Encouraging Drawing in Research with Children on Marine Environments: Methodological and Epistemological Considerations

Abstract

As part of an interdisciplinary research project on South Pacific fisheries, we recognized children as one of the relevant categories of stakeholders whose perspectives on fishing and fisheries management need to be considered. We used drawings to explore how, in Fiji and New Caledonia, children perceive their marine environment, including the fishing practices and the connections between these and local ways of ‘being-in-the-world.’ Our methodology involved drawing workshops in local schools, followed by short interviews with the participants. This methodological paper aims to identify the advantages and limitations of this drawing-based approach to research with children compared to conventional ethnographic and ethnoecological methods. Therefore, it focuses primarily on how this approach was designed and implemented and on the epistemological discussions it generated, especially concerning children’s involvement in the study and the use of drawing as a research tool.