Mining Ourselves: Collaborative Autoethnography (CAE) as Methodology

Daniel Hocutt, Ann Hill Duin, Jessica Lynn Campbell, and Mollie Stambler present. Autoethnography is a research method that draws from a variety of autobiographical data–such as memories, documents, ongoing self-reflections and observations–to explore and investigate social phenomena (Chang, 2016). Collaborative autoethnography (CAE) has multiple researchers use a multilayered approach to collecting data, performing ongoing self-reflection, interpreting data through collaborative meaning-making, and producing findings that achieve research objectives (Chang et al., 2013; Chang, 2016). CAE affords the combination of multiple voices and perspectives to interrogate a social phenomenon and can generate unique contributions in social science research. In this presentation, we discuss CAE as a valuable, under-utilized methodology for a variety of technical and professional communication (TPC) research. Drawing on an ongoing collaborative research project, panelists will demonstrate CAE’s value for TPC research with pedagogical implications.

This presentation is at SIGDOC 2023.