Visual Methodologies and Methods for Caribbean Research - by Joyanne de Four-Babb & Sheron Fraser-Burgess (Hardcover)

About the Book

Book Synopsis

This book provides a wealth of insights for research in the Caribbean and the global South more broadly.

Its premise - that the specifics of life in these parts of the world are essential in observing, documenting, and transmitting knowledge in and about them - challenges Western-centric approaches and expands visual research methodologies for Caribbean-specific contexts. Visual research methods offer a pathway to documentation and representation of phenomena across multiple domains in various genres of experiences. This compendium of conceptual/theoretical, arts-based and non-arts based empirical research makes the case for visual modality in those research methodologies.

The chapters document research in the small countries in the Greater and Lesser Antilles and those that are adjacent to the Caribbean Sea, such as Belize and Bermuda. Altogether, they provide qualitative insight into the human story of sub-populations as well the usefulness of visual tools in representing, documenting, and expressing the meaning and meaning-making that resides there.

Review Quotes

"A timely and engaging collection that challenges and exposes the limitations of traditional research that engages with Caribbean lived realities and imaginaries. This text broadens and enriches the ways of understanding Caribbean experiences through visual methodologies and methods." --Nigel Brissett, Clark University, USA

"This inspiring and innovative edited book creatively illustrates the significance and relevance of visual methodologies in pursuing epistemic freedom, building research capacity, and empowering Local and Indigenous Caribbean communities. The chapters in this volume detail how visual methodologies and methods can guide our understanding of our rich cultural heritages through imagery, both profound and scholarly, impactful and human-centred." --Camile Nakhid, Auckland University, New Zealand

"This edited volume fills a critical gap in qualitative research methodology by centering visual methods within Caribbean contexts and epistemic frameworks. De Four-Babb and Fraser-Burgess demonstrate how visual methodologies can decolonize research practices and amplify Caribbean voices often marginalized by Western-centric approaches. Drawing on Afro-Caribbean philosophy, the text offers transformative pathways for researchers seeking to capture authentic lived experiences through a variety of visual methods. By centering epistemic freedom and indigenous ways of knowing, this edited collection empowers scholars conducting culturally-grounded research in Caribbean communities." --Thalia Mulvihill, Ball State University, USA

"This volume on visual methodologies and methods for Caribbean research rouses those of us working in and on the Caribbean to consider the visual in our efforts to decolonize academic practices and (re)affirm our own ways of knowing. It is much more than a corrective supplement or inspirational sampler for researchers, however; its active ingredient is anti-epistemicidal and part of a much larger project of cognitive justice for the Caribbean." --Christopher L. De Shield, University of Belize

About the Author

Joyanne De Four-Babb is Interim Research Director at the University of Belize, Belize.

Sheron Fraser-Burgess is Professor of Social Foundations and Multicultural Education at Ball State University, USA.