STORYTELLING AS INQUIRY IN A MENTAL-HOSPITAL

People give meaning to chaotic experiences and try to persuade others of their perspectives by telling stories. In the process of meaning ma king, some stories gain and maintain the status of a standard story. W hen people no longer recognize themselves in the standard story, it lo ses credibility and a different story is needed to endow their lives a nd practices with meaning. A narrative inquiry of a vocational rehabil itation project in a mental hospital shows that inherited stories sust ained the therapists' professional practice but prevented a successful rehabilitation of patients. Several therapists were willing to place this standard story between brackets and to listen to other unheard st ories told by patients who participated in the project. These marginal ized stories did not replace the standard story but enriched it. New p lot lines were woven into the existing story and constituted changes i n professional practice.