Research Fictions: Arts-Informed Narratives That Disrupt the Authority of the Text

Abstract

In this paper I examine the dilemma faced by reflexive narrative inquirers who write in the first-person "I" while advocating for a postmodern reading of the "self." This paper asks the question: How can the reflexive educational researcher craft a research narrative that, on the one hand, strives for self-presence, while on the other hand, denies the transparency of language? I discuss current post-structuralist critiques of educational research rhetoric, and extend the critique to narrative research, suggesting that an arts-informed approach to narrative allows researchers to disrupt the authority of their text. I explore the use of a specific fictionalizing technique -the unreliable narrator -to assist readers in critically deciphering reflexive research narratives.

Five Vignettes: Stories of Teacher Advocacy and Parental Involvement

“…First person narratives encourage the reader to trust the author, but this is not necessarily a good thing. Writing in first person communicates to the reader that the author and the participant are one and the same, which makes it more difficult for the reader to identify the researcher's presence (de Freitas, 2007). I am also torn about how I represented my participant because I deeply admire her courage and tenacity.…”

Leadership Research

“…An arts-informed process closes the power gap by facilitating research that is inclusive of people from all levels of an organization. Organizational arts-informed researchers, who embrace the potential of art to inform scholarship, follow a natural process of actively constructing and deconstructing meaning to explain leader behavior (De Freitas, 2007;Weber & Mitchell, 2004). Mutuality and shared meaning-making enhances awareness and identification of personal strengths and challenges.…”