Report on PGR-convened CHASE panel on the use of digital methods in research, Dec 2020
Jack Taylor is a final-year research student in the History department and studies male on male sexual assault in late eighteenth and nineteenth century London.
Sarah Middle is a final-year research student in Classical Studies and is investigating the use of digital tools and resources by Ancient World researchers, with a specific focus on Linked Data.
For the first time, the semi-annual conference for CHASE-funded students, Encounters, recently became a virtual event, for obvious reasons. Since it was moving online, the authors of this blog post thought it appropriate to put together a panel on the use of digital methods in our research, which have become even more important lately due to social distancing rules and restrictions on archival access. Both from an Arts and Humanities background, we set out recruiting others who have benefited from digital approaches. Our panel was complete with Stuart Falconer – another research student from Classical Studies – and Andrea Smith, a research student at UEA (and previously the OU). Perhaps it should come as no surprise that current and former OU students use digital methods so prominently.
Aptly for a panel concerned with digital research methods, we incorporated both live and pre-recorded talks. Sarah kicked us off, after a welcome appearance by her 18-month-old ‘research assistant’. In her paper, Sarah spoke about the use of digital tools and resources by Ancient World researchers, particularly noting the importance that researchers gave to using digital data with the same critical perspectives as physical material. Aspects to consider include a resource’s provenance, scope, technical aspects such as formats and data models, and the user’s experience, exemplified by a quote from one participant:
“ It’s… ingrained in the way I try and do research that I need to understand where things come from, where they’ve been, and how they’ve been processed before they get to me.”
From the Ancient World we then moved forward to radio plays of Shakespeare, with Andrea sharing her experiences of searching through the vast number of newspaper and magazine reports available online, for instance in the British Newspaper Archive, Internet Archive, and BBC Shakespeare Archive. Andrea shared the resources available to scholars – such as the brilliantly named BoB (Box of Broadcasts), and BBC Genome – noting their issues and sharing her tips on getting the most out of them.
We went back in time thereafter, with Stuart relaying the challenges involved when researching the Ancient Roman World in Britain via material culture. A key thread in Stuart’s talk was the immense amount of data digitally available, and he shared the challenges involved when using such datasets, and the considerations that must be kept in mind when sifting through it all. These included establishing clear and coherent research aims, creating sound data management plans, and being decisive but also ‘sensibly ruthless’ with your data. Lastly, Jack highlighted the online resources available for historians of crime and criminal justice – including the Old Bailey Proceedings Online, co-created by the late Clive Emsley. Jack outlined the benefits and limitations of using online resources, including the difficulties of Optical Character Recognition software and digitisation of public records by commercial companies.
Leaving our talks relatively short gave plenty of time for a lively discussion, which took place via a combination of video/audio and text contributions from our audience. Many were positive about their experiences of digital research, with some having an entirely digital focus to their work and others incorporating digital tools and methods later on (often as a direct result of the pandemic). There were some additional comments about the potential for disseminating research online, as well as issues that must be considered regarding permissions and licencing.
Interview research was one of the main themes arising from our discussion, with some of us incorporating online interviews by design (e.g. due to geographical constraints), while others did so in response to the pandemic. One attendee found that the increased use of online video/audio communication in many participants’ daily lives made them more open to the idea of online interviewing and actually found it helpful in building rapport. Another agreed and suggested that, in their case, the ease of online interviewing might have been facilitated by the fact that they met and recruited their participants through a Zoom-based community: using Zoom to conduct the interviews was then a natural extension of their interaction. They also incorporated an additional chapter in their thesis to reflect on this process.
For research involving performance, however, results were more mixed. One attendee had adapted their performances for the online medium, taking inspiration from videos intended to provoke an autonomous sensory meridian response (ASMR). Some mentioned recent developments in tools for real-time collaborative online music playing, while another spoke about a more low-tech solution used in online ‘playalongs’, where everyone listens to the music played by the leader, then plays along themselves with their own sound muted. However, others pointed out that these innovations cannot replicate the immersive experience of live performances or address the impact on performers’ livelihoods as a result of the pandemic.
Finally, discussion turned to the subject of conferences themselves, with many attendees welcoming the opportunity to attend conferences that might not previously have been financially viable due to their distance. Some also spoke positively about the resulting internationalisation of conferences, in terms of their attendance and outlook (while noting the need for live translation to ensure that non-English speakers can be included). One additionally mentioned the potential positive environmental implications if this situation continues. However, others found networking at online events to be much more difficult, as there is often a need to be more ‘targeted’ in approaching people, which can feel quite uncomfortable. As a result of this discussion, several attendees suggested that future conferences should implement a ‘hybrid’ model, with a combination of face-to-face and online elements to allow flexibility, accessibility and inclusivity.
The number of attendees (which peaked at 38) and the quality of the discussion demonstrated that PhD students are increasingly finding ways to incorporate digital methods into their work, particularly (but not entirely) as a response to the pandemic. Encounters is always a big event and its virtual incarnation was no exception, with several talks, panels, and sessions running concurrently. While it may have been forced online its spirit was not dampened, and our panel showed that our virtual Encounters have as much to contribute as our physical ones.