In recent years, a number of studies have been conducted on how children perceive friendship (Brownlow, 2012). Children may have a different understanding of what friendship means to them depending on their age and where they live. Two methods used in this field are content analysis and ethnology. This essay will illustrate the similarities and differences between the two methods through the work of two groups of researchers. Content analysis was used by Brian Bigelow and John La Gaipa, and ethnographic research was conducted by William Corsaro. The essay will show that even though the researchers worked in the same field of study with some similarity in their approach, they produced contrasting data which was therefore analyzed differently. Research in a given area can yield many different results despite having the same objective. Varying results from separate studies may be due to different circumstances and conditions surrounding them. Bigelow, La Gaipa and Corsaro differ in their conclusions (Brownlow, 2012). However, both had a similar goal in that they wanted to research how children understood friendship. However, how and how previous studies influenced them differed. Bigelow and La Gaipa's work was not rooted in any context or research tradition. They did their work in 1975 and at that time most studies on children focused on attraction. The work they carried out was therefore among the first of its kind. In addition to being original research, it was also valuable because later people did similar work. One of these people was William Damon with the research he did in 1977 (Brownlow, 2012). Damon was also studying children's friendships and as a result......middle of article......aro seemed to have overcome these problems using the 'reactive method'. In conclusion, content analysis and ethnographic research have similarities. and the differences. They can both be used for the same purpose; in this case, to study what friendship means to children. They are similar in that none of them involve laboratory experiments but instead focus on children's words. Bigelow and La Gaipa's content analysis was important in that it was unique as a method and provided insight into an understudied area. Corsaro's ethnographic work builds on previous studies, but because it focuses on how children talk to each other, it gives a more complete understanding of the subject than interviews or essays. Therefore, whatever differences the research methods may have, they can also be used to study the same research area..