The purpose of this study was to obtain information regarding how people are affected by a diagnosis of genital warts/HPV. The psychosocial affects studied included emotional health, social and sexual relationships, feeling's about one's sexuality, safer sex practices and sexual behavior. 147 students (96 females and 51 males) completed the Symptom Check List 90-R (SCL-90-R) and a sexual history and demographic questionnaire. Participants were divided into three groups: students diagnosed with genital warts/HPV (HPV group), students diagnosed with a curable STD (curable group), and students with no diagnosed STD (No STD group). Thirteen students who were diagnosed with genital warts/HPV agreed to be interviewed, and each expressed recurring concerns about fear of transmission, rejection, frustration with the medical establishment and telling future partners. The qualitative findings from this study found that subjects who were older (more than 20-years-old), had more than 2 to 4 sexual partners in their lifetimes, had their first sexual intercourse at an early age (13 to 15-years-old) and only practiced safer sex "sometimes" were more likely to have been diagnosed with either genital warts/HPV or a curable STD than the No STD group. Subjects with genital warts/HPV were more likely to change their sexual behavior after a diagnosis by practicing safer sex "consistently". Some subjects reported that they had stopped being sexually active as a result of their diagnosis with genital warts/HPV. Analysis of variance was used to compare the sample means of the SCL-90-R sub-scales for the three sample groups. The most significant findings were demonstrated when subjects were evaluated by gender. The sub-scales of the curable and genital warts/HPV groups for women were both elevated. This may indicate that "curability" is not a factor affecting the psychological symptomatology of these groups. Based on these findings, the diagnosis of genital warts/HPV and a curable STD requires certain psychological assistance and patient education. People at high risk (those with multiple partners, early age at first intercourse, a history of STDs and alcohol abuse) need to be informed about genital warts/HPV, its prevalence, its virulent nature, and its medical complications. The psychosocial impact of any STD, curable or incurable, is of great importance in treating the person "systemically" to fully address all aspects of the disease.

Children's reasoning and learning about levers and simple machines were investigated in this study. The study included several cycles of design, test and clinical interview tutoring sessions and the two final cycles are presented here. The methodology combined the use of qualitative clinical interviewing data and quantitative summative data: quantitative evaluations provided an overview of the lessons' effects, while qualitative, formative lesson evaluations allowed deeper insights into learning and reasoning processes. Three groups of participants were interviewed about the pretest, lesson and posttest. The pre- and posttests were standardized, and several new and widespread misconceptions about levers have been discovered that are less accurate or general than conventional conceptions. In experiment 1 the pre-posttest comparison between the control group and experimental group 1 showed that there were no differences and the instruction in experiment 2 was revised considerably as a result of the formative evaluation findings. Significant improvements were apparent for experimental group 2 with regard to conceptual change and for transfer when compared with experimental group 1--evident in group 2 students' ability to transfer their acquired knowledge to complex and compound levers and in conceptual changes apparent in simple levers questions. Lesson 1 was essentially a bridging lesson where "intuitive anchoring" examples were extended analogically via intermediate bridging cases to a target situation. The findings from lesson 1 suggested that reasoning from extreme case situations of levers might be instructionally useful, and this hypothesis was confirmed by results from experiment 2, where the instructional sequences based on extreme case reasoning proved to be powerful facilitators of the construction of mechanistic models by the students that fostered conceptual change and learning. The following directions for further research are suggested: students' conceptual models have implications for teaching and learning that are poorly understood at this stage, and research on instruction that employs experts' non-formal reasoning strategies should be encouraged.

<p> Corrective experiences (CEs) in psychotherapy are important curative factors and clients who experience transformation post rapid gains and thrive as a result. Although transformations are important indicators of growth, less than half of clients experience them. This qualitative study explored the experience of transformation in graduates of a comprehensive, experiential training in Hakomi psychotherapy (HT): a mindful, body centered psychology. Ten graduates of a 2-year comprehensive training in the Hakomi Method of mindful, body-centered psychotherapy who experienced transformation were interviewed. Phenomenological Interpretive Analysis (IPA) was used to interpret participant accounts of the effects of transformation on the body/mind. Analyses yielded 7 categories of transformative experience: Transformation, Deepened Expanded Sense of Self, Mindfulness, Body Wisdom, Relationships, Community, and Integration. The essence of transformation in HT was considered and the interaction effect of mindfulness was explored. HT is a mindfulness based, body-centered psychology and mindfulness was found to have effects on the experience of transformation. Transformation in somatic psychology provides a comprehensive whole body mind experience that results in a sense of self expansion that positively affects relationships and communities. Transformation in HT graduates extended into multiple areas of experience and fits into Wilber&rsquo;s all quadrants all levels (AQAL) integral model of transformation. Implications, limitations and clinical applications of the embodied experience of transformation in Hakomi psychotherapy are considered.</p>

<p> This study inquires into the peak experience of educators arising within educational encounters with students. It indicates a particular trend in education away from authoritarian modes of teacher behavior toward dialogic, empathetic relationships cultivated by teachers with their students. Also indicated is the potential for teachers to transform themselves morally, thereby creating conditions necessary for students to develop moral attitudes and behavior. By developing capacities for meditation, contemplation, and self-reflection, by developing intrapersonal and interpersonal skills, teachers enter on a path of development and actualize a truly human individuality. When self-actualization becomes a modus operando, peak experiences may give self-reflecting teachers knowledge of their own development. </p><p> A mixed-methods approach to the project was used that employed a questionnaire to: (a) establish the demographics of the sample; and (b) survey the types of peak experience that occurred within teachers resulting from educational encounters with children. The questionnaire also requested that the participant give a narrative of a peak experience. From the pool of 46 respondents, seven were chosen for interviews that ultimately clarified and enabled a deeper understanding of the narratives. The interview data and narratives were analyzed using a 3 step process proposed by Ricoeur (1986) and employed by Lindseth and Norberg (2004). The data revealed that teachers working with Steiner pedagogy have a multitude of peak experiences. These teachers use contemplative practice and self-reflection to cultivate intrinsic qualities of empathy, love, and dialogic competence. The findings also affirm that the kinds of peak experience reported by James (1901/2008), Bucke (1905/2006), Maslow (1970), and Csikszentmihalyi (1990) are definitely and extensively in evidence in the sample surveyed. Particular aspects of experience reported also included: dreaming as a mode of cognition, the prescient nature of some experiences, the prevalence of self-reflective and contemplative practices as precursors to peak and transpersonal experiences, the importance of the encounter as a condition for the emergence of such experiences within teachers.</p>

<p> The aim of this survey research pilot study was to determine if there is a relationship that exists between a teacher&rsquo;s perceptions about their disciplinary style and early life exposure to adverse experiences. The method consisted of two brief questionnaires (the Adverse Childhood Experience questionnaire and the Behavior and Instruction Management Scale) which was completed electronically by 2,149 teachers (response rate 16.51%) practicing within the state of Maine. The Behavior and Instruction Management Scale (BIMS) is a validated measure of teacher beliefs about their behavioral and instructional management practices in their classrooms and the Adverse Childhood Experience (ACE) questionnaire is a validated measure of early life exposure to adverse experiences. Previous research using the ACE questionnaire indicated a strong correlation between a high number of adverse experiences in childhood and increased risk of developing later negative health conditions, including depression, obesity and heart disease. Moreover, early adverse experiences can lead to more extreme beliefs in parenting practices including discipline. This current survey research pilot-study determined the percentage of teacher who endorsed high levels of adverse childhood experiences and a possible connection between high levels of early adverse experiences and classroom behavior management. </p><p> In this study 14.5% of teachers reported experiencing at least 4 of the 10 categories of adverse childhood experiences, which is over double the expected rate based on the original study. The results of this survey research design were correlated using Spearman&rsquo;s rho and found a very weak and statistically nonsignificant correlation of <i>r</i> = .010, <i> p</i> = .007, between a teacher&rsquo;s ACE score and their BIMS score. The significance of this study and implications for future policy and research are discussed.</p><p>

<p> This dissertation explores how Waldorf early childhood educators use the theories and practices embedded in Waldorf early childhood education (WECE), which are based on the psycho-spiritual-biological model of development developed by philosopher Rudolf Steiner, to help parents care for their children during their first 7 years. While there is a large body of writing on Waldorf early childhood theory and practice from within the Waldorf community, little has been written in scholarly and academic circles. Seeking to bridge this divide, 12 senior Waldorf early childhood educators who are acknowledged experts in their communities were interviewed. The study gathered information from senior Waldorf early childhood educators through qualitative, semi-structured interviews aimed at understanding the nature of teaching parenting skills that accord with Waldorf early childhood principles. Interview questions were informed by the literature review, which focuses on Steiner&rsquo;s (2003) developmental theory, Susan Howard&rsquo;s (2006) outline of early childhood education essentials, and the historical contexts in which these teachings are embedded. All interviews were analyzed using an adaptation of grounded theory methods. Results illuminated 11 major themes to describe how parent educators use the environment and their &ldquo;being&rdquo; to offer parent-centered, experiential practices rooted in Anthroposophy that &ldquo;protect childhood&rdquo; from impinging cultural conditions and contemporary parenting challenges. Through modeling and relationship with parents and children, parent educators offer a set of parenting skills that support health for families as understood through an Anthroposophical developmental lens. Additionally, parent educators help foster community and attachments such that parents can integrate their learning and begin a path of inner transformation. The study is designed to provide an empirical base to discussions of how Waldorf early education of parents works at the beginning of the 21st century.</p>

<p> For career musicians who underwent a lockout by their managements, such a traumatic disruption was an opportunity for learning to occur about their profession, music performance, and themselves. Using Jarvis&rsquo;s (2004, p. 106) model of adult learning processes, a phenomenological study sought to answer the research question: <i>How did the lived experience of career musicians during a labor lockout change their self-concept as musicians?</i> To arrive at an essence of that experience, quantitative and qualitative data were gathered by using a demographic questionnaire and interviews. The population was identified from published rosters of two acclaimed orchestras that locked out their musicians in the 2012&ndash;13 and 2013&ndash;14 performance seasons. The qualitative data analysis followed Creswell&rsquo;s (2007, p. 159) method to arrive at a description of the &ldquo;essence&rdquo; of lived experience by career musicians during a labor lockout. Results confirmed the lockouts provided &ldquo;disjunctures&rdquo; as catalysts for &ldquo;lifelong education&rdquo; (Jarvis, 2004), even though musicians&rsquo; self-concept were affirmed. As a group, musicians fit Haiven&rsquo;s (2006) matrix of negotiation when performing with a top-down, hierarchical organization, but not when performing in a collaborative organization, bringing musicians into Haiven&rsquo;s (2006) &ldquo;union zone.&rdquo; However, results departed from Haiven&rsquo;s (2006) matrix by indicating career musicians&rsquo; high need for social networks and less dependency on work deployment within collaborative organizations. The essence of musicians&rsquo; experiences during a labor lockout could inform the fields of labor relations, andragogy, music education, music psychology, and organizational change.</p>

This study attempts to investigate religion in the life of the young adult at University College Cork (UCC). It aims to ensure that pastoral ministry is based, not on guesses and assumptions, but on ascertained facts. The study is underpinned by historical, theological, psychological and sociological factors. It traces the provisions made for religion during each phase of its history as a nondenominational college. The contention is that religion arises from the nature of human beings in their capacity to relate to the mystery of God and the need to express this through organised religion in accordance with the culture. Expectations in relation to religion are informed by the psychological understanding that religious faith is not a constant through life. Young adult students are subject to the transitions which are typical of that stage of development. Account is taken of the effect on religion of the rapid changes in Irish society in the second half of the twentieth century. A multiple triangulation research design, consisting of a survey, depth interviews and participant observations, was used in the investigation. The survey was carried out by means of a postal questionnaire, administered to a systematic sample of students in the 18-23 year age group during the 1996/97 academic year. It examined student priorities, membership of religion, public worship, private prayer, charitable works, beliefs and moral values. The data were analysed using simple frequencies, descriptive statistics, cross-tabulations, ANOVA and T-tests. Further insights were obtained by means of twenty depth interviews and by the observations of the researcher. These strands were interwoven in creating a canvas on religion in the life of the young adult at UCC. Interested parties are challenged to a new approach to religion as UCC makes its transition from a college to an institution of full university status.

Theses (Ed.S.)--Marshall University, 2006. / Title from document title page. Includes abstract. Document formatted into pages: contains v, 19 pages. Bibliography: p. 15-17.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Oklahoma State University, 2009. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references.