Using diaries as qualitative data

Abstract

As personal, chronological records, diaries offer a site for introspection and self-learning and can be therapeutic. These properties make diaries a valuable tool for researchers in social sciences. Diary-based research methods are well established in many fields within social sciences. They have been used extensively in psychology, education, health, management, tourism, feminist studies and, increasingly, in consumer studies. In this chapter, we focus on diaries as a source of qualitative data in consumer research. In doing so, we consider the novel opportunities afforded by diaries as they leverage new communication technologies that make diaries convenient to maintain by consumers, and potentially easier for researchers to access and use.