The Stage
My observations took place in a busy coffee shop in Kamloops, British Columbia on a sunny and warm late afternoon in October 2016.
In the coffee shop there were a lot of different sights to be seen. There was tables and chairs scattered throughout, lots of cups in paper, plastic or glass form. In the food display case there was bottled beverages and yummy looking baked goods. Looking around the coffee shop I noticed a lot of menu boards advertising the variety of drink choices. The building had two full walls of large windows showcasing the cars passing by outside and the streetlight right out front. At the order counter, there was two cash registers and a large coffee machine filled with coffee beans. At the far end of the order counter was a smaller counter containing all the drink accessories, such as lids, straws, sugar packets and milk or cream canisters. Beside one of the entrance doors was a large shelving unit full of merchandise. The most noticeable thing was the numerous groups of people sitting at the tables or standing in line waiting to order, as it was quite busy during the time I was there.
The whole building smelled of delicious, freshly brewed coffee and the occasional faint whiff of cigarette smoke from outside when the doors got opened.
The coffee shop was quite noisy and filled with the chatter of people talking and laughing as they hung out in their groups while dragging chairs and tables around the tiled floors. The coffee machine and grinder made a lot of noise as the employees made the ordered drinks. The appliance timers went off often and running water from behind the order counter could be heard frequently.
The colours in the building were very muted and earth toned. There was a lot of browns, tans, black, white and green. It was very airy, light and open in the building, almost industrial styled.
The overall mood and ambiance in the coffee shop was relaxed, cheery and warm with lots of people coming in with a smile on their face or laughing together with the people they came with.
The Blocking
A map of the setting.
The Players
The Entire Cast
During the duration of my observation there was a lot of different individuals and groups that came through the coffee shop. The people ranged in ages from babies in carriers to the elderly, of all ethnicities as well. Overall, I would say that females were the majority of individuals that came through the building. Some individuals were business men or women and others looked to work in construction or some type of labor job. The majority of people were wearing a coat of some sort, whether it be a light sweater or a big winter jacket and a lot of people were wearing boots or sneakers as well. Many people were wearing jeans, leggings or dress pants/skirt. I noticed that quite a few people were wearing sunglasses or glasses either on top of their head or on their face. The staff were also wearing aprons.
Main Characters
I observed a group of three individuals interacting with each other. In this group was two males and one female, all of them were caucasian and fully mobile individuals. The female and older male appeared to be in their late forties to early fifties. The younger male looked to be in his early twenties. The older male and female were married with wedding rings on their fingers and the younger male seemed to be their son and single. There was nothing visible on them to tell if any of them were religious. They all looked to be in the middle to upper class range, but were all dressed very casually. The female was wearing black leggings with a black sweater and brand new black and white Nike runners. She was fit with a petite build. Her makeup was done nicely and she had dyed caramel blonde hair styled in a pony tail. The father and son were on the edgy, alternative styled side. The father was covered in tattoos, including up to his chin, he had a large build and carried himself with relaxed confidence. He was wearing jeans and a red plaid shirt with runners and had a shaved head. The son had pierced ears and bright blue hair. He was above average height with a heavier build. He was wearing a tan animal T-shirt with blue jeans and white runners. With the clothing they were wearing, I was unable to tell the occupation of any of the individuals because none of them were wearing a name tag and they didn’t have a uniform or any other tell tale sign to go off of. They all looked clean and well put together, even though they were dressed very casually.
The Plot
I observed a group of three individuals, who were sitting at a small table drinking coffee and having a family discussion. The body language of the group seemed to be relaxed and they all looked to be very comfortable with each other. There wasn’t any visible tension or stress and they were talking at low, even levels. It was hard to hear them in the building because there was a lot of background noise, so I didn’t hear any part of their conversation. This group of individuals can be defined as a family or a socially recognized group that forms an emotional connection and serves as an economic unit of society, (Introduction to Sociology, First Canadian Edition, 2014).
During my observation, I witnessed many different forms of socialization such as, adaptation and a peer group (to some extent, depending on the relationship). Roles and role playing were also witnessed, with people adjusting and conforming to what is appropriate actions and expectations in a public coffee shop, (Brym et al, 2016). Below I will discuss my observations from the coffee shop that relate to these sociological concepts.
I definitely noticed differences in people’s body language depending on the comfort level and relationship they had with the people they were interacting with.
Some obvious differences depending on the various groups of people that I noticed interacting were: family groups who were very comfortable and happy, smiling and laughing together. Another group was a mother and her young son who was eating a cake pop. The mother was extremely gentle and nurturing, she took the time and effort to grab a sleeve for her son’s cup to make sure it didn’t burn him, and walked slowly always looking back at him to ensure he was following her outside. There was a group of 3 business associates sitting at a table chatting away, their body language was professional, almost stiff, and straight to the point of the business needs that they were discussing, there was no time for relaxing and that was apparent.
There was a difference between friends and family interactions as well, the friends were comfortable but you could still see that they held back a little, whereas the families were totally open and flowed together in a very natural manner.
People who were by themselves also showed different body language compared to those who were with one or more people. They seemed to keep to themselves, were a lot quieter and almost looked as if they were trying to blend in with the public rather than the people who were with others seemed to be louder and didn’t really care what was happening around them, or if others were looking at them. I can understand this reaction because for most people, as humans we are more comfortable when we are with others, rather than being alone.
After doing these observations on human interactions I noticed that every group interaction was different from each other, which makes sense because no two people or group are the same.
The setting that I chose also made a difference in the type of interactions that I witnessed. If I had chosen a gym for example instead of a busy, popular coffee shop, I would have once again saw different types of groups and interactions. People at the gym are all there more or less for the same reason, which is to get in shape and better themselves. They make time in their day to go and workout and just be present in that moment and whatever exercise they are doing. Whereas people at this coffee shop were always coming and going, quickly grabbing a coffee before going on with their days and lives.
The Finale
I am a twenty year old female university student. I enjoyed doing the observations on groups of people and found it extremely interesting noticing all of the different emotions people showed with their body language, many of whom probably didn’t realize what they were portraying. I was comfortable in the coffee shop setting that I chose and sat at a table for roughly thirty minutes, making a whole bunch of different observations. One thing I found a little difficult was that I couldn’t tell what the general population was doing either before or after their stops for a beverage, so that made it tricky to make assumptions, especially for the vast majority of people who only waited in line and once they got what they ordered they left right away, without me being able to hear or see anything that would have given a general idea about them or what they were doing. The main theme that I noticed throughout my analysis was peer relationships and how different groups of people, differ in their actions towards each other, depending on the relationship they have.
Credits
Byrm et al. (2016). Sociology: Your Compass for a New World, Fifth Canadian Edition. Toronto, Canada: Nelson Education Ltd.
Little, W. et al. (2014). Marriage and Family. Retrieved from: https://opentextbc.ca/introductiontosociology/front-matter/about-the-book/
