Elyse Warner

Exploring the Suburban Ideal Residents’ Experiences of Photo Elicitation Interviewing (PEI)

This article reports on how photo elicitation interviewing (PEI) was experienced by eight participants in a qualitative phenomenological study of suburban lived experiences. Adopting a respondent-controlled approach, participants were required to photograph at least 10 aspects of their suburb that they perceived to be good and problematical and then explain the meaning of their images as part of a follow-up interview. This discussion also involved in-depth reflection on the photography exercise itself, with analysis revealing that taking photographs was perceived to be a purposeful exercise that offered a range of benefits. It gave a new perspective and appreciation for the community, while also helping to ensure their meanings were conveyed to the interviewers. The photography task was not without challenges. While some of these challenges influenced the images captured, the findings of this study highlight the importance for qualitative researchers who use PEI to not only consider the benefits and limitations for the research but also give due consideration to the experiences of the participant photographers.

The Centrality of the Australian Suburb: Mobility Challenges and Responses by Outer Suburban Residents in Melbourne

Abstract Living in the suburbs is founded on mobility, as residents move to the periphery of the city, commute to work and travel for shops, schools and leisure. While there have been numerous studies raising critical questions on the vulnerability of outer suburban residents to loneliness, financial and mortgage stress, the actual experiences and challenges posed by the dependence of suburban life on mobility is rarely singled out for attention. Through purposive sampling and then snowballing, eight outer suburban residents participated in photo-elicited interviewing to detail their lifeworlds and mobility experiences. Problems ranged from getting to work to accessing schools, shops and even neighbourhood services as the suburban car culture was embraced but also constrained patterns of movement. However, there was also an array of positive experiences and alternatives to these patterns, including the pleasures to be found in traffic jams and the suburban environment and local actions to establish new pathways and means of movement as well as set up local employment options. Mobility constraint thereby generated a range of unexpected strategies, as residents exercised their agency to shape their experiences, create alternatives and to build suburban centred lives.

“A tapestry without instructions.” Lived experiences of community in an outer suburb of Melbourne, Australia

Abstract The suburbs located on the metropolitan edges of Australian cities are popular residential locations, but concerns have been raised about social isolation in these developing communities. This paper explores residents’ lived experiences of community in an outer-suburb of Melbourne using a phenomenological approach and photo-elicited interviews. Nine participants photographed positive and less favourable aspects of their suburb and these images were used to guide in-depth interviews. Findings indicated that participants’ views on what it meant to be a community and how they went about making social connections did not align exclusively with concepts of community saved, lost or liberated, but included broad aspirations around community building, helping and being helped by strangers and online place-based relationships. Overall, residents’ experiences were complex suggesting researchers, government and developers alike need to pay closer attention to how residents themselves create community in new and evolving suburbs.

High-rise parenting: experiences of families in private, high-rise housing in inner city Melbourne and implications for children’s health

ABSTRACT Families raising children in private, high-rise, housing are a new phenomenon in Australian cities. This study explored their experiences and the implications of these findings for children’s health. Parents’ experiences of raising preschool age children in private, high-rise housing (3 storeys or more) in one, inner city Melbourne municipality were explored using the participatory research method Photovoice. Ten parents photographed aspects of their development and neighbourhood perceived to have positive or negative impacts on raising young children. Parents participated in both individual and group interviews about their photographs and key themes were determined. 120 images and over 15 hours of interview material were collected. Three themes were developed from the interviews and photographs relating to: (1) space (2) density and (3) design of housing complexes. The health implications of these experiences were discussed with regards to social ecology theory. Microsystem influences on children’s health included the safety of windows, balconies and car parks, along with exposure to sunlight, noise and places to play. Exosystem influences included the opportunity inner city, high-rise housing provided in maintaining work/family balance. Macrosystem influences included policy on apartment design, which while improving over time (chronosystem influence), is still not directed to families raising children.