Qualitative Research Group (QRG) – DECEMBER 2011 Newsletter The vision of the Qualitative Research Group (QRG) is to connect qualitative research findings to real world outcomes both locally and internationally, working towards positive change in the community and a better understanding of the world around us. The QRG provides assistance to researchers engaged in qualitative research, including mixed methods, in a wide range of interdisciplinary sites. It supports professional training opportunities as well as collegial partnerships between students and Faculty, community and government. In 2011, the QRG acquired University of Manitoba Research Group Status. This listserv was started in the early spring of 2008 and now has 200+ participants working in the Prairies and across Canada as well as internationally, in medicine (community health sciences, dentistry, pediatrics, neurosurgery), nursing, medical rehabilitation, social work, sociology, anthropology, education, disability studies, human ecology (nutrition, family social sciences), First Nations universities, women’s and gender studies, engineering, and the Dafoe library (University of Manitoba). The monthly newsletters are sent out on the first of each month and announce national and international conferences, noon-hour discussions on methodology, research findings, journals and books, and other initiatives of interest. Your contributions to the listserv are welcome – please send these two or more working days prior to the last day of any month for compilation. This is an important opportunity for qualitative researchers to come together and build resources. Pass it on! Kerstin Stieber Roger, Director QRG Advisory Committee: Janice Ristock (Associate Vice-President, Research, UM); Roberta Woodgate (Nursing); Tuula Heinonen (Social Work); Michelle Driedger (CHS); Maria Medved (Psychology); student reps include Hai Luo and Sulaye Thakrar. *********************************************************************************************************** DECEMBER Table of Contents: 1. December Actions a. QRG Faculty Speaker Series b. QRG Annual Research Award 2. December FactBites a. Qualitative Research LINKs: b. CIHR - RPP Affiliate c. Qualitative Consultants File d. Qualitative Research Space 3. Archive for QRG newsletters ********************************************************************************************************** 1. DECEMBER Actions: This section will promote current events with a focus on qualitative research.

a. QRG Faculty Speaker Series hosted Dr. Michelle Driedger (CHS) on November 24 on ‘Integrating a Survey Methodology into a Focus Group Discussion: Lessons from a Mixed-Methods Design for a First Nations, Inuit and Metis Project’. Thank-you for an enlightening and informative talk and a very useful discussion afterwards.

b. QRG Annual Research Award – **DUE January 1, 2012**. Please see attached form.

2. DECEMBER FactBite: This section will promote research centers, ongoing research, journals and books with a focus on qualitative research.

a. Qualitative Research LINKs:

i. *New* Book: Oral historians commonly use photographs in interviews to stimulate narrators' memories. Yet, there has been surprisingly little reflection on the methodological, ethical, and theoretical implications of the use of photographs in interviews. The essay collection _Oral History and Photography_ (New York: Palgrave, 2011), edited by Alexander Freund (Winnipeg) and Alistair Thomson (Monash - Melbourne), offers twelve theoretically underpinned and empirically rich case studies. The authors include historians, sociologists, social anthropologists, scholars in cultural, photography, media, communication and visual studies, education scholars, folklorists, and photographers. Their case studies are global in range, including research from Australia, Brazil, Canada, Germany, Great Britain, and the United States of America. Together, they explore the "photographic turn" in oral history, going beyond the use of photographs to stimulate memories to explore photographs as counter-memories and alternative narratives. In particular, they explore the complex meanings of the multiple gaps between images evoked in oral stories and those presented in photographs.

ii. New LINK to QRG: You can now find us online under University of Manitoba Research / Research Groups and @ http://umanitoba.ca/human_ecology/qrg. Look out for a new webpage in 2012!

iii. *IIQM update*. Please see two attached emails. Thank-you to Dr. Heinonen for sending these in. iv. Qualitative Conference in Israel 2012 - http://web.bgu.ac.il/Eng/Centers/icqm/Conference/

b. CIHR- RPP Affiliate: Now that the QRG has University of Manitoba research group status, it is also a CIHR – Manitoba Regional Partnerships Program (RPP) affiliate. When a signature for the FAAF form is required, please provide 72 hours in advance – scanned and emailed is preferred. Thank-you. c. QRG Consultants File – We have begun keeping a consultants file for researchers in need of qualitative consulting. This includes research methodology and skills training. At this time, we have eight diverse consultants who are available across the country for workshops, guidance, and training. Please send your qualitative research requests here and you will be linked up with appropriate experts. d. Qualitative Research Space on Campus Need to do some qualitative research and don’t have the space? Human Ecology has three bright and open multipurpose rooms available to conduct and observe individual interviews, counselling sessions, and/or focus groups. Two rooms have a one-way mirror and one has an adjoining control room, equipped for video-recording. One of the rooms has presentation equipment and is wired for videoconferencing capability across Canada and internationally. For more information about the technology, email gparson@cc.umanitoba.ca. To book space, email petch@cc.umanitoba.ca. 3. Archive: Previous newsletters are posted @ http://umanitoba.ca/human_ecology/qrg. If you wish to be removed from this list, please let us know.

2011 Qualitative Research Group Award This award was introduced in 2009 to establish a formal way of recognizing graduate students, Faculty, and affiliated community-based researchers engaged in innovative and sustainable qualitative research. Awards will rotate consecutively starting with a graduate student award in 2009, a Faculty award in 2010, and now a community researcher award in 2011. Nominations for the ‘community researcher ’ category will be accepted until January 1, 2012 and may be sent in by email only to sulaye@gmail.com by any Instructors, Staff and/or Faculty who are members of the QRG. The award includes a University of Manitoba Bookstore Certificate and an award presentation. A selection committee as appointed by the QRG will include a graduate student with qualitative expertise, a community-based researcher, and two UM Faculty. The award will be presented in the spring of 2012. A community researcher is defined as someone who is working (either through paid or unpaid volunteer work) in a community setting and is engaged in qualitative research related to this work in the community. They may not be employed as a Faculty member in a university setting although they might be a student while engaged in paid work in the community. NOMINATION: When you are nominating a community researcher, the criteria for the nominating letter are as follows:

i. the researcher’s name and work related contact information, ii. a brief description of how this person is engaged in the community as a

qualitative researcher, iii. a description of why this person deserves this award and potential/future plans

to continue developing their qualitative research skills, iv. a statement that the researcher is aware they are being nominated, v. your name, the role you have played in this person’s research (e.g. if you are a

supervisor, a past/present instructor, have hired them as an R.A., etc.), and your contact information.

Length. No more than 750 words. One additional document is permitted, such as the example of a paper or other related work relevant to the award.

IIQM Social Media Launch The International Institute for Qualitative Methodology is pleased to announce the launch of our Social Media platforms. Through innovative social media technology, IIQM is better able to disseminate information to our members, researchers and individuals interested in IIQM and the services we offer. Through blog posts, Facebook wall posts, links to current qualitative research articles, IIQM event updates and regular Twitter tweets, we can keep our wide ranged and international community connected. We encourage you to visit our various sites, explore the information available, post a comment, ask a question, start an interesting discussion – communicate with an ever expanding research community that will now be available at your fingertips. Here is a list and link to our new Social Media Platforms: Blogger: http://iiqm.blogspot.com/http://iiqm.blogspot.com/ Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/IIQMUofAhttp://www.facebook.com/IIQMUofA (please “Like” our page to receive updates!) Twitter: @IIQMUofA – follow us for quick updates and recent news We hope our new Social Media platforms will enable you to connect with fellow research community members and further the interests of qualitative research worldwide. Peer Reveiwers for Manuscripts for the International Journal of Qualitative Methods (IJQM) In the past 6 months there were over 42,000 downloads of full text articles from the International Journal of Qualitative Methods (IJQM) website (http://ejournals.library.ualberta.ca/index.php/IJQM/index)! As a result of the journal’s increasing profile, we are seeking additional peer reviewers for submitted manuscripts. If you are already a reviewer for IJQM, many thanks for your ongoing contributions to the quality of work we publish and our continued success. If you are not already a reviewer, have interest and expertise in qualitative research, and would be open to reviewing one or two articles each year, we could welcome an email (ijqm@ualberta.ca) expressing your interest. Please include the following: 1. A brief outline of your expertise and experience with qualitative methods 2. A list of your reviewing interests/expertise (include methods, theories, populations, and disciplines, etc.) 3. A CV or résumé Thank-you for considering this request to become involved.