Picture This: The Use of Visual Methods in Health Professions and Medical Education Research

The use of visual methods in research has grown exponentially over the last several decades. As an evocative form of knowledge generation, visual methods allow researchers, participants, and audiences alike to consider problems in new ways. This article provides an overview of visual methods, with a specific focus on health professions and medical education. A brief history of the use of visual methods, their function in different forms of research, and considerations for their use are also discussed. Overall, visual methods give researchers and participants an alternate way of communicating complex ideas and emotions, allowing their audiences to “get the picture” differently than before.