We've been Framed: Visualising Methodology

Abstract

This paper explores the reasons why video, and other visual representations have been largely ignored in sociology, whilst the possibilities of video as an empirical source have been sidelined by cultural studies. Discussions of methodology have raised doubts about notions such as objectivity and scientific knowledge, and about the power relationships involved in the research and writing processes, and techniques that one might employ in order to avoid such problems have been suggested. Yet the aims of such techniques are misguided if they serve only to further legitimate the`truth' of the research itself. In this context I explore some of the possibilities of visual methods, such as video and photography, whilst also examining some of the ethical issues raised by them. In this respect, the paper explores the notion of a`queer methodology'. This approach is indebted to the legacy of its predecessor, feminist methodology, but departs from this in several important ways. I will explore these differences and examine the possibility that a place for the visual within sociology is an inherently queer conception.

Fear in Paradise: The Affective Registers of the English Lake District Landscape Re-visited

“…Halliday (2000) argues that innovative visual methodologies can counter the traditional power dynamics of other methods, but require continued reflection on whether their aim is to 'further legitimate the truth of the research itself.' (p504).…”

Eliciting Students' Understanding of a Local Socioscientific Issue Through the Use of Critical Response Pedagogies

“…Prosser and Loxley (2008) also suggest that discussing "topics through an intermediary artifact" relieves pressure and builds rapport among respondents. Participants respond to the questions without indecisiveness and intimidation as they discuss the image and share their thoughts about it (Clarke-Ibanez, 2004;Hazel, 1995;Holliday, 2000). Combining an adaption of photo-elicitation and focus group interviews, this study uses a single image of the river landscapes to elicit secondary school students" perceptions about the rivers and the landscapes surrounding them.…”

Emotions, ethnography and crack cocaine users

“…Visual ethnography has also influenced academics in the sphere of cultural studies: For example, Hall (1993) used visual examples to demonstrate how the media, and especially visual media, has become the key participant in the process of modern 'story telling'. More recently, video has been employed through Holliday's (2000) poignant examination of sexual identities through video diaries. Her work elucidated on how identities and meaning were 'performed' in relation to clothing and fashion.…”