RESPONSIBILITY: THE LIVED EXPERIENCE OF WOMEN WHO HAVE TAKEN ILLEGAL DRUGS DURING PREGNANCY.
Contributors: University of Cincinnati.
Published: 1994
Number of pages: 257
Subjects: Health Sciences, Nursing.; Education, Health.; Health Sciences, Medicine and Surgery.
Description: The purpose of this qualitative, phenomenological study was to uncover the meaning of responsibility for women who have taken illegal drugs during pregnancy. The research question was presented to the participants in the form of the interrogatory statement: "What is it to carry a baby when you know that you have taken illegal drugs during your pregnancy?" Responses were recorded on audiotape and transcribed for analysis. Subjects included ten self-identified, pregnant women who used illegal drugs during their pregnancy. The setting for the study was an in-patient antenatal unit in a large midwestern medical center. Data were analyzed according to the Giorgi method. Consistent with the Giorgi method, subjects were added until redundancy in responses was reached. Data analysis, according to Giorgi, included: dwelling with the data, elaboration to clarify questions, identification of units/scenes, general theme emergence, identification of focal meanings, synthesis of situated structural descriptions, and synthesis of a general structural description. The major finding of the study was the general structural description of the phenomenon of "responsibility" as a lived experience. The findings of this study were congruent with concepts of Parse's theory of Human Becoming: responsibility emerged as originating, connecting-separating, through valuing. The understanding of human phenomena such as responsibility contributes to practice and theory based research. According to the theory of Human Becoming, "the human is an open being freely choosing meaning in situation, bearing responsibility for decisions" (Parse, 1992). Recommendations for future research include investigation of the meaning of responsibility and choice related to the fetus in the maternal-fetal dyad. There is also a need to understand the meaning of responsibility for women across developmental levels and throughout the childbearing and child-rearing cycle.
Notes: Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 55-09, Section: B, page: 3813.

Thesis (ED.D.)--UNIVERSITY OF CINCINNATI, 1994.

School code: 0045.