PHOTOVOICE AS A TOOL FOR PARTICIPATORY EVALUATION: THE COMMUNITY’S VIEW OF PROCESS AND IMPACT

Caroline WangYuan Yan LingFeng Ming Ling

About the Authors• (From university of Michigan.com)• Caroline Wang, PhDis Assistant Professor of Health

Behavior and Health Education, • currently provides consultation to non-governmental

organizations, health agencies, and other institutions around the world in using the photo-voice concept

• Her professional interests include: participatory and community-based health education, mass media, and stigma.

• Dr. Wang has 10 years of collaborative experience working on health promotion and reproductive health in urban and rural China. She is also the co-developer of Photovoice

Big 5• Topic: Photovoice as a tool for evaluation• Focus: Photovoice in Yunnan• Methods: Content Analysis• Goals: Promote change and usage of photovoice• Target: Organizations, communities, cultures

Basics of Essay• “Photovoice is a process by which people identify,

represent, and enhance their community though a specific photographic technique”(Wang 1996,47)

• Focus on chinese village • -focus on womens health• -cultural practices• -stoves• -health education• Relationship between organizations and culture,

community and culture and policy and culture.• Promote Change

Benefits of photovoice• Focus on positivites that photovoice can bring to the

community changes• Getting a true inside view of the problems and ways of life• Difficult for a outsider to document how they feel• Bring change through photography so outsiders don’t

guess what is happening they can visually see it first hand through local photographers.

• “A picture is worth a thousand words”

Photovoice• We can’t read or write but these photographs can

speak for us.”• ~A Tibetan Villager in• China’s Yunnan Province

• “Photovoices is a way to get community participation in conservation and for people to have a voice through their photographs and stories to help conservation planners do a better job.

• ~Lida Pet, PhD Marine Biologist• WWF-Indonesia

Photovoice process• 1. Training local photographers• 2. Taking pictures of village life, culture, agriculutre etc• 3. reviewing stories behind the photographs• 4. Providing local information to Decision makers• 5. Meeting between local photographers and experts to

collaborate• 6. Village exhibitions to give credit to the local

photographers

Key Quotes• “Linking the intrapersonal and interpersonal and culture,

photovoice can contribute to participatory evaluation by providing a meaningful discussion context by which to enhance peoples assesment of their own psychological assets, and by which increase peoples knowledge about community organizing and community problem solving. Photovoice provides the opportonity for people to photograph strenths, bonds, social networks. This process in turn serves to provide information, stimulate ideas, and stir conversations about the communities resources and capabilities”(Wang 1996,48)

• What is your first impression of photovoice, and do you think that it is more powerful than essays, and other forms used to pass on information?

Key Quotes• “Participants also noted other advantages of photo voice

not mentioned earlier. They were able to save time that they would have otherwise been spend on written reports. They were able to expose problems in implementation quickly. Finally they were able to help decision-makers avoid similar mistakes in future programs and projects”(Wang 1996, 49)

• If the turnaround time between photos being taken if much shorter than that of essays etc, why is it not more popular today? Or Is it popular today?

Key Quotes• “Photovoice is an attempt to enable people to represent

themselves in a planned process that enhances their community well being. It does not attempt to ‘give a voice’ to the voiceless, but assumes that peoples voices are infused with an expertise and insite that outsiders lack…photovoice enables people to furnish evidense and to put forth their view of how programes and policies have or have not benefited their community”(Wang 1996,49)

• What does photovoice provide to outside community members that promotes change?

PHOTOVOICE EXAMPLES

website• http://www.photovoicesinternational.org/index.html

Gardening Photovoice• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aavKIwaQ3i8

Homeless Teens• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_RaIW_PSlUk