| Learning Objective #1: Appreciate that theoretically-grounded research informed by Aboriginal knowledge for understanding and explaining diabetes in First Nations is severely lacking in literature | |||
| Learning Objective #2: Appreciate that fundamental-to-new diabetes research is the inclusion of First Nations people's voices and deeper understandings and explanations of the experience of living with diabetes |
Purpose: To analyze critically the research literature relevant to diabetes mellitus in Canada's First Nations, with particular attention to epistemological and methodological frameworks, gaps, and silences.
Organizing Construct: Coyote Stories. Naturalistic metaphors embedded in Aboriginal traditions, which represent a particular kind of knowledge, were viewed as integral to Aboriginal epistemology.
Method: This integrative literature review includes an extensive search of published literature relevant to diabetes in Canada's First Nations between 1990 and 2002. Over 130 articles were initially identified, 102 could be categorized according to topics that focused on understanding diabetes as a progressing epidemic, and 42 articles were selected that represented a cross-section of topic areas.
Findings: Studies were organized into categories of quantitative articles that included survey reports, clinical and prevalence studies, and community surveys related to the epidemiological characteristics and causes of diabetes in First Nations populations. Categories of qualitative articles included a focus on cultural beliefs, values, and meanings based on eliciting First Nations peoples' perspectives related to the experience of living with diabetes. Studies revealed research approaches that focused on frameworks uninformed by Aboriginal epistemology.
Conclusions: Invaluable empirical diabetes research exists, but theoretically grounded studies in collaboration with Aboriginal people are imperative for the future. Inclusion of Aboriginal knowledge, expansion of associated cultural and contextual analyses, and experimentation with participatory research approaches would contribute to the development of culturally competent scholarship. Theory and research, as well as practice and policy implications are discussed.
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