Facet Publishing announces the publication of Visual Research Methods: An Introduction for Library and Information Studies, edited by Shailoo Bedi and Jenaya Webb.

Visual research methods (VRM) comprise a collection of methods that incorporate visual elements such as maps, drawings, photographs, videos, as well as three-dimensional objects into the research process. VRM including photo-elicitation, draw-and-write techniques, and cognitive mapping are being leveraged to great effect to explore information experiences and investigate some of the central questions in the library and information science field; expand theoretical discussions in LIS; and improve library services and spaces.

Visual Research Methods: An Introduction for Library and Information Studies is the first book to focus on visual research methods in LIS, providing a comprehensive primer for students, educators, researchers and practitioners. This book showcases examples of VRM in action and offers insights, inspirations, and experiences of researchers and practitioners working with visual methods. Readers are introduced to visual research methods including a discussion of terminology, and an overview of the literature on VRM in libraries. The methodological framing, including discussion of theory and epistemology, explores both the practical and ethical considerations for researchers embarking on VRM projects.

Alison Hicks, of the Department of Information Studies at University College London, said: ‘The book forms a timely introduction to visual research methods for LIS practitioners and researchers who are looking to extend the ways in which they understand libraries, library patrons and other information-related activities. Providing a useful guide to the theoretical underpinnings of visual research, including vital methodological and ethical considerations, the book is also brimming with practical detail related to the mechanics of working with participatory, non-participatory and arts-based methodologies alike. A vital toolbox for novice and experienced LIS researchers!’

Featuring contributions from international researchers and practitioners based in Australia, Canada the UK and US, the book includes many examples of VRM in action, including drawing techniques, photographic techniques, and mixed methods. The results of visual research methods are discussed, as well as reflections on VRM for research in information studies.

Dr. Shailoo Bedi works at the University of Victoria (UVic) as both Director, Academic Commons and Strategic Assessment with the Libraries as well as Director, Office of Student Academic Success with Learning, Teaching Support & Innovation. She holds a PhD in Education, Curriculum and Instruction, and is an adjunct professor with UVic’s Educational Psychology and Leadership Studies department. Shailoo’s research interests include the construction and issues of identity for racialized minority leaders, as well as student experience with learning spaces, student research creation, and visual research methods. She is passionate about fostering intellectually engaging and inclusive learning environments.

Jenaya Webb is the Public Services and Research Librarian at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education (OISE) Library at the University of Toronto. She earned her MA in Anthropology at the University of Alberta where she examined the power of images as research evidence both to measure landscape change and to generate stories of place in Jasper National Park, AB. Since completing her MLIS at the University of Toronto, she has worked to bring visual methods and approaches to the library context to explore user experience, wayfinding, and meaning-making in library spaces.

Contributors:

Angela Fritz, Head of the University of Notre Dame Archives

Jenna Hartel, Associate Professor at the Faculty of Information, University of Toronto

Deborah Hicks, Assistant Professor, School of Information, San José State University

Chelsea Misquith, Emerging Technologies Librarian, Ruth Lilly Medical Library, Indiana University School of Medicine

Rebecca Noone, artist, researcher and educator, PhD University of Toronto Faculty of Information

Andy Priestner, consultant and trainer in user experience research and design, former librarian at the universities of Oxford and Cambridge

Elizabeth Tait, Professor of Information Management, Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology University

Jess Whyte, Digital Asset Librarian, University of Toronto

Visual Research Methods: An Introduction for Library and Information Studies | October 2020 | 248pp | Paperback: 9781783304561 | £50 | Hardback: 9781783304578 | £100 | Ebook: 9781783304585