10th Biennial ACSPRI Social Science Methodology Conference in conjunction with the Australian Social Network Analysis Conference (ASNAC)

Background
Migration and displacement can profoundly affect women’s mental health and well-being with access and navigation of mental health supports shaped by social determinants. The Care Navigation for Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CaNCALD) Women’s Project uses qualitative research data, Learning Journeys and participatory creative practices to identify how cultural norms, socioeconomic pressures, and local service structures in South-Western Sydney influence women’s ability to seek and receive support. It also seeks to recognise and strengthen existing community assets that foster mental wellbeing. The aim is to co-design, implement and evaluate place-based pilot solutions, and to inform responsive, person‑centred policy development to improve mental health and service navigation.

Data collection and analysis
In preparation for a series of eight intensive co-design workshops with 20 diverse interest holders, we sought deep community engagement through qualitative research. An interview guide was constructed using the Social Determinants of Mental Health, and an Assets Based Community Development Framework. Following maximum variation sampling, fifty-two in-depth interviews were conducted with 23 migrant, refugee or asylum-seeking women with lived experience of mental health concerns, and 29 health providers, service providers and community leaders in South-Western Sydney.

Drawing on assemblage theory, we assumed that research participants’ experiences of systems are made up of people, technologies, objects and ideas and so looked for connections between these in the data. Three composite narratives based on three typified character profiles were constructed from aggregated interview data, weaving together these human and non-human elements.

Co-design workshop strategies
Composite narratives communicated qualitative findings in a succinct, accessible way to a non-academic co-design team audience. Composite narrative texts and identified community assets were translated into interactive workshop tools (storyboards and asset cards) using illustrative images generated through Leonardo.ai™. The storyboards were wall-mounted for a group co-design activity during a three-hour workshop. Co-design team members mapped the asset cards to potential leverage points in women’s post-migration mental health stories. They were provided with blank asset cards so they could add their own ideas to the asset mapping. These workshop tools sensitised the co-design team to the qualitative research findings through critical engagement with social determinants of mental health navigation, and existing assets that could be mobilised or improved. The workshop was documented through written records of co-design participant reflections, and photographs of the asset mapping exercise.

Discussion
People have always used stories as a vehicle for knowledge, with many cultures drawing on rich oral history traditions. Stories invoke the resonance of qualitative findings. When readers are invited to make their own meaning from stories, rather than being presented with an interpretation, they may be more likely to remember and act on the findings in the own contexts and spheres of influence. Given South-Western Sydney is made up of close, connected communities, the use of composite narratives strengthened the anonymity of participants.

Integrating composite narratives into storyboards reduced the need for advanced English proficiency, creating a more horizontal power dynamic. The activity generated discussion among the co-design team members about their own experiences and contributed to our reflections and interpretations of the data.

Artificial intelligence in research is a new frontier raising methodological, cyber-security, intellectual property and integrity challenges. It also creates opportunities for efficient, creative and rigorous research processes if used reflexively.

Conclusion
Composite narratives effectively summarised research findings while remaining true to participant voices. Their value in the co-design process was strengthened through storyboarding, supporting inclusive, participatory methods that fostered group interaction and collective meaning-making.