I want to examine the book 'The Diary of Anne Frank' from a social science perspective. This
artifact is one I wrote about in week four as I explored the subject through the humanities.
When analyzing 'The Diary of Anne Frank' through the social lens, one can explore what
makes people better by examining the relationship between people and how society uses the
practice of writing in journals during times of unexpected change valuable for wellbeing.
The invasion of the Nazis is an event where people hid from danger. b Like Anne
Frank and her family. b During the Covid- 19 pandemic people hid in place as well. b Although
Anne's circumstances for hiding in place were vastly different, the implications were the
same, protection. Anne and seven other people hid in place for fear of extreme systemic
persecution; fear of being caught and prosecuted. During Covid-19, people hid in place for
fear of a deadly virus; to protect themselves from contracting the deadly virus. In both
instances, people were forced to deal with the disruption in their lives and come up with
ways to adapt to their situation. What I learned is just like Anne, people around the world
turned to journals to cope with their situations. Sullying Ceballos from Miami, Janani Vaidya
from Bangalore, Todd Smith from Buffalo, Audrey Truschek from Jersey, and Xochitl
Estrada from Texas are some folks Mithila Phadke interviewed who began the act of
journaling or returned to journaling during the Covid-19 pandemic. Phadke (2020) writes,
"There has been a rise in the number of people taking up journaling... the reasons have been
many: boredom, an outlet for stress, the need for structure, or simply to document a very odd,
very complicated moment in time." In both events, we identify the psychological trend of
journaling during times of disturbance.
Currently, in healthcare, professionals encourage people to journal as journaling can
positively impact mental wellbeing when people use it to cope with stressful situations.
Journaling helps people to create order, peace, and well-being when trying to understand the
world around them. People have even taken to digital journaling to document t experiences.
In some hospitals, video diaries are being used regularly by ICU nurses. Haakma et al.
(2020) write, "Keeping a diary might effectively support the mental health status of relatives
by helping them to feel useful, as the process provides emotional support during the recovery
of their loved one." b Journaling has evolved through time.
To gain a broader understanding of the impact of journaling on health; it should be
studied through four educational lenses. Through the lens of history, it can be seen that
people have used journals for hundreds of years. It is relevant to the humanities because
journals have been and continue to be used by people to record their thoughts, emotions, and
reactions, and to document their experiences. Natural science would reflect through research
how journaling is efficacious for a person's emotional and mental state. Through the social
science lens, one will learn how society encourages the practice of writing in journals for
people to cope with stress to preserve their physical, emotional, and spiritual wealth.
References
Haakma, T., Tieben, R., Sleven, B., Buise, M., & van Mol, M. (2022). Experiences of nurses
with an innovative digital diary intervention in the intensive care unit: A qualitative
exploration. Intensive & Critical Care Nursing, 70, N.PAG. Retrieved from:
https://doi-org.ezproxy.snhu.edu/10.1016/j.iccn.2022.103197
Phadke, M. (2020, November 9). When nothing makes sense, I journal. I'm not the only one.
From first-time diarists to lifelong notebook enthusiasts, people around the world are
jotting down their thoughts during the pandemic. Vox. Retrieved from:
https://www.vox.com/the-goods/21542132/journaling-bullet-journal-coronavirus-
pandemic
