The Interpretation of Pictures and the Documentary Method

Abstract: The considerable progress in qualitative methods is directly connected with developments in the field of text-interpretation. On the basis of a thorough reconstruction of their formal structures texts are treated as autonomous domains of self-referential systems. Such a methodological status has been denied to pictures in empirical research in the field of social sciences up until now. The documentary method, based on Karl MANNHEIM's Sociology of Knowledge, opens up methodical access to pictures. Methodologies from art history (PANOFSKY, IMDAHL) can thus become relevant for empirical research in social sciences. Connections to semiotics (BARTHES, ECO) and philosophy (FOUCAULT) are worked out in their consequences for qualitative methods. Thus verbal contextual and pre-knowledge can be controlled methodically in the documentary interpretation of pictures. The reconstruction of formal structure of pictures becomes of central importance in analysis. All of this will be demonstrated by.... https://www.qualitative-research.net/index.php/fqs/article/view/1171

Object Details

• Location: Deutsche Nationalbibliothek Frankfurt am Main
• Extent: Online-Ressource
• Language: Englisch

References and Relationships

• Bibliographic citation: The Interpretation of Pictures and the Documentary Method ; volume:9 ; number:3 ; day:28 ; month:09 ; year:2008 ; Forum qualitative Sozialforschung ; 9, Heft 3 (28.09.2008)

Contributors, Places and Time

• Creator: Bohnsack, Ralf

Further information

• DOI: 10.17169/fqs-9.3.1171
• URN: urn:nbn:de:0114-fqs0803267
• Rights: Open Access; Der Zugriff auf das Objekt ist unbeschränkt möglich.
• Last update: 15.08.2025, 7:29 AM CEST