Mask Making as a Research Tool

Unmasking the Method

Mercy Karuniah JesuvadianNational Institute of Education, NTU

Singapore

Nature of the ResearchAuto-ethnographic – it focused on my meaning-making and identity building processes

Questions that guided this inquiry: A) How do I perceive myself?B) What are the different factors that contribute to the ways I perceive myself?

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The Project processPlaster of Paris stripsPaints, decorative items : items with personal significance

Research journal – capture my plans/ thoughts/reflections

Time Frame: The casting (1 day) Design and reflection (on going – completion took about 2 weeks)

Decoration ( 2 weeks or so)Deconstruction and writing (1 week )

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Focus of this PresentationEffective tool to work with people whose voices may not be usually heardMinority groupsYoung children

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Why this tool: ParticipantOpen: one’s own choices, preferences and world views can be imprinted on the blank face mask.

Powerful: its one’s own face that the participant moulds

Conscious, and reflective process: time, opportunity and space to reflect on lived experiences

Empowering: selfthe final product is a synthesis of a person’s self –identity.

It can call attention to features of self that one may not have seen as important

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Why this tool?: ResearcherQualitative research - subjective experiences of actors who are embedded in context.Perception of actors are important as these perceptions encourage particular courses of action

Mind set and attitudes drive action/behaviour

In order to understand behaviour- we as researchers need to understand the person and his/her context.

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Mask making It is a very organic process: the creator is enmeshed in his media (mask);his source – life experiences in context.

It is an internal dialogue: between creator and his creation The voice of the researcher is not strident or intrusive

The researcher presents open ended research questions for the participants, explains the questions and remains largely in the background during the design and building process.

The limited presence of the researcher makes this process very non-threatening to the participant.

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Deconstruction processParticipants : are invited to share their masks to a community (class) Personal opinions, worldviews and beliefs are articulated in the process of deconstructing the masks into the constituent parts.

Researchers can be involved in this process: interlocutor positionOpen questions and prompts to get the participant to elaborate on his/her reasoning

The interpretation is the participants – the researcher seeks clarification/understanding

Participant voice is foregrounded

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ExampleWill of God – Personal Faith

Personal goals and aspirations

Personal Will Power

These symbols and their meanings are personally defined. Interpretation of these symbols should be articulated by the creator if arts-informed methods are used as means to gather data.9 mkj/2011/EduLearn

No Item Signifies

1 Red rose Gender

2 Green rose Race

3 Purple ribbon, arranged in a bow

Family socialization

4 Chain with coloured beads

Wife role

5 Delicate earring in black beads

Losses and Gains

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The deconstruction map

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LimitationThe mask making experience may throw up for the participant some disturbing or startling revelation about their self.The formative influence of the colour ‘brown’ on my self-identity

In this event and should the participant choose to discuss this with the researcher- sensitivity, empathy and a non-judgmental stance is critical.

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RecommendationsUsing masks to gather data is relatively new: It would be good to trial this method with different populations to see how its use can be fine tuned for qualitative research.

Researcher as InterlocutorThe voice of the participant needs to be foregrounded in such research work. Interpretation of the symbolic product has to be articulated by the participant rather than imposed by the researcher – especially when working with disadvantaged groups.

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Thank you!

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