‘The English language enables me to visit my pain’. Exploring experiences of using a later-learned language in the healing journey of survivors of sexuality persecution

Bibliographic Data

ID20507537
AuthorsSally Rachel Cook (0000-0002-2656-802X, Birkbeck, University of London), Jean-Marc Dewaele (0000-0001-8480-0977, Birkbeck, University of London, corresponding author)
Year2022
Volume26
Issue2
Pages125-139
Publication date2022-04-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueInternational Journal of Bilingualism (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1367-0069 • E-ISSN: 1756-6878
PublisherSAGE Publications (PUBLISHER • US)
DOI10.1177/13670069211033032
OpenAlexW3205953091
LanguageEN
Citations received21
References cited41

Aims and objectives: This qualitative study explores the experience of using a later-learned language, English (ELX), in the therapeutic journey of refugee survivors of sexuality persecution to enhance understanding of the role of language in their rehabilitation. Design/methodology/approach: This is a multiple case study of three refugees, persecuted in their home country because of their sexual orientation, who are regular attendees of a therapeutic community, Room to Heal, based in London. A qualitatively driven mixed-method research design using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) and ethnography was employed. Data and analysis: Data were gathered through semi-structured interviews with the first author. They consisted of questions about the relationship between the participants’ languages, emotions and sense of self. Findings/conclusions: Participants shared common positive experiences characterised by feelings of the ELX being a liberating tool that empowered them and enabled them to bear witness to their trauma, express their same-sex love more easily and be more self-accepting, and contributed to the (re)invention and performance of a ‘new’ self. Originality: The originality resides first in the unique profile of the participants – victims of persecution because of their sexual orientation; second in the unique context – a therapeutic community supporting refugees; and third in the methodology – a qualitatively driven mixed-method design combining IPA and ethnography. Significance/implications: The findings support an embodied perspective of languages and highlight the need for therapists to be aware of multilingualism and its effects. The reduced emotional resonance of a later-learned language may offer its users a way to access trauma and build a new self within the therapeutic process

Embodied cognition · Epistemology · Feeling · Human sexuality · Originality · Persecution · Qualitative research · Refugee · Social science · Sociology · Gender Studies · Interpreting and Communication in Healthcare · Migration, Health and Trauma · Migration, Refugees, and Integration · Psychology · Social Psychology

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