Schizophrenia in focus
In celebration of the 10th anniversary of the Interdisciplinary Master’s Program in Disability Studies at the University of Manitoba, Barbara Schneider and Suzan Desserud from the University of Calgary have been invited to host a series of seminars.
The struggle for housing stability is among the many challenges faced by people with schizophrenia. That struggle was the focus of a recent participatory action research project under the direction of Schneider, funded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada.
Barbara Schneider is professor in the Department of Communication and Culture at the University of Calgary. She has spent the last decade doing participatory research with a group of people diagnosed with schizophrenia. Together they studied the interactions of people with a diagnosis of schizophrenia with medical professionals and their housing struggles. She has also studied how homelessness is represented in the news.
Participatory research involves members of a community group in meaningful participation in all stages of the research process, including developing the research question, gathering the data, analyzing the data and disseminating and using the results.
The public is invited to a free lecture and film presentation: “Homelessness, Mental Health and Social Justice: The Hearing (our) Voices Project.” The film will be shown on Wednesday, March 5, 2014 at 2:00 pm in Room 543 University Centre.
Following the film, Schneider will discuss The Hearing (our) Voices Project at a wine and cheese reception.
In this powerful and evocative film, people with schizophrenia talk about what it means to them to take part in a participatory action research project investigating housing for people with severe mental illnesses. The documentary is based on interviews conducted with nine people with schizophrenia who took part in a recent participatory action research project on housing for people with schizophrenia.
Other events in recognition of the 10th anniversary of Disability Studies
March 5 @ 9:30 A.M. – Room 134 Education Building
An introduction to autoethnography and a discussion about mothers of people with schizophrenia.
March 6 @ 9:30 A.M. – Room 134 Education Building
Workshop on participatory research (2-3 hours). Examining various approaches to and challenges of doing participatory research.
March 6 @ 1:00 P.M. – Room 134 Education Building
Caring about homelessness: How identity work maintains the stigma of homelessness.
For more information about attending these events, contact Tanis Woodland, Disability Studies, 204-474-7017 or email: disability_studies [at] umanitoba [dot] ca.