This qualitative study explores the experiences of women whose military partners have been diagnosed with Posttraumatic Stress Disorder. I sought to understand the influences that PTSD had on family and couple relationships and whether resiliency was a factor in the experiences of the women. Six women were interviewed for this qualitative study. From these interviews, 10 themes were developed: 1. Women’s recognition of partner’s PTSD symptoms was not immediate; 2. Women blamed themselves for their partner’s changed behaviour; 3. PTSD caused significant stress to the couple relationship; 4. PTSD affected the family unit; 5. Women bore the burden and took on more responsibility; 6. Women forsake their own needs (personal sacrifice); 7. Women experienced intense negative emotions; 8. Women’s health and well-being was negatively impacted by partners’ PTSD; 9. Women gained new insights and no longer considered themselves responsible for their partner’s illness; 10. Women demonstrated resilience and coping. / October 2016

Nu för tiden blir människan äldre och med det så ökar risken för att insjukna i demens. Det är en obotlig sjukdom som innefattar en grav försämring av personens minne och intellekt och som slutligen leder till döden. Sjukdomen påverkar inte bara den drabbade utan även alla i dennes omgivning. Symtomen kommer smygande, vanligt är försämrat minne, intellekt och förändrad personlighet. Många av de drabbade är nedstämda, oroliga och kan även vara aggressiva. Detta beror på att de fortfarande har kvar sina känslor och kan känna att något är fel, men de kan inte sätta fingret på vad som är fel. Vid sjukdom så är behovet av stöd oftast stort och det är sjuksköterskans ansvar att ge stöd till den som behöver. För att kunna bemöta de behov som finns behövs kunskap om hur närstående upplever sin situation. Begränsad forskning finns kring närståendes erfarenheter av demenssjukdomen, och majoriteten av forskningen är inriktad på sjukdomen och hur den påverkar hjärnan och patienten. Därför valdes en litteraturbaserad studie till examensarbetet för att belysa erfarenheter av att vara närstående till en äldre person med demenssjukdom. Detta innebär att författarna granskat 10 artiklar från vetenskapliga tidskrifter och sammanställt till ett eget resultat. Temana som bildades efter granskningen var närståendes erfarenheter av stöd och sjukdomens progression och dess effekter på relation och känslor. Det första temat fokuserar just på de närståendes erfarenheter av stöd. Både från vården och andra i samma situation. Resultatet visar att stödet från sjuksköterskan bör vara lättillgängligt och ges i tidigt skede av sjukdomen för att undvika ohälsa. Även att prata med andra i samma situationer var viktigt, många tog hjälp av stödgrupper för att få råd. Andra ville inte ha stöd från sina familjer då de inte ville lägga bördan på dem så de tog själva allt ansvar för den drabbade. Sjukdomens progression och dess effekter på relation och känslor belyser de olika problem som uppkommer under sjukdomens gång. Det förändrade beteendet hos den drabbade skapade irritation och frustration hos de närstående, till exempel när den drabbade tappade tråden i samtal eller uppträdde förvirrat. I samband med det förändrade beteendet formades en ny relation till den drabbade. Känslor av skuld och skam var närvarande för många och specifikt för makar var sorgen av att ha mist den man en gång delat livet med. / Background: Dementia not only affects the individual patient, but also healthcare professionals and the relatives. It is an increasing incurable disease that affects the mind of the afflicted person. He or she will experience difficulties with either expressing oneself, recognizing daily things, performing tasks that he or she previously were able to managed or the ability to plan, initiate or complete various tasks. Aim: The aim of this study was to illuminate experiences of being a relative of an older person afflicted of dementia. Method: A literature based study was performed, analyzing 10 qualitative articles. Results: The results consist of two main themes, relatives experiences of support, with two subthemes, support in the care relationship and support from others in the same situation. The second theme progression of the disease and its affects on relations and feelings, with three subthemes, the partners behavioral change, a new kind of relationship and impact of the disease on feelings. These highlight significant experiences the relatives go through in relation to the disease. Support was something that may be given in different ways and the need for support was necessary. The behavioral change that comes with the disease, results in a new form of relationship with the affected. Feelings of sadness, guilt and shame were constantly present. Conclusion: The results shows that the relatives need support through the entire disease progression when the behavior of the affected changes and a new relationship is formed. When accepting the disease, the relatives found it easier to deal with life in general. Nurses need to have the means to respond to these relatives and to know how they experience their situation, to be able to support them in the best possible way.

This study investigated the relationship between children's perception of parents as loving or rejecting and the general emotional adjustment of these children. Emotional adjustment was reflected by behavior within a regular classroom as observed by the teacher and by performance on a projective personality test.

The goals of this study were to centralize the voices of Black Canadian male student-athletes by investigating their experiences as students, athletes, Black males and children of immigrant parents, and examining how these experiences might contextualize their transition out of university sport. Qualitative interviews with 20 former and current Black Canadian student-athletes were conducted using Critical Race Theory (CRT) as a methodological framework. Several of the participants described the racial, athletic and academic stereotypes that shaped their experiences, illustrating, in some cases, the influence of the Black American culture on Black Canadians. The analysis focused on how the interview participants interpreted their experiences and how stereotypes were used to make sense of their university and transition experiences. Some participants rejected the stereotypes evoked, some challenged them in an attempt to prove them wrong, while others used them to “act more Black”. Furthermore, the degree to which these stereotypes interacted with their transition experiences centered around autonomy, the emulation of role models and of developing career opportunities highlighted the initiative displayed by most of these student-athletes. The intersection of these factors, combined with their immigrant parents’ inexperience navigating the Canadian university system, forced most of these young men to transition out of university and varsity athletics on their own.

The study explored the experiences of young adults who have a sibling with cerebral palsy living in Nairobi, Kenya in order to establish how they made sense out of the experience of growing up with a sibling with CP. The study used a qualitative approach with an Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) whereby six participants all young adults aged between eighteen and twenty four years, were interviewed using semi-structured interviews. Data analysis was undertaken according to IPA guidelines. The findings generated four super ordinate themes namely: increased sense of reward, emotional impact, family relationships and public relations. The findings revealed that there was a direct impact on sense of psychological well-being both negatively and positively. On one hand, the young adults experienced feelings of stigma, fear about the future, anger and a sense of responsibility. While on the other hand they experienced personal growth in terms of a sense of personal development and some concrete rewards. In conclusion, the study demonstrated the potential for personal development in the group studied and made a contribution to understanding the disabling impact of society on the lives of sibling due to disability by association.

Magister Artium - MA / Not all disabilities are the same and the way that society may respond to people with disabilities depends on their “disability” and how their body deviates from the appearance norms of society. People with disabilities constitute a significant portion of the South African population. A body of research and physical evidence shows that people with disabilities may face certain obstacles or limitations in fulfilling a normal life. Obstacles include perceptions of disabilities, negative stigma and attitudes, barriers to an environment which is accessible for people with disabilities, and constructions of ableism. In a way, these obstacles influence the way people with disabilities construct their identity. Beyond this, the voices of people with disabilities are not always heard and their personal experiences are not always given political recognition. This research aimed to explore how a group of students living with a physical or visual disability constructed their identities in their environment or society. A feminist qualitative method was conducted. The study focused on the experiences and perceptions of nineteen to twenty-seven year old female and male students with disabilities. Out of the six participants, two were coloured, three were black and one participant is classified as coloured, but identifies as biracial. A semi-structured interview was used for data collection and a Qualitative Thematic Analysis was used to analyse the data. Social constructionism and intersectionality were useful theoretical approaches adopted in exploring the lived experiences of students with disabilities. The results of this study revealed that students with disabilities find living with a disability as not being a barrier to living a fulfilling life. Students with disabilities construct their identities in a way that frees them from ideologies which shape the experience of disability in a negative way. However, the study revealed that negative barriers to identity construction still exist. These barriers come in the form of negative perceptions and stigma of disability, ableism and the medical model. The study further revealed that when the lived experiences of students with disabilities are understood through the lens of gender, race and class, these social divisions overlap and are cumulative on the effects of student’s experiences. The one major barrier in identity construction that the study revealed is the negative social perceptions of disability. The way in which students feel that they belong in their society is representative of how they respond to negative social constructions of disability.

<p>The purpose of this essay is to show <em>the opportunities and difficulties</em> of teaching within distance education. I will show this from two different parts of the world. One being Sweden and the other Australia, both countries run a distance education program with similar reasons students whom travelling, some living hundreds of miles from any schools and some students with health and or social disadvantages. This study is based on the actual teacher’s accounts and experiences the opportunities and difficulties in teaching in distance. The main method of collecting this data has been through interviews with the teachers, a distance-school administrator and a researcher from Sweden. A survey was mailed to Australia which has been filled in and returned by an administrator/head teacher for distance education. The main research questions asked were:</p><ul><li>What are teacher’s experiences in distance education?</li><li>What are the opportunities and difficulties by teaching in distance education?</li></ul><p>The interview conversations has been structured, generalised and reformulated in order to form a concrete set of teachers overall experiences. The literatures were support for many of the teacher’s thoughts and even things that compliment and add a broader picture of the subject and the results are discussed and weighed up against teacher’s own experiences.</p><p>The study reaches the conclusion of how the teachers express are of opportunities and difficulties in teaching the students in the best possible way, to stimulate learning by not only focus on teaching content but also on its learning environment.</p>

The purpose of this study was to explore women’s subjective food and eating experiences from childhood through to adulthood and the ways in which these experiences either connected or disconnected them from their appetites for food and eating. The present study used a qualitative life history methodology, the goal of which is to assess individuals’ lived experiences to construct broader contextual meaning. In-depth interviews were used to investigate food and eating experiences among twelve women between ages 25 and 44, representing diverse social and cultural backgrounds as well as current and past eating problems. Participants took part in an open-ended interview, using a series of guided questions about their food and eating experiences from childhood through to adulthood. The interviews were transcribed and analyzed for themes using the constant comparison method. Two models emerged from the data in this study that described the social factors that connected and disconnected women from their appetites and eating. The Regulating Discourses Model which outlines current ways women negotiate appetite and desire through food and eating experiences, and the Socialization through Food and Eating Model which delineates socialization processes related to food and eating during women’s development. This research may be useful for counselors, health care professionals, as well as the larger community to increase awareness on ways to maintain girls’ and women’s connection to their bodily appetites and desires throughout the lifespan.

The purpose of this study was to explore women’s subjective food and eating experiences from childhood through to adulthood and the ways in which these experiences either connected or disconnected them from their appetites for food and eating. The present study used a qualitative life history methodology, the goal of which is to assess individuals’ lived experiences to construct broader contextual meaning. In-depth interviews were used to investigate food and eating experiences among twelve women between ages 25 and 44, representing diverse social and cultural backgrounds as well as current and past eating problems. Participants took part in an open-ended interview, using a series of guided questions about their food and eating experiences from childhood through to adulthood. The interviews were transcribed and analyzed for themes using the constant comparison method. Two models emerged from the data in this study that described the social factors that connected and disconnected women from their appetites and eating. The Regulating Discourses Model which outlines current ways women negotiate appetite and desire through food and eating experiences, and the Socialization through Food and Eating Model which delineates socialization processes related to food and eating during women’s development. This research may be useful for counselors, health care professionals, as well as the larger community to increase awareness on ways to maintain girls’ and women’s connection to their bodily appetites and desires throughout the lifespan.

The aim of the study was to understand professionals’ perceptions and experiences of adolescent stress. In the study I interested myself further if you can identify gender-specific patterns in the professional stories about young people's stress and stress related illness. Five interviews were conducted with professionals in psychiatry and social work. The thesis took its incipience in social constructionism. Although a gender perspective has been used to better analyze and understand the difference between gender. Theories used to understand the professionals’ experiences of adolescent stress were the SOC theory, the network perspective and the demand-control-support model. The study has been performed from a qualitative method in the shape of semi-structural interviews. The result of the study showed that the professionals’ feel that the causes of stress among young people can be external and internal demands. Higher demands are often placed on girls, which can be a cause for girls’ high stress level.  Also social media and technology can cause stress. The professionals also felt that personality determines how susceptible a youth is to stress. Insomnia, anxiety and depression are symptoms that express itself in both gender, but are most common among girls. Yet another reason why boys did not seem to be as stressful as girls, may have to do with the boys' stress symptoms manifest themselves in a different way than in girls. The professionals' treatment of adolescent stress was mainly on therapy and to help them get structure in their life and existence. It was also important to look at the social network that exist around the person. There was no method for precisely tapered stress. The study showed no differences according to gender in the attitude or treatment of stress. It also appeared that stress may be both genetically and socially determined, but that is still a question with no certain answer.