Research Assistants

Christen Terakita

Christen is currently a graduate student in Family Studies and Gerontology at Mount Saint Vincent University. She is originally from Calgary, Alberta and achieved her Bachelor of Arts in Psychology. Christen has gained both quantitative and qualitative research experience from the University of Calgary and the University of Lethbridge. Her focus for her graduate research is single father families because they are understudied but important family structures that have been socially stigmatized.

Christen’s role on the Intellectual Disabilities Service Needs Research Alliance has been acting research assistant. Recently, she helped construct and submit an ethics application to begin surveying participants from research teams across Canada who work with people living with an intellectual disability. Once clearance has been granted, she will begin with sending out letters of consent and the surveys to the participants from three geographical regions. She will then be responsible for the collection and coding of the survey responses using qualitative software.

Trisha Dempsey

Trisha completed her BA at Dalhousie University with a double major in Social Anthropology and International Development Studies. She is now currently a graduate student in Social Anthropology at Dalhousie University. For her undergraduate honours thesis Trisha utilized qualitative research methods when interviewing participants for her thesis project that examined the intersection of biomedicine and alternative medicine in Nova Scotia.

Trisha’s graduate research explores the political implications of the L’Arche model of care for people with intellectual disabilities in Nova Scotia. She will commence her qualitative research in September 2010. Her graduate research is being supported by a 2009 Joseph-Armand Bombardier Canada Graduate Scholarship, as well as a 2010 Nova Scotia Health Research Foundation Student grant.

Trisha has a keen interest in intellectual disability, the meaning of social inclusion, and in exploring the philosophical underpinnings of policies and political systems. In July 2010 she joined the IDSN Research Alliance and will be applying her qualitative research skills in assisting with the coding of survey responses collected from research teams across Canada who work with people living with an intellectual disability. Following this task she will contribute to the writing of the final report and summary of the project.

Lauren Crawley

Lauren recently completed her Bachelor of Applied Arts at MountSaint VincentUniversity with an Honours degree in Child and Youth Study. She is originally from Saint John, New Brunswick where she achieved her BA in Psychology. Lauren gained both quantitative and qualitative research experience while in the Child and Youth Study program. For her undergraduate honours thesis, she employed qualitative research methods when surveying participants for her thesis project that examined the perceptions of prospective educators regarding play in typical and hospital settings. Lauren also gained experience with quantitative research methods during the completion of a research assistantship under the supervision of a Child and Youth Study faculty member.

Lauren joined the Intellectual Disabilities Service Needs Research Alliance in August 2010. She will be involved in daily administrative activities, including communicating with representatives from community groups and multiple stakeholders and contacting organizations regarding their interest in the study. In addition, Lauren will be involved in the collection, entry and analysis of data and drafting of reports and power points.

Amanda Sibley

Amanda recently joined the Intellectual Disabilities Service Needs Research Alliance in Fall 2010 as a research assistant. Her focal point will be the ‘Persons with Intellectual Disabilities: A population at Risk in Nova Scotia’ project. She will be involved in the collection, entry and analysis of survey data collected specifically from the northern region of Nova Scotia. She will also participate in the development of a final report and various dissemination materials on the project. Amanda has gained significant quantitative research experience and skills while working as a project assistant with the Nova Scotia Centre on Aging and as a research assistant with the Centre of Excellence for Children and Adolescents with Special Needs.

Outside of her work on the project, Amanda is currently completing her final year in Applied Human Nutrition (Dietetics). She was also recently accepted to the Mount Saint Vincent University Integrated Dietetic Internship Program.