Participant Observation in U.S.A. Slum Area Study
The researcher who employed participant observation to study a slum area in the U.S.A. was W.F. Whyte.
Whyte's Research Context
- W.F. Whyte conducted his seminal study, Street Corner Society, in the 1930s.
- He lived in and participated in the daily lives of Italian-American youths in the Cornerville slum area of Boston, U.S.A.
- This immersive methodology is a classic example of participant observation in sociological research.
Other Researchers' Focus
- B. Malinowski was a pioneer of ethnographic fieldwork but conducted his studies primarily in non-U.S. locations like the Trobriand Islands.
- D.F. Lazarsfeld and R.K. Merton were influential sociologists known more for developing sociological theory and quantitative research methods, rather than participant observation in U.S. slums.
Therefore, W.F. Whyte is the correct answer for using participant observation in a U.S. slum study.