What are some tips to write clear and concise field notes?

1 Plan ahead

Before you go to the field, prepare a field note template that suits your research objectives and methods. A template can help you structure your notes and remind you of the key information to record, such as date, location, participants, activities, and questions. You can also include prompts or codes to guide your reflections and interpretations. For example, you can use asterisks (*) to mark important points, question marks (?) to indicate uncertainties, and brackets [ ] to separate your comments from the data.

3 Be selective

While you want to be descriptive, you also want to be selective. You cannot write down everything that happens in the field, nor should you. Focus on the aspects that are relevant, interesting, or surprising for your research question and purpose. Use your judgment and intuition to decide what to include and what to omit. You can also use abbreviations, symbols, or diagrams to save time and space. For example, you can use arrows (->) to indicate causal relationships, circles (O) to represent groups, and lines (|) to separate themes.

4 Be reflective

Your field notes should not only describe what you observe, but also reflect on what you learn, think, and feel. Reflection is a critical part of field research, as it helps you to make sense of your data, identify patterns and themes, and generate new questions and ideas. You can use your field notes to document your assumptions, biases, challenges, insights, and questions that emerge from the field. You can also use your field notes to evaluate your methods, strategies, and ethics, and to plan your next steps.

5 Be consistent

Your field notes should be consistent in terms of format, style, and tone. Consistency can help you to organize your data, improve your readability, and maintain your credibility. You should follow the same field note template throughout your research project, unless you have a valid reason to change it. You should also use the same language, spelling, grammar, and punctuation rules in your field notes. Moreover, you should use the same level of detail, clarity, and objectivity in your field notes.

6 Be timely

Your field notes should be written as soon as possible after your field visit, preferably within 24 hours. Writing your field notes promptly can help you to recall your observations more accurately, avoid memory loss or distortion, and capture your fresh impressions and reactions. Writing your field notes timely can also help you to prepare for your next field visit, as you can review your notes, identify gaps or issues, and revise your plan accordingly.