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The Men’s Initiative is now BLUEPRINT. Read more about our decision to re-brand.

Research

Blueprint pursues applied community oriented research

We collaborate with community partners to conduct research and understand the experience of men and their impact on others. We help men discover the best that they have to offer the world and take action to influence positive change. We share their stories as proof of what’s possible.

We partner with the University of British Columbia to strengthen our research, innovation, and knowledge dissemination capabilities. 

PUBLICATIONS

  • Advisor to Atlas Institute Research Reference Group
  • Advisor to the Vancouver Canuck Alumni Board’s Health and Wellness Committee
  • Content expert, advisor and reviewer for Understanding your Window of Tolerance, A Resource on Stress, Trauma and Resilience, published by The Collaborating Centre for Prison Health and Education and the School of Population and Public Health, UBC.
  • Informed Veterans Affairs Canada policy on veteran transition to civilian life
  • Informed US Veterans Affairs policy on veteran transition to civilian life
  • Informed North American Treaty Organization policy on veteran transition to civilian life
  • Informed inclusive workplace policy at Heineken company
  • Clinical Advisor, Canadian Mental Health Association Resilient Minds Program for Firefighters
  • Clinical Advisors, BC Professional Firefighters Association Mental Health Task Force
  • Advisory Panel Member, Veteran Peer Support scoping review team, National Centre of Excellence on PTSD
  • Advisors to Tecate company on media campaign to stop gender based violence in Mexico
  • Subject Matter Expert, Research Reference Group, National Centre of Excellence on PTSD 
  • Editorial Board Member, Journal of the Psychology of Men and Masculinity
  • College of Peer Reviewers, Canadian Institute for Military and Veteran Health Research
  • Partner and Advisor, BC Ministry of Mental Health and Addictions, developing accessible tips and tools for men beyond the usual outreach of information and to inform their public campaign on (broadly) reducing stigma and increasing mental health support for men.  
  • Honorary Firefighter Awards presented to Dr. Duncan Shields & Dr. David Kuhl by the BC Professional Firefighters Association
  • Unintended Impacts of Military Enculturation on Mission Capacity, Team Cohesion, Retention and Member Well-Being. NATO – Human Factors & Medicine Panel. Workshop on Understanding Military Culture to Support Organizational Change. Swedish Defence University, Stockholm, Sweden. 2023
  • Podcast: How to Connect with Your Kids: A Dad’s Guide. A conversation including Trevor Linden and David Kuhl, Produced by Canadian Men’s Health Foundation, Vancouver, BC. 2023
  • International Women’s Forum BC. Lunch and Learn. 2023
  • Gender Justice in Sports: How Leaders Can Engage Men and Boys. A panel discussion. NextGen Men. Online. 2023
  • Insights on Treatment: A panel discussion. BC First Responders Mental Health Conference. Richmond BC, 2023
  • Strength and Struggle: Fostering Team Cultures That Support High Performance and Well-being. BC First Responders Mental Health Conference. Richmond, BC. 2023
  • Strength and Struggle: Fostering Team Cultures That Support High Performance and Well-being. Fire Department Safety Officers Association Health and Safety Conference. St. Pete Beach, FL. 2023
  • Celebrating International Women’s Day: Break The Bias. Webinar and panel. Greater Vancouver Board of Trade. 2022
  • Leading For Diversity & Inclusion. Webinar. MacKay CEO Forums. 2022
  • Advancing Women in Male Dominated Industries. Webinar: Minerva BC. 2022
  • Emergency Services Foundation Australia. Podcast with Duncan Shields. 2022
  • First Responder Resiliency Program (Keynote), Australian Emergency Services Foundation, Melbourne, Australia, 2022
  • First Responder Resiliency Program, (Keynote), Movember Foundation, Melbourne, Australia. 2022
  • Masculinity 101, (Keynote). Movember Foundation, Melbourne, Australia. 2022
  • Enhancing the Well-being of Men for the Benefit of Families, Communities and the Globe. Presentation to Vancouver Council of Women. Vancouver, BC. 2022
  • Podcast: Fatherhood and Positive Mentorship, A conversation including Kelly Hrudey, Dan Murphy and David Kuhl, Produced by Canadian Men’s Health Foundation, Vancouver, BC. 2022
  • Resiliency, Bell Let’s Talk Day, RCMP K-Division. Virtual Presentation. 2022
  • Teamwork as Emergency Preparedness, Emergency Preparedness and Business Continuity Conference (EPBC), Vancouver, BC. 2022
  • Men’s Health, A panel as a global town hall, Men’s Health Foundation, Michigan Institute of Urology, Troy, MI. 2021
  • Fatherhood and Masculinity in the 21st Century, Blue and Goldcast, UBC President’s Podcast, Vancouver, BC. 2021
  • Silent Struggles: A look at stigma and co-morbidities in the first responder community. Leadership for the mental health of your workplace, Speaker Series, BC First Responders’ Mental Health Committee. 2021
  • Building Resilience: An evolutionary and cultural perspective.” Webinar with ASCN (New Zealand) a Not For Profit organisation in collaboration with Veterans Affairs New Zealand, the NZ Defence Force and the University of Otago, 2020
  • Maintaining Resilience under Operational Load.  Workplace Reintegration and Resilience Key Stakeholder Engagement.  HiMARC, University of Alberta, 2019
  • Police Officers’ Experience of Occupational Stress and Well-being: Co-Designing Preventative/Supportive Programming. Canadian Institute for Military and Veteran Health Research Forum, Gatineau, QC, 2019
  • Nurturing Healthy Masculinity: How Men Can be Better Forces for Good, Sustainable Brands Conference, Detroit, MI, 2019
  • National Conference on Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) (Invited expert). PTSD Secretariat, Mental Health and Well-being Division, Public Health Agency of Canada. Ottawa, 2019
  • BC First Responder Resiliency Program, BC First Responders’ Mental Health Conference Richmond, BC, 2019
  • ire Fighters Operational Stress and Resilience. Fire Fighters Western Educational Conference.  Victoria, BC, 2018
  • The Shaping Purpose Military to Civilian Life Transition Study and Program Evaluation. (Peer-reviewed, Competitive, Paper Presentation).   Canadian Institute for Military and Veteran Health Research Forum, Regina, SK, 2018
  • Leveraging Masculine Strengths to Support First Responder Resilience.  (Invited Plenary) The Male Psychology Conference. University College, London, 2018
  • Design and Evaluation of a First-Responder Resiliency Pilot Program. Peer-reviewed, Competitive, Poster Presentation. Canadian Institute for Military and Veteran Health Research Forum, Toronto, ON, 2017
  • What We Know Cures; Who We Are Heals, Opening Plenary, Goodfellow Symposium, University of Auckland,  New Zealand, 2017
  • PreHealth Care Provider Resilience: Discussions with Staff and Families under Stress, Canadian Critical Care Conference, Whistler, BC
  • Team Relationships: Who are We? Goodfellow Symposium, University of Auckland, ,New Zealand, 2017
  • From PTS to Resilience in Stoic Service Cultures, PTS17, Brisbane, Australia, 2017
  • First Responder Well-Being: Understanding Fire Fighters Experience of Occupational Stress and Wellness, Canadian Institute for Military and Veteran Health Research Forum, Toronto, ON, 2017
  • Poster Presentation by D. Kuhl, K. Lutz, L. Hedden, M. Spillane, P. Pollock, S.L. Goldenbery, C.S. Hiligamo, On-going evaluation of Living With Prostate Cancer (LPC) Program, a group therapy intervention to alleviate psychological distress, Canadian Association of Psychosocial Oncology, Vancouver, BC, 2017
  • Poster Presentation by D. Shields, D. Kuhl and T. Spiess, Design and Evaluation of a Firstresponder Resiliency Pilot Program, Canadian Institute for Military and Veteran Health Research Forum, Toronto, ON, 2017
  • Poster Presentation by Laramée, D. Kuhl, Burnout and suicidal ideation among UBC Family Practice residents, Family Medicine Forum, Toronto, ON, 2017
  • Effective Group Therapy for Male Veterans with PTSD — Examining Therapeutic Engagement and Impact.  American Psychological Association Annual Convention, Toronto, Ontario, 2015
  • Mental Health and Well-Being of Military Veterans during Military to Civilian Transition: Review and Analysis of the Recent Literature. Keynote to Military to Civilian Transition (MCT) International Expert Summit.  Co-hosted by the Center for Innovation and Research on Veterans & Military Families and the Canadian Institute for Military and Veteran Health Research. Los Angeles. The summit included approximately 30 participants from Canada, US, UK, Australia, New Zealand and the Netherlands. University of Southern California, Los Angeles, 2016.
  • Effective Group Therapy for Males with Combat Stress University College London, UK, 2016
  • Care for the Man in Transition, Canadian Urological Association, Vancouver, BC, 2016
  • Mercier, J., Hosseiny, F., Rodrigues, S., Friio, A., Brémault-Phillips, S., Shields, D., Dupuis, G. (2023). Peer Support Activities for Veterans, Serving Members, and Their Families: Results of a Scoping Review. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2023 Feb 18;20(4):3628. doi: 10.3390/ijerph20043628
  • Shields, D., Frender, J., Nakhla, P., Kuhl, D. Culturogenic Harm: (2023). Unintended Impacts of Military Enculturation on Mission Capacity, Team Cohesion, Retention and Member Well-Being. NATO – Human Factors & Medicine Panel. Workshop on Understanding Military Culture to Support Organizational Change. Swedish Defence University, Stockholm, Sweden.
  • Kuhl, D., Lutz, K., Wu, E., Arsovska, O., Berkowitz, J., Klimas, J., Sundar. M., Goldenberg, L. and Higano, C. (2023). Living with prostate cancer: a mixed-method evaluation of group therapy intervention to alleviate psychological distress in a Canadian setting. Support Care Cancer.Support Care Cancer. 2023 Jun 16;31(7):398. doi: 10.1007/s00520-023-07866-5.
  • Shields, D. (2023). Towards an Aspirational Military Masculine Ethos. Briefing Paper: Military Masculinity and Culture Change in the Canadian Armed Forces. Centre for Social Innovation and Community Engagement in Military Affairs (SICEMA)
  • Silva e Silva, V., Hornby, L., Lotherington, K., Rochon, A., Silva, A., Pearson, H., MacNutt, L., Robertson, A., Werestiuk, K., Kuhl, D., John, P., Dhanani, S. and Sarti, A., (2022). Burnout, compassion fatigue and work-related stressors among organ donation and transplantation coordinators: A qualitative study. Intensive & Critical Care Nursing, 2022; 68:1-7, doi: 10.1016/j.iccn.2021.103125. Epub 2021 Aug 26.
  • Silva e Silva, V., Hornby, L., Lotherington, K., Rochon, A., Silva, A., Pearson, H., MacNutt, L., Robertson, A., Werestiuk, K., Kuhl, D., John, P., Dhanani, S. and Sarti, A., (2022). The Experiences and Perceptions of Team Cohesiveness and Communication among Organ and Tissue Donation Coordinators: An Exploratory Qualitative Study. The Canadian Journal of Critical Care Nursing, 33(2), 7–13. DOI: 10.5737/23688653-332
  • Shields, D., Frender, J., and Kuhl, D., From Hero to Zero: Unintended Impacts on Military Enculturation in Transitional Experiences (Edits to first draft prior to submission to Journal of Military and Veteran Family Health, 2020)
  • Kuhl, D. & Ono, S. (2021). It’s Time to Reconside Our Roles as Fathers. Op-Ed. Vancouver Sun. Vancouver, BC.
  • Shields, D., Kuhl, D., & Farina, S, (2018).  Design and Evaluation of a First Responder Resiliency Program.  Conference Abstracts: The 9th annual Military and Veteran Health Research Forum, Regina, SK, 2018
  • Shields, D. M., Kuhl, D., & Westwood, M. J. (2017). Abject masculinity and the military: Articulating a fulcrum of struggle and change. Special Issue: Health Implications of Masculinity Within Military Populations. Psychology of Men & Masculinity, 18(3), 215-225. 
  • Shields, D., Westwood, M. J., & Kuhl, D. (2018). Counseling Military Clients: Multicultural Competence, Challenges and Opportunities.  In Lee, C., (Ed) Multicultural Issues in Counseling, Fifth Edition: New Approaches to Diversity.  Sage Publications. (Invited).
  • Shields, D., & Westwood, M.J. (2018). Counselling Male Military Personnel and Veterans: Addressing Challenges & Enhancing Engagement. In Barry J. (ed.), Working with Men. Palgrave Publishers.
  • Shields, D; Frender, J. & Kuhl, D. (2018).  We’re Still Here and We Still Matter: The Shaping Purpose Military to Civilian Transition Program Evaluation and Study. The Men’s Initiative at UBC Faculty of Medicine. Vancouver, BC.
  • Thompson JM, Lockhart W, Roach MB, Atuel H, BélangerS, Black T, Castro CA, Cox D, Cooper A, de Boer C, Dentry S, Hamner K, Shields D, Truusa, TT. (2017).  Veterans’ Identities and Well-being in Transition to Civilian Life – A Resource for Policy Analysts, Program Designers, Service Providers and Researchers. Report of the Veterans’ Identities Research Theme Working Group, Canadian Institute for Military and Veteran Health Research Forum 2016. Charlottetown PE: Research Directorate, Veterans Affairs Canada. Research Directorate Technical Report. 
  • Shields, D. Frender, J., & Garsch, A. (2017).  The “Shaping Purpose” Program for Military Participants Transitioning from Military to Civilian Life. A CIPP Model Program Evaluation.   Conference Abstracts: The 8th annual Military and Veteran Health Research Forum.
  • Shields, D., Kuhl, D., & Vissers, D. (2017).  First Responder Well-Being: Understanding Firefighters Experience of Occupational Stress and Wellness. Conference Abstracts: The 8th Annual Military and Veteran Health Research Forum.
  • Shields, D., Kuhl, D., & Speiss, T. (2017).  First Responder Resiliency Pilot Program. Conference Abstracts: The 8th annual Military and Veteran Health Research Forum.
  • Shields, D.  (2016).  Military Masculinity, Movies and the DSM:  Narratives of institutionally (en)gendered trauma.  Psychology of Men & Masculinity, Vol 17(1), 64-73. 
  • Shields, D. (2016).  Mental Health and Well-Being of Military Veterans during Military to Civilian Transition: review and analysis of recent literature. Conference Abstracts: The 7th annual Canadian Military and Veteran Health Research Forum
  • Shields DM, Kuhl D, Lutz K, Frender J, Baumann N, Lopresti P. (2016).  Mental health and well-being of military Veterans during military to civilian transition: review and analysis of recent literature. Vancouver BC: Report prepared for Veterans Affairs Canada and the Canadian Institute for Military and Veteran Health Research. 
  • Shields, D. (2015).  Effective Group Therapy for Male Veterans With PTSD – Examining Therapeutic Engagement and Impact.  Conference Abstracts. APA PsychExtra.  
  • Shields, D. (2015).  Culturally Competent Practice for Veterans.  Clinicians Corner.  American Psychological Association, Clinicians Corner Feature for Remembrance Day

PAST RESEARCH

Leading for Diversity and Inclusion — How social equity movements have shaped conversations in business and leadership around issues of gender, race, diversity, and equity and inclusion.

Living with Prostate Cancer — Living with Prostate Cancer: A Mixed-methods Evaluation of Group Therapy Intervention to Alleviate Psychological Distress in a Canadian Setting study to assess the effects of group therapy on depression and mental well being among men and to explore participant experiences of ‘speaking the unspeakable.’

After The Game — Understanding The Experience of Athletes in Transition study developed for NHL Alumni Association to support professional hockey player retirement transition.

Military to Civilian Transition — literature report and review of the Veterans Affairs Canada Shaping Purpose Program. The research is in use by internationally recognized organizations, including Veterans Affairs Canada, NATO and US Veterans Administration.