To Be Welcome

Abstract

In this article, I tell the story of an interview encounter I had in a previous study with a hospice patient. Even though I had prepared for our interaction, Meredith corrected me for all my false steps. I offer my account of the tense beginning of our interview and Meredith's lectures, which transitioned into an invitational moment and a marked change in our interaction. While I cannot know what was inside Meredith's mind that day, I read this experience as a lesson in research methods. As such I advocate for restructuring the way we, as health communication researchers, gather patient-centered data. I contend that we must not only allow, but encourage and facilitate patients' narratives through narrative interviewing. The findings from the current ethnography are offered for use as rationale in future narrative interview studies.

The meaning of art in palliative care from the end users’ perspective

“…Despite their extreme vulnerability, researchers have argued that involving people receiving palliative care in research is valuable. According to them, it can give participants a sense of value, autonomy and empowerment (Liamputtong, 2007;Pederson, 2013;Terry et al, 2006;Tuffrey-Wijne et al, 2008), and is, in addition to that, in line with the patient centered philosophy of palliative care (Bates et al, 2018). Still, many methodological and ethical concerns related to the participant's vulnerability are mentioned (Addington-Hall, 2002;Bates et al, 2018;Collier & Wyer, 2015;Kendall et al, 2007;Kennett, 2000;Seymour et al, 2005).…”

“…All guests were invited as well as left the choice if and how they wanted to participate. We always left it open to them to take the first step and choose where, when and for how long they wanted to engage with us, without any pressureall the while being sensitive to their needs and adjusting ourselves to it (Addington-Hall, 2002;Bates et al, 2018;Collier & Wyer, 2015;Ellis, 2016;Liamputtong, 2007;Pederson, 2013). Ten guests agreed to an interview, following an interview scheme, with an average duration of 60 minutes and often spread out over several sessions.…”

The hamster wheel: a case study on embodied narrative identity and overcoming severe obesity

“…In narrative interviews, the aim is to capture stories about particular events and develop a full story (Pederson 2013;Riessman 2008). In this study, we explore Thea's life history, her life trajectory, her experience of undergoing WLS and the mutual connection between life story and battling with weight.…”

Plunging into the process: methodological reflections on a process-oriented study of stakeholders’ relating dynamics

“…Each individual was interviewed two or more times. During the entry interview, the aim was to simply evoke participants' stories about their individual relational experiences and changes herein (throughout time), in their own words (Pederson 2013). This allowed participants to bring in their perspective and share details and information they find important.…”