A Narrative-Discursive A Narrative-Discursive Approach to Approach to

Everyday StoriesEveryday Stories

michael bambergmichael bamberg

Clark UniversityClark University

Department of PsychologyDepartment of Psychology

Three Kinds Three Kinds of Narrative Approachesof Narrative Approaches

Life-Story ApproachesLife-Story Approaches Life-Event ApproachesLife-Event Approaches ““Small” StoriesSmall” Stories

Short narrative accountsShort narrative accounts Embedded in every-day interactionsEmbedded in every-day interactions Unnoticed as ‘stories’ by the participantsUnnoticed as ‘stories’ by the participants Unnoticed as ‘narratives’ by researchersUnnoticed as ‘narratives’ by researchers But highly relevant for identity formation But highly relevant for identity formation

processesprocesses

Life-Stories + Life-EventsLife-Stories + Life-Events

Life-StoriesLife-Stories Dan McAdams (1993) Dan McAdams (1993)

+ Gabi Rosenthal + Gabi Rosenthal (1998)(1998)

Elicitation TechniqueElicitation Technique Analysis of livesAnalysis of lives Focus on coherence + Focus on coherence +

healthhealth

Life-EventsLife-Events Most narrative Most narrative

researchresearch Elicitation is focused Elicitation is focused

on particular events or on particular events or experiencesexperiences

Analysis of focused Analysis of focused areaarea

Meaning of event in Meaning of event in one’s lifeone’s life

Merits of narrative life Merits of narrative life researchresearch

Accentuates and brings to light lived experience Accentuates and brings to light lived experience Forces participants to focus on the meaning of Forces participants to focus on the meaning of

THAT event in their livesTHAT event in their lives Accentuates the continuity of experienceAccentuates the continuity of experience

And sheds light on aspects that appear discontinuousAnd sheds light on aspects that appear discontinuous

Assumes a unified sense of personal identity -- Assumes a unified sense of personal identity -- against which ‘experience’ is constantly sorted against which ‘experience’ is constantly sorted outout

potential shortcomingspotential shortcomingsor open questionsor open questions

How does this ‘unified sense of self’ come How does this ‘unified sense of self’ come to existence?to existence? How does the person ‘learn’ to “sort out” How does the person ‘learn’ to “sort out”

events against what is called ‘life’?events against what is called ‘life’? Overemphasis of stories about the ‘self’Overemphasis of stories about the ‘self’

Cutting out all those stories about othersCutting out all those stories about others Overemphasis of ‘long’ storiesOveremphasis of ‘long’ stories

Cutting out everyday, “small” stories Cutting out everyday, “small” stories

why?why?

Influences of ‘traditional’ psychological Influences of ‘traditional’ psychological inquiryinquiry Interests in selves + self-coherenceInterests in selves + self-coherence

Influences of traditional narratology Influences of traditional narratology Work with texts (written texts)Work with texts (written texts) Assuming authors as behind the textsAssuming authors as behind the texts Assuming criteria of goodness for narrativesAssuming criteria of goodness for narratives

Interviews as windows into selvesInterviews as windows into selves

Narrative DimensionsNarrative Dimensions(Ochs & Capps, 2001)(Ochs & Capps, 2001)

TellershipTellership one active teller vs. one active teller vs. manymany

TellabilityTellability high vs. high vs. lowlow

EmbeddednessEmbeddedness detached from surrounding talk vs. detached from surrounding talk vs. situational situational

embeddednessembeddedness

Moral stanceMoral stance one moral message vs. one moral message vs. different + conflicting messagesdifferent + conflicting messages

Linearity & TemporalityLinearity & Temporality closed temporal + causal order vs. closed temporal + causal order vs. open + spatialopen + spatial

with this in mind:with this in mind:

Let’s turn to Let’s turn to SMALLSMALL stories stories Characteristics of “small” storiesCharacteristics of “small” stories Functions of “small” storiesFunctions of “small” stories

in everyday conversationsin everyday conversations in the process of identity formationin the process of identity formation in learning to present ‘coherent’ selvesin learning to present ‘coherent’ selves

What these small stories accomplish in What these small stories accomplish in everyday situationseveryday situations

Stories about others:Stories about others:the the Davie HoganDavie Hogan story story

Positioning with Davie Hogan. Stories, Tellings & Identities. In C. Daiute & C. Lightfoot (Eds.), Narrative analysis: Studying the development of individuals in society.  London: Sage. (2003)

Topic: gay kids at school

J: actually I know a few of them  I don’t know them but I’ve seen them

Ed how can you tell they’re gay

Alex yeah you can’t really tell

J: no like how do I know they’re gay

Ed yeah

J: well he’s an 11th grade student  the kid I know  I’m not gonna mention names

Ed alright who are they (raising both hands up)

J: okay um  and I’m in a class with mostly 11th graders

Josh: and his name is (rising intonation)

ah and and ah  and  um  a girl  who is umm very honest and nice she has she has a locker right next to him and she said he talked about how he is gay a lot when she’s there  not with her  like um  so that’s how I know  and he um associates with um a lot of girls not many boys  a lot of the  a few  of the gay kids at Cassidy

QuickTime™ and aDV/DVCPRO - NTSC decompressor

are needed to see this picture.

Pre-Story Negotiation +Pre-Story Negotiation +Fine TuningFine Tuning

Pre-NegotiationsPre-Negotiations ““I don’t know them but I’ve seen them”I don’t know them but I’ve seen them”

Challenge: “how do you know?”Challenge: “how do you know?” ““how do I know they’re gay?”how do I know they’re gay?” ““he’s an 11th-grader” + “I’m in a class with 11th-graders”he’s an 11th-grader” + “I’m in a class with 11th-graders”

Fine-TuningFine-Tuning Why does he claim not to “Why does he claim not to “knowknow” them (and only having ” them (and only having

““seenseen” them)?” them)? Why is his witness “Why is his witness “honesthonest” + “” + “nicenice”” Why is she “Why is she “a girla girl”?”? Why is the gay boy not talking to her <that he is gay>?Why is the gay boy not talking to her <that he is gay>? Why is he ‘mentioning’ that the gay boy “associates with a lot Why is he ‘mentioning’ that the gay boy “associates with a lot

of girls” rather than boys?of girls” rather than boys?

PositioningPositioning

Vis-à-vis his audienceVis-à-vis his audience I I knowknow about gays about gays I’m not “close to I’m not “close to themthem” ” (= don’t get the wrong idea!!!)(= don’t get the wrong idea!!!)

Vis-à-vis the master-narratives of Vis-à-vis the master-narratives of heterosexuality + liberal discourseheterosexuality + liberal discourse

Gays as ‘Gays as ‘othersothers’ ’ Self as tolerant personSelf as tolerant person

Vis-à-vis a ‘sense of self’Vis-à-vis a ‘sense of self’ Practicing/working toward/testing out a sense of Practicing/working toward/testing out a sense of

“this is “this is meme””

Characteristics of Characteristics of “SMALL” stories“SMALL” stories

ShortShort Conversationally Embedded + NegotiatedConversationally Embedded + Negotiated

beforebefore duringduring afterafter

Fine tunedFine tuned positioning strategies positioning strategies fine-tuned vis-à-vis the audiencefine-tuned vis-à-vis the audience fine-tuned vis-à-vis dominant + counter narrativesfine-tuned vis-à-vis dominant + counter narratives multiple moral stances (testing out and experimenting multiple moral stances (testing out and experimenting

with with identity projectionsidentity projections)) Low in tellability, linearity, temporality + causalityLow in tellability, linearity, temporality + causality

Functions of Functions of “SMALL” stories“SMALL” stories

Practice in doing identity workPractice in doing identity work Continuous editing of experienceContinuous editing of experience

Retelling of experienceRetelling of experience Re-tuningRe-tuning these tellings according to these tellings according to

different audiencesdifferent audiences Different master-narrativesDifferent master-narratives different (developing) senses of ‘who-I-am’different (developing) senses of ‘who-I-am’

Resulting in some Resulting in some sense of coherencesense of coherence though one that is constantly reworkedthough one that is constantly reworked

conclusionconclusion

So, rather than assuming the existence of So, rather than assuming the existence of identity + sense of self – and viewing identity + sense of self – and viewing narratives as reflections thereof, I am narratives as reflections thereof, I am suggesting to study suggesting to study the emergence of a the emergence of a sense of selfsense of self by way of exploring the by way of exploring the SMALL storiesSMALL stories people tell in their people tell in their EVERYDAY interactionsEVERYDAY interactions