TY - JOUR
T1 - Navigating Nuances of Language and Meaning
T2 - Challenges of Cross-Language Ethnography Involving Shona Speakers Living With Schizophrenia
AU - Chidarikire, Sherphard
AU - Cross, Merylin
AU - Skinner, Isabelle
AU - Cleary, Michelle
PY - 2018/5/1
Y1 - 2018/5/1
N2 - For people living with schizophrenia, their experience is personal and culturally bound. Focused ethnography enables researchers to understand people’s experiences in-context, a prerequisite to providing person-centered care. Data are gathered through observational fieldwork and in-depth interviews with cultural informants. Regardless of the culture, ethnographic research involves resolving issues of language, communication, and meaning. This article discusses the challenges faced by a bilingual, primary mental health nurse researcher when investigating the experiences of people living with schizophrenia in Zimbabwe. Bilingual understanding influenced the research questions, translation of a validated survey instrument and interview transcripts, analysis of the nuances of dialect and local idioms, and confirmation of cultural understanding. When the researcher is a bilingual cultural insider, the insights gained can be more nuanced and culturally enriched. In cross-language research, translation issues are especially challenging when it involves people with a mental illness and requires researcher experience, ethical sensitivity, and cultural awareness.
AB - For people living with schizophrenia, their experience is personal and culturally bound. Focused ethnography enables researchers to understand people’s experiences in-context, a prerequisite to providing person-centered care. Data are gathered through observational fieldwork and in-depth interviews with cultural informants. Regardless of the culture, ethnographic research involves resolving issues of language, communication, and meaning. This article discusses the challenges faced by a bilingual, primary mental health nurse researcher when investigating the experiences of people living with schizophrenia in Zimbabwe. Bilingual understanding influenced the research questions, translation of a validated survey instrument and interview transcripts, analysis of the nuances of dialect and local idioms, and confirmation of cultural understanding. When the researcher is a bilingual cultural insider, the insights gained can be more nuanced and culturally enriched. In cross-language research, translation issues are especially challenging when it involves people with a mental illness and requires researcher experience, ethical sensitivity, and cultural awareness.
KW - bilingual research
KW - cross-language research
KW - focused ethnography
KW - health research
KW - language translation
KW - mental health nursing
KW - qualitative research
KW - schizophrenia
KW - Zimbabwe
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85042416614&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1177/1049732318758645
DO - 10.1177/1049732318758645
M3 - Article
C2 - 29468930
AN - SCOPUS:85042416614
VL - 28
SP - 927
EP - 938
JO - Qualitative Health Research
JF - Qualitative Health Research
SN - 1049-7323
IS - 6
ER -