Francine Darroch
Assistant Professor
| Degrees: | MEd (Providence College), MPH (University of Waterloo), PhD (University of Ottawa) |
| Phone: | 613-520-2600 x 4224 |
| Email: | francine.darroch@carleton.ca |
| Website: | Browse |
Primary field of Specialization:
Community-Based Participatory Research, Social and Cultural Determinants of Health, Gender and Health
Research Interests:
Dr. Francine Darroch is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Health Sciences at Carleton University. She is an interdisciplinary researcher with expertise in qualitative health research, public health, inequities in pregnancy and physical activity, maternal health, and the intersections of racism, gender-based violence, substance abuse, trauma, and structural violence. As founder of the Health and Wellness Equity Research Group at Carleton University, Dr. Darroch leads feminist participatory action research that focuses on leveraging physical activity to improve the quality of life of self-identified women and their families. Her current work aims to address inequities in physical activity for pregnant and parenting individuals and families through trauma- and violence-informed approaches to physical activity. While Dr. Darroch’s research is predominantly focused on self-identified women and children, her work also extends to exploring and advocating for gender-sensitive programming for fathers living in marginalizing circumstances. Dr. Darroch’s main overarching goal is to co-create programs and resources to increase access to physical activity, enhance social cohesion, community connections, and improve overall health by way of addressing individual, systemic, and structural barriers to health and well-being.
Her current research as Principal Investigator is supported by the Public Health Agency of Canada’s Preventing and Addressing Family Violence: The Health Perspective investment as well as the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council Insight Grant.
Dr. Darroch has additional research interests in gender equity and elite sport and is the Principal Investigator on a Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council Development Grant in this realm. Through community-based participatory research with a team of Parenting Track and Field Olympians and interdisciplinary colleagues, she has examined issues of importance to the athletic community such as training during pregnancy (advocacy for sport-specific guidelines) and gender equity in athletic governance and sponsorship.
Overall, Dr. Darroch’s multi-faceted research efforts are a reflection of her passionate commitment to social justice, health equity, and challenging power differentials in research practices as an advocate for populations that experience systemic marginalization.
Select Publications:
Darroch, F.E., Giles, A.R., Hillsburg, H., & McGettigan-Dumas, R. (2019). Running from Responsibility: Athletic Governing Bodies, Corporate Sponsors, and the Failure to Support Pregnant and Postpartum Elite Female Distance Runners. Sport in Society.
Creighton, G.M, Oliffe, J.L, Broom, A., Rossnagel, E., Ferlatte, O., & Darroch, F.E.(2019) “I never saw a future”: Childhood trauma and suicidality among sexual minority women. Qualitative Health Research. doi: 10.1177/1049732319843502
Giles, A. R., Bauer, M. E., & Darroch, F. E. (2018). Risky statement? A critique of the Position Statement on Active Outdoor Play. World Leisure Journal.
Darroch, F.E.& Hillsburg, H. (2017). Keeping Pace: Mother versus Athlete Identity Among Elite Long Distance Runners. Women Studies International Forum.
Darroch, F.E., Giles, A.R., Sanderson, P., Brooks-Cleator, L., Schwartz, A., Joseph, D., Nosker, R. (2016). The USA does “CAIR” about Cultural Safety: Examining Cultural Safety within Indigenous Health Contexts in Canada and USA. Journal ofTranscultural Nursing.
Darroch, F.E., Giles, A.R., & McGettigan-Dumas, R. (2016). Elite Female Distance Runners and Advice During Pregnancy: Sources, Content and Trust. Women in Sport and Physical Activity Journal, 24(2), 170-176.
Darroch, F.E. & Giles, A.R. (2016). Conception of a Resource: Development of a Physical Activity and Healthy Living Resource with/for Pregnant Urban Aboriginal Women in Ottawa, Canada. Qualitative Research in Sport, Exercise and Health, 9(2), 157-169.
Darroch, F. & Giles, A.R. (2016). A Postcolonial Feminist Discourse Analysis of Urban First Nations Women’s Description of Pregnancy-Related Weight Gain and Physical Activity. Women and Birth, 29(1), e23-e32.
Darroch, F. & Giles, A.R. (2015). Health/Service Providers’ Perspectives on Barriers to Healthy Weight Gain and Physical Activity in Pregnant Urban First Nations Women. Qualitative Health Research, 26(1), 5-16.
Darroch, F. & Giles, A.R. (2014). Decolonizing Health Research: Community-Based Participatory Research and Postcolonial Feminist Theory. Canadian Journal of Action Research, 15(3), 22-36.