The Discursive Dynamics of Disclosure and Avoidance: Evidence from a Study of Infertility

If you need an accessible version of this item, please submit a remediation request.
Date
2013-02
Language
American English
Embargo Lift Date
Department
Committee Members
Degree
Degree Year
Department
Grantor
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Found At
Abstract

Recent research and theorizing about privacy management suggests a need to consider discursive dynamics and interpretations of meaning in conversations involving disclosure, topic avoidance, secret-keeping, and other privacy management processes. In the following study, I drew on a specific set of theoretical assumptions as the basis for an investigation of privacy management in the context of infertility. Based on in-depth interviews with 23 women coping with infertility, results reveal the varied ways that private topics arose in conversations (e.g., discloser initiated conversations, responses to requests for information), the diverse ways that women concealed or revealed their struggles with infertility, and the multiple dilemmas they faced in managing private information about their fertility problem. I discuss the results in light of the extant literature on managing private information about sensitive issues and suggest that scholars must continue to focus on conversational dynamics to understand fully how privacy management processes unfold in everyday conversations.

Description
item.page.description.tableofcontents
item.page.relation.haspart
Cite As
Bute, J. J. (2013). The discursive dynamics of disclosure and avoidance: Evidence from a study of infertility. Western Journal of Communication, 77(2), 164-185.
ISSN
Publisher
Series/Report
Sponsorship
Major
Extent
Identifier
Relation
Journal
Source
Alternative Title
Type
Article
Number
Volume
Conference Dates
Conference Host
Conference Location
Conference Name
Conference Panel
Conference Secretariat Location
Version
Full Text Available at
This item is under embargo {{howLong}}