Communicate Your Insights
Be creative! Readers will appreciate your efforts.
Our AcWriMo focus is on originality.
This month I’m offering weekly posts to celebrate Academic Writing Month.
Week 1 Define what originality means for you and use critical and creative thinking.
Week 2 Develop a scholarly voice and find the courage to speak.
Week 3 Communicate insights. Create pictures, stories or examples.
Week 4 Encourage originality: Create a culture of inquiry in the classroom
Time to get creative!
In the last two weeks I’ve pointed to ways we develop our creative and critical thinking skills and build the confidence to speak in our own voice. This week we’ll look at some ways we communicate our ideas. Once we’ve done the work involved with building foundational knowledge in the field, analyzing and evaluating claims and evidence, we are ready to create new ideas or insights, solutions or recommendations. We want to show how the puzzle pieces fit together, and communicate complex, perhaps abstract concepts in understandable ways.
A picture is truly worth a thousand words, and let’s face it, not everyone is willing to read a thousand words! We’ll explore three visual ways to communicate about our research methods and/or findings that engage readers: maps, graphic or animated abstracts, and comics. Find resources and open access examples and if you have examples to share, add them in the comment area or discuss them in the open chat.
Maps
Maps come in a variety of forms: concept maps, mindmaps, and of course geographic maps. Concept and mind maps show relationships between main and subtopics. Geographic maps, naturally, show places and their features, whether political, social, or topographical. Geographic maps can be used to locate phenomena or events. or show movement between places.
Long ago I had the good fortune of studying with Dr. Joe Novak and Dr. Bob Gowin at Cornell University. I still have their book, Learning How to Learn! It is one of a very select few that I have kept all these years. More importantly perhaps, I kept using what they taught as the original advocates for concept maps.
Concept maps are graphical tools for organizing and representing knowledge. They include concepts, usually enclosed in circles or boxes of some type, and relationships between concepts indicated by a connecting line linking two concepts. Words on the line, referred to as linking words or linking phrases, specify the relationship between the two concepts.
Mind maps use similar techniques but can be oriented in circular and other formats.
Mind maps are built around a single central topic. Tree-like branches make up a mind map. They can expand and grow as you develop your ideas. Each branch shows information organized as topics and subtopics.
If you are familiar with my work you know I make extensive use of concept and mind maps! The tool I use is Mindmanager, which is somewhat expensive but does have a discount for educators.
To learn more, explore these open-access journal articles about communicating with maps
T Beel, J., & Langer, S. (2011, September). An exploratory analysis of mind maps. In Proceedings of the 11th ACM symposium on Document engineering (pp. 81-84).
Abstract. The results presented in this paper come from an exploratory study of 19,379 mind maps created by 11,179 users from the mind mapping applications 'Docear' and 'MindMeister'. The objective was to find out how mind maps are structured and which information they contain.
Ale Ebrahim, Nader, Introduction to the Research Tools Mind Map (June 14, 2013). Research World, Vol. 10, No. 4, pp. 1-3,, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2280007
Abstract. With the increasing use of information and communications technology (ICT), researchers are able to use computer software tools to find, organise, manipulate, analyse, and share relevant information. However, there are hundreds of such tools to select from, for various research-related uses.
Ito-Jaeger, S., Lane, G., Dowthwaite, L., Webb, H., Patel, M., Rawsthorne, M., Portillo, V., Jirotka, M., & Perez Vallejos, E. (2023). TrustScapes: A Visualisation Tool to Capture Stakeholders’ Concerns and Recommendations About Data Protection, Algorithmic Bias, and Online Safety. International Journal of Qualitative Methods, 22. https://doi.org/10.1177/16094069231186965
Abstract. This paper presents a new methodological approach, TrustScapes, an open access tool designed to identify and visualise stakeholders’ concerns and policy recommendations on data protection, algorithmic bias, and online safety for a fairer and more trustworthy online world.
Jacobson, D., & Mustafa, N. (2019). Social Identity Map: A Reflexivity Tool for Practicing Explicit Positionality in Critical Qualitative Research. International Journal of Qualitative Methods, 18. https://doi.org/10.1177/1609406919870075
Abstract. The way that we as researchers view and interpret our social worlds is impacted by where, when, and how we are socially located and in what society. The position from which we see the world around us impacts our research interests, how we approach the research and participants, the questions we ask, and how we interpret the data. In this article, we argue that it is not a straightforward or easy task to conceptualize and practice positionality. We have developed a Social Identity Map that researchers can use to explicitly identify and reflect on their social identity to address the difficulty that many novice critical qualitative researchers experience when trying to conceptualize their social identities and positionality.
Kinchin, I. M., Streatfield, D., & Hay, D. B. (2010). Using Concept Mapping to Enhance the Research Interview. International Journal of Qualitative Methods, 9(1), 52-68. https://doi.org/10.1177/160940691000900106
Abstract. In this paper the authors report the use of concept mapping as a means of summarizing interview transcripts in the study of the information-seeking behavior of employees in an organization. Concept mapping differs from traditional methods of textual coding for interview analysis by making underlying cognitive structures transparent and giving a focus to the sets of propositions by which individuals construct meaning.
Parikh, N. D. (2015). Mind map and concept map as complementary tools for teaching. The International Journal of Indian Psychology, 2(4), 147-158.
Abstract. In this article, Novak's concept mapping technique is compared to Tony Buzan’s mind mapping technique. The application parameters and the respective advantages and disadvantages for two formats for learning and knowledge sharing are reviewed and discussed. It is argued that the combination of these two visualization types can play to the strength of each one.
Petersen, C. J., Russel, D. J., Jensen, A., Pedersen, A. B., Banzhaf, E., & Kaltenegger, I. (2024). Walkable Maps and Policy Innovation for Nature: A Novel Methodology for Understanding Policy Learning. International Journal of Qualitative Methods, 23. https://doi.org/10.1177/16094069241254006
Abstract. Methodological innovation is needed that actively engages a range of policy makers in policy learning to address the climate and biodiversity crises. We developed Walkable Floor Map Policy Workshops (WFMPWs) as a way of engaging policy makers in policy learning towards NBS innovation in their local context. This paper examines WFMPW methodology for NBS through an analysis of three WFMPWs in three European urban case study sites.
Visual Abstracts
Animation is a form of visual communication and digital storytelling that can complement academic writing. Dr. Tullio Rossi advocates creating visual or graphic abstracts to promote academic writing.
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His organization, Animate Your Science, is dedicated to working with researchers to improve their communications. He chatted with me about this approach in a 2019 interview. See a free online course, Visible or Vanish: How to Unleash the Impact of Your Research, and download the Graphical Abstract guide.
To learn more, explore these open-access journal articles about animation and research communication.
Bates, C., Moles, K., & Kroese, L. M. (2023). Animating sociology. The Sociological Review, 71(5), 976-991. https://doi.org/10.1177/00380261231156688
Abstract. This article outlines the collaborative process of making a watercolour animation drawn from research with women who swim wild in rivers, lakes and seas. Discussing graphic storytelling in sociology, anthropology and related disciplines, we share our experiences of creative collaboration, describing in detail the practical process of making a research-led animation to share with the wider swimming community and situating the project within a larger discussion of graphic and public ethnography, live methods and the possibilities of representation. The article contributes to the ways we can make methods lively and shows how we can both literally and metaphorically animate sociology.
Bradford, L. E. A., & Bharadwaj, L. A. (2015). Whiteboard animation for knowledge mobilization: a test case from the Slave River and Delta, Canada. International Journal of Circumpolar Health, 74(1), 28780. doi:10.3402/ijch.v74.28780 (Open access version here.)
Abstract. To present the co-creation of a whiteboard animation video, an enhanced e-storytelling technique for relaying traditional knowledge interview results as narratives. We present a design for translating interview results into a script and accompanying series of figures, followed by technical steps to create a whiteboard animation product. Our project used content analysis and researcher triangulation, followed by a collaborative process to develop an animated video to disseminate research findings. A 13-minute long whiteboard animation video was produced from a research study about changing environments in northern Canadian communities and was distributed to local people. Three challenging issues in the video creation process including communication issues, technical difficulties and contextual debate were resolved among the supporting agencies and researchers.
Callus, P. (2012). Reading Animation through the Eyes of Anthropology: A Case Study of sub-Saharan African Animation. Animation, 7(2), 113–130. https://doi.org/10.1177/1746847712439281 (Open access version here.)
Abstract. This article aims to present an argument for why anthropology could provide animation studies with a new set of critical models that move away from the dominant paradigms that currently circulate in Western academic discourse. The author discusses how these models can be drawn upon when reading animation and she utilizes supporting examples of sub-Saharan animations to promote the benefits of an interdisciplinary approach to reading animation. This approach is bidirectional, flowing from anthropology to animation studies and the reverse. Where this article shows how animation theory stands to gain from anthropology, it will also illustrate how one can include animation in the visual anthropologist’s methodology.
Cook, M., Cowan, M., & Curtis, S. (2023). Useful Animation: Iconography, Infrastructure and Impact. Animation, 18(3), 196-226. https://doi.org/10.1177/17468477231207613
Abstract. This article defines and explores the history of ‘useful animation’. Animation has found frequent application as a powerful practical and conceptual tool in professional fields requiring a versatile instrument for a variety of representational needs, from science and medicine to education and advertising. Today, forms of useful animation populate our television news, social media and urban environments in ways that are no less consequential for their having become second nature. But how did we get here? This tradition is distinct from entertainment or art and its investigation requires a revision of existing animation history, prompting new research questions and methodologies. T
Miner, J. D. (2021). Experiments in Hybrid Documentary and Indigenous Model Animation. Animation, 16(1-2), 6-20. https://doi.org/10.1177/17468477211025664
Abstract. Nonfiction has proved to be a long-term strategy of Native/First Nations filmmakers and, as this documentary tradition moves across contemporary mediums, one corner of its experimental aesthetics has focalized around animation. This article explores hybrid documentary approaches in Indigenous model animation across techniques and styles, namely digitally-supplemented stop-motion and game-based machinima.
Rose, C., & Flynn, C. (2018). Animating social work research findings: A case study of research dissemination to benefit marginalized young people. Visual Communication, 17(1), 25-46. (Open access version here.)
Abstract. Findings in social work research are often disseminated in a manner that excludes the subjects of that research. In the SHINE for Kids – MyLifeNow research collaboration between a social work researcher, a communication design researcher and communication design students, research findings were animated in a variety of styles for distribution by the charitable organization. SHINE for Kids is a non-profit organization that assists and advocates for children with parents in prison. Transcripts of social work interviews with the children were modified into screenplays to be animated by communication design students. The animated documentary has advantages over the expository documentary mode, including protecting the identity of the subject and creating an affective video that constitutes a dual-process model of entertainment providing for a more socially connected pleasure.
Comics and Graphic Books
Why not tell your story in a comic or graphic book?
Making a comic isn’t as labor-intensive as you might think. I discovered MakeBeliefs Comix and love using this simple tool. It is designed for kids, so it is easy to use. You can export your comic in a variety of formats. Yes, the creator is on Substack.
Lydia Wysocki’s research focuses on “comics as a medium of words and pictures in sequence.”
When I managed Sage Methodspace I invited Lydia to contribute a 3-part series of posts about doing and communicating research with comics:
Dr. Helen Kara, author of numerous books about creative research methods and convener of the International Creative Research Methods Conference worked with students at Staffordshire University to create an animation: Rowan the rigorous research rabbit. Download the comic Helen developed, Conversation With A Purpose. Find instructions for printing it here. The comic includes discussion questions for use in the classroom.
To learn more, explore these open-access journal articles about comics and research communication.
Abd el-Gawad, H., & Stevenson, A. (2021). Egypt’s dispersed heritage: Multi-directional storytelling through comic art. Journal of Social Archaeology, 21(1), 121–145. https://doi.org/10.1177/1469605321992929
Abstract. This paper responds to a need to address the colonial history of collections of Egyptian archaeology and to find new ways in which Egyptian audiences can assume greater agency in such a process. The ‘Egypt’s Dispersed Heritage’ project presents a model of engagement whereby foreign museum collections become the inspiration for Egyptians to express their own feelings about the removal of their heritage abroad using idioms and traditional storytelling of cultural relevance to them. A series of online comics confronting contentious heritage issues, including the display of mummified human remains, eugenics, looting and destruction, is discussed. It is argued that this approach is not only more relatable for Egyptian communities, but moreover provides space for the development of grass-roots critique of heritage practices, both in the UK and in Egypt. Museums have a responsibility to take on board these critiques, curating not just objects but relationships forged amongst them in historical and contemporary society.
Darnhofer, I. (2018). Using Comic-Style Posters for Engaging Participants and for Promoting Researcher Reflexivity. International Journal of Qualitative Methods. https://doi.org/10.1177/1609406918804716
Abstract. Visual methods, including drawn images such as comics, are receiving increasing attention in qualitative research. Indeed, comics are a highly accessible form of visual data, and through the intermingling of words and images they are well suited to convey the multidimensionality of real life. Drawing on a research project, I reflect on the potential of comic-style posters to engage participants in a workshop setting. The aim was to receive feedback on preliminary results, and the posters were very effective to fuel discussions, thus promoting social sense-making. Moreover, the process of designing the comic posters encouraged reflexivity within the research team. The work of visualizing results spurred discussions and surfaced implicit assumptions tied to methods for analyzing data and communicating results. These experiences indicate the creative potential of comic-style drawings for encouraging a more playful approach to discuss and share results of qualitative research with diverse audiences.
Emmerson, P. (2016). Doing comic geographies. Cultural Geographies, 23(4), 721–725. https://doi.org/10.1177/1474474016630967
Abstract. This article reflects on how notions of ‘the comic’ may be of added value to geographers’ research. It is formed around the idea that there are aspects of space and society that are by nature incongruous and unsuitable to be understood through frameworks of scholarship that privilege ‘reason’ and objectivity above all else. The author thus reflects on how these notions of ‘the comic’ as a mode of thought can be applied to understanding different fields of research. Ultimately, the article draws out how using this comic mode also forms an ‘inward’ reflective process which can help to understand the often complicated positions that researchers hold. This article thus calls for an inclusion of the often otherwise ignored comic aspects of the world into scholarship so that we, as geographers, may provide fuller and more human critical analyses of space, culture and society.
Khanolainen, D., & Semenova, E. (2020). School Bullying Through Graphic Vignettes: Developing a New Arts-Based Method to Study a Sensitive Topic. International Journal of Qualitative Methods. https://doi.org/10.1177/1609406920922765
Abstract. The purpose of this study was to develop a new arts-based measure assessing school bullying and to test it within a pilot study involving 19 schoolchildren (mean age = 15.4; range = 1.00). The researchers designed the new methodological tool (referred to as graphic vignettes) as a set of incomplete comic strips, which participants were asked to complete in a creative way. Researchers then invited participants to engage in follow-up interviews using completed comic strips as individualized interview prompts. The authors detail the design and administration of the graphic vignettes and discuss their efficacy, limitations, and potential applications. The researchers argue that studies on sensitive topics can benefit from a wider dissemination of this arts-based research method. They also assert that the use of creatively co-constructed interview prompts individualizes participant–researcher interactions, placing the power in the hands of participants. The article aims to inspire further development of graphic vignettes.
Kuttner, P. J., Weaver-Hightower, M. B., & Sousanis, N. (2021). Comics-based research: The affordances of comics for research across disciplines. Qualitative Research, 21(2), 195–214. https://doi.org/10.1177/1468794120918845
Abstract. Comics have long been a focus of scholarly inquiry. In recent years, this interest has taken a methodological turn, with scholars integrating comics creation into the research process itself. In this article, the authors begin to define and document this emerging, interdisciplinary field of methodological practice. They lay out key affordances that comics offers researchers across the disciplines, arguing that certain characteristics—multimodality, blending of sequential and simultaneous communication, emphasis on creator voice—afford powerful tools for inquiry. The authors finish by offering some questions and challenges for the field as it matures.
Viljoen, J.-M., & Zolkos, M. (2021). Reimagining cultural memory of the arctic in the graphic narratives of Oqaluttuaq. Memory Studies. https://doi.org/10.1177/17506980211037283
Abstract. The Greenlandic oral story-telling tradition, Oqaluttuaq, meaning “history,” “legend,” and “narrative,” is recognized as an important entry point into Arctic collective memory. The graphic artist Nuka K. Godtfredsen and his literary and scientific collaborators have used the term as the title of graphic narratives published from 2009 to 2018 and focused on four moments or ‘snippets’ from Greenland’s history (from the periods of Saqqaq, late Dorset, Norse settlement, and European colonization).
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