Video in Qualitative Research: Analysing social interaction in everyday life (Sage 2010), by Jon Hindmarsh, Christian Heath, Paul Luff, offers one of the few in-depth discussions of “fine-grained analysis of social organisation, culture and communication” captured in video data. The text is written for classroom use and offers exercises at the end of each chapter to support learning and instruction. I highly recommend the text for new researchers.

The overall goal of the text is to provide practical guidance in using video data in qualitative research. Examples of transcripts and photographs of researchers gathering data are provided throughout the text. The chapter on preparing presentations and publications includes common but rarely discussed problem scenarios and solutions.

One of my favorite chapters entitled: Implications, applications, and new developments, includes a rich discussion of video mediated communication through desktop media space. I especially appreciate the inclusion of virtual reality environments and “worlds” like ‘Second Life’ and ‘World of Warcraft’ as spaces for studying social interaction and collaborations.