12/15/2022
Finding my McNair mentor
A large part of my undergraduate work in the McNair program is the research component. Through this program, I am able to design a two-year research project of my choosing and work one-on-one with a faculty member to complete it. My mentor, Dr. Kristine Knutson, is the head of the communications department at UW – Eau Claire. While I was looking for a mentor, several of my communications professors expressed interest in working with me. After meeting with a few of them and discussing research topics in which they are proficient and interested, I learned that Dr. Knutson does significant amounts of research in family communication. This aligned with my interests, so we agreed to proceed with a research project together.
Landing on a topic
Choosing a topic came naturally during our discussion of interests. We originally landed on the intergenerational transmission (IGT) of trauma, but after further discussion and research, we dropped the trauma part. We decided that including the word in a title would mislead readers and indicate that our research goes in an unintended direction. While we still intend on discussing trauma, it will not be the focus of this particular project. Instead, we will be looking at family communication patterns and how they are transmitted from generation to generation. The relationship between attitudes surrounding mental health and how it contributes to IGT will be explored, and then potential solutions to unhealthy communication patterns will be identified to prevent harmful cycles from perpetuating and potentially creating further damage.
Research methods
Our research method will begin as autoethnography, which is a unique method that focuses on using the writing process as a way to collect data. It focuses on presenting individual experiences in a creative way, interpreting them through the lens of the author, and attributing them to theoretical perspectives. This project will be presented at research conferences in the spring of 2023. The following summer, we plan on extending our project to include interviews, which moves the research method into ethnography. This method still uses my lens to interpret experiences, but instead of solely my own, it will be the experiences of others. The sample size of interviewees will be relatively small, which will allow us to conduct longer interviews with each individual and dive deeper into their perspectives.
Why is this important?
I am very excited to continue with this project. I think it can help many people make sense of their experiences and learn how to communicate better and avoid transmitting unhealthy communication patterns to future generations. Beginning with autoethnography will give me an empathetic perspective and good practice for interpreting the experiences of others, so this project builds on itself nicely. I hope to be able to improve communication styles within my own family using the solutions we find. These skills will ideally expand to give the interviewees and readers tools to help them improve their communication personally as well as within their families.
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