Social Work Research Centre
History
Known previously as The Social Policy Research Centre (SPR Centre), housed within the Faculty of Social Work, was first established in 1972 as the Social Policy Research Unit. It was the first independent academic unit in Western Canada devoted to social policy research and at the time was the only academic unit of its kind at the University of Regina and in Saskatchewan.
In 2016, the Centre underwent a revitalization to better reflect the current goals and research focus of individual researchers and the evolving issues faced by Saskatchewan residents. A change in name and a revisiting of the Centre’s mission and goals reflect our commitment to research that informs policies which will have a positive impact on our urban, rural and northern communities.
Present Day
The Social Work Research Centre (SWRC), located within the Faculty of Social Work, supports social justice and equity-focused research that addresses issues faced by vulnerable, marginalized and oppressed groups. Our community-engaged research utilizes both Indigenous and Western research approaches with specific attention to social action that will inform changes in policy, practice and education for a sustainable future.
Our researchers explore and address issues such as poverty and income inequality, child and youth welfare, newcomers, refugees and immigrants, mental health and addictions, mixed ability issues, and the needs of older adults. A cross-cutting theme focuses on social work education, where we apply new knowledge and innovative methods to incorporate into the curriculum.
The SWRC also hosts Lunch and Learn presentations on research projects being conducted by faculty, students and community members.
Research Focus
Research Principles
- To facilitate social policy and practice research that promotes social justice and fosters individual, family and community development
- To support social justice and equity research that focuses on marginalized and oppressed groups
- To support research that focuses on community-engagement and research-to-action through informing changes in policy and practice
Research Associates
Darlene Chalmers
Darlene's research interests include the human-animal bond/interaction; the inclusion of animal-assisted interventions as an adjunct to therapeutic practice; social work and the environment; and the scholarship of teaching and learning (SoTL), specifically transformative learning and the role of animals in the post-secondary classroom.
Erin Beckwell
Erin's research interests include social work education, chronic pain, substance use, harm reduction, and 2SLGBTQ+ experiences with human services. Erin was also President of the Saskatchewan Association of Social Workers (2020-2022), and in 2018 was awarded the Canadian Association of Social Workers Distinguished Service Award.
Kara Fletcher
Kara’s research interests centre around couple and family therapy at the intersections of trauma, mental wellness and substance use and misuse. She also has an active research programme in the area of Medical Assistance in Dying, in particular the role of social workers in MAID, and advance requests in MAID.
Sulemana Fuesini
Dr. Fuseini’s doctoral research, titled Between the Rock and Hard Places, examined how social workers in child welfare practice experience and manage the complex tensions that arise between institutional mandates, professional values, and the lived realities of the children and families they serve.
Amanda Gebhard
My research interests are broad and interdisciplinary, and include: language and power, race and racism in education, the school/prison pipeline, whiteness and colonialism in the helping professions, consciousness-raising and critical literacy with young people, and anti-oppressive approaches to addressing violence. More recently, I have begun exploring disenfranchised grief and loss in infertility through feminist autoethnography.
Daniel Ji
Daniel’s research interests include child welfare, the health and well-being of 2SLGBTQ+ and migrant youth, resistance in parent-adolescent interactions, and how young people grow in the context of parent-adolescent relationships. He holds a PhD in social work with a sub-specialization in Measurement, Evaluation, and Research Methodology from the University of British Columbia.
Lise Milne
Lise’s research interests include child and adolescent trauma, the neurobiological impacts of trauma, resilience-, trauma-, and violence-informed practices within child welfare organizations, responses to children exposed to intimate partner violence, Canadian child welfare data, and knowledge mobilization for child-serving organizations in the context of COVID-19 and beyond.
Nuelle Novik
Nuelle's research interests include Aging; Rural and Remote Social Work and Health Care; Mental Health; Death and Dying; Palliative Care; Social Work Counselling and Therapy; Anti-Oppressive Social Work Practice; Community Engagement and Community-Based Research.
Gabriela Novotna
Gabriela's research focuses on informing clinical, organizational, and policy interventions for the issues related to alcohol, cannabis, opioids, stimulant use, gambling, and concurrent disorders. Her research interests include studies on the uptake of research findings into health and social services, including policy and community-university knowledge development and exchange.
Michele Sorensen
Michele's resesearch interests include social work alongside Indigenous populatons, field experience in social work, new materialism, aesthetic experiences, and gender and sexualities.
Kedi Zhao
Rooting his work in the communities of immigrants and migrants, he adopts the lenses of decolonization and social justice to understand and tackle challenges faced by these communities in the cross-cultural context. Under the overarching umbrella of cross-cultural research, his research interests can be displayed through an integrative framework that includes the macro, mezzanine, and micro levels.Director - Dr. Kara Fletcher
Research Administrator - Sue McGee
Become an Associate/Affiliate
The SWRC invites current FSW faculty members and BSW and MSW students interested in actively engaging with the centre and whose research interests align with its principles to become a member. To join the SWRC, please email SWRC@uregina.ca.
Resources
The SWRC aims to provide resources to our Research Associates and social work students:
- Facilitating collaboration and capacity building by providing opportunities for researchers to share their work and explore new research partnerships;
- Support funded research projects by assisting with financial and data management and recruitment of project staff;
- Support the dissemination of research findings by providing guidance and assistance with publication submissions and development of dissemination materials; and
- Engage undergraduate and graduate students in research activities to foster sustainable research intensity
Research Associate Resources
The SWRC is able to assist Research Associates with:
- Grant applications
- assist with preparation of grants & contracts including budget development and rationale
- Human resources
- assist with hiring research assistants or project coordinators (for projects with funding)
- Research related financials
- purchase supplies and process purchase requisitions
- provide updates on budgets
- Knowledge translation activities
- incorporate project updates and findings into SWRC materials
- assist with organization and promotion of KT events including poster and online media development
- assist with project report design and formatting
Student Resources
The SWRC provides resources to students to engage undergraduate and graduate students in our research activities.
We are able to assist Students and Research Assistants with:
- Obtaining research experience
- provide assistance to accessing current SWRC related job postings
- provide paid research assistant employment to undergraduate and graduate students
- promote research related workshops and training such as NVivo, how to write literature reviews, how to conduct interviews, etc.
- Knowledge translation activities
- provide opportunities for students and research assistants to learn about current SWRC research projects and initiatives
- provide opportunities for students and research assistants to share their research contributions
SWRC Lunch and Learn
SWRC & Campus Events
Funding Opportunities
Contact Us
Regina Campus, Education Building, Room 451
socialwork.research@uregina.ca
(306) 585-5150