Send message to Author

Paper short abstract:

The presentation presents the results of a qualitative research on the Facebook group called ‘Porcelanowe Aniołki’ [‘Porcelain Angels’]. The main aim of the presentation is to present the role of storytelling about a disease in shaping the identity of those struggling with a mental health problem.

Paper long abstract:

The presentation presents the results of a qualitative research on the Facebook group called ‘Porcelanowe Aniołki’ [‘Porcelain Angels’]. The main aim of the presentation is to present the role of storytelling about a disease in shaping the identity of those struggling with a mental health problem, and how the functioning of the analysed support group allows these tales to resonate. The author argues that such a community provides a space for stories, which are easier to tell on the Internet and through it. Owing to this, it is possible to construct tales about experiencing an illness subjectively. The empirical foundation of the presentation consists of requested biographical data in the form of letters written by the group members. The main researched material is enriched with Internet-based participant observation as well as with individual in-depth interviews with psychologists, which reveal the broader context of the group’s functioning. The presentation includes a literature review regarding the fields of sociology and anthropology of health, sociology of interaction, and sociology of the Internet, as well as an overview of previous Polish Internet-based studies on support groups. The considerations lead the researcher to the conclusion that in and through the support group, the authors of the letters can better understand the history of their own illness, one beyond medical definitions.