Life Histories Biographical Research Methods Jessica Breen Ph

Life Histories & Biographical Research Methods Jessica Breen, Ph. D Candidate School of Social Work and Social Policy, Trinity College Dublin jdbreen@tcd. ie Seminar on Dementia, Disability & Reminiscence Trinity College Dublin, NIID Seminar Room 16 January 2009

Overview of Presentation 1) An introduction Biographical Research Methods and Life Histories 2) Reasons for use 3) How to conduct empirical research* 4) Applications/ Benefits for Practice

What are Biographical Research Methods? A specific type of qualitative research “which uses stories of individuals and other ‘personal materials’ to understand the individual life within its social context” (Roberts 2002: 3).

The Purpose of Biographical Research “The intent of biographical research in its various guises is to collect and interpret the lives of others as part of human understanding” (Roberts 2002: 15) Emphasises the importance of subjective experience within historical & social contexts Illuminates processes by which individuals negotiate both their identities and their interpretation/engagement with norms Facilitates the researcher in “captur[ing], prob[ing], and render[ing] understandable problematic experience”. For this “[i]t is necessary to get as close to actual experience as possible”. (Denzin 1989: 69) Recognises that “what we capture [in stories] is a mediation between the personal voice and wider cultural imperatives” (Goodson & Sikes 2001)

Approaches to Biographical Research Two Broad Approaches (Denzin 1989): 1) Traditional Life Histories (Chicago School) Objective Natural History Approach Accept norms related to validity, reliability, truth, falsity and generalisability 2) Interpretive Objective Hermeneutics (Schutze 1983; Oevermann 1979) Rejects traditional norms of evaluation Regards biographical materials from within a literary, fictional framework

Life History Research • Research is participant-orientated. • Research comes from an interpretive standpoint. • Roots in early Sociology: • Thomas and Znaniecki’s The Polish Peasant (1918) • Shaw’s The Natural History of a Delinquent Career (1931). • More recent interest in the structure and purpose of stories and narrative forms of talk

What is the difference between Life Stories & Life Histories? Life Histories Life Stories • Story we choose to tell about our lives • Deeply personal • Co-created between researcher & participant • Embeds the life story w/in a wider social & historical context • Interpretation & presentation by a researcher Source: Roberts 2002: 3

Research Biographical Interpretive Method Discourse Analysis Life History Autobiographies Anthologies Top Down Bottom Up Case notes Patient histories Life story books Reminiscence Practice Source: Bornat and Walmsley (2008: 5)

Life History Research Recognises that the different parts of people’s lives are interconnected Encompasses a range of strategies for collecting data Interviews** Group Work Journals, diaries, other autobiographical writings Documents Can be combined with other research methods

Life History Research is also… Laborious Time-consuming Complicated (but so is life )

Preparation for the Interview 1) 2) 3) 4) 5) Access negotiation Informed Consent (Written, verbal) Interview Schedule Supplementary Aids (i. e. photographs) Mechanism for feedback a. Copy of transcript b. Report c. Life Story Book 6) Be emotionally prepared to actively listen

Parts of the Interview Guide Based around your area of research but generally include topics such as: v. INITIAL QUESTION v. EARLY LIFE HISTORY & FAMILY OF ORIGIN v. EDUCATION v. COMMUNITY AND CLASS v. EMPLOYMENT v. LEISURE/COURTING v. MARRIAGE AND CHILDREN v. LATER LIFE v. TURNING POINTS

The SQUIN: Single Question Aimed at Inducing Narrative “As you know, I’m interested in………. [topic area] In a minute I’m going to ask you to please tell me your life story, All the experiences and the events which were important for you, up to now, Start wherever you like Please take the time you need I’ll listen first, I won’t interrupt I’ll just take some notes in case I have any further questions for after you’ve finished telling me about it all OK. So can you please tell me your life story, All the events and experiences that were important for you, personally, up to now. Start wherever you like.

The Initial Life Story Interview Read/ ask your SQUIN Non-verbal facilitation (facial expressions, encouraging sounds) but no direction or interruption (even to questions such as “Where do you want me to start? ”) Unspecified narrative questions if necessary/ specifically asked by participant “Do you remember a particular time. . . ? ” Note taking: Note key phrases to cue them back to parts of their life story for further probing

Ending the Session Once participants have told their story they will usually signal this with a coda something along the lines of “Yeah, that’s basically it” or “Well, that’s my story”. Silence is NOT the same as an ending; resist the urge to interrupt the silence

Early Life History & Family of Origin Can you tell me what it was like for you to grow up in ________? What did you do for fun or entertainment? What was it like growing up in your household? What was your home life like? What about your relationships with any brothers and sisters? How would you describe your parents? What did your father do for work? And your mother? How would you describe your mother’s personality and emotional qualities? How would you describe your father’s? Did you have any dreams or ambitions as a child? As an adolescent? What were your hopes and dreams as you entered adulthood When did you realize you had become an adult?

Education What do you remember most about school? What is your best memory? What was your parents’ attitude towards formal education? Are you attending any courses or classes now?

Turning Points & The Future When you look back on your life, are there any moments which you would identify as turning points? What are they? When you think about the future what are you thoughts and feelings? §What are your hopes? §How might these be achieved? §What are some of your fears or worries?

Techniques for Probing • You said “______”, do you remember anything more about… üthat period of time? üparticular incident? üevent? üthat experience? üSpecific examples? üRecreation of the scene through sight, smell, audio… üNegative instances

What kind of Data can be gathered from interviews? §“Objective” data on life events §Such data can be verified through other sources such as academic transcripts, court reports, medical files, public records such as newspapers, etc. §Accounts of the “Subjective” subjective experience of such events §Narrative accounts of past events reveal the narrator’s present interpretation of the context, emotions, motivations of their past self. This often leads to self-evaluation and self-theorising.

Biographical Data Chronology 1983 1991 1996 1999 2001 2003 2005 2006 2008 Born Hartford, CT Move w/ Mother & sibs to new town; Father moves to AZ Parents Divorce Father Remarries Move to Colorado for College Paternal grandmother dies Move to Dublin for MSc Begin Ph. D Present on Biographical Methods

Particular Incident Narratives I remember one time- you asked me about my childhood, this is the best part of the school that I remember- I was picked out of the whole school and I was on “The School around the Corner”. It was a program that used to be on every Sunday. And I got picked out of the class and I think there was a boy picked out of the boys’ school and the show was “The School around the Corner”. You got ten shillings and six pence for going on. That was on the TV, television, big thing! And eh, I think I got a doll. You know they’d be asking you questions and em, “What did you do? ”. Something like what’s going on now like about the inner city [referring to the interview process]. “What do you do to play? Keep yourself amused? ” And we’d be saying [in a school girl’s voice] “Ah, sure I have a skipping rope”. So we [were] skipping for em [sings in a childish manner]: “Police man, police man, don’t take me. I have a wife and family. How many children have you got? Twenty-four and that’s a lot!” So, you’d skip twenty-four [times].

Some Limitations & Ethical Considerations Not necessarily empowering for participants (Bornat & Walmsley 2008) Not all memories are good and not everyone wants to remember Be as reflective and reflexive as possible during the research process What is being left out? Who owns the data?

Concluding Thoughts & Benefits for Practice ØBiographical methods enable us to study social reality as it is (constantly) re-interpreted by social actors ØFocus on the subjective experience of the participant can contribute to more sensitive policies of care and support ØBiographical methods can also help people to retain/ document their memories and engage in identity (re-)construction/preservation work ØProvide a record for relatives, other researchers, practitioners, educators, and the wider community