Broken routines and space for breathing: using photos as a participatory and collaborative research strategy

How can visual collaborative methods advance the discussion of power relations, particularly regarding representation? The chapter explores the potential of using photos taken by Danish children and young people in care as a dialogic knowledge production about their everyday lives. When a photo-elicitation talk follows photos taken by young people, the participants are involved in creating research data and invited to be both co-defining and co-reflective (Harper, 2012). This chapter draws on a growing research tradition on visual methods in the field of youth research, an approach where involvement is the crucial activity (Gubrium & Harper, 2013; Rasmussen, 2017b; Thompson, 2008). However, often the researcher has the final say in terms of conclusion and representation. The potentials and limitations of involvement and collaboration with the young people are discussed in relation to the participatory turn (Gubrium et al., 2015).