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perspective as it concentrates on avoiding the generating of monological knowledge. Berry
develops this further and identifies a direct link between bricolage and poststructuralism,
…poststructuralists, feminist perspectives, and researchers working with other postmultiple
discourses, and a host of various narrative structures, create and borrow
features from multiple sites befitting bricolage; in a manner similar to intertexuality.
Bricoleurs struggle to avoid a monological, single path or method. (2006, p. 89)
Steinberg also connects bricoleurs’ reporting of research findings with poststructuralism,
dismissing scientific research as being inherently trustworthy, claiming:
Because scientific research has traditionally offered only a partial vision to the reality
it seeks to explore, pedagogical bricoleurs attempt to widen their perspectives
through methodological diversity. In no way, however do they claim that as the result
of the multiperspective bricolage they have gained “the grand view”—from their
poststructuralist perspective they understand that all inquiry is limited and
incomplete. (2006, p. 120)
From the connections between poststructuralism and bricolage described in various ways
above, it is clear that poststructuralist discourses inform new incarnations of bricolage. As a
result, poststructuralism forms part of the theoretical framing of the research, as part of the
five dimensions of bricolage (explored in depth further in this section).
3.1.1 Bricolage as interdisciplinary.
Taking the view that a sole research methodology would not provide a sufficiently rigorous
approach to enable an effective data analysis to occur, the following sentiments of Kellner, as
summarised by Kincheloe holds true for this particular research, being: “…that any single
research perspective is laden with assumptions, blindnesses, and limitations. To avoid onesided
reductionism…researchers must learn a variety of ways of seeing and interpreting in
the pursuit of knowledge” (2004, p. 52). The use of bricolage enables a variety of approaches,
theories and philosophies to be drawn on in the process of constructing a strong methodology
tailored to suit the requirements of specific research projects. Considering bricolage in this
way, demonstrates that it “…views research methods actively rather than passively, meaning
that we actively construct our research methods…” (Kincheloe, 2004, p. 2). In discussing the
use of a variety of methodological approaches in his work, van Leeuwen asserts that “every
good ‘applied’ project challenges the theory. No ‘toolkit’ can ever be used without adaptation
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