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Dear all,
Nobody on this list is likely to need either the one-day taster or the 5-day
intensive, but you may know of people in Australia who might. If you do, or
can think of an email list circulating in that area, it would be great if
you could forward the flyer, copying me in, if possible. Best summer wishes
to all in the northern hemisphere, and conversely..... Tom and Prue 
   _____  


 

 

Five-day Intensive Short Course (and One-day 'Taster') in


Biographic-Narrative Interpretive Method (BNIM) – 


Narrative interviewing,  interpretation and uses

 

SYDNEY, SEPTEMBER (5-day) 10th – 14th, or (one-day) Sept 17th, 2007

(Please note these changed dates)

 

Prue Chamberlayne  (Open University, UK)

Tom Wengraf (London East Research Institute, UK)

 

Summary

 

The value of open-narrative interviewing and insightful interpretation is
widely recognised, but rather than having to invent the wheel for
themselves, many people welcome a systematic immersion into principles and
procedures that have been shown to generate high-quality work. An excerpt
from an email we received may be suggestive:

 

“… a number of the trainees who graduated this year got top awards in their
doctorate projects... BNIM and narrative projects were considered to be of a
particularly high standard by both internal and external examiners, and were
very well received.  The course director was very impressed and has told me
that the standard of the research of those undertaking these projects (using
BNIM) has improved the standard of the whole cohort.”

 

For over eight years in the UK, and more recently in New York, Auckland
(NZ),  Ljubljana (Slovenia) and Kigale (Rwanda), we have been running BNIM
intensive trainings designed for PhD students and postdoctoral researchers
in various fields. Comments include:

 

Elvin – A richness beyond what I could imagine.

 

Sian – Well-balanced,  with just enough of each step. It was nice to have a
number of little thresholds. I like the emphasis on own research, and having
lots of time for reflection.

 

Mark – I could go away and practice now. I liked the balance of how and why.
I really got my head round that and could explain it to someone else.

 

Recently completed PhDs and clinical doctorates by researchers using BNIM
range over topics such as: reintegration of Guatemalan refugees; identity in
informal care; men coping with sexual abuse; psychosomatic study of breast
cancer; love and intimacy; motivation in occupational therapy; South African
migrants to NZ; transitions in hearing voices’ life stories; nurses’ and
health visitors’ learning and professional practice; relationship
experiences in psychosis and hospitalisation. We know of 18 more PhDs and
clinical doctorates in process.  Universities include Auckland, Dublin,
Central Lancashire, East London, Exeter, Leicester, Kings College London,
Oxford Brookes, Plymouth.

 

BNIM assumes that “narrative” expresses both conscious concerns and
unconscious cultural, societal and individual presuppositions and processes.
It supports research into the lived experience of individuals and
collectives, facilitating understanding both the ‘inner’ and the ‘outer’
worlds of ‘historically-evolving persons-in-historically-evolving
situations’, and particularly the interactivity of inner and outer world
dynamics.  It especially serves researchers who need a tool that supports
understanding spanning sociological and psychological dynamics and
structures, and these treated not statically but as situated historically
and biographically.  Such research provides an innovative base for policy. 

 

The course provides practical training in doing biographic narrative
interviews, together with 'hands-on experience' of interpretation
procedures. ‘Interpretation’ includes presentation, comparing, theorising
from and policy uses of cases. You develop a sense of how your own research
projects might use such aspects and components. The relatively small number
of students (max of 12 for the five-day intensive; 20 for the one-day
course) ensures close coaching. 

 

Theoretical and methodological developments from recent research practice
are raised for discussion.  When you  do the course, you automatically
become a member of the <Biographic-narrative-BNIM> email list where news,
questions and discussion circulate. Methodology can be lonely without a
secure base and like-minded people working in the same way as you. The
course, the textbook, the Short Guide and the email list offer you support
in when in your own research you want to use part or all of the BNIM
tool-kit. 

 

For examples of BNIM case studies we recommend the European Union
seven-country SOSTRIS project (edited) Biography and social exclusion in
Europe: experiences and life-journeys (2002: Bristol, Policy Press).  Other
books, articles and reports are listed in the constantly updated Short Guide
to BNIM available from HYPERLINK
"mailto:[log in to unmask]"[log in to unmask] 

 

 

Programme Outline 

 

Days 1 and 2 (Monday 10th and Tuesday 11th September 2007)

We start with a resumé of the principles behind BNIM practice, assuming
familiarity with the Short Guide (sent to all those registering on the
course).  The contrast between open-ended biographic-narrative interviewing
and more conventional semi-structured and/or attitude-and-argument focused
ones is clarified.  

 

The bulk of the first two days is devoted to learning the craft of BNIM
interviewing practice. This involves learning to ask narrative-pointed
questions (both topic-focused and open) and not inadvertently interrupting
or deflecting the interviewee. Apparently simple, this requires repeated and
careful practice.  Pencil-and-paper and practical exercises ensure success
is achieved by the middle of the 2nd day, which ends with a panel
interpretation of a interview transcript segment. 

 

Days 3, 4 and 5 (Wednesday 12th  to Friday 14th September 2007)

Here you  engage in the key practices of BNIM interpretive work. We explain
the ‘separate tracks’ of  'lived life' and 'told story' analysis, and
convert raw transcript into working material for each track. You learn the
significance of the panel-based future-blind chunk-by-chunk approach
peculiar to BNIM by doing parts of both a narrative text analysis and
biographical data analysis, and producing emergent structural hypotheses
towards a ‘whole case’ interpretation. 

 

Our case-presentations give examples of ‘finished’ case analysis, and allow
you to practice comparing cases and to consider the theoretical and policy
purposes towards which BNIM work is typically oriented.  You discuss the use
of all or part of the BNIM approach for your individual research purposes,
and how to advocate small sample in-depth studies to research and policy
audiences. 

 

 


DETAILS:  SYDNEY SEPTEMBER 2007


 

Courses will be hosted at the Social Policy Research Centre at the
University of New South Wales (Western Campus), Acting Director, Ilan Katz.
The local course organisers are Ilan KATZ  HYPERLINK
"mailto:[log in to unmask]"[log in to unmask] and George MORGAN
[log in to unmask]   

 

The administrator for the courses is Duncan Aldridge, d.aldridgeHYPERLINK
"mailto:[log in to unmask]"@unsw.edu.au, 

Phone: 9385-7802, Events and Publications Officer, Social Policy Research
Centre
Western Wing, G2 Western Campus, University of New South Wales, NSW 2052.




Five day Intensive Training:

 

Monday Sept 10th to Friday 14th September 2007

Cost: $1200 ($1000 incl GST if paid in full by July 23rd ; lunches, coffees
and teas included)

 

This is the full training. There are 12 places on this course on a “first
come, first served” basis.  Provided a place is still available, your place
is secured once you have sent the deposit of $200.  

 

 

One day Introductory Workshop:

 

Monday  17th SEPTEMBER 2007. 

Cost: $250 ($200 incl GST if paid in full by July 23rd; coffees and teas
included.)

 

This is a 'taster' for those who want to get some sense of the methodology
of BNIM interviewing and interpretation. It will cover background to the
method, its core components and processes, with some hands-on experiential
activities. 

 

There are 20 places on a “first come, first served” basis. Provided a place
is still available, your place is secured once you have sent a deposit of
$50.  

 

We would really appreciate your indication as to whether you are interested
in either of these courses. Full payment by July 23rd  will be essential. 

 

 Please edit the text below and send your reply to HYPERLINK
"mailto:[log in to unmask]"[log in to unmask], and copy to HYPERLINK
"mailto:[log in to unmask]"[log in to unmask] 

 

PLEASE INDICATE WHETHER YOU ARE INTERESTED IN

A)  THE FIVE DAY INTENSIVE - Sept 10th-14th

or B)  THE  ONE DAY ‘TASTER’ - Sept 17th

 

Please choose one option from the following:

 

1) I have contacted you already and confirm I can manage the new date(s) 

 

2) Count me in: I’ve filled in the REGISTRATION FORM on the next page and
ATTACH the cheque to guarantee my place on the 5-day / 1-day course

 

3) I'm interested in coming on the 5-day / 1-day course, , but cannot make a
firm commitment at this stage and will let you know by [PLEASE INSERT DATE -
within around 4 weeks of receiving this email]. 

 

 

We are excited at the prospect of running the intensive training and the
taster in Sydney and meeting people in Australia interested in using and
developing biographical methods. Perhaps you and/or a colleague might be one
of them! Do circulate this flyer to anybody else (or any list) for whom you
think BNIM might be relevant. Do contact Tom if you have any questions or
want a free electronic copy of the current version of the  Short Guide to
BNIM.

 

Many thanks and best wishes

 

Tom                             HYPERLINK
"mailto:[log in to unmask]"[log in to unmask] 

Prue                             HYPERLINK
"mailto:[log in to unmask]"[log in to unmask] 

 

 

PTO

 

 

 

 

Registration Form for a BNIM course: Sydney 2007

 


Title

 

Name

 


 

 

 

 


 

 

 

 


 

Organisation

 


 

 


 

Address

 


 

 


 

 


 

Suburb

 

 

State

 

 

Post code

 


 

Phone

 

 

Email

 


 

Dietary requirements

 


 

 

PAYMENT DETAILS


Please indicate which course you would like to attend (Five Day or One-Day
Taster) 

 


 

Payment is by cheque only. Please make out the cheque to the Social Policy
Research Centre and send with this  registration form to:

BNIM Workshop

Social Policy Research Centre

Building G2, Western Grounds 

UNSW NSW 2052

								

 

 

Payment in FULL should be made by July 24th. 

 

The cancellation policy below is provisional. We need to ensure that fees
are sufficient to ensure that airfares and accommodation are paid.

Deposit amounts of $200 for the 5 days or $50 for the one-day taster are not
refundable.

 

The policy as regards the balance of $800 for the 5 days or $150 for the
one-day taster is as follows. Cancellations before 10th August will
automatically lead to a 50% refund; cancellations after that date will also
lead to a 50% refund if we can find somebody to take your place.


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