Creative Research Methods in Practice
Series Editor: Helen Kara, We Research It Ltd.
This dynamic new series presents short practical books by and for researchers around the world on how to use creative and innovative research methods from apps to zines. It is the first series to provide guidance on using creative research methods across all disciplines.
Interest in creative research methods has grown in recent decades due to increasing dissatisfaction with the limits of conventional methods and use of multi-modal research. This interest accelerated during the COVID-19 pandemic which highlighted the urgent need for innovative methods that are transformational and aim to achieve change. Another influence is the decolonial turn which sees the potential for creative methods to help challenge power dynamics inherent in Western knowledge production.
The series is edited by the world-renowned Helen Kara, author of Creative Research Methods: A Practical Guide and many other books. Textbooks in the series provide students and researchers at all levels with all the information needed to understand and use specific methods.
The list of potential topics includes (but is not limited to):
- animation
- vignettes
- working creatively with theory
- creative analytic methods such as multi-modal analysis
- mapping
- creating infographics
- using diagrams in research
- embodied methods
- mobile methods
- textile arts in research
- online ethnography
- compressed ethnography
- sensory methods
- performative methods
- innovative combinations such as queer statistics or feminist soundscapes
- asset-based or strengths-based research
- creative and innovative work with fieldnotes
- installations
- creative and innovative presentation of research findings
- cultural probes
The series is also open to more conceptual and theoretical topics, such as the role of imagination, empathy, or emotion in research, as long as each book has a practical emphasis.
If you are thinking of proposing a book and would like an informal chat, please contact Helen Kara. Download the proposal guidelines.
On the Transforming Society blog:
How to bring creativity to your research
Encountering the World with I-docs
Interactive Documentary as a Research Method
This book examines the values of interactive documentary as a social research method, exploring their exciting potential for illuminating and communicating pressing social issues. Providing a template for planning an i-doc, the novel book shows how the planning process alone can open new ways of understanding social research topics.
Doing Phenomenography
A Practical Guide
This practical handbook is aimed at students who are new to phenomenograpy - a popular research method for its versatility in understanding people’s perceptions. Enabling readers to decide on the appropriateness of the phenomenographic approach for their own research project, it equips them with the necessary tools to embark on their journey.
Fiction and Research
A Guide to Connecting Stories and Inquiry
Discover the captivating power of fiction in research through this engaging book. With practical insights, this is essential primer will help students embark on their own research-based fiction projects in no time.
Photovoice Reimagined
Over the past decades ‘photovoice’ has emerged as a participatory and creative research method where participants capture and discuss their reality through photographs. This unprecedented ‘how-to’ book takes novice and experienced researchers through the practicalities and ethics of applying this approach.