Hopeful Futures - Purposeful reimagining in care-experienced research

Nadine Fowler, Zinnia Mitchell-Smith, Natasha Rennolds, Claire Thomas

Research output: Contribution to conferencePaper

Abstract

Too often, research with care-experienced children and adults is framed around negatives – poor outcomes and the language of despair which can fuel a culture in research and practice of helplessness and hopelessness. We believe that this belies the strengths, the aspirations and positive outcomes felt by people who have been cared for by the state. In an attempt to challenge these negative narratives, efforts have been made to consciously change the language that we use when we speak about care-experienced children and adults (see for example the Each and Every Child initiative, in collaboration with FrameWorks UK). Reframing care experience involves building the public understanding of care experience, and shifting attitudes towards care experience and the care system. As a team of researchers bringing in different perspectives including lived-experience of the care system, we wonder how we can position this research differently, reframing to a more hopeful approach. Having met at Helsinki, ECQI 2024, we formed a collective where we have explored our shared research hopes whilst acknowledging the practicalities of doing research. We look to a more positive reframing of the research process, where we move from a focus on ethical challenges to genuine ethical practice; a move from fear in our methods such as the recruitment of ‘participants’ to being driven by genuine ethical participatory approaches; and a positive reframing in the dissemination of findings around the nuances of care experience. This paper will draw upon our varied research, lived experience and perspectives to reimagine a more hopeful future for care-experienced research.
Original languageEnglish
Publication statusPublished - 10 Jan 2025
EventEuropean Congress of Qualitative Inquiry 2025: Qualitative Inquiry: Hope, Humility and Playfulness in a Precarious World - University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, United Kingdom
Duration: 8 Jan 202510 Jan 2025

Conference

ConferenceEuropean Congress of Qualitative Inquiry 2025
Country/TerritoryUnited Kingdom
CityEdinburgh
Period8/01/2510/01/25

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