Thesis advisor: Pamela J. Grace / Purpose/Specific Aims: Van Manen’s hermeneutic phenomenological method was used to design this study aimed at better understanding the meaning of day-to-day living with advanced breast cancer in young women. Rationale/Significance of Study: There is a gap in knowledge about the particular needs and daily life experiences of this cohort. Very little data specifically addresses this population. The limited literature that exists suggests that, due to the particular stage of life, their needs differ from those at other life stages as well as those coping with earlier stages of breast cancer. These women have described themselves as being invisible and having to live with the knowledge that their future is uncertain. Thus, this qualitative study is an important initial step in expanding our understanding of what daily life is like for this population. Sample and Recruitment: Women aged 25–39 with Stage III or IV breast cancer were purposively recruited via private FacebookTM groups specifically for women with breast cancer. The final sample consisted of 12 participants from across the U.S. Incidentally, all were parents. Data Analysis: Data were collected through two or more semistructured interviews and written journals. Analysis followed van Manen’s method of immersion, reading, and rereading, and using manual coding and NVivo software to develop themes to capture the participants’ lifeworlds. Findings: The meaning of their experiences is captured by the overarching theme: Wearing the mask of wellness in the presence of life-threatening illness. Five major themes were identified: Wanting to be known as the person I am, I’m still Mom, Living is more than surviving, Getting through it, and Being connected to others. Conclusions: Findings highlight that these young women are managing multiple roles and responsibilities despite the ongoing challenges of treatment and symptom management. They feel that their needs and struggles are not well understood because to outsiders they do not look ill. This study provides a base for further research and eventually interventions. / Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2018. / Submitted to: Boston College. Connell School of Nursing. / Discipline: Nursing.

The purpose of this online cross-sectional study was to identify cannabis user profiles by administration method and examine how differential cannabis policies influence intentions among young adults. Participants were assigned randomly to one of three hypothetical cannabis policy conditions (recreationally legal; medically legal; illegal). Within conditions, participants completed measures regarding cannabis use, including administration methods, cannabis attitudes, norms, perceived behavioral control, self-efficacy, and intentions. Latent class analysis (LCA) was used to determine sub-groups of past 30-day cannabis users by administration method followed by sub-group comparisons. Condition effects on intentions and associated variables were examined using ANCOVA. Four classes (Low-Blunt, Low-Bong, Mod-Poly, High-Poly) differing in demographics and tobacco use were identified. Recreationally and medically legal policy conditions resulted in more favorable cannabis attitudes, higher selfefficacy, and higher intentions to use compared to the illegal policy condition. Results inform cannabis intervention efforts and longitudinal research on the effects of cannabis policy changes.

Previous research has shown that social media impacts people's identities as well as their online communication as they maintain their online friendships. This study strives to further examine the relationship between daily Instagram usage in young adults’ life and its effect on their friendships and identities. The purpose of this study is to create an understanding of how young Instagram users' friendships function today, in order to achieve an understanding about the nature of the friendships as well as create an appreciation on whether Instagram usage influences a person's identity. The study is conducted through in-depth interviews with six young adults aged between 18-22 years. We analyze our respondents’ friendships through the application of Hartmut Rosa's framework, which describes the accelerating society (2014) and Sherry Turkle’s (2017) discussion on how friendships are affected by social media and not least the significant use of mobile phones. We found in our study that young Instagram users both have pure relationships as described by Anthony Giddens (1999) as well as superficial relationships. We also found that the character of the relationship depends on whether it occurs in real life or online through Instagram. Our study suggests that Instagram usage does not prohibit pure relationships but rather supplement them with superficial relationships that occur via Instagram. In addition, Instagram is utilized to present a desired identity (Goffman 2011). The users are to different degrees aware of whether this is their “true” identity or just a way of making an “impression”. Goffman (2011) is implying that the everyday presentation effect the self-image in different ways. / Tidigare forskning har visat att sociala medier påverkar människors identitet och deras online kommunikation, då de bibehåller sina vänskapsrelationer där. I denna studie fortsätter vi på denna forskningslinje och studerar unga vuxna som använder Instagram dagligen, för att se hur Instagram eventuellt påverkar deras vänskapsrelationer och identitet. Syftet med denna studie blir därmed att skapa förståelse för hur unga instagramanvändares vänskapsrelationer ser ut idag, detta för att studera vänskapsrelationernas karaktär samt om eventuellt identitetsskapande sker via användningen av Instagram. Vi undersöker detta genom kvalitativa intervjuer med sex unga vuxna i åldrarna 18–22. För att analysera detta använde vi oss av Hartmut Rosas teori om det accelererande samhället (2014) samt Sherry Turkles (2017) diskussion om hur vänskapsrelationer påverkas av sociala medier och inte minst mobilanvändningen. Resultatet av vår studie är att unga instagramanvändare har både rena relationer som Anthony Giddens (1999) beskriver samt ytliga. Relationernas karaktär är beroende av om de äger rum i verkligheten eller online via Instagram. Vi föreslår därför att instagramanvändningen inte utesluter rena relationer, men att de kompletteras med ytliga relationer som utspelar sig och bibehålls online. Resultatet gällande identiteten visar att individer tydligt skapar sina identiteter via instagram, dock är de olika medvetna om det, vilket är något som vi analyserar genom Goffmans (2011) teori om presentationen av jaget.

This qualitative study was designed to gain an insight into the ways in which adolescents and young adults managed ?self? in their day - to - day diabetes management. It also examined the effect that illness self representations had on that management. A grounded theory approach using a symbolic interactionist framework was adopted based on 27 in- depth semi structured interviews with adolescents and young adults with diabetes. Respondents described the effects of diabetes management on the physical, emotional, social and related selves. They also described their various illness self representations. It often took an inordinate amount of work for the respondents to manage their diabetes. This ?management? work could be related to problems with their physiological control, emotional stressors, the need to be socially interactive, differing priorities or relational issues. Certainly even the most resilient respondents experienced periods of vulnerability and needed to nurture the ?self? The study generates new knowledge which builds upon the existing body of knowledge relating to the management of self in adolescents and young adults in the context of T1DM. The study established that whilst some health professionals are sensitive and cognizant of the needs of adolescents and young adults with diabetes, there is room for improvement in the way in which health professionals understand the complexities involved in diabetes management for adolescents and young adults / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Thesis (M.D.S.)--University of Hong Kong, 1990. / Includes bibliographical references. Also available in print.

Thesis (M.A.)--State University of New York at Binghamton, Psychology Department, 2006. / Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.A. (Clinical Psychology))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2007.

Although serious illness is often associated with aging in contemporary society, increasing numbers of young adults are being diagnosed with a variety of serious illnesses. In order to learn more about what it is like to be seriously ill during young adulthood, I completed a qualitative study with ten young women who had recently been affected by a life-threatening or chronic illness. The research was informed by a theoretical approach based on social constructionist and phenomenological principles that recognize that physiological processes such as illness are socially mediated and given meaning within a certain socio-cultural context. Thus,the life course and its corresponding stages are not universal or biologically determined, but rather are social constructions based on socio-cultural factors and the meanings given to certain biological events. This research involved participants between the ages of 20 and 37 from around Saskatchewan who had been affected by a serious illness within the previous three years. The methodological approach that I utilized was interpretive and drew upon phenomenological, feminist, and participatory visual approaches to qualitative research. The young women participated in phenomenological interviews and a photovoice project that explored their lived experiences of serious illness and the specific issues that they faced because of illness. I analyzed the data thematically, incorporating phenomenological concepts of embodiment, temporality, and relationality. Although the interview and photographic data highlighted a range of experiences, the data highlighted several similarities among participants. Foremost, the data revealed that serious illness was highly disruptive for the young women; specifically, participants were required to negotiate disruptions to their sense of embodiment, everyday lives, expectations for the future, and social relationships. Ultimately, serious illness brought about embodied and social experiences that conflicted with how participants had previously envisioned young adulthood and their life course. As such, their experiences of illness had profound implications for their self identity and brought about a complex process of trying to make sense of illness. Based on these findings, I conclude that the young women experienced and made sense of illness within the context of socio-cultural expectations related to age and the life course, as well as gender. I also identify the implications of this research for health care and support services aimed at this population.

Since housing choice and strategy are the result of both an individual’s financial capability in a particular life stage, as well as overall political-economic circumstances, the study of housing behavior has been used to emphasize processes of urban development and social change. However, housing behavior in the Chinese context has not attracted much research attention. Although many studies have been done on various topics surrounding China’s housing reform, only several quantitative studies have touched upon the topic of individual housing behavior. All of the existing literature is based on statistics before 1998 when work-unit housing distribution was officially repealed. This thesis offers an update of qualitative information on how young white-collar workers approach homeownership after 1998. Ten young homeowners from Beijing, together with some practitioners in the housing market and two governmental officials were interviewed. Based on the information offered by the interviewees, this thesis examines how state policies, market situations, family structure, and special characteristics of Beijing as a capital city impact the housing choices and strategies of young homeowners.

Although serious illness is often associated with aging in contemporary society, increasing numbers of young adults are being diagnosed with a variety of serious illnesses. In order to learn more about what it is like to be seriously ill during young adulthood, I completed a qualitative study with ten young women who had recently been affected by a life-threatening or chronic illness. The research was informed by a theoretical approach based on social constructionist and phenomenological principles that recognize that physiological processes such as illness are socially mediated and given meaning within a certain socio-cultural context. Thus,the life course and its corresponding stages are not universal or biologically determined, but rather are social constructions based on socio-cultural factors and the meanings given to certain biological events. This research involved participants between the ages of 20 and 37 from around Saskatchewan who had been affected by a serious illness within the previous three years. The methodological approach that I utilized was interpretive and drew upon phenomenological, feminist, and participatory visual approaches to qualitative research. The young women participated in phenomenological interviews and a photovoice project that explored their lived experiences of serious illness and the specific issues that they faced because of illness. I analyzed the data thematically, incorporating phenomenological concepts of embodiment, temporality, and relationality. Although the interview and photographic data highlighted a range of experiences, the data highlighted several similarities among participants. Foremost, the data revealed that serious illness was highly disruptive for the young women; specifically, participants were required to negotiate disruptions to their sense of embodiment, everyday lives, expectations for the future, and social relationships. Ultimately, serious illness brought about embodied and social experiences that conflicted with how participants had previously envisioned young adulthood and their life course. As such, their experiences of illness had profound implications for their self identity and brought about a complex process of trying to make sense of illness. Based on these findings, I conclude that the young women experienced and made sense of illness within the context of socio-cultural expectations related to age and the life course, as well as gender. I also identify the implications of this research for health care and support services aimed at this population.