NWT RESEARCH DATABASE

Regions: North Slave Region

Tags: social sciences, mental health, culture, colonization, Settler-Indigenous Relationships

Objective(s): To address the incomplete understanding concerning how non-Indigenous people can begin to heal the cultural soul wounds within the settler-Indigenous relationship.

Project Description: This licence has been issued for the scientific research application No.5195. The specific gap within the current settler-Indigenous relationship is that if non-Indigenous people continue to fear the discomfort that a decolonizing approach can bring, the effects of colonization will stay the same, albeit creating even more racial tensions within the settler-Indigenous relationship. It is also the responsibility of non-Indigenous people to educate themselves about Indigenous land history, while directly responding to oppression when it occurs. Therefore, the problem to be addressed by this project is the incomplete understanding concerning how non-Indigenous people can begin to heal the cultural soul wounds within the settler-Indigenous relationship. Specifically, this research problem includes exploring the resulting racial discrimination and cultural soul wounding in the current relationship between non-Indigenous and Indigenous peoples. The methodology and design for the proposed research is the heuristic research methodology. Heuristic inquiry will allow for the exploration of the essence of Indigenous knowledge holders' lived experience of the settler-Indigenous relationship. This research project will focus on a sample of eight to 10 Indigenous knowledge holders, including Elders, located in Yellowknife. The research will occur at the local Arctic Indigenous Wellness Foundation, a non-profit organization focused on providing traditional and culturally based healthcare for Indigenous peoples. This location was chosen due to the welcoming and culturally safe environment that it symbolizes. By conducting interviews at the Arctic Indigenous Wellness Foundation (AIWF), this allows for a decolonizing shift from the power of the primary researcher in controlling the research process to inviting the use of traditional Indigenous methods of story, life history, and oral history in a culturally sensitive environment. Participants will complete an informal conversational interview face-to-face. Face-to-face interviews were chosen so that the primary researcher and participants can engage meaningfully in the heuristic interviewing process to honour the unique connections and nuances of interpersonal relationships. Considering the current COVID-19 pandemic, the primary researcher will follow the recommendations and health orders given by the Chief Public Health Officer of the Northwest Territories (CPHO), including physical/social-distancing recommendations. If face-to-face interactions are not allowed according to the CPHO, the primary researcher will use Zoom for Healthcare video conferencing as a tool to conduct the interviews. The interviews are expected to last from 50-60 minutes; however, due to the nature of cooperative sharing in heuristic inquiry, the interviews may be longer or shorter depending on the natural unfolding of the conversation. Multiple engagements may also occur to allow for trust and respect to be developed in the research relationship. The data collected using conversational interviews will be audio-recorded and transcribed. The resulting artifact from data collection will be the set of interview transcripts, which will serve as the foundation for data analysis. The first stage of the communication plan is to discuss the proposed research with members of the AIWF. The writer has already spoken with a Dene Elder and traditional counsellor at AIWF, and was told that there is the opportunity to work together and complete this research at AIWF. Prior to collecting data, a recruitment letter will be sent to key stakeholders and given to participants. The recruitment letter details the purpose of the research, risks and benefits, and requirements for participation in the project, including agreeing to the use of audio recording. Participants must provide informed consent by signing the consent form and returning a copy to the primary researcher prior to the interview. The primary researcher will also provide contact information in case stakeholders, community organizations, and/or participants have questions or concerns. The fieldwork for this study will be conducted from January 1, 2023 to December 31, 2023.