Haunted by images? Ethical moments and anxieties in visual research

Clark, AJ

Abstract

This paper focuses on some of the ethical challenges of working with visual material. I present a reflective discussion of
ethical moments in two research projects that made use of visual materials and techniques to demonstrate how research
ethics invariably play out differently depending on context and situation. In doing so, a situated ethic offers a useful
position from which to address the seeming dissonance between universalist and particularist ethics. However, I argue
that situated ethics are not a panacea to the ethical issues raised by visual research but rather enable resolution situated
within the contexts they arise. By reflecting on the anxieties and emotions evoked in doing visual research we can begin
to see how power, trust and emotion underpin the ethical decisions we are required to make.

Citation

Clark, A. (2013). Haunted by images? Ethical moments and anxieties in visual research. Methodological innovations on line, 8(2), 68-81. https://doi.org/10.4256/mio.2013.014

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Publication Date: Jan 1, 2013
• Deposit Date: Jul 31, 2015
• Journal: Methodological Innovations Online
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 8
• Issue: 2
• Pages: 68-81
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.4256/mio.2013.014
• Publisher URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.4256/mio.2013.014
• Related Public URLs: http://www.methodologicalinnovations.org.uk/; http://www.methodologicalinnovations.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/5.-Clark.pdf
• Additional Information: Funders : Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC);Manchester Interdisciplinary Centre for Research on Aging; Projects : National Centre for Research Methods : Real Life Methods