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“The Handbook presents a collection of innovative essays that show the results that can be achieved through ABR with its variety of different perspectives….The sharing of experience makes the Handbook a useful collection of practical ‘how-to’ articles, which help to plant seeds of inspiration in the minds of other researchers who are considering making use of ABR.”

—International Journal of Arts Education (on the first edition)


“In its second edition, this user-friendly work features updated references and examples across nine multifaceted sections, with new chapters on global perspectives, critical approaches, and more. The Handbook combines theoretical foundations with practical applications, addressing essential topics such as evaluation, writing, ethics, and publishing. It equips researchers with innovative tools and methods for seeing, thinking, and communicating, using forms ranging from novels and screenplays to visual arts and multimedia. This volume highlights the potential of ABR to challenge stereotypes, cultivate empathy, and amplify marginalized voices. It is a vital resource for fostering creativity and innovation across research communities.”

—P. Bruce Uhrmacher, PhD, Morgridge College of Education (Emeritus), University of Denver


“Like the authoritative first edition, the second edition of this handbook includes innovative contributions from distinguished international scholars and artists. Each chapter offers creative, rigorous methods for investigating and documenting the human condition in intriguing ways. Students in the social sciences, education, health care, business, communication, and the arts will find inspiration and guidance. This state-of-the-art resource continues to broaden the landscape and literature of qualitative research through its exemplary methodologies for representing social insight.”

—Johnny Saldaña, MFA, School of Music, Dance, and Theatre (Emeritus), Arizona State University


“Another milestone in the evolution of ABR, the second edition of this handbook continues to inspire and inform. Leavy firmly locates ABR as a paradigmatic way of knowing and understanding. The volume is rich with examples across genres and disciplines. Written and presented with careful attention to language, chapters strike a balance between strong theoretical positionings and vivid illustrations of process and form. Reading the Handbook may very well be a transformative experience—readers are introduced to a world of possibilities in/through research.”

—Ardra Cole, EdD, Faculty of Education, Mount Saint Vincent University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada


“The expanded second edition of the Handbook is a valuable text for a range of audiences, from students searching for an entry point into the field to seasoned scholars in need of a comprehensive resource. Covering a wide array of methods, genres, areas of study, and perspectives, this reader-friendly guide will certainly be useful for those interested in research that aims to transcend disciplinary boundaries, dissolve tired dichotomies, and break new ground.”

—James Christopher Head, PhD, College of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences, University of West Georgia

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Table of Contents

I. The Field

1. Introduction to Arts-Based Research, Patricia Leavy

2. Philosophical and Practical Foundations of Artistic Inquiry: Creating Paradigms, Methods, and Presentations Based in Art, Shaun McNiff

3. A/r/tography as Living Inquiry, Rita Irwin, Natalie LeBlanc, Jee Yeon Ryu, & George Belliveau

4. Dreaming Bigger: Culturally Congruent and Contemplative Approaches to Arts-Based Research, Kakali Bhattacharya

5. Creative Arts Therapies and Arts-Based Research, Cathy A. Malchiodi

6. Creativity and Imagination: Research as World Making!, Celiane Camargo-Borges

II. Literary Genres

7. Narrative Inquiry, Mark Freeman

8. The Art of Autoethnography, Tony E. Adams & Stacy Holman Jones

9. Revisiting “Long Story Short”: Encounters with Creative Nonfiction as Methodological Provocation, Anita Sinner, Erika Hasebe-Ludt, & Carl Leggo

10. Social Fiction, Patricia Leavy

11. Poetic Inquiry: Poetry as/in/for Social Research, Sandra L. Faulkner

III. Performance Genres

12. A/r/tographic Inquiry in a New Tonality: The Relationality of Music and Poetry, Peter Gouzouasis

13. Living, Moving, and Dancing: Embodied Ways of Inquiry, Celeste Snowber

14. Ethnodrama and Ethnotheatre, Joe Salvatore

15. Reflections on the Techniques and Tones of Playbuilding by a Director/Actor/Researcher/Teacher, Joe Norris

IV. Visual Arts

16. Arts-Based Visual Research, Gunilla Holm, Fritjof Sahlström, & Harriet Zilliacus

17. Drawing, Painting, and Story as Research, Barbara J. Fish

18. Collage as Arts-Based Research, Victoria Scotti & Gioia Chilton

19. Installation Art: The Voyage Never Ends, Jennifer L. Lapum

20. How to Draw Comics the Scholarly Way: Creating Comics-Based Research in the Academy, Marcus B. Weaver-Hightower, Paul J. Kuttner, & Nick Sousanis

V. Audiovisual Arts

21. Film as Research/Research as Film, Trevor Hearing & Kip Jones

22. Documentary Film as Arts-Based Research, Yehudit Silverman

VI. Multimethod and Team Approaches

23. Art-Based Inquiry of Marine Debris in Education for Sustainability, Karin Stoll, Wenche Sørmo, & Mette Gårdvik

24. Multimethod Arts-Based Research: Considerations of Space and Place in Arts Research, Jaime Lynn Rice & Susan Finley

VII. Arts-Based Research within Disciplines or Area Studies

25. Arts-Based Research in Education, James Haywood Rolling, Jr.

26. An Overview of Arts-Based Research in Sociology, Anthropology, and Psychology, Jessica Smartt Gullion & Lisa Schäfer

27. Deepening the Mystery of Arts-Based Research in the Health Sciences, Jennifer L. Lapum

28. Arts-Based Research in the Natural Sciences, Rebecca Kamen

29. Learning from Aesthetics: Unleashing Untapped Potential in Business, Keiko Krahnke, Donald Gudmundson, & Isaac Wanasika

VIII. Perspectives from Around the Globe

30. Arts-Based Research Traditions and Orientations in Europe: Perspectives from Finland and Spain, Anniina Suominen, Mira Kallio-Tavin, & Fernando Hernández-Hernández

31. Arts-Based Practices in Taiwan: An Agency for Change, Yichien Cooper

32. Personal Reflections on 10 Years of Arts-Based Research Practice in Japan, Masayuki Okahara

33. The London Arts-Based Research Centre: The Creative Psyche as Knowledge Generator, Roula-Maria Dib

IX. Additional Considerations

34. Criteria for Evaluating Arts-Based Research, Patricia Leavy

35. Translation in Arts-Based Research, Nancy Gerber

36. Arts-Based Writing: The Performance of Our Lives, Vittoria S. Daiello, Candace Jesse Stout, & Dani Clark

37. Art, Agency, and Ethics in Research: A Posthumanist Vision of Goodness in Arts Based Research, Jerry Rosiek

38. Seeing More: Aesthetic-Based Research as Pedagogy of Self-Cultivation, Liora Bresler

39. The Pragmatics of Publishing the Experimental Text, Norman K. Denzin

40. Going Public: The Reach and Impact of Ethnographic and Academic Research, Sarah Abbott &Phillip Vannini

Conclusion

41. On Realizing the Promise of Arts-Based Research, Patricia Leavy

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About the Editor

Patricia Leavy, PhD, is an independent sociologist, novelist, and former Chair of Sociology and Criminology and Founding Director of Gender Studies at Stonehill College in Easton, Massachusetts. She is the author, coauthor, or editor of 40 nonfiction and fiction books, which have received numerous awards and have been translated into multiple languages. She has served as the creator and editor of 10 book series and is cofounder of the journal Art/Research International. For her work in the field of research methods, Dr. Leavy has received honors including the Distinguished Service Outside the Profession Award from the National Art Education Association, the New England Sociologist of the Year Award from the New England Sociological Association, the Special Achievement Award from the American Creativity Association, the Significant Contribution to Educational Measurement and Research Methodology Award from Division D of the American Educational Research Association (AERA), the Outstanding Achievement in Arts and Learning Award from the Arts and Learning Special Interest Group of the AERA, and the Special Career Award from the International Congress of Qualitative Inquiry. The School of Fine and Performing Arts at the State University of New York at New Paltz has established the Patricia Leavy Award for Art and Social Justice in her honor. Dr. Leavy delivers invited lectures and keynote addresses at universities and conferences. Her website is www.patricialeavy.com.

• Author's website
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Contributors

Sarah Abbott, MFA, DSocSci, Department of Film, Faculty of Media, Art, and Performance, University of Regina, Regina, SK, Canada

Tony E. Adams, PhD, Department of Communication, Bradley University, Peoria, IL

George Belliveau, PhD, Department of Language and Literacy Education, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada

Kakali Bhattacharya, PhD, School of Human Development and Organizational Studies in Education, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL

Liora Bresler, PhD, Department of Curriculum and Instruction, College of Education, University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign, Champaign, IL

Celiane Camargo-Borges, PhD, Breda University of Applied Sciences, Breda, The Netherlands

Gioia Chilton, PhD, ATR-BC, LCPAT, Art Therapy Program, Columbian College of Arts and Sciences, The George Washington University, Washington, DC

Dani Clark, MA, private practice, Cincinnati, OH

Wesley Cohoon, PhD, Department of Sociology, Midwestern State University, Wichita Falls, TX

Yichien Cooper, PhD, Department of Teaching and Learning, College of Education, Washington State University, Tri-Cities, Richland, WA

Vittoria S. Daiello, PhD, College of Design, Architecture, Art, and Planning, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH

Norman K. Denzin, PhD (deceased), College of Communications, University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign, Urbana, IL

Roula-Maria Dib, PhD, London Arts-Based Research Centre, London, United Kingdom

Sandra L. Faulkner, PhD, School of Media and Communication, Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, OH

Susan Finley, PhD, Department of Education and Public Affairs, Washington State University, Pullman and Vancouver, WA

Barbara J. Fish, PhD, Department of Art Therapy and Counseling, Saint Mary of the Woods College, Terre Haute, IN; Department of Creative Arts Therapy, Syracuse University, Syracuse, NY

Mark Freeman, PhD, Department of Psychology, College of the Holy Cross, Worcester, MA; Department of Formative Education and Center for the Psychological Humanities and Ethics, Boston College, Boston, MA

Mette Gårdvik, DProf, Arts Education, Faculty of Education and Arts, Nord University Nesna Campus, Nesna, Norway

Nancy Gerber, PhD, Creative Arts Therapies Department, College of Nursing and Health Professions, Drexel University, Philadelphia, PA

Peter Gouzouasis, PhD, Department of Curriculum and Pedagogy, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada

Donald Gudmundson, PhD, Department of Management, Monfort College of Business, University of Northern Colorado, Greeley, CO

Jessica Smartt Gullion, PhD, Department of Sociology and Social Work, Texas Woman’s University, Denton, TX

Erika Hasebe-Ludt, PhD, Faculty of Education, University of Lethbridge, Lethbridge, AL, Canada

Trevor Hearing, PhD, Faculty of Media and Communication, Bournemouth University, Bournemouth, United Kingdom

Fernando Hernández-Hernández, PhD, Section of Arts and Visual Culture, Faculty of Fine Arts, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain

Gunilla Holm, PhD, Faculty of Educational Sciences, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland

Rita L. Irwin, EdD, Department of Curriculum and Pedagogy, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada

Kip Jones, PhD, Faculties of Media and Communication and Health and Social Sciences, Bournemouth University, Bournemouth, United Kingdom

Stacy Holman Jones, PhD, School of Languages, Literatures, Cultures and Linguistics, Monash University, Melbourne, Australia

Mira Kallio-Tavin, DA, Lamar Dodd School of Art, University of Georgia, Athens, GA

Rebecca Kamen, MFA, Northern Virginia Community College, Alexandria, VA

Keiko Krahnke, PhD, Department of Management, Monfort College of Business, University of Northern Colorado, Greeley, CO

Paul J. Kuttner, EdD, Community Campus Partnerships for Health, Malden, MA

Jennifer L. Lapum, PhD, Daphne Cockwell School of Nursing, Toronto Metropolitan University, Toronto, ON, Canada

Patricia Leavy, PhD, independent sociologist, Kennebunk, ME

Natalie LeBlanc, PhD, Department of Curriculum and Pedagogy, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada

Carl Leggo, PhD (deceased), Department of Language and Literacy Education, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada

Cathy A. Malchiodi, PhD, ATR-BC, LPAT, LPCC, REAT, Division of Expressive Therapies, Lesley University, Cambridge, MA; Trauma-Informed Practices and Expressive Arts Therapy Institute, Louisville, KY

Shaun McNiff, PhD, Lesley University, Cambridge, MA

Joe Norris, PhD, Department of Dramatic Arts, Brock University, St. Catharines, ON, Canada

Masayuki Okahara, PhD, Faculty of Letters and Graduate School of Human Relations, Keio University, Tokyo, Japan

Jaime Lynn Rice, PhD, School of Design and Construction, Washington State University, Pullman, WA

James Haywood Rolling, Jr., EdD, Department of Art Education, Syracuse University, Syracuse, NY

Jerry Rosiek, PhD, Department of Education Studies, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR

Jee Yeon Ryu, MA, Department of Curriculum and Pedagogy, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada

Fritjof Sahlström, PhD, Faculty of Educational Sciences, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland

Joe Salvatore, MFA, Department of Music and Performing Arts Professions, Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development, New York University, New York, NY

Lisa Schäfer, MA, Department of Sociology and Social Work, Texas Woman’s University, Denton, TX

Victoria Scotti, PhD, independent researcher, Valencia, Spain

Yehudit Silverman, MA, R-DMT, RDT, Department of Creative Arts Therapies, Concordia University, Montreal, QB, Canada

Anita Sinner, PhD, Faculty of Education, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada

Celeste Snowber, PhD, Faculty of Education, Simon Fraser University, Surrey, BC, Canada

Wenche Sørmo, Dr Scient, Natural Science Teaching, Faculty of Education and Arts, Nord University Nesna Campus, Nesna, Norway

Nick Sousanis, EdD, School of Humanities and Liberal Studies, San Francisco State University, San Francisco, CA

Karin Stoll, DProf, Natural Science Teaching, Faculty of Education and Arts, Nord University Nesna Campus, Nesna, Norway

Candace Jesse Stout, PhD, Department of Arts Administration, Education and Policy, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH

Anniina Suominen, PhD, School of Arts, Design and Architecture, Aalto University, Aalto, Finland

Elizabeth Toombs, MA, Department of Social Sciences and Historical Studies, Texas Woman’s University, Denton, TX

Phillip Vannini, PhD, School of Communication and Culture, Royal Roads University, Victoria, BC, Canada

Isaac Wanasika, PhD, Department of Management, Monfort College of Business, University of Northern Colorado, Greeley, CO

Marcus B. Weaver-Hightower, PhD, School of Education, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA

Harriet Zilliacus, PhD, Faculty of Educational Sciences, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland

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Audience

Qualitative researchers interested in using arts-based methods in their work; graduate students and instructors in education, sociology, psychology, communications, nursing, social work, creative arts therapies, and fine arts.

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Course Use

May serve as a reference or core book in such courses as Arts-Based Research, Interpretive Inquiry, Narrative Inquiry, Art Education, and Advanced Qualitative Research.

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Previous editions published by Guilford:

First Edition, © 2018
ISBN: 9781462540389

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New to this edition:

• Updated throughout with current research, theory, and ABR examples.
• Chapters on critical approaches to ABR and on documentary film.
• Chapters on ABR projects in Taiwan, Japan, and the United Kingdom.