Altered Self-Observations, Unclear Risk Perceptions and Changes in Relational Everyday Life: A Qualitative Study of Psychosocial Life with Diabetes during the COVID-19 Lockdown

Societies

Dan Grabowski¹  Morten Hulvej Rod¹  Julie Meldgaard¹ 

[1] Steno Diabetes Center Copenhagen, Niels Steensens Vej 6, 2820 Gentofte, Denmark;

关键词: COVID-19;    diabetes;    psychosocial effects;    self-observations;    risk perceptions;    social relations;   

DOI  :  10.3390/soc10030063

来源: DOAJ

【 摘 要 】

When the Danish society went into COVID-19 lockdown, it dramatically changed the conditions for living with a chronic disease like diabetes. The present article highlights the psychosocial effects of this change. The dataset consists of 20 semi-structured online interviews with people with diabetes. The data were analyzed using radical hermeneutics and interpreted using Luhmann’s operative constructivist systems theory. The analysis produced three main themes: (1) people with diabetes experience altered self-observations–mainly due to society labelling them as vulnerable, (2) people with diabetes have unclear risk perceptions due to lack of concrete knowledge about the association between COVID-19 and diabetes, and (3) changes in conditions for maintaining and creating meaningful relations have a significant impact on everyday life with diabetes. These findings have important implications for risk communication. People respond in a multitude of ways to communications issued by health authorities and with close relations, and their meaning-making is shaped by, and shapes, their self-observations, risk perceptions and relational environments. This calls for more targeted communication strategies as well as increased use of peer support; the goal being to help people create meaning in their own environments.

【 授权许可】

Unknown