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The experience of self-destructive behavior in First Nations adolescent girls Davis, Sarah
Abstract
This study is an attempt to better understand the experience of self-destructive behaviour in First Nations adolescent girls by telling their stories, discussing factors that may contribute to the behaviours, and providing counselling insight. Not every Native girl experiences self-destructive behaviour, however those that do require more effective solutions to their problems. There is ample literature regarding non-Native girls and their experiences with self-destructive behaviour. This is not the case with Native girls, and this study is an attempt to fill the literature gap, and at the same time provide insight into counselling practice. Many factors may contribute to the experience of self-destructive behaviour in First Nations adolescent girls (e.g., gender, developmental stages, parenting, cultural norms and values, and discrimination). The combination of these issues compounds each other and creates the context for the experience of self-destructive behaviour specific to Native girls. This reality puts them at risk for truancy, juvenile delinquency, teen pregnancy, drug and alcohol abuse, depression, anxiety, eating disorders, self-harming, and ultimately suicide. In order to understand the circumstances or events that lead to a young Native woman's experience with self-destructive behaviour I interviewed three women using in-depth, semi structured interviews. When answering the open-ended questions I asked, the interviewees revealed a story with a beginning, middle, and end. This story reflected the different stages in their lives, childhood, adolescence, and eventually young adulthood. Analysis of the interviews through theme identification revealed common threads through each woman's life. Although each woman had unique experiences, their stories revealed many commonalties. These common themes reflect factors that counsellors should consider when counselling First Nations girls who are experiencing self-destructive behaviour. The results of the study suggest that counsellors should not isolate factors that lead to self-destructive behaviour. For example, First Nations girls experience not just racism or neglectful parenting — they experience both of the factors. The contributing factors begin early in life and compound one another as the girl's life progresses. Hopefully, this study contributes to the betterment of individual Native girls, also to the betterment of the families' and communities' health.
Item Metadata
Title |
The experience of self-destructive behavior in First Nations adolescent girls
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Creator | |
Publisher |
University of British Columbia
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Date Issued |
2000
|
Description |
This study is an attempt to better understand the experience of self-destructive behaviour in
First Nations adolescent girls by telling their stories, discussing factors that may contribute to the
behaviours, and providing counselling insight. Not every Native girl experiences self-destructive
behaviour, however those that do require more effective solutions to their problems. There is
ample literature regarding non-Native girls and their experiences with self-destructive behaviour.
This is not the case with Native girls, and this study is an attempt to fill the literature gap, and at
the same time provide insight into counselling practice.
Many factors may contribute to the experience of self-destructive behaviour in First Nations
adolescent girls (e.g., gender, developmental stages, parenting, cultural norms and values, and
discrimination). The combination of these issues compounds each other and creates the context
for the experience of self-destructive behaviour specific to Native girls. This reality puts them at
risk for truancy, juvenile delinquency, teen pregnancy, drug and alcohol abuse, depression,
anxiety, eating disorders, self-harming, and ultimately suicide.
In order to understand the circumstances or events that lead to a young Native woman's
experience with self-destructive behaviour I interviewed three women using in-depth, semi
structured interviews. When answering the open-ended questions I asked, the interviewees
revealed a story with a beginning, middle, and end. This story reflected the different stages in
their lives, childhood, adolescence, and eventually young adulthood. Analysis of the interviews
through theme identification revealed common threads through each woman's life. Although
each woman had unique experiences, their stories revealed many commonalties. These common
themes reflect factors that counsellors should consider when counselling First Nations girls who
are experiencing self-destructive behaviour.
The results of the study suggest that counsellors should not isolate factors that lead to self-destructive
behaviour. For example, First Nations girls experience not just racism or neglectful
parenting — they experience both of the factors. The contributing factors begin early in life and
compound one another as the girl's life progresses.
Hopefully, this study contributes to the betterment of individual Native girls, also to the
betterment of the families' and communities' health.
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Extent |
5166727 bytes
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Genre | |
Type | |
File Format |
application/pdf
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Language |
eng
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Date Available |
2009-07-07
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Provider |
Vancouver : University of British Columbia Library
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Rights |
For non-commercial purposes only, such as research, private study and education. Additional conditions apply, see Terms of Use https://open.library.ubc.ca/terms_of_use.
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DOI |
10.14288/1.0053912
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URI | |
Degree | |
Program | |
Affiliation | |
Degree Grantor |
University of British Columbia
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Graduation Date |
2000-05
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Campus | |
Scholarly Level |
Graduate
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Aggregated Source Repository |
DSpace
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Item Media
Item Citations and Data
Rights
For non-commercial purposes only, such as research, private study and education. Additional conditions apply, see Terms of Use https://open.library.ubc.ca/terms_of_use.