Homesickness : a literature review and the effect of narrative therapy

Abstract

Homesickness is a relatively common experience, yet there has been little exploration or acknowledgement of the topic within the contemporary literature. Motivated by the longstanding oversight of the phenomenon the first part of this thesis attempts to review and augment the current body of research, and a comprehensive psychological model of homesickness is put forward. The second part of this thesis provides an investigation of the effect of narrative therapy on levels of homesickness. It is recognised that there is a need for a treatment for homesickness that ameliorates psychological well-being, advances intellectual capacity and promotes physical health. Narrative therapy is an approach to treatment that has been shown to have a positive influence on both physical and mental health, and academic performance. In light of the benefits of narrative therapy, it should follow that there will be a reduction in levels of homesickness for students who participate in an emotional writing exercise. To test this hypothesis a total of 60 3rd and 4th form boarding pupils participated in a writing exercise over three consecutive nights. Participants were randomly assigned to two groups; the control group wrote descriptively about non-emotional topics, where as pupils in the experimental group constructed an emotional narrative that contemplated their transition to boarding school. Data concerning the pupil's homesickness scores, average grade, and school attendance was analyzed. Despite the absence of statistically significant change, trends indicated that narrative therapy may have a beneficial effect on levels of homesickness, particularly for homesick females.