I feel very privileged to have won this award! It is a great recognition of my writing and research skills and encourages me to continue my adventures in academia.
Lily-Cannelle Mathieu
M.Sc. Knowledge transfer and mobilisation, 2022
Centre Urbanisation Culture Société
Supervisor: Nathalie Casemajor
2023 Best master’s essay awardee
Lily-Cannelle Mathieu is interested in the relationship of users with their own data on digital platforms and the algorithms of cultural content distribution platforms. The productions resulting from her work are numerous and stand out for their scientific and social relevance. The innovative methodologies in co-construction and the reflexive depth for her internship or essay contribute significantly to the advancement of knowledge in the cultural field and in knowledge mobilisation.
What brought you to INRS? What do you retain from your experience?
I was first attracted to INRS’s Centre Urbanisation Culture Société by an undergraduate research internship with Professor Nathalie Casemajor. The research project I participated in during this internship, which was conducted in partnership with the Bibliothèque et Archives nationales du Québec, dealt with the ethical issues of governance of digital usage data in the library and archive sector. The project was very stimulating and allowed me to develop an interest and knowledge about the role that usage data and recommendation algorithms are currently playing in the cultural industries.
An opportunity then arose for me to conduct a master’s project on this topic in partnership with the Ministère de la Culture et des Communications du Québec as part of the master’s degree in Knowledge mobilisation and transfer at INRS. Being convinced of the need to bring research out of the universities and wanting to contribute to society through my research activities, I was delighted to embark on this project.
From my experience at INRS, I retain above all the great humanity of the institution and the members of its community.
Can you describe the issue and impact of the research presented in your essay?
My master’s project has two main axes: (1) a qualitative sociology research project on the discovery of cultural content in Quebec, and (2) a conceptual reflection on the circulation and transfer of academic knowledge in practice, based on my experience as an intern in research and knowledge transfer at the Chaire Fernand-Dumont sur la culture.
While the research results of the first axis are intended to be mobilized by the Ministère de la Culture et des Communications du Québec, the Observatoire de la Culture et des Communications du Québec, the various individuals and organizations producing and disseminating cultural content in Quebec, as well as by sociologists of culture and the digital world, the reflections developed within the framework of the second axis of the project are intended to be conceptual advances for the fields of action and theorizing that constitute the mobilization and transfer of knowledge.
What does it mean to you to win this award?
I feel very privileged to have won this award! It is a great recognition of my writing and research skills and encourages me to continue my adventures in academia.
What is the next chapter for you now that you are graduating?
I have started a PhD in socio-cultural anthropology at McGill University in September 2022. So I’ll be studying for quite a few more years!