Photovoice project
The exhibition on 3rd June was a great success. This presentation highlights the process for setting up and opening the exhibition and gives an overview of the initial findings from the research project as they are presented in the exhibition.
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All the hard work is coming together. On Monday 3rd June, I’ll be holding an exhibition in the Learning Hub at the University of Northampton. This is to showcase the photographs by the MSc Public Health students who have been co-researchers on my project:
Exploring the transition of international students to UK Higher Education (HE).
The exhibition will celebrate their photographs and highlight some of the key experiences they have had, coming to study at the University of Northampton.
I’m exciting to exhibit their work. The students’ photographs will be presented alongside quotes from the research interview that highlight key themes from the project.
The exhibition is being held in the exhibition space, on the ground floor of the Learning Hub at the University of Northampton, between 11am and 4pm.
So, I’ve written about how to plan your search, now I’m going to tell you about how my search is going. In my previous blogpost I highlighted three basic elements to a literature search strategy:
First, the plan. I’ve explored the keywords I want to use. There are going to be a variety and it’s going to change as I come across different ideas and thoughts in the project, but here they are:
| Photovoice | “International students” | “Higher Education” | UK |
| “Participatory photography” | “Foreign students” | University | “United Kingdom” |
| “Photo elicitation” | undergraduate | College | England |
| “Photo novella” | postgraduate | Tertiary education | “Great Britain” |
| masters | “Northern Ireland” | ||
| “British Isles” | |||
| Wales | |||
| Scotland | |||
| GB |
My focus is photovoice, so you can see how I’ve tried to prioritise the different related terms and synonyms. The other elements of the keyword table can be added into the search or used separately. You can view the keyword table with the first column as my research focus, and the other three columns providing context. The UK context isn’t essential to my research, but it is helpful if I need to focus my search or relate the student experience to the UK educational environment, not all universities around the world teach in the same way.
I’ve also been searching separately in relation to research methods, as I plan the project, and looking ahead to writing up the project, thinking about the justifications and evidence for the decisions I’ve made. Below are some additional keywords I’ve been using and am considering using:
So far I’ve searched in a few different places. I’ve used broader search terms like “visual research methods” or “qualitative research” when looking for books on the catalogue (NELSON). When searching the databases, I’ve been using the below search string. I’ve tried to focus my search in abstract or keywords, but not all databases have the same functionality.
photovoice OR “participatory photography” OR “photo elicitation” OR “photo novella”
The search terms aren’t interchangeable, but they should pick up related literature that could help me understand the recruitment and facilitation of the research. Below are the databases I have searched and will search.
Still to do: SAGE, Web of Science, Wiley.
This is really key, taking the time to look at the results you have and adapt your search based on what you get. I’ve noticed doing a general search just in relation to photovoice, has been fruitful. However, thinking about how to focus the search so I’ve got a manageable number to review is difficult. I don’t necessarily need to focus on peer-reviewed or published literature, but sometimes those filters (alongside date ranges) help to get manageable chunks of literature to review. I know I have to go back to the education databases to search more broadly around international students, also including a focus on transition and masters education, which aren’t currently featured in my keywords list.
I’m reviewing what I’ve done, reflecting on what worked (and didn’t) and identifying what and where I need to search next. Therefore, I’m making progress but there are more keywords to explore, more searches to do, and more literature to read!
Language is so important in how we speak, what we say and what is heard. In research, the terminology is fraught with contention. Words that were acceptable yesterday, have a new connotation when viewed in the light of today. We have moved away from a mindset that research is ‘done’ to someone, and we have (thankfully) evolved into a time where we work with the people around us.
Working with people, I think is key to understanding what we’re researching. From an action research point of view – I’m learning and researching an area that will improve my job and the way I work. I don’t claim any expertise in this research area, that’s why I’m taking time to learn and explore. I have experience in information literacy; however, I’ve not used the photovoice method before and I’ve never been an international student coming to the UK to study on a masters’ programme. Therefore, in my research I wanted to work with my ‘population’ or group.
So, if I accept the principle that I’m not the expert and I want to work with the individuals relevant to the research project, I feel I can call them co-researchers. They are reflecting and investigating their own experience. However, I’m conscious that some interpretations of the co-researcher role involve those individuals designing, planning, delivering and analysing the research (Sierra‐Martínez et al., 2024). Whilst this is the ideal, I don’t think it’s achievable in my context. The ethical guidelines at my institution state I can’t provide any incentive for taking part of the research. Therefore, I’ve tried to reduce the burden of taking part as much as possible. Planning, delivering, analysing and disseminating research takes a lot of time, I don’t feel I can ask that of students who are primarily here to study. I feel cheeky asking for 4-5 hours of their time when I have nothing to offer them than the experience of taking part.
However, they do get knowledge and experience through taking part in this project. They are exploring a visual research method that stems from their own field – public health (Wang and Burris, 1997). Using photography to showcase their experience. They decide how and what the research focuses on. They also gain experience through their involvement in the process, seeing what’s involved, reflecting on their experience and considering what they could do differently. They’ll have an opportunity to meet other students on their course and hear their experiences moving to the UK for the same course. Seeing if they have similar experiences and potentially learning useful things to help them succeed.
At the end, of the project, they get to see their photographs and experiences exhibited for the university and wider community. Celebrating them as individuals and given them an opportunity to highlight what the experience has been like for them.
So calling them participants feels like it undermines their involvement and my respect for their experience. They’re not just participating; they are fundamentally shaping the research. Without them, the research would not take place.
One of the studies I’ve read, recently, referred to those generating the images in a photovoice project as ‘informants’. They provided the images and captions for the project, but they weren’t otherwise involved, and I don’t think they took part in discussions around the photographs – they were submitted to the research group and analysed separately. The project created a high volume of images (over 700) so I can understand the distinction between the informant, who submitted the images versus the co-researchers, who were actively involved in planning, delivering and analysing the research (Sierra‐Martínez et al., 2024). I’ve perhaps watched too many detective shows, but I’m wary of calling anyone an informant.
Yet participant seems disconnected too. I don’t feel it gives enough credit to the individuals’ input into the project. So, I’ll stick with co-researcher when talking about my project. For me, they are integral to the work, I would have nothing without them, and they are going to be the ones defining the outcomes. They’ll discuss the photographs and captions, identify the themes and share what their experience has been. I think, for my project, co-researchers shows the respect I have for the students I work with and how integral they are.
Sierra‐Martínez, S., Martínez‐Figueira, M., Castro Pais, M. D., & Pessoa, T. (2024). ‘You work, I copy’. Images, narratives and metaphors around academic plagiarism through Fotovoz. British Educational Research Journal, berj.3977. https://doi.org/10.1002/berj.3977
Wang, C., & Burris, M. A. (1997). Photovoice: Concept, Methodology, and Use for Participatory Needs Assessment. Health Education & Behavior, 24(3), 369–387.
Comments closedIt’s been fascinating running the training workshops for my research project. I have a lot of experience teaching and engaging different groups of people, but setting up, planning and delivering the photovoice training workshops has been interesting. Fundamental to my planning was my attempt to remove all barriers to attending and engaging with the research project.
First, I had to make sure that the training workshop was designed to deliver key information and underpin the activity I wanted the co-researchers to engage with. Planning with the end goal in mind, I wanted through the following questions:
They had to understand the principles of the project – what I was trying to achieve, the method I’m using and what I’m asking them to do. The literature offered some vague guidance, normally a sentence or two about ‘participants were trained in the principles of photovoice’. That’s where the experience of attending the Photovoice workshop was useful as I could reflect on the ideas we discussed and consider their activities.
The ethical principles and ground rules are key. This was set out by the University’s ethical principles and my ethics application before I started the project. I’ve made all the information available on my blog, so it’s readily available to anyone. However, I wanted to be clear and concise about key principles.
They only need to share what they are comfortable sharing, and they shouldn’t put themselves at any risk when taking photographs.
I was going to be very clear that any individuals who were photographed would need to sign explicit consent forms before the photographs were taken, so it’s much easier to focus on things and ideas, rather than people.
With images dominating the world around us, I wanted to take the time to talk with my co-researchers about the fundamental principles of visual literacy. Taking the time to discuss images to demonstrate how individuals can ‘see’ and ‘read’ images differently depending on their background, history and experience has been valuable. I used two activities with photographs. First – to discuss the content, ideas and perceptions of a photograph. The second, to classify, organise and sort a selection of photographs. I chose the photographs that were relevant to my context, and that modelled what I wanted, in the sense that they didn’t include people.
I also needed to consider any potential barriers that might prevent individuals from getting involved in the research. I reviewed their timetable, their assessment dates and any additional events the programme team were planning for the cohort. Therefore, all the data collection (training workshops, photography and focus groups) would have to be completed by the week before Easter. Taking that as my end point, I then broke down the research activities into chunks so that I could deliver the training workshops in enough time for them to take the photographs and engage with the focus groups before the Easter break.
Planning the content of the workshop, there are key elements that must take place. The co-researchers needed to know exactly what I’m asking them to do, and they needed to complete it within the ethical boundaries of the project. Although some photovoice projects can last a year or longer, the time restrictions mean that mine has had to be focused and succinct. The research project ran along the lines of an assignment: they have prompts or a brief for the photographs, a deadline to upload them by, and a focus group to discuss them in.
Delivering the workshops has been interesting. I delivered one workshop online (to account for potential co-researchers who weren’t in the country yet) and all the others have been face to face. The potential co-researchers were able to choose a date and time to suit them and I was as flexible as I could be around their timetabled session and availability of rooms. This meant that often the workshops were delivered on a one-to-one basis. I was concerned that this could be intimidating, but it was interesting for me to work with these students on an individual basis. Working through the activities they have all looked at them differently and brought different ideas and perspectives to the discussion. There is no right or wrong with the images, and it’s been so lovely to see the photographs from completely different perspectives. I couldn’t have predicted what they have highlighted from their observations. I haven’t recorded what they have said as they were training workshops, but I’m really excited to see what they bring to the photographs and focus group discussions.
After each workshop, they left with a physical handout (explaining the project, what I’d like them to do and with guidance on how to do it safely). They were also given a consent form for the photographs. This is separate from the research project – as it asks them how they would like their images to be credited (their name or a pseudonym) and asserts their role as the copyright holder of the photographs, giving me licence to use them for the research project. After the workshop I also then emailed them copies of the documents, along with a link to their personal padlet site for them to upload their photographs to. Again, this follows my idea of trying to make it as easy as possible for them to engage with the project and remove any potential barriers I could foresee.
It’s a really interesting conundrum to be in – completely in charge of my own time. In my day job, as an academic librarian, my work days are defined by teaching, student tutorials, meetings and teaching prep. No day is the same as another. Often it is my outlook calendar that dictates what I do when. I even timetable in breaks and lunch, so that I have time to breathe and get some fresh air. Now, I am my own boss.
Theoretically during this fellowship I can do things as and when I want to, no one is looking over my shoulder and I’m not accountable to anyone. Well, that’s not really the case – I’m still a member of University staff and I’m a professional. I have a great mentor to bounce ideas off and colleagues who are interested and supportive of my research. So one thing I can tell you is I want to do my job well – whatever role I’m in and whatever I’m doing. Therefore I want to make the most of this fellowship. It’s an incredible opportunity and I want to make the most of every minute. At the end, I want to feel confident that I have done the research to the best of my ability, supported my student co-researchers to explore their experience and help them showcase what they want to share with the University community. I am the facilitator that can bring their message to the world around them.
So, how do I make the most of the opportunity? Well, I’ve already written about “Getting organised”, so now a few weeks later – how am I keeping motivated and managing my time? The principles I put in place are the foundation. The Gantt chart, being able to see the bigger picture and the deadlines keeps me aware of how quickly time is passing.
Exploring the student timetables also gives me great awareness of the time pressures I need to meet – I want to make sure I’ve finished my data collection well before they start working on their assignments in earnest and well away from their deadlines. Fundamentally, I’m trying to remove any burden or barriers to my student co-researchers taking part.
Writing lists, using lists, amending and updating lists is key. Each day I try and focus on the main things I want to achieve. Ideally three main tasks that I can tick off the list. Going back to my Gantt chart and seeing jobs complete is a great step forward. I’m also breaking tasks down into achievable elements that I can work through. Sometimes it’s being aware that things will take longer than you can allow in one sitting. Or you need to go back and revisit something you thought you’d done. For example, I’d booked in all my training workshops, added them to an online booking system and advertised them on the virtual learning environment and website. However, as I still need more co-researchers, I’ve had to create more training workshops, book rooms, add more to the booking system and advertise them. The window of opportunity to recruit, train and discuss with the co-researchers seems to be getting smaller.
However, rather than focusing on negative elements. Time is flying by: I’m not sure I have enough co-researchers. I’m looking for solutions. What can I do to recruit more? Is there anything I can do to get ahead. For example, it seems crazy to me, but I’ve already booked the exhibition space for June and thought about the costs of printing the photographs and how I want the exhibition to go ahead. I’ve also spoken to the programme team to make sure they have availability and would be able to attend. That’s months away, but it’s something I have done and put in place. It’s a few tasks ticked off my lists.
It’s also about going with your feelings or mood. Often, you don’t have the luxury of doing what you want to do, because there are deadlines to be met and others counting on you. Here, in this project, if I’m not really feeling very organised, or I don’t want to spend time on the laptop I can take a step away. Pick up that book chapter I need to read, or journal article someone mentioned to me and read. Taking time out to read and learn from others’ points of view is incredibly rewarding. When I was planning the training workshop, it was really helpful to revisit some of the articles that inspired the project. Re-reading them, there were different elements I came across that helped me adapt and build the session.
Although I wrote earlier that I’m not accountable to anyone, that’s wrong. I feel a strong sense of purpose to make sure my research is worth the funding I have been awarded. I want to demonstrate that the faith that has been put in me is deserved. I want to support my co-researchers to share their experience and do justice to what they share. So that their colleagues, tutors and university can see what they have achieved. I also want to demonstrate to my mentor that I have the capability and capacity to do the research. As someone I look up to, I want to make sure their time has been well-spent with me. My team has also put a look of faith in me, encouraging me to go for the fellowship, giving me encouragement. I want to do well for myself, but I want to do well for them too – that they can see the project was worthwhile, the time well spent and I’m coming back to the team and the department with new knowledge and experience that I can share with others. Although it’s a solo project, it’s a project I share with others. So, fundamentally my motivation to keep going is about doing justice to the time, energy and faith that others have put in me. Fundamentally to keep motivated – look at who you are accountable to and why you need to do it.
Microsoft Planner Essential Training
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Traditional research involves an individual or team testing something or looking at something. There is an element of observation from an outsider – looking down and looking into another world, like an alien observing the Earth. However, as our awareness of ourselves and the world grows, research methods have moved into greater awareness of the impact of the research in and of itself, as well as the implications of the intervention. Research methods have expanded to look at how the researcher is central to the outcome of the research. How their role affects the study. Growing awareness of this impact has awarded researchers the opportunity to look at what they can do to improve the research model. Ethics being a core part of this – investigating, planning, and preparing to conduct research ethically. Conscious of the impact of data collection and investigation can have on the individuals, we realise that research is not benign – it affects the very community or topic we’re investigating.
With that in mind, newer research methods are reflecting the researcher within the project, considering how the outsider impacts the data they collection and the situation it observes. I’m obviously talking about this from a point of view that is well away from the complexity of scientific experiments. Safe in the knowledge that whilst my research in the social and educational spheres won’t change the world – they could improve my work and my role.
Privilege is a topic that has made the news for numerous reasons over the last few years and it’s a complex discussion that I’m not going to address here. Suffice it to say, I know it’s a debate that will continue well beyond my research fellowship. I know I am in a very different position to my students. My background as an Academic Librarian is very different to their professional health roles. My experience as an international student was now several years ago (well over a decade, but I’m not saying that out loud so you can’t judge me). When I studied abroad, I did it for an academic year as part of my undergraduate degree (rather than a whole programme). Skype was in its infancy and email was the main way of contacting people back home. Therefore, my experience, whilst nominally has some links to the students I teach (I’ve studied both at undergraduate and postgraduate levels, I’ve studied in another country and lived abroad) time and life has moved on. I don’t want my experiences to influence or shade theirs. That’s why photovoice is so appealing – I’m working with the participants as co-researchers. The students who take part in the study will decide ultimately what the outcome of the research is. It’s their photographs, their captions and their conclusions on the themes and experiences they share. I, the researcher, am a facilitator but I don’t translate or amend what they do.
This will be an internal exploration of their experience. They show what they are prepared to show and they leave out what they don’t want me to know about. I’m in the privileged position to work with individuals who have a wealth of experience that I can only learn about. This is one of the massive benefits of my job, I work with incredible people and I learn something every day. What I’m excited about, is thinking about what they want to share with me and how they see my world.
Northampton is not my hometown, it’s not where I was brought up. So I came to the town as a stranger. Friends and colleagues, I worked with, kindly gave me an insight into the idiosyncrasies of the place. It’s now a town I call home and there are parts that I feel incredibly pleased to live close to. The theatre has to be one of the massive benefits of living here. If I were to go back to my hometown – it would be different. The world has moved on, businesses close, businesses open. Houses get built, people move. The way we interact with our environment has changed. Now everyone has a device that can help them navigate a foreign landscape in their pocket. Are phones are often our gateway to something new. I hope that my student co-researchers use their phones (and especially their cameras) to share what they feel, see and experience in this new town. This is about their exploration of a new environment. Though their photographs and descriptions, they can help me and the rest of the university community to see what they see. They will hopefully be able to highlight the things we do well and potentially the things where we might be creating barriers for them.
I hope that in this project I am giving them a new way to explore – encouraging them to reflect on their experiences. I also hope that they find the focus groups interesting and energising – giving them a chance to see if their experiences are shared and also how others have experienced the same thing they have. This is about their internal exploration of this new world of postgraduate study in the UK. Rather than my external observation of their experience. The photography exhibition will be their way of highlighting and showcasing their experience. Through the knowledge I gain, I can amend and change my practice to ease their transition and those that follow them.
Keep your eyes open, don’t let your past dictate your future.
Photovoice: https://photovoice.org/
Comments closedMany professions use specialist language to describe key areas of their work. This specialist language or vocabulary helps with professional shorthand, it is useful in transferring information in succinct ways. Different professions use a variety of language, sometimes it may make sense to outsiders, but often has to be ‘translated’ as taken out of context it can be very confusing. Information literacy – is just such a term, coined and used within library and information science. As with many areas, my views are developing and changing with time, experience and reading. I’ve included some references at the end of this post to articles I’ve read and that are making me think differently about information literacy practice.
Information literacy is widely used in the library and information sector. Based on the principles of information seeking behaviour, discussed in the 1980s (Wilson, 1981; Kuhlthau, 1986). Information literacy loosely encapsulates the process individuals go through to find information; from identifying an information need, searching, and identifying the relevant information and then using it within their work or context. The terminology itself is not without debate – the use of ‘literacy’ can be viewed as classing those with little or limited skills as illiterate. There’s also the debate about how we ‘class’ it, as we explore and understand the process that moves information literacy from a static set of skills to an evolving and transitioning practice that is context specific.
Within UK Higher Education – information literacy is the focus of research and debate amongst academic librarians or subject librarians as they seek to develop the most effective ways of supporting their users to develop their information literacy practice and transfer their skills into their future work. Models and definitions of information literacy have been created by a number of different organisations (here are a few, but this is not an exhaustive list):
Various researchers have explored the use of these models and definitions. Today, however, there is a growing appreciation that these English-language models and tools are focused on a Western experience and doesn’t reflect the wealth and breadth of information literacy practice across the world. Organisations have sought to update and adapt these models and frameworks based on growing technological changes (looking at media, digital and visual literacy), as well as growing interest in holistic and community knowledge creation (Hicks and Lloyd, 2016; Roberts, 2021). I might argue that key to information literacy practice are the critical skills to question the information, data or knowledge presented, compare with other sources, and synthesise into relevant knowledge for the context it’s needed in.
From my point of view as an academic librarian, information literacy theory and models are useful to understand the fundamental principles of information seeking behaviour. However, I recognise that the students I work with have a range of knowledge, skills and expertise from their lives that I need to support them to translate into our specific academic context. Someone can have excellent skills and abilities to find bargains, learn about their football team or study elsewhere, but coming into the sometimes-traditional landscape of academia and trying to find information for assessment can be a very different experience. I believe it is important to work with the student, to build from their experience and help them transition to using the databases we rely on for academic information. In an age of Google, misinformation, and information overload, it is perhaps even more important that we discuss these skills and principles of information literacy practice to help our community find truth and build their knowledge of the world around them. I agree with the idea that information is constructed within a social setting, we’re influenced by the people around us. Sometimes it’s even more difficult to challenge those we respect, with differing views. However, if we can navigate, find and understand the information it is easier to enter into discussions and work with people to explore the ideas and information around us.
• It’s library specific language, that isn’t widely understood outside the sector.
• Information literacy is context specific and a reflection of the whole person and the environment and community they exist within.
Information Literacy Group: definitions and models
Hicks, A., & Lloyd, A. (2016). It takes a community to build a framework: Information literacy within intercultural settings. Journal of Information Science, 42(3), 334–343. https://doi.org/10.1177/0165551516630219
Kuhlthau, C. C. (1986). Inside the Search Process: Information Seeking from the User’s Perspective. Journal of the American Society for Information Science, 42, 361–371.
Reyes, B. M., Hicks, A., & Maxson, B. K. (2018). Information Literacy Practices of Spanish-Speaking Graduate Students at the University of Kansas, Portal, 18(3), 595–615.
Roberts, L. (2021). “This Is Just What We Do”: PhD Students on Becoming Scholars in a Community of Practice. Communications in Information Literacy, 15(1), 75–94. https://doi.org/10.15760/comminfolit.2021.15.1.4
Wilson, T. D. (1981). On user studies and information needs. Journal of Documentation, 37(1), 3–15. https://doi.org/10.1108/eb026702
Comments closedI wanted to put together my thoughts from the literature I’ve been reading. I’m presenting it as my version of an annotated bibliography so you can see that ideas that have caught my imagination from what I’ve read. These are my thoughts, so they don’t represent the whole complexity of the literature but are things that I’ve identified as being relevant to my research and interests in these areas.
I wanted to introduce photovoice through the literature. In these four sources I’ve followed photovoice from its inception to its implementation and use within the library and information sector (LIS). The sources introduce photovoice as a way of researching and empowering a community (Wang and Burris, 1994). There is then a call to use photovoice within LIS (Luo, 2017), followed by two contemporary examples that have inspired my own research project (Hicks and Lloyd, 2018; Tewell, 2019).
This is one of the first articles that I’ve found that discusses the inspiration of photovoice. In this case, the authors are referring to the method they’ve used as photo novella. The article explains the creation of the process and how it was used in their public health research (Wang & Burris, 1994).
“Photo novella is a participatory process that integrates empowerment education, feminist theory, and documentary photography” (Wang & Burris, 1994, p.172).
Identifying the inspiration behind photo novella (that we now think of as photovoice) Wang and Burris highlight three key projects:
A fundamental strength of the photo novella method was the dialogue between the women, about the photographs.
“We learned early on the necessity of including the women’s explanations for their photographs. The combination of their images and their words explaining what they represent to them was not just compelling the way only a picture can be, but they were true to the eye behind the camera” (Wang & Burris, 1994, p.180).
Wang and Burris recognise the potential limitations and challenges of the project and photo novella as a method, highlighting a number of challenges they experienced. They explore the role of documentary photography and the negative implications that has had on the photographic subjects. Whilst the photographer can gain global recognition and use the image to promote their ideas and thoughts on a specific situation or context, many of the subjects are not acknowledged and don’t receive any financial benefit from the notoriety of their image.
In contrast Wang and Burris (1994) use photo novella as an empowering method to facilitate individuals in bringing their ideas, thoughts and experiences to policy makers. Inspired by feminist theory, empowerment education and documentary photography photo novella gives a voice to those who are often overlooked or struggle to make their voices heard. The discussions around the photographs amongst the participants gives them an opportunity to discuss elements that they may not get the chance to do normally, and from those discussions may arise potential solutions. It was really interesting to read about the projects that influenced the development of their research project.
The article looks at the potential benefit of photovoice to the library and information science community. Luo (2017) introduces the methodology and then summarises three articles that used the photovoice method in relation to library and information research.
Luo (2017) suggests that traditional research methods such as interviews, surveys and focus groups may not be successful with all user groups, including international students.
“Photovoice is a qualitative method often used in community-based participatory research (CBPR), where community members take photos related to a particular issue and tell their stories behind the photos in a facilitated discussion. Community members are believed to be more imaginative and observant of community issues than the most experienced photographers and photo journalists” (Luo, 2017, p.179). This links to the observations made by Wang and Burris (1994).
Interestingly in describing the process of a photovoice project Luo (2017) explains that in stage 5, after the participants take the photographs, Luo states “we select a subset we find interesting particularly and ask the participants to do the same” (Luo, 2017, p.181). Reflecting on this it appears that the author as ‘researcher’ identifies what they want to discuss, rather than being participant led.
In the facilitated discussion Luo (2017) calls on the photographer of the selected image to explain the reasoning behind the photograph. The question arises as to whether the individual knows that they’ve been selected and what happens if several of the photographs come from one participant? This puts a lot of pressure on the individual to justify their work. It potentially reinforces the power dynamic inherent in library culture, as identified by Tewell (2019). I prefer the idea that the participants choose their own photographs to put forward.
Aligning with the findings of Wang and Burris (1994) in their photo novella method, Luo states that “The ‘co-researcher’ role empowers community members to become vocal about the needs of the community and contribute to a sense of community ownership” (Luo, 2017).
The article looks at three studies the used photovoice to explore a library related topic. The studies from Canada, Australia and Egypt are used by Luo (2017) to emphasize the key stages of the photovoice method and how it can be used to explore user needs. The examples explored typical library issues, information literacy practice including academic integrity.
In their article Hicks and Lloyd suggest that visual research methods are flexible and adaptable to modern life (Hicks & Lloyd, 2018).
The paper looks at two studies that have used photovoice as a methodology, building on the work of Wang and Burris (1994). They explain how photovoice gives power to the participant as they choose what to photograph and bridges language and cultural barriers (Hicks & Lloyd, 2018).
“In relinquishing control of data generation to participants, visual methods provide an entryway to previously inaccessible locations and broaden the range of settings in which information research can take place” (Hicks & Lloyd, 2018, p.233).
The authors highlight the ethical and security/safety issues integral to photovoice, therefore presenting the importance of clear training and enhanced guidance for participants.
In recognition of how images may misrepresent things, Hicks and Lloyd (2018) emphasize the importance of discussion (whether interviews or focus groups) to understand and contextualise both the photos and the intent behind them (think of Wang and Burris (1994) – the photograph of the woman as a tiny dot in the large field she was working on alone. The facilitators suggested she zoom in to get a better picture, but she wanted to capture the enormity of the challenge the woman faced farming all that land on her own).
The clear links with the work of Wang and Burris was really interesting to see as Hicks and Lloyd (2018) bridged the gap from the public health origin of the research method to its application in the LIS sector.
This article presents a photovoice project with undergraduate students at an American university, it specifically looks at information seeking behaviour (Tewell, 2019). By contextualising their project in the LIS literature Tewell (2019) acknowledges that “libraries reinforce cultural norms” (p.162) based on ingrained expectations, assumptions, and biases. They highlight that marginalised communities, or those outside of the cultural majority (for example “students of colour, LGBTQ students … are infrequently considered in library and information research” (Tewell, 2019, p.163).
Information practice is informed by a number of different factors including cultural background, information seeking, and cross-cultural differences.
Reflecting on the power dynamics inherent in library interactions Tewell (2019) justifies the use of photovoice as a way of exploring community perspective, rather than just the researcher’s interpretation. In presenting their research with 11 undergraduate students from various backgrounds Tewell (2019) stresses the importance of communicating with users rather than overgeneralising.
“This underscores the point that if librarians wish to determine how to best support students, there is no better way to find out than to ask directly (Tewell, 2019, p.173).
Reviewing these papers, which span thirty years of photovoice, you can see that the key message of empowerment that Wang and Burris (1994) embedded in their photo novella research is maintained. The fundamental premise is providing a platform for communities to have their voices heard, facilitating discussion amongst a community that presents their experience in a visual and approachable way for outsiders to understand.
Comments closedI’m in the very early days of my fellowship so I haven’t had chance to do a thorough literature search yet. For the past year or so, I’ve been doing some general reading. Enjoying serendipity when I came across a relevant paper. I kept my eyes open for literature relating to international students, postgraduates and photovoice. I’ve also welcomed recommendations for readings from colleagues which have helped me to expand my understanding of the area. Now, however, it’s time to do a more considered approach to literature searching.
This is something I discuss with my students every day in work. Adapting ideas from numerous sources (I’ll put some recommendations later) I tend to work through a broad three stage process:
For most projects, this works well, especially when you’re on a close timeframe. The important part is to plan before you dive into searching.
1. Planning your search:This is where you need to think about a few different elements – what topic are you looking for information on? There may be a couple of elements that you need to search separately. If you have an essay question you can pick out the main concepts from the question and then explore related terms and synonyms to give you flexibility when you search. Some keywords will work better in different places. When you’re looking for books on a topic, try to keep things quite broad, but when you’re looking for case studies, research and examples in databases you can be more specific.
What type of information do you need? Sometimes, especially when we’re thinking about finding information for an assessment, we have quite clear ideas. For example, when I’m looking for an introduction to a subject, I need to refer to books and I’m going to find those on NELSON (our library catalogue and discovery tool). Within health subject areas, you may be asked to refer to guidelines and care pathways (in which case you’re going to be searching for those specifically on a website like NICE) or research (in which case I recommend you search the databases). Thinking about what you need helps you to work out some of your strategy – where do I need to look and what for?
You also might want to consider any limits to your search. Does it matter how old the literature is (if you’re looking at historical context then no, but if you’re looking at current practice you may want to have a date range in mind)? Do you want information relating to a specific population group? Or for a specific country or region? Often the databases might have filters to help you narrow down your search by age or gender, or you might have to add something into your search. For example, you might add a country such as ‘England’ to your search to narrow it down to information relating to England.
At this point you have some keywords (this could be in a list, mind map or table) and a note of the type of information you need and where to find it. This is an outline search strategy that you can use to guide your search.
2. Search:Once you’ve planned your search, you then need to give yourself time to search. We’re all used to Google and getting results instantly, but when it comes to academic literature it takes a little more time. We need to search in more than one place (NELSON, databases, websites for specific information like clinical guidelines or statistics) and we might have to do a few different searches. Try one search and then adapt it by changing your keywords or the filters you use, depending on the results you’re getting.
It’s really important to give yourself time to review and adapt your search. We all hope that the first results are going to be the most useful. However, often we might find we’re getting too many results, so we need to consider ways to narrow it down. Or, the results aren’t relevant, it’s bringing up loads of information you don’t need – so you need to change your search term. You don’t have to take the first results as the best, having planned your search and having a few keywords to hand, means that you can change and adapt your search to get better results.
When you get some good information, have a look at the language they’re using. What terms or keywords are they using? Can you use those to add to your search? When you read it, you may also find it interesting to follow up on the sources of information (references) that they have used. They can help you build your understanding of the topic.
Remember, you’re going to have to do more than one search in more than one place. You won’t find everything in one place. Think of it as a bit like shopping, although the big supermarkets sell everything from milk to hair dryers, not everything you need is covered. Sometimes you have to go to a specialist shop for an ingredient. Although they sell shoes, they may not sell the walking boots you need if you’re going hiking. So, keep your eyes open and look in more than one place.
Once you’ve got your literature, you then need to read it. I’ll update you on my search strategy in my next post. Otherwise, this will be a REALLY long blog post.
Really straightforward a great place to start:
This one is very detailed and great for postgraduate and doctoral research students:
