Muriel G. answered • 10/16/20
Historical Archaeologist with Years of Tutoring Experience
Fieldwork is any work that involves direct contact between the researcher and what they're studying. Fieldwork takes a variety of forms depending on what branch of anthropology is doing it. For biological anthropologists, fieldwork might involve observing the behavior of a troupe of monkeys or collecting DNA samples. Archaeologists are doing fieldwork when they are digging or surveying outside, often literally in fields somewhere. Cultural anthropology and linguistics fieldwork often involves conducting interviews and observing other people. Fieldwork takes a variety of forms, but it is almost always some kind of data collection.
