Diffracting Cultural Identity: A Reflection on Arts-Based Approaches to Data Generation and Analysis with Children in a Nordic Context

A two-dimensional model of identity (ethnic identity vs. national identity) has been prominent in studies on first-generation immigrant children (Phinney, 1992; Maehler, Daikeler et. al, 2021). However, postcolonial theorist Stuart Hall (1996) proposes a theory of cultural identity where identities are viewed as multiple and fractured, the meeting place between subjectivity and societal expectations of self. In childhood studies scholars such as Spyrou (2018) and Sparrman (2020) have drawn on concepts such as multiplicity and diffraction in the construction of childhood, including the subjects, materials, affects, discourses and images associated.

In this paper I draw on arts-based approaches to data collection and analysis in working with children to understand processes of identification. Participants in the research study answered questions about identity using material and digital artifacts. Following this, in-depth, semi-structured interview were conducted on the topic of cultural identity and digital practices. Finally, an arts-based workshop with project participants was held to discuss preliminary project findings. Participants were from ages 12-15 and identified as having a multicultural background. Data generation occurred from March-September 2024 in Trondheim, Norway.

Diffraction is the work of mapping entanglements and the effects of difference, and the researcher “participates in the materialization and re-materialization of the world” (Spyrou, 2018). Research material that has been generated from this project include images of physical and digital artifacts, field notes, interview transcripts, recordings of the arts-based workshop and the art-work created, and various other materials produced by participants throughout this process. How do diffractive and narrative approaches allow for analysis of a diverse range of data generated from arts-based research? How might narrative analysis through digital animation and storytelling address ethical challenges when doing research with children? Finally, this paper reflects on how creative methodologies in empirical research support new materialist framings of children’s agency.