30 research outputs found
Acts of resistance: a reflexive inquiry into narrative group work with women who have experienced abuse or oppression
A thesis submitted to the University of Bedfordshire, in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of: Professional Doctorate in Systemic PracticeThis thesis presents a story (in three âactsâ) about being and talking with women who were part of narrative informed groups that I have previously co-facilitated in two locales. One took place in a Welsh valleys community and the other in a British island community. âActs of resistanceâ (Allan Wade, 1997) speak to social justice, a movement or action, represented in different forms in all three acts. Firstly in Act One, I discuss the co-construction of group work as an intervention into (and a resistance against) the dominant discourses of individualised psychopathology. This is a story of how the shaping of group work (as an act of solidarity) supports a wider discourse of social justice rather than a âwhat to include in a groupâ story. Inquiring into the group experience (by talking with women who were part of these groups) is illustrated in Act Two. As a reflexive inquiry it leans towards narrative inquiry and autoethnography to frame the talking with women, a process I have called conversational inquiry. Reflecting on this helped me shape a particular way of engaging with the transcripts from those conversations, a five-step process I have called a responsive, temporally framed narrative inquiry, also described in the second act. This brought forth the themes (themselves representing acts of resistance) of deconstructing roles and rules, doing solidarity, co-constructing preferred futures, âgoing onâ from legacies of abuse, challenging them and us thinking, unpacking power, doing justice, and research as (an act of) resistance. These themes are explored in Act Three. The thesis tells this story of my conversations with women and a reflection on my development (movement) towards becoming a practice-based researcher, drawing on theory, personal and practice experiences and what I have learnt through the course of the inquiry. This is demonstrated in the epilogue under the umbrella of becoming a reflexive researcher. It is partly retrospective in that I am reflecting on previous practices but it is also âof the momentâ as I make connections with my ongoing practice and current cultural/political contexts, keeping stories of resistance within a temporal frame. I am reflecting on practice (evidenced in my field notes and in a conversation with my supervisor) and my own narrative (perhaps best evidenced in my conversations with my mother). This is all part of the wider methodological story. The research question I held in mind throughout this was, âhow might the exploration of collective narratives inform systemic practice, research and social action; and how might this loop back to personal and social responsibility for the systemic practitioner?â. Taken from Goldsmith at al. (2010), the questions I asked of my co-researchers were: · âWhat were/are we making together?â · âHow were/are we making it?â · âWhat were/are we becoming?â · âHow did/do we make better social worlds?â The inquiry has enabled me to expand my own understanding of what it means to be a reflexive practitioner and provides a contribution to the wider systemic and qualitative research communities as an example of practice-based research that offers: ï· A first hand, relationally sensitive account of how narrative approaches can support personal and collective transformation. ï· Examples of local practice that connect with a wider (global) social justice movement. ï· A demonstration of how systemic practices and research can live in recursive relationships with one another
Informing the development of Australia's national eating disorders research and translation strategy : a rapid review methodology
Background Eating disorders (EDs) are highly complex mental illnesses associated with significant medical complications. There are currently knowledge gaps in research relating to the epidemiology, aetiology, treatment, burden, and outcomes of eating disorders. To clearly identify and begin addressing the major deficits in the scientific, medical, and clinical understanding of these mental illnesses, the Australian Government Department of Health in 2019 funded the InsideOut Institute (IOI) to develop the Australian Eating Disorder Research and Translation Strategy, the primary aim of which was to identify priorities and targets for building research capacity and outputs. A series of rapid reviews (RR) were conducted to map the current state of knowledge, identify evidence gaps, and inform development of the national research strategy. Published peer-reviewed literature on DSM-5 listed EDs, across eight knowledge domains was reviewed: (1) population, prevalence, disease burden, Quality of Life in Western developed countries; (2) risk factors; (3) co-occurring conditions and medical complications; (4) screening and diagnosis; (5) prevention and early intervention; (6) psychotherapies and relapse prevention; (7) models of care; (8) pharmacotherapies, alternative and adjunctive therapies; and (9) outcomes (including mortality). While RRs are systematic in nature, they are distinct from systematic reviews in their aim to gather evidence in a timely manner to support decision-making on urgent or high-priority health concerns at the national level. Results Three medical science databases were searched as the primary source of literature for the RRs: Science Direct, PubMed and OVID (Medline). The search was completed on 31st May 2021 (spanning January 2009-May 2021). At writing, a total of 1,320 articles met eligibility criteria and were included in the final review. Conclusions For each RR, the evidence has been organised to review the knowledge area and identify gaps for further research and investment. The series of RRs (published separately within the current series) are designed to support the development of research and translation practice in the field of EDs. They highlight areas for investment and investigation, and provide researchers, service planners and providers, and research funders rapid access to quality current evidence, which has been synthesised and organised to assist decision-making
Respiratory microbiota resistance and resilience to pulmonary exacerbation and subsequent antimicrobial intervention
© 2016 International Society for Microbial Ecology All rights reserved. Pulmonary symptoms in cystic fibrosis (CF) begin in early life with chronic lung infections and concomitant airway inflammation leading to progressive loss of lung function. Gradual pulmonary function decline is interspersed with periods of acute worsening of respiratory symptoms known as CF pulmonary exacerbations (CFPEs). Cumulatively, CFPEs are associated with more rapid disease progression. In this study multiple sputum samples were collected from adult CF patients over the course of CFPEs to better understand how changes in microbiota are associated with CFPE onset and management. Data were divided into five clinical periods: pre-CFPE baseline, CFPE, antibiotic treatment, recovery, and post-CFPE baseline. Samples were treated with propidium monoazide prior to DNA extraction, to remove the impact of bacterial cell death artefacts following antibiotic treatment, and then characterised by 16S rRNA gene-targeted high-throughput sequencing. Partitioning CF microbiota into core and rare groups revealed compositional resistance to CFPE and resilience to antibiotics interventions. Mixed effects modelling of core microbiota members revealed no significant negative impact on the relative abundance of Pseudomonas aeruginosa across the exacerbation cycle. Our findings have implications for current CFPE management strategies, supporting reassessment of existing antimicrobial treatment regimens, as antimicrobial resistance by pathogens and other members of the microbiota may be significant contributing factors
Finishing the euchromatic sequence of the human genome
The sequence of the human genome encodes the genetic instructions for human physiology, as well as rich information about human evolution. In 2001, the International Human Genome Sequencing Consortium reported a draft sequence of the euchromatic portion of the human genome. Since then, the international collaboration has worked to convert this draft into a genome sequence with high accuracy and nearly complete coverage. Here, we report the result of this finishing process. The current genome sequence (Build 35) contains 2.85 billion nucleotides interrupted by only 341 gaps. It covers âŒ99% of the euchromatic genome and is accurate to an error rate of âŒ1 event per 100,000 bases. Many of the remaining euchromatic gaps are associated with segmental duplications and will require focused work with new methods. The near-complete sequence, the first for a vertebrate, greatly improves the precision of biological analyses of the human genome including studies of gene number, birth and death. Notably, the human enome seems to encode only 20,000-25,000 protein-coding genes. The genome sequence reported here should serve as a firm foundation for biomedical research in the decades ahead
Invitations to mutual learning: Reflections on co-researching a social prescribing model of care during the COVID 19 pandemic
This paper offers some reflections on the creative and ethical approaches to participant inclusion in a research project which is currently taking place in the time of the COVID 19 pandemic. The project is based in the county of Bridgend, South Wales, UK. An account of one of the storytelling projects this paper refers to was published in the last edition of Murmurations (Salter, 2020).
These reflections focus on the early invitation to intervention phase of the research that might traditionally be thought of as the recruitment phase, followed by interview-conversations with participants. The language of recruitment and interviewing suggests or assumes that the researcher goes in blindly and coldly with some kind of promotional campaign to find people they previously did not know and then co-opt them into a study where they are the participant or the object of study. In relational, practice-based research such as the one featured here, this does not reflect the ethics of systemic values nor community-based practice. This paper describes an alternative model to think about co-inquiry as an invitation to mutual learning. The method and the ethics of inquiry are spotlighted in this paper, within an overview of the context to inquiry - that of researching a social prescribing model of care. The paper also offers a brief reflection on learning in this early stage with contributions from co-researchers
With wings outstretched
This paper presents and invites reflections on belonging, solidarity and "being with" from within and between a practice and research frame. The paper explores the interconnected stories of personal development and transformation that emerged from a four year doctoral research project whilst also paying appropriate attention to the practice context, which is centralised given that the research is practice-based. Deliberate connections are made between the author's own experiences of transformation and the stories of transformation that women who were part of the research have shared. In so doing the importance of solidarity and being with is privileged. In a climate where group work is often viewed as an efficient way to teach "psychological skills" to people who are viewed as lacking such skills, offering a different (relational) frame challenges the individualised, deficit-defined discourse
Failing health. Exploring tensions.
Recently I was invited to write a short paper for Context magazine, a magazine for Family Therapy and Systemic Practice in the UK. It is a themed edition, due to be published in the summer of 2023, edited by Joanne Hipplewith who generated the theme of âFailing, to do betterâ (Context, 187). For me the title speaks to the idea that there is a tension to explore within failure; the tension of present pain and future opportunity that the inclusion of the comma brings into view.
I wrote about experiencing the theme as a writing prompt and used the opportunity to reflect on times I have experienced failure in academic contexts and to reflect on the process of writing for publication. For many this can invite anxiety around failure and provoke fear of âgetting it wrongâ. I explored also the tension between the pain of failure and the hope of learning something useful from the experience (Salter, 2023).
A sub-theme emerged in my writing linked to current health status and the recent loss of my father who died from cancer in September 2022. I suppose I was reminded of the invitation to see ill health and end of life as a failure of some kind, that I had been failing in terms of my own health and that my father ultimately had failed to survive cancer. But there were opportunities, even here. My father and I found a way to live with (and for me, live through and beyond) the health challenges we faced and we were able to create space in our relationship to honour each otherâs challenges. This was new territory. A new tension
Stories âmatterâ: Storytelling as community learning within a whole systems approach to recovery
We humans, perhaps especially those of us who identify as narrative therapists and systemic practitioners, tell stories all the time, in our everyday talk with family and friends, in dialogue with colleagues, in creative endeavour, in our practices, in talking about our practices, in research contexts and beyond. It is an important part of how we make sense of ourselves and our cultural contexts. Storytelling can also be conceptualised as a resource for transformation and as a mechanism for systems thinking to create âsocial changeâ (David Stroh 2015).
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This paper offers an overview of a project that highlights the transformative quality of storytelling in systemic, community practices. Stories, storytellers and witnesses are framed as active agents.
In particular this paper reviews a newly developed model of community learning through storytelling in Bridgend, South Wales, where the author is based. In creating a âlearning communityâ around people and places in this community- particularly those adversely impacted by the recent pandemic- the paper draws on storytelling practices (Dodd 2019; Heinemeyer 2019; Salter and Newkirk 2019); community learning (Senge 1994; Wenger 1998) and narrative practices (White and Epston 1990; White 1995, 2005, 2006; Denborough 2006, 2008, 2014 for example) to show a holistic model for social action. This is set within the context of beginning to remodel social life during and after the first wave of COVID 19 pandemic