Porous spheres: Direct observation of interethnic interaction in a small midwestern community

Abstract

Indications of community integration in rural communities, where there has been a large increase of immigrants, are largely based on survey and interview responses of community members. However, as an anthropologist, I know that there is often a difference between what people say they (or others) do and what they actually do. In my research I relied on the direct observation of people interacting (or not) in public places in a small Midwestern community with a sizeable Latino population. This study suggests that multiple methodologies are necessary for understanding the complex social interactions and levels of community integration in these places.