a community of practitioners

Call For Posters And Applications For Research Presentations At 2011 WMF

Call for Posters And Applications For Research Presentations At 2011 World Massage Festival

The World Massage Festival will hold its 1st annual poster session at the 2011 National Convention in Cullowhee, NC from July 14-18. 2011. Our theme is "Research & Education Are Our Future!"

You are invited to present a poster of your recent massage and bodywork research. If you are unable to attend personally, you can ship the poster to us to display for you.

If you wish to participate, please submit an abstract to Cindy Michaels, Registrar, via email festival@worldmassagefestival.com by March 15, 2011. Additionally, Cindy can also be reached by phone at (336) 957-8997 if you have any questions.

Research Presentation Finalists will be announced May 1, 2011. Top Presenters will receive cash awards. The Presentation Selection Panel Members names will be announced after they have made their final selections.

Poster Specs:

The suggested poster size is 4' x 6'. Poster materials should be of the size and type that will fit within the alloted space and can be secured with either Velcro or push pins. The poster should present an abstract of the project that includes the following: your name, the institution where the project was based, project title, the purpose of conducting the project, a description of the population, procedures, critical results, and a discussion of the significance of the outcome.

Poster presenters are encouraged to make handouts of their abstracts and findings available to attendees. These materials can be shipped to WMF staff in advance or can be brought by the presenter. Tables and bulletin boards will be provided.

Poster review guidelines:

1.) Significance: Does the study address an important problem? - Relevance for Massage and Bodywork Profession

2.) Scientific and Technical Merit: Are the conceptual framework, design, methods, and analyses adequately developed? Does the applicant acknowledge any potential problem areas? - Design is well developed and appropriate to the study aims- Study aims are original and innovative

3.) Research Study must never have been presented before.

If you have any questions, please contact Cindy Michaels at (336) 957-8997 more details can be found online at http://www.worldmassagefestival.com/2011/callforresearch.html

Thanks to Ryan Hoyme for the video with schedule

▶ Reply to This

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Vlad on February 9, 2010 at 10:45pm

Hey Mike,
I'll put a link to your page about the call for research on my site when I do an update over the next couple of days. I'll be sending out an email last to therapists on my other wee TX site on Thursday, so I'll include it in that too.
I'll try to help to get the word out about it anyway since it's cool.

▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Darcy Neibaur on February 9, 2010 at 10:58pm

Another great Video Ryan!

massagenerd said:

▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Mike Hinkle on February 10, 2010 at 12:45pm

Thanks, Vlad the great thing is the researchers will not have to be tied to a school or University to present. I just ask that it has never been presented before.

Vlad said:

Hey Mike,
I'll put a link to your page about the call for research on my site when I do an update over the next couple of days. I'll be sending out an email last to therapists on my other wee TX site on Thursday, so I'll include it in that too.
I'll try to help to get the word out about it anyway since it's cool.

▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Mike Hinkle on February 15, 2010 at 12:21am

Your thoughts?

Vlad said:

This is mega-cool.

▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Vlad on February 16, 2010 at 2:31pm

Hey Mike,
I've still to asend am email blast to my wee list of TX therapists (I'd trouble with a software update on my site), BUT yeah, I'll try to get the word out. Hopefully I'll get the email blast out tonight.

Here's an idea which you've probably already thought of - even though people don't have to be tied to a school, maybe you get schools involved in this, especially the ones that look like their on the ball with teaching research literacy (Cortiva, for example). The schools might be a really good way of getting people involved.

As for lone therapists that might want to get in on this - maybe there would need to be some guidelines on how to get involved and where to get information. For example, if they're learning about research, then what resources are good for getting them on track? So maybe putting together a list of resources (for example good books, sites etc) might be an idea too?
Just throwing ideas out there.......

I'm definitely interested!

▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Mike Hinkle on February 16, 2010 at 2:51pm

Those are grand ideas Vlad. I would love to add your lists of these to them so send when you can, okay? I think that will help a lot. Thanks for the help. So many people have sent letters of support for more research. I contacted Cortiva Schools this morning and will be contacting many more in the next year and a half. Thanks so much for your help. It is growing already. I have contacted a few folks about teaching and being on the research committee. We will start small and grow.

Here is a letter I posted to students and newly licensed therapists:

You are new to the profession. I hope you will get involved with the movement to get research we need to promote the massage industry. If you would like to get involved with the World Massage Festival Reseach projects and classes, please contact me at mike@massagenews.org I look forward to meeting you!

And let me know how you feel about this Annual Research Conference.

The World Massage Festival and many educators recognize classes available to Massage Therapists, to teach one “How to Conduct Research”, or even to understand the methodology behind available research, are few and far between.

The World Massage Festival wants to change that by annually:

1. Having a research conference to teach therapists how to evaluate and understand research.

2. Teach teachers how to explain and teach research.

3. Teach those interested, “How To Research”.

4. Call for Research Posters and Oral Presentations.

July 13-15, 2011 at Western Carolina University outside Asheville, NC.

Details at http://www.worldmassagefestival.com/2011/callforresearch.html

Vlad said:

Hey Mike,
I've still to asend am email blast to my wee list of TX therapists (I'd trouble with a software update on my site), BUT yeah, I'll try to get the word out. Hopefully I'll get the email blast out tonight.

Here's an idea which you've probably already thought of - even though people don't have to be tied to a school, maybe you get schools involved in this, especially the ones that look like their on the ball with teaching research literacy (Cortiva, for example). The schools might be a really good way of getting people involved.

As for lone therapists that might want to get in on this - maybe there would need to be some guidelines on how to get involved and where to get information. For example, if they're learning about research, then what resources are good for getting them on track? So maybe putting together a list of resources (for example good books, sites etc) might be an idea too?
Just throwing ideas out there.......

I'm definitely interested!