Emerging issues in duoethnography

Abstract

Duoethnography is a relatively new research method in which two participants interrogate the cultural contexts of autobiographical experiences in order to gain insight into their current perspectives on and experience of issues related to personal and professional identities. Commonly explored themes include race, gender, pedagogy, professional practice, or sexual identity. While borrowing from other qualitative methods, duoethnography is distinctive in its emphasis on the researchers as the site of the research and on the interacting narratives. This paper attempts to assess the state of the method in relation to the basic tenets established in earlier work. Among the specific recommendations are that future duoethnographers consider establishing an integral methodological core without becoming prescriptive; that the role and relationships of participants be more clearly defined; and that researchers explore ways of making conversations transparent enough to witness the transformative process that is central to the method.

Keywords:

• Duoethnography
• methodology
• autoethnography