Exploring digital fiction as a tool for teenage body image bibliotherapy

This article reflects on the findings of the interdisciplinary ‘TransForm’ project, which ran between 2012 and 2014 and aimed to explore how reading and writing digital fictions (DFs) might support young women in developing frameworks for more positive thinking regarding their body image. The project comprised the following stages: (1) a review and compilation of DFs thematising and/or problematising female corporeality; (2) a series of cooperative inquiries with 3 groups of young women (aged 16–19 years) over a period of 5 weeks, examining participants’ responses to a selection of the previously compiled DFs, as well as the challenges these young women face in relation to body image and (3) an interventionist summer school in which participants aged 16–19 explored body image issues via writing DFs. This article reports on the main observations and findings of each stage, and draws conclusions for future research needs in this area

Developing a Choice-Based Digital Fiction for Body Image Bibliotherapy

Body dissatisfaction is so common in the western world that it has become the norm, especially among women and girls. Writing New Body Worlds is a transdisciplinary research-creation project that aims to address these issues by developing an interactive digital fiction for body image bibliotherapy. It is created with the critical co-design participation of a group of young women and non-binary individuals (aged 18–25) from diverse backgrounds, who are representative of its intended audience. This article discusses how our participant research influenced the creative development of the digital fiction, its characters and its novel ludonarrative or story-game design. It theorizes how the specific affordances of a choice-based interactive narrative, that situates the reader-player in the mind of the fictional protagonist, may lead to enhanced empathic identification and agency and, therefore, a more profoundly immersive and potentially transformative experience. This process of “diegetic enactment” is where we postulate the therapeutic value lies: an ontological oscillation between the reader-player’s mind and the fictional mind, which may induce the reader-player to reflect upon, and perhaps subtly alter, their own body image.publishedVersio

You and CO2: a Public Engagement Study to Engage Secondary School Students with the Issue of Climate Change

School students are growing up in a world with a rapidly changing climate, the effects of which will become increasingly apparent during their lifetimes. We designed and pilot tested “You and CO2”, a STEAM program designed to encourage students to reflect on their personal impact on the environment, while also appreciating their place within society to bring about positive societal change. Over three interlinked workshops, students analyzed the carbon footprints of some everyday activities, which they then explored in more detail through interacting with a bespoke piece of digital fiction, No World 4 Tomorrow. The program culminated with students producing their own digital fictions, allowing them the freedom to explore the themes from the previous workshops with a setting and focus of their choice. We reflect here on the experience of running the You and CO2 program and on the themes that emerged from the students’ original digital fictions

Reading selection as information seeking behavior: A case study with adolescent girls.

The aim of this research, Reading Selection as Information Seeking Behavior: A Case Study with Adolescent Girls, was to explore how the experience of reading fiction affects adolescent girls aged 13 through 15, and how that experience changes based upon four activities: journaling, blogging, a personal interview, and a focus group session. Each participant reflects upon works of her own choosing that she had recently read. The data is evaluated using content analysis with the goal of developing a relational analysis tool to be used and tested with future research projects. The goal of this research is to use the insights of the field of bibliotherapy together with the insights of the adolescent girls to provide a higher, more robust model of successful information behavior. That is, relevance is a matter of impact on life rather than just a match of subject heading. This work provides a thick description of a set of real world relevancy judgments. This may serve to illuminate theories and practices for bringing each individual seeker together with appropriate documents. This research offers a new model for relevant information seeking behavior associated with selecting works of essential instructional fiction, as well as a new definition for terminology to describe the results of the therapeutic literary experience. The data from this study, as well as from previous research, suggest that literature (specifically young adult literature) brings the reader to a better understanding of herself and the world around her

Experiences of fiction engagement in people with mental health problems

Section A Section A is a critical appraisal and metasynthesis of nine qualitative studies exploring experiences of fiction engagement in adults living with mental health problems. Following quality appraisal, thematic synthesis identified three analytic themes - Seen and Connected, Escaping Distress and Growth and Exploration. Themes are explored in relation to related theory and existing literature. Limitations are considered, alongside clinical and research implications. The importance of further consideration of the role of representation of mental health problems within fiction, alongside exploration into how fiction engagement affects other age-groups is outlined. Section B Section B is an empirical paper developing a modified grounded theory of how young people with mental health problems experience and are affected by representative fiction. Following public advertisements, 14 individual interviews were conducted with nine young people on their experiences. The developed theoretical model suggests that representative fiction was experienced as a reflection on their reality, a process made up of two stages, identification with fiction and transferring beyond fiction. The effects of this process depend on personal context and the nature of fiction. Findings are discussed in relation to relevant theory and wellbeing outcomes, with study limitations and its implications considered

Literary Types: How Literature Helped Inspire Healing and Joy in my Classroom and Beyond, a Narrative

This manuscript examines the role of bibliotherapy, specifically the utilization of literature in the form of books, to address and treat emotional and psychological distress. The document offers a concise historical overview of bibliotherapy, in addition to 29 chapters presenting contemporary accounts illustrating the successful application of bibliotherapy in the lives of both adolescents and adults. Extensive research supports the notion that bibliotherapy constitutes a rational and practical approach to assisting individuals of all ages, with a particular emphasis on adolescents, in overcoming emotional trauma and initiating the healing process. Specifically, a seminal study conducted in the Netherlands by Tijms, J., Stoop, M. A., & Polleck, J. N. (2018) serves as a foundation for the research presented in this manuscript. By incorporating brief narrative chapters containing practical applications, this dissertation aims to contextualize the principles derived from the research conducted in this field

MIDDLE SCHOOL EDUCATORS\u27 VIEWS OF BIBLIOTHERAPY: USING BOOKS AS HEALING TOOLS TO HELP ADOLESCENTS NAVIGATE PROBLEMATIC ISSUES: A CASE STUDY

Today’s adolescents have a tremendous number of stressors in their lives and need various resources to navigate through their problems. Providing middle school students with access to books may help them find ways to cope with various Adverse Childhood Experiences that potentially stand in the way of learning. Bibliotherapy is a practice used to foster healing through the use of books. School professionals can bridge the gap between students and a resolution to their problems. Providing students with books, along with guidance, may help youngsters come to terms with issues and lessen their adolescent burdens and put them in a better position for learning. The purpose of this study was to assess middle school professionals’ knowledge, views, and comfort level of bibliotherapy. There is a wealth of appropriate books for adolescents to read, both fiction and non-fiction, to help to overcome problems, to better themselves as individuals, or to help them realize that they are not alone in a given situation. Using a mixed- method, explanatory sequential, singular case study format, this study examined 44 suburban middle school professionals and their views of bibliotherapy. It measured perceptions, nature of appropriateness, and the extent to which teachers are comfortable utilizing this intervention for various purposes. Quantitative data were collected electronically using a Likert Scale survey. Qualitative data were gathered through researcher-conducted semi-structured, staff interview questions. Findings of this study indicate that educators at the middle school level recognize the prevalence of student Adverse Childhood Experiences that are potential blockades in the way of learning. Teachers believe that students must feel safe and secure before learning can occur. Based on existing research along with the data collected in this study, educators feel that bibliotherapy is an acceptable approach to help adolescents navigate problematic issues. School professionals have a comfort level with this method of intervention; as school seems a natural place to enhance social and emotional well-being. Addressing the needs of the ‘whole child’ is important, as indicated through the research. Systemic change within schools would allow educators to be equipped with the tools and training to properly infuse the practice of using books for healing purposes into school setting

Bibliotherapy in the Classroom: Integrating Mental Health into an English Language Arts Classroom

An increasing number of students come to school each day with unaddressed mental health concerns and social, emotional, and behavioral difficulties. Schools need to provide more interventions for these students to help ensure their success both in and out of the classroom. This project explores this need, along with the history of adolescent mental health and the current interventions schools employ to combat it. It then provides research that proposes bibliotherapy as a response to students’ mental health concerns, discussing its history, benefits, and classroom applications. The project culminates in a curriculum framework for integrating a biblioguidance program into a high school English Language Arts classroom or elective course in order to meet students’ emotional needs in a comfortable setting with a teacher who has experience in facilitating literary analysis

Attached to Tales: A baseline study exploring librarians’ understanding of bibliotherapy and its application in a school library setting

Since 2010, almost 800 libraries have closed across the UK, leaving limited free spaces where young people can access both education and recreation, to the detriment of their wellbeing. Declining mental health in the aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic will be a further societal challenge that would previously have found support from libraries. Bibliotherapy, the act of reading to improve mental wellbeing, is becoming a popular practice in school libraries across Scotland. This dissertation addresses the question of why this phenomenon has suddenly taken hold, and examines how well-equipped librarians are to lead it. Based on a constructivist paradigm, this research investigates the role the library profession can play in supporting mental wellbeing. The study was comprised of two parts, with reader response theory being used to explore young people’s reactions to participating in bibliotherapy sessions, then, following this, ten librarians were interviewed about their experiences of facilitating bibliotherapy sessions. Reading appeared to improve young people’s mood, and the librarians demonstrated confidence in their ability to deliver bibliotherapy based mostly on their expert knowledge of children’s literature and the relationships they had fostered with the young people they serve. The implications of these findings are discussed in relation to a wider mental wellbeing context

A QUALITATIVE STUDY OF SENIOR ADULTS’ PERCEPTIONS OF CONNECTEDNESS AFTER BIBLIOTHERAPY

The purpose of this study was to explore the influence of bibliotherapy on senior adults’ perceptions of social connectedness. The research question was “What are senior adults’ perceptions of connectedness after bibliotherapy?” To explore the research question, a virtual book study was conducted via Zoom. Seven retired adults took part in the virtual book study and were interviewed at the end of the study. A qualitative phenomenological approach was used to examine the lived experiences of connectedness among participants of the virtual book study; interview responses were distilled to core meanings. Analysis of the interview data resulted in three major themes: connection to self, connection to others, and connection to the book/author. Key points gleaned from the study resulted in the formation of a model designed to guide future virtual book studies to encourage social connectedness. Based on participants’ feedback, participants desired time for recreational conversation before and after each meeting, less reading each week, more book study sessions to cover the material, and Zoom training before and during the study. Choosing an engaging book was key for fostering connections to self, others, and the book. The virtual book study was important for older adults as it was a form of accountability and allowed senior participants to socially engage safely from their homes