The research focus of the Elphinstone Institute is on the vernacular culture and folklore of the North-East of Scotland. The Elphinstone Institute Archives holds over 2,000 items, the bulk of which is made up of audio and video recordings. Also contained in the archives are photographs, digital scans of manuscripts, and questionnaires. Broad genres covered include calendar customs, singing, instrumental music, ballads, craftwork, narrative, oral history, occupational folklore, vernacular architecture, and vernacular religion. The Elphinstone Institute is currently in the process of digitising the materials of the archives and making the catalogue database available online.