Chinese Canadian Legal Study
Research Methodology
Chinese Canadian Study Advisory (Advisory team is in place)
The role of the Advisory is to make sure that the study is carried out in a culturally sensitive manner. Advisory members are selected based on their connections to the Chinese community and their expertise. They represent diverse intersectional identities. The advisory does not have access to the names of participants, any raw data, interview notes, or recordings. Advisory members may not be participants in the study.
Recruitment (In process)
Applicants will be asked for their name, phone number, and email address and will answer a few short questions to help with participant selection. The data gathered through the sign-up page will be kept confidential and secure.
Participant selection (Ongoing)
Participants must be of Chinese descent, aged 18 or older, and live in Greater Victoria or Greater Vancouver. From the group of applicants, we will select those who have as much diversity of backgrounds as possible (for example with respect to country of origin, gender, age group, socioeconomic background, cultural background, type of legal issue experienced). If there is an under-representation for some of these diversity factors (say few women apply), we will advertise the study with specific groups to encourage their participation. Participants do not have to be fluent in English to participate, interpretation will be provided on request.
Informed consent/assent procedures
Participants will be asked to complete a consent form or provide consent verbally at the beginning of the interview. Quotes will be used in the report only if consent was given.
Confidentiality
Interpreters will sign a confidentiality agreement before each interview. Advisory members will not have access to identifiable study records.
To protect participants’ privacy, their name and contact information will not be included in any file name, primary data collection, reports, publications, or presentations that may come from this study. The report will only include quotes from the interview with permission of the participants. Quotes will not include any information that identifies them personally. At all times, participants’ identities will be kept completely confidential and the information they provide will be wholly anonymous.
All responses are covered by ICA’s privacy policies. Any research materials and notes are accessible to the researchers only and will be deleted after the study is completed. If anyone has any questions or concerns about how their personal information is handled, please contact ICA’s privacy officer: privacy@icavictoria.org
Participants have the option to withdraw their data from the study until the report is complete.
Interview Procedures
Interviews will be done online through Zoom or MS Teams, by telephone, or in person (Victoria only), taking into consideration the participants’ preferences. Interviews will be approximately 1.5 hours each.
Detailed notes will be taken with the help of an audio recording for later review and analysis. At the end of the interview, participants will be asked to provide basic demographic information about themselves.
Participants will receive 100 CAD in the form of a cheque sent to their home address.
Participants may experience some negative emotions when describing their experiences. To lessen these harms, interviewers will use a trauma-informed and strength-based approach for their questions and responses. Participants can pause or terminate the interview at any time. All participants will be provided with the contact information of mental health support in their region.
Analysis and Communication of Results
Data obtained from these interviews will be analyzed along major themes that arise. De-identified quotes will be included with participant consent.
The findings will be communicated to community partners through social media, newsletters, presentations, and a media release.