Photography in Psychological Research and Cultural Inquiry

This wholly novel volume introduces the idea of photography as a tool in psychological research and practice, mapping the historical connections and intersections of these two fields in order to identify ways to enrich the current methods of social psychological research.

This book posits that the interplay between subject and viewer that is inherent within the medium of photography is of direct importance and relevance to cultural psychology, arguing that this dialogue allows for the communication of non-verbalisable content, and the visualisation of internal thought structures, without the necessity of using words. Against this backdrop, the chapters introduce a new research method, involving photography within the process of mapping and understanding the human life course. This book explores the integration of photography into dynamic life course models based on Valsiner’s Trajectory Equifinality Approach and models, discussing how photography further fosters psychological dialogues and expands the ways we engage with visual narratives. The interpretive power of images, as well as addressing other current models, such as Visual Thinking Strategies (VTS), the Phi Phenomenon, and Self-Conceptualisation through imagination, are also examined.

Ultimately recognising photography as a key medium in our efforts to understand human behaviour and the psyche, this book will be of interest to scholars, researchers, and postgraduate students in the fields of cultural psychology, photography, and research methods in psychology specifically.