Results
Title

A Discourse Analysis: One Caregiver’s Voice in End-of-Life Care.

Authors

Kitt-Lewis, Erin; Strauss, Susan; Penrod, Janice

Abstract

Informal family caregivers make a significant contribution to the U.S. health care system, and the need for caregivers will likely increase. Gaining deeper insights into the caregiver experience will provide essential knowledge needed to support the future caregiver workforce delivering care. Discourse analysis is a viable approach in analyzing textual caregiver data that focuses on the end-of-life caregiving experience. The purpose of this study was to conduct an in-depth discourse analytic examination of 13 hours of caregiver interview data, which reveal the multiplicity of shifting stances and perceptions of one caregiver in the midst of end-of-life care, specifically with regard to his perceptions of self (caregiver) and other (care recipient). By isolating a specific but limited set of reference terms used throughout the discourse, we gained systematic glimpses into the mind and perceptions of this single caregiver in relation to his role as caregiver for his terminally ill wife.

Subjects

NEW England; AMYOTROPHIC lateral sclerosis; PSYCHOLOGY of caregivers; CONCEPTUAL structures; DISCOURSE analysis; INTERVIEWING; RESEARCH methodology; SENSORY perception; SELF-perception; SPOUSES; TERMINAL care; SECONDARY analysis

Publication

Qualitative Health Research, 2018, Vol 28, Issue 3, p346

ISSN

1049-7323

Publication type

Academic Journal

DOI

10.1177/1049732317728916