What qualitative GIS maps tell and don't tell: insights from mapping women in Tehran's public spaces

Abstract

Qualitative Geographic Information Systems (QGIS) refers to an array of methodological efforts to incorporate into Geographic Information System (GIS) more qualitative data than have traditionally been included. The majority of critical geographers have focused on the advantages of QGIS as an innovative method in feminist geography; however, little attention has been given to its limitations, particularly in non-Western contexts, where sociocultural subjectivity appears to be more difficult to access. The exciting prospect QGIS fosters, along with its conceptual and technical limitations, is the central focus of this article. This article represents an attempt to go beyond the first generation of QGIS literature and to critically explore its limitations. It draws on insights from my fieldwork studying Iranian women's sociospatial behaviors in Tehran's public spaces. Photographs, sketches, and narratives were linked to GIS data gathered from the Iranian Census Organization, National GIS Database, and Tehran Municipality. During my data analysis, two limitations were recognized: data exclusion and data scale incompatibility. Evaluating both the merits and limits I encountered in this case study, I conclude that QGIS application allows geographers, particularly cultural geographers who often deal with the symbolic and ethno-cultural meanings people attach to places, to possibly see more, but not necessarily “all.”