Visual Ethnographic Research Study

Throughout the young lives of children, there are many methods that can be used to interpret and understand their respective childhoods. We can appreciate that each child has a unique way of interpreting their childhood and through different methods, they have a distinctive way of how each of them perceive their childhood to be. One excellent methodology that children can show what they recognize about their childhood to be is with the concept of photo-voice. Photo-voice grants each child the capability of capturing visual moments through the use of photographs. The methodology that I am interested in for my visual ethnographic research study is children and their toys. My research question is to establish are children's favorite toys determined by society and is based on gender assumptions. My two participants were a male and female both age six. I have selected these participants over other children as I feel that at their age they are able of successfully communicating their likes and dislikes with respect to my study. As well, their age group has been exposed to playing with a variety of toys. They are also able to articulate what their preferences are while at the same time are still sincere and honest with respect to their answers. The need to conduct this research with a male and female child was required as it gives researchers a sense of different tastes that exists between both sexes and perhaps establish if there is any relation or not between both children and their interest to toys. After conducting my field work and conducting two interviews with my two participants, I have analyzed the extensive data I was able to gather and I was able to acquire much more knowledge on this topic. In relation to child...

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... she stays home and takes care of us. I chose these three pictures because they are basically three things she uses every day. Mommy always tells me that I need to become like her one day.” This is very symbolic in terms of gender assumption and adult agendas as it gives a sense to us researchers that adults do portray great meaning into children and their toys that they play with. I also ask her why she enjoys playing with dolls and Barbie’s more than trucks and blocks. She answered “When I was little I always got told from my mom and dad that those blocks and trucks were for toys, my Barbie’s and dolls are for girls. I was never allowed to play with them” This is also another excellent example of how adult agenda really reinforces this topic of children toys and gives them an agenda of what they should play with and what is acceptable and what is not.