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Banat, Sophie (2024) An exploration of the process of adjustment to adolescent spontaneous premature ovarian insufficiency: a constructivist grounded theory study. Doctoral thesis, London Metropolitan University.
Premature Ovarian Insufficiency (POI) is the decline of ovarian function before the age of forty. Prevalence rates of POI can reach 3-6% of women between the age of 12 and 40 and for the majority of cases no known cause will be found. This is referred to as spontaneous or idiopathic POI and can be a life changing diagnosis with profound physical and psychological consequences. Little is known about how adolescents process the spontaneous experience at this early stage of life and the impact on psychosocial development remains under researched.
This study aimed to obtain rich accounts from young women that had received a diagnosis of spontaneous POI during their early adolescence. The objective of which, was to generate a substantive theory of the process of adjustment available in their experience of the condition. Twelve participants were interviewed remotely through the use of telemedicine platforms during the social restrictions of the C-19 pandemic. Interview data was then analysed following a constructivist Grounded Theory method (Charmaz, 2006). This study revealed a central theoretical concept of the constructivist Grounded Theory as one of 'Leaming to inhabit' the body. This featured two trajectories of change; 'changing in relation to the prepubescent self and 'changing in relation to others' that were thought to contribute towards the concept. The processes of change, however, did not appear to be linear and can be seen within the concept frequently returning to a category of loss situated at the middle of the concept. The findings of the concept were thought to demonstrate characteristics that may be attributable to that of Simon Olshansky's (1962) notion of 'chronic sorrow' following a significant loss, ordinarily observed in bereavement and the death of a loved one. These findings are discussed in relation to adolescent chronic health condition literature, in lieu of a lack of existing adolescent literature in the field of sPOI and POL.
At present, the findings of this study are novel and the first of its kind in the field of adolescent sPOI, and further bolster existing arguments for a multidisciplinary approach to be available when supporting this younger age group (Panay et al., 2021). This was reflected in the broad and wide-reaching aspects of change present in participants experiences of the condition, as they adjusted to its presence within their lives.
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