NCRM International Visitor Exchange Scheme (IVES)
Using Narrative and Participatory Methods for Social Transformation (2015 - 2016)
Professors Michelle Fine and Jill Bradbury visited the Centre for Narrative Research, at the University of East London, hosted by Prof Corinne Squire (C.Squire@uel.ac.uk) with Prof Molly Andrews and Dr Cigdem Esin, as well as Prof Ann Phoenix at the Thomas Coram Research Unit, IoE UCL, and Prof Liz Stanley, at the Narrative and Auto/biography Studies research Centre at Edinburgh University.
Professor Fine is from the Department of Social and Personality Psychology, The City University of New York, is a leading force in participatory action research and social science advocacy. Professor Jill Bradbury, from the Psychology Department at Witwatersrand University, is the founder of Narrative Enquiry for Social Transformation, a South Africa-based network, with methodological expertise in the context of social justice.
The project focused on some of the key contemporary debates in narrative research, e.g. how ‘participation’ relates to varied narrative research approaches, such as visual, ethnographic, longitudinal, digital, and multi-modal methods.
Bradbury and Fine, along with their UK colleagues, developed and facilitated:
- a two-day methodology colloquium at UEL with presentations on multidisciplinary perspectives on narrative methodologies, participation, and social transformation,
- an NCRM short course and two methods workshops addressing participation issues in narrative research, and in working in contexts of social transformation
The visit also began development of an edited book proposal based around narrative, participation, and social transformation, and seeded a new international network on innovative methods for participatory and socially transformative research.
The Visiting Scholars presented selections from their recent and past work, as well as work done collaboratively with colleagues, at all the NCRM events. Below are sets of slides that give an overview of all the presentations given.
Bradbury: Narrative projects in action
In these presentations, Jill Bradbury describes her work with colleagues in the NEST network, researching with women and young people, across South Africa's historical trajectory, and using a variety of visual as well as verbal methods to witness and understand lines of socioeconomic oppression and transformation, as well as personal suffering and strength. For more detail and examples, please listen to the audio recordings and refer to Bradbury's papers.
Fine: Hyphenating borders
This presentation provides an example of the Participatory Action Research work conducted by Fine and the Public Science Project at CUNY, addressing patterns of dispossession and resistance, particularly among young people, women in prison, and LGBTQI people, in the US, and using a variety of ethnographic and visual as well as verbal methods.
More specific examples can be found in the audio presentations and in research papers.
Bradbury and Fine -04.11.16 – UEL training workshop
Bradbury and Fine 09-11.16 – UEL methodology colloquium
Bradbury and Fine 18.11.16 - Edinburgh University training workshop
Thinking Women’s Worlds, Jill Bradbury, Peace Kiguwa, Feminist Africa, 2017
Just methods in revolting times, Michelle Fine, Qualitative Research in Psychology, 2016
Centre for Narrative Research website, blog, Facebook, Twitter, e-list