Video and Voice
Kaye Haw and Mark Hadfield
RMF Oxford
July 2012
Video and voice
• Video as medium is both a product and a
process.
• Different video methods/methodologies
are both a medium and a mode.
• Voice is essentially multi-modal.
Video modalities
• Modalities are the abstract, non-material
resources of meaning making. Media, on
the other hand, are the specific material
forms in which modes are realized.
• Video methods and artefacts are the
medium, video modalities are the abstract
purposes, including meaning-making, to
which these are put within research.
Traditional uses of video in
research
• Straight data collection.
• Stimulating reflection and dialogue within
the research process.
• A means of giving people a chance to
voice their views.
• Dissemination.
• As an aid to participatory research.
Five Basic Video Modalities
1. Extraction - using video to record a specific
interaction so that it can be studied in more
depth by the researcher.
2. Reflection – video supports participants to reflect
on their actions, understandings and
constructions of specific situations.
3. Projection and provocation – video provokes
participants to critically examine and challenge
norms, traditions, and power structures.
Five Basic Video Modalities
4. Participation- the use of video to engage
participants in a research project in ways
that allows them to shape its focus and
outcomes.
5. Articulation – video used to help
participants voice their opinions and
communicate.
Five Root Metaphors
1. Extraction
Sports replay
2. Reflection
Mirror
3. Projection and
provocation
Conceptual art
4. Participation
Hosting a party
5. Articulation
Pop record
The Crane Project:
‘Seen but not Heard’
• A group of young people expressing their
experiences of being excluded from
school.
• Two modalities participation and
provocation.
• Combining video production and a product
to be shown back into their school.
Provocation in three parts
• Articulation - video provides reflexive
space by being removed from immediacy.
• Representation - de-stabilisation by
creating space for playfulness and irony.
• Reaction - can provide a context with an
obligation to listen, and a persistence
which makes it more difficult to dismiss.
Perceptions and Experiences
of Full Body Searching
• Researching prisoners and prison
officers experiences and perceptions of
fully body searches.
• Two modalities projection and
reflection.
• Video product developed to encourage
involvement in focus groups.
Projection in three parts
• Articulation - disembodied layered voices
forefront the everydayness of the taboo.
• Representation - anonymises and
problematises the taboo by juxtaposition
of views.
• Reaction - can provide a context where
there is a choice in how react and at what
level.
The potential and problems
of video and voice
Potential - ‘Voice' is articulated in a number of forms
and video allows for the use of a variety of visual
means.
Problem - Video consumption, particularly around
aesthetic expectations, outstrips capacity for production.
Potential - ‘Voice' needs to be supported by critical
literacy and video can juxtapose, pose arguments in a
variety of visual and verbal forms.
Problem - How to balance the need to provide support
and training while maintaining a sense of ‘authenticity’.
The potential and problems
of video and voice
Potential - ‘Voice’ needs to be linked to critical reflection and
video production as a collaborative, creative and technical
process provides opportunities for critical dialogue.
Problem - Ownership can be extremely difficult to manage at
certain points in the process.
Potential - 'Voice' is premised on an audience and video can
be used with range, at different times and places. It can
‘stand alone’ or be used in combination of other inputs.
Problem - Peoples’ experience of video is mainly expressive
rather than persuasive. It requires a strong sense of audience
about who is watching, what is persuasive, and who can be
influenced.
References
Haw, K. and Hadfield, M. (2011) Video in Social Science Research;
Functions and Forms: Routledge London and New York
Hadfield, M. and Haw, K. (Forthcoming) ‘Video: Methods,
Modalities and Methodologies’ International Journal of research
and Method in Education
See Also:
www.videoandvoice.co.uk
Email:
Kaye.haw@nottingham.ac.uk
Mark.hadfield@wlv.ac.uk