When we met today we were asked to consider semiotics, and how we might find an image to sum up our ideas about research. I rarely think about the connection of images to words/thoughts/ideas, but the discussion around semiotics allowed me to think about how I relate to words/thoughts/ideas as an artist, as an individual and as a lecturer. In relation to the idea of what image might describe research I thought about how I consider investigating in terms of sniffing things out, or digging for something, so I found this video of Pluto climbing over (and under) a no. of things to follow the tiny effervescent creature in front of him.
We were asked to do this exercise because we were considering the role of analysis and how semiotics might be useful in analysing our primary data. However, I’m more interested in thematic analysis, and although this is the case I did feel an affinity to the image of Pluto using his nose to help him investigate something interesting. Instead of chasing a green creepy crawly, I investigated the question,
‘How Do You Use Citation In Your Practice As An Artist?’
and I was able to gather a lot of information about the different ways that students relate to and use citation within their practice. I used the (torturous) time transcribing the interviews to become familiar with the content gathered, and I’m now able to use this primary data to start my thematic analysis.
As described by Virginia Braun and Victoria Clarke,
‘…..reflexive Thematic Analysis is a process that really prioritises depth of engagement, dwelling with your data, and spending time reflecting on what they mean, and what stories you can tell about them. Good quality Thematic Analysis is definitely not the result of a once over lightly process! You need to give yourself time for reflecting, pondering, and making connections. This means time to put your data down and let your thoughts about it just percolate away in the background. In some ways we can see reflexive Thematic Analysis as part of the slow academia movement – it’s a process that benefits from time and space.‘
What a lovely summation of what thematic analysis is. I’m able to see how a committed and patient approach to reviewing and engaging with my material will allow me to absorb the information that is most relevant and crucial. The open ended nature of where this will take me is exciting, as participating in the SIP and taking part in Action Research cycles has taught me that there is often an element of surprise involved with carrying out an intervention and reviewing primary data when you go through the process thoroughly. As the interviews were carried out over a period two weeks, I did indeed have time to reflect on them over a prolonged amount of time, and I have now created some semantic and latent codes that explore the themes and patterns that are prevalent in all three interviews.
When I first considered how to use thematic analysis to analyse my data it was difficult to understand how to interpret the vast amount of information I had as there were a lot of different things to focus on and consider, and each of the students responded in unique ways to the same questions. However, transcribing the interviews did highlight a lot of similarities in the way students felt about/responded to certain subjects, and one of the benefits of using semantic and latent codes is that I was able to clearly organise the inforamtion so that it was evident where the patterns and themes resided within the content of the interview. When reviewing Braun and Clarke’s writing on qualitative research, Professor Susan Luckman states,’
‘…successful researchers need to be constantly engaged in an active iterative process of writing, reflection, review and revision’
This was applicable to the process of combing through the interview material to draw out the similarities and differences in what students felt about citation, and after doing so I had a clear idea of what was most influencing/affecting their experiences of citation whilst studying.
Another part of analysing my data consisted of considering how to review primary data collected from the visual material. Below is an image outlining the process involved in crating visual material for the interview, and how it was then used to elicit conversation about citation with the students.
The visual communication that was shared with the students prior to the interview (quiz and images of artworks) was used to add to the depth of conversation around citation, and it was incredibly rewarding to see participants engage with the quiz and artworks in an inquisitive, thoughtful and critical manner. I used graphic communication to introduce ideas around citation via a game/images of artworks that may or may or not have been known. I then used graphic elicitation to listen to the students’ response to the material, discussing what they thought about the quiz and their results. and whether they were familiar with the artworks shared beside the quiz. In keeping with Nathan Crilly, Alan F. Blackwell & P. John Clarkson’s review on graphic diagrams, I used the quiz to provide,
‘…a common frame of reference to both parties, complex lines of questioning may be formulated more clearly. Similarly, involved answers or statements from interviewees can often be more easily expressed with reference to the representations.These exchanges might typically involve both parties interacting with the diagram, ‘animating’ it with gestures to convey flows, relationships or dependencies’
I was able to use the conversation of graphic elicitation to inform the analysis of the interview discussion and I have been able to see the connection between how students feel about citation and how this is impacted by their positionality, the role of university and their interest in citation.