The research network project Researching Multilingually will impact a range of stakeholders: 1) academic researchers across a range of disciplines, offering access to new research epistemologies, methodologies, and research tools in researching groups and individuals in more than one language; 2) research training institutions (e.g, universities/higher education organisations, AHRC/EHRC community, DTCs), who will have new teaching and research tools to train researchers; and 3) research participants themselves, who will benefit from the awareness raising and research tools that emerge from this project in that researchers will be better equipped-theoretically, methodologically, and reflexively -to engage in dialogic processes as they seek to translate cultures and the people residing within them in the writing up of their research. In particular, people in marginalised groups will benefit as researchers directly confront issues of power and representation.
The resultant outputs - a website, a workshop, and research publications - will provide better knowledge for organisations/institutions involved in public consultation and policy development, the result of improved research methods for translating cultures, and thus, better representation of the voices of those within them. These outputs will be realised for both immediate and long-term use. On completion of the three two-day seminars, the research team will synthesise findings and develop recommendations. These will be made available on the project website, and disseminated to the AHRC community and DHTs through a workshop. The research team welcome inclusion from community groups-including public, private, and third sector groups; we will also endeavour to access these groups through our research networks and those of seminar participants. Further workshops may be arranged where required (time and funds permitting). We also welcome links with other research teams, e.g., University of Birmingham’s MOSIAC team, and other research institutions engaged in researching multilingually.
Because the project includes research that is interdisciplinary, multiple beneficiaries within the commercial private sector, policy-makers nationally and internationally, and local government agencies and regulators are all likely to benefit from these research outcomes. As the research network project will generate new knowledge (methodologies, tools, and techniques for researching multilingually), the project outputs will result in improved understanding and representation of people and the cultures in which they reside, thereby improving the knowledge base on which economic, social, and political decisions by governments and private and third sector organisations are made. Thus, improved effectiveness of public services and policy, and improved quality of life for these translated cultural groups (including health and welfare needs) are an inevitable outcome of this project.