text: should i ask permission to observe a retail store for three hours? i'm doing a paper on how toys, etc, create gender role identities for children.  i need to observe a toy store where parents are shopping with/for kids for about three hours.  i asked my professor if it would be best to ask someone at the desk so they don't think i'm loitering, but she said i should avoid the trouble and just do it secretly.  why?  would they possibly object to me taking notes?  either way is fine, i'm just wondering what your opinion is. if it's for research that has to be approved by an institutional review board, they will require that you get permission before they approve the proposal. and i think permission might be hard to get. chain of command, all that jazz. plus any parents that get wind of it might them boycott the store over feelings of an invasion of privacy.  other than that, i think it depends on your gender. i mean, it's a toy store. a man lurking in a toy store for three hours looks like a pedophile shopping for victims and might get arrested. a woman isn't nearly as suspicious-looking.  if you're not going to ask, don't let them catch you taking notes or you might get thrown out. again, looks very criminal. stay away from the register, be prepared to pretend you're shopping for holiday presents, and carry as small and unobtrusive a notebook as possible.