Resea che Vulne abili y in Doing Collabo a i e Au oe hnog aphy:
Mo ing o a Pos -Quali a i e S ance
Es ibaliz Abe as u i-Ap aiz, Jose Miguel Co ea Go ospe
& Asunción Ma ínez-A belaiz
Abs ac : As educa ional esea che s, we hold mon hly mee ings o discuss ou me hodological
and pe sonal eelings and unce ain ies while ansi ioning om a quali a i e o a pos -quali a i e
s ance, which in ol ed using a is ic/ca og aphic me hods. This shi a ec ed us, un eiling ou
p o essional and pe sonal ulne abili y. In an exe cise o collabo a i e au oe hnog aphy, in his ex
we desc ibe wha i mean o us o engage in his ype o s udy and how he esul ing shi in ou
academic logic, which was o iginally g ounded in mo e adi ional o hodoxies, made us ulne able
and uncom o able, hus allowing a mo e e hical in es iga ion. Th ough hese p ocesses we e eal
he e ec o a esea ch p ocess ha placed us in an uncom o able si ua ion, which in u n allowed
new ques ions o eme ge. Finally, we eclaim he need o make no only hese p o essional
ensions public bu pe haps ou ailu es as well.
Table o Con en s
1. In oduc ion
2. The In luence o an E e -Changing Wo ld and T ans o ma ion in Educa ional Resea ch
3. The Pos -Quali a i e Tu n in Educa ional Resea ch
3.1 Challenges and ensions in he adop ion o a pos -quali a i e s ance
3.2 Adop ing CAE o e lec on ou esea ch/ eaching i ine a ies
4. Doing CAE
4.1 Room 1: Es ibaliz
4.2 Room 2: José Miguel
4.3 Room 3: Asunción
5. Li ing Room: Whe e Has he Pos -Quali a i e S ance Taken Us?
6. Final Re lec ions
Acknowledgmen s
Re e ences
Au ho s
Ci a ion
1. In oduc ion
Fo mo e han wen y yea s, he quali a i e model has been ou e e ence in ou
educa ional esea ch endea o s and ou wo k wi h p esen and u u e eache s.
This model, based mainly on s uden eache s' and eache s' e hnog aphic
na a i es o when, whe e and how hey lea ned hei p o ession, has allowed us
o shed ligh on o he in icacies o de eloping a eaching iden i y (CORREA
GOROSPE, MARTÍNEZ-ARBELAIZ & ABERASTURI-APRAIZ, 2015; CORREA
GOROSPE, MARTÍNEZ-ARBELAIZ & FERNÁNDEZ-OLASKOAGA, 2018;
CORREA GOROSPE, MARTÍNEZ-ARBELAIZ & GUTIERREZ, 2014). Howe e ,
This wo k is licensed unde a C ea i e Commons A ibu ion 4.0 In e na ional License.
Fo um Quali a i e Sozial o schung / Fo um: Quali a i e Social Resea ch (ISSN 1438-5627)
Volume 21, No. 3, A . 8
Sep embe 2020
Key wo ds:
eache educa ion;
e hical esea ch;
educa ional
esea ch;
collabo a i e
au oe hnog aphy;
w i ing as a
me hod o inqui y;
e lexi i y
FQS 21(3), A . 8, Es ibaliz Abe as u i-Ap aiz, Jose Miguel Co ea Go ospe & Asunción Ma ínez-A belaiz:
Resea che Vulne abili y in Doing Collabo a i e Au oe hnog aphy: Mo ing o a Pos -Quali a i e S ance
la ely, and om di e en angles, we s a ed eeling ha his model was no
sa is ying ou needs and ha we we e en e ing in o an epis emological as well as
a me hodological c isis. We had no challenged he s anda d way o doing
esea ch since we we e in g adua e school, whe e by s anda d we mean he
p ocess o o mula ing one o se e al esea ch ques ions, ga he ing da a om
eache s o s uden eache s, analyzing hose da a and coming up wi h esul s,
and w i ing a discussion and a conclusion. A some poin his packaged o ma
el like a s ai jacke ha ou esea ch p ojec had o i in o and which did no
a o d he de ail and nuance ha we wan ed o achie e wi h ou inqui ies. [1]
A e eading, discussing, and inally diges ing he pos mode n concep s ha
DELEUZE and GUATTARI (1988 [1980]) de eloped in hei ex "A Thousand
Pla eaus," we we e bold enough o in i e concep s like hizome o dialogue wi h
ou educa ional esea ch. We we e inspi ed by he book by JACKSON and
MAZZEI (2012) in which hey did p ecisely ha : hey dis illed he main concep s
o philosophe s such as DERRIDA, FOUCAULT, BARAD and made hei heo ies
applicable o di e en educa ional scena ios. The seed o a adical change in ou
posi ioning owa d esea ch was plan ed in ou heads. We we e eage o ind ou
mo e abou his adically di e en o m o doing esea ch, inspi ed by he a s and
sus ained by philosophical bases ha could be labeled as pos -human, new
ma e ialisms, e c. The pos -quali a i e u n was slowly bu s eadily occu ing in
ou esea ch g oup. [2]
Once hing we did no an icipa e, howe e , was ha his u n was going o ha e
consequences on ou o e all eaching, esea ching and pe sonal li es. The
a icle ha ollows can be iewed as an exe cise in he e lexi i y o discom o
(PILLOW, 2003) ha is amed as collabo a i e au oe hnog aphy (CAE) bu ,
c ucially, om a pos -quali a i e s ance. We e lec in a sha ed manne on a
esea ch p ojec ha shi ed om a quali a i e o a pos -quali a i e posi ioning.
While we we e modi ying he heo e ical bases o ou esea ch, we el we
needed o exchange ou hough s and eelings abou wha was going on. In an
exe cise in CAE, we ocus on how his change has a ec ed us, which has allowed
us o challenge he esea ch p axis ha we had adop ed up o his poin . [3]
We ocus on e lexi i y o discom o because we conside i o be a s a egy o
coping wi h no knowing, and wi h he unce ain y o no knowing whe e we we e
heading. We echo PILLOW's use o "uncom o able e lexi i y—a e lexi i y ha
seeks o know while a he same ime si ua es his knowing as enuous" (2003,
p.188). In his a icle, we y o e eal wha is no shown in mos o he uni e si y-
ela ed academic epo s, namely ou discom o and ulne abili y when we ace
an unce ain si ua ion, whe e we do no know. In o he wo ds, wi h his ex ,
al hough we likely do no p o ide a solu ion o he esea ch p oblem, we do
p opose ha hese sha ed e lec ions, which a e seldom published, a e in ac a
e y ele an pa o he whole esea ch p ocess, which is in line wi h wha
RUSSELL and KELLY (2002) p e iously p oposed in a quali a i e amewo k. [4]
This a icle comes ou o a la ge , ongoing esea ch p ojec ha s udied how
ele en ea ly childhood educa o s and ele en p ima y school eache s lea ned.
FQS h p://www.quali a i e- esea ch.ne /
FQS 21(3), A . 8, Es ibaliz Abe as u i-Ap aiz, Jose Miguel Co ea Go ospe & Asunción Ma ínez-A belaiz:
Resea che Vulne abili y in Doing Collabo a i e Au oe hnog aphy: Mo ing o a Pos -Quali a i e S ance
The p ojec was pa icipa i e and collabo a i e (MANNAY, 2017 [2015]), and we
used a is ic me hods o engage pa icipan s' da a a he han o me ely collec
da a abou hem. MANNAY (p.149) a gued ha educa ional esea che s should
pay mo e a en ion o da a p oduc ion, which implies mo e in-dep h in ol emen
wi h logical and p ac ical conside a ions and e hics. Paying close a en ion o ou
da a was he pa o he esea ch p ocess ha gene a ed he mos ension, as will
be seen la e in ou discussion, and i compelled us o eso o CAE o seek
" u hs" om he dialog. We acknowledge ha we s a ed ou esea ch om ou
p i ileged posi ion as middle class academics. None o us was in an un enu ed
posi ion, which ga e us he eedom o challenge well es ablished educa ional
esea ch me hods bu did no exemp us om expe iencing ci cums ances ha
con ibu ed o ou p o essional ulne abili y. A he same ime, we can be
conside ed "schola s in he pe iphe y" (GONZÁLEZ Y GONZÁLEZ & LINCOLN,
2006, §22; see also HSIUNG, 2012), pa icipan s in a globalized model o he
neolibe al, compe i i e uni e si y, which is inc easingly obsessed wi h quan i a i e
e alua ion o excellence in e ms o dis inc ions and publica ions and linked o
economic incen i es. Al hough o his s udy we ead nume ous sou ces in
Spanish, as ou e e ence lis e idences, publishing in English helps minimize he
co e-pe iphe y di ide in (pos -)quali a i e esea ch, bu a ex a cos and e o on
ou pa ; despi e one o us being a e u nee a e many yea s in he US, we s ill
equi e he help o a p o essional ansla o and edi o o publish ou wo k. In
addi ion, he h ee o us a e in he middle o ou ca ee s, di ec heses and ha e
ample expe ience wi h educa ional esea ch. Two o us (JMC and EAA) come
om he School o Educa ion and he hi d au ho (AM) wo ks o a uni e si y
conso ium. Ou iad is uly ansdisciplina y, wi h ou indi idual and join
con ibu ions spanning a ange o ields, om a s educa ion o educa ional
echnology o linguis ics. In his ex , we sha e how we became awa e o he
ensions and di icul ies incumben in he changes in ou heo e ical and
me hodological bases. Ou aim is o po ay wha we expe ienced as we wo ked
on a esea ch p ojec ha e ol ed owa d a pos -quali a i e s ance and how
adop ing new esea ch pe spec i es a ec ed ou esea ch ajec o ies. [5]
As we ca ied ou ou esea ch on how eache s lea n, we saw ha CAE had
g ea po en ial in s udying esea che s' li es, p o essional de elopmen and
empowe men and ha i could help us as we ackled he pos -quali a i e u n and
ansi ed hough an ine i able landscape o ulne abili y. He e we mean
ulne abili y in wo senses. The i s is he ulne abili y o he schola s whose
dissa is ac ion wi h academic cul u e places hem in a changing and complex
wo ld and who ques ion he way academics do esea ch; he second is he
ulne abili y we eel as we ansi ion owa d he o he esea ch posi ionings ha
CAE in i es us o inhabi and ha demands ha we accep new isks as we
ans o m ou ole as esea che . [6]
We begin his a icle by desc ibing he condi ions o he cons an ly changing
wo ld ha we li e in and how hey in luence ou esea ch (Sec ion 2), and we
hen de ail ou pos -quali a i e u n (Sec ion 3). A e ha , we adop a mo e
na a i e s yle and use he me apho o he oom, inspi ed by Vi ginia WOOLF, in
o de o ell he s o y o he p ocess o inqui y we unde ook using CAE (Sec ion
FQS h p://www.quali a i e- esea ch.ne /
FQS 21(3), A . 8, Es ibaliz Abe as u i-Ap aiz, Jose Miguel Co ea Go ospe & Asunción Ma ínez-A belaiz:
Resea che Vulne abili y in Doing Collabo a i e Au oe hnog aphy: Mo ing o a Pos -Quali a i e S ance
4). We chose his me apho as a way o ansmi he idea o inhabi ing esea ch,
some hing ha a ec s us and ma e s o us. The oom was whe e ou exe cise in
hones y and e lexi i y ook place, whe e we exposed ou limi s and ulne abili ies
when doing esea ch in educa ion. Each o us had ou own oom, whe e we
indi idually medi a ed and engaged in sel - e lec ion. Bu we also c ea ed a li ing
oom (Sec ion 5), a space whe e we ga he ed oge he and collabo a ed, sha ing
ou expe iences, li e s o ies, knowledge, disco e ies and conclusions. I was he
space we used o exchange and nego ia e meaning, asks ha a e essen ial in
keeping a esea ch g oup ali e. We close ou accoun by p esen ing ou
conclusions (Sec ion 6), whe e we ela e he ques ions ha guided ou inqui y
wi h he indings ha came ou o his expe ience. [7]
2. The In luence o an E e -Changing Wo ld and T ans o ma ion in
Educa ional Resea ch
The ac onym "VUCA" s ands o ola ili y ( apidly changing con ex s and
condi ions), unce ain y (missing in o ma ion ha is c i ical o p oblem-sol ing),
complexi y (mul iple ac o s ha a e di icul o ca ego ize o con ol), and
ambigui y ( ague da a ha a e subjec o mul iple in e p e a ions) (REEVES &
REEVES, 2015, p.26). Ou wo ld is ola ile and ull o accele a ed change, and
unce ain y has become pa o con empo a y li e (EDWARDS, RANSON &
STRAIN, 2002), making i impossible o know wha will happen omo ow. Ou
wo ld is complex; any a ea is made up o mul iple connec ions, con igu a ions,
in e p e a ions, and meanings. And he e is ambigui y; as he pace o change
inc eases, so does he amoun o ime ha we need o analyze legi ima e
knowledge. This has esul ed in change and an accele a ion in he p oduc ion
and dis ibu ion o knowledge, in he expec a ions and demands made on schools
and eache s, and in he inc ease in he complexi y and di e si y o educa ional
con ex s. The ola ili y o in o ma ion, he unce ain y abou he u u e and he
complexi y o educa ion signi ican ly inc ease he ambigui y o eaching
condi ions. Change in educa ion is a cons an a he han an isola ed e en (DAY,
HARRIS, HADFIELD, TOLLEY & BERESFORD, 2000; FULLAN, 1997;
HARGREAVES, EARL & MOORE, 2001 [2000]; LOVELESS & ELLIS, 2001), and
adap ing o change has become pa o policy agendas, including educa ional
policy agendas. While we ha e made ad ances in e lec ing upon and discussing
he e ec s ha a cons an ly changing VUCA wo ld and i s unde lying ac o s ha e
on eache aining and educa ion, he e has been li le e lec ion on how hese
aspec s in luence esea ch on educa ion, esea che s, and he knowledge
p oduced. The con inual and unp edic able mu a ion ha occu s when he e y
idea o knowledge—as well as i s p oduc ion, ela ionship, and ep esen a ion—is
ans o med challenges cu en esea ch me hodologies and s a egies in a
con ex in which, as BRAIDOTTI (2014, p.163) no ed, "old powe ela ions a e no
only con i med bu in many ways exace ba ed in he new geopoli ical con ex ." [8]
Knowledge is no longe concei ed o as some hing ha is du able; a he i is
some hing ha is changing and unp edic able (GIBBONS e al., 1994). The
spec acula e olu ion o science and echnology means ha knowledge is
p oduced a dizzying speeds. Rapidi y, ano he impo an ea u e o he cu en
FQS h p://www.quali a i e- esea ch.ne /
FQS 21(3), A . 8, Es ibaliz Abe as u i-Ap aiz, Jose Miguel Co ea Go ospe & Asunción Ma ínez-A belaiz:
Resea che Vulne abili y in Doing Collabo a i e Au oe hnog aphy: Mo ing o a Pos -Quali a i e S ance
con ex , ende s knowing, knowledge and in o ma ion epheme al and ola ile.
Socie y is changing so apidly ha i is con inually challenging he e aci y and
ele ance o knowledge, whe e e en he bes -in o med people a e always aken
by su p ise (BAUMAN, 2007 [2005]). In his con ex o lee ingness, all a eas o
li e—ideology, emo ion, sexuali y, amily, cul u e and poli ics—a e su ounded by
ins abili y and ugaci y. [9]
Thanks o he de elopmen o c i ical pe spec i es owa d adi ional pa adigms,
as schola s, ou ela ionship wi h knowledge has been ans o med, and as such
we should also ques ion i s p oduc ion s a us. Scien i ic knowledge is no longe
some hing ha is neu al, objec i e o unques ionable om an e hical and mo al
poin o iew; i is now subjec o c i ical sc u iny in e ms o i s ela ionship o
powe , leading o new ideas abou pa icipa ion, communica ion, gende and he
isibili y o he pa icipan s hemsel es. [10]
New ways o gene a ing, ep esen ing and dissemina ing knowledge ha e
abandoned he adi ional s a egies and means. This ans o ma ion o
knowledge mo es esea che s away om he ied-and- ue s a egies o
lea ning in a s able and ce ain wo ld and equi es new c ea i e app oaches o
educa ional esea ch in a con ex o ongoing change. BRAIDOTTI (2019, p.52)
summa ized hese ideas in he amewo k o he c i ical pos humani ies, which
"p o ides a heo e ical g ounding o he eme gence o he c i ical pos humani ies
as a sup a-disciplina y, hizoma ic ield o con empo a y knowledge p oduc ion
ha is con iguous wi h, bu no iden ical o, he epis emic accele a ionism o
cogni i e capi alism." She a gued ha he e is a p oli e a ion o ansdisciplina y
discou ses and ields. In his a icle, we echo hese pos -human imes ha
BRAIDOTTI i idly desc ibed, and agains his backg ound, we na a e ou
collabo a i e, ansdisciplina y mo emen s. [11]
In ou case his mean sha ing ou achie emen s, ensions, ea s and limi a ions
in he maels om we we e imme sed in, which we po ayed as a VUCA wo ld ha
a ec ed us pe sonally and p o essionally. We sha ed ou own signi ican
expe iences and li e s o ies ha we e linked o he issue ha we a e s udying
wi hin he complica ed wo ld o he academy and he esea ch cul u e ha we
ope a ed in. Va ious s udies using CAE ha e highligh ed he alue his app oach
has o pa icipan s, as i is an oppo uni y o os e deepe lea ning abou he
issues and hemsel es h ough he collec i e and collabo a i e explo a ion o hei
own sel es, hei colleges and hei con ex s. The e is a dual sense in how
ulne abili y a ec s us as esea che s. [12]
On one hand, he ocus o ou s udy is esea che ulne abili y in he ace o he
p o essional isks ha a e associa ed wi h he pos -quali a i e u n ha we a e
expe iencing as quali a i e esea che s om di e en disciplines in a VUCA
wo ld, a his o ic momen in which he ac o gene a ing, connec ing and
p esen ing knowledge is unde going ongoing, accele a ed and p o ound change.
On he o he hand, we esea che s who pa icipa e in CAE ace pe sonal
ulne abili y, as i demands ha we sha e wi h ou co- esea che s ou own li e
s o ies, pe spec i es and meaning ul de ails om ou expe iences. This isk is
FQS h p://www.quali a i e- esea ch.ne /
FQS 21(3), A . 8, Es ibaliz Abe as u i-Ap aiz, Jose Miguel Co ea Go ospe & Asunción Ma ínez-A belaiz:
Resea che Vulne abili y in Doing Collabo a i e Au oe hnog aphy: Mo ing o a Pos -Quali a i e S ance
p esen when we conduc esea ch wi h co-equals o wi h o he s whe e he powe
di e en ial allows a good ela ionship o be c ea ed among he pa icipan s, and
his o e s us an oppo uni y o e iew ou p axis and o make sense o ou
indi idual and collec i e expe iences and he issues ha come o ligh wi h he
suppo o ou colleagues, exposing ou sel es in a sa e en i onmen
(HERNÁNDEZ, CHANG & NGUNJIRI, 2017; NGUNJIRI, 2014). [13]
3. The Pos -Quali a i e Tu n in Educa ional Resea ch
While nume ous mo i es suppo his new o ien a ion owa d esea ch, he mo e
impo an ones a e a c i ical a i ude owa d ways o doing esea ch and c ea ing
knowledge, he impo ance ha he ins i u ional s uc u e gi es o esea ch and
he esea che in he gene a ion o knowledge, and he pos -quali a i e p oximi y
o a s-based esea ch me hods. [14]
The e m pos -quali a i e co e s he esea ch o e he pas wo decades ha
e hinks he on ology and epis emology ha a e cha ac e is ic o humanis
quali a i e me hodology (LATHER & ST. PIERRE, 2013) and which explo es and
a emp s o e-imagine new e hical and on o-epis emological di ec ions. Fo ST.
PIERRE (2013) and ollowing pos -quali a i e logic, esea ch is no abou
e ealing u hs, oices o meanings o abou mechanisms o emancipa ion, and
i is e en less abou he idea o accumula ing knowledge abou he "same hing."
F om he pos -quali a i e pe spec i e, he ways o knowing and ep esen ing a e
called in o ques ion in o de o open up spaces o s udy, challenging he e y
concep s h ough which we pe cei e eali y and ha cons i u e us as esea che s.
This c ea es wi hin he esea ch i sel c i ical spaces ha ques ion he eal e ec s
o a heo y (SPIVAK, 2009 [1983]). [15]
A pos -quali a i e esea ch posi ion is always mul i ace ed and wo en om
heo e ical di e si y, and as such i does no ha e a single pe spec i e no does i
a icula e a single p oposal, no can i be desc ibed in an o de ly manne in a
handbook on esea ch. When ou ames o e e ence disappea and ou ideas
become diso de ed, as esea che s we eel he need o build new s uc u es o
ep esen a ion in o de o accommoda e eali ies ha we e p e iously
unimaginable. We also p oblema ize ce ain hegemonic ounda ions o esea ch
p ac ice, which go beyond he adi ional a gumen s in he pa adigm wa s
(GAGE, 1989) and call in o ques ion no ions such as s udy design, da a collec ion
and ep esen a ion, he meaning o in e iews, obse a ion, pa icipa ion, e c. All
o hese eme ge om he hegemonic and unchallenged ounda ions ha ha e
guided he p oduc ion o knowledge in social and educa ion esea ch in ecen
decades. This al e na i e b ings wi h i unce ain y, he unknown, and openness
as a condi ion and o m o knowledge. I leads o unde s anding, dislodging and
unde aking esea ch as a hizome (DELEUZE & GUATTARI, 1988 [1980]) ha
mo es in e e -changing di ec ions, wi hou beginning o end and causing
equen diso ien a ion. Resea ch is in e p e ed and na a ed as an en anglemen
o dynamics, ela ionships and mo emen s ha eloca e and displace esea che s
as well. [16]
FQS h p://www.quali a i e- esea ch.ne /
FQS 21(3), A . 8, Es ibaliz Abe as u i-Ap aiz, Jose Miguel Co ea Go ospe & Asunción Ma ínez-A belaiz:
Resea che Vulne abili y in Doing Collabo a i e Au oe hnog aphy: Mo ing o a Pos -Quali a i e S ance
JACKSON and MAZZEI (2012) con ended ha pos -quali a i e esea ch ies o
ocus a en ion on he a eas ha adi ional esea ch does no no ice, namely,
wha is new o wha is no known, e ealing concep s ha should be e- hough
h ough he esea ch p ocess. Resea ch ceases being an accumula ion o
knowledge abou wha is known and ins ead p esen s a di e en pe spec i e om
which o ocus on wha we, as esea che s in educa ion, do no know (ROGOFF,
2007 [2006]) abou eache lea ning and he implica ions o educa ion and he
challenges o social change. [17]
As esea che s and uni e si y acul y, we ha e been a ec ed by he slow h ea
o quali a i e esea ch and he way ha i s po en ial o change has been dilu ed
in he ace o quan i a i e pe spec i es (ST. PIERRE, 2006). A he same ime,
we ha e been impac ed by he esea ch space ha is opened by he pos -
quali a i e pe spec i e ha con inuously adap s o he mos "pos " o "new new"
(LATHER & ST. PIERRE, 2013, p.629) and o he mos c i ical eme ging
pe spec i es (GREENE, 2013). The appea ance o his pos -quali a i e
pe spec i e is ela ed o he push om new ma e ialisms, new empi icisms (ST.
PIERRE, JACKSON & MAZZEI, 2016) and pos -humanism (BRAIDOTTI, 2014,
2015 [2013]), which makes i possible o open spaces ha a e c ea i e and
di e gen and ha challenge he e y concep s used o ead eali y and ha
cons i u e us as educa ional esea che s, he eby ques ioning he legi imacy o
knowledge gene a ed wi hin he ins i u ional s uc u e. Ou ha ing adop ed a
pos -quali a i e s ance places us a he ma gins o academic discou se and
allows us o do wha is no easible om wi hin he co e o ins i u ions o lea ning
and knowledge. This a i ude o esis ance o ins i u ionaliza ion a ec s he
ques ions ha guide esea che s owa d wha is no known; owa d he heo e ical
amewo ks ha a e es ablished, hei ela ionship wi h da a, he p ocedu es used
o analysis (coding, g ouping), he concep o oice and subjec , and he e y
p ac ice o esea ch and i s links wi h neolibe al academic p ac ices. Fu he mo e,
by employing a is ic me hods in educa ional esea ch we we e able o
inco po a e he liminal, he bodily and he senso y ea u es ha a s-based
esea ch demands, as such me hods encou aged us o change he adi ional
ways o c ea ing and dissemina ing knowledge. In anscending he limi s o he
dominan logic o academia, we eel be e able e-imagine esea ch and ou
ela ionship wi h knowledge. [18]
In a p e ious a icle (CORREA GOROSPE, ABERASTURI & BELATEGI, 2017)
we discussed he epis emic p oximi y o he pos -quali a i e mo emen and a s-
based esea ch, which sha e an openness o mo e c ea i e ways o ela ing o
one ano he and ep esen ing knowledge (COLEMAN, 2017). The use o a is ic
and isual me hods and pos -quali a i e posi ioning o e lap in a ious ways. One
is ha bo h ans o m he esea ch model by b eaking down linea i y o a ce ain
ex en and c ea ing a hizoma ic amewo k made up o ela ions and p ocesses
(LATHER & ST. PIERRE, 2013), which in i es esea che s o imagine da a
analysis ha escapes he banali y o he coding and ca ego iza ion ha
cha ac e izes con en ional quali a i e esea ch. Ano he poin o o e lap is ha
pos -quali a i e esea ch echoes a is ic me hods in i s c i ique o ep esen a ional
logic. A s-based esea ch makes i possible o go beyond adi ional iews and
FQS h p://www.quali a i e- esea ch.ne /
FQS 21(3), A . 8, Es ibaliz Abe as u i-Ap aiz, Jose Miguel Co ea Go ospe & Asunción Ma ínez-A belaiz:
Resea che Vulne abili y in Doing Collabo a i e Au oe hnog aphy: Mo ing o a Pos -Quali a i e S ance
ep esen a ions o socie y and see hings di e en ly (BARONE & EISNER, 2012),
and i a oids he e o s o language o be he e e ence o he nego ia ed, li e al
and eal-wo ld (ELLSWORTH, 2005 [1997]). Fu he mo e, a s-based esea ch
and he pos -quali a i e pe spec i e bo h ecognize he ole played by new
senso y ways o connec wi h he wo ld, accep he ole o he body and a e open
o o he o ms o knowledge and pe cep ion (LEYS, 2011). Las ly, bo h a s-
based esea ch and pos -quali a i e esea ch p omo e o he pa icipa ion
p ocesses by ques ioning powe ela ions and he legi imacy o knowledge ha is
p oduced in an ins i u ional amewo k. [19]
Adop ing a s-based esea ch me hods allowed us o go beyond he ho izon o
humanis quali a i e esea ch and c ea e he ci cums ances o p oducing
knowledge and unde s anding h ough he p ocess o a is ic inqui y (FELS &
IRWIN, 2008). We sough o di ec ou ques ions and inqui y owa d ha which is
no known o acknowledged in he adi ional li e a u e on eache lea ning and
owa d inding al e na i es ha espond o he challenges ha schools and
eache s ace. This app oach led us o call in o ques ion ou own esea ch
p ac ices, om he ole o collec ed da a o e hinking he ways in which
esea che s pa icipa e in and commi o he esea ch i sel . [20]
As a de eloping me hodology and because o he on o-epis emology and e hics
ha unde pin i , pos -quali a i e esea ch does no come o a nea close; ins ead
i cons an ly e ol es and leads o di e en ways o hinking, eeling and ac ing.
Pos -quali a i e esea ch in i es educa ional esea che s o hink di e en ly abou
da a and how we analyze hem, unde s anding ha hey do no exis
independen ly o us. I in ol es eimaging da a analysis such ha i mo es
beyond he me e coding and ca ego izing ha cha ac e izes con en ional
quali a i e esea ch (JACKSON & MAZZEI, 2012). As ST. PIERRE no ed in an
in e iew,
"Quali a i e me hodology was in en ed in he 1970s and 1980s as a c i ique o
posi i is social science, bu we' e s uc u ed, o malized, and no malized i so ha
mos s udies look he same. The 'p ocess' is he same: iden i y a esea ch ques ion,
design a s udy, in e iew, obse e, analyze da a, and w i e i up. We can jus d op a
esea che down in o ha p e-gi en p ocess and hey know wha o do, and we can
p e y much p edic wha will come ou . In his way, quali a i e me hodology has
become p edic i e, like posi i is social science" (GUTTORM, HOHTI & PAAKKARI,
2015, p.16). [21]
As a esul , he whole idea o a esea ch me hod, ia which da a is handled in
acco dance wi h speci ic, p e-es ablished guidelines and p ocesses, ep esen s
an a emp o sys ema ize and o malize. And pe haps i is a way o semi-con ol
he whole esea ch p ocess, which could be a elie o disciplines ha a e ying
o legi imize hemsel es as science and s ill ecognize he alue o quali a i e
wo k. Wi hin his pos -quali a i e amewo k, we unde s and CAE as a
con inua ion o he e lec ion p ocess, which is ne e aul less o inished. I is an
ongoing p ocess o isibilizing wha happens du ing esea ch, an ac ha is
usually no ecoun ed in esea ch a icles. [22]
FQS h p://www.quali a i e- esea ch.ne /
FQS 21(3), A . 8, Es ibaliz Abe as u i-Ap aiz, Jose Miguel Co ea Go ospe & Asunción Ma ínez-A belaiz:
Resea che Vulne abili y in Doing Collabo a i e Au oe hnog aphy: Mo ing o a Pos -Quali a i e S ance
3.1 Challenges and ensions in he adop ion o a pos -quali a i e s ance
One o he ensions ha we expe ienced when beginning ou esea ch was
ela ed o me hodology and da a. We ag eed o wo k om a pos -quali a i e
pe spec i e and use a is ic me hods. To c ea e knowledge ia an a is ic me hod,
we in i ed ou 22 eache s o wo ca og aphy wo kshops, which we e
pho og aphed and audio and ideo eco ded. We also asked he eache -c ea o s
o na a i es, and we obse ed hem a hei schools. Gi en ou un amilia i y wi h
a is ic and isual p oduc s and he s angeness hey e oked in us (GUREVITCH,
1998), ou inclina ion was o classi y, ca ego ize, so , and apply he same
app oaches ha we had aken in p e ious s udies. We we e no able o mo e
beyond he con ines o he app oaches ha we had lea ned and in e nalized
h oughou he yea s. [23]
The sole p e ious expe ience ha we had wi h a is ic me hods was he
p oduc ion o ou ca og aphy. Be o e wo king wi h he 22 eache s and
o ganizing wo kshops as pa o hei p o essional de elopmen , we hough ha
we had o expe ience he p ocess o using isual language o exp ess ou
lea ning li es. These ca og aphies summa ized how we as eache educa o s
and educa ional esea che s lea ned and de eloped ou eaching iden i y. This
c ucial s ep con ibu ed o keeping he esea ch p ocess e hical since we we e
going h ough a e lexi e loop ha was simila o wha ou eache s we e
expe iencing. The c i ical di e ence is ha he s uden s' e lexi e p ocess was
mo e ela ed o sel -awa eness and acknowledgmen o how hey had lea ned
and how hey had cons uc ed knowledge, whe eas in ou case he discom o ing
e lexi e ac sough messy knowledge (PILLOW, 2003). [24]
In addi ion, when designing and alking abou ou own ca og aphies, we we e
engaged in an exe cise o e lexi i y. Acco ding o BERGER (2015), " e lexi i y is
commonly iewed as he p ocess o a con inual in e nal dialog and c i ical sel -
e alua ion o esea che 's posi ionali y as well as ac i e acknowledgmen and
explici ecogni ion ha his posi ion may a ec he esea ch p ocess and
ou come" (p.220). In o de o ask eache s o e lec on hei own p axis and
lea ning i ine a ies, we i s had o cla i y ou own posi ion ega ding he esea ch
p ocess i sel . We we e no su p ised o see ha he p oduc ion o ou
ca og aphies made he wo o us ha did no ha e any expe ience in he a s eel
insecu e and uncom o able. Thus, ou p ocess o c ea ing ca og aphies and
he eby engaging wi h a s-based esea ch can be seen as a o m o p ac ice ha
connec ed some o us wi h he " e lexi i ies o discom o " (PILLOW, 2003,
p.188). PILLOW desc ibed e lexi i y as "a me hodological ool in e up i e o
p ac ices o ga he ing da a as ' u hs' in o exis ing ' olds o he known'" (p.192).
Howe e , she con inued o iew e lexi i y as a way o c ea ing knowledge wi hou
gi ing up he ep esen a ional unc ion o esea ch, like p e ious esea che s in a
pos mode n ame (RUSSELL & KELLY, 2002). [25]
FQS h p://www.quali a i e- esea ch.ne /
FQS 21(3), A . 8, Es ibaliz Abe as u i-Ap aiz, Jose Miguel Co ea Go ospe & Asunción Ma ínez-A belaiz:
Resea che Vulne abili y in Doing Collabo a i e Au oe hnog aphy: Mo ing o a Pos -Quali a i e S ance
4.3 Room 3: Asunción
My i s esponse o his p oposal was o a ange my ca og aphy in e ms o my
physical mo emen s: ha is, I ied o ep esen my a els and he places I' e
li ed in scena ios and landscapes, cu ing ou and pas ing maps o Eu ope and
he di e en s a es in he Uni ed S a es whe e I had li ed, s udied and wo ked. I
hough ha in making e e ence o my physical mo emen s, I was connec ed
wi h my "men al deploymen s." Bu can we equa e a eling wi h lea ning? My
ecen s udies o na a i es w i en by Ame icans who come o Spain o s udy
language and cul u e highligh how uncom o able we a e wi h he smells, as es,
di e en looks and o cou se he sounds o a language ha we a e no
accus omed o. How do we ep esen he accumula ion o physical and ully el
pe soni ied sensa ions ha we pe cei e when we a el wi hin a o eign
en i onmen ? My wo k so a has consis ed o asking o a composi ion in which
s uden s, h ough wo ds, e lec upon hei eelings and he changes o hei
iden i y due o mo ing o ano he place and using a di e en language. Howe e ,
as KRESS (2010, p.79) poin ed ou ,
"[ ]he in oduc ion o he concep s o mode and mul imodali y p oduces a challenge o
hi he o se led no ions o language. A e all, i all modes a e me ely a kind o
duplica ion o meanings al eady made in, say, speech o w i ing—may be o
ela i ely ma ginal easons such as 'illus a ion' o o aes he ic easons such as
'o namen a ion'—o whe he hey a e ' ull meanings', always qui e dis inc om o he
modes. I he la e is he case, hen 'language' has o be seen in a new ligh : no
longe as cen al and dominan , ully capable o exp essing all meanings, bu as one
means among o he s o making meaning, each o hem speci ic. This amoun s o a
p o ound eo ien a ion." [51]
Thus, my ca og aphy was me ely a way o ep esen my jou neys h ough a
medium ha is as lacking in mul imodali y as a cu ou om a map. Jus a e I had
inished my ca og aphy, I came ac oss he con o e sial a icle by SEFTON-
GREEN (2017) in which he asse ed ha all he me apho s o lea ning, such as
"jou ney" and " ajec o y" (p.112) maybe a simpli ica ion, al hough ha does no
mean ha lea ning is no quan i iable o obse able. [52]
Thinking o my a els as ep esen a ions o my lea ning did no add any hing
new o wha was al eady ob ious: A e my nomadic ansi ions e lec ions o my
lea ning, o was I simply sol ing my "p oblem" o explaining ca og aphy by
iden i ying i wi h a physical mo emen a he han hinking o i as some hing ha
is in angible, in isible o di icul o iden i y, which happens o e e yone when hey
lea n some hing? Wha ha e I lea ned om all his esea ch? I is an exe cise in
jumping wi hou a sa e y ne ; i is an exe cise o naked hones y. A he momen
he e a e no colleagues o engage wi h, he e a e no sounds o imi a e, he e a e
no e en any ea lie ex s o inspi e us. Ha e I eally lea ned some hing? Ha e I
eally gi en up he wo d as he p incipal me hod o communica ion/exp ession?
S ipped o he dis ac ions o he jou ney, o he ou side wo ld, we ind ou sel es
o ced o look wi hin ou sel es o he keys o wha i means o lea n. [53]
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FQS 21(3), A . 8, Es ibaliz Abe as u i-Ap aiz, Jose Miguel Co ea Go ospe & Asunción Ma ínez-A belaiz:
Resea che Vulne abili y in Doing Collabo a i e Au oe hnog aphy: Mo ing o a Pos -Quali a i e S ance
F om he h ee e lec ions ha eme ged om ou indi idual ooms show, i can be
seen ha Es ibaliz is conce ned abou eache educa ion and wha an a s-based
pe spec i e can con ibu e; he aining in ine a s and i ine a y as a eache
aine led he o ocus on hose ques ions. José Miguel, who has 35 yea s'
expe ience as a eache educa o and esea che , pu s he pu sui o his esea ch
and his ole as a esea che on hold by seeking o esigni y o he on o-
epis emological posi ions in he wake o c i ical and c ea i e esea ch p ac ices
om a pe spec i e o pe sonal in ol emen . And Asunción, who comes om
linguis ics, is in e es ed in ep esen a ions ha go beyond he w i en wo d and
seeks o he s a egies o communica ing. Because we come om di e en
posi ions, we conside ou mee ings in he li ing oom o be e y aluable o
discussing hese di e ences wi h an eye on o he collabo a i e app oaches o
esea ch. [54]
5. Li ing Room: Whe e Has he Pos -Quali a i e S ance Taken Us?
Ha ing add essed ou esea ch challenges indi idually om a pos -quali a i e
pe spec i e, we sha ed he esul ing ex s in a session o CAE. Among o he
eelings, a leas wo o us exp essed a sense o ulne abili y and unce ain y. An
a mosphe e o us was c ucial o ou mu ual suppo in imes o a di icul
ansi ion, while we acknowledged ha we had he eeling o s epping in o e y
unce ain e i o y. I was no only ou esea ch in educa ion ha was going h ough
hose me amo phoses bu , as we explain in his sec ion, ou whole eaching and
lea ning cons uc s we e going h ough elen less ans o ma ions. [55]
The h ee o us le ou own ooms and ga he ed in he li ing oom o alk
oge he and e lec on ou esea ch p ocess. We wan ed o add ess he second
esea ch ques ion: Whe e has he pos -quali a i e s ance aken us? When
esea che s wo k om ce ain y and om pa hs de ined by a me hodology,
esea che mee ings should occu du ing he en i e esea ch p ocess and
pene a e he esea che s hemsel es, gi ing ise o a numbe o mu ually
nego ia ed key concep s ha each esea che may subsequen ly ela e o hei li ed
p ocess, e ealing wha he concep s ha e allowed hem o hink. Ou mee ing in
he li ing oom is an example o making isible he need o hese con e sa ions
among esea che s and he weal h o ideas ha come om hem. [56]
Es ibaliz (E): The idea o social change in his s udy wo ies me. Resea ch can
p opose changes, bu wha happens i we accep ha he esea ch ques ion
shi s ocus owa d us and ou ans o ma ion as esea che s and eache
aine s? Doesn' his d i in esea ch e eal a si ua ion ha we didn' o esee and
ha mo es us owa d ou sel es, calling in o ques ion esea ch epis emology and
ini ial educa ion o eache s? Isn' his in i sel a social change? Won' we be
disco e ing o he ways o ela ing pedagogically wi h eache s, making i possible
o us o change oge he ? [57]
Asunción (A): The ca og aphies can b ing abou change, al hough o social
change we p obably need o walk down he pa h oge he . A any a e, a simila
p ocess happens in linguis ic sys ems. Changes a e no pe cep ible because
FQS h p://www.quali a i e- esea ch.ne /
FQS 21(3), A . 8, Es ibaliz Abe as u i-Ap aiz, Jose Miguel Co ea Go ospe & Asunción Ma ínez-A belaiz:
Resea che Vulne abili y in Doing Collabo a i e Au oe hnog aphy: Mo ing o a Pos -Quali a i e S ance
al hough language changes in each gene a ion, we s ill unde s and each o he .
[58]
E: Ou esea che mee ings and he eadings ha we' e sha ing a e helping me
unde s and he p ocess and he changes be e . Righ now, in e ms o he
esea che s, I'd say ha he bigges challenge is w i ing om a pos -quali a i e
s ance (RICHARDSON & ST. PIERRE, 2005).
We began by e ealing each esea che 's conce ns and in e es s. In linking
Es ibaliz's in e es in a s-based esea ch me hods and Asunción's conce n o
language, RICHARDSON's c ea i e analy ic p ocesses a e essen ial and uni ying,
p o iding a space whe e he wo esea che s' in e es s can con e ge. [59]
José Miguel (JM): Fo me, in e ms o wha you' e saying, a key pa was he
esea che becoming pa o wha is esea chable.
A: A e you e e ing o he idea o e lexi i y?
JM: Yes, he idea o coming back o onesel and expe iencing i as a change, as
some hing ha a ec s you and lea es a ma k. By his, I mean ha we s op
s udying a ques ion ha is ex e nal and we connec ou sel es o he esea ch
ques ion. [60]
E: I ag ee wi h he concep o e lexi i y as he momen o dis up ion whe e I' e
had o s op and unde s and.
Toge he we disco e ed ha he esea che becomes pa o he esea ch. We
ealized ha om hese pos -quali a i e posi ions we could ques ion, add o o
modi y he esea ch ques ions laid ou a he ou se and we could e en hink o
ou sel es as being pa o he esea ch ques ion. [61]
A: I ag ee, hough i clashes wi h a esea ch pa adigm ha binds us o deadlines
and deli e ables, which doesn' gi e us he op ion o do ha .
JM: And in e ms o ha p oblem, I hink ha i leads o a educ ion o da a, bu
ne e heless a pos -quali a i e s udy opens us up o he possibili y o s aying
in ol ed and being able o expand he esea ch ques ion in mul iple di ec ions.
A: In lis ening o wha you' e bo h saying, I hink ha we' e alking abou
"inhabi ing" he s udy, a no ion ha goes beyond answe ing he esea ch
ques ion.
JM: I hink he concep o immediacy e sus anscendence could be ela ed o
his. I connec i o he idea in inhabi ing he esea ch, o s aying p esen in he
ime and place ha he esea ch expe ience akes place.
A: Yes, a s udy ha goes on and isn' o e wi h he w i ing o an a icle. On he
con a y, w i ing allows us o make sense o and gi e meaning o he esea ch, o
con inue o mula ing new ques ions and o ging new pa hs. [62]
JM: Being in he ield has an impac on me and makes me wonde wha happens
i we s ay in he now? Wha happens i I ha e o s ay and wai o some hing o
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FQS 21(3), A . 8, Es ibaliz Abe as u i-Ap aiz, Jose Miguel Co ea Go ospe & Asunción Ma ínez-A belaiz:
Resea che Vulne abili y in Doing Collabo a i e Au oe hnog aphy: Mo ing o a Pos -Quali a i e S ance
happen? Spend ime wi h he eache s and ake he ime o explo e he
expe ience o being a eache wi h hem?
I ha e been los in his s udy, pa ly due o inding mysel aced wi h a is ic
esea ch me hods, which we e p e iously unknown o me, and pa ly due o he
di icul y o making he esea ch ques ion mine. And in his being los , w i ing has
suppo ed me and allowed me o gi e an accoun o wha I ha e done.
F om ou collabo a i e dialog, ou ea s abou how o posi ion ou sel es eme ged
and we g adually ealized ha we only had dialog and w i ing as ou e uge o
small ce ain ies. Bu , as RICHARDSON and ST. PIERRE (2005) p oposed, ou
aim was o do i in a c ea i e way, using he me apho o he li ing oom. [63]
E: Ano he ques ion ha has exed us qui e a lo is he no ion o da a. Who a e
we o say wha he eali y o he O he is?
A: In ac , i seems o me ha in his s udy we ha e no deal wi h da a as
some hing ha is ex e nalized as i i had alue in i sel and ei ies he p oblem.
JM: This s udy has allowed us o disman le he simulac um o esea ch. Also, i 's
no he case ha in ou p e ious s udies we we e so igid and we pu ou e hical
p inciples aside; wha happened is ha we did no lea e any oom o ulne abili y
in wha we we e dealing wi h. Bu om a pos -quali a i e posi ion, we gi e
ou sel es pe mission o e ise and accep ha wha we ook o g an ed, se led
o ue can be ques ioned. [64]
E: Wo king owa d a pos -quali a i e posi ion has been as s ange o me as
wo king wi h a is ic me hodologies has been o you bo h. I ind ha he e a e
many in e sec ions, bu I am especially in e es ed in one o he issues ha we a e
ying o add ess h ough his a icle: namely, ha he esea ch ques ion is no
only wha is o mula ed a he ou se and ha we accep new esea ch ques ions
as we p oceed.
This shi o a pos -quali a i e app oach p esen ed us wi h a new challenge, which
was o speak abou ou sel es wi hou app op ia ing o esigni ying wha o he s
old us. In o de o make sense o his, we used he idea o accompanying, jus as
is done in an a galle y, and o ha end, we made ou ca og aphies as explained
in Sec ion 3.1. Examining da a in ligh o wha i makes us hink ins ead o
in e p e ing he o he was di icul o us. The discussions and deba es a ound
esea ch we e in ense. [65]
A: Do you emembe he i s pape whe e we s a ed o alk abou eelings and
emo ions? And he ejec ion ha go om he o he s in ou esea ch g oup?
JM: The ansi ion ha we' e going h ough as esea che s is causing us o upse
he sys em and we' e pe cei ed ha he me hodologies used in social science
need ano he app oach.
A: Along hose lines, i 's impo an o conside ha he wo ld is also changing and
his is a ec ing esea ch p ocesses. I 's di icul o econcile esul s and package
knowledge ha 's expanding in di e en di ec ions hanks o new echnologies.
FQS h p://www.quali a i e- esea ch.ne /
FQS 21(3), A . 8, Es ibaliz Abe as u i-Ap aiz, Jose Miguel Co ea Go ospe & Asunción Ma ínez-A belaiz:
Resea che Vulne abili y in Doing Collabo a i e Au oe hnog aphy: Mo ing o a Pos -Quali a i e S ance
Reali y con inues o change and i 's being a ec ed by impo an p oblems in
poli ics, mig a ion, ecology, en i onmen , e c.
JM: I 's a wo ld wi h new p oblems and a new need o add ess hem om di e se
pe spec i es. S ill, as esea che s, we play a ole ha subo dina es us and makes
us docile, which doesn' b ing abou social change and ha ends o accep any
philosophy. Upse ing he esea ch pa adigm has helped me unde s and how
we' e a ec ed by he subo dina ion ha academia expec s om us. [66]
A: Gi en his si ua ion, i 's ue ha unde aking esea ch om a pos -quali a i e
posi ion is a isky p oposi ion since we don' know how i will be unde s ood o
whe e i migh i in e ms o publica ion. Howe e , I hink ha we' e add essing
he concep o agency (JACKSON & MAZZEI, 2012) by esis ing and hinking
abou wha we can do o de end ou esea ch posi ion wi hin a sys em in o de o
be able o ad oca e o change.
In his mee ing, we we e able o pe cei e he ension ha we, in ou en husias ic
and hea ed deba e abou esea ch, we e dealing wi h in con on ing a esea ch
adi ion in Spain ha is s ill ancho ed in he pas and does no o e many
oppo uni ies o di usion and ans e ence o hose who s ay om mo e
adi ional p inciples. [67]
E: Es ablishing connec ions wi h concep s equi es ano he le el o de elopmen
ha is labo - and ime-in ensi e, which is di icul o do in a commodi y sys em o
academic deg ees and acc edi a ions.
JM: When I hink abou my ajec o y du ing his second yea o esea ch, I' e
ocused on eading and w i ing, on ying o unde s and and make sense o
esea ch. In e e y ex ha we w i e, we say simila hings bu add a small
con ibu ion each ime. And I mus admi ha I enjoy i and I ake g ea e
owne ship o my esea ch each ime.
A: I is ue ha you need o make you esea ch. [68]
JM: Del ing in o o he posi ions and ha ing a connec ion wi h a esea che like
E., who comes om he ield o Fine A s, has helped me make his mo e. I' e
el he need o sha e and expe ience a dialogued mee ing in o de o come
close o he amilia i y ha you ha e wi h he a is ic model, and ha has helped
me unde s and i . [69]
A: Tha is whe e b oke ing comes in wi hin a mixed g oup o esea che s om
di e en ields, which is necessa y o ackling he esea ch ques ion in all i s
complexi y om di e en pe spec i es o iews. Sha ing his dialog en iches us.
By un eiling he abo e con e sa ion, we seek o place he eade be o e he
posi ion o each esea che , acili a ing new connec ions om ou collec i e
encoun e . In addi ion, he unce ain y, he lack o clea ce ain ies, ha he
esea che s wo ked wi h can be disce ned. The e lec ions in he indi idual ooms
e ol ed owa d b oade concep s, allowing us o connec he d i owa d he
pos -quali a i e wi h w i ing and c ea i e and a is ic p ac ices. The me apho o
FQS h p://www.quali a i e- esea ch.ne /
FQS 21(3), A . 8, Es ibaliz Abe as u i-Ap aiz, Jose Miguel Co ea Go ospe & Asunción Ma ínez-A belaiz:
Resea che Vulne abili y in Doing Collabo a i e Au oe hnog aphy: Mo ing o a Pos -Quali a i e S ance
he li ing oom helps e eal he p ocesses in ol ed and make he con e sa ion
isible; i is a space o encoun e , o ups and downs, which becomes delimi ed
h ough he eadings, dialog, and new connec ions ha c ea i e p ac ices o e
us. [70]
6. Final Re lec ions
We a e now a he end o his ex , in which we na a ed ou esea ch jou ney,
wi h i s dilemmas and ensions, whe e we ha e aken on he challenge o w i ing
openly abou ou esea ch e o s. Ou pos -quali a i e u n has led us o
sc u inize he ole ha heo y, da a, subjec and me hodology (along wi h many
o he dimensions o esea ch) ha e adi ionally played in ou wo k. This new kind
o posi ioning has led us o explo e, using he so-called "pos " heo ies (ST.
PIERRE, 2013), he e i o y o epis emic di e si y ha we we e seeking o
add ess in ou wo k; whe e di e se heo e ical posi ions co-exis bu in logical
cohe ence wi h a scena io ha equi es new esea ch app oaches (COLEMAN,
2017). The oppo uni ies o imagine esea ch, ollowing JACKSON and MAZZEI
(2012), led us o analyze ou e hical posi ion o using mo e inclusi e p ocedu es
in esea ch in o de o make oom no only o he oices, iewpoin s, and
conce ns o all esea ch pa icipan s bu also o pay a en ion o he limi a ions we
esea che s ace in a wo ld ha is complex and whe e esea ch p ac ice is
con inually changing, equi ing us o cons an ly ans o m and lea n. [71]
The suppo p o ided by CAE has been ins umen al in he analysis o ou
ulne abili y as i ela es o ou analysis o he ype o conce ns, limi a ions, and
ensions ega ding academia and esea ch we expe ienced while inco po a ing
pos -quali a i e and a is ic pe spec i es, because CAE has o e ed us he
possibili y o main aining a collabo a i e ela ionship wi h he O he , in his case,
ou ellow esea ch eam membe s, in o de o lea n mo e (wi h he o he s) abou
ou sel es (DENZIN, 2016). Wi h ega d o he i s ques ion ha guided ou
inqui y, we analyzed he ulne abili y o esea che s denied any ision o eali y
o he han ha claimed by Wes e n hegemonic epis emology, which hides i s
class, cul u al, poli ical and gende o igins and which has se ed o jus i y he
ac ions o he g oups ha subsc ibe o hem. The pos -quali a i e u n has led us
o e ise ou esea ch e hics and powe ela ionships, as well as he scien i ic
p ejudices ha dicho omize knowledge and access o i . I has compelled us o
igh agains ce ain widesp ead s e eo ypes in educa ional esea ch ha
encou age he con inued sepa a ion o he esea che om ha which is
esea ched, pe pe ua ing he sys ema ic sea ch o scien i ic objec i i y. In
ques ioning ou academic subo dina ion and accep ing ou pe iphe al s a us and
ulne abili y as esea che s, we ha e commi ed ou sel es o he p ocess o
ans o ming knowledge by making i si ua ed, co po eal, ansi i e, based on he
ela ionship be ween he esea che and he esea ched, ho izon al, dialogic and
inclusi e. In ende ing an accoun o ou p ocesses o esis ance, we ha e
e lec ed on he epis emological coloniza ion (SANTOS, 2017 [2014]) ha
in alida es all al e na i e knowledge ha alls ou side he s anda ds se by
hegemonic science, buil om he needs o capi alis and colonial domina ion and
he quashing o any o he ision o eali y. [72]
FQS h p://www.quali a i e- esea ch.ne /
FQS 21(3), A . 8, Es ibaliz Abe as u i-Ap aiz, Jose Miguel Co ea Go ospe & Asunción Ma ínez-A belaiz:
Resea che Vulne abili y in Doing Collabo a i e Au oe hnog aphy: Mo ing o a Pos -Quali a i e S ance
Wi h ega d o ou second esea ch ques ion, he ole ha CAE has played in ou
inqui y has made us mo e awa e o esea che s' ulne abili y in hese imes o
change and ans o ma ion hanks o i s decons uc i e, democ a ic and
decolonizing p ac ice. I is decons uc i e because i ele a es he oices o he
pa icipan s hemsel es as co- esea che s and co-gene a o s o da a abou hei
own li ed eali ies and i makes us awa e o he implica ions associa ed wi h he
use o esea ch app oaches, me hods and s a egies. The p ac ice is democ a ic
in ha analyzing and unco e ing powe di e en ials made us awa e o he powe
ela ionships ha suppo ce ain esea ch p ac ices, hus os e ing
ans o ma ions ha a e mo e inclusi e and pa icipa o y. And he p ac ice is
decolonizing in ha i has helped us link ou expe iences and li e s o ies o he
s uc u al and sys ema ic p oblems ha deny esea che s oice, access, powe
and p i ilege. CAE has gi en us ools o collabo a ion, he eby os e ing empa hy
and c ea ing a sa e space o exchange and connec ion and suppo ing ou
inqui y in o he academic, social and cul u al con ex wi hin which we as
educa ional esea che s s udy pe sonal and ins i u ional esis ances in ligh o he
e hical and on o-epis emological change ha we ace in his e e -changing wo ld
as well as he in e es s and mo i a ions o which hey espond. [73]
Wi h his a icle we do no aim o p esen a model; ins ead, we desc ibe an
exe cise o CAE in which we mo ed owa d a esea ch posi ion ha is s ill
p eca ious and unde cons uc ion. We belie e ha isualizing his ansi ion is an
ac o hones y ha can help o he esea che s unde s and hei own p ocesses
and pe haps apply some o he ideas p esen ed he e o hei own esea ch. I is
no ou in en ion o p esen a way o doing, bu a he we wan o show how we
a e going abou add essing ou own esea ch ques ion using pos -quali a i e
posi ions and he pe sonal and collec i e consequences ha hey ha e b ough
abou . [74]
In his ega d, he bigges challenge was w i ing, whe e we used he indi idual
ooms and he li ing oom o c ea e subjec i i y, knowledge, and meanings
(BRAIDOTTI, 2014, 2019), always keeping ou esea che sel es p esen . In
addi ion, we si ua ed ou esea ch wi hin a pos mode n and VUCA socie y,
accep ing he challenge o change ou esea ch ques ions in esponse o wha is
happening socially. We expe imen ed wi h a is ic esea ch me hods, accep ing
ha he p oduc s we ha e a e no da a ha he esea che collec s o handles.
We also accep ed he immediacy o wha occu ed and ha in mo ing om he e
we adop ed LINCOLN and GUBA's (2003) concep o e lexi i y in o de o
c i ically in e oga e ou esea ch subjec i i ies. [75]
As we s a ed a he ou se , he p ocess is appealing and has awakened ou
in e es in ge ing close o pos -quali a i e discou se. Al hough we s a ed wi h
di e en mo i a ions and om di e en disciplines, we we e all in e es ed in
assuming a c i ical a i ude owa d he ways esea ch is done and how knowledge
is gene a ed, ep esen ed, and dissemina ed. We acknowledged he impo ance
ha he ins i u ional amewo k has o esea ch and esea che s and he
impo ance o a pos -quali a i e app oach o a s-based esea ch. As eache
educa o s, we spen oo many yea s looking o o he o ms o pedagogical
FQS h p://www.quali a i e- esea ch.ne /
FQS 21(3), A . 8, Es ibaliz Abe as u i-Ap aiz, Jose Miguel Co ea Go ospe & Asunción Ma ínez-A belaiz:
Resea che Vulne abili y in Doing Collabo a i e Au oe hnog aphy: Mo ing o a Pos -Quali a i e S ance
ela ionship in esea ch and eaching, and we ad oca ed wo k p ocesses ha
ake in o accoun he ex u es and nuances o he people who wo k in educa ion,
in all hei complexi y. Taking on esea che ulne abili y has been di icul
because i equi ed us o adop a c i ical awa eness o ou esea ch subjec i i ies
and accep ha conduc ing esea ch will no allow us o emain disengaged. [76]
We ha e un eiled a esea ch ension ha makes us ulne able as esea che s
bu ne e heless b ings us owa d a mo e e hical posi ion in esea ch. We belie e
ha es ablished esea che s should be he ones o engage in his way, as we
wonde whe he a no ice esea che could eally un eil his ension, gi en ha i
would heigh en his o he posi ion o ulne abili y. In sha ing hese ac u es in
esea ch, we a e coming close o a iche and mo e aluable way o doing
esea ch, especially in social and educa ional con ex s, whe e his kind o
encoun e is needed. [77]
Acknowledgmen s
This a icle is pa o he esea ch p ojec "How Ea ly Childhood and Elemen a y
School Teache s Lea n: Implica ions o Educa ion and Challenges in Facing
Social Change," unded by he Minis y o Economy and Compe i i eness o
Spain (EDU2015-70912-C2-2-R). We hank Wendy BALDWIN o he ca e ul
edi ing and he sha p in ui ion o poin o pa s o he o iginal ex ha we e no
clea and could be u he imp o ed. He help was in aluable in a i ing a he
inal o m o he a icle and making i su icien ly comp ehensible in English.
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