Project extension requested (wolf interview material)

I have just submitted another status report for the research subproject "Representations (both problematic and romanticizing) of large mammals, especially wolves" to NSD/Personvernombudet, requesting an extension of the project until the end of 2020.

Field work summary on wolves soon online

Today I have entered University of Stavanger´s web publishing tool, CorePublish, for the first time for a couple of years or so, and uploaded a popular science summary of field work (in Norwegian) carried out as part of the research project "Animals in changing environments" (to Norwegian-version website only), specifically as part of the subproject "Representations (both Problematic and Romanticizing) of Large Mammals, especially Wolves".

See also:

EMP151 field work summary composed and distributed (June 2017)

Project extension for wolf study

Project end for the research (sub)project "Representations both Problematic and Romanticizing of Large Mammals especially Wolves" has been extended to June 30th 2019. The remaining two articles will likely only be completed next Spring.

Planning of two wolf-themed articles

Today I took part in a Skype call with a colleague (should have been two) to plan for two belated wolf-themed articles we are co-writing based on video material from Wolf Park and our own field work with video-recorded interviews in Norway.

Book chapters proof-read

Today I have proof-read my contributions to the forthcoming book Animal Umwelten in a changing world: Zoosemiotic perspectives.

"Synchronicity in human perception of animals" paper scheduled for presentation June 23rd

My paper "Synchronicity in human perception of animals" has been scheduled for presentation at IVSA 2016 Thursday, June 23rd at 09.30-10.00, in Parallel session 4A, "Nature, perception and responsiveness", to be chaired by Liz Barber, University of Queenslands, Australia.

"Synchronicity" paper accepted for presentation at IVSA 2016

I have been informed that my paper "Synchronicity in human perception of animals" has been accepted as a paper presentation at IVSA 2016 - Visualizing Sustainability: Imagined Futures (Lillehammer University College, Norway, June 22-24th 2016).

Two final field work interviews conducted

Today and yesterday Paul Thibault and I have conducted the final two interviews in the subproject "Representations (both Problematic and Romanticizing) of Large Mammals, especially Wolves" in the Estonian-Norwegian research project "Animals in changing environments: Cultural mediation and semiotic analysis", in Stavanger, at University of Stavanger. This brings the total number of interviews up to 13. We now have some 10 hours of video recordings (plus footage from a second camera).

Moss field trip cancelled

Our field trip to Moss has been cancelled due to illness.

See also:

Three field trips arranged

Moss interviews to be conducted at Moss library

Moss interviews to be conducted at Moss library

Today I have arranged a locality for field work interviews to be conducted in Moss, Østfold, next week (May 28th and 29th). The interviews will take place at Moss library.

See also previous posts on video-recorded interviews in the subproject "Representations of Large Mammals especially Wolves" (part of the research project "Animals in changing environments: Cultural mediation and semiotic analysis").

Abstract for 3rd EMP151 research seminar: "Human Perceptions of Wolves and other Animals in Kristiansand, Kautokeino and Rendalen"

Paul Thibault and I have today composed the abstract below for the 3rd Norwegian research seminar in the Estonian-Norwegian research project "Animals in changing environments: Cultural mediation and semiotic analysis" (University of Stavanger, June 5th).

***

Human Perceptions of Wolves and other Animals in Kristiansand, Kautokeino and Rendalen 

Paul Thibault (University of Agder) and Morten Tønnessen (University of Stavanger) 

This paper presents fieldwork focused on people´s perception of wolves and selected animals which the wolf is often perceived as being in conflict with. The data analyzed in this paper consists of video-recordings of a series of semi-structured interviews conducted in Norway in Spring 2015 in three locations. During these interviews, participants were shown and asked to respond to display materials featuring wolves and other animals – particularly reindeer (Kautokeino, Finnmark) and sheep (Rendalen, Hedmark). Other study animals include hunting dogs, lynx and moose. Reindeer and sheep were selected for study due to their centrality in regional discourses on wolf management. At each of the interview locations (including the pilot study in Kristiansand, Vest-Agder), participants were recruited from relevant interest groups, including environmentalists, hunters, sheep farmers and reindeer herders. 11 interviews are included in the data presented here (4 in Kristiansand, 3 in Kautokeino, 4 in Rendalen). 

Using techniques derived from Multimodal Interaction Analysis (MIA), the study analyzes participants´ accounts of, attitudes to and reactions towards selected display materials. The term ´perception´ used in the title of this paper refers to participants´ experience with, ideas about and attitudes towards the study animals, as revealed in the interviews. Methodologically, display materials were used in order to elicit responses that provide information about the participants´ perceptions of the study animals. The display materials included video clips, audio recordings of animal vocalizations, and images. The semi-structured interviews also included a few standard questions.  

The techniques of MIA were deployed in order to analyze the full range of interviewees´ meaning-making resources, including vocal utterances, gesture, facial expressions and other relevant body movements. The purpose of the MIA was to identify salient cultural thematic patterns, evaluative stances and feelings experienced by the participants in their encounter with the display materials and their recounts of their experiences of the study animals. Furthermore, a comparative analysis was developed of relevant patterns in the data that showed differences and similarities in the perceptions of the different interest groups. Moreover, a comparative analysis was also undertaken based on the different geographical locations where the data was gathered. 

The paper will present preliminary findings concerning the different ways in which interviewees performed and enacted their experiences of the study animals through body dynamics, verbal patterns and orientation to cultural values. The display material included in the interviews were designed to elicit different responses and interpretations, without prompting from the interviewer. In particular the audio clips and images proved, in many instances, to be highly ambiguous and open to diverse interpretations.  

Acknowledgements: This work has been carried out thanks to the support of the research project Animals in Changing Environments: Cultural Mediation and Semiotic Analysis (EEA Norway Grants/Norway Financial Mechanism 2009–2014 under project contract no. EMP151). Laura Kiiroja contributed to cataloguing and coding the video-recordings as a valuable stage in the preparation of the analyses developed in this paper.

11th interview

Today my collaborator Paul Thibault and I have conducted a fourth video-recorded interview in Rendalen - at Åkrestrømmen. This brings the total numbers of interviews in the subproject "Representations of Large Mammals especially Wolves" (part of the research project "Animals in changing environments: Cultural mediation and semiotic analysis") up to 11, after 3 of 5 field works have been conducted.

Three interviews conducted in Rendalen

Today, along with my collaborator Paul Thibault, I´ve conducted three interviews in Rendalen, Hedmark, as part of the research project "Animals in changing environments: Cultural mediation and semiotic analysis", specifically the subproject "Representations of Large Mammals especially Wolves". This brings the total so far up to 10 interviews, and some 8-9 hours of video recordings.

Three field trips arranged

The last few days I have arranged field trips (travel, accommodation) to Koppang/Rendalen (May 13-16), Moss (May 27-30) and Stavanger (June 2-5) in relation to the research project "Animals in changing environments: Cultural mediation and semiotic analysis", more specifically the subproject "Representations (both Problematic and Romanticizing) of Large Mammals, especially Wolves". Paul Thibault and I will conduct video-recorded interviews (which are consequently to be catalogued by Laura Kiiroja).

So far we have conducted a pilot study and a field trip to Kautokeino.

Trip to Kautokeino

Today I have travelled Kristiansand-Kautokeino as part of a research visit which will last until Thursday. I am here to do interviews, with Paul Thibault, in the project "Animals in changing environments: Cultural mediation and semiotic analysis".

"Plans for field work" paper presented; ecosemiotics seminar attended

On November 29th in Tartu, Estonia I presented my paper “Plans for field work on predator-prey conflicts in Norway involving video-recorded interviews followed by pico-scale analysis” (see abstract) on the second day of the Seminar on methodology of ecosemiotics (November 28-29). There were 20+ present.

The research seminar also featured interesting discussions on the fundamentals of ecosemiotics.

Abstract: "Plans for field work on predator-prey conflicts in Norway involving video-recorded interviews followed by pico-scale analysis"

A couple of weeks ago I wrote the abstract below, in preparation of my forthcoming talk at Seminar on methodology of ecosemiotics (November 28-29).

***

Plans for field work on predator-prey conflicts in Norway involving video-recorded interviews followed by pico-scale analysis

Morten Tønnessen

Associate professor in philosophy at University of Stavanger’s Department of Health Studies

Abstract

Seminar on methodology of ecosemiotics/Seminar ökosemiootika metodoloogiast (November 28-29, 2013 – University of Tartu)

In this presentation I will present plans for field work which is to be conducted within the Norwegian-Estonian research project “Animals in Changing Environments: Cultural Mediation and Semiotic Analysis” (see the English version of the Norwegian research group’s website). More specifically, the field work will be carried out as part of the case study “Representations (both Problematic and Romanticizing) of Large Mammals, especially Wolves”. The researchers who will be involved in this field work are Paul Thibault, Kristin Armstrong Oma and myself. Timo Maran will contribute to the case study.

The field work will examine cultural representations of wolves and animals that are perceived to be threatened by the wolf, including sheep, reindeer and hunting dogs. Respondents will be recruited (via local collaborators) at three locations in Norway – one predominantly focused on conflicts with sheep, another on reindeer and a third on hunting dogs. In addition there will be a control group recruited at University of Stavanger.

The interview which is to be designed will include displaying of pictures and video clips (from zoos; from wildlife cameras; from nature documentaries etc.). All interviews will be video-recorded. Post-study Multimodal Event Analysis will focus on vocalisations including verbal language, body language including gestures, and facial expressions. This analysis will at some points be pico-scale, i.e., the video recordings will be analysed when replayed in (extreme) slow motion.

We plan to write 3 working papers in the process of doing the field work – these will be made available online via the project’s Norwegian website. The field work will further, besides the main study, involve a pilot study. The main study will according to current plans be prepared in the Spring of 2014, conducted in the Autumn of 2014, and analysed in the Spring of 2015.

The work presented here has been supported of EEA Norway Grants EMP151.

To present at Estonian seminar on ecosemiotic methodology

I plan to take part and present at the Seminar on methodology of ecosemiotics which is to be held November 28th-29th in Tartu, Estonia. This will be my first trip to Tartu since last summer.

The title of my presentation will be “Plans for field work on predator-prey conflicts in Norway involving video-recorded interviews followed by pico-scale analysis” (see posts on the Norwegian-Estonian research project "Animals in Changing Environments: Cultural mediation and semiotic analysis").