Every research project has a story: an idea that kicks off the exposition phase; characters that drive the plot forward; rising action as the project comes together; and, finally, the climax, when questions are answered and the characters triumph or regroup to try again.
But what鈥檚 the most effective way to tell that story? Academic papers and conferences reach peers 鈥� an important but limited audience. Some research projects catch journalists鈥� attention, but there are countless others that don鈥檛. And there are only so many elevator speeches that an individual can deliver on a day-to-day basis.
Earlier this year, the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) challenged university students across Canada to come up with a compelling way to tell a research story 鈥� using video, audio, text or an infographic.
Dalhousie鈥檚 Catherine McGoveran, a master鈥檚 student in Library and Information Studies, was named as , winning $3,000 and an expenses-paid opportunity to take part in a storytellers workshop at the 2013 Congress of the Humanities and Social Sciences this May in Victoria.
Sharing social media research
鈥淚 was really interested in learning how to use different software and tools to communicate the goals of a research project,鈥� says McGoveran, who created a video highlighting Dal鈥檚 Social Media Lab, where she works as a research assistant.
鈥淚t鈥檚 important as an information professional to be able to effectively communicate what it is you do to diverse groups, shifting the material to connect with different audiences,鈥� she adds.
鈥淐onnections鈥� are what the Social Media Lab is all about. In her video, McGoveran succinctly explains the lab鈥檚 goals and its multidisciplinary work on how individuals communicate and connect online. The animation moves quickly, with colourful images that help show the lab鈥檚 work in action.
The lab plans on using the video on its website, as well as taking it on the road. Philip Mai, the lab鈥檚 research and communications manager, says lab director Anatoliy Gruzd is already using it to open his presentations.
鈥淚t came out great,鈥� says Mai. 鈥淚t does an amazing job explaining why what we do matters.鈥�
Synthesizing information
McGoveran came to 黑料吃瓜网after completing her undergrad in Political Science and French at Carleton University. She was drawn to Library and Information Studies after years of working in libraries, including an internship at the Library of Parliament.
鈥淚 really love finding information and researching to support a broader goal, be it something like policy development or, in the case of the Social Media Lab, connections between people,鈥� she says.
She got involved with the lab last year when she learned of its plans to study Twitter conversation around the fall municipal election in Halifax. She was one of three students who helped pull the research project together.
鈥淚鈥檓 so glad I got involved. It鈥檚 all about collecting, analyzing, synthesizing and communicating data and information. I think that鈥檚 hugely relevant to Library and Information Studies. You can apply data analysis to any form of research, and I鈥檝e been using it in my research study on GIS analysis.鈥�
Making video to explain her research, however, was an entirely new experience, but she quickly found a knack for it.
鈥淚 really enjoyed the technical side of things, finding the images and pulling the script together with audio and the video,鈥� she says.聽 鈥淚t鈥檚 always a challenge being really concise, but it鈥檚 really important: saying only what鈥檚 important to convey a message clearly.鈥�
McGoveran, who plans to return to Ottawa after graduating this May, says she hopes to continue using video to explain her work in the future.
鈥淚t really gives you an opportunity to showcase what you鈥檙e working on and share it with others in an effective way.鈥�
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