Surviving Online: an analysis of how burn survivors recover from life crises
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Mirivel, Julien Christian [1] ; Thombre, Avinash [1]
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[1] University of Arkansas
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- Localización: Southern communication journal, ISSN 1041-794X, Vol. 75, nº 3, 2010, págs. 232-254
- Idioma: inglés
- Texto completo no disponible (Saber más ...)
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Resumen
This study is a qualitative analysis of e-mail communication between burn survivors. Grounded in 200+ e-mail messages between participants of an online support group, the study shows how burn survivors manage multiple, albeit contradictory, discourses of recovery. Using a narrative approach, we first highlight how burn survivors manage a tension between acceptance of their situation and resentment toward their circumstances. Then, we reveal how they cope with multiple meanings of beauty. Our study shows that online support groups can also privilege or enforce particular ways of thinking about recovery, such as valuing acceptance over resentment. In the conclusion, we suggest that surviving is a communicative accomplishment and propose that practitioners should engage in supportive communication without being patronizing.
