Fotohistorias: Participatory Photography as a Methodology to Elicit the Life Experiences of Migrants

Proceedings of the 48th Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences (HICSS-48), pp. 3672-3681 (2015)

10 Pages Posted: 19 Aug 2014 Last revised: 3 Feb 2016

See all articles by Katya Yefimova

Katya Yefimova

University of Washington

Moriah Neils

University of Washington

Bryce Clayton Newell

University of Oregon - School of Journalism and Communication

Ricardo Gomez

University of Washington - The Information School

Date Written: 2014

Abstract

This paper presents the rationale and deployment for a participatory photography approach to elicit the life experiences and worldviews of a community – in our case, undocumented Hispanic migrants at the U.S.-Mexico border. The Fotohistorias participatory technique involves conducting interviews with potential participants, giving them digital cameras and asking them to take photos of their lives, followed by conversations with the participants about their photos and the experience of taking them. While offering a space for reflection, Fotohistorias explores how undocumented migrants at the U.S.-Mexico border express their identities and the reality of their everyday lives through the photos they take and the stories they tell. The project doesn’t just create an avenue for personal stories, it provides a framework for the elicitation and representation of cultural knowledge that might otherwise remain submerged in the narrative of migration from the perspective of the dominant culture.

Keywords: immigration, participatory photography, research methods, Mexico, border, qualitative research, photography

Suggested Citation

Yefimova, Katya and Neils, Moriah and Newell, Bryce Clayton and Gomez, Ricardo, Fotohistorias: Participatory Photography as a Methodology to Elicit the Life Experiences of Migrants (2014). Proceedings of the 48th Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences (HICSS-48), pp. 3672-3681 (2015), Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2482520

Katya Yefimova

University of Washington ( email )

Seattle, WA 98195
United States

Moriah Neils

University of Washington ( email )

Seattle, WA 98195
United States

Bryce Clayton Newell (Contact Author)

University of Oregon - School of Journalism and Communication ( email )

Eugene, OR
United States

Ricardo Gomez

University of Washington - The Information School ( email )

Box 353350
Seattle, WA 98195
United States

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