Narrative inquiry is grounded in the view that human beings make sense of their lives through stories. More than a method for collecting and analysing narratives, it is a way of inquiring into experience that attends to the temporal, social, and contextual dimensions of people's lives. As narrative inquiry continues to gain prominence across the social sciences, many researchers remain uncertain about how to move from an interest in stories to the conduct of a rigorous narrative inquiry study. This workshop addresses that gap by providing a practical and theoretically informed introduction to narrative inquiry.
Drawing on the facilitator's doctoral research and examples from published narrative studies, this interactive workshop introduces participants to the principles and practices of narrative inquiry and provides opportunities to apply them to their own research interests.
The workshop will progress through a series of interconnected stages. I will begin by introducing the philosophical and methodological foundations of narrative inquiry and discussing what distinguishes narrative inquiry from other qualitative approaches. Using examples from published studies, participants will explore how narrative inquiry moves beyond the collection of stories to the study of lived experience through the dimensions of temporality, sociality, and place.
I will then guide participants in formulating narrative research puzzles and considering how narrative inquiry can be used to investigate experience, identity, relationships, and meaning-making. Drawing on examples from my own doctoral research, I will introduce a range of narrative data-generation approaches, including narrative frames, interviews, written narratives, and reflective accounts. Participants will examine examples of these tools, discuss their strengths and limitations, and consider their suitability for different research contexts.
Next, participants will work with excerpts from narrative data and engage in guided activities designed to introduce key principles of narrative analysis and interpretation. Through small-group discussion and collaborative reflection, participants will explore how researchers construct meaning from narratives while remaining attentive to participants' voices and experiences.
The workshop will then focus on issues of reflexivity, relational ethics, representation, and trustworthiness in narrative inquiry. Participants will be invited to reflect on the role of the researcher in narrative inquiry and discuss practical and ethical challenges that arise when working with narrative data.
In the final stage, participants will develop a preliminary narrative inquiry design relevant to their own research interests and receive feedback from peers and the facilitator. By the end of the workshop, participants will have developed a practical understanding of narrative inquiry as both a methodology and a way of inquiring into experience. They will leave with a framework for designing narrative inquiry studies, a curated set of resources, and adaptable tools that can be applied to their own research contexts.
The workshop is suitable for postgraduate students, early-career researchers, and established scholars from diverse social science disciplines. No prior experience with narrative inquiry is required.