![\"hand](\"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/photos-275x275.jpg\")
By using Photo Elicitation Interviewing (PEI), a qualitative research method, Thomas invites participants to document aspects of their lives through photographs and then reflect on those images in interviews. Unlike traditional interviews that rely solely on verbal responses, PEI allows participants to communicate visually, often revealing emotional depth and everyday realities that may be difficult to articulate in words.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat makes PEI so powerful is that it gives participants another language,\u201d says Jennifer Manuel, professor and associate dean for research at the UConn School of Social Work. \u201cImages can capture emotion, identity, and lived experience in ways that are difficult to express verbally.\u201d<\/p>\n
The method is especially valuable in cross-cultural research, where language differences and power dynamics can shape how stories are told, Thomas explains. \u201cBy requesting participants to use their phone cameras, this approach centers their perspectives and gives them greater control over how their experiences are represented.\u201d<\/p>\n
Critical Timing<\/strong><\/p>\n The timing for this study is crucial. Historically a country of emigration, Armenia has experienced a sharp rise in immigration since 2022, particularly from Russia and India. Following the outbreak of the Russia-Ukraine war, tens of thousands of Russians relocated to Armenia, many contributing to the country\u2019s expanding IT sector. Migration from India has also surged, with many immigrants working in construction, agriculture, transportation, and service industries.<\/p>\n \u201cMuch of what we know about these migration trends comes from economic data and media narratives,\u201d Thomas says. \u201cThis project centers the voices of the migrants themselves and explores how they experience settlement, work, and belonging.\u201d<\/p>\n Thomas, who\u2019s also director of the Center for International Social Work, is a board member of the Council on Social Work Education Katherine A. Kendall Institute for International Social Work and coordinates a joint academic program exchange between UConn and Yerevan State University (YSU) in Armenia. Her research and scholarship focuses on issues related to international developmental, poverty, and climate induced migration.<\/p>\n For this project, she’ll receive research assistance from UConn doctoral student Fizza Saghir and two YSU collaborators: Associate Professor Yuliana Melkumyan and Assistant Professor of Sociology Marine Yarmaloyan. YSU is the largest university in Armenia.<\/p>\n Initially, the researchers will recruit up to 40 young immigrants\u201420 from the Russian community and 20 from the Indian community\u2014between the ages of 18 and 35 who have migrated to Armenia since 2022 and are currently participating in the workforce.<\/p>\n Thomas and her team will record the interviews and will analyze both the visual images and interview transcripts to identify themes related to economic opportunity, cultural adaptation, integration, barriers, and future goals.<\/p>\n Findings from the study will inform policy recommendations and guidance for social workers, service providers, and institutions supporting immigrant communities in Armenia. The team anticipates conference presentations, peer-reviewed publications, and policy briefs emerging from the research, which will run through Dec. 31, 2026.<\/p>\n Maintaining a 40-Year Partnership with Armenia<\/strong><\/p>\n The effort to bring Armenian Studies to UConn began in 1984 when a small group of volunteers started a fund raising campaign. With $70,000 raised, the inaugural program began Oct. 24, 1987 with an art exhibit, banquet, and lecture by George Bournoutian, who later became a visiting professor of Armenian Studies. In 1991, Nancy A. Humphries, founder of the Institute for Political Social Work at the Conn School of Social Work, worked to establish social work education at YSU.<\/p>\n In spring 2000, two Armenian-American, second year MSW students from UConn traveled to Armenia as a part of their field placement. A year later, two second year MSW students, not of Armenian ethnicity, went to Yerevan to help establish the Yerevan Women\u2019s Center to help women there face the many problems associated with the dramatic transition in government following the breakup of the Soviet Union.<\/p>\n In 2004, UConn received a bequest from the estate of Alice K. Norian, to be used to educate students and the general public about Armenian culture and history. UConn\u2019s Norian Armenian Programs<\/a> now educate the UConn community and the broader public about Armenian culture and history by providing forums for Armenians and Armenian-Americans to share knowledge and traditions.<\/p>\n By 2012, Thomas began her own work in Armenia by hosting Armenian students at UConn and interviewing Syrian refugees of Armenian descent.<\/p>\n![\"UConn](\"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Thomas_2022-275x275.jpg\")