Sponsorship in Al-Anon Family Groups: a Narrative Study
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SPONSORSHIP IN AL-ANON FAMILY GROUPS: A NARRATIVE STUDY HEIDI HIATT A DISSERTATION Submitted to the Ph.D. in Leadership and Change Program of Antioch University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy July, 2017 This is to certify that the Dissertation entitled: SPONSORSHIP IN AL-ANON: A NARRATIVE STUDY prepared by Heidi Hiatt is approved in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Leadership and Change. Approved by: ___________________________________________________________________________ Elizabeth Holloway, Ph.D., Chair date ___________________________________________________________________________ Laurien Alexandre, Ph.D., Committee Member date ___________________________________________________________________________ Mary Lee Nelson, Ph.D., Committee Member date Copyright 2017 Heidi Hiatt All rights reserved Acknowledgements There are so many people I would like to acknowledge for supporting me on this journey. Deep appreciation and gratitude to: My dissertation chair, Dr. Elizabeth Holloway, who showed great patience, kindness, understanding, and guidance throughout this process; My advisor, Dr. Laurien Alexandre, who lovingly lit a fire under me when I needed it. Committee member, Dr. Mary Lee Nelson, who offered time, energy, and encouraging words. Jennifer Hunter who celebrated and commiserated with me every step of the way; All of the faculty, C12 cohort, students, and staff of the PHDLC family who inspired me. What a wonderful, loving, fun, diligent, change making, creative, and intelligent group of people. My editor, Alexia Currie for diligently editing my work and saying kind things about it; Valerie and Barbara who transcribed the interviews beautifully; The Al-Anon members who graciously shared their stories for this study; My family and friends who asked about my work, encouraged me, and loved me through it all. Gayle and Leslie who read my drafts and gave me helpful, honest feedback. You are the best! The Saturday morning crew who are the best support system and circle of friends I never knew I needed; and My sponsor who has been my cheerleader, mentor, confidant, and friend. i Dedication This work is dedicated to the members of Al-Anon Family Groups. My life has been profoundly changed for the better because of you. Thank you. ii Abstract The purpose of this study is to gain knowledge about the relationship between sponsor and sponsee in Al-Anon Family Groups from the perspective of sponsors and sponsees in Al-Anon. The main question guiding my research is: What is the nature and quality of the sponsorship relationship as perceived by sponsors and sponsees? Nineteen men and women were interviewed and shared stories of their experience of being a sponsor and a sponsee in the Al-Anon program. I utilized a holistic-content approach to analyze the date from the interviews. To help situate the findings in current literature a discussion of sponsorship in Alcoholics Anonymous, therapy, mentoring, and other helping groups is provided. The findings suggest that there are similarities between Al-Anon sponsorship and mentoring in that both relationships progress through stages of development. The findings suggest that boundaries are an important aspect of Al-Anon that helps its members to healthily detach from other people. Al-Anon members are motivated to help based on the culture of helping found in the program as seen through its service structure and sponsorship. The leadership that Al-Anon sponsors provide finds connections with several leadership theories including, transformational, servant, relational, and authentic leadership. The electronic version of this dissertation is at AURA: Antioch University and Repository Archive, https://aura.antioch.edu/ and Ohio Link ETD Center, https://etd.ohiolink.edu iii Table of Contents Acknowledgements .......................................................................................................................... i Abstract .......................................................................................................................................... iii List of Tables ................................................................................................................................. vi List of Figures ............................................................................................................................... vii Introduction .................................................................................................................................... 1 History of Support Groups ....................................................................................................... 2 The Beginning of Al-Anon ...................................................................................................... 5 Al-Anon Family Groups .......................................................................................................... 7 Sponsorship .............................................................................................................................. 8 Purpose of Study and Research Questions ............................................................................ 10 Rationale ................................................................................................................................ 10 Positionality of the Researcher .............................................................................................. 11 Contribution of This Study to Leading Change ..................................................................... 13 Organization of the Dissertation ........................................................................................... 13 Critical Review of Relevant Theory, Research, and Practice ....................................................... 15 Family Systems ...................................................................................................................... 15 Treatments ............................................................................................................................. 21 Therapy .................................................................................................................................. 24 Self Help for the Family ........................................................................................................ 27 Support Groups ...................................................................................................................... 27 Sponsorship ............................................................................................................................ 41 Mentorship ............................................................................................................................. 44 Conclusion ............................................................................................................................. 65 Methodology/Guiding Questions and Research Procedures, Narrative Research, and Storytelling ............................................................................................................................. 66 Stories .................................................................................................................................... 66 Context ................................................................................................................................... 68 Method of Study .................................................................................................................... 72 Data Collection ...................................................................................................................... 77 iv Analyzing and Interpreting Data ........................................................................................... 79 A Reflexive Posture ............................................................................................................... 81 Ethical Considerations ........................................................................................................... 82 Research Findings ......................................................................................................................... 85 Unfolding of Relationship ..................................................................................................... 85 Summary Analysis ............................................................................................................... 116 Discussion ................................................................................................................................... 118 Overview and Reflection on Key Findings ......................................................................... 119 Sponsorship, Therapy, and Friendship ................................................................................ 120 Sponsorship, Alcoholics Anonymous, and Mentorship ...................................................... 123 Boundaries in Relationship .................................................................................................. 136 Qualities of Non-Professional Helping Relationships ......................................................... 145 Conclusion ........................................................................................................................... 155 Limitations ..........................................................................................................................