Using a slideshow or video of woods, woodland activities and trees is a good way to stimulate natural discussion in a group as they respond to what they see. You could use this as a follow-up method if you are researching a regular group, using pictures or video that you have taken during woodland sessions.
| Research method | Preparation time | Time to gather data | Time to analyse data | Not suitable for ... | Does data indicate wellbeing? | Who, what, where people experience wellbeing? | Is it an activity in itself? |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Slideshow or video discussion | 2-3 hours to put together slideshow or video | Fast if recording electronically | Depends on the length of the discussion – may be time consuming if it prompts a long discussion | Individuals who don’t like to talk in front of a group. Doing out in the woods unless you have laptop and a small group! | Yes, if people talk freely | Yes, with appropriate questions | Yes |
- participants who find it easier to talk as part of of a group while the focus is elsewhere (on the slideshow/video)
- participants who are more articulate and feel comfortable with others in the group.
What information is collected?
- people’s thoughts and feelings rather than observations of actual behaviour
- taking into account the bias when analysing what people say it is a way for people to be represented directly in the research – you can use direct quotes as evidence
- results may be affected by passage of time e.g. if you do this after woodland sessions, rather than during.
How is information collected?
- using video or audio recorders (video is easier to analyse as you can see who’s talking)
- you could also write notes, this is easier if you are working with someone else
- can elicit quite emotional responses e.g. to weather, being alone in the woods. This can be useful but you need to consider the effect of the rest of the group and social norms about things such as mud, rain, creepy crawlies.
Watch out for:
- videos/slideshows prompt free discussion but images and sound can be emotionally manipulating and bias your results. Using footage taken from your woodland activity might avoid this, but may cause ‘rose-tinted’ nostalgia!
- some individuals can dominate as it’s a group discussion
- you may need to steer the group if they do not talk naturally, in which case you need to prepare some prompts to avoid bias
- because this is a group activity, people may influence each other so bias creeps in
- who is present e.g. teachers, managers or authority figures might stifle some views.