Gullion, Harper co-author Doing Ethnography

Dec. 3, 2025 - DENTON - TWU sociology professor Jessica Smartt Gullion, PhD, has teamed with anthropologist Susan Harper, PhD, to write Doing Ethnography, a primer of methodological guidance and stories to illustrate what ethnography looks like in practice.

The book helps scholars develop a research question, plan and conduct fieldwork, and deal with common pitfalls. It covers organizing and analyzing data, using techniques from grounded analysis to poetic inquiry.

The text follows the arc of a typical ethnographic study, with ethics and social justice concerns highlighted throughout. The book addresses the politics of fieldwork, discomfort and safety issues, and who has the right to tell others’ stories. It offers advice on writing and publishing ethnographic work.

Harper is an adjunct faculty member at TWU and teaches cultural anthropology. She is an educator, advocate, activist, writer and ritual specialist in the American Midwest with a PhD in Cultural Anthropology from Southern Methodist University and an MA in Multicultural Women's and Gender Studies from TWU. She has researched and written about feminist witchcraft, goddess spirituality, tarot and contemporary paganism.

The book is scheduled for publication Dec. 31 and will be available on Amazon.