FYI Oral History and Fieldwork - The (Re)use and Interpretation of Research Materials, Helsinki, 2–3 December 2010

Oral History and Fieldwork – The (Re)use and Interpretation of Research Materials symposium will be arranged in Helsinki 2–3 December 2010. The symposium is hosted by the Finnish Literature Society in collaboration with the Finnish Oral History Network (FOHN) and the research project Strangers from the East – Narratives of Karelian Exiles and Re-immigrants from Russia Regarding their Integration in Finland funded by Academy of Finland 2009-2012.
The event is the third international symposium organized by the Finnish Oral History Network. We aim to stimulate discussion and bring together scholars interested in fieldwork methodology within oral history research. The symposium will offer a discussion forum for researchers working in the field. The keynote speakers are Molly Andrews (University of East London), Selma Leydesdorff (University of Amsterdam), Anne Heimo (University of Turku) and Antti Häkkinen (University of Helsinki). Molly Andrews is professor of Sociology and Co-director of the Centre for Narrative Research at the University of East London. Her research interests include the psychological basis of political commitment, conversations between generations, gender and aging, and counter-narratives. Her most recent award-winning monograph is Shaping History: Narratives of Political Change (2007).Selma Leydesdorff is professor of Oral History and Culture at the University of Amsterdam. Her work has concentrated in fields mostly related to trauma. She has participated in several international projects on the Holocaust and worked on the survivors of Srebrenica which is also a topic of her forthcoming book.

Fieldwork methodology has been discussed in oral history research since the late 1970s. Methodological issues initially identified concerned the conduct, processing, and preservation of oral history materials. Subsequently the concept of field has been elaborated and is now used to refer to archived research materials, e.g. oral history interviews, written autobiographies, questionnaires and photographs, and their later use. In recent years the focus of fieldwork methodology has turned to the secondary analysis of oral history materials. How have researchers tackled methodological and practical challenges related to the reuse of research materials? Can all research materials be reused and for what kind of research purposes?

The keynote lectures, sessions and the final panel are open for audience:

Thursday 2.12.2010. Finnish Literature Society, Great Hall, 2nd floor, Hallituskatu 1:

10.15 – 11.30: Selma Leydesdorff: Is it possible to overcome the obstacles in the case of interviews with traumatized people?

12.30 – 13.00: Antti Häkkinen: From bush to bay street: The Finnish community of Thunder Bay as memories, narratives and experiences

Friday 3.12.2010. Finnish Literature Society, Great Hall, 2nd floor, Hallituskatu 1:

10.15 – 11.30: Molly Andrews: Understanding life backwards: The shifting ground of interpretation

12.30 – 13.00: Anne Heimo: Multiple sources and the social process of history making

Sessions and final discussion are held in Finnish Literature Society (Hallituskatu 1) and House of Sciences (Kirkkokatu 6) Thursday 2.12.2010. 13.15. – 17.00. and Friday 3.12.2010. 13.15. – 16.15.
The principal language of the symposium is English. Program and additional information: http://www.finlit.fi/english/research/fohn/index.htm
Enquiries: fohn@finlit.fi

Ulla-Maija Peltonen
Chair, FOHN
Finnish Literature Society
P.O. Box 259
FIN-00171 Helsinki

Ulla Savolainen
Course Secretary, FOHN
Folklore Studies/ Department of Philosophy, History, Culture and Art Studies
P.O. Box 4
FIN-00014 University of Helsinki