Social Survey Method in Village Community

Abstract

In the case study of rural society, based on the observation method, there are so many chances to get the data by the free interview, rather than by the direct observation. One of the characteristics of this method is that the data can be got just by having the social relation with informants by the researcher. Therefore, the revel of information may depend upon the revel of social relation. But there is not necessarily such general tendency that the more familiar and informal the relation is, the more accurate and detailed the information is. The researcher should consider not only the dyadic relation between the informant and the researcher itself but also the social settings around it.The theoretical model, which is reconstructed from the social reality of rural community, should be rather intermediate than abstract one in its character. The researcher should rely on skillful assistant, informant as well as native researcher, in order to have a correct understanding of folk concept and folk model. At the same time, however, the researcher should remember the limit of ideal-typed character of that kind of model, which cannot always take account of the social change.