Voice, Context, and Narrative in Aging Research

Abstract

RÉSUMÉLa façon dont l'expérience est utilisée dans le cadre du quotidien constitue l'une des principales questions en matière de recherche sociale. Les méthodologies conventionnelles fournissent des réponses techniques. Toutefois, les questions contextuelles et les aspects méthodologiques sur le plan de la structure sociale et de la narration ne constituent pas des préoccupations analytiques et critiques, elles sont plutôt considérées comme des problèmes de procédé. Cet article étudie cette question au plan de la recherche sur le vieillissement. Deux facettes de la tension analytique sont examinées car elles ont une incidence sur la méthode, la première se concentre sur la voix et la narration, et la seconde sur le contexte de l'expérience. Les arguments se fondent sur des données d'observations et de narrations tirées d'études menées auprès d'adultes et de personnes âgées. Ceux-ci servent à démontrer qu'en se concentrant sur une pratique narrative ordinaire, on peut maintenir la tension formant la base de l'empirisme critique.

Investigating the ways that older people cope with dementia: A qualitative study

“…Additionally, that many participants used the interview process as an opportunity to explore and develop their understanding of dementia has been found in previous studies (e.g. Clare, 2003), and supports Gubrium's (1995) notion of the interview as a meaning-making occasion.…”

The Health and Well-being of Service User and Carer Educators: a Narrative Enquiry into the Impact of Involvement in Healthcare Education

“…Telling the story is the first stage of Egan's (1994) 'Helping Model' and the service user and carers felt participating provided a way of reflecting on, and making sense of, the effect involvement had on them as individuals in their stories. The development of the stories gave each service user and carer the opportunity for individual expression; each decided how they wanted to illustrate and illuminate their story, allowing them to give voice to their experience (Gubrium 1995). They enjoyed this aspect of the process and expressed a sense of satisfaction in the end products, which they are proud to share.…”

The Development of Relationships Between Families and Staff in Long-term Care Facilities: Nurses' Perspectives

“…Specifically, most of the empirical work conducted in the area of family-staff relations has examined the type of expectations that families and staff have of one another, usually regarding roles and task performance (e.g., Rubin & Shuttlesworth, 1983;Schwartz & Vogel, 1990;Shuttlesworth et al, 1982). The present study, on the other hand, uses a narrative approach (Gubrium, 1995;Gubrium & Holstein, 1997) which allows participants to express themselves in open-ended discussions and to describe their perceptions and subjective experiences freely rather than in response to fixed questions. Moreover, while previous studies have sampled families (e.g., Bowers, 1988;Duncan & Morgan, 1994;Rubin & Shuttlesworth, 1983;Schwartz & Vogel, 1990;Shuttlesworth et al, 1982), administrators (e.g., Schwartz & Vogel, 1990;Shuttlesworth et al, 1982), and occasionally some staff (e.g., Schwartz & Vogel, 1990), this study gathers data from registered nurses (RNs) whose perspective is especially important, since they often assume a leadership role on the care team and generally have more contact with families than do some other staff (Edelson & Lyons, 1985).…”