Creative Methods for Human Geographers

Nadia von Benzon is a Lecturer in Human Geography at Lancaster University with particular interest in the social geographies of childhood, youth and motherhood, and in disability and health geography and therapeutic landscapes. She recently edited the volumes Intersectionality and Difference in Childhood and Youth: Global Perspectives with Catherine Wilkinson, published in Routledge’s Spaces of Childhood and Youth series. Nadia is currently writing up recent research in the area of children’s historical geography exploring Victorian reformatory farms and child migration to New Zealand and embarking in online research exploring birth stories.  Mark Holton is a social and cultural geographer at the University of Plymouth. His research interests address the geographies of higher education students and focuses on mobility, belonging and identity. Mark’s publications have covered a range of topics, from mobilities and belonging in 21st Century higher education, to youth transitions, international student mobility and traditional or non-traditional student identities. He recently co-authored a book entitled Everyday Mobile Belonging: Theorising Higher Education Student Mobilities (Bloomsbury Academic). Catherine Wilkinson is a Senior Lecturer in Education at Liverpool John Moores University. Catherine works at the intersection of a range of research approaches, including: mixed methods, ethnographic and participatory research. Catherine’s primary research interests are children’s health experiences; young people and identity; community radio; and innovative methods. Catherine has an established reputation for making cutting-edge contributions, conceptually and methodologically, to research ‘with’ children and young people and uses this research to inspire teaching she delivers. Samantha Wilkinson is a senior lecturer in Childhood, Youth and Education Studies at Manchester Metropolitan University. Samantha has written extensively of a range of themes including children and young people’s geographies and mobilities; young men’s performances of masculinities; home care for people with dementia; animal geographies; and home sharing network Airbnb. Through the research she conducts she uses innovative methodological approaches, including: joint ethnography; diaries; drawing elicitation interviews; mobile phone methods; and (auto)ethnography.

This exciting volume shows how students, and anyone else, can tap into the wealth of new technologies available today along with their own creativity to produce different kinds of research projects that account for a diverse and dynamic world.

• Part I: Preparing to researchChapter 1: Introduction - Nadia von Benzon, Mark Holton, Catherine Wilkinson and Samantha WilkinsonChapter 2: Centring reflexivity, positionality and autoethnographic practices in creative research - John HortonChapter 3: Researching ‘our’ people and researching ‘other’ people - Chris Philo, Louise Boyle and Mark LucheriniChapter 4: Ethical considerations in creative research: Design, delivery and dissemination - Sarah Marie Hall, Gemma Sou and Laura PottingerChapter 5: The practicalities of researching creatively - Tracy HayesPart II: Creative and innovative methodsChapter 6: Photography and photo elicitation as visual methods - Noora Pyyry, Markus Hilander and Sirpa TaniChapter 7: Moodboards and LEGO: Principles and practice in social research - Helena Pimlott-Wilson and Jo Hickman-DunneChapter 8: Creative approaches to mapping - Amy Mulvenna and Chris PerkinsChapter 9: Drawing and graffiti-based approaches - Robin Kearns, Kyle Eggleton, Annie van der Plas and Tara ColemanChapter 10: Research with sound: An audio guide - Geraint Rhys Whittaker and Kimberley PetersChapter 11: Mobile interviews by land, air and sea - Mark Riley, Jennifer Turner, Sam Hayes and Kimberley PetersChapter 12: Psychogeography and urban exploration - Morag Rose and Jane SamuelsChapter 13: Crafting - Cassie Ogden and Katherine HarrisonChapter 14: Creative performance and practice - Sofie NarbedChapter 15: Working with literary texts - Nichola HarmerChapter 16: Poetic methods - Gabriel Eshun and Clare MadgeChapter 17: Research music: listening and composing - Gerraint Rhys Whittaker and Kimberley PetersChapter 18: Working creatively with biographies and life histories - Laura Fenton and Signe RavnChapter 19: Mobile technology, spatial and locative media - Mike DugganChapter 20: Mobile phones, text messaging and social media - Jamie Halliwell and Samantha WilkinsonChapter 21: Creating and reappropriating apps - Mark HoltonChapter 22: Gaming and VR in geographical research - Phil Jones and Tess OsborneChapter 23: Video ethnography - Thomas Aneurin Smith and Ria Ann DunkleyChapter 24: Creative research in and with archives - Matthew F. RechChapter 25: Selecting and analysing publicly-generated online content - Catherine Wilkinson and Nadia von BenzonChapter 26: Curation as method - Francesca Church, Hilary Geoghegan and Rhi SmithPart III: Handling creative dataChapter 27: Analyzing messy data - Nadia von Benzon and Kimberley O’SullivanChapter 28: Showcasing creative methods in your dissertation research - Pearlin Teow and Mark HoltonChapter 29: Creative dissemination - Catherine Wilkinson with Matthew Benwell, Bernie Carter, Lorna Brooks, Andy Davies, Bethan Evans, Sergio A. Silverio and Greg Thomas