Social Setting Project

Introduction:

For this specific project, I conducted observations at three high end franchise coffee shops; I will not be referring to the names of the individual stores throughout my report, as I have collaborated my findings. For the purposes of reader understanding and introduction, the names of the different coffee factories I observed were: Starbucks, Timothy’s World Coffee, and Second Cup. The purpose of the observations was to document what kind of social interactions are going on in a typical coffee shop, interactions that to the naked eye, seem to be normal. I will explain in this report that these social interactions that are occurring in different coffee shops, are meant to take place.

Method: …show more content…

Whilst waiting in line, I noticed another generic similarity; all of the “gourmet” baked goods were showcased in a glass box to either the right or the left of the coffee server and all of these glass boxes were equipped with lights at the top of them to put a perfect shine on the sugary, buttery treats. The counter is slightly elevated and is made of some sort of granite or marble. Typically, there is a ledge to set down your coffee, and a fair amount of distance between the customer and the employee. The vast amount of coffee options that one can choose from is mind-boggling. From lattes to medium or slightly roasted coffee, the options seem to be never ending, with price fluctuations that seem quite adverse to the amount of work the employee has to put into making the coffee. There is a fix-your-own coffee station near the exits of the coffee shops, these high end establishments may be pricier; but they are not a full service station. Coffee drinkers have the option of what to put in their coffees.

The music that is playing in the background is usually on a low volume, and is in the genre of soft jazz. When you look up into the ceiling, lighting fixtures and are all relatively the same, halogen lights suspended from metal lines and light fixtures physically attached to the ceiling. In a coffee shop; lights can be dimmed or brightened, most usually. The people serving the coffee even looked the same,