Building Bridges: Digital Storytelling as a Participatory Research Approach

Abstract

Lindvig addresses the concern that minority-ethnic users of child welfare services in Norway lack the opportunity to express themselves in literature and public debate. This situation presents ethical and methodological challenges, and it is problematic for a democratic society when research does not give voice to ethnic minorities. Building on Skjervheim's theory of respectful dialogue, identified as tri-part dialogue, Lindvig discusses methodological potential of digital storytelling for increased participant-orientation in minorities' research. From a theoretical point of departure, and based on a case study involving minority groups, she describes how digital storytelling contributes to dialogic bridge-building between researcher and research subjects so that "the voices of the many voiceless" become audible in minority research. [For the complete volume, "Digital Storytelling in Higher Education: International Perspectives. Digital Education and Learning," see ED613403.]