| dc.contributor.author | Loppie, Charlotte J. | en_US |
| dc.date.accessioned | 2014-10-21T12:38:55Z | |
| dc.date.available | 2004 | |
| dc.date.issued | 2004 | en_US |
| dc.identifier.other | AAINQ89807 | en_US |
| dc.identifier.uri | http://hdl.handle.net/10222/54613 | |
| dc.description | As a determinant of health, culture represents an important influence of women's mid-life and peri-menopausal experiences. The purpose of this naturalistic inquiry was to explore the mid-life experiences of Mi'kmaq women. The research followed a participatory model and addressed ethical issues of ownership, control, access, and possession. Forty-two Mi'kmaq women from five First Nations in Nova Scotia participated in group discussions about their perceptions and experiences of mid-life change. Qualitative data were made amenable to analysis through the Atlas ti program and themes were sought through an inductive process. | en_US |
| dc.description | Findings revealed themes of vision, balance, and relationships. Women's mid-life vision encompasses an evolving perspective of life, self, and the peri-menopausal transition. This vision is informed by past generations, by women's life experiences, and by the limited resources available to First Nations women. Balance emerged as a central determinant of women's perspective, experience, and response to mid-life change. The holism with which First Nations women view health was evident in their construction of experiences within physical, emotional, social, and spiritual domains. The context and substance of women's relationships also plays an important role in shaping their mid-life experiences. Community and kinship networks represent the foundation upon which women understand and experience all aspects of health, including those related to peri-menopausal change. | en_US |
| dc.description | Interpretation of findings was based on the unique cultural, historical, socio-political, and medical contexts within which First Nations women experience mid-life change. Barriers and opportunities for achieving optimal health are created through these multi-dimensional contexts. Bi-cultural tensions seem to represent a particular challenge for First Nations women seeking mid-life balance. | en_US |
| dc.description | The inclusion of a First Nations perspective contributes substantially to a multi-dimensional, inter-relational model of mid-life change, which can inform research, policy and practice. Further inquiry into the additional obstacles faced by Aboriginal women is essential and a more balanced and interdisciplinary research agenda is required. Programs and services must be based on indigenous values and program inertia must be in the direction of intergenerational capacity building, rather than perpetuation of medical dependence. Finally, programs must incorporate opportunities for women to engage in diverse strategies toward health and healing. | en_US |
| dc.description | Thesis (Ph.D.)--Dalhousie University (Canada), 2004. | en_US |
| dc.language | eng | en_US |
| dc.publisher | Dalhousie University | en_US |
| dc.publisher | | en_US |
| dc.subject | Anthropology, Cultural. | en_US |
| dc.subject | Women's Studies. | en_US |
| dc.subject | Sociology, Ethnic and Racial Studies. | en_US |
| dc.title | Grandmothers' voices: Mi'kmaq women and menopause. | en_US |
| dc.type | text | en_US |
| dc.contributor.degree | Ph.D. | en_US |
