Eastern and Western
Dramatherapy
Vol. 34, No. 2, July 2012, 92–100
CLINICAL COMMENT
A research interview: dramatherapy and cross-cultural awareness Downloaded by [The University of British Columbia] at 21:37 23 February 2013
Mandy Carra* and Madeline Andersen-Warrenb a Freelance Dramatherapist; b Northern Trust for Dramatherapy
The following interview is based on research by Mandy Carr in 2009, for a ‘top up’
MA at Roehampton University, London, entitled ‘An investigation into the importance of raising cross-cultural awareness within Dramatherapy’. The interview was recorded and then transcribed. This was followed by electronic communication during which some references were added.
The interview addresses the processes and stages of the research, research methodology and the outcomes.
MAW Thank you for agreeing to be interviewed about your research.
Why did you choose this topic?
MC My experience of growing up in a middle class, secular Jewish, intensely political home in Liverpool, took me on a path in which social action, justice, being of service to others, education and the arts were supremely important. I attended an independent Church of England primary school.
Much of the time I felt ‘different’ and unable to articulate or express my culture. This manifested itself in many ways, for example, feeling unbearably ignorant with items of ‘common knowledge’ such as the Pope, of whom I had never heard, allusions to church and chapel of which I had no experience or reference to food I had never eaten. I vividly remember
(at the age of about 8) the intense worry that if I mentioned an everyday thing from my home life, such as visiting relatives in America (a common Jewish diaspora experience) or eating chopped liver, that I would feel embarrassed by having to explain what I was saying. As I grew up, my increasing awareness of the Holocaust and of Apartheid gave birth to a lifelong concern with civil rights and racial equality and identity issues.
Vol. 34, No. 2, July 2012, 92–100
CLINICAL COMMENT
A research interview: dramatherapy and cross-cultural awareness Downloaded by [The University of British Columbia] at 21:37 23 February 2013
Mandy Carra* and Madeline Andersen-Warrenb a Freelance Dramatherapist; b Northern Trust for Dramatherapy
The following interview is based on research by Mandy Carr in 2009, for a ‘top up’
MA at Roehampton University, London, entitled ‘An investigation into the importance of raising cross-cultural awareness within Dramatherapy’. The interview was recorded and then transcribed. This was followed by electronic communication during which some references were added.
The interview addresses the processes and stages of the research, research methodology and the outcomes.
MAW Thank you for agreeing to be interviewed about your research.
Why did you choose this topic?
MC My experience of growing up in a middle class, secular Jewish, intensely political home in Liverpool, took me on a path in which social action, justice, being of service to others, education and the arts were supremely important. I attended an independent Church of England primary school.
Much of the time I felt ‘different’ and unable to articulate or express my culture. This manifested itself in many ways, for example, feeling unbearably ignorant with items of ‘common knowledge’ such as the Pope, of whom I had never heard, allusions to church and chapel of which I had no experience or reference to food I had never eaten. I vividly remember
(at the age of about 8) the intense worry that if I mentioned an everyday thing from my home life, such as visiting relatives in America (a common Jewish diaspora experience) or eating chopped liver, that I would feel embarrassed by having to explain what I was saying. As I grew up, my increasing awareness of the Holocaust and of Apartheid gave birth to a lifelong concern with civil rights and racial equality and identity issues.
References: Aigen, K., 1996. The researcher’s cultural identity. In: M. Langenberg, K. Aigen and J Ansdell, G. and Pavlicevic, M., 2001. Beginning research in the arts therapies: a practical guide Blackwell, D., 2005. Counselling and psychotherapy with refugees. London and Philadelphia: Jessica Kingsley. British Association of Dramatherapists, 2005. Code of practice [online]. Available from: http:badth.org.uk/code/index.html#consent [Accessed 10 May 2009]. Ciornai, S., 1983. Art therapy with working class women. The arts in psychotherapy, 10 (2), 63–76. Denscombe, M., 2003. The good research guide. Maidenhead: OUP. Dokter, D., 1998a. Being a migrant, working with migrants: issues of identity and embodiment. In: D. Dokter, ed. Arts therapists, refugees and migrants: reaching across borders Dokter, D., 1998b. Introduction. In: D. Dokter, ed. Arts therapists, refugees and migrants: reaching across borders Hall, S., 1992. New ethnicities. In: J. Donald and A. Rattansi, eds. Race, culture and difference Hall, S., 2000. New ethnicities. In: J. Donald and A. Rattansi, eds. Race, culture and difference Health Professions Council, 2007. Standards of conduct, performance and ethics [online]. Higgins, R., 1996. Approaches to research: a handbook for those writing a dissertation London and Philadelphia: Jessica Kingsley. James, J., 1998. Remembering: intercultural issues in integrative arts psychotherapy. In: D Jones, P., 2007. Drama as therapy: theory, practice and research. East Sussex: Routledge. Kareem, J. and Littlewood, R., 1992. Intercultural therapy: themes, interpretations and practice McGoldrick, M., 1998. Re-visioning family therapy: race, culture and gender in clinical practice Osborn, M. and Smith, J.A., 2003. Interpretative phenomenological analysis. In: J.A Smith, ed Smeijsters, H., 1997. Multiple perspectives: a guide to qualitative research in music therapy Sue, D.W. and Sue, D., 2005. Counselling the culturally different: theory and practice. 3rd ed