Narrative Construction Research Articles

More or less than human? Evaluating the role of AI-as-participant in online qualitative research

ABSTRACT Artificial intelligence (AI) has an increasing presence in scholarship, posing new challenges and opportunities for qualitative researchers. Generative AI, such as Chat-GPT, can supposedly produce humanlike responses, which has implications for online qualitative research, which relies on human participation. In this paper, we contribute to debates about AI as a research participant (‘AI-as-participant’) and the threat of imposter participation in qualitative research. We share our unexpected encounter with AI during our story completion study on mobile dating during the COVID-19 pandemic and discuss how we identified AI responses within our dataset. Central to our analysis was our theoretical grounding of feminist new materialism, which attuned us to the affective and discursive qualities of our participant data. Using our theoretical lens, in tandem with other strategies, we examined the affective forces that signalled stark differences between previous, human-generated data and that of the current study. Analysing the discursive construction of narratives further alerted us to the absence of humans within our data. We conclude that AI cannot sufficiently replicate affect or capture the richness of human experience that is central to qualitative research, and offer recommendations for future researchers to anticipate and check for AI as an unwelcome research participant.

The Construction of Human Rights Narratives in the 2022 World Cup: A Critical Examination of US and Qatari News Coverage

This study examines the tensions in the representations of human rights discourses in the context of the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar. Primarily drawing from postcolonial approaches, it investigates how the construction of human rights narratives were deployed by two leading publications representing US ( The New York Times—NYT) and Qatari ( Gulf Times—GT) viewpoints. In doing so, the study probes the representation and self-portrayal of Qatari cultural, political, and socio-economic repertoire by the NYT and GT, respectively. Results from a qualitative content analysis highlight how the NYT emphasized the exotic Otherness of Qatar and its supposed inability-cum-illegitimacy to host the tournament. Alternatively, GT demonstrated a paradoxical disdain and desire for Western validation. Overall, the narratives in the NYT and GT tell a story of an ambivalent relationship between the West and Qatar situated in the historical context of colonialism and reflective of the ongoing, reciprocal dialogue between publications targeting English speaking audiences.

OPPRESSIVE MECHANICS IN THE NOVEL "TODAY IS FRIDAY AND TOMORROW IS THURSDAY" BY THE NOVELIST SOFIAN RAJAB

The current research selected the novel Today is a Friday and tomorrow is a Thursday by the Tunisian novelist Sofian Rajab as a subject of its study. The selected novel draws attention to the excluded minority in Tunisia, which is a sensitive issue that may face rejection and reprisals from some. The research sought to analyze the content through the narrative construction, and to consider oppression and its mechanisms. This novel is really a multilayer tale since it has two stories that intersect and intervene for the pivotal character, (Hero/Irella), where both characters seek to be (a revelation) that tells of a religious message, there are as well changes and secondary increases in both, for instance, Irela al-Qamrani could not complete her message, which caused her to be repudiated by the group that sheltered her, so Irilla Al-Malih took it upon herself to preach her ambitions of missionary purposes. By this behavior, she was able to achieve her desires through persuading Moses to implement a number of orders and adapt it to the new situation, It was like Moses's time reported by his message, therefore she was able to change and adapt. This multi-layer narrative that is composed of two paths each specified to one of the two characters, (Irela alQamrani and Irela al-Maleh), that are both located inside the narrative tale, (the self of action/Irela al-Qamrani) and (the self of reverse/ Irela al-Maleh), and were made to be separated. The first appears in the middle of the novel, the second dominates all over the narrative until the end, they meet and overlay at the moment of the travels, where they were given the space for confrontation, that spread between reciprocity or conflict, also to regard the relationships of the human structure towards (the conflict of masculinity and femininity, the class conflict, the ...). This text goes beyond the process of defending that oppressed, suppressed and rebuked group, becoming a record that effectively addresses religious dialogue and peaceful coexistence among communities of religious faith and minorities of specific sect, and how it transcends the age-old conflict between religions and sects, and an attempt to demonstrate that all religions are divine and serve humanity. This paper discusses two important themes across two pillars of research: persecution from the other, which is different in its religion, and social support between the two as a reaction to persecution. We introduce a descriptive analytical approach so that we can investigate the manifestations and mechanisms of oppression and support in the selective narrative text and pursue it as we consider it under the microscope of drilling and interpretation.

Tales of Migration in Medieval Hungary

Abstract Medieval Hungary has been called a “guestland” because of the multiplicity of immigrant peoples living in the realm. Yet the real experiences of immigrants and narrative constructions about immigration were not always in sync. This article explores medieval tales of different types of migration into the Kingdom of Hungary: first, the mythic migration of the entire people (gens) from a supposed original homeland to a new territory; second, the family histories of noble immigrants; and finally representations of mass immigration into the Christian kingdom. To understand how medieval authors constructed such tales, we need to identify the models they used and the purposes such stories served. Biblical and literary sources inspired the story of “the Hungarians,” while noble families sought to increase their prestige by identifying early immigrant ancestors. In neither case can these medieval narratives be used as historical sources without fully engaging with their genesis. The analysis of explicit medieval reflections on the arrival of various groups into the Kingdom of Hungary also reveals how immigration could be seen in both positive and negative ways. Resting on these medieval foundations, tales of migration have persisted into the present, but they have also gained a sharper distinction: old migration is valorized, while new migration is demonized and instrumentalized in a brutally exclusionary way.

Assisting refugee survivors of torture and trauma: An existential perspective.

Consistent exposure to refugee narratives of trauma and torture can profoundly impact trauma therapists. This secondary analysis reanalyzed data from a narrative inquiry investigating the lived experiences of refugee trauma therapists. We aimed to explore emergent concerns through an existential lens to enrich understanding and provide additional insights into the lived experiences of these individuals. Participants in this purposive sample (N = 19) were therapists who had provided interventions to refugees for 2-34 years. Narrative construction, theory-guided data analysis, and memo writing were used to reanalyze data generated by semistructured interviews augmented by photo elicitation. The findings indicate that being forced to reevaluate familiar beliefs consequent to one's professional roles induced intense existential moments, described as "a dark night of the soul," "the paradox of life and death," "uncanny feelings of not being at home," and "a falling." Acknowledging the complexities of the field, an existential framework to assist refugee trauma therapists in metabolizing and living with the professional challenges they encounter instead of focusing on alleviating decontextualized symptoms of distress is recommended. Research to inform requirements of the space to enable refugee trauma therapists to share their concerns and facilitate transitions toward more authentic, nonevasive sense of "being-in-the-world" is suggested.

Cared for masculinities in nursing homes - A material perspective on the intersectionality of institutional, spacial, gendered and corporal materiality

This paper takes the co-construction of age and gender over the course of a life as a starting point and expands this perspective by looking at the intersectional interplay of institutional, spatial, and bodily materiality in the setting of a nursing home. Nursing homes are often perceived as a female space, both socially and physically. Moreover, they are institutional spaces that are primarily oriented towards the deficits of aging and bodies in need of care so that age and aging are reproduced in a narrative of decline, and gender hardly has space to be constructed. This interweaving of institutional spaces, bodies in need of care, and gender poses the question: How are age and gender produced through the space(s) of the nursing home and its materiality, and vice versa? On this basis, the influence on the construction of masculinities in the context of materialism is discussed.This paper draws on two case studies, Walter Probst (age 93) and Günther Schiffke (age 78), based on biographical interviews, to focus on the perspective of very old men in need of care and work out the interplay between the material nature of the institutional space and the body in need of care. It will be shown how closely the performance of age, gender, and masculinities is determined by spatial materiality in the nursing home and the increasing dependence of bodies in need of care, as well as how these bodies produce the spaces in turn. On the basis of the case studies, three aspects of materiality of care home spaces are highlighted. The first aspect of this materiality shows how the body can be increasingly perceived and treated as a material object. The second aspect is defined by the body situated in space, and its relationship to objects and aids. As a third aspect, the possibilities of interacting in communal and private spaces of the nursing home are explored. The article thus contributes to linking the (re-) construction of biographic narratives more strongly to spatial materiality and to embedding the construction and performance of age and gender in spatial and institutional structures, thus demonstrating that spaces and environments shape age, gender, and masculinities in a reciprocal way.

Perso-Sanskrit Narratives of the Mughal’s Tasḵẖīr-i-kashmir: Phased Opening, Ecology and Literary Strategies

This study explores the Mughal conquest of Kashmir (tasḵẖīr-i-kashmīr) through the region’s phased openings rather than a singular watershed event signalling either a climactic loss of independence or ushering in a golden age. Before 1585–89, there were two decades of patronage, diplomacy, and a steady breaching of the valley’s defences. When Mughal dominion was established, sections of the local aristocracy figured prominently as part of the new dispensation of power, while others continued to offer resistance. An analysis of imperial and local Perso-Sanskrit narratives of the conquest yields insight into how Kashmir was incorporated into the Mughal empire. This micro-historical process is the most valorised of historical transitions within the early Mughal literary discourse, it was highly represented as moment of glory and grand vehicle for rhetoric of diplomatic propaganda. This study largely demonstrates pre-modern power elites’ graded political loyalties, multi-laterality of socio-historical and ecological processes that facilitated the Mughal kingdom-seizing in Kashmir. Simultaneously moving beyond the traditional binary of ‘conquest’ vs ‘resistance’ conceptualisation and political abuse of the local narratives, it navigates the analytical efficacy and social logic of five primary narrative constructions of the Conquest produced by Mughal political elites and regional counter-elites in the terminal decade of sixteenth and early decades of the seventeenth century, namely, Akbarnāmā, Insha’ Abū’l Faẓl, Śukha-rājataraṅgiṇī, Bāhāristān-i-Sháhi and Taʼrīḵẖ-i-Kashmir.

Monitoramento das eleições brasileiras de 2022: affordances das plataformas YouTube, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter e Facebook e os usos em campanhas digitais

In this paper, we discuss the results of monitoring the 2022 Brazilian elections on YouTube, Instagram, Tik Tok, Twitter/X and Facebook platforms based on the affordances present in each of them. Based on the bibliographic review, we propose a typology of affordances, classifying them according to their application in political campaigns and information flows. Next, we present the methodological procedures for the collection carried out, observing the affordances visible in the algorithmic architecture of the platforms. By analyzing the data, we identify and discuss the affordances on each platform and the ways in which they link with political content. We conclude by pointing out how the specific strategies are configured for each environment, in addition to highlighting the construction of a broader narrative, woven by a wider range of actors, in which the platforms participate in different ways in its composition.

Traveling without money: deserving ‘drifters' or panhandling 2.0?

ABSTRACT The controversial phenomenon of travelling without money, known as ‘beg-packing’, challenges conventional notions of travel. Our study explores the evolving landscape of beg-packing, including its digital manifestation as ‘e-beg-packing’. We explore the connection between drifters and beg-packers, emphasizing strategies like selling photos, staying with locals, and eliciting sympathy. To do so, we delve into how beg-packers construct narratives on crowdfunding platforms like GoFundMe and the public perception of the practice on Instagram. The study indicates that beg-packers face stigma akin to drifters, with comments favouring working and saving for travel, raising questions about deservingness and privilege. Gratitude plays a role in donor perception, with an expectation of continuous updates fostering social media relationships. However, the potential for exploitation and vulnerability in e-beg-packing requires further exploration, especially concerning the limits of reciprocity and boundary-setting. In conclusion, this study embraces a multifaceted approach to dissect beg-packing, revealing its diverse nature and offering new insights into the relationship between reciprocity and travel. We present insights into trends, motivations, financial needs, and public sentiment, shedding light on the complexities of this phenomenon. By understanding the complexities of this practice, we aim to foster a more grounded and effective response to this evolving travel phenomenon.

Sites of multiplicity: anarchiving, feminism, and performance

ABSTRACT Jean Spencer (1942–1998) was an artist working in the late constructivist period in the UK, making painting and relief works characterised by geometric precision, sequential change, and, later, detailed colour theory. She was also my great aunt: her death when I was five years old meant that I grew up surrounded by her artwork, by snatches of memory, but without Jean herself. This article maps the methodology of ‘anarchiving’ used in my practice research to encounter Jean and her archives, to uncover her artistic practice and feminist politics, and transmit these archival insights forward through performance. Underpinned by feminist new materialist notions of assemblage, temporality, and agential realism, I propose that engaging with archives through movement and speculation allows a multiplicity of locally enacted meanings to emerge, and for individual truths to be found through embodied engagement with archival materials. An anarchiving methodology, then, allows for the construction of new narratives from archival material, for accessing women’s histories in new ways, and for uncovering lost legacies of creative practice. In this sense, performance can be a means to feminist solidarity, where archival insights are fed forward, familiar temporalities are disrupted, and a multiplicity of meanings emerge from its traces.

Jan Karski’s Representations – Representing Jan Karski: From Poland’s Secret Messenger to Holocaust Witness

ABSTRACT This article analyses the wide range of representations of the actions undertaken by Jan Karski. Karski was a courier for the wartime Polish government-in-exile, engaged to report on the situation in Poland, to Polish politicians in France in 1940, as well as to government leaders in London and Washington in 1942/3. Karski’s book about his diplomatic endeavors was published as early as 1944 (Story of a Secret State), but thereafter he maintained a long silence, one that was only broken in 1978 when he was interviewed for Claude Lanzmann’s Shoah (1985). From the 1980s onwards, Karski repeatedly testified to his wartime activities and experiences; he received numerous awards for his early warnings about the fate of the Polish Jews under the Nazis and became a celebrity among the ‘righteous’. Following his death in 2000, Karski’s mission has been reconsidered and subjected to wide-ranging interpretation. We take an arts and humanities approach to analyzing how far these shifting perspectives on Karski’s wartime undertakings respond to the different emphases in Karski’s postwar memoirs and his interviews in different media. The article therefore poses questions about narrative and aesthetic construction to compare Karski’s testimonies with the ways they have been represented in documentary film and fiction. We conclude that the idea of Karski’s mission has been adopted to diametrically opposed and polemical ends and attempt an adjudication between these often-incompatible representations.

Erecting the submerged tree trunk

ABSTRACT This article discusses the efforts of constructing the narrative of continuity that connects the Indonesian province of Riau Islands with the former Malay kingdoms, Riau-Lingga-Johor-Pahang, and supports the claims to be the heir of the originator of Malay civilisation. Focusing on the case of the revived mak yong theatre, I look at the roles of speeches, writings, stage performances, historic sites, and museum displays that serve as the very fabric of the narrative construction called traditionalisation. I argue that traditionalisation aims to authenticate mak yong as an iconic and official representation of Malay inheritance, with impact on its presentation today, justifying the claim and locating the Riau Islands in a prestigious position in the cultural configurations in Indonesia and the Malay world.

Narrative Realism in Ukrainian TV News Layout: Editorial Strategies and Viewer Engagement (2004-2020)

The main aim of this study was to investigate the strategic employment of narrative methods and presentational techniques in Ukrainian television news from 2004 to 2020. This study sought to evaluate their impact on the construction of narratives and public discourse. A mixed-methods approach was employed to analyze 531 news releases from three Ukrainian television channels: “1+1”, “Ukraina”, and “Inter”. The application of statistical methods for data processing was employed for the quantitative analysis, while the qualitative analysis comprised a rhetorical investigation of narratives and framing techniques. This approach enabled a comprehensive examination of how news narratives are structured, presented, and perceived, offering insights into the underlying mechanisms of news layouts and editorial strategies. The study’s findings demonstrated a significant reliance on conflict framing, economic consequence framing, and character-driven narratives to increase viewer engagement and comprehension. Hierarchical structuring and modular design were identified as key presentation methods that reflect adaptability to real-time broadcasting requirements and audience preferences. This investigation concludes that narrative strategies and presentation techniques play a crucial role in shaping public perception, thereby affecting the construction of media narratives and societal views. The study’s findings are significant for media practitioners and policymakers, as they emphasize the importance of narrative realism and ethical considerations in news production. The research results also offer a foundation for future studies on the effects of digital transformation on news narrative structures.

Gothic imagination: mapping the cultural memory and remembrance of the epidemic plague

Narratives about the epidemic plague create a sense of mystery and fear associated with the cultural landscape. Incorporating the backdrop of the plague, the first part of this research explores the portrayal of the epidemic as the setting against which a Priest engages in a ritualistic transgression to safeguard his soul. The second part focuses on the enigmatic events that unfold when the tomb of the priest inside the church is disturbed, giving rise to a series of mysterious occurrences. By employing Linda Hutcheon's historiographic metafiction, the study focuses on remembering the epidemic plague in the novel A Shadow on the Wall by Jonathan Aycliffe. It examines the interplay between memory and the construction of narrative. This research article delves into the fascinating realm of memory and its profound influence on human consciousness through the novel. It explores how memory can create an imaginary experience, allowing the protagonist to briefly revisit a past that haunts his present and might alter his future. Moreover, the article delves into the intricate operations of cultural collective memory associated with the church, shedding light on its ability to articulate the complex relationship between the past, present, and future within the human psyche. By investigating these themes, this research contributes to a deeper understanding of the intricate workings of memory and its role in shaping human consciousness

The Aletheia and Turiya Beyond Narrative Constructs: A Nietzschean Discussion

The Aletheia and Turiya Beyond Narrative Constructs: A Nietzschean Discussion

Eu, nós… ELAS quilombolas: documentário sobre vacinação contra COVID-19 em quilombolas enquanto dispositivo antirracista

Abstract We quilombola women, a documentary that considers the quilombola identity and the right to COVID-19 vaccination, evokes notions of priority, rights, privileges and identity during the process of matching the number of vaccine doses available to citizens’ arms. Omission by a Brazilian federal government grounded in necro-politics and denial, plus a lack of information, led quilombo communities to take it on themselves to draw up lists of those eligible for vaccination. The production team’s aim was to use images as political language in the health field, so as to document and give visibility to these issues as one illustration of combating social and health inequalities and inequities rooted in structural racism. By combining science and art and interlacing references from the sociology of images, visual anthropology, plus the work and aesthetic devices of Eduardo Coutinho, the audiovisual production method brought out three key categories: I, We, and They, quilombola women. This article explores these categories underpinning construction of the documentary narrative, which drew on the potential of images, which in turn served as anti-racist, political and educational devices, both in the course of the production process and during the public screenings.

We quilombola women: a documentary about COVID-19 vaccination among quilombolas as an anti-racist device.

We quilombola women, a documentary that considers the quilombola identity and the right to COVID-19 vaccination, evokes notions of priority, rights, privileges and identity during the process of matching the number of vaccine doses available to citizens' arms. Omission by a Brazilian federal government grounded in necro-politics and denial, plus a lack of information, led quilombo communities to take it on themselves to draw up lists of those eligible for vaccination. The production team's aim was to use images as political language in the health field, so as to document and give visibility to these issues as one illustration of combating social and health inequalities and inequities rooted in structural racism. By combining science and art and interlacing references from the sociology of images, visual anthropology, plus the work and aesthetic devices of Eduardo Coutinho, the audiovisual production method brought out three key categories: I, We, and They, quilombola women. This article explores these categories underpinning construction of the documentary narrative, which drew on the potential of images, which in turn served as anti-racist, political and educational devices, both in the course of the production process and during the public screenings.

The Role of Scientific Institutions of the Orenburg Region in the Imperial Policy of Acculturation in the Second Half of the 19th — Early 20th Century

The article deals with the actual problem of the influence of scientific institutions of the Orenburg Region on the imperial policy of acculturation of nomadic and semi-nomadic peoples of the Russian Empire in the second half of the 19th — early 20th century. The author states that, despite the turn made by modern researchers from the so-called “colonial approach” to a more flexible concept of “acculturation”, a number of problems still remain little studied. In particular, we are talking about the role of local scientific and educational institutions in the implementation of the imperial policy of acculturation. In the border Orenburg Region in the second half of the 19th — early 20th century, three scientific institutions functioned: the Orenburg Provincial Statistical Committee, the Orenburg Department of the Imperial Russian Geographical Society and the Orenburg Scientific Archival Commission. Created largely on the initiative of the provincial authorities, these institutions were supposed to carry out not only a comprehensive study of the Orenburg Region, but also nomadic peoples living in Central Asia, on the one hand to answer the question of the possibility of spreading the influence of Russian civilization and culture, and on the other to develop specific mechanisms of acculturation policy. Based on the analysis of published and unpublished sources, the author identifies the following mechanisms of acculturation used by scientific institutions of the Orenburg Region: ethnographic and statistical research, museification and construction of the historical narrative of nomadic and semi-nomadic peoples. The author believes that Orenburg researchers, having collected a significant array of sources on the history, ethnography, culture and life of nomadic and semi-nomadic peoples, played an important role in preserving their ethnoidentity.

La función social de los museos como campo de acción para el diseño. Una revisión de literatura de enfoques participativos para el acercamiento a comunidades

This article presents a systematic literature review to identify trends towards opening up the social function of museums to participatory processes, as a framework of opportunity for design. We structure the literature review in three stages: identifying and analysing the most relevant literature, establishing the main approaches of participation mediated by design in museography processes from a social perspective, and present trends for future research. As a result, we present a characterization of the relationship between design and museum in social processes and an approach to the concepts of community and participation. Likewise, we analyse the trends that visibilise the potential of design to promote collaboration and dialogue processes between institutional and community voices due to identity processes. Finally, we identify the contribution that design has made through reflection, representation and construction of new narratives that link cultural heritage with the lived reality of the communities from processes based on plurality, collective construction, and power relations.

Women’s Devotion to the Prophet as Reflected in the Literary Construction of a Non-Canonical Mawlid Narrative: Abū al-Ḥasan al-Bakrī’s Kitāb al-anwār

The Kitāb al-anwār attributed to Abū al-Ḥasan al-Bakrī continues to be, after many centuries, a mysterious narrative, and his alleged author even more enigmatic. The work narrates the creation and transmission of the prophetic light following the tropes of popular romance. In this article we will focus on one of its most peculiar features, that is, the detailed and emotional representation of female characters and the woman’s realm. We will argue that female empowerment – a typical feature of folklore literature – could be the result of the storyteller’s will to appeal to female audience that attended the celebrations for the birth of the Prophet in medieval times. To support our argument we will compare different versions of the work, manuscripts and printed, to demonstrate how the literary depiction of women-related themes is more elaborated in the latest versions of the work, produced when mawlid festivals were a well-established practice. Popular Mawlid Narrative, Abū al-Ḥasan al-Bakrī, Storyteller, Women, Mawlid ceremonies, Folklore, Sīra Shaʿbiyya