Abstract
End of life and palliative care are viewed in chaplaincy as an important time when spiritual support is considered highly beneficial. Dignity therapy is an important care strategy in this field. This article lends support to the Chochinov protocol using Schwartz’s matrix of values. Five dignity therapy “generativity documents” prepared for terminally ill patients using interpretative phenomenological analysis were analyzed using qualitative thematic analysis. The results showed the role of values in the construction of wisdom and confirmed the importance of family relationships. The value of sacrifice, which is supported by various religious traditions, emerged as a perceived factor, indicating personal wisdom. The most significant result is the discovery of sacrifice as a positive value. Since hedonism, another of the values of Schwartz’s matrix, is quite common in contemporary culture, it is important that those applying dignity therapy pay sufficient attention to the value of sacrifice, understanding that it could be recognized as a characteristic component of wisdom by those who are terminally ill. The implications, not only for end of life counseling but also for other fields and disciplines focusing on spiritual care, in particular for pastoral psychology, are significant.
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Testoni, I., Bingaman, K.A., D’Iapico, G. et al. Dignity as Wisdom at the End of Life: Sacrifice as Value Emerging from a Qualitative Analysis of Generativity Documents. Pastoral Psychol 68, 479–489 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11089-019-00870-9
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11089-019-00870-9