Agency and dialogic tension in co-editing more preferred narratives

Publisher： John Benjamins Publishing Company

E-ISSN： 1569-9935|22|1|181-185

ISSN： 1387-6740

Source： Narrative Inquiry, Vol.22, Iss.1, 2012-01, pp. : 181-185

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Abstract

As narrative therapists and researchers we are interested in how conversations invite co-authoring and co-editing possibilities to develop self-narratives preferred by our partners in dialogue. ‘Problem saturated stories’ acquire their dominance and self-defining plausibility through unquestioned personal and cultural conversations. Questions and responsive dialogues, however, can invite consideration and elaboration of previously implausible plotlines and discourses pertaining to self-narratives. Accordingly, we report on processes and outcomes from research conversations with volunteers who self-identified as having been sexually abused, and who joined Sarah in co-authoring and co-editing ‘small stories’ of healthy intimacy after the abuse.