Getting the picture of home lighting: Adding participant photography to the interview
(2016) IAPS 24 (International Association People-Environment Studies p.41-42- Abstract
- This paper draws attention to the potential benefits of using photographs in combination with interviews, that is to say photo elicitation. As defined by Harper (2002), photo elicitation is “based on the simple idea of inserting a photograph into a research interview” (p. 13). The photographs can be taken by the researcher or the participant to evoke comments. If participants are asked to produce the photos themselves, the images will hopefully encourage participants to talk and reflect. The objective of this paper is to report on the benefits and the disadvantages of the method deployed in the collaborative interview study, My home lighting.
Daylight plays a vital role for human wellbeing; for example, daylight affects visibility... (More) - This paper draws attention to the potential benefits of using photographs in combination with interviews, that is to say photo elicitation. As defined by Harper (2002), photo elicitation is “based on the simple idea of inserting a photograph into a research interview” (p. 13). The photographs can be taken by the researcher or the participant to evoke comments. If participants are asked to produce the photos themselves, the images will hopefully encourage participants to talk and reflect. The objective of this paper is to report on the benefits and the disadvantages of the method deployed in the collaborative interview study, My home lighting.
Daylight plays a vital role for human wellbeing; for example, daylight affects visibility and regulates the biological rhythm. In the Northern Hemisphere, where daylight is limited from October to March, most people spend their days indoors. Fortunately, to some extent, artificial light can make up for lack of natural light indoors. In addition, new lighting technology has the potential to improve physical and mental wellbeing. A deeper understanding of residents’ current lighting preferences and practices was therefore a good starting point. Since depth and detail was the purpose of the investigation, a qualitative interview study was considered to be the most appropriate strategy. Adding photos to the interviews was assumed to help people talk about everyday objects and habits, such as lamps and the use of light.
The sample consisted of six female and six male residents, 26–76 years. Prior to the interviews conducted at home, participants were asked to take a series of photographs of their indoor lighting with a total limit of 25 photos. All photographs were assembled by the interviewer in an album. The subsequent interview occasion included a walk-through of the apartment for a quick observer-based environmental assessment (OBEA) and an interview which was recorded with a digital audio recorder. The interview was structured with open-ended questions and the photo album was used as an interview guide. When interviewed, the participants were asked to consider each photo at a time and talk about the lamp in the photo—why it had been chosen and how it was used. The data produced—images, OBEA, recorded interviews and notes after the interview—is currently being analysed. The analysis focuses on the comments the photos evoked and the meaning of the lamps represented by the images.
According to a number of studies, making photographs as part of the research method has several benefits, such as the possibility to obtain more information and a different kind of information (Harper, 2002). Photos can be especially effective when they involve something that is visual (Rose, 2007). This could explain why the photos of the residents’ lamps in the current study seemed to work so well. Drawing upon the experience of My home lighting and literature about previous photo interviews, the impression is that photo elicitation, if appropriate to the research question and the objects or practices investigated, can provide more information, a less restrained interview situation and a valuable aid for memory.
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https://lup.lub.lu.se/record/0187b0e8-1657-43d8-b7f6-9c2e3367acc8
- author
- Gerhardsson, Kiran Maini LU
- organization
- publishing date
- 2016-06-27
- type
- Contribution to conference
- publication status
- published
- subject
- keywords
- domestic lighting preferences, photo elicitation, qualitative method, photo elicitation, domestic home lighting, qualitative method
- pages
- 1 pages
- conference name
- IAPS 24 (International Association People-Environment Studies
- conference location
- Lund, Sweden
- conference dates
- 2016-06-27
- project
- Rise and Shine! Health benefits as drivers for energy efficient light in Swedish homes
- language
- English
- LU publication?
- yes
- id
- 0187b0e8-1657-43d8-b7f6-9c2e3367acc8
- date added to LUP
- 2017-01-30 15:15:33
- date last changed
- 2023-11-14 14:37:17
@misc{0187b0e8-1657-43d8-b7f6-9c2e3367acc8,
abstract = {{This paper draws attention to the potential benefits of using photographs in combination with interviews, that is to say photo elicitation. As defined by Harper (2002), photo elicitation is “based on the simple idea of inserting a photograph into a research interview” (p. 13). The photographs can be taken by the researcher or the participant to evoke comments. If participants are asked to produce the photos themselves, the images will hopefully encourage participants to talk and reflect. The objective of this paper is to report on the benefits and the disadvantages of the method deployed in the collaborative interview study, My home lighting. <br/> Daylight plays a vital role for human wellbeing; for example, daylight affects visibility and regulates the biological rhythm. In the Northern Hemisphere, where daylight is limited from October to March, most people spend their days indoors. Fortunately, to some extent, artificial light can make up for lack of natural light indoors. In addition, new lighting technology has the potential to improve physical and mental wellbeing. A deeper understanding of residents’ current lighting preferences and practices was therefore a good starting point. Since depth and detail was the purpose of the investigation, a qualitative interview study was considered to be the most appropriate strategy. Adding photos to the interviews was assumed to help people talk about everyday objects and habits, such as lamps and the use of light. <br/> The sample consisted of six female and six male residents, 26–76 years. Prior to the interviews conducted at home, participants were asked to take a series of photographs of their indoor lighting with a total limit of 25 photos. All photographs were assembled by the interviewer in an album. The subsequent interview occasion included a walk-through of the apartment for a quick observer-based environmental assessment (OBEA) and an interview which was recorded with a digital audio recorder. The interview was structured with open-ended questions and the photo album was used as an interview guide. When interviewed, the participants were asked to consider each photo at a time and talk about the lamp in the photo—why it had been chosen and how it was used. The data produced—images, OBEA, recorded interviews and notes after the interview—is currently being analysed. The analysis focuses on the comments the photos evoked and the meaning of the lamps represented by the images. <br/> According to a number of studies, making photographs as part of the research method has several benefits, such as the possibility to obtain more information and a different kind of information (Harper, 2002). Photos can be especially effective when they involve something that is visual (Rose, 2007). This could explain why the photos of the residents’ lamps in the current study seemed to work so well. Drawing upon the experience of My home lighting and literature about previous photo interviews, the impression is that photo elicitation, if appropriate to the research question and the objects or practices investigated, can provide more information, a less restrained interview situation and a valuable aid for memory.<br/>}},
author = {{Gerhardsson, Kiran Maini}},
keywords = {{domestic lighting preferences; photo elicitation; qualitative method; photo elicitation; domestic home lighting; qualitative method}},
language = {{eng}},
month = {{06}},
pages = {{41--42}},
title = {{Getting the picture of home lighting: Adding participant photography to the interview}},
year = {{2016}},
}