A Commentary on Alternative Approaches to the Research Process with Canadian First Nation Communities

As a co-investigator of one of the research studies in this issue(Building a Collaborative Understanding of Pathways to Adolescent Alcohol Misuse in a Mi’kmaq Community, p. 27), I have had a unique opportunity to work in a multiple capacity roles. In addition to being a community member and a research partner, I am also a graduate student in school psychology. My submission is intended to share my experiences in my capacity role as a First Nation support worker, particularly in research, with the hope of providing some guiding principles and practices when conducting research in a First Nation community. Based on my experience in conducting research on First Nation mental health issues, it seems oftentimes lacking in publications in scholarly journals. This makes it difficult when looking for sources for information. There could be a number of reasons for the deficiency in published information on First Nation issues. In my experience in consultation with community members, their initial reaction is “we have been studied to death”, or “researchers from outside the community come in and take information to use for their own benefit”, or “what do we get out of it?”. While all these responses might be accurate on some level, it leads me to the question as to why it seems so difficult to find information on First Nation issues especially in Canada.