Methodological Reflections Research Articles

The problem of student’s responsibility in the context of digitalization of education

Introduction. The article discusses some socio-psychological problems related to the change in the subjectivity of the student as the main actor of educational practices.Purpose setting. The purpose of this article is to discuss the acute problems of a student’s responsibility in the context of the emerging non-traditional nature of educational communications.Methodology and methods of the study. The discussion is conducted within the framework of the methodological principles of cognitivism and social constructionism, which today determine the vector of research related to the impact of digitalization on educational practices.Results. The thesis is updated that the change in the subjectivity of an individual (as a learning subject) in the context of convergence of AI applications in educational practices occurs in two main planes. The first of them is associated with the deformation (decrease) of student’s level of responsibility for performing educational practices «as specific learning actions». The second is that the determination of reducing responsibility is largely determined by the «moving»of the driver into the «comfort zone». In this zone, there is a «delegation»of choice and decision-making from the individual (subject, student) by AI application.Conclusion. Against the background of issues related to the «reliability of solutions»offered by AI and the lack of «digital literacy», the possibility of self-identification of the student and the level of his responsibility (as a real subject of educational practices) can be clearly questioned and requires methodological and methodical reflection.

Youth Photographed: Methodologies for Visual Analysis

In this article, we propose a methodological reflection based on the work with photographs of youth published in print media in Chile during the 20th century. We use our proposal for qualitative analysis, which includes intentional work with visual culture, the creation of our own archives, and the development of tools for individual and group analysis of photographs. We propose two specific strategies for the analysis of photographs: the first is “layered analysis”, and the second is “group or panel analysis”, which allows for linking images, culture, and youth. We trust that this methodological reflection will contribute to the study of youth and stimulate debate in the field of study itself.

How should we study interactions between translation policies, practices, and beliefs? Comparing case studies from a time of crisis

ABSTRACT This article is a methodological reflection based on a particular research experience around the following question: if effective translation policy must align with translation practices and beliefs, how should we study situations where those factors do not align with each other? When vaccination information had to reach multilingual communities in Brussels and Melbourne in 2021, in both cases there were moves to community-based translation practices, without clear adjustments on the level of official policy. The resulting tensions created problems for research methodology with respect to the variable availability of language data, the influence of media reports, and especially the different opinions expressed by community representatives, translation users, dissenters, and translators. In confronting the difficulties thus imposed and the many subject positions in play, we argue that researchers should invest added efforts to recognize and work with the uneven nature of the data while at the same time including the full range of expressed beliefs. Only then can we presume to identify some of the more local aspects that effective translation policies must address.

Questioning Devotions, Reorienting Commitments

This paper is a methodological reflection on my time as a graduate student studying Indian Residential Schools through archival sources. I broadly survey relevant secondary studies to access the current state of the field and to chart prospective avenues for future scholarly engagement. I suggest that, for religionists, the frameworks of church history and mission history can be selectively utilized to examine the history of residential schooling. I argue that the ‘Indian Residential School’ (or IRS) terminology creates a narrowed understanding of colonialism and assimilative education by disregarding other modes of schooling deployed in Indigenous communities: the day schools and mission schools, but also hospitals, convents, and other church-operated institutions. Largely dating to the pre-Confederation period, mission schools especially fade from view when studies focus on the national model of the IRS launched in 1879 and expanded in 1884. In many regional contexts, mission schools of the colonial era laid the literal and conceptual groundwork for the later launching of the IRS system. By studying the works and the records of specific church bodies, religionists might elucidate with greater clarity the evolving differences, synchronicities, or collaborations of ideologies, policies, and practices among members of church and state over several centuries. Attending to pre-Confederation, colonial history also lends a transnational scope to a topic that is often framed in the context of national history, i.e., ‘Canada’s residential school system’. A global perspective on colonial education could assist historians of religion to assess the legacies of church, empire, and imperialism on Canada’s national model of residential schooling.

Soliciting Diaries for "Real-Time" Insights Into the COVID-19 Pandemic: Methodological Reflections on Using Digital Technologies to Engage the Public.

To discuss the opportunities and challenges of the qualitative solicited diary approach using digital technologies as an innovative way to access insights into people's lives and their unique stories in times of COVID-19-related social distancing in Switzerland. This case study provides reflective arguments from a social science perspective for the selection of different (digital) diary designs to optimize data collection in the SNSF-funded project "PubliCo - an experimental online platform for COVID-19-related public perception." The findings highlight some opportunities of using (digital) diaries, such as empowering participants, gathering real-time data, and ethical and methodological challenges when it comes to gaining access to alternative narratives. To gain in-depth insights during a crisis and to reach the lesser-heard voices that are central to democratic debates, it is necessary to adapt data gathering methods and build trust with diverse communities. While digital technologies open up new possibilities for public engagement, there is a need to think critically how data gathering is approached, how trustworthy the results are, and whose voices are captured, amplified, or left out.

Riotous methodological and methodointuitive reflections on (non)religion, spirituality and the multispecies turn

The ‘multispecies turn’ in the social sciences and humanities is informing many disciplines including animal studies, anthropology, Indigenous studies and, more recently, sociology of religion. Scholars working on multispecies relations employ various methods and methodologies, many of which are challenging modern, Western, Christian paradigms and practices that are anthropocentric and focus on logos/words/texts/beliefs. This discussion examines new and multiple ways of conducting multispecies focused research, that is critical, reflexive, embodied, affective and intuitive. It begins with an overview of the methods applied by notable scholars – Kimmerer, Tsing and Beaman – researching multispecies relations, and then includes four personal ‘riotous’ reflections by this article’s co-authors, on their own positionality and experiences of conducting such research. The discussion concludes by identifying key challenges in research on diverse worldviews and multispecies relations, and aims to generate creative and scientific responses to further decenter anthropocentrism in academia.

Designing harvesting tools for olive trees: Methodological reflections on exploring and incorporating plant perspectives in the early stages of design process

Sustainability-focused design research is witnessing a change in approach with the emergence of More-than-human Design (MTHD), which challenges human-centered thinking by incorporating nonhuman perspectives into the design process. However, implementing MTHD presents challenges for design researchers and practitioners, such as understanding non-verbal species. Despite the techniques developed to facilitate such an understanding (e.g. contact zone), the growing literature on MTHD lacks studies reflecting on how these techniques are utilized in the design process. In this paper, we present a case study on designing olive harvesting tools from a MTH lens, where designers used contact zone, plant interviews, plant persona, and experience map to explore the perspectives of olive trees and incorporate them into ideas in collaboration with farmers and agricultural engineers. The results indicate the significance of reconsidering decentralization in MTHD from the standpoint of entanglements among techniques and incorporating various knowledge types to manage tensions arising from perspective shifts.

Methodological Reflections on Studying Gender‐Sensitive Parliaments Cross‐Nationally: A “Most Significant Change” Approach

Whilst cross-national comparative analyses provide distinct opportunities for the study of gender-sensitive parliaments, the inherent challenge in conducting comparisons necessitates a continued search for innovative methods. This article responds to this need by proposing the “most significant change” (MSC) approach (Davies & Dart, 2005), which centres on collecting and analysing “stories of significant change.” Drawing on our own application of MSC in an international study commissioned by INTER PARES, we show that MSC’s bottom-up, inductive, and participatory approach proved valuable in uncovering hitherto unknown instances of gender-sensitive changes across countries, illuminating the broader impact of such changes beyond parliaments and incorporating practitioners’ perspectives. The flexibility of MSC also enabled context-specific applications, which we illustrate through three examples from Cyprus, Germany, and Trinidad & Tobago. By offering a complementary approach to compare parliaments’ gender sensitivity across countries, our study provides a novel perspective for future comparative analyses in the field.

Navigating Qualitative Data Collection Challenges: Fieldwork Insights and Recommendations for Research with Development Project Beneficiaries

In development and migration studies, understanding the impact of policies and development interventions is one of the major research priorities. However, when carrying out research with beneficiaries of development projects in Africa, there are numerous challenges that - if not carefully considered - will jeopardize data quality. Even though there are some methodological articles and reflections on monitoring & evaluation and on quantitative research with beneficiaries of development projects, not much has been written on the specific challenges that qualitative data collection faces in these situations. Drawing on 28 FGDs and 144 IDIs conducted in the timespan of 18 months of qualitative fieldwork research with project beneficiaries in Southern Ethiopia, we give fieldwork advice, and provide actionable recommendations for future research, revolving around 1) the importance of pre-testing, 2) verifying age and other personal characteristics of informants, 3) the outsider-insider debate, 4) sampling and communication with NGO staff, 5) expectations, vulnerabilities and behavior of individuals.

Writing a way home

This article discusses my (impossible) attempt to find a way home by writing a play — Home. Home is constructed by weaving together fragments from my grandmother’s memoirs and my own writing (Thorp 1945, 2016). My grandmother, born and brought up in Myanmar, had never visited Britain until her family moved ‘home’ when she was sixteen, while I moved to Singapore in my thirties. As a child, my grandmother could not return home to Myanmar, while the COVID-19 pandemic meant that I was unable to leave Singapore. By comparing our experiences of being at home, and of not being able to go home, I aim tell a wider story about identity and belonging in migrant experiences that reach beyond our own intimate recollections. In Home, the page becomes a playground where I explore notions of home, identity, belonging, non-belonging, and the trickster nature of memory. This autoethnographic investigation combines my experience of writing Home with theoretical and methodological reflections on it. Through this process, the concept of home reveals itself as embodied, liminal, shifting, and troubles notions of identity and belonging for both my grandmother and me. Extending Sara Ahmed’s notion of home as skin (1999), I suggest that not only can home permeate the skin, but that there is a connection between home and sickness. In attempting to understand my grandmother’s experience of home in her cultural and ethnographic context, I expose my own post-colonial discomfort about her claim that Myanmar was her home. These feelings affect how I select and reuse text from her memoirs, so that I reveal myself to be an unreliable narrator, biographer, and even an unreliable playwright. Ultimately, playwriting becomes a method that allows identity and belonging for my grandmother and I to exist in a third space (Bhabha 1994), both on the page and embodied in a character that is both of us and neither of us.

It's bittersweet, it's uncomfortable, yes, but it's necessary. Methodological reflections on the experiences of young adults with life-shortening conditions on being involved in inclusive qualitative research

Research in palliative care is regarded as ethically challenging although there is increasing recognition that such research is important. Young adults with life-shortening conditions were not expected to reach adulthood but this population is growing and there is limited research that focuses on their lives or their experiences of engaging in research. The study explored the unintended consequences of pandemic control measures on the lives of young adults living with life-shortening conditions in the United Kingdom. This paper focuses on some of the methodological issues arising from this study, drawing on data that explores participants’ experiences of taking part. This is an interpretivist and inclusive qualitative study co-produced with three experts by experience using constructivist Grounded Theory method conducted during the first wave of the Coronavirus pandemic. In-depth interviews using a topic guide were transcribed verbatim and analysed iteratively until the point of data saturation. Twenty-six young adults aged 22–40 (17 female; 9 male), reporting a wide range of life-limiting and/or life-threatening conditions including rare and undiagnosed conditions and co-morbidities. Through analysis we identify four key themes focusing on participants’ experiences of taking part in the research: helping others and influencing change; reciprocity and support; therapeutic value; and (in)visibility and legacy. This paper offers methodological reflections on research in palliative care drawing on qualitative co-produced research involving young adults with life-shortening conditions. Our findings indicate that although participating in research can feel uncomfortable, this is outweighed by the perceived benefits of contributing to research.

Path creation as a discursive process: A study of discussion starters in the field of solar fuels.

When a technology is seen as the right solution to a recognized problem, the development of alternative technologies comes under threat. To secure much-needed resources, proponents of alternative technologies must, in these conditions, restart societal discussion on the status quo, a process at once technological and discursive known as 'path creation'. In this article, we investigate discussion-restarting strategies employed by supporters of emerging technologies in the field of solar fuels, particularly the advocates of a technology referred to as 'artificial photosynthesis'. For illustrative purposes we explore four such strategies: revisiting weak spots, resizing the problem, redefining the game, and renegotiating labels. We conclude with a methodological reflection on the empirical study of discursive strategies in a socio-technical system. We further suggest a more systematic application of discourse-analytical and argumentation-theoretical insights that can complement current scholarship on path dependence and path creation.

Methodological Considerations in Conducting a Bilingual Study

<i>This methodological reflection is developed from a nursing research study that compared health systems in Canada and Saudi Arabia, using both English and Arabic languages for data collection. Conducting research in a language not spoken by all the research team members is relatively common, yet addressing the nuanced details of implementing bilingual work has limited guidance within extant literature. This includes consideration of promising practices for concept development, translation, data analysis, and presenting the findings. </i><i>This article </i><i>discusses the strengths and limitations of bilingual research and recommendations regarding these issues from our own experiences. Ultimately, it is proposed that via bilingual research, the accumulation of knowledge pertaining to qualitative research concepts, translation, analysis, and dissemination of comprehensive frameworks can be enacted, ultimately enhancing the rigor of qualitative research and increasing confidence in applying knowledge created in the chosen language of participants.</i>

Imagining the human: applying the philosophy of religious studies to Jonathan Z. Smith

ABSTRACT Distinguishing between philosophy of religious studies as intra-scientific methodological reflection and philosophy of religion as extra-scientific commitment to values, this article demonstrates the benefits of integrating both, applying critical reflection to the latter as well. As a case study, it focuses on Jonathan Z. Smith’s concepts of humanity and history. Smith’s strategic blend of history and morphology aligns with his extra-scientific vision of humanity, which derived not merely from methodological choices but from philosophical reflection. By comparing Smith’s structuralist arguments with Lévi-Straussian structuralism – interpreted as antihumanism – the article reveals that Smith’s humanistic orientation was embedded in North-American social and academic contexts. It thus advocates for a nuanced examination of religious studies’ philosophical underpinnings, suggesting that, without such analysis, the work of even empirical scholars like Smith might be misconstrued.

Language at Stake in International Research Collaboration—Methodological Reflections on Team-Based and Time-Intensive Ethnography

Based on experiences from multiple international research projects, spanning several decades and utilizing various forms of collaborative ethnographic approaches, this article aims to reflect on challenges and potentials regarding language and communication when researching across jurisdictions. Thematically, the research projects that we draw on in this paper, are concerned with aging and healthcare, while the primary focus of the paper remains on the methodological implications of conducting international, collaborative, and time-intensive ethnography. Moreover, the aim is to contribute to enhancing researchers’ awareness of and preparedness to meet and address such challenges in future research endeavors. The article discusses how English often serves as a lingua franca for Western-dominated international research collaborations, having implications for researchers and study participants alike, as well as the use of interpreters and potential linguistic pitfalls. In the article, we argue that attention and reflection on language and communication in research are significant for how collaboration in research transpires, the opted methodical choices, and, ultimately, for research quality, while often being under-appreciated. International ethnographic fieldwork requires thorough preparation and reflection to properly handle linguistic and cultural competencies, nuances, and understandings incorporated in the researchers, with subsequent consequences for research processes and outcomes.

Do Interventions Meet the Needs of Caregivers of Cardiac Patients?: A Scoping Review.

Interventions targeting the needs of caregivers of cardiac patients are few, and in most cases, no effect is found on caregivers' well-being. A closer look at the existing interventions will provide a solid foundation for future efforts to develop effective interventions targeted at caregivers of cardiac patients. The study's objective was to scrutinize and discuss interventions targeting caregivers of cardiac patients and contribute to reflections that will improve future interventions. Systematic scoping of the literature within the field was conducted through a literature search in PubMed, EMBASE, CINAHL, PsycINFO, and Cochrane Library from January 2011 to May 2022. The development of search terms and inclusion criteria was inspired by the Patient problem/population, Intervention, Comparison/Control, and Outcome approach, and the Medical Research Council framework for developing and evaluating complex interventions served as the underlying basis for the analysis. Eleven articles were included. The interventions reported in the articles were generally not systematically developed and did not include field-specific, methodological, and theoretical reflections. Furthermore, the development process behind the studies seemed not to be transparent. Lack of systematic methodology and methodological transparency in the reviewed studies hinders further testing of interventions and might explain lack of evidence for effective interventions within the field. More systematic, needs-based, and well-documented interventions targeting caregivers of various kinds of cardiac patients are needed to develop the field to the benefit of caregivers, patients, and society.

Building a programme theory of a specialist paediatric palliative and hospice care programme: development process and methodological reflection

BackgroundPaediatric palliative and hospice care aims to improve the quality of life of children with life-limiting and life-threatening conditions and their families. The number of these patients has risen significantly in recent years, resulting in an increased need for palliative care for this population. Although the need for paediatric palliative and hospice care is growing, meaningful outcome evaluation to demonstrate its effectiveness as a complex healthcare intervention is in its early stages. For complex interventions (programmes), theory-based evaluations have grown in prominence in recent years. They seek to understand how and why an intervention works by uncovering its underlying mechanisms by means of programme theory. To support both outcome evaluation in paediatric palliative care and a reflective practice of programme theorizing, we aimed to describe the construction of a programme theory for a specialist paediatric palliative and hospice care programme in Austria and to offer a reflective account of its development process.MethodsWe drew on a combination of theory-based evaluation frameworks to construct a programme theory consisting of an action and a change component. Through multiple iterations, incorporating different stakeholders’ perspectives and drawing on different sources of knowledge and theory, we theorized how and why the programme likely achieves its intended outcomes.ResultsThe programme theory outlines the proposed chains of events, causal mechanisms and outcomes of a specialist paediatric palliative and hospice care programme for children and families in several areas corresponding to its main conceptual tenets. Through a range of activities and interventions, the programme triggers coping and adaptation mechanisms that ultimately contribute to family and child wellbeing in physical, psychological, social, and spiritual dimensions. Established trust and partnership between children/families and healthcare professionals as well as a person-centered and family-centered approach were identified as enabling factors.ConclusionsOur findings provide insights into how a specialized paediatric palliative and hospice care programme works to achieve its intended outcomes for children and families. This helps demonstrate its impact, contributing to meaningful outcome evaluation and service improvement.

Methodological reflections on radio and podcast listenership in political geography

Methodological reflections on radio and podcast listenership in political geography

Emergence of Lesbian Theory of Law

In the late eighties of the 20th century, the methodological reflection of lesbian identity arose within the framework of feminist jurisprudence. Although the original intention was to include lesbian identity in a woman's identity, in a relatively short period there was a sudden break. Lesbian identity became a distinct identity considered to be the central position of lesbian jurisprudence. This study presents the peculiar features of lesbian legal theory. It tries to point out the historical and ideological determinants that led lesbianism to enter (legal) feminism. Lesbian separatism also took part in this development. It turned out to be the main reason for the separation of lesbian legal scholars from the feminist jurisprudence. The study presents the core ideological assumptions that constitute the theoretical nature of the lesbian theory of law, which is based on lesbian (legal) experiences.

The Impact of the Covid-19 Pandemic on Children of Colour in Scotland

In this article, we offer methodological and ethical reflections from our research project, “The Impact of the Covid-19 Pandemic on Children of Colour in Scotland: Visions for Change”. The project was conducted from January to July 2021, largely under Covid lockdown conditions. Our reflections take the form of creative writing, spoken-word poetry, images and reflective writing. Particularly, we highlight the ongoing, enmeshed and entangled nature of researcher and researched and how this relates to extractive practices, ethical care and navigations of systemic racism in children’s rights research with children of colour. We do so by positioning ourselves and our personal narratives, at times, as axles within this piece of work using Unarchigal (உணர்ச்சிகள்)—Modalities of Resistance, which is an embodiment resistance approach created within postcolonial radical feminist autoethnography. We suggest that researchers might consider similar reflexivity around these issues in their own children’s rights research. A note for readers: in keeping with the enmeshed nature of researcher and researched, particularly as two researchers are women of colour, we use swearing in one section via spoken-word poetry. Swearing is framed as a coping mechanism and response to narratives witnessed in the project, alongside the navigation of systemic racism and the colonial edifice that children and young people of colour and their families are forced to navigate. There will be usage of Pavi’s mother tongue, Tamizh (Tamil), via phrases and a few sentences alongside translations, capturing these intimate reflections. Keywords: children’s rights; anti-racism; ethics; auto-ethnography.