2:00 PM, 01 Oct 2019 - , ORB G27

Bringing the voice of the elderly onstage: an ethnodrama on everyday lived experience of living in a nursing home

Creative Methods Seminar:

 ‘Bringing the voice of the elderly onstage: an ethnodrama on everyday lived experience  of living in a nursing home’

Dr. Catharina Von Koskull

Fulbright Scholar and Associate Professor, University of Vaasa, Finland

Abstract

This interactive presentation overviews how participatory approaches and creative methodologies such as ethnodrama and ethnography can assist in representing participant experiences and voice to positively impact policy makers, socio-education of social care and eldercare professionals and the general public. The presentation details the participatory process and findings of an ethnography conducted in a Finnish eldercare. The collaborative process of translating the findings into an ethnodrama, together with participants, is outlined and videos of the results performed by professional actors are presented. The presentation concludes with an interactive discussion and examples of how ethnodrama might be used in dialogue with policy makers and in the socio-education of health and care professionals.

Speaker Biography

Dr. Catharina von Koskull is a Fulbright Scholar Alumni and Associate Professor at the University of Vaasa. Her research focuses on wellbeing issues related to ageing and elderly care. She is an expert in traditional ethnography in the field and has been involved in alternative research methodologies such as art-based methods, in particular, ethnodrama. She has been working as a PI in the Academy of Finland-financed EMA project, studying elderly residents’ experience of transitions between home and institutionalised care. Based on the stories in the EMA project she made the ethnodrama production; “Everyday Life at the Elder Care” in collaboration with a large network of cross-sectoral organisations that she coordinated. She was awarded competitive grants from both the Finnish Cultural Foundation and the Swedish Cultural Foundation for the ethnodrama, which was shown for around 800 people in 2016-17. She is also affiliated to The Cornell Institute for Healthy Futures at Cornell University, and to Service Research Center at Karlstad University, Sweden.  

For further information, please contact ISS21 Caring Working Group co-chairs:

Dr. Jacqui O' Riordan (jacquior@ucc.ie) or Dr. Carol Kelleher (carol.kelleher@ucc.ie)

Free - all welcome. Organised by ISS21 Caring Working Group and the Department of Management and Marketing

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