A picture elicits a thousand meanings: Photo elicitation as a method for investigating cross-disciplinary identity development

Photo elicitation is a qualitative research method that has been broadly used in the social and health sciences, particularly in the areas of education, anthropology, sociology, and psychology. Although it is a method well-suited to engineering education research questions, there are few examples of why and how to use it in the engineering education literature. This paper aims to demonstrate the unique benefits of photo elicitation as a research method for engineering education researchers, particularly those interested in identity development and in the process of becoming an engineer. We present a review of the utility of the method based in the existing literature, and illustrate its use while verifying arguments for its usefulness through examples drawn from a longitudinal study of cross-disciplinary learning and identity development. We conclude the paper with a summary of the strengths of photo elicitation as a method, lessons learned, and recommendations for using this method more broadly in engineering education research such as studies of conceptual understanding of STEM concepts, teaching and learning, learning systems, and the nature of effective engineering learning environments.