Narrative recognition and identification. A qualitative pilot study into reading literary texts with advanced cancer patients
Publication year
2021Author(s)
Number of pages
11 p.
Source
Journal of Cancer Survivorship, (2021)ISSN
Annotation
15 juni 2021
Publication type
Article / Letter to editor
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Organization
Leerstoel Textuele, historische en systematische studies van het Jodendom en Christendom
Leerstoel Empirische en praktische religiewetenschap
Communicatie en Beïnvloeding
Journal title
Journal of Cancer Survivorship
Languages used
English (eng)
Subject
Center for Religion and Contemporary Society (CRCS); Language & Communication; Narrative, Cognition & CommunicationAbstract
Purpose Patients with advanced cancer can experience their disease as a contingent life event. The sudden interruption of their
life stories can obscure life goals and disrupt meaning making. In the context of the research project “In search of stories,” we aim
to investigate the reading and discussion of selected stories which present ways of dealing with a contingent life event. In
addition, we examine the use of a newly developed guide for reading these exemplary texts together with advanced cancer
patients.
Methods This qualitative study describes the experiences of five patients with advanced cancer who participated in a guided
reading and discussion about selected literary texts. The intervention consisted of reading a selected story, after which each
patient was interviewed, using the reading guide as a conversation template. The interviews were then thematically analyzed for
their conceptual content using a template analysis.
Results All five conversations showed some form of recognition in reaction to the chosen text, which led to personal identification
of experiences of contingency, such as loss of life goals, impending death, or feelings of uncertainty. Besides the important
role of identification, revealed by the responses to the questions in the reading guide, the discussion of the text helped them
articulate their own experience and sources of meaning. Diverse worldviews came to the fore and concepts of meaning such as
fate, life goals, quality of life, and death.
Conclusions First experiences with our newly developed reading guide designed to support a structured reading of stories
containing experiences of contingency suggest that it may help patients to express their own experiences of contingency and
to reflect on these experiences.
Implications for Cancer Survivors The intervention tested in this study may contribute to supportive care for survivors with
advanced cancer, but further research is needed to evaluate its effect on quality of life.
This item appears in the following Collection(s)
- Academic publications [245263]
- Electronic publications [132514]
- Faculty of Arts [29870]
- Faculty of Philosophy, Theology and Religious Studies [11606]
- Open Access publications [106157]
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