Fitting into the prevailing teenage culture: A grounded theory on female adolescents with chronic arthritis

Abstract

The aim of this study was to deepen the understanding of female adolescents' daily living with chronic arthritis. Taperecorded open interviews were conducted once with six teenage girls (14_17 years), who also wrote diaries for a 12-month period. In addition, 12 interviews of female adolescents diagnosed with chronic arthritis selected from another sample in an earlier study by the authors were included in the data. The Grounded Theory (GT) method was used for analysing the diaries and the transcribed interviews. A core category, labelled Fitting into the prevailing teenage culture, and four related categories labelled (1) mastering a body in pain; (2) living one day at time; (3) using social support; and (4) fighting for health emerged. The categories formed a substantive theory illuminating living with chronic arthritis during adolescence. The theory explains and provides a deeper understanding of the main concern of these female adolescents and their strategies in managing their situation. Key words: Adolescents, grounded theory, juvenile arthritis, pain, teenage culture