Storytelling. A strategy for living and coping with cancer.

The purpose of this focused program evaluation was to explore attitudes and beliefs about storytelling as a strategy for coping with cancer among participants who attended a cancer-related storytelling workshop. The response rate was 70% (n = 94) and included persons with a diagnosis of cancer, their loved ones, and members of the public. The program coordinators used a theoretical model described by Heiney (1995) that explains how storytelling may produce therapeutic effects in four domains: cognitive, affective, interpersonal, and personal. A questionnaire was designed to determine the extent that conference participants perceived therapeutic benefits in these domains as a result of attending the workshop. Statistical analysis consisted of descriptive summaries of individual questions and domain scores. Findings showed that 97% of the respondents agreed that storytelling was a helpful way to cope with cancer. Most of the respondents reported agreement with the therapeutic benefits of storytelling in all domains, with 85% agreeing that hearing others' stories of living with cancer gave them hope. Although the results of the evaluation were very positive, further study is needed to demonstrate the efficacy of storytelling as a strategy for coping with cancer.