One of the most common crimes civilian police oversight agencies investigate is sexual assault committed by police officers a "profoundly disturbing, largely hidden problem in Canada," says Danielle McNabb.
Although agencies such as Ontario's Special Investigations Unit (SIU) are empowered to be arm's-length investigators, police sexual assault cases tend to be dropped, rarely result in criminal charges if examined and rarely result in convictions, according to the Brock University Assistant Professor of Political Science.
"We're trying to get a better understanding of why the rate of criminal charges is so low," she says. "What are the barriers civilian police oversight agencies face? Do agencies in different provinces face distinct challenges?"
McNabb and her team aim to answer these and other questions with funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC).
In this latest round of funding, announced Wednesday, July 9 by Minister of Industry and Minister responsible for Canada Economic Development for Quebec Regions Mélanie Joly, Brock University was awarded $7 million for faculty-led research projects.
Included in the announcement is a $2.5 million Partnership Grant for a project, "Building a Pan-Canadian Community of Practice: The Creating Opportunities through Physical Literacy for All Newcomer Children and Youth (CO-PLAY) Network," led by Associate Professor of Child and Youth Studies Matthew Kwan.
Kwan, who is also the Canada Research Chair in Youth Mental Health and Performance, and his team are creating a national community that will engage newcomer children and youth in physical activities so they can develop greater physical literacy.
SSHRC also awarded Brock University faculty researchers 14 Insight Grants and 10 Insight Development Grants.
"Brock University's results are particularly robust this year with our highest number of successful SSHRC Insight Grants in a single competition," says Acting Vice-President, Research Michelle McGinn. "This positive outcome recognizes the relevance and strength of our research in addressing societal challenges and improving lives."
In their five-year project, McNabb and Kate Puddister, Associate Professor of Political Science at the University of Guelph, are focusing on civilian oversight agencies across Canada.
They plan to examine closed directors' reports, interviews, surveys and policies related to police sexual violence to compare how various agencies respond to complaints of police sexual violence and carry out their investigations.
"Our research aims to establish best practices for investigating police sexual violence, such as ensuring that complainants are treated in the most respectful, trauma-informed way possible," says McNabb.
Chris Bittle, Member of Parliament for St. Catharines, says McNabb and Kwan's projects are examples of how Brock University is making a difference locally and nationally.
"The various projects receiving support from the Insight Program speak to the talent of the Brock University research community," he says. "These projects will make significant inroads in children's health and well-being and the other areas included in this impressive list."
Lead recipients of SSHRC's latest round of Insight Grants are:
- Julia Baird, Professor, Environmental Sustainability Research Centre in the Faculty of Social Sciences and Canada Research Chair in Human Dimensions of Water Resources and Water Resilience: "Building empathy for sustainable water futures"
- Angela Evans, Professor of Psychology in the Faculty of Social Sciences: "Encouraging children's honesty"
- Thomas Farrell, Professor of Applied Linguistics in the Faculty of Social Sciences: "Pre-service ESL teachers embracing uncertainty through reflective practice"
- Chelsea Jones, Associate Professor of Child and Youth Studies in the Faculty of Social Sciences: "Pitching RelaxComm': Reshaping access in disability media access studies"
- Matthew Kwan, Associate Professor of Child and Youth Studies in the Faculty of Social Sciences and Canada Research Chair in Youth Mental Health and Performance: "Sustaining physical activity during transition into emerging adulthood: Examining motivational and real-time factors impacting DailY-assessed behaviours - Project STEADY"
- Caitlin Mahy, Professor of Psychology in the Faculty of Social Sciences: "A theory-based investigation of the development of children's procrastination"
- Antonia Mantonakis, Professor of Marketing in the Goodman School of Business: "Perceptual determinants of no- to low-alcohol wine"
- Danielle McNabb, Assistant Professor of Political Science in the Faculty of Social Sciences: "How do Canadian civilian oversight agencies respond to police sexual violence?"
- Danielle Sirianni Molnar, Professor of Child and Youth Studies in the Faculty of Social Sciences and Canada Research Chair in Adjustment and Well-Being in Children and Youth: "Intersecting identities and the pressure to be perfect: Examining the roles of gender, sexuality, race and class in the manifestation and experience of perfectionism in diverse emerging adults"
- Nancy Taber, Professor of Educational Studies in the Faculty of Education: "Reimagining military culture through counter-narratives: Using arts-based creative writing as a feminist transformative learning practice to explore Canadian military women's gendered experiences"
- Sabrina Thai, Associate Professor of Psychology in the Faculty of Social Sciences: "With a little help from my friends: Goal pursuit and social comparisons between friends"
- Dawn Trussell, Professor of Sport Management in the Faculty of Applied Health Sciences: "Embodied experience and effective praxis: New perspectives on equity, diversity and inclusion leadership in provincial sport organizations"
- Anthony Volk, Professor of Child and Youth Studies in the Faculty of Social Sciences: "Adolescents' use of cooperative and coercive social power"
- Teena Willoughby, Professor of Psychology in the Faculty of Social Sciences: "The link between social media use and well-being among adolescents"
Lead recipients of SSHRC's latest round of Insight Development Grants are:
- Naomi Andrews, Associate Professor of Child and Youth Studies in the Faculty of Social Sciences: "Exploring nuance and complexity in youths' teasing interactions: Advancing a conceptual model of playful and harmful teasing using a longitudinal, mixed-methods study"
- Diane Collier, Professor of Educational Studies in the Faculty of Education: "CLICK: Critical literacy Images for sharing children's knowledges"
- Sandra Della Porta, Associate Professor in the Faculty of Education: "The ontogeny of power: Young children's power dynamics and relations in the home setting"
- Ann Farrell, Associate Professor of Child and Youth Studies in the Faculty of Social Sciences: "Understanding adolescent bullying: Individual, social and environmental factors"
- Qian Liu, Assistant Professor of Economics in the Faculty of Social Sciences: "Insurance, redistribution and loan repayment: Evidence from the Canada Student Loans Program"
- Danielle McNabb, Assistant Professor of Political Science in the Faculty of Social Sciences: " An unspeakable breach of trust': Police-perpetrated gender-based violence in Ontario"
- Kyle Rich, Associate Professor of Sport Management in the Faculty of Applied Health Sciences: "Institutional work of community sport organizations"
- Kirsten Robertson, Associate Professor of Organizational Behaviour and Human Resources, Goodman School of Business: "Understanding and managing necessary evils in law enforcement organizations"
- Sarah Stang, Associate Professor of Digital Humanities in the Faculty of Humanities: "Pregnancy, motherhood and play: the experiences and perspectives of video game player and developer mothers and mothers-to-be"
- Kaschka Watson, Assistant Professor of Educational Studies in the Faculty of Education: "Exploring the impact of peer mentorship on Black males' leadership advancement in Canadian post-secondary institutions"
The federal government's Insight Grants program supports research excellence judged worthy of funding by fellow researchers and/or other experts. The research can be conducted individually or by teams.
The Insight Development Grants program supports the development of new research questions, experimentation with new methods and theoretical approaches and ideas.
