Occupations and Identity in the Life of a Primary Caregiving Father

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to explore and elucidate the relationships between occupations and identity. The narrative of a father who, after he sustained a work injury, became the primary caregiver of his two sons with Duchenne's muscular dystrophy is used to explore these relationships. The father was interviewed three times at his home for a total of four and a half hours of audiotaped interviews. The interviews were transcribed verbatim and analyzed using narrative and thematic approaches. In his story, the father focused on his advocacy rather than his direct caregiving roles, thus presenting a story that was different from the other stories in the original research project. Advocacy was his life occupation that involved interactions with several institutions and organizations and provided him with interactions with the outside world. These interactions constituted the thread of continuity that helped him maintain a coherent identity. When life circumstances require that persons change their life occupations, their perceived identities may be challenged. Aspects of new occupations, however, may facilitate the continuity of perceived identity. The main limitation of this paper is the use of a single story of a father whose life events have been rather unique.