Sensory Ethnography and Multimodal Communication
Summary
Sensory ethnography combines traditional ethnographic methods with rigorous attention to the full range of human senses, exploring how people perceive, interpret and engage with their environments through sight, sound, touch, taste and smell. It treats the body as both instrument and analytic lens, encompassing lived experience, affective response and material contexts. Multimodal communication examines how meaning is produced through the coordinated use of diverse semiotic channels—spoken and written language, gesture, visual imagery, spatial arrangement and haptic feedback. By integrating sensory ethnography with multimodal analysis, researchers can capture the interplay of embodiment, culture and technology in everyday practices. This hybrid approach illuminates how social identities, power relations and environmental knowledge are enacted through sensory engagement and multisensory messages. It has proven vital in fields as varied as design anthropology, environmental management, digital media studies and performance research, offering fresh perspectives on global challenges such as climate adaptation, inclusive design and digital literacy.
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Sensory Ethnography and Multimodal Communication publication trend
The graph below shows the total number of articles in sensory ethnography and multimodal communication across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).
Technical terms
Sensory ethnography: A methodological approach that foregrounds immersive study of bodily perception and multisensory experience in cultural contexts.
Multimodal communication: The analysis of meaning-making through the integration of multiple semiotic channels, including language, gesture, imagery and tactile feedback.
Haptic: Pertaining to the sense of touch or tactile interaction in human–technology and interpersonal contexts.
Affective technotouch: Multidimensional embodied encounters with technology that evoke emotion and involve social, cultural and ethical dimensions of touch.
References
- Indigenous ecological knowledge systems – Exploring sensory narratives. Ecological Management & Restoration (2022).
- Creative Probes, Proxy Feelers, and Speculations on Interactive Skin. Multimodal Technologies and Interaction (2022).
- Digitally-mediated parent–baby touch and the formation of subjectivities. Visual Communication (2021).
- What is affective technotouch (and why does it matter)?. The Senses and Society (2023).
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