“Sorry, I can’t take that photograph”: using an adapted auto-driven photo elicitation interview in prison research

Despite its increasing popularity in community contexts, there is limited literature on the use of auto-driven photo elicitation interviews (PEI) in prison settings. Prisons have many constraints as a research environment, requiring researchers to make adaptations when collecting qualitative data in a way that enhances the qualitative analysis. The first half of this article summarises some of the unique benefits and challenges of using an auto-driven PEI with a marginalised research population in a prison setting. The second half of the article presents the application of using an adapted auto-driven PEI with a prisoner working on an open prison farm in the UK. Whilst not widely used in prison contexts, this article suggests that an adapted auto-driven PEI is an innovative and collaborative research process which should not be summarily dismissed because of security considerations.