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Review Essay: The Political Image in the Focus of the Socio-Cultural and Scientific Methodological Discourse

November 24, 2014, 8:58 a.m., Marc Dietrich, Allgemein.

This article focuses on a double review of two anthologies worth reading. The contributions in question analyze an image of the White House's Situation Room from different disciplinary, methodical and theoretical perspectives of image analysis. The image shows the White House's leadership watching the live broadcast of what appears to be BIN LADEN's killing. Both anthologies are the result of a conference and both publications concentrate on the analysis of one high-impact political photograph. They also understand themselves as contributions to the current discourse on image analysis. The books include positions from the journalistic and the art historical field but prioritize approaches from the social and cultural sciences. This review not only critically examines these relevant anthologies but also situates them in the wider context of socio-cultural and scientific image analysis.

URN: http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:0114-fqs150159

Quelle: http://www.qualitative-research.net/index.php/fqs/article/view/2249

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Contextural Analysis: Reconstructive Research in Organizational Settings

November 24, 2014, 8:49 a.m., Till Jansen, Arist von Schlippe, Werner Vogd, Allgemein.

While the documentary method fits subjects like generations or milieus very well due to its meta-theoretical design, the idea of social practice being structured by conjunctive spaces becomes problematic within organizations. Explicit forms of knowledge become more important, and also practices that are not structured by only one kind of experience and knowledge but rather are arrangements of multiple spaces. Drawing on Gotthard GÜNTHER's concept of "contexture" we propose a meta-theoretical design for organizational settings. We propose that social practice processes different areas of implicit and explicit practices (contextures) and that are linked by so-called transjunctional operations. Using the example of a business family we show the potential of the proposed approach.

URN: http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:0114-fqs150141

Quelle: http://www.qualitative-research.net/index.php/fqs/article/view/2198

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Stimulated Recall as a Focused Approach to Action and Thought Processes of Teachers

November 24, 2014, 8:38 a.m., Roland Messmer, Allgemein.

The link between human thinking and action has received little attention by researchers. While actions are observable, thinking processes are hidden to them. When researchers ask individuals to explain their thinking processes associated with a specific action, they tend to adapt their preceding thinking processes to match the action, whether those processes are accurate or not. However, any study dealing explicitly with thinking processes has to cope with this problem. In this article I argue that Stimulated Recall Analysis (SRA) can offer a solution to this thorny methodological issue.

First, the practice of SRA is illustrated as an investigative approach in the context of reconstructive social research, using a concrete example from a previous study about action and thought processes of teachers. The practice of applying SRA to this example serves as a kind of methodological guide for future studies. In the subsequent discussion, it is suggested that SRA proved to be a suitable empirical method to detect the internal thought processes of teachers. This research approach thus demonstrates ways for didactic research to base its theories and assumptions on a sound empirical foundation.

URN: http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:0114-fqs150130

Quelle: http://www.qualitative-research.net/index.php/fqs/article/view/2051

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Conducting Focus Groups in Terms of an Appreciation of Indigenous Ways of Knowing: Some Examples from South Africa

November 24, 2014, 8:27 a.m., Norma Ruth Arlene Romm, Allgemein.

In this article I consider some examples of conducting focus groups in South Africa with school teachers in a manner which takes into account indigenous ways of knowing. Indigenous knowing (within various indigenous cultural heritages) can be defined as linked to processes of people collectively constructing their understandings by experiencing their social being in relation to others. I indicate how the conduct of focus groups can be geared towards taking into account as well as strengthening knowing as a relational activity defined in this way. Once facilitators of focus groups appreciate this epistemology they can set up a climate in which people feel part of a research process of relational discussion around issues raised. This requires an effort on the part of facilitators to make explicit to participants the type of orientation to research that is being encouraged via the focus group session. I offer examples of attempts to practice such an approach to facilitation, including examples of feedback obtained from participants regarding their experience of the research process.

URN: http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:0114-fqs150120

Quelle: http://www.qualitative-research.net/index.php/fqs/article/view/2087

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Focused Ethnography: A Methodological Adaption for Social Research in Emerging Contexts

November 24, 2014, 8:19 a.m., Sarah Wall, Allgemein.

Ethnography is one of the oldest qualitative methods, yet increasingly, researchers from various disciplines are using and adapting ethnography beyond its original intents. In particular, a form of ethnography known as "focused ethnography" has emerged. However, focused ethnography remains underspecified methodologically, which has contributed to controversy about its essential nature and value. Nevertheless, an ever-evolving range of research settings, purposes, and questions require appropriate methodological innovation. Using the example of a focused ethnography conducted to study nurses' work experiences, this article will demonstrate how particular research questions, the attributes of certain cultural groups, and the unique characteristics of specific researchers compel adaptations in ethnography that address the need for methodological evolution while still preserving the essential nature of the method.

URN: http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:0114-fqs150111

Quelle: http://www.qualitative-research.net/index.php/fqs/article/view/2182

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