Table 1

Reasons for Conducting Observations in Primary Care Research, With Clinical Examples

Reasons to Observe	Clinical Examples
To understand behavior	Describe whether or how staff follow clinical guidelines or study protocols
To understand context	Understand environmental factors influencing uptake of an intervention
To understand process	Examine at baseline how clinical preventive services are delivered in offices
To recognize patterns	Examine variations in how clinical preventive services are implemented across multiple practices
To see what people are reluctant to discuss	Identify perceived cultural taboos, for example, parents reluctant to discuss HPV vaccination for prepubertal children
To gain direct personal experience and knowledge	Explore patient experiences of undergoing clinical procedures, for example, the experience of colonoscopy preparation
To move beyond selected perceptions	Observe how patients respond to universal screening questions, for example, depression screening, intimate personal violence screening