Life Stories Research Articles

Women as cultural agents: Double coloniality, gender and diasporic memories of ethnic Greek Georgian women

In 2021, the world commemorated the 30th anniversary of the end of the Cold War, a half-century of ideological rivalry and divisions that left few societies untouched. ‘Cold War state of mind’, as the title of the book of Matthew Dune stated, with the primacy it gave to nation-states, overlooked issues of not belonging in dominant majorities and hegemonic cultures, for example, ethnic minorities and diasporas. In this framework, Greek-speaking communities in the former Soviet Union seemed to draw from their cultural background to become rooted in the Soviet ethnic mosaic but also to increase their social capital which in the 1990s turned to an important transnational value due to the migrant flows from Georgia to Greece. This article follows the life stories of two ethnic Greek women over the time of three decades through their memories since the 1980s, from the Black Sea region to Greece, to discuss how they address the post-socialist demand for an integration to the free market and how their double coloniality as Soviet and diasporic subjects interweaves with this demand.

From 'cooking wife' to 'cooking mother': Exploring generational shifts in perceptions regarding domestic cooking practices.

Utilising the life course perspective as the theoretical framework, we investigate how women from different generations perceive their cooking experiences and articulate their feelings regarding this activity. Following a review of the literature and four exploratory focus groups, an interview guide was developed and piloted. Interviews were conducted with 22 Brazilian women spanning three distinct generations. Participants were prompted to recall their life stories, spanning from childhood to the present day and focused on cooking-related situations. Interviews were transcripted and analysed using reflexive thematic analysis. There were three major themes developed. The first theme outlines variations in the food context across generations. The second theme encompasses perceptions of the responsibility for cooking as being linked to the female gender, indicating a generational shift from the role of the 'cooking wife' to that of the 'cooking mother'. The third theme explores thoughts and reflections on feelings of obligation, oppression, and liberation in cooking, tied to changes in the social and temporal context in which these women operate. Strategies promoting cooking should consider the meanings attributed to it, contribute to the deconstruction of gender-specific family dynamics, and encourage the pursuit for pleasure, satisfaction and autonomy in this practice. This study contributes novel insights into cooking, including reflections on obligation or oppression versus liberation and the evolving social roles of women as primary cooks.

On Victims, Heroes, and Gulag-gupvi Survivors

Abstract Employing a biographical, oral history approach, this article documents the life story of a war veteran and gupvi survivor in Hungary to illustrate the multiple synchronic as well as diachronic cleavages that exist between the official, societal, and collective memory regimes in postcommunist Eastern Europe. István Bicskei’s life story highlights, in a tangible way, the fact that the socially constructed notions of victimhood and heroism vary as a complex outcome of the interaction of multiple forms of human, institutional, and political agencies in an ever-changing historical context and in multi-layered cultural milieux. The article argues that these key cultural notions are closely tied to individual understandings of personhood, to national and collective identities, but also to ruling ideologies and political regimes. The article also highlights the glaring gap between official, scholarly, and local narratives about the past that exists in marginalized rural communities and points to the conspicuous lack of cultural “mediators” or “intermediators” between these distinct political, media, and social spheres, and between official and grassroots memory narratives.

Communion supports dignity for older adults with serious cancer: Quantitative findings from dignity therapy intervention.

Patient dignity is a key concern during end-of-life care. Dignity Therapy is a person-centered intervention that has been found to support patient dignity interviews focused on narrating patients' life stories and legacies. However, mechanisms that may affect utility of the Dignity Therapy have been little studied. In this study, we evaluate whether the extent to which patients are more communal in their interviews acts as a mechanism for increased patient dignity. We analyzed the written transcripts from Dignity Therapy interviews with 203 patients with cancer over the age of 55 receiving outpatient palliative care (M = 65.80 years; SD = 7.45 years, Range = 55-88 years; 66% women). Interviews followed core questions asking patients about their life story and legacy. We used content-coding to evaluate the level of communion narrated in each interview, and mediation analyses to determine whether communion affected dignity impact. Mediation analyses indicated that the extent to which patients narrated communion in their interview had a significant direct effect on post-test Dignity Impact. Communion partially mediated the effect of pre-test on post-test Dignity Impact. For both the life story and legacy segments of the session, narrating communion had a direct effect on post-test Dignity Impact. Narrating communion serves as a mechanism for enhancing patient dignity during Dignity Therapy. Providers may consider explicitly guiding patients to engage in, elaborate on, communal narration to enhance therapeutic utility. In addition, encouraging patients with advanced illness to positively reflect on relationships in life may improve patient dignity outcomes in palliative and end-of-life care.

Itinerary of a Christian Ex-Boko Haram bomb maker in Cameroon

Abstract This paper is a biography of Paul, a Christian who joined Boko Haram and became one of its prominent bomb makers. After coming out of the underground, he became an army auxiliary in Kolofata and its environs, in the far north of Cameroon. Paul’s autobiographical narratives were cross-checked with other sources, including interviews with former insurgents and hostages, and officials of the Cameroonian army and the Multinational Joint Task Force. Paul’s narrative offers insight to understand why an individual would join, make a career in, and leave a terrorist group. His life story highlights the issue of human rights in the context of counterinsurgency and the importance of psychological operations in the fight against Boko Haram.

Standing between the elite and street fields: Young people from affluent communities dealing with drugs

Sociology has a rich tradition studying ‘elite’ and ‘street’ social spaces, but rarely considers spaces between these fields and the social actors within them. This article fills that gap by examining the life stories of affluent Oslo youth engaged in illegal drug dealing. Participants had access to economic, social, and cultural capital in both elite and street social space. Making money in legitimate and illegitimate ways kept participants relatively marginal in both spaces. Having social networks among street-oriented peers and among elites facilitated drug dealing but also allowed them an exit from drug crimes when needed. They were educated and often employed, but also had high levels of drug and street cultural competence. This left them relatively estranged from their affluent background milieu leading to persistence in drug dealing. I argue that illegal drug markets among the affluent can be viewed as an in-between social space, that ‘elite’ or ‘street’ youth are likely best conceptualized as existing on a sociocultural spectrum between fields and provide a Bourdieusian framework to study social actors who stand between fields and the impact this may have on their lives.

Evaluation of ANKOMMEN as a group intervention based on life story work for adolescents in residential care in Germany: a single-arm pilot study

BackgroundAdolescents face many challenges when coping with out-of-home placement, and life story work can be helpful in this context. Typically conducted in individual settings, life story work’s high resource requirements pose a challenge for implementation in the standard care of youth welfare institutions. To address this issue, the ANKOMMEN intervention was developed as a manualized group program for adolescents in residential care focusing on processing and coping with experiences associated with their out-of-home placement.MethodThe intervention was evaluated in a single-arm pilot study with questionnaires administered at three time points (pre-intervention, post-intervention, and 3-month follow-up). The primary outcome was self-efficacy, while secondary outcomes included self-esteem, depressive symptoms, posttraumatic stress symptoms, and behavioral problems. A total of 31 intervention groups with 115 adolescents (M = 14.91 years; SD = 1.45; 52.2% male) were conducted between October 2020 and September 2022 in Germany. Data were analysed using mixed effect models.ResultsPre-post comparisons revealed increased self-efficacy (d = −0.80) and self-esteem (d = −0.68) among participants with below-average scores prior to the intervention. Additionally, there was a decrease in self-reported depressive symptoms (d = 0.76), self-reported posttraumatic stress symptoms (d = 0.58), self-reported internalizing behavior problems (d = 0.74), caregiver-reported internalizing behavior problems (d = 0.76), and self-reported externalizing behavior problems (d = 0.52) for participants with clinically relevant scores prior to the intervention. These improvements were stable in the 3-month follow-up assessment. Furthermore, the intervention proved its feasibility in standard care within the context of the evaluation study.ConclusionsThe results of the pilot study provide preliminary evidence for the feasibility and potential effectiveness of ANKOMMEN but further research is needed to obtain valid evidence for the efficacy of the intervention.

What is Life Story Work? How defining approaches can bring clarity to research, training, and practice

Abstract Within health and social care settings, Life Story Work (LSW) for care-experienced children and young people is a social intervention that includes using a biographical or narrative approach. LSW is cited in policy, practice guidance and literature as important in helping young people develop their identity, increase placement stability and in supporting mental health and well-being. Despite an acknowledgement of the potential benefits of LSW, recent studies suggest that little is known about LSW effectiveness in practice, with a lack of qualitative studies available. In this article, we explore the potential benefits of LSW to care-experienced young people and the barriers to research, training, and practice, and suggest that clearly defined approaches could provide clarity for carers, practitioners and researchers. We introduce five defined approaches to LSW that are informed by literature and current practice. We provide examples of how they might be incorporated into research, training, and practice, then discuss how use of the five approaches could meet practice guidance requirements, and increase the emotional and psychological well-being of care-experienced young people. We conclude by suggesting how the approaches may be used within LSW research to develop an international evidence base for best practice.

Enhancing trauma-informed care preparation through life story work

ABSTRACT Trauma experience is common and may impact health and health care experiences for older adults. As such, training in trauma-informed care (TIC) is essential for health professions trainees. In this paper, we describe the use of life-story work, in the form of the My Life, My Story (MLMS) program as one platform to enhance TIC competencies. Trainees (N = 74) who were physician (57.0%) and other health professions trainees who did MLMS interviews completed a post-experience survey about trauma disclosures and confidence in responding to these. During these interviews, 36.5% of the patients described a traumatic event and 56.8% described a stressful event, framed by the patient as “ultimately positive” – leading to resilience (42.6%) or “ultimately negative” – leading to negative life outcomes (29.5%), with other responses as not sure or ambivalent. Confidence in responding to trauma disclosures increased following participation in MLMS (t(df = 60) = 5.52, p < .001). Qualitative comments indicated that MLMS helped them recognize the various expressions of trauma and provided insights into possible responses to trauma disclosure, among other TIC competencies. About half (50.8%) of trainees expressed interest in additional resources or training in responding to trauma disclosures. In conclusion, life-story work and MLMS may be one tool to enhance TIC.

Walking histories: narratives of young urban dancers in the city of Rio de Janeiro (Brazil)

ABSTRACT The aim of the study is to investigate the construction of street dances in the city of Rio de Janeiro, describing urban dancers and their daily ‘art of doing’, listening to their voices and observing their physical and virtual interactions. In this paper, a specific methodological approach is applied towards a tactical plan in order to understand the urban dance phenomenon within the universe of hip-hop culture. This particular approach includes the analysis of eleven narratives of young dancers and their everyday experiences, their personal life stories, interlinked with categories such as masculinity and business. The results reveal the complexity of hip-hop and street-dance culture in general, and specifically among young Brazilians. The narratives of these young men have provided an effective means for representing hip-hop dancers’ concerns and bodily articulations in order to comprehend their dance practice and the construction of spaces, but also indicate aesthetic and commercial dimensions.

Weaving narrative threads with social psychological processes: Narrative modulations in online consumer reviews of a medical memoir

With the growing prevalence of health and illness narratives on digital platforms, research examining the social psychological processes involved in these storytelling environments remains scarce. This paper addresses this research gap by conducting a mixed-methods study of digital storytelling within the UK’s healthcare context, focusing on online consumer reviews of the medical memoir, Do no harm: stories of life, death and brain surgery (Marsh, 2014). Utilising computer-assisted text analysis methods of LIWC-22 and the Sketch Engine, linguistic cues for cognitive, affective, social and perceptual processes are identified in a corpus of online consumer reviews. A subsequent qualitative analysis, based on ‘narrative modulation’ (Huang, 2024, 2020), investigates the role of these processes in constructing and developing storylines across the user reviews. Finally, the study explores how consumer reviews in the form of ‘small stories’ challenge canonical narratives in the UK’s healthcare services. This research advances the field of narrative studies by emphasising the role of social psychological processes (Chung and Pennebaker, 2019) in modulating emerging, evolving and counter narratives in digital storytelling. The findings reveal an instrumental role of social psychological processes, as signalled by linguistic cues, in shaping narrative threads in online user reviews. This study not only develops narrative modulation as a valuable concept for narrative analysis, but also underscores its effectiveness when combined with computer-assisted text analysis tools for in-depth examinations of narrative data. Furthermore, it provides critical insights into digital storytelling in healthcare contexts, promoting knowledge transfer across narrative studies, stylistics, social psychology and medical humanities.

ANALISIS SEMIOTIKA ROLLAND BARTHES PADA POSTER SERI WEB ΒΙΟΡΙΚ ELLYAS PICAL

ABSTRACT Communication is the process of exchanging and understanding information between two or more parties. Communication can also be conveyed using various media, one of which is using posters. Posters as a communication medium function to convey messages through graphic synthesis. Posters are also works of art in the form of images or letters which are intended to provide information and ensure that the message and information is understood correctly by the audience, including in promoting a biopic web series. How to promote a biopic web series using posters is definitely very helpful in marketing the biopic web series. This research aims to examine and interpret the meaning contained in the poster for the biopic web series "Ellyas Pical". Using descriptive qualitative research methods and semiotics from Roland Barthes to help examine the sign elements and visual elements on posters. The results of this research are regarding the meaning of denotation, connotation and myth related to the biopic web series. Tells a life story based on the true story of a legendary Indonesian boxer, Ellyas Pical. The poster also provides a brief overview of the film and the characters in it. Keywords: Poster, Ellyas Picas, Semiotics, Roland Barthes.

Museographic narrating of dissonant heritage in Tianjin’s former international concessions

Concessions—defined as the urban elements built by Western powers while ‘occupying’ various parts of the Chinese territory—have recently been granted heritage status by the Chinese national and local authorities. However, in many respects, they are ‘dissonant’ heritage sites since they are the result of the several-decade-long ‘colonial’ presence in Tianjin of nine foreign powers. The aim of this study is to understand how former international concessions are featured in museums and interpretation centres in present-day Tianjin. Using an approach that draws on dissonant heritage; literature on postcolonial museums, nostalgia and forgetting mechanisms; and the relationship between museographic narratives and patriotism, this article analyses a corpus of eight museums located in three former international concessions (Marshal Zhang’s Mansion, the Former Residence of Ma Zhanshan, the Museum of Modern History of Tianjin, the Five Avenues History Museum, the Museum of the Department Store Quan Ye Chang, Zhang House, the Astor Hotel Museum, the Tianjin Planning Exhibition Hall and the Tianjin Museum). The analysis is based on a common observation grid and semidirect interviews conducted with museum staff. The article captures and examines the main narratives from three perspectives: 1) revisiting the concession period as evidence of the beginning of modernity in China, which was a time in which celebrity life stories and the emergence of modern urban elements were praised; 2) considering the concessions as a dreamlike past of ‘others’ and ‘elsewheres’ belonging to a ‘foreign land’ and a context far removed from contemporary life in China, which favours the thematisation and leisure of Western architecture; and 3) selecting and targeting narratives focused on the heroes of the Republic of China (1912–1949) and the People’s Republic of China. This paper highlights and further develops how former Western concessions are imbued with a sense of both nostalgia and patriotism and sets out to gain a deeper understanding of the tension between these two attitudes.

Of Queerness and Caregiving: Family, Emotional Labor and Livability in India

What does it mean to be queer, a care seeker and a caregiver in India? This article, an auto-ethnographic, self-reflexive account, thinks through this question, while charting the history of the emergence of a queer citizenship in India. Analyzing a contested, yet loving relationship between an aging and ailing mother and a queer AMAB (assigned male at birth) son, also the former’s primary caregiver, the article locates the nuances of being queer within a largely homophobic society, through a personal testimony spanning two decades, and ending with the COVID-19 pandemic. In the process, the article decodes the ever-changing ambivalent relationship of the queer citizen subject with the Indian nation-state, roughly from the time when the first petition for scrapping Sec. 377 of the India Penal Code was filed at the Delhi High Court. This ambivalent relationship continues to massively impact emotional lives and labor expended in the act of caregiving and cohabitation with the natal family, particularly, when the heteronormative family breaks down, as in the case of the author. The life story narrated, while foregrounding queer victimization makes way for optimism as well – significantly lacking within the Indian queer community – for a relatively livable life.

Navigating victimhood: Women’s life writing and activist memory in Turkey

Owing to its gendered connotations of powerlessness, passivity and lack of agency, victimhood is an uncomfortable category for many veteran women activists from the left-wing revolutionary movements of the 1960s and 1970s. Based on an empirical study of the autobiographies of women activists in Turkey, this article is framed by the activist turn in memory studies, which has shifted scholarly attention away from victimhood, trauma and suffering towards social movements and memories of struggles. It considers a form of ‘activist victimhood’ as an identity under construction. The article shows how veteran female activists in Turkey navigate this category and transform it for strategic purposes. Memories of imprisonment and state-inflicted violence have legitimised women’s speaking out and have opened up a space for the circulation of women’s life stories. The article describes how activist women through autobiographies navigate the gendered positions historically attributed to them, adapting as well as challenging them.

Living on a Picture: Approaching Images and Life Stories in Social Media

If images were once conceived either as subordination or oppositions of words, the advent of the Internet has started new relationship dynamics between them. Within this digital scenario, vision and textuality intensely intertwine in the form of captions, posts, hyperlinks or other kind of social media content, daily handled by users. In this context, autobiographical narratives will take on a major role, shaping the way in which the subject conceives, forges and registers his or her identity in relation to the reader/viewer. This article aims to address the question, more present than ever, of how certain autobiographical narratives are disseminated through social networks, and how image and narrative dialogue within this framework. By addressing specific cases found on platforms such as Instagram, we will try to elucidate how these publications point to an ambivalent relationship with visual tropes or narratives associated with certain life experiences, either questioning it or contributing to the creation of a collective narrative. A complex interplay of image and narrative that will affect not only how we share life, but also how we understand it and construct it together with others in a changing world.

한 중년여성의 자아정체성탐색 경험에 대한 예술 기반 내러티브 탐구

In this study, the experience and meaning of a middle-aged woman’s self-identity search were explored in a narrative based on art. The participant of this study, Kim Min-seo (pseudonym), is a woman in her 50s. The researcher and the participant conducted a total of 10 sessions from July 26, 2022, to September 27, 2022, followed by two additional interviews 9 months later. To explore the meaning of the participant’s experiences of self-identity, formed throughout her life, the researcher employed various artistic media and techniques such as clay modeling for emotional expression, drawing family figures, writing poetry, collage-making, and reading fairy tales. Through these sensory, perceptual, cognitive, and symbolic methods, the participant was encouraged to express her life story, and the researcher engaged in discussions with the participant centered around her artistic creations. Based on the verbatim transcripts of all conversations, photographs of the participant’s artistic creations, and the researcher’s journal, a narrative of the participant’s self-identity exploration experience was constructed within a three-dimensional narrative inquiry space. The meaning of the participant’s experiences was then analyzed through this process. As a result, the meaning of the participant’s self-identity exploration experience was constructed as follows: 1. Catharsis through opening up about childhood experiences of abuse. 2. Confession and reflection on guilt related to child abuse. 3. Understanding of interpersonal conflict caused by the lack of nurturing care. 4. Discovery of a new identity for the wounded inner child. Through the relational inquiry space facilitated by her artistic creations, the participant was able to unravel various self-identity narratives embedded in her experiences of both victimhood and perpetration of abuse within the family, as well as her current interpersonal conflicts. In doing so, she discovered the symbol of a “fully bloomed yellow flower,” representing a beautiful and confident version of herself.

Princess power: Deconstructing the influence of popular culture on local traditions in a novel

The study employed a descriptive methodology with a cultural perspective, with a key focus on dissecting the novel ‘Princess: A True Story of Life Behind the Veil in Saudi Arabia’ by Jean Sasson published in 1993 to explore the impact of popular culture on the identity of Saudi women, focusing on the princesses within the royal palace. The cultural environment of Saudi Arabia presents a complex scenario for women as they reconcile traditional Islamic values with pervasive Westernized influences. This inquiry scrutinized how popular culture, introduced through migration and media exposure, molded Saudi women’s attitudes and actions, particularly those of the royal lineage. This novel is the source of data for the research. The analysis focused on themes, representations, and cultural significance. It examined language, imagery, and narratives to uncover meanings and relate them to broader societal issues, ultimately revealing how popular culture reflects or challenges prevailing ideologies. The findings revealed Sultana’s struggle to balance her Saudi princess identity with Western influences, revealing the complexities of cultural exchange, marriage practices, and societal expectations in both Western and Islamic contexts. Sasson’s narrative highlights how global influences, particularly Western culture, shape perceptions and interactions, enriching yet complicating societal norms. Vivid depictions of gender roles, sensory experiences, and emotional responses underline the ongoing struggles women face in patriarchal societies. These stories provide an understanding of the intersections of culture, gender, and identity, reflecting personal journeys while echoing broader themes of empowerment, resistance, and evolving cultural identities in a globalized world.

Difficulties in the Japanese-Language Life of Korean Newcomers: Based on the Life Story of Housewives

Difficulties in the Japanese-Language Life of Korean Newcomers: Based on the Life Story of Housewives

Quality Improvements in Dementia Care in an Acute Hospital Setting

Abstract Background Dementia care in acute hospital settings requires targeted quality improvement initiatives based on national standards. This poster highlights key interventions to enhance care, aligning with local hospital group key performance indicators (KPIs), in one large teaching hospital. Methods Delirium screening (4AT) was implemented in the Emergency Department and geriatric ward, with education to increase staff awareness of delirium screening, prevention, and management. Audits assessed compliance with the 4AT tool. An audit evaluated the geriatric ward environment, including dementia-friendly painting, decorating, and signage, at baseline. Psychotropic prescribing practices were audited in 20 inpatient charts. A Life story Information tool (Sunflower Tool) was implemented to display personalized patient information at the end of the bed. Semi-annual audits assessed usage and effectiveness in the geriatric ward. Results The initial audit showed 85% compliance with the 4AT tool, dropping to 40% in a repeat audit after 6 months. Initially, 17 of 20 charts had complete 4AT scores; in the re-audit, 11 of 20 had scores recorded, with only 8 fully completed. The first environmental audit revealed poor compliance with dementia-friendly standards, especially in signage, clutter, and bedroom colour contrasts. Best compliance was seen with colour contrast in bathroom toilets and handrails. A quality improvement plan was developed to address gaps. The adoption and impact of the Sunflower tool improved patient-staff interactions and personalized care. All ward staff were trained in using the Sunflower tool. Conclusion A robust quality improvement plan, with measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-defined actions, aligned with national standards and local KPIs, is crucial to achieve and sustain positive audit results. Continuous education, resource allocation, and regular audits are required to ensure high-quality care for patients with dementia. Future efforts will focus on addressing identified challenges, refining interventions based on audit feedback, and maintaining care improvements.