Oral Presentations - Guzman 301
An Ethnography of Coffee Houses
Abstract/Description
Researchers have examined public spaces and how individuals relate to these places. Recently celebrated are coffee houses. They offer a fertile ground for communication and socialization. Coffee houses have a history of being an environment of interactions from one-on-one conversation to voicing public opinions and holding forums and meetings. Due to cultural and environmental shifts, coffee houses are being utilized by an increased number of individuals for a work and telecommuting space as well as face-to-face to networking communication. In addition to these forms of communication, coffee houses are a space for solitary reflection to journal, read, and work independently. Using an ethnographic approach, I will examine coffee houses and qualitatively address this transformation in the form and function of coffee houses, using communications theories and independent research. In the era of portable technology, to what extent do coffee houses serve the social purpose of a third place? Through systematic observation of the spaces, customers, and activities, we will evaluate the assertion that coffee houses are the sociable bases of communities.
An Ethnography of Coffee Houses
Guzman 301
Researchers have examined public spaces and how individuals relate to these places. Recently celebrated are coffee houses. They offer a fertile ground for communication and socialization. Coffee houses have a history of being an environment of interactions from one-on-one conversation to voicing public opinions and holding forums and meetings. Due to cultural and environmental shifts, coffee houses are being utilized by an increased number of individuals for a work and telecommuting space as well as face-to-face to networking communication. In addition to these forms of communication, coffee houses are a space for solitary reflection to journal, read, and work independently. Using an ethnographic approach, I will examine coffee houses and qualitatively address this transformation in the form and function of coffee houses, using communications theories and independent research. In the era of portable technology, to what extent do coffee houses serve the social purpose of a third place? Through systematic observation of the spaces, customers, and activities, we will evaluate the assertion that coffee houses are the sociable bases of communities.