Browsing by Author "Sitter, Kathleen"

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    always.in.bits.
    (2023-06-13) Ladhani, Sheliza; Sitter, Kathleen; McDermott, Mairi; Este, David; Gabor, Peter; Adams, Jennifer; Banahene Adjei, Paul
    The mo(ve)ments gathered, held, and offered to you here, are connected to institutional life yet breach its hold. This multi-voiced autoethnographic representation of (re)memberings and (re)imaginings, draws upon critical race theory, anti-racism, and settler colonialism as analytics to attune to the reproduction of parallel projects of domination and how particular violences are thrust on / against our bodies, Black, Indigenous, and racialized bodies. Here, we consider how our (re)memberings of racism and colonial violence within higher education feed our (re)imaginings and desires for more than what is. In working in relation to / with memory as an intimate and rebellious methodology, we draw upon our distinct historical and ancestral inheritances and asymmetrically interconnected knowledges of living amidst porous worlds of haunting and abundance, held by and preserved within the corporeal vessel, as a form of collective labour for livability, for shared futures that might yet be. These orientations and analytics open up decolonial possibilities for this work, spaces to travel in / through to make sense of the distinct yet linked experiences across our differences. This vessel carefully holds layered curations of bodily affect(ion)s through various fragmented forms of representation. In bringing together these fragments in fragile connectivity, this work traces and follows how bodies, voices, and affects find one another here, in an institutional space that continually deploys its racial and colonial machinations for our containment, erasure and extraction. Through membranous seeping, border crossing, and portal jumping to reclaim our bodies (of knowledge), our (re)memberings and (re)imaginings illuminate desires and yearnings for belonging in this world together, alongside world-making practices made possible by inheritance, kinship, and the alchemy of imagination.
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    Methodological Meeting of the Minds (M3): A Teaching & Learning Series
    (2019-04-30) Burns, Victoria; Exner-Cortens, Deinera; Walsh, Christine; Badry, Dorothy; Jenney, Angelique; King, Regine; Lorenzetti, Liza; Sitter, Kathleen
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    Participatory video as radical incrementalism: exploring the right to love among adults with developmental disabilities
    (2012) Sitter, Kathleen; Lund, Darren
    This research project involved working collaboratively with a disability advocacy group on an action research project aimed at exploring participatory video as a form of radical incrementalism through three interrelated areas: method, voice, and advocacy. The research involved 12 participants (co-filmmakers) co-creating a series of films about the dimensions of sexual rights as experienced and understood by people with developmental disabilities. The participants subsequently uploaded their videos onto digital platforms, and took on the roles of community educators and incorporated their videos into their larger advocacy campaign. The impact of the research process was documented with multiple data that were analyzed using an approach that drew on critical disability theory and Freirean pedagogy. Through this collaborative method evolved seven stages of production that integrated distribution as core phase of the research process. Findings suggested that a complex interplay between barriers and supports play a critical role in sexual rights, sexual health, and healthy sexuality. In the area of self-advocacy, themes suggested that the process also contributed to: a) disability pride, b) building community bridges, and c) collaborative social action. These findings were critically examined with respect to participatory video as a form of radical incrementalism. Findings suggested that the integration of distribution afforded a more comprehensive understanding of potential strengths, tensions, and ethical considerations of multi-media technologies in advocacy efforts in the context of community development and adult learning practices. Further, it provided insight into the dimensions of disability and sexual rights from the perspective of persons with developmental disabilities living in Western Canada. Suggestions for future research include attention to the authorship/ownership issues in participatory video projects, and exploring meaningful ways of addressing potential tensions of distribution in research contexts.
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    Understanding Camouflaging and Identity in Autistic Children and Youth Using Photovoice
    (2022-08-29) Howe, Stephanie; McMorris, Carly; Lai, Meng-Chuan; Sitter, Kathleen
    Background: While it is well-established that autistic children and adolescents are vulnerable to developing mental health concerns, it is unclear what factors cause and maintain these mental health issues. Camouflaging, or the use of strategies by autistic people to minimize the visibility of their autistic traits in social situations, may be a risk factor for mental health concerns among autistic adults. However, there is relatively little research describing camouflaging among autistic children and adolescents. The present study provided evidence of emerging camouflaging behaviour among autistic children and adolescents and supplied rich descriptions of this phenomenon from those with lived experience. Methods: Photo-elicitation was used to actively engage participants in the research process, and to assist them in sharing their thoughts through photography. Seven autistic children and adolescents aged 10 to 14 years (M = 11.57, SD = 1.81) were given two to three weeks to take photographs in response to the topic and prompts provided. Individual interviews were conducted with each participant. Thematic analysis was used to identify major themes within interview data and an interpretive engagement framework was used to interpret participant images. Results: Qualitative analysis identified 13 themes. Camouflaging was perceived by autistic children and adolescents to be a response to negative social experiences, as well as a learned habit that was often unconscious and difficult to stop. Context (e.g., the audience, the activity) was important for determining when children and adolescents would camouflage. While some autistic children and adolescents camouflaged by suppressing their natural behaviours in social situations, many camouflaged by generally hiding their true selves (e.g., their interests, emotions, and opinions) from others. Camouflaging behaviour was reported to result in internal conflict, stress, and a need for time alone to recharge. Conclusions: Results from this qualitative study highlight that autistic children and adolescent as young as ten years old engage in camouflaging behaviour that can be pervasive and automatic. Camouflaging was reported to be a stressful, confusing, and energetically draining experience for autistic children and adolescents. Better understanding of the development and experience of camouflaging in childhood can inform prevention of mental health concerns in adulthood.