Social Work Observation Paper

Observation 1: Patterns of Gender and Race at the Earth Cafe in Norman Project Phase: 1 Date: 3/18/2024 Observer: Zoe Rockey Beginning time of observation: 11:26 AM Ending time of observation: 11:41 AM Description of activity: The environment of the Earth Cafe is incredibly busy, packed, and loud. All the seats in the cafe were filled, conversations were loud, and servers and customers alike were crowded together. The line at the counter was seven people long: three older women, one college-aged woman, two older males (possibly college or graduate?). and one boy when I arrived, and fluctuated throughout the fifteen minutes. I observed around 30 people throughout this duration. The cashier, a young woman, approx. college-high school aged, had …show more content…
This population included about 15-20 customers throughout this time period. Mostly older women and men again, with a few college aged women working on homework and chatting. After a few trial and error times of me coming to the cafe earlier in the week, the cashier was a young man, this time, around college age. Again, although the cafe was somewhat busy at times, the man also had a friendly demeanor as was observed by the woman. In great contrast to what was observed the other day, instances of impatience or rudeness towards the cashier were not observed. Customers interacted with the male cashier in a respectful and courteous manner; however, at one time, two customers did visibly look annoyed when first seeing the line (one older male and female couple). During this observation, customers in the store were predominantly white; however, there was one instance where a black male (approx. College aged) ordered at the counter. Reflections: While the cafe maintained a steady flow of …show more content…
The observations conducted at the Earth Cafe demonstrated interesting yet complex dynamics of gender and race within restaurant/cafe environments, one that arguably goes unnoticed in our day-to-day lives among the populations who are not affected. Across the two observation periods and phases, distinct patterns emerged, revealing insights into customer behavior and interactions with service staff, as well as the inclusivity of this space despite its advertising. In the first observation, during what appeared to be the cafe’s peak hours, the young and female cashier faced challenges from older customers displaying impatience and rudeness, along with one instance of flirting that visibly made her uncomfortable. This highlighted the gendered nature of customer interactions, with women in service roles potentially encountering more scrutiny compared to their male counterparts. Additionally, the lack of racial diversity among customers raised questions about inclusivity within the cafe space, despite its advertising. In comparison, the second observation revealed a more respectful demeanor among customers towards the cashier, who was male at this time, with no instances of impatience or rudeness observed (albeit one couple who looked annoyed at the line). Along with this, the lack of racial diversity persisted, underscoring the ongoing need for inclusivity and diversity within the environment in contrast to

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