Limits and Possibilities: Understanding and Conveying Two-Eyed Seeing Through Conventional Academic Practices

• Published in: Healthy Populations Journal
• Main Authors: Roher, Sophie Isabelle Grace, Yu, Ziwa, Benoit, Anita, Martin, Debbie
• Other Authors: Tier II Canada Research Chair in Indigenous Peoples’ Health and Well-Being, Canada Research Chairs Program, OHTN CIHR New Investigator Award, CIHR, Patient-Oriented Research Doctoral Fellowship, CIHR
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Healthy Populations Institute 2022
• Subjects: Indigenous health; public health; Two-Eyed Seeing; Theory development; research design; well-being; Canada; Qualitative Methods; Reflexivity; Mi’kmaw
• Online Access: https://ojs.library.dal.ca/hpj/article/view/11295; https://doi.org/10.15273/hpj.v2i2.11295

This article offers conceptual and theoretical insights that we gained in a scoping review project to understand the Mi’kmaw guiding principle Two-Eyed Seeing/Etuaptmumk. Reflecting on the experiences and outcomes of the scoping review project, we explore the following questions: (a) To what extent can we rely only on written works and the English language to understand Two-Eyed Seeing? (b) How do academia’s conventional ways of thinking and sharing knowledge shape our abilities to understand and convey Two-Eyed Seeing to others? (c) What strategies can academics draw upon to better understand Two-Eyed Seeing? Ultimately, we contend that, to develop a richer and more nuanced understanding of Two-Eyed Seeing, we need to move beyond academic conventions and engage with a multiplicity of knowledge systems, approaches, and methods, including dialogical, visual, and experiential practices.