Intergenerational Dialogue Exchange and Action: Introducing a Community-Based Participatory Approach to Connect Youth, Adults and Elders in an Alaskan Native Community

Abstract

The broad goals of the community-based participatory research (CBPR) include community engagement, capacity building, developing practical solutions for community concerns and knowledge building. This article describes the data generation and sharing process as it relates to the goals of CBPR and health promotion in an American Indian/Alaska Native communities. The project described herein, "Investigating Inupiaq Cultural Resilience: A Pilot Study," achieved these goals in a tribal context by fostering intergenerational dialogue through data collection. The intergenerational exchange served to collect data for a community-based participatory study and provide an opportunity for communication between Elders, adults and youth. By providing an arena for intergenerational sharing, the format encouraged cross-age connections and in doing so, supported, in a broad sense, the transmission of cultural knowledge. The article describes the process and articulates the ways it supports the CBPR goals of engagement, practical relevance, knowledge generation and health promotion.

Looking across three generations of Alaska Natives to explore how culture fosters indigenous resilience

“…The community-based participatory research method used in this study, Intergenerational Dialogue Exchange and Action (IDEA), has been described in detail elsewhere (Wexler, 2011). All recruitment relied on community members' assessment of tribal members who "have something to say about resilience, overcoming life challenges."…”

American Indian Elders’ resilience: Sources of strength for building a healthy future for youth

“…American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian (AI/AN/NH) elders are the keepers and transmitters of knowledge that can build healthy futures for generations (Garrett et al, 2014; Ka’opua, Braun, Browne, Mokuau, & Park, 2011; Wexler, 2011). Their life stories hold rich lessons and foundational knowledge that can be key to developing positive AI/AN/NH youth cultural identity and life skills (Garrett et al, 2014; Sarche & Whitesell, 2012; Wexler, 2011).…”

“…Their life stories hold rich lessons and foundational knowledge that can be key to developing positive AI/AN/NH youth cultural identity and life skills (Garrett et al, 2014; Sarche & Whitesell, 2012; Wexler, 2011). AI/AN/NH elders survived and even thrived by developing resilience strategies in response to adverse situations, including historical trauma, social and political injustice, and discriminatory practices of the U.S. government (Brave Heart & DeBruyn, 1998; Grandbois & Sanders, 2009; Masten, 1994).…”

“…Existing studies have identified a current and growing disconnect between AI/AN/NH generations, prompting a movement among AI/AN/NH communities to reconnect elders with youth (Goodkind, Hess, Gorman, & Parker, 2012; Tyer, 2015; Wexler, 2011). Transmitting knowledge and life lessons intergenerationally may help youth overcome their own adversities (Wexler, 2011; Goodkind et al, 2012).…”

Using Photovoice to Understand Intergenerational Influences on Health and Well-Being in a Southern Labrador Inuit Community

“…However, colonialism significantly impacted Indigenous family and community structures in Canada, including the transmission of traditional knowledge (Czyzewski, 2011). Factors such as dispossession from the land, disruption of traditional life-ways, intergenerational trauma, and the long-term effects of the residential school system (Martin-Hill, 2009) have resulted in the erosion of intergenerational closeness, particularly between the oldest and youngest members of these communities (Wexler, 2011). These factors have also contributed to community-level issues such as isolation, substance abuse, and violence (Brave Heart 2003; Kirmayer, Brass, & Tait, 2000;Strickland, Welsh, & Cooper, 2006).…”