Ethics, intersectionality and community participation in action research with Inuit youth on violence and mental healthPaper presented at the American Public Health Association (APHA) conferenceNew OrleansNovember 17, 2014

Marika Morris, Ph.D.

The project and this presentation• Academic project title: “Inuit Knowledge Translation:

Community-controlled, culturally-sensitive research with Inuit youth on experiences of violence, health effects and coping mechanisms, engaging Inuit youth in developing a research-based, health promotion campaign on issues of violence using social media”

• Project name in Inuktitut: Makilirit (“Rise up”)• Funded by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR)• This presentation is about diversity among Inuit,

intersectional considerations and challenges in research, and the application of Inuit principles, ethics and methodology using this project as an example.

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About Inuit • Arctic people stretching from Siberia, Alaska, Canada and Greenland, represented in the Inuit Circumpolar Conference. (Inuit are called Yupik in Siberia and Inupiat and Yupik in Alaska.)

• Historically, culturally and linguistically distinct from First Nations in Canada, recognized separately from First Nations and Metis in Canadian Constitution.

• 75% of Inuit of Canada live in the Inuit Nunangat - Nunavut, Nunavik (northern Quebec), Nunatsiavut (Labrador) and Inuvialuit region of the Northwest Territories.

• 25% live outside the Nunangat – growing numbers of urban Inuit living in Ottawa, Edmonton, Winnipeg, Montreal and St. John’s.

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Diversity among Inuit

• Income/employment diversity: 61% of working age Inuit are employed, some in government or mining/resource extraction industries in the North. But Inuit unemployment is high.

• Education and literacy: 58% of Inuit do not have a high school diploma. 26% of Inuit aged 18-44 have postsecondary credentials.

• Diversity is a strength in that many different perspectives come together, but consensus-building can be time-consuming.

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• This is a map of Inuit linguistic diversity in Canada, US, and Greenland. Within Canada, some dialects are written in Roman orthography, others in Inuktitut ᐃᓄᒃᑎᑐᑦ syllabics.

• Regional diversity in Canada: Different provincial and territorial governments, Inuit governments, and Inuit land claims organizations, with growing numbers of urban Inuit.

• Diversity of beliefs: Pentecostal/evangelical, Anglican, Catholic, other; different views about Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit (Inuit traditional knowledge).

• Age, gender diversity/generation gap: Inuit are the youngest population of all indigenous and other groups in Canada, and have a very different experience from elders.

Recent active colonizationContact/passive colonization (whalers and missionaries) from 1700s.

From 1940s, Canadian government control:• Forced relocation and settlement• “Eskimo” numbers/disks (1941 to 1978)• Sled dog slaughter• Residential schools - cultural genocide,

physical and sexual abuse• Isolation of Inuit giving birth and

needing medical care• Racism

Results:• Highest suicide rate of all indigenous

groups in Canada, lowest life expectancy, highest rates of violence, disrupted family and community relationships, substance abuse, food insecurity

Moving forward:• Inuit are reclaiming a positive identity

and control over their own lives and territories

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Recoloniziation and decolonizationHow research can re-colonize

Why Inuit research ethics?

• Treating Inuit like numbers – not every Inuk fits the statistics.

• Focussing only on problems, not recognizing Inuit strengths, achievements and initiatives.

• Asking Inuit to conform to mainstream research practices, where it’s all about what the researcher wants to know.

• Talking to the wrong people or overgeneralization: Assuming that a few Inuit represent all Inuit.

• Experimentation on Inuit without knowledge or consent.

• Disrespectful research: “They treat us like kids.” Finding out about research results though the media – like PCBs in breast milk.

• Disempowering research: “They come up here to study us because they think we are the worst of everybody.”

• Research conducted without regard to Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit (Inuit traditional knowledge).

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Inuit ethics process• Beyond Chapter 9:

Research Involving First Nations, Inuit and Métis Peoples of Canada of the Tri-Council Policy Statement: Ethical Conduct for Research Involving Humans, 2nd edition:

• Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami and Nunavut Research Institute, 2007, Negotiating relationships with Inuit Communities: A Guide for Researchers.

Research licenses are required for Inuit regions:• Nunavut Research Institute

http://www.nri.nu.ca• Aurora Research Institute

(for Northwest Territories, covers Inuvialuit Settlement Region) https://nwtresearch.com/

• Nunavik Research Institute (northern Québec) http://www.makivik.org/nunavik-research-centre/

• Nunatsiavut Government (Labrador) http://nainresearchcentre.com/research-process/

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Process for this research project• Existing partnership,

relationship of trust• Pauktuutit chooses research

project• Pauktuutit sets up Inuit

Advisory Committee• Pauktuutit and researcher

presentation at Nunavut Sivuniksavut (college program): Naming project, encouraging participation on advisory team

• Guiding principles for the project are agreed on

• Look at what’s been done (not just academic) – documenting Inuit initiatives

• Consultation document about what the research should ask about, basis for consultation with advisory team and Inuit organizations

• Community readiness taken into account

• Instrument finalized• Ethics application• Research interviews• Analysis with advisory team• Reporting in many different

ways – academic and non-academic

• Action – development of social media campaign for Inuit youth about violence

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Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit* part of guiding principles (1) 1. Inuuqatigiitsiarniq: Respecting others, respecting relationships and caring for people.We will be respectful to one another on the advisory team, and respectful toward all those who participate in the research. We will ensure that all advisory team members and research participants are aware of resources they can turn to if participation in this research project triggers feelings associated with their own experience or witnessing of violence. Should the interviews take place only in Ottawa, we are confident in the readiness of this community. There are services available to Inuit in Ottawa, and violence is already discussed in Ottawa. Should there be another location added to the research, we would have to look at the readiness of that community for a project that might increase demand for services for survivors of violence.2. Tunnganarniq: Fostering good spirit by being open, welcoming and inclusive.We will approach this project with open spirits. We will reach out to Nunavut Sivuniksavut students to name the project and become involved. We will welcome research participants and let them know how appreciated they are. We will hold the interviews

in a place where they can be comfortable. We will offer research participants the choice of doing the interview in Inuktitut or English. We will pay participants for participating, because without them, there would be no project. They are the experts about their own lives.3. Pijitsirniq: Serving and providing for family and/or community.The purpose of this project is to help reduce violence in Inuit communities. All Inuit deserve to be happy and safe. We hope this project will serve Inuit well, as an opportunity to share experiences of violence, learn about resources, and use creativity to reach out to other Inuit about violence prevention. The goal of this project is to develop a social media outreach strategy to Inuit youth that will help to prevent violence. * Inuit traditional knowledge or “Things of which Inuit knew about all along”. There are regional variations and discussions about the number of principles and how they should be used. These eight principles are from Owlijoot, Pelagie. 2008. Guidelines for Working with Inuit Elders. Iqaluit: Nunavut Arctic College.

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Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit part of guiding principles (2) 4. Aajiiqatigiinniq: Decision making through discussion and consensus.We have gathered young people and elders, professionals and members of organizations together because we each have a valuable perspective to contribute. We all have different lives and differing amounts of time and interest in each component of the project, and we respect that people will contribute when they can. We recognize that the goal of this project is to gather information that will help Pauktuutit develop a social media outreach strategy to Inuit youth on issues of violence, and our decisions will reflect this purpose.

5. Pilimmaksarniq/Pijariuqsarniq: Developing skills through practice, effort and action. We are hoping to learn from this project, not only the knowledge that will be gathered about violence, but about how to improve our skills in listening, in gathering and communicating information.

6. Piliriqatigiinniq/Ikajuqtigiinniq: Working together for a common cause.We are all committed to ending violence in Inuit communities and the world. This project is one step of many, many steps in that cause.  7. Qanuqtuurniq: Being innovative and resourceful.During the course of this project, we may experience challenges. Things may not go as expected. We are resourceful and committed to resolving whatever problems arise. 8. Avatittinnik Kamatsiarniq: Respecting and caring for the land, animals and the environment We will operate mainly by telephone, e-mails and meetings, and not with a lot of printed paper, in order to reduce the impact of our project on the environment.

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Challenges• Academic research structure versus

Inuit community model:▫ laughed at academic project title▫ lengthy, legalistic consent letters

with warnings about reporting disclosure to authorities

▫ academic project timelines are not in sync with the need for community consultation and involvement, additional ethics approvals or translation of documents in various dialects (Negotiating relationships with Inuit Communities: A Guide for Researchers, p. 17: “It is important to keep in mind that the process of making local contacts, gaining ethical approvals, and acquiring a research license can be time-consuming. It could take over a year to conduct all the necessary background work, make local contacts, and visit communities to discuss your research project.”)

• Keeping in touch with committee in disparate locations when committee members have other priorities

• Knowing the politics around relationships between communities, agencies, individuals

• Ensuring youth participation – making it interesting, going to where the youth are

• Funding available for academic research, but insufficient funding for services and advocacy – documentation of problems there is no money to resolve

• Funding cuts to Inuit partner organization – no funds to participate in conferences such as this

• Dealing with hard issues in empowering, rather than disempowering ways

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ContactMarika MorrisAdjunct Research Professor, Carleton UniversityCanadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) Postdoctoral Fellow, Faculty of Education, Western UniversityMarika.Morris@Carleton.cahttps://carleton-ca.academia.edu/MarikaMorris

Katharine IrngautManager, Abuse PreventionPauktuutit Inuit Women of Canadakirngaut@pauktuutit.cawww.pauktuutit.ca

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