Theses and Dissertations - Department of Communication Studies

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More than a checked box: emerging adult women’s disclosure of family health history during healthcare provider appointments
(University of Alabama Libraries, 2021) Owen, Emily Brady; Carmack, Heather J.; University of Alabama Tuscaloosa
The process of disclosure is an essential part of the process of healthcare. Individuals must disclose information to healthcare providers in order to received accurate care and an accurate diagnosis (Valdez et al., 2010). Although it is a crucial part of the healthcare process, individual’s privacy boundaries affect the amount of private information an individual will disclose. Petronio’s (2002) Communication Privacy Management Theory states that an individual owns their private information and has the ability to decide who to share the information with, what information to share, and when to share the information. In addition to owning the private information, individuals create symbolic privacy boundaries when deciding who to disclose to. This thesis utilizes Petronio’s (2002) Communication Privacy Management Theory to explore the lived experiences of emerging adult women and their experiences disclosing family health history and women’s health to both family members and healthcare providers. In- depth interviews were utilized to understand the lived experiences of the participants and led to the findings of familial core criteria, individual motivations, provider communication catalysts, and privacy boundary coordination.