Rich picture building: A visual method for future serious leisure studies

Wyatt, Brianna; Leask, Anna; Barron, Paul

Abstract

Visual research methods have been gaining attention among leisure studies scholars in recent years. As a form of freehand drawing, this paper mobilises rich picture building (RPB) for future serious leisure studies, and particularly those concerned with devotee work. Employed during focus groups to encourage discussion using pictorial representations of complex social issues, this paper demonstrates the value of RPB for evoking and recording insight into social situations. Through an example of serious leisure via devotee work, this paper presents RPB as a means to support participant discussions since humans are thought to communicate more easily through impressions and symbols than words. Considering serious leisure is inherently social and rooted in human activity, RPB is an innovative approach that can enhance focus group research and triangulate qualitative data across verbal, textual and pictorial data. Through RPB, this paper demonstrates how simplistic pictorial representations of ideas or topics can enhance verbal information collected in traditional focus groups and/or interviews and deepen future serious leisure research.

Citation

Wyatt, B., Leask, A., & Barron, P. (online). Rich picture building: A visual method for future serious leisure studies. World Leisure Journal, https://doi.org/10.1080/16078055.2025.2463469

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Feb 3, 2025
• Online Publication Date: Feb 14, 2025
• Deposit Date: Feb 4, 2025
• Publicly Available Date: Feb 14, 2025
• Journal: World Leisure Journal
• Print ISSN: 1607-8055
• Electronic ISSN: 2333-4509
• Publisher: Routledge
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/16078055.2025.2463469
• Keywords: Rich picture building; Drawing method; Visual research methods; Serious leisure; Devotee work; Tour guides
• Public URL: http://researchrepository.napier.ac.uk/Output/4106442