Content area
Full Text
Abstract
Multiple In-depth interviews with fifteen Chinese families in Singapore were conducted to study family adaptation arising from the diagnosis of chronic childhood Illnesses. Disclosure of distressful Information was found to be selective. Keeping secrets within the immediate family Oe., between parents and children, between husband and wife, and between the family and the wider community) were governed by factors related to the support and protection of the family unit. Motivations for keeping family secrets appeared to be in keeping with the behavioral rules of a collectivist culture, emphasizing saving "face,' maintaining group harmony and hierarchical roles, and taking responsibility for mutual protection. Implications for practice In the health settings, policy issues (eg., the right of the patient to knowledge about the Illness), and intervention (eg., the role of the social worker in facilitating open disclosure among family members to enhance family adjustments) are discussed.
OUR ARTICLE HAS TWO GOALS. THE FIRST is to present our understanding of how Chinese families manage potentially disruptive or distressing information. The second is to show that restricted disclosure or nondisclosure has in fact, implications for family adaptation and for the role of the social worker in intervention.
In disclosure of distress, it has long been argued that an inability or unwillingness to openly express intense, negative emotions underlie many of the psychological and physical disorders that people develop (Perls, 1969; Derlega, Metts, Petronio, & Margulis, 1993). Furthermore, self-disclosure has been viewed as both a sign and a cause of healthy personality (Jourard, 1971a; 1971b). When people are trapped in their own frame of reference, they need to self-disclose to gain "insight" through expressing to others and obtaining feedback. On occasions when people feel a sense of pressure from bottled-up emotions, selfdisclosure can lead to catharsis. "Talking it over with a friend" was among the most frequently cited responses to questions about coping with stressful situations (Parker & Brown, 1982; Lee, 1996). Apart from its therapeutic value of gaining emotional support, distress disclosure is a means to instrumental, informational, and motivational support.
Cultural variables may also have an impact on selfdisclosure (Barnlund, 1975; Mehta, 1989; Lynch & Hanson, 1992). Countries such as the United States are high on individualism (Hofstede, 1980), emphasising "I" consciousness, emotional independence, and...