Eileen A. Owen-Williams - ETD Index Page

Eileen A. Owen-Williams
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Doctoral Dissertation
Eileen A. Owen-Williams
owenwile@seattleu.edu
The Traditional Roles of Caring for Elders:
Views from First Nations Elders Regarding
Health, Violence, and Elder Abuse
Doctor of Philosophy
Nursing
Nursing
NA
Michael Carter, DNSc, DNP
mcarter@uthsc.edu
Carolyn Graff, Ph.D.
Graduation Date: May 2012
Carol Lockhart, Ph.D.
Antonia Mills, Ph.D.
Patricia Speck, Ph.D.
Community Participatory Research
Determinants of Health
Elder Abuse
First Nations
Intergenerational Relationships
Residential Schools
World-Wide Web Access

Abstract
This study sought to respectfully understand Northern British Columbia First Nations Elders'
views regarding health of communities, intergenerational relationships, Elder roles, and violence
towards Elders. Injuries, both intentional and unintentional, are a leading cause of death for First
Nations Peoples. Information regarding Elder abuse in First Nations communities is lacking,
though family violence has been identified as a problem within First Nations communities. The
goal of this research was to understand the point of view and Elders' reality through the creation
of a dialogue with Elders, and to discern the interface between Traditional First Nations' belief
systems, healing methods, and current legal and health care systems within Canada.
This study used a community-based participatory research design to explore social and cultural
context through the views of Carrier Sekani Elders in the Ts'il Kaz Koh community. The design
acted to support the aims of the study which were: To explore how First Nations Elders
understand violence in their communities, to explore what First Nations Elders believe gives rise
to violence in First Nations communities; to illuminate the factors that First Nations Elder view
as affecting the safety and well-being of Elders living in First Nations communities; to explore
First Nations Elders' narration of intergenerational relationships before and after contact; and to
make clear factors which First Nations Elders view as required for Elders to remain safe and stay
within their respective communities.
The study followed the CIHR Guidelines for Research with Aboriginal Peoples. Approval was
obtained from Carrier Sekani Family Services' Research Review Committee, from the Ts'il Kaz
Koh Chief and Council and Ts'il Kaz Koh Community, the Ethics Review Board of the
University of Northern British Columbia, and the Institutional Review Board of the University of
Tennessee. Informed consent was obtained both from the Ts'il Kaz Koh community and from
participating Elders, utilizing Ts'il Kaz Koh cultural protocol. Six Ts'il Kaz Koh Elders residing
in Northern British Columbia participated in interviews utilizing an interview guide. Interviews
were then read, categorized, and coded according to identified concepts, allowing for retrieval of
themes. Codes were submitted to two committee members for review and consensus regarding
the categories of each code for reliability. Both a domain analysis and a taxonomic analysis were
performed on the data. A convergent analysis of themes was performed to assure internal and
external validity. The findings were presented to the Elders at each step of the analysis to ensure
validity and reliability. The final document was presented to the community to ensure that all
information was accurate and acceptable to the community.
Limitations of the study include the limited sample of Elders solely from the Ts'il Kaz Koh
(Burns Lake) community. This limitation is also viewed as an opportunity for the Ts'il Kaz Koh
to request program development funding as a pilot initiative. This sample limited to one First
Nations community prohibits the generalization of findings to other communities until further
research occurs with other communities.
Themes related to the problems of violence were multiple, including changes from Traditional
way of living to contemporary way of life, changes from the Residential School experience, loss
of Traditional roles, and change in community from communal structure to that of nuclear family

units, and the influence of alcohol and drugs on individuals and families. Sub-themes related to
violence included the loss of intergenerational relationships, changes in Elder roles from the past,
and the change in roles and behavior from the past across all ages. Also identified as sub-themes
were the influences of change from that of communal caring, to individuals watching out for
their own welfare, and the change from hard work being valued within Traditional roles to lack
of value for hard work in contemporary society. Disruption of intergeneration roles within the
community was also identified as a theme related to violence.
Recommendations from this study include the need to further research the views of Elders
surrounding violence and Elder abuse in other First Nations communities, with translation to
clinical practice and the development of a culturally appropriate screening tool for First Nations
Elder safety and abuse. Further research with other First Nations communities will allow
generalization of results to be utilized in program development and evaluation. This study
supports the utilization of the health determinants model in program planning and the developing
of capacity for First Nations to control their health care services. The findings of this study also
support the need for funding of Youth-Elder initiatives which foster the re-establishment of
intergenerational relationships and the concurrent translation of Elders' Traditional knowledge.
Utilizing Elders as leaders and a source of Traditional health knowledge is part of a viable model
of combining contemporary and Traditional health care practices. The Elders' views supported
the importance of a strength-based approach to healing with the prior work of McCormick who
found that effective healing for First Nations people must have a focus on "interconnectedness"
rather than personal autonomy in order for communities to heal. This study would like to
acknowledge the strength of these Elders and the Ts'il Kaz Koh community to deal with the
historical trauma of Residential Schools and the effects on individual, family and community
health.
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