Four affective strategies for queer(er) research with Oblique Curiosities

In this chapter, the authors propose how qualitative researchers interested in queer theory might enact qualitative research in queerer ways. In so doing, they propose a definition of queerness as the unexpected hilarity of teetering on the knife-edge of precarity. They apply this definition to their ongoing music research–creation project Oblique Curiosities to propose four affective strategies for doing queerer research: precarity, failure, temporality, and humor. They suggest that, in order for queer research to be truly “queer,” researchers must use methods to defamiliarize habitual patterns of thought and sense.

When you have studied this chapter, you should be able to:

Understand some queer theory concepts;

Evaluate how, in lieu of a fixed “rubric,” research methodologies might be made queer(er);

Apply queer theory concepts to your own research methodology.