Abstract
Using a dialogical narrative approach, this original research explored how combat veterans experiencing post-traumatic stress disorder made sense of peer relationships with other veterans and what effects these relationships had on their well-being. Interviews and participant observations were conducted with 15 male combat veterans (aged 27-60 years) and one member of the civilian emergency services, the majority of whom were diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder following traumatic exposure in a range of armed conflicts. All participants were part of a surfing charity for veterans experiencing post-traumatic stress disorder. Data were rigorously analysed using a dialogical narrative analysis (DNA). Findings revealed the collective story that veterans used to make sense of peer relationships within the group. This collective story worked for the veterans to shape their experiences of well-being by fostering camaraderie, stimulating deeper connections and countering the negative effects of post-traumatic stress disorder. Potential therapeutic effects of the collective story were also identified. This article extends previous knowledge on combat veterans and social relationships and advances the field of narrative health psychology through the empirical application of a sophisticated dialogical narrative approach.
Highlights
(Richardson, 1990) which the veterans utilised to make sense of their peer relationships, alongside five dialogical components of the collective story which acted for the veterans to shape their experiences of well-being
The collective story and its five dialogical components shaped the veterans’ experiences of subjective and psychological wellbeing by facilitating deeper connections with others, emphasising positive sociable interactions and camaraderie, and by creating a robust network of mutual support; all of which helped the veterans to ‘hold their own’ against post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
This paper contains a number of implications for the field of narrative health psychology and for research on PTSD, social relationships, and combat veterans in particular
Summary
N, Phoenix, C & Smith, B 2015, 'Collective stories and well-being: Using a dialogical narrative approach to understand peer relationships among combat veterans experiencing post-traumatic stress disorder', Journal of Health Psychology, vol 20, no. The express permission of the copyright holder must be obtained for any use of this material other than for purposes permitted by law. Users may download and/or print one copy of the publication from the University of Birmingham research portal for the purpose of private study or non-commercial research. User may use extracts from the document in line with the concept of ‘fair dealing’ under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 (?). Users may not further distribute the material nor use it for the purposes of commercial gain
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