Getting Free

ORAL HISTORY PROJECT (OTAGO-BASED)
Oral histories of violence, resilience and recovery

The participants:
Sixteen women and men 30 years of age and over who experienced prolonged violence in childhood and/or adolescence with compounding effects; have found ways of resolving their difficulties; and identify as 'resilient'.

The interviews:
'Getting Free' explores the long-term effects of violence and the development of resilience in those who experienced physical, sexual and/or emotional violation during childhood. The narratives detail experiences of childhood, adolescence and early adulthood; how individuals perceived and responded to those around them; and the ways in which they have drawn on their experience to enhance rather than diminish the quality of their adult lives.

Funding for Stage I of this project was received from:
- Australian Sesquicentennial Gift Trust for Awards in Oral History
- New Zealand Lottery Grants Board
- Patricia France Charitable Trust
- The Community Trust of Otago
- Dunedin Mayoral Trust Fund
- New Zealand Federation of University Women (Inc) Otago Branch

Stage I Project Results:
The project has collected 152 hours of tape-recorded interviews. The collection is held at the Alexander Turnbull Library and is embargoed until December 2007. Copies of eleven interviews are held at Otago Settlers Museum.

'Getting Free' Oral History participants speak of the benefit of having recorded their story and how, sometimes in unexpected ways, it has been of therapeutic value.

Stage II proposal
Now the data has been collected, the information needs to be analysed, themes identified, and the findings reported - in book form. The focus of the analysis will be identifying pathways to resilience.

As this would appear to be the first intensive study in New Zealand using an oral history method to identify pathways to resilience among those who experienced violence as young people, the findings will make a significant contribution to mental health research in this country. It will be useful for practitioners of mental health promotion; those involved in counseling people who have experienced abuse; and individuals who have experienced the effects of a violated childhood.

Funding is now being sought for this stage.

Publication:
Chapter in Remembering: Writing Oral History edited by Green, A. and Hutching, M.
Publisher: Auckland University Press

Researcher: Juanita Ketchel (pictured)
Email: ketchelj@hotmail.com

Project Advisor: Bridie Lonie
Email: bridiel@tekotago.ac.nz