Residents with camera: Exploring tourism impacts through participant-generated images

摘要

There are calls for increasing the uptake of visual methods in tourism research. This paper makes a distinct contribution to visual methodology by focusing on images generated by local residents. We examine the opportunities and challenges of utilising participant-generated photo-elicitation. Specifically, through participant-generated images, this research studies tourism impacts in the coastal destination of Imbassai, in the state of Bahia in the Northeast of Brazil. The unusual experience of looking through a camera on their lives, enabled participants to reflect on and make sense of their social worlds in relation to tourism impacts. Photo-elicitation effectively engages participants and provides more nuanced insights into social phenomena. There are however organisational, ethical and practical challenges that need to be considered. (C) 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.