Märtsin Mariann
Queensland University of Technology, Kelvin Grove Campus, VIC Park Road, Kelvin Grove, QLD, 4059, Australia.
Integr Psychol Behav Sci. 2018 Mar;52(1):116-128. doi: 10.1007/s12124-017-9409-3.
Contemporary semiotic cultural tradition in psychology views human meaning making as unfolding through the negotiation of multiple real and imagined scenarios and storylines. While emphasising this complex and layered nature of meaning making, this research tradition offers little methodological guidance for appreciating and evidencing this multiplicity in data analysis and interpretation. This paper suggests that a methodological approach that combines visual and verbal ways of representing one's personal stories might offer a useful alternative for evidencing the multiple meanings that individuals create about their personal journeys. By presenting two examples of drawn timeline images and corresponding interview extracts, the paper discusses how the chosen methodological approach offered opportunities for participants to 'show and tell' their complex and layered stories, and gave them freedom and agency to shape the research encounter and data production processes. The paper also highlights how the incorporation of visual methods into the methodology enabled the researcher to find alternative ways of interpreting participants' stories. The paper argues for a purposeful integration of visual and verbal methods, where the semiotic tensions and clashes between these modes can reveal novel ways of seeing researchers' and participants' meanings in the making.
当代心理学中的符号文化传统认为，人类意义的构建是通过对多种真实和想象的场景及故事情节的协商来展开的。在强调意义构建的这种复杂且多层次的本质时，这一研究传统在数据分析和解读中，对于理解和证明这种多元性几乎没有提供方法指导。本文认为，一种将视觉和语言方式结合起来呈现个人故事的方法，可能为证明个体对其个人经历所创造的多重意义提供一种有用的替代方式。通过展示两个绘制时间线图像及相应访谈摘录的例子，本文讨论了所选用的方法如何为参与者提供“展示并讲述”其复杂且多层次故事的机会，以及如何给予他们塑造研究过程和数据生成过程的自由和主动权。本文还强调了将视觉方法纳入研究方法中如何使研究者能够找到解读参与者故事的替代方式。本文主张有目的地整合视觉和语言方法，因为这些模式之间的符号张力和冲突能够揭示在意义生成过程中看待研究者和参与者意义的新方式。
