Observing life in a decade of change
As the latest module of the award-winning Mass Observation Project is published, Kirsty Pattrick, Mass Observation Research Manager, and Jessica Scantlebury, Mass Observation Archivist, reflect upon the development of Mass Observation Directives during the 2010s and explore some of the trends that emerged within them.
The Mass Observation Project began issuing Directives in 1981, initially assembled by Professor David Pocock and later by Dorothy Sheridan. In its early years, Directives were written exclusively by members of the archive staff. Over time, this process evolved to include non-commercial commissions with students, early career researchers and academics working across disciplines such as sociology, geography, linguistics, health studies, education and politics. Suggestions for Directive themes have also come from Mass Observation writers themselves and even been developed as part of heritage funding bids or in collaboration with community partners.
How Directives have evolved
There have been trends across the decade, such as topics on the environment and technology, where we have collaborated with researchers looking at climate change and innovative technologies. If you're interested in the natural environment, we suggest you review responses to the Directives on Climate Change (2011), The Countryside (2013) and Plastics and You (2019). While not immediately obvious but a good example of how Directives can solicit interesting responses is the Directive on Milk (2019). This contains opinions and feelings about the consumption of cow’s milk and its impact on the carbon footprint.
Developments in technology and our online activity were explored through the You Online (2015) and Fraud and Scams (2015) Directives. Yet it’s also possible to see the shifts in peoples’ technology use through The High Street (2013) with regards to online shopping and Reading Aloud (2017) , where people wrote about using phones and iPads to share content with friends and family.
Several Directives issued during the 2010s draw clear connections to Mass Observation’s earlier work during the Second World War. These responses can be used comparatively with studies conducted by the original Mass Observation movement, now published by AM as Mass Observation Online. One example is the Directive, What Makes You Happy? (2013) which aimed to revisit the mood of Mass Observation’s well-known 1938 study on the same theme. The topic of happiness has also been explored in depth by Professor Claire Langhamer in her 2013 essay with Ian Gazeley, The Meanings of Happiness in Mass Observation’s Bolton (History Workshop Journal, 75:1, Spring 2013, pp. 159–189).
Image © Mass Observation Archive Trustees. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission.
At the end of the decade, we issued a Directive asking Mass Observation writers to share how they curate their mantelpiece (2019) ,or a similar focal area, in their homes. The mantelpiece has long been synonymous with Mass Observation and was first investigated in an early Directive in June 1937. The topic was later revisited in the early years of the Mass Observation Project with a similar Directive exploring housework in 1983. The cultural significance of the mantelpiece has also been explored by Rachel Hurdley in her research on the topic. In 2019, we returned to this theme to discover whether people still view the mantelpiece as the centre of their home and whether it remains a space for displaying treasured objects. This Directive became the catalyst for a series of artworks created by ceramicist Richard Slee, following a successful Arts Council bid by Bolton Museum and Art Gallery.
The research value of Mass Observation
Research across both phases of Mass Observation is possible and offers fascinating insights into cultural shifts and societal trends spanning nearly 90 years. Towards the end of the 2010s, we supported research into public feelings about politics and politicians, which resulted in the publication of The Good Politician: Folk Theories, Political Interaction, and the Rise of Anti-Politics by Nick Clarke (University of Southampton), Will Jennings (University of Southampton), Jonathan Moss (University of Sussex), and Gerry Stoker (University of Southampton). To support this research, we issued the Directive Politics and Politicians (2014), which included many prompts originally used by Mass Observation during the Second World War. One task asked the panel to share their feelings about certain prominent politicians of the time—a direct nod to the original Mass Observation movement’s approach.
A similar example of using Mass Observation comparatively is the Directive we issued a few years later, Charity and the Welfare State (2018). This was a collaboration with members of the Discourses of Voluntary Action project team who were researching the welfare state and the role of voluntary organisations in the 1940s and 2010s, as back in 1942 Mass Observation sought the public's thoughts and feelings on post-war welfare. In 2021 their book Transformational Moments in Social Welfare What Role for Voluntary Action? was published. If charitable giving is an area of interest, then another Directive Global Poverty and Charities (2014) explores motivations and media campaigns such as Comic Relief and Live Aid.
Revealing hidden voices
Looking back at this decade, there are some examples that show the value of Mass Observation as a method. The Directive is similar to a survey, with a series of open questions. Yet, unlike an interview, there are no opportunities to prompt the respondents. Mass Observers write within their own space and time, providing an opportunity to share what they think and feel anonymously. A relationship of trust exists, meaning they are committed to respond regardless of their knowledge or lived experience of the topic. The Directive on Protests (2018) is a perfect example of this. The commissioner had previously worked with activists and Mass Observation enabled access to voices of those who had never participated or considered taking part in a protest or alternatively were present at protests as part of their employment in the police. The importance of anonymity can be seen in Fraud and Scams (2015), a Directive which generated responses from those with lived experience of this, who felt embarrassment and shame. Or Dementia (2015), which resulted in contributions from those sharing the challenges of intimate relationships with those experiencing this disease.
Observers have had the opportunity to reflect upon a Directive in their own time and write their response at their own pace. This is clearly reflected in the quality of many of the responses which tend to be in-depth and reflexive
In the latter part of the decade the team generated a series of Directives co-produced with people who had lived experience of the topic. As part of the Beyond Boxes project (supported by the Heritage Lottery Fund) Suzanne Rose, Mass Observation Engagement Manager worked in partnership with Blind Veterans UK, the Brighton Housing Trust and HMP Lewes. Through workshop activities in Lewes Prison and at The Keep (home of the Mass Observation Archive) project participants contributed to the development of Directive questions on Homelessness (2016), Prison (2017) and Disability (2018).
We are excited to continue supporting research that explores themes of the 2010s and to see how scholars and the public make use of this rich material.
We look forward to the publication of this update to the Mass Observation Project. This resource greatly expands access to a wonderful and valuable collection that offers so many uses and possibilities. The digitisation of the Mass Observation Project has enabled us to reach far more users, both nationally and internationally, than could ever have visited our Reading Rooms at our home at The Keep.
Closing thoughts from Ellie Davey Corrigan, Senior Publisher at AM
With the launch of Mass Observation Project 2010–2019, AM celebrates over 20 years of our partnership with Mass Observation, working together to make this exceptional archive available for teaching and research across the humanities and social sciences. Our longstanding relationship reflects shared values of reimagining primary sources to enhance explorations of everyday life across the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. This is a significant addition to the complete Mass Observation Project, and the companion resource Mass Observation Online, and adds fresh perspectives on previous decades. The complete set of Directives, questionnaires, surveys and responses of the 2010s that are available in this new module provide rare opportunity for students and researchers to conduct deeper analysis of how social attitudes and cultural experiences have evolved over more than 60 years. AM are delighted to continue our collaboration with Mass Observation and build on this exceptional and award-winning series, providing new layers and pathways for learning.
Mass Observation is a national archive and a Charitable Incorporated Organisation. It is in the care of the University of Sussex, based at The Keep.
For more information on Mass Observation Project, 1981-2019, including pricing, please request a demo.
The Climate Change (2011) Directive quoted in this blog is available open access for 30 days.
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