Investigation on Community Life of the Elderly using the Photo Eliciting Narrative Approach

Abstract

We developed a new interview and analytical approach for use in community research. The approach was named the Photo Eliciting Narrative Approach (PEN-A), which was based on the Photo Projective Method. PEN-A is a method for understanding a participants' perceived environment by using photographs. Elderly participants (N=14) were provided with digital cameras and were requested to take photographs related to their daily lives in their community for about a week. Subsequently, while watching the photographs on a monitor, we asked the participants why they had taken the particular photos. Content analysis of the data that consisted of the photographs and the narratives of elderly indicated that they actively used social support provided by their friends and spouses in their daily lives. Moreover, it was suggested that PEN-A could be a useful approaches for conducting community research aimed at clarifying the current living conditions of elderly people in detail.