The increasing awareness about the important role that fathers play in their daughters’ lives, have lead to the undertaking of this study. The goal of this study was to determine whether there is a specific parenting style of fathers that will contribute to the achieving of a higher level of emotional intelligence in grade 2 daughters. Quantitative research with an exploratory and descriptive nature was used. Data were collected with the use of the Parenting Styles and Dimensions Questionnaire (PSDQ) as well as the Cilliers Emotional Intelligence Test. The sample consisted of 24 Grade 2 girls and their parents. The conclusion was that the relationship between parenting style dimensions and emotional intelligence was not showed through the parenting style or dimension mostly used, but through the parenting style dimension that was used the least. / Thesis (M. Diac. (Spelterapie))

This explorative qualitative research investigates whether there is a difference in the symbolic meanings between the bulimic’s behaviour of purposefully expelling food versus the anorexic’s deprivation of food by administering the Thematic Apperceptive Test, as well as, conducting in-depth, semi-structured individual interviews with two bulimic women, two anorexic women of the restrictive sub-type and one anorexic woman of the binge-eating/ purging sub-type, whose ages ranged from twenty-one to thirty-five years of age. Both the conscious and unconscious themes that emerge from their stated relationship with food and their TAT responses are explored, with particular interest being focused on whether the symbolic meaning of food is in essence a “symbolic equation” for an object, specifically the mother and parental couple. The concept of “symbolic equation” is explored analytically from a Kleinian perspective to ascertain whether it is not food, per se that the anorexic is depriving herself of or that the bulimic suddenly and uncontrollably ingests, but then rapidly and violently expels. On the contrary, it appears that the refusal to introject or the ambivalent battle between introjection and expulsion of food is used as a disguise for the underlying conflictual object relation/s. The modified version of the Bellak Scoring System (1986) was used to analyse their TAT responses in order to elicit the themes that represent their internal worlds and object relations. Individual thematic content analysis was conducted on each interview transcript separately, and then a comparative analysis performed to explore commonalities and differences across the transcripts and TAT responses amongst the three anorexic women as a group and the bulimic women as a separate group. After which, the two different eating disorder groups were compared to explore both their differences and similarities. The findings suggest that a variety of conscious and unconscious motives might best be understood within the historical context of each participant’s early development and family dynamics. It appears that the anorexic is unconsciously motivated, at least partly, by her desire to repudiate any experience of dependency, separateness, loss, frustration, envy, fear, guilt and helplessness. Conversely, the bulimic appears to be motivated, at least partly, by the repetitive magical quest to restore a ‘good’ self-object bond and to stifle her destructiveness. Nonetheless, underlying both the anorexic’s and the bulimic’s illness is an ambivalent struggle with internalising a gainful and durable link to an object, which can in some way be permitted to be ‘good’. This appears to have its origin in the mother-daughter relationship, father-daughter relationship, parental couple, as well as, the triangular space between the mother-daughter-father link. / Dissertation (MA)--University of Pretoria, 2008. / Psychology / unrestricted

No description available.

The mother-daughter relationship is dual, ambivalent, a hall of mirrors; it is at once the site of the womb and maternity, a veritable matrix of meaning. The mother-daughter pairing moves through the body, constantly calling attention to its origins and valorising a transmission au féminin even from within a patriarchal society. However, it can also prove catastrophic. Though the mother is the first person with whom the daughter identifies—her first link to life—the daughter not only reacts to her, but also pushes against her. It would appear that this confrontation is necessary, that it allows the child to detach herself from the mother even as she models herself on her. In order to avoid a destructive union, the daughter must become conscious of the maternal love from which she must take her distance if she is to become someone, and more precisely, a woman. In the novels analysed here, the daughter’s flight—her quest for independence from her mother—points to her need to create herself, to come into her own without destroying the mother-daughter bond. The notion of space is of the utmost importance in the discovery and (re-)establishment of this exclusive filial/maternal relationship. Space becomes the symbol of the mother and the antidote to filial solitude, a site of resistance, one to be conquered and understood, and thus an incentive to write the mother-daughter relationship. The symbolic matricide—depicted in these novels through the absence of the mother during the process of identification and the liberation of the daughter—ensures, a posteriori, the continuation rather than destruction of the filial/maternal relationship, as well as the affirmation of a female lineage. La relation mère-fille est duelle, ambivalente, jeu de miroirs. A la fois lieu de la matrice, lieu de maternage, et de matriçage. Le couple mère-fille en appelle en effet au corps, revenant à l’origine de cette relation qui valorise une transmission au féminin, et ce à l’intérieur-même d’une société patriarcale tendant à assujettir les femmes. Il peut toutefois aussi devenir désastre. La fille réagit face à sa mère, première personne à laquelle elle peut s’identifier, premier lien à la vie. La confrontation est, semble-t-il, nécessaire, elle permet à l’enfant de se détacher de la figure maternelle tout en s’en servant de modèle. Afin d’éviter une union destructrice, la fille doit prendre conscience d’un amour maternel envers lequel il faut qu’elle prenne ses distances de façon à être, à son tour, quelqu’un, et plus précisément une femme. La fuite des filles, ou du moins leur recherche d’indépendance face à leur mère dans les romans analysés indique cette nécessité de se construire soi-même sans pour autant détruire le lien à la mère. L’espace prend alors une place prépondérante dans la découverte et le rétablissement de cette relation maternelle exclusive. Il s’avère être symbole de la mère, antidote contre la solitude filiale, espace à conquérir et à comprendre, lieu de résistance, incitation à écrire cette relation mère-fille. Le meurtre symbolique de la mère, illustré ici par l’absence de celle-ci lors du processus d’identification et de libération de la fille assure a posteriori la persistance de la relation maternelle ainsi que l’affirmation d’une lignée féminine – et non leur anéantissement. / Thesis (Ph.D, French) -- Queen's University, 2013-04-18 17:21:29.738

Sea Stories is a collection of creative nonfiction essays centered around the growth of a young woman through her experiences with water and ships. The pieces trace the origins of the narrator's tie to water from a childhood involving boating with her dad to sailing a brigantine across the Pacific Ocean and then a six-year career as an officer in the U.S. Coast Guard. The narrator's relationship with her father, predominantly viewed through their shared intimacy with water, is a base theme for the whole collection. Other themes explored in individual essays include reckoning expectations with reality, explorations of the self in and against a group, gender dynamics in military service, and the influence of fiction on life. Sea Stories shows that what we think we know, what we may have only imagined, and on the water, that self-constructed reality can be a dangerous thing.

Adolescent dating violence is a prevalent and disconcerting reality for many adolescents. Communication with others (e.g., parents, older siblings, friends) about dating violence may buffer some negative outcomes associated with experiencing dating violence. Although researchers are attending more to this public health problem, what we know about the messages that adolescents receive about dating violence is limited, especially for Latina teens. To address this gap in the literature, 18 Latina adolescents (14-17 years) and their mothers participated in semi-structured interviews to explore their beliefs about what dating violence means to them, messages that are shared about dating violence with mothers and friends, adolescents’ help seeking preferences and behaviors, and reasons for and against talking with parents about problems in dating relationships. Interviews were transcribed and coded for emergent themes. Participants described many examples of problems in dating relationships including some traditional forms of dating violence (e.g., physical harm) and some advancing forms of dating abuse (e.g., aggression through social media). Messages that Latina adolescents receive from parents and friends include advice to “try to work it out or get out of the relationship” and “talk to someone.” Barriers to seeking help from parents and others included “worry about parent’s response” and “lack of closeness or trust.” Themes of supports to seeking help from parents and others included having a “close and trusting relationship” and having had “an established pattern of communication.” Latina adolescents also suggested they may prefer to seek help for problems in dating situations from friends and older siblings. Results suggest that Latina adolescents and their mothers may be knowledgeable about problems in dating situations. However, the messages that Latina adolescents receive differs by who is giving the message and Latina teens may hesitate talking to their parents about problems in dating if they fear negative parental reactions or they do not sense that parents can effectively facilitate the conversations. Given that many victims of dating violence do not tend to disclose their dating problems or seek help, these results highlight the importance of educating parents on how to promote open and effective communication. Results also highlight the importance of informing peers and siblings on how to respond when their friends/siblings experience dating problems. Finally, results suggest implications for primary prevention programs guided by support for culturally tailored interventions.

Master of Science / Department of Family Studies and Human Services / Karen Myers-Bowman / Female adolescent sexual behavior has several potential negative life consequences including: pregnancy, sexually transmitted infection, and HIV/AIDS. Educating parents on how they play a role in the decision-making process regarding the sexual behavior of their adolescent daughters has important implications for Family Life Educators. This thesis explores maternal influence on the risky sexual behavior of female adolescents related to age at first sexual intercourse, contraceptive use, and number of partners. ANOVA was used to explore the relationships between a variety of aspects in the mother-daughter relationship. Findings show there are associations between time spent together, perceptions of closeness, and communication in mother-daughter relationships, and contraceptive use at first and most recent intercourse and total number of partners.

Iris Fitzgerald struggles to make it day to day after she is raped and stabbed while out on an early morning run. Her story is told through her relationships, not only with her new, scared self, but also with her overbearing mother, her best friend, her rescuer and her antagonistic roommate. She has just moved to a strange city and still has not found a job. So, she has the overwhelming stress of the attack to contend with and the added pressure of running quickly out of money in the expensive city of San Francisco. She uses her painkillers as an escape from her stab wound as well as her emotional pain. Claiming Iris is about self-preservation, relationships, addiction and continuing on with life.

This creative thesis of poems explores the relationship between traveling literally and traveling metaphorically as the speaker grapples with the reality of her mother's Alzheimer's disease. In the process, she uncovers her own potentialities and limitations.

Diary of a Gay Bride is a memoir about an artist planning her multi-cultural gay wedding in hopes her dying mother will be able to attend.