Participatory visual methodologies in a digital world: A critical awareness of Ubuntucentric approaches in educational research in Malawi

• In Event: Educational Leadership and Outcomes

Proposal

Introduction and Purpose
The continued momentum of digital visual methodologies in social science research (Gubrium & Harper, 2016; Nyariro, 2018), particularly in the co-production of knowledge within international contexts, is a key marker of the influences of technology on research. Feminist scholars have pushed knowledge-making to shift beyond text-based methods by incorporating various forms of visual, digital and arts-based Participatory Action Research (PAR) that address researcher/participant hierarchies, transform reality ‘with’ and not ‘for’ communities (Maguire, 1987), and demonstrates solidarity with women, young people, and marginalized individuals (Wang and Burris, 1997; Gubrium et al., 2016). For our duoethnographic study, we utilized Zoom, a virtual platform that has recently become a common digital research tool, to collaboratively contribute to Afrocentric epistemologies on youth-centered research. This duoethnography (Sawyer and Norris, 2013) examined how researchers working with marginalized youth in Malawian contexts through participatory visual research (PVR) methods engage with digital technologies within the African context. The paper focuses on two case studies that used PVR, both of which utilized digital devices and technologies, to engage in critical dialogue centering on Ubuntucentric (Anonymous, 2022) approaches in educational research. Furthermore, our article situates PVR within digital technologies and raises a critical awareness on the essentiality of culturally relevant approaches when leveraging technology in Afrocentric educational research.

Theoretical Framework
Theoretically, this paper draws from Ubuntu, an Afrocentric onto-epistemological lens that guided our analysis of ethics and PVR on youth-centered research in Malawi. Ubuntu, an ideology, philosophy, and theory of being (Tutu, 1999; Kayange, 2018), encompasses core values such as interdependence, respect, inclusion, and mutually beneficial relationships (Metz, 2014; Kayange, 2018; Anonymous, 2022). Unlike other scholars, we refrain from restricting Ubuntu solely to social interaction and communitarianism. As Kayange (2018) posits, Ubuntu is multi-dimensional and adaptable, allowing for interpretations that incorporate both collective and individual expressions of agency. This perspective broadens the applicability of Ubuntu beyond Global South contexts. In our research, we employed Ubuntu as a framework for PVR to investigate and illuminate diverse perspectives and experiences, particularly in thinking about Afrocentric Indigenous research and technologies.

Modes of Inquiry
This paper utilizes a complex methodological design that brings together duoethnography with participatory visual research (PVR), particularly, photovoice (in study 1), and poetic inquiry and participatory drawing (in study 2). Duoethnography is a collaborative methodology where two or more researchers engage dialogically to examine cultural artifacts and meanings assigned to societal constructs (Sawyer and Norris, 2013). As researchers, we both conducted youth-focused research in Malawi utilizing PVR. We centered on this commonality and engaged in critical dialogue to discuss our two research projects with the goal of examining how to navigate digital technologies in participatory studies through an Afrocentric perspective. Author 1 conducted a photovoice study that examined how pregnant learners and school aged mothers in Mangochi, Malawi, navigate and negotiate schooling post-pregnancy. Author 2 utilized participatory drawing and poetic inquiry to center on the experiences of children and young persons with albinism (CYPWA) in rural and urban contexts in Malawi.

Our duoethnography started with writing reflective memos on our respective research experiences in the field focusing on various themes including data collection and co-analysis of visual data. After memoing, we conducted discussions on Zoom to discuss and de/re-construct our research experiences. The Zoom conversations together with memos were manually coded to identify codes, categories, and themes (Saldana, 2021) leading to new perspectives on PVR and Ubuntucentric approaches. To ensure continued use of digital tools in this project, not only did we use Zoom for our discussions, but we also used digital tools to collaboratively gather data (photovoice) and utilized virtual platforms (Flickr) for the dissemination of data.

Findings
We identified two ways that digital technologies supported our research in Malawi – through 1) mobile devices (android tablets) and 2) communications technology apps (Zoom and WhatsApp). The four areas where these digital tools enhanced research procedures include: (i) recruiting participants; (ii) photovoice for participatory data gathering; (iii) co-analyzing visual data; and (iv) improving participants’ access to research materials and resources.

Our analysis highlighted that study 1 and study 2 profited from using WhatsApp to establish and sustain ongoing connections with community mobilizers (study 1) a research advisory group (RAG) of persons with albinism (study 2). Recruitment was made easier because of communication through WhatsApp which ensured continued connection with the community members and RAG for pertinent information.

In study 1, photovoice data was collected using Android tablets provided to participants since most did not own smartphones for gathering digital data. Both study 1 and study 2 used a co-analysis method to encourage participant ownership and collaboration in analysis of visual data. Similarly, study 2 used Zoom to train select participants in descriptive, in vivo, and value coding of text data. Study 2’s visual findings were disseminated through Flickr - an image hosting online community. Since study 2 involved CYPWA with vision impairments, technology enhanced their accessibility of study materials and resources by increasing font sizes to accommodate participants’ visual impairments.

Conclusion
Regardless of the digital divide in terms of technology access in the Global South, our study argues that a digital approach is applicable for research with marginalized youth. PVR in the Malawian context situated in Ubuntu philosophy is well suited to guide research processes facilitated by technology. Certainly, by taking an Ubuntu-centered approach to PVR, the use of devices and communication applications will favor choices that are appropriate to Afrocentric contexts; hence why we argue for a “culturally and locally relevant …global development approach” in research practice (Nguyen, 2018, p.13). We suggest collaborating with the research community through training and co-analysis so as to maintain relational equity despite the hierarchies that technology may threaten to erect. Understanding cultural knowledge leads to leveraging existing digital capitals to support research processes - such as using WhatsApp which is more commonly used in Africa compared to alternative communication apps such as MS Teams.

Authors

• Elita Chamdimba, University of Malawi

• Pempho Chinkondenji, University of North Dakota