Playful cards, serious talk: a qualitative research technique to elicit women’s embodied experiences

Abstract

This article explores the benefits, drawbacks, and potential applications of an interviewing technique based on the use of cards printed with key research concepts related to the body. Informed by a feminist approach and a sociological interest in human embodiment, this method offered a playful way to elicit women’s embodied experiences in Argentina. The ‘concept cards’ were tangible objects that helped focus the interviewees’ attention, without being intimidating. They were also useful to address painful or sensitive topics without having to ask directly about them. They helped elucidate linkages between key topics, revealing patterns, order of relevance, contradictions, and the simultaneity of themes that are experienced in concert with each other. This method also revealed words filled with political or metaphorical significance, pointing to thorny, silenced, or contested issues. Initially conceived as an icebreaker, this simple, yet effective, technique yielded rich and complex narratives about women’s diverse bodily worlds.