Listening to Voices and Visualizing Data in Qualitative Research: Hypermodal Dissemination Possibilities

One of the tenets of qualitative research is the emphasis and honoring of the participants’ own words as generative of meaning and knowledge; yet it is rare to hear the actual voices of the research participants in a presentation or in text. 

We explain how use of the Experiencing Audio Recorded Research (EARR) model, which was developed by the presenters, can facilitate a multimodal approach to qualitative research. The use of audio clips in poster and oral presentations, as well as embedded within written manuscripts plays with the interstices between the research participants and the observer. In addition, we will provide qualitative research outcomes that have been pictorially reinterpreted in the form of am Infogram, which is an effective way of conveying a story visually.

We demonstrate how combining audio clips and infographics can be a unique hypermodal dissemination possibility for qualitative results.

Our intention in designing this “qualitative infographic” was to explore how we might present a succinct synthesis of thematic findings while honoring the voices of our participants in an integrated way. The visual elements with captions display the main themes that were important in this study and the corresponding audio map enables the audience to listen to a summary of the findings and the words of the participants. The ability to listen to direct quotations enables audiences to reflect on the nuances of meaning expressed by the participants.