"I Am Who I Want To Be Not Who You Want Me To Be": Writing as an Expression of Self & In Relation to Others
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Date
2013-05
Authors
Stentz, Meg
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
The Ohio State University
Abstract
By adding a writing component to an existing model of structured support group, Stentz examines the way four ninth grade girls use writing to define their own identities and their relationships with one another. Her research centers around questions about how writing is received in the group: how does writing further the goals of an organization which seeks to promote connection between girls? And, how do the girls use writing, as opposed to speaking, to articulate their identities? Stentz found that girls' use of writing provides an opportunity to put forward a vision of the self that the girls do not access in speech. Furthermore, the girls use writing-both the words and the act itself-to demonstrate and strengthen their friendships and allegiances within the group. Stentz analyzed the girls' writings and speaking in the support group to reach these conclusions, as well as interviewing each girl at the end of the project. Stentz's project indicates the usefulness of writing in a group that seeks to promote connection between its members and may be of interest to individuals who work with groups, particularly groups of teenaged girls.
Description
Keywords
Literacy, Adolescence