Using a Matrix in Life Transition Research

Abstract

Life transitions can be planned or can occur unexpectedly. They can cause a major change to a person's life patterns and well-being. Older adulthood is a time for many life transitions as a result of changes in life roles and health status. In this exploratory study, the authors investigate the transition involved in driving cessation for older people. In analyzing and organizing the data, they develop a matrix that incorporated descriptive and temporal factors associated with the transition. This matrix is useful in organizing and communicating the findings as a whole and could be used in describing individual experiences. It might be of use for the organization of qualitative data about other life transitions such as illness, retirement, and the development and adoption of new behaviors.

Becoming a mother of a child with cancer: building motherhood

“…Protective care is part of all actions of mothers with children, and to give it, mothers feel the need to control the situation (11) . In our study, this Transitions in life may be many and have been described as paths in which people face changes (12) .…”

Editorial introduction: Transitions in the process of education

“…As such, transitions can be seen as admitting sub-phases (Bridges, 1980;Brammer, 1991;Bowlby, 1980;Van Gennep, 1909) or rather be seen as non linear (Hayes, Laurenceau, Feldman, Strauss, & Cardaciotto, 2007). Also, such approaches are more likely to attempt to preserve, or reconstitute the complexity of the phenomenon involved, for example through the identification of a "matrix" of change (Liddle, Carlson, & McKenna, 2004), "regimes" of transition involving the person's involvement in various social settings (Stauber, 2007), or changing time allocation in different spheres of experience (Gauthier & Furtsenberg, 2002). We believe that this group of studies examining time-embedded dynamics of transitions are the most likely to enrich our reflection on the educational process.…”

Older Women's Perceptions of Successful Aging

“…Older adults experience many life transitions; changes in life situation may be initiated by health changes or role changes (e.g., loss of spouse, retirement, relocation) and these transitions result in new life patterns and Downloaded by [University of Connecticut] at 01:35 13 April 2015 changes in well-being (Liddle, Carlson, & McKenna, 2004;Rossen & Knafl, 2003, 2007. According to the Schumacher and Meleis (1994) transition theory, transitions are complex person-environment interactions rooted in the situation and involve both the disruption of the person's life and the person's response to the disruption.…”