Participant observation has been used particularly in the study of unusual and deviant behaviour. One reason for this is the fact that such behaviour is, by its very nature, liable to be secretive...

Participant observation has been used particularly in the study of unusual and deviant behaviour. One reason for this is the fact that such behaviour is, by its very nature, liable to be secretive and/or illegal and thus often difficult to study by more conventional means. Why might participant observation be particularly useful for the study of crime and deviance?