The following research study was an ethnographic case study of an
intergenerational life review/guided autobiography group consisting of four World War II
veterans, five peacekeepers and one member who was a World War II veteran, a Korean
veteran and a peacekeeper. The group members ranged in age from 30 to 82. All ten
group members participated in a six week life review program (LRP) followed by an
individual audio-taped interview. This interview was followed up by a validation
interview. The purpose of this research was twofold. There were the research goals
coupled with the goals, and intended benefits to, the participants. These goals and
benefits often overlapped.
The research goal was to answer four questions posed at the beginning of the
study. They were:
1) What are the specific competencies, skills and knowledge needed for
successful re-entry into civilian life?
2) Can these skills, competencies, and knowledge be successfully passed on
in an intergenerational LRP involving both World War II veterans and
peacekeepers?
3) Will the intergenerational passing on and receiving of these
competencies, skills and knowledge lead to increased feelings of efficacy on
the part of both World War II veterans and peacekeepers?
4) What changed for the individual during the course of the program and do
they view their lives differently after the guided autobiography/life review
experience?
The goals, or intended benefits, to the participants were not formulated before the
study but instead the method of grounded theory was employed. Grounded theory can be
described as "a general methodology for developing theory that is grounded in data,
systematically gathered and analyzed" (Strauss & Corbin, 1994, p. 278). Evidence
emerged for two of Birren and Deutchman's (1991) seven outcomes. Those two
outcomes were: 1) recognition of past adaptive strategies and application to current needs
and problems and 2) development of friendships with other group members. Ten new
outcomes were also identified. They were: 1) normalization of one's reactions to trauma
or to events (e.g. re-entry); 2) the receipt of specific advice, ideas, or assistance; 3)
engendering of hope; 4) relief or emotional release in telling one's story; 5) feeling
heard/being listened to; 6) relating/commonality with others; 7) new awareness or
heightened awareness of one's contributions and/or abilities; 8) new awareness or
heightened awareness of others' contributions and/or abilities; 9) positive feelings
obtained from others' responses to one's story; and 10) a new appreciation of one's life
through comparison with other group members' lives. / Education, Faculty of / Educational and Counselling Psychology, and Special Education (ECPS), Department of / Graduate
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:UBC/oai:circle.library.ubc.ca:2429/11530 |
| Date | 05 1900 |
| Creators | Gervais, Deanne Marie |
| Source Sets | University of British Columbia |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Text, Thesis/Dissertation |
| Format | 5813788 bytes, application/pdf |
| Rights | For non-commercial purposes only, such as research, private study and education. Additional conditions apply, see Terms of Use https://open.library.ubc.ca/terms_of_use. |
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