title: Conversations about absence and presence: Re-membering a loved partner in poetic form

authors: Penwarden, Sarah

subjects: Poetry

abstract: A key concern for therapists is how therapeutic change occurs, and what particular elements of therapy lead towards change. This project investigated how one approach in narrative therapy—rescued speech poetry—might enhance another therapeutic approach, re-membering conversations. Re-membering conversations nurture connections between a bereaved person and a loved person who has died. These conversations actively weave the stories of the lost loved one back into the life of the bereaved person, so that the loved one’s values and legacies continue to resound. This research explored how a literary approach—rescued speech poetry—potentially enhanced the nearness and contribution of a loved one, through capturing stories in a poetic form.

The study engaged eight participants, all of whom had lost a spouse or partner to death at least two years prior to their participation. Participants were invited into two counselling-like, research-focused conversations. The first conversation was a re-membering conversation which explored the ongoing contribution of the lost loved partner. Then, for each participant, I composed a folio of rescued speech and dialogical poems from their speaking, which they received in the post. In a second research conversation, I invited each participant to reflect on the effect of the poems in enhancing their re-membering. The poems produced for this research project, the Story bridges collection, appear in the preface in the electronic version of this thesis, and as a separate booklet in the bound version. 

The results chapters are presented in three distinct folds of six paired chapters. In a textual fold, the therapeutic and literary actions embedded in the poems are unfolded to gain a sense of how the poems sought to create effects. A case is made for the inclusion of a form of dialogical poetry alongside rescued speech poetry. In this dialogical poetry, the therapist’s responses to a participant’s re-membering story are intentionally interleaved with the story itself. 

In a dialogical fold, participant responses to the poetry folios—both the rescued speech and dialogical poems—are composed as poetic re-presentation. This approach displays participants’ responses to the folios, focusing on both the outcome of the therapy poems and the processes by which they created their effects. The participants reported that the poetry folios increased the resonance of the loved one in their lives. This resonance was produced not only by the poems as individual actors, but also through the particular processes of the research engagement. The research structure of multiple tellings—a first telling as a re-membering conversation, a second telling as a poem, a third telling as a reflective conversation—intensified the evocative metaphors of re-membering within participants’ talk, increasing the resonance with the loved one. 

Finally, in the philosophical fold, the work of the poems for re-membering is viewed through Deleuze and Guattari’s concept of lines of flight. This philosophical lens reflexively highlights my work as a poet-therapist in re-creating the lines of movement towards the loved one, as seen in both the individual poems and the folios.

This study found that the rescued speech and dialogical poems—as thera-poetic actions within broader dialogical processes—work through resonance. The poems sharpened the re-membering stories, honing them. In reading the poemed stories, the bereaved participant experienced the loved one as being illuminated again. Resonance occurred not only between the bereaved participant and the loved one, but between the participant and their extended family and friends who read the poems, the participant and myself as researcher, and the participant and their prior selves. The poetry strongly enhanced the work of re-membering practices by multiplying the impact of a re-membering conversation so that it rippled out in wider circles. 

In the field of narrative therapy, this thesis makes a contribution by robustly conceptualising rescued speech poetry and demonstrating its effectiveness through the inclusion of participant responses. This thesis promotes the literary within rescued speech poetry, and seeks to inspire other practitioners in their creative practices of therapy.

text: Conversations about absence and presence: Re-membering a loved partner in poetic form A key concern for therapists is how therapeutic change occurs, and what particular elements of therapy lead towards change. This project investigated how one approach in narrative therapy—rescued speech poetry—might enhance another therapeutic approach, re-membering conversations. Re-membering conversations nurture connections between a bereaved person and a loved person who has died. These conversations actively weave the stories of the lost loved one back into the life of the bereaved person, so that the loved one’s values and legacies continue to resound. This research explored how a literary approach—rescued speech poetry—potentially enhanced the nearness and contribution of a loved one, through capturing stories in a poetic form.

The study engaged eight participants, all of whom had lost a spouse or partner to death at least two years prior to their participation. Participants were invited into two counselling-like, research-focused conversations. The first conversation was a re-membering conversation which explored the ongoing contribution of the lost loved partner. Then, for each participant, I composed a folio of rescued speech and dialogical poems from their speaking, which they received in the post. In a second research conversation, I invited each participant to reflect on the effect of the poems in enhancing their re-membering. The poems produced for this research project, the Story bridges collection, appear in the preface in the electronic version of this thesis, and as a separate booklet in the bound version. 

The results chapters are presented in three distinct folds of six paired chapters. In a textual fold, the therapeutic and literary actions embedded in the poems are unfolded to gain a sense of how the poems sought to create effects. A case is made for the inclusion of a form of dialogical poetry alongside rescued speech poetry. In this dialogical poetry, the therapist’s responses to a participant’s re-membering story are intentionally interleaved with the story itself. 

In a dialogical fold, participant responses to the poetry folios—both the rescued speech and dialogical poems—are composed as poetic re-presentation. This approach displays participants’ responses to the folios, focusing on both the outcome of the therapy poems and the processes by which they created their effects. The participants reported that the poetry folios increased the resonance of the loved one in their lives. This resonance was produced not only by the poems as individual actors, but also through the particular processes of the research engagement. The research structure of multiple tellings—a first telling as a re-membering conversation, a second telling as a poem, a third telling as a reflective conversation—intensified the evocative metaphors of re-membering within participants’ talk, increasing the resonance with the loved one. 

Finally, in the philosophical fold, the work of the poems for re-membering is viewed through Deleuze and Guattari’s concept of lines of flight. This philosophical lens reflexively highlights my work as a poet-therapist in re-creating the lines of movement towards the loved one, as seen in both the individual poems and the folios.

This study found that the rescued speech and dialogical poems—as thera-poetic actions within broader dialogical processes—work through resonance. The poems sharpened the re-membering stories, honing them. In reading the poemed stories, the bereaved participant experienced the loved one as being illuminated again. Resonance occurred not only between the bereaved participant and the loved one, but between the participant and their extended family and friends who read the poems, the participant and myself as researcher, and the participant and their prior selves. The poetry strongly enhanced the work of re-membering practices by multiplying the impact of a re-membering conversation so that it rippled out in wider circles. 

In the field of narrative therapy, this thesis makes a contribution by robustly conceptualising rescued speech poetry and demonstrating its effectiveness through the inclusion of participant responses. This thesis promotes the literary within rescued speech poetry, and seeks to inspire other practitioners in their creative practices of therapy.

year: 2018

title: Frenemy: The Friend Who Bullies

authors: Beard, Shannon

abstract: The purpose of this research was to look into the slang term frenemy, what it meant for adolescent girls and their friendships. Therefore, this research had three key objectives. The first objective was to define the word frenemy and to determine how young women recognise one. The second objective was to find out what types of bullying young women have experienced from frenemies and what impact that had on them. The last objective was to find out how the young women responded to the bullying and what things supported or undermined attempts to deal with the frenemy. Seven individual interviews were held with young women who had had a frenemy. The results gave an insight into the complex nature of what and who a frenemy can be. This study has shown that any friend can become a frenemy and use indirectly aggressive behaviours to bully. As female adolescents have highly intimate friendships, frenemies can be particularly effective in causing pain when they were once a ‘best friend’. When a target seeks help, she is most likely to go to other friends first or seek advice but not intervention from parents. The attitudes of school personnel towards indirect aggression among girls have resulted in failed attempts to stop the bullying.

text: Frenemy: The Friend Who Bullies The purpose of this research was to look into the slang term frenemy, what it meant for adolescent girls and their friendships. Therefore, this research had three key objectives. The first objective was to define the word frenemy and to determine how young women recognise one. The second objective was to find out what types of bullying young women have experienced from frenemies and what impact that had on them. The last objective was to find out how the young women responded to the bullying and what things supported or undermined attempts to deal with the frenemy. Seven individual interviews were held with young women who had had a frenemy. The results gave an insight into the complex nature of what and who a frenemy can be. This study has shown that any friend can become a frenemy and use indirectly aggressive behaviours to bully. As female adolescents have highly intimate friendships, frenemies can be particularly effective in causing pain when they were once a ‘best friend’. When a target seeks help, she is most likely to go to other friends first or seek advice but not intervention from parents. The attitudes of school personnel towards indirect aggression among girls have resulted in failed attempts to stop the bullying.

year: 2013

title: He kākano mai i Rangiātea

authors: Masters-Awatere, Bridgette

abstract: This chapter describes reflections of learning that took place during my doctoral research. It is presented in the form of a story in which my skills as an external evaluator were sought out to evaluate Manawanui, a hapū led healthy lifestyles programme. Manawanui is run by the local Hauora Iwi Social and Health Services. Previous evaluation experiences have led to a determination to place cultural values, aims and aspirations of the iwi at the centre of this new evaluation.

text: He kākano mai i Rangiātea This chapter describes reflections of learning that took place during my doctoral research. It is presented in the form of a story in which my skills as an external evaluator were sought out to evaluate Manawanui, a hapū led healthy lifestyles programme. Manawanui is run by the local Hauora Iwi Social and Health Services. Previous evaluation experiences have led to a determination to place cultural values, aims and aspirations of the iwi at the centre of this new evaluation.

year: 2016