6: Digital Methodologies and Frontiers of Psychology Training: Connecting With Daily Life of Future Researchers

Research activities are fundamental to stimulate higher-order skills and prepare students to face the complexities of contemporary society. In psychology, historical difficulties have been identified to address the human being in connection with the environment. Amid evolving societies, professional profiles and the production of scientific knowledge must be rethought. This chapter addresses the qualitative research training process directed to undergraduate psychology students. Initially, the concepts of subjectivity and meaning-making process were discussed with the group. Then, a multidisciplinary strategy was adopted, implementing a brief practice with virtual ethnography in collaboration with a guest professor. Students showed resistance toward the qualitative approach as well as a skeptical attitude toward the use of social platforms as a legitimate research field. Findings suggest that narrow ideas about research are perpetuated in the classroom, constraining the ability to generate significant inquiries and critically analyze new social spaces. The immersion of students in digital networks must be considered in research training processes since a wide range of phenomena can be accessed through their smartphones. Moreover, the frontiers of psychology must be broadened, and pay attention to multiple expressions of human behavior that unfold between on-site and online interactions.