Ethnography then and now

Abstract Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to review some of the compositional and orientational shifts that have occurred in ethnography during the last 20 years. Design/methodology/approach – Within the paper the author produces a series of reflections based upon his own experiences of writing ethnography, plus of reading the ethnographic accounts of others. Findings – Ethnography remains relatively free from technical jargon and high‐wire abstraction. Because of its relative freedom from a thoroughly specialized vocabulary and a privileged conceptual apparatus, ethnography continues to carry a slight literary air compared to other forms of social science writing. Ethnography maintains an almost obsessive focus on the "empirical." Despite attempts to develop a standard methodology over the last 20 years, there is still not much of a technique attached to ethnography. Originality/value – The paper presents the original views of a renowned ethnographer about developments within the practice of ethnography during the last 20 years.