Memory-work: A method for researching women's tourist experiences

Publication Type:
Journal Article
Citation:
Tourism Management, 1999, 20 (1), pp. 25 - 35
Issue Date:
1999-02-01
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The lack of innovation in tourism research methods and the failure of many studies to relate theory to method has been commented upon in the tourism literature. The present paper reviews the method, memory-work, and its appropriateness for the study of women's and girls' tourist experiences. Memory-work is considered innovative and a method aligned with a feminist social constructionist paradigm. The key features of memory-work are: memories are the raw data; the subject and object of the research become one; the researcher and researched are 'co-researchers'; there is a collective interpretation and theorisation of the memories; and the collective approach allows for the possibility of liberation. In the present study, adaptations to the method were required due to the selected research design and the fact that the study was doctoral research. With such amendments, the method was found to be well suited for a study which sought to uncover the many levels of themes in women's and girls' tourist experiences. Memory-work is recommended to others with a feminist social constructionist approach who are interested in the study of women and tourism.
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