White, R. (University of Liverpool) and Fay, R. (University of Manchester), Paradigm humility and appropriate methodology in Global Mental Health. Paper presented at The Emergence of Global Mental Health Workshop, hosted by Kings College, London, April 28th, 2016.

1. Paradigm Humility and Appropriate
Methodology in Global Mental
Health
Dr Ross White, University of Glasgow
Dr Richard Fay, University of Manchester

2. Overview
• Reflecting on the centrality of ‘equity’ to GMH.
• Considering the need for ‘paradigm humility’ in glocal
sites of research activity and knowledge exchange.
• Seeing parallels between GMH and critical language
studies – the role of ‘appropriate methodology’.
• Adopting ethnographic perspectives on research
activity

3. GMH
• Global mental health area of study, practice
and research concerned with addressing
inequities in mental health promotion across
the globe.
• Equity: fairness or justice in the way people
are treated

6. But what ball-park are we trying to give people equitable access to?

7. Equitable access to… baseball
But
• What are the rules of the game?
• Who is allowed to play?
• What particular skills and techniques do the players have?
• Are these skills obvious, relevant and meaningful to the
people watching? (excellence vs. relevance – Tol et al.,
2012)

8. The ‘World Series’ – Baseball Goes
Global
• Bemme & D’Souza (2014): the globalization of
particular forms of intervention has not been a
principal concern of GMH. Instead a key feature of
GMH has been the dissemination and utilization of
particular epistemologies and research methodologies
for evaluating interventions across the globe.
• Kirmayer and Swartz (2013): The GMH agenda should
embrace a ‘pluralistic view of knowledge’, which can be
integrated into empirical paradigms guiding GMH-
related research

9. Cultural Humility Begets Paradigm
Humility
• Three main components of cultural humility :
– Lifelong commitment to self-evaluation and self-
critique,
– Fixing power imbalances
– Developing partnerships with people and groups who
advocate for others (Waters & Asbill, 2013)
• Humility needs to be applied with regard to
epistemologies and research methodologies –
particularly in light of concerns expressed about
Evidence Based Medicine (Thomas et al., 2012;
Kirmayer, 2012; Bemme & D’Souza, 2014).

10. Appropriate Methodology
• Critical Education Tradition of ‘Appropriate Methodology’
developed through a cross-cultural interest in English
language education - TESOL.
• “The methodology of English language education has been
developed mainly in the English-speaking countries of 'the
west' and does not always fit the needs of the rest of the
world… (there Is a need to look) at the wider social context
of what happens between teachers and students… (This
includes using an) ethnographic framework to explore the
complex and diverse cultures of classrooms, of student
groups and teacher communities in different countries and
educational environments….these factors have to be
acknowledged in the design and implementation of
appropriate methodologies” (Holliday, 1994).

11. Appropriate Methodology
• Diverse forms of theorizing e.g. Decolonizing Methodology
(Smith, 2012) and Southern Theory (Connell, 2007) have
emerged to challenge hegemonic ontologies, epistemologies
and dominant flows (that tend to originate in the Global
North).
• Researchers can be ethnographers of their own practice. This
facilitates an understanding of emergent ‘small cultures’
rather than self-fulfilling, and often essentialized, ‘large
culture’ prescriptions of activities (Holliday, 1994, 1999).
• Ethnographic approaches to cultures of research.

12. Thank You
ross.white@glasgow.ac.uk
@MScGlobMentHeal