The proliferation of smartphone technologies has considerably expanded social scientists’ methodological repertoire. Although widely recognised as flexible and powerful research tools, smartphone technologies in social science research also pose distinct ethical, practical and theoretical challenges. The numerous possibilities offered by mobile phone technologies can be often overwhelming and create uncertainty and difficulties in designing a coherent, ethical and rigorous research project. Furthermore, the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic and the associated physical distancing regulations are likely to dramatically increase the demand for mobile phone-assisted data collection practices.
This 2.5-hour virtual seminar will take place on September 17, 2020 (13:00-15:30) and aims to expand learners’ knowledge and skills related to effectively and ethically incorporating mobile phone technologies into qualitative or mixed-method research designs. Attendees will be offered practical examples highlighting key considerations in study design, multi-modal data collection, data management and analysis, ethics and procedural rigour. Attendees will be encouraged to critically examine the benefits and pitfalls of augmenting traditional qualitative research designs with mobile technologies such as mobile phone interviews, mobile phone surveys, mobile diaries, mobile ethnography and others. The presenter will also share insights into delivering multi-national mobile phone-based research with hard-to-reach groups. Attendees will be offered a compendium of relevant resources that is hoped to help expand and empower their research practice.