Tracking the Reflexivity of the (Dis)Engaged Citizen

Abstract

Abstract:The relationship between governments and citizens in many contemporary democracies is haunted by uncertainty and sociologists face the task of listening effectively to citizens' own reflections on this uncertain relationship. This article reflects on the qualitative methodology of a recently completed UK project which used a combination of diary and multiple interviews/ focus groups to track over a fieldwork period of up to a year citizens' reflections on their relationship to a public world and the contribution to this of their media consumption. In particular, the article considers how the project's multiple methods enabled multiple angles on the inevitable artificiality and performative dimension of the diary process, resulting in rich data on people's complex reflections on the uncertain position of the contemporary citizen.TRACKING REFLEXIVITY

Methodological considerations in the use of audio diaries in work psychology: Adding to the qualitative toolkit

“…Indeed, researchers have suggested that minimal cognitive processing takes place before the recording of traditional diary accounts, thus potentially capturing a more appropriate representation of participants’ current psychological mindset, compared with other methodologies that may rely on retrospective accounts (Bakker & Bal, ; Fisher & Noble, ). Bernays, Rhodes, and Terzic () suggest that audio diaries provide participants with greater control over how they record their accounts, and researchers who have compared the use of audio diaries to written diaries have suggested that ‘diaries spoken into voice recorders tended to be less structured but often saw the diarist reflect on his or her relation to a particular issue in great depth’ (Markham & Couldry, , p. 684). Researchers have also highlighted pragmatic advantages of audio diaries rather than written diaries when working with particular groups, for example those who have difficulty writing (Harvey, ), or older people with eyesight difficulties (Koopman‐Boyden & Richardson, ).…”

“…Audio diaries are becoming more widely utilized in a variety of social science disciplines and are promoted as having many advantages, such as accessing sense‐making in periods of change and flux, and allowing the researcher to capture phenomena as they unfold, thus increasing immediacy and accuracy of data capture (Monrouxe, ). They are often considered as favourable to their written counterparts due to the additional benefits for the participant, such as an ease in completion and lower levels of attrition (Markham & Couldry, ). The aim of this study was to explore the usefulness of qualitative audio diaries in furthering our understanding of workplace phenomena, in particular workplace stress, and to provide support and guidance for work psychology practitioners and researchers who may be considering using audio diaries as a qualitative research method or as part of a mixed‐method study.…”

Adapting surveys for nonprofit research

“…Authors have addressed a number of topics, such as the impact of survey responses on measure interpretation (Brooks, 2004), issues with data collection (Brudney and Gazley, 2006;Rooney, Steinberg, and Schervich, 2004), and alternative methods of data collection (Markham and Couldry, 2007;Hager, Wilson, Pollak, and Rooney, 2003;Kennedy and Vargus, 2001). Since survey research plays such an important role in nonprofit data collection efforts, it is incumbent on authors to ensure that their instruments are valid proxies for the phenomena they intend to measure.…”

Municipal visions: Reflexive futures between paradigm and practice

“…Parallel to this argument about moderate use and usability among academic researchers, others have questioned the exclusive focus on the reflexivity of the researcher or practitioner, neglecting the reflexivity of the researched subjects, such as engaged stakeholders and citizens [49][50][51]. My study object here is the emergence of expectational reflexivity in a visioning project, i.e.…”