A Qualitative Inquiry Into Royal Canadian Navy Culture Stephan
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Navigating Through The Navy: A qualitative inquiry into Royal Canadian Navy culture Stephan Lucu Department of Integrated Studies in Education McGill University, Montreal August, 2013 A thesis submitted to McGill University in partial fulfillment of the requirements of the degree of Masters of Arts in Culture and Values in Education. © Stephan Lucu 2013 ii Abstract This qualitative study aims to describe and understand the cultural identity of those in the Royal Canadian Navy. In this inquiry I use the autoethnography as a methodology, and in-depth interviews with members of the Royal Canadian Navy to understand the meaning of navy culture and its implications on the daily lives of its members. My analysis is shaped by the works of Hall (1996, 2000), Ellis & Bochner (2002), and Barker (2000). The participants answered a series of questions in an attempt to better understand what they perceived to be the most salient aspects of Royal Canadian Navy culture. They also expressed their thoughts on how the Royal Canadian Navy has shaped their identities and whether being a member of the Royal Canadian Navy has instilled a sense of belonging and recognition in their lives. My autoethnography recounts my experiences with the Royal Canadian Navy and how I interpreted its culture. I conclude with the implications the findings may have for future studies into Royal Canadian Navy culture such as gender issues and alcoholism. iii Résumé Cette étude qualitative a pour objectif de décrire et de comprendre l'identité culturelle de ceux de la Marine Royale Canadienne. Dans cette étude, j'utilise la méthode de recherche qualitative d' autoethnographie et j'entretiens avec des membres de la Marine Royale du Canada afin de comprendre le sens de la culture marine et de ses implications sur la vie quotidienne de ses membres. Mon analyse est façonnée par les travaux de Hall (1996, 2000), Ellis & Bochner (2002), et Barker (2000). Les participants ont répondu à une série de questions pour tenter de mieux comprendre ce qu'ils perçoient comme les aspects les plus saillants de la culture Marine Royale Canadienne. Ils ont également exprimé leurs réflexions sur la façon donc la Marine Royale du Canada a façonnée leur identité et si d'être un membre de la Marine Royale du Canada a insufflé un sentiment d'appartenance et de reconnaissance. Mon autoethnographie raconte mes expériences avec la Marine Royale Canadienne et la façon dont j'ai interprété sa culture. Je conclus avec les conséquences que les résultats peuvent avoir pour de futures études dans la culture de la Marine Royale du Canada telles que les questions de sexe et l'alcoolisme. iv Acknowledgements This thesis would not have been possible without a multitude of people who supported me completely throughout this odyssey. I would first like to thank my supervisor Dr. Mary H. Maguire who accepted me as her graduate student. Mary, I know I wouldn't have written this thesis if you hadn't convinced me to do so. I was unsure I would be able to accomplish such an endeavour while working full time as a secondary school science teacher and working as a reservist in the Royal Canadian Navy. However, you convinced me and I am glad you did as this thesis is a record of my life that I otherwise would have never done. Your phone calls, emails, and chapter revisions made it possible for me to get through my thesis efficiently. I would like to thank the members of HMCS Donnacona who participated in my thesis. I am in debt to LS Charest-Trudel, LS Simard, PO Niro and Slt Wong. They took the time to answer my questions and made this thesis more meaningful in my pursuit to better understand Royal Canadian Navy culture. Last but not least, I would like to thank my wife as I would be nowhere without her unwavering support. During the writing process of my thesis I was under a lot of stress and anxiety. We had a wedding to plan and a newly bought house to organize. She dealt with the brunt of the work so that I could have time to write. Thank you Emilie for being my best friend and my constant source of encouragement. v Table of Contents Abstract..........................................................................................................................................ii Résumé...........................................................................................................................................iii Acknowledgements.......................................................................................................................iv List of Tables.................................................................................................................................ix List of Figures................................................................................................................................ix List of Photos.................................................................................................................................ix Appendices.....................................................................................................................................xi Chapter 1. Introduction................................................................................................................1 My background.............................................................................................................................3 Focusing my research...................................................................................................................6 Research Questions and Themes.................................................................................................8 Belonging...........................................................................................................................8 Recognition........................................................................................................................9 Identity..............................................................................................................................10 Rationale for research.................................................................................................................11 Chapter Summary.......................................................................................................................12 Chapter 2. Theoretical framework and Literature Review.....................................................13 Theoretical Framework...............................................................................................................13 Belonging..........................................................................................................................14 Recognition.......................................................................................................................15 Identity..............................................................................................................................20 vi Background to the study & Literature Review.........................................................................21 Chapter Summary.......................................................................................................................28 Chapter 3. Methodology and Data Collection Process.............................................................29 Methodology.................................................................................................................................29 Data Collection.............................................................................................................................31 Interviews......................................................................................................................................31 Gaining access to my participants..................................................................................33 The participants...............................................................................................................34 LS Simard.........................................................................................................................36 LS Charest-Trudel...........................................................................................................36 PO Niro.............................................................................................................................36 Slt Wong............................................................................................................................37 My interview style............................................................................................................37 Interview locations...........................................................................................................38 Observations.................................................................................................................................39 Documents and visual data.........................................................................................................40 Ethics and Ethical Issues.............................................................................................................40 Chapter Summary.......................................................................................................................41 Chapter 4. Data Collection & Data Analysis.............................................................................42 Observations.................................................................................................................................42