I wish the Handbook of Ethnography had been available to me as a fledgling ethnographer. I would recommend it for any graduate student who contemplates a career in the field. Likewise for experienced ethnographers who would like the equivalent of a world atlas to help pinpoint their own locations in the field." - Journal of Contemporary Ethnography"No self-respecting qualitative researcher should be without Paul Atkinson's handbook on ethnography. This really is encyclopaedic in concept and scope. Many "big names" in the field have contributed so this has to be the starting point for anyone looking to understand the field in substantive topic, theoretical tradition and methodology."- SRA NewsEthnography is one of the chief research methods in sociology, anthropology and other cognate disciplines in the social sciences. This Handbook provides an unparalleled, critical guide to its principles and practice.The volume is organized into three sections. The first systematically locates ethnography firmly in its relevant historical and intellectual contexts. The roots of ethnography are pinpointed and the pattern of its development is demonstrated.The second section examines the contribution of ethnography to major fields of substantive research. The impact and strengths and weaknesses of ethnographic method are dealt with authoritatively and accessibly.The third section moves on to examine key debates and issues in ethnography, from the conduct of research through to contemporary arguments.The result is a landmark work in the field, which draws on the expertise of an internationally renowned group of interdisicplinary scholars. The Handbook of Ethnography provides readers with a one-stop critical guide to the past, present and future of ethnography. It will quickly establish itself as the ethnographer's bible.