CURRENT PROJECTS
‘Understanding Healthy Ageing: Perspectives and Information Needs of Older Adults from Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Backgrounds in Australia’
Project team: Dr Enqi Weng (Deakin University) and Dr Som Sengmany (Independent Living Assessment)
Funding: Independent Living Assessment
The project investigates the meanings attributed to healthy ageing across diverse cultural contexts, examines information needs and information-seeking behaviours, and explores the barriers older adults from CALD backgrounds face when accessing digital health information. In addition, the project investigates how older adults from CALD backgrounds perceive and engage with the LiveUp website, a national online healthy ageing resource, examining whether its content is appropriate, relevant, and accessible to people from diverse cultural and linguistic backgrounds, and what factors would influence their use of it.
Status: Ethics application in progress.
‘Communities of Meaning’
Project team: Emeritus Prof. Philip J. Hughes, A/Prof. Robyn Wrigley-Carr, Dr Fleur Creed (University of Divinity), Prof. Johannes M. Luetz (Alphacrucis University College), Dr Stephen Reid (Christian Research Association), Dr Enqi Weng (Deakin University)
Funding: University of Divinity and Christian Research Association
This research project examines how community connections can assist people in developing and maintaining a sense of meaning. Project outcomes will demonstrate how communities can contribute to a stronger sense of social connection, meaning and wellbeing for Australians.
Status: 2 papers published; 2 papers and 1 book in progress.
‘The Asian (Non)menstruating Body: Inclusive Health Communications about Perimenopause and Menopause’
Project team: Dr Enqi Weng, Dr Charishma Ratnam, Dr Paula Muraca, Dr Jasmin Chen and Yika Gu (Deakin University)
Funding: The Alfred Deakin Institute ‘Mobility, Diversity and Multiculturalism’ Research Stream Funding
The proposed research aims to investigate Asian migrant women’s experiences with, discussions about, and understandings of, perimenopause and menopause. Specifically, we are interested in Asian migrant women’s unique experiences of perimenopause and menopause in everyday life, including their working life. There are traditionally cultural silences, stigmas and taboos around discussions of health issues specific to the female body within non-Anglo communities (Ussher et al., 2019; Amini & McCormack, 2019). In professional contexts, these cultural silences may intersect with workplace dynamics where they are perceived as youthful or younger than their Anglo/Caucasian peers and, as a consequence, experience various forms of disadvantages and barriers (Ang, 2022). Such perceptions can create additional barriers to having open dialogue about age-related health concerns in such spaces.
Status: 1 paper under review; 1 paper in progress.
‘(Dis)locating Coloniality: Lived and Digital Religious Flows across the Indian and Pacific Oceans’
Project team: Dr Enqi Weng (Deakin University), Dr William Abur (University of Melbourne), A/Prof. Anna Halafoff, Prof. Yin Paradies (Deakin University) and Dr Monika Winarnita (University of Melbourne).
Funding: The Alfred Deakin Institute ‘Mobility, Diversity and Multiculturalism’ Research Stream Funding
This research project aims to investigate the transnational flows of religions across the Indian and Pacific Oceans, between Asia, Africa, Australia and the Pacific Islands. As part of this project, we organised a two-day workshop that centred First Nations perspectives, that brought together local and international scholars and practitioners to critically reflect on the place, presence and infusion of coloniality in historical and contemporary religious experiences, and to locate sites of resistance in lived and digital transnational lifeworlds. In particular, we are interested in transnational flows of religions across the Indian and Pacific Oceans, between Asia, Africa, Australia and the Pacific Islands. Through dialogue with scholars and practitioners, we aim to work towards (dis)locating the place of coloniality in studies of religion, and building a more inclusive future, in policies and practice.
Recorded lectures from the project can be found here.
Status: 1 chapter in progress.