Adolescent Process of Coming to Accept Asthma: A Phenomenological Study

Abstract

Health care team members in the clinical setting frequently comment that if adolescents would just accept their asthma and the need for continued treatment they would not experience so many problems. A review of the literature reveals researchers have not explored the process of acceptance or what effect acceptance may have in the lives of adolescents experiencing asthma. The purpose of this study was to identify the essential structure of the process of acceptance of chronic illness by adolescents experiencing asthma/reactive airway disease. Phenomenological design, method, and analysis within a life-span developmental framework guided this study. The sample consisted of 6 adolescents diagnosed with asthma who were identified by health care professionals as verbalizing and demonstrating acceptance of their chronic illness. The results have implications for diagnosing lack of acceptance, and developing and testing interventions to facilitate acceptance.

Key Words:

• Acceptance
• Adolescent
• Chronic illness
• Asthma
• Phenomenology
• Qualitative
• Psychosocial
• Life-span development