This dissertation consists of two projects. Project 1 is comprised of two systematic review studies in which self-report measures of adult characterological resilience were identified and summarized. In Study 1, 51 personality-based instruments across five personality-based resilience constructs (ego-strength, grit, hardiness, mental toughness, and resilience) were identified. Information for each measure inclusive of measure title, construct, item count, factors, response scale and items, scoring method, and score range was summarized. In Study 2, 1,322 articles were identified that described 1,193 studies and 1,351 participant samples who completed between one and four of these resilience measures. Measure use frequency and contextual use information related to study and sample attributes are summarized. Project 2 is a series of meta-analyses that were conducted to investigate the psychometric properties of scores on the Brief Resilience Scale (BRS) reported in 149 studies of adult participants. Reliability generalization methods are used to summarize 86 observations of internal consistency (mean Cronbach’s α = .86) and validity generalization methods are used to summarize eight observations of convergent validity (Mr = .61). Concurrent validity is also investigated via validity generalization methods for the most frequently observed mental health correlates of BRS scores. For each set of mental health measures, an estimated summary effect was calculated (anxiety, Mr = -.47; depression, Mr = -.49; optimism, Mr = .44; social support, Mr = .24; and stress, Mr = -.53). Of the significant moderators conducted for concurrent validity estimates, the largest was sample category (accounting for 100% of the variance in the observed correlations between the BRS and measures of social support). Geographic location and participant age, accounted for 55%, and 24%, of the variation in the observed correlations between the BRS and significantly moderated the relation between the BRS and perceived stress. Discussion for both projects include how the obtained relate to resilience theory, and the potential broader implications of these findings. Also based upon these reviews and meta-analyses, the challenges of resilience measure use are discussed and observations/recommendations are provided.

Syftet med uppsatsen är att identifiera vad tittarna engageras av i reality-serien Wahlgrens värld. Metoden för undersökningen är en analys av avsnittens tematik och struktur med urval av avsnitt: 1, 3, 6 och 13 i säsong 5, baserat på att de täcker centrala delar av säsongen. Serien är uppbyggd på karaktärernas livsstil. Därför valdes huvudtemat ego kontra gemenskap för att kartlägga hur tematiken fungerar i relation till huvudtemat som är har sin grund i teori om själv-identitet i ett socialt sammanhang. Den tematiska strukturen som har analyserats har lett till att uppsatsen har sammanfattningsvis som slutsats: Wahlgrens värld inte enbart är en underhållande reality-serie utan strukturellt berättar, med hjälp av många tematiska faktorer som tittarna kan relatera till.

In my diploma thesis I deal with the topic of experience of another person from the phenomenological philosophical point of view. The two major motives of my diploma thesis are: the revelation of the shift in thinking of Edmund Husserl in the phenomenology of intersubjectivity and showing that Merleau-Ponty went way beyond Husserls thinking. In the first chapter I clarify what Husserls term 'empathy' meant in his Cartesian Meditations and how this conception follows the theory of Theodor Lipps. Then I explaine Husserls thinking of intersubjectivity from the book Ideas Pertaining to a Pure Phenomenology and to a Phenomenological Philosophy - Second Book. In the third chapter I describe the phenomenology of intersubjectivity in the work of Merleau-Ponty. The fourth chapter is an interpretation and subsequent comparison of both authors. My main aim is to show that Merleau-Pontys comprehension of 'intercorporeity' surpasses Husserls conception of intersubjectivity. The final chapter displays the critical thinking of my opinion according to Zahavis interpretation of Merleau-Pontys philosophy, from Husserl and Transcendental Intersubjectivity. In this diploma thesis I bring the analysis of one source of thinking about the experience of another person to an end. I have accomplished the imaginary circle...

Inledning: Det högkänsliga draget eller den högkänsliga personen (HSP) är en del av personlighetspsykologin och myntades först av Elaine Aron. Ämnet och draget är relativt outforskat och det finns fortfarande områden att belysa. Syftet med arbetet är att undersöka ett av dessa områden och det är psykoterapeuters erfarenhet av det högkänsliga draget i psykoterapi.  Frågeställning: Vad har psykodynamiskt orienterade psykoterapeuter för erfarenheter av det högkänsliga draget i en psykoterapi?  Metod: Fem legitimerade psykoterapeuter med erfarenhet av området valdes ut genom ett bekvämlighetsurval samt snöbollsmetod. För att besvara studiens fråga användes en kvalitativ metod med en induktiv ansats, samt semistrukturerade frågor och öppna fördjupningsfrågor. Intervjumaterialet strukturerades enligt en tematisk analys.  Resultat: De intervjuande psykoterapeuterna beskrev högkänsliga draget som ett resultat av individens uppväxtmiljö och omständigheter i livet. Det är uttrycket för negativa livsomständigheter, vilka går att arbeta med i en terapi. En integrering av kropp och själ blir i detta sammanhang ett mål för att uppnå en psykisk och fysisk hälsa hos personer med det högkänsliga draget. På grund av studiens storlek bör inga generella slutsatser dras rörande det högkänsliga draget, utan bör enbart vara begränsad till denna studie.  Diskussion: Psykoterapeuters erfarenheter kring det högkänsliga draget visade sig dela mycket av redan existerande föreställningar. Troligen har det sin grund i att definitionen av draget redan finns i befintlig litteratur och haft en viss mediaexponering, men kan även berott på att författaren haft en förförståelse om draget som kan haft en påverkan på respondenterna i studien. Att kroppen och sexualitet kom upp som ett ämne skapade nya frågor som tyvärr inte fick tillräcklig med plats i denna studie. Ämnet som sådant är intressant att studera vidare. Då studien enbart berör fem psykoterapeuters erfarenheter om det högkänsliga draget, bör inte några generella slutsatser dras rörande draget. Resultaten som presenteras bör endast begränsas till denna studie. / Introduction: The Highly Sensitive Trait or Highly Sensitive Person (HSP) is part of personality psychology and was first coined by Elaine Aron. The subjects and the trait is relatively unexplored and there are still areas to highlight. The purpose of this work is to investigate one of these areas and it is psychotherapists experience of patients with the highly sensitive trait.  Question: What are psychodynamic oriented psychotherapists’ experience of the highly sensitive trait in a psychotherapeutic context?  Method: Five licensed psychotherapists with experience in the area were selected through a convenience selection and snowball method. To answer the study’s question. A qualitative method with an inductive approach was used, with semi-structured questions and open in-depth questions. The interview material was structured according to a thematic analysis.  Results: The interviewed psychotherapists described the highly sensitive trait as a result of the individuals upbringing environment and circumstances in life. It is the expression of negative life circumstances, which can be worked with in a therapy. In this context, the integration of the body and mind becomes a goal for achieving mental and physical health in people with the highly sensitive trait. Due to the size of the study no general conclusions should be drawn regarding the highly sensitive trait, but should be limited to this study only.  Discussion: Psychotherapists ́ experience of the highly sensitive trait turned out to share much of already existing perceptions. This was probably due to the fact that the definition of the trait already exists in literature and has had a certain media exposure. But it may also be due to the authors pre-existing understanding of the trait that may have had an impact on the respondents in the study. The fact that the body and sexuality came up as a topic created new questions that unfortunately did not got enough space in this study. The subject is however interesting to study further. As the study is only based on the experience of five psychotherapists about the highly sensitive trait, no general conclusions should be drawn about the trait. The results should only be limited to this study.

The Rorschach records and Wechsler Intelligence Scale scores of sixty-six children between the ages of 5 and 13 were compared. Subjects in each group were from one of three conditions: children who have documented histories of physical abuse, children referred for clinical intervention with no history of abuse, and a community sample of children with no documented history of abuse or psychological treatment. Data from the groups were analyzed to examine evidence of increased reliance on ego functions related to motor activity and concurrent deficits in other areas of ego function by subjects in the physical abuse group. Results revealed that the physical abuse group showed a greater tendency toward color-dominant responses on the Rorschach than the comparison groups and that the Community control group produced records with lower extended form quality than the clinical groups. No significant differences were found for Performance/Verbal IQ split, EB style, Cooperative Movement or Aggressive content.

Un grand nombre de données sont représentables sous la forme d'un graphe (ensemble de nœuds liés par des liens). Dans cet exposé, je montrerai que deux problèmes majeurs concernant l'analyse de ces graphes de terrain, à savoir la détection de communautés (définies comme des groupes de nœuds qu'il est pertinent de rassembler) et la mise au point de mesures de proximité (évaluant dans quelle mesure deux nœuds sont topologiquement proches), sont fortement intriquées. En particulier, je présente une méthode qui permet, à l'aide d'une mesure de proximité, d'isoler des groupes de nœuds. Son principe général de fonctionnement est plutôt simple et peut être décrit comme suit. Étant donné un nœud d'intérêt dans le graphe, on calcule la proximité de chaque nœud dans le graphe à ce nœud d'intérêt. Ensuite, si un petit groupe de nœuds obtient une proximité très élevée à ce nœud d'intérêt et que tous les autres nœuds du graphe ont une proximité très faible, alors on peut directement conclure que le petit groupe de nœuds est "la communauté" du nœud d'intérêt. Je montre ensuite comment décliner cette idée pour résoudre efficacement les trois problèmes suivants : (i) trouver des communautés auxquelles un nœud donné appartient, (ii) compléter un ensemble de nœuds en une communauté et (iii) trouver des communautés recouvrantes dans un réseau. / Many kinds of data can be represented as a graph (a set of nodes linked by edges). In this thesis, I show that two major problems, community detection and the measure of the proximity between two nodes have intricate connexions. Particularly, I will present a framework that, using a proximity measure, can isolate a set of nodes. Its general principle is rather straightforward and can be described as follows. Given a node of interest in a graph, the proximity of all nodes in the network to that node of interest is computed. Then, if a small set of nodes have a high proximity to the node of interest while all other have a small proximity, we can directly conclude that the small set of nodes is the community of the node of interest. I'll then show how to tweak this idea to (i) find all communities of a given node, (ii) complete a set of nodes into a community and (iii) find all overlapping communities in a network. I will validate these methods on real and synthetic network datasets.

A partir d'une pratique clinique auprès de mineurs suivis dans un cadre judiciaire pénal, nous avons choisi d'aborder les problématiques de transgressions délictuelles à l’adolescence sous un angle interprétatif un peu décalé par rapport à celui, plus habituel, d'un défaut de régulation du Surmoi, en nous intéressant aux articulations dynamiques et topiques de celui-ci avec les instances idéales que sont le Moi-idéal et l'Idéal du Moi. Il apparaît pertinent de distinguer ces deux concepts, l’un étant le substitut du narcissisme primaire, constitué de fantasmes d’autarcie, d’omnipotence et de satisfaction absolue, l’autre étant l’héritier du complexe d’œdipe, fondé à travers l’élaboration du complexe de castration, et nourri des identifications aux objets parentaux idéalisés. Le Moi-idéal engage des mouvements de régression narcissique et apparaît comme un antagoniste du Surmoi, alors que l’Idéal du Moi soutient la maturation du Moi et, dans un développement normal, est amené à s’intriquer progressivement avec le Surmoi jusqu’à former un système Surmoi-idéal. Le Moi-idéal est le substitut du narcissisme primaire à partir de la reconnaissance de l’objet. L’Idéal du Moi peut être considéré comme le substitut du Moi-idéal dont il reprend les aspirations mais en se soumettant aux limites du désir que constituent l’épreuve de réalité, le sentiment de culpabilité et la castration symbolique. Nous soutenons avec d’autres auteurs que si l’Idéal du Moi s’ébauche au décours du complexe d’œdipe, il ne se structure véritablement qu’au cours du processus d’adolescence. Sa structuration s’étaye sur l’axe des relations d’objet isogénériques, c’est-à-dire concernant le parent du même sexe puis ses substituts, et ce à deux niveaux : à un niveau dyadique de relation, non ambivalente, et à un niveau triadique, ambivalent et œdipien. L’Idéal du Moi peut être considéré comme l’aboutissement de l’élaboration du complexe d’œdipe négatif, élaboration qui ne se réalise véritablement qu’à l’adolescence. L’étude clinique d’adolescents auteurs de transgressions délictuelles, sur un registre sexuel et/ou agressif, met en évidence l’existence de perturbations psychiques liées à des traumatismes et à des dysfonctionnements familiaux durant l'enfance de ces sujets, perturbations renforcées par le processus d’adolescence lui-même. L’articulation dynamique et topique entre instances en est atteinte. On peut ainsi repérer dans la séquence qui entoure le délit une alternance, plus ou moins radicale selon les cas, entre sentiment de triomphe et effondrement narcissique, signant respectivement les effets du Moi-idéal et du Surmoi archaïque. L’hypothèse centrale est que l’émergence d’actes délictuels n’est pas le signe d’une faiblesse du Surmoi, celui-ci apparaissant au contraire très actif aussi bien dans des registres de fonctionnement névrotique que limite ; l’apparente inefficience du Surmoi apparaît plutôt comme le résultat d’isolations, voire de clivages à l’intérieur du système Surmoi-idéal, et/ou d’une intensification du mouvement d’identification au Moi-idéal, mouvements défensifs qui érodent les effets interdicteurs du Surmoi. Ces mouvements défensifs peuvent être rangés sous ce que nous nommons une position perverse, investie régressivement ou révélant une inélaboration de la position dépressive et de la triangulation œdipienne. / From a clinical practice with adolescents followed in a criminal justice context, we have chosen to address the issues of tort transgressions in adolescence as an interpretive angle slightly offset from the more usual, a lack of regulation of the superego, interesting ourself to dynamic and topical thereof joints with ideal agencies that are the ideal ego and the ego ideal. It seems appropriate to distinguish these two concepts, one being the replacement of primary narcissism, made fantasies of self-sufficiency, all-powerfullness and absolute satisfaction, the other being the heir to the Oedipus complex, founded through the development of the castration complex, and fed by identifications with idealized parental objects. The ideal ego undertakes narcissistic movements of regression and appears as an antagonist of the superego, while the ego ideal supports the maturation of the ego, and in normal development, is gradually brought to entangle with the superego up form a super-ego - ideal system. The ideal ego is the substitute of primary narcissism from the recognition of the object. The ego ideal can be considered as a substitute for the ideal ego, which it takes aspirations, but by submitting to the limits of desire that is the reality-testing, guilt and symbolic castration. We support with other authors that if the ego ideal to draft the waning of the Oedipus complex, it is really structured during the process of adolescence. Its structure supports on the axis of homosexual object-relationship, that is to say on the same-sex parent and its substitutes, and at two levels : a dyadic relationship level, not ambivalent, and a triadic level, ambivalent and oedipal. The ego ideal can be seen as the culmination of the development of the negative Oedipus complex, development that truly realizes during adolescence. The clinical study of young perpetrators of transgressions tort on a sexual and / or aggressive registry, highlights the existence of psychic disturbances associated with traumas and family dysfunctions during the childhood of these subjects, enhanced by disturbances caused by adolescence process itself. The dynamic and topical relationship between agencies is reached. We can thus identify the sequence surrounding the offense alternating, more or less radical, as appropriate, between the feeling of triumph and a narcissistic collapse, signing respectively the effects of ideal ego and archaic superego. The central hypothesis is that the emergence of torts is not a sign of weakness of the superego, it contrary appears very active both in the neurotic than limit functionnings, the apparent inefficiency of superego appears rather as the result of insulation, and even splittings inside the superego - ideal system, and / or intensification of identification with the ideal ego, defensive moves that erode prohibiting effects of the superego. These defensive moves can be stored in what we call a perverse position, invested regressively or revealing a non-elaboration of the depressive position and the oedipal triangulation.

Ego-identity development has long been regarded as an important developmental process for late adolescents. According to existing literature, ego-identity achievement or committing oneself to a set of identity components after having explored viable identity alternatives (e.g., in matters of relationships, political philosophy, etc.), is conducive to a wide array of positive outcomes for individuals, families, and entire communities. The objective of this study was to examine the extent that college experiences and participation in LDS missionary service (i.e., moratorium experiences) were associated with ego-identity development, specifically in terms of identity exploration and commitment. A sample of late adolescents (N=425), all of whom had participated in at least some college and of whom 122 had volunteered as LDS missionaries, provided information about their moratorium experiences that could be related to identity development and reported their levels of identity exploration and commitment according to the Extended Objective Measure of Ego-Identity Status (EOMEIS-2). Independent-samples t tests and chi-square tests were used to examine demographic and identity differences between LDS postmissionaries and LDS non-postmissionaries. LDS postmissionaries and LDS non-postmissionaries differed significantly only in the variables of sex and age. Univariate ANOVA and regression were used to examine the extent to which college and missionary service were associated with overall identity scores. Bothe college studies and LDS missionary service were significantly associated with the four EOMEIS-2 subscale scores of diffusion, foreclosure, moratorium experiences differed significantly in the magnitude and/or direction of their prediction of identity outcomes only in moratorium and foreclosure scores. Both experiences were similarly positively associated with achievement scores and negatively associated with diffusion scores. Stepwise linear regression was used to examine the extent to which certain features of college studies and missionary service were associated with identity scores. After controlling for age, sex, income, and years of education, numerous features of the two experiences, such as motives for participation, funding, frequency of weekly experiences, and learning a foreign language were significantly associated with identity scores. College features shared the greatest amount of variability with diffusion scores, and mission features shared the greatest amount of variability with foreclosure scores.

Subjects' reported dream recall frequency, dream content and vividness or recall were discussed and examined in relation to sex of the subject and MMPI Conscious Anxiety, Conscious Repression and Ego-strength scores. Fifty-three Utah State University students, who volunteered to participate in a study of dreaming behavior, were administered the MMPI and asked to complete a dream log diary. The dream log required a daily recording of total number of dreams recalled, the number of vividly and vaguely recalled dreams and a rating of each dream in one of four dream content-process categories. Content-process categories included pleasurable, working, conflict and disorganized/frightening dreams. Relationships and possible interaction effects for the variables measured were tested for significance. No significant relationship was found between Conscious Anxiety, Conscious Repression or Ego-strength and dream recall frequency, sex of the subject, percentage of vivid dreams recalled, or percent of dreams recalled in the positive (pleasurable and working dreams) versus negative (conflict and disorganized/frightening) categories. Several significant differences were found, however, between the percentage of dreams reported in dream content-process categories for male subjects when analyzed according to higher-lower MMPI scale score categories and higher-lower dream recall level. Results of subcategory analysis tended to support an interaction between anxiety, repression and dream process consistent with the continuity and adaptive theories of dreaming. Male subjects with higher Conscious Anxiety reported a significantly greater percent of disorganized/frightening dreams. Higher anxiety tended to produce a higher percentage of working dreams as long as repression of threatening material was low enough to permit the recall of more emotion-laden dream processes. There was also a significant interaction between reported precent of pleasurable dreams, recall level and repression, which was explained as possibly indicating that pleasurable dreams may serve as an escape of integrating process for high repression male subjects. Results of analysis for female subjects indicated that higher recall subjects reported a significantly higher percent of disorganized dreams, which is consistent with the salience theory of recall. Recalled dream processes seemed to be not as strongly tied to personality variables for female subjects. Contentless dreams have been proposed in previous research to reflect repression by the subject. Results showed no significant difference between higher and lower repression subjects on the number of contentless dreams reported.

Although transactional analysis (TA) theory has been used by psychotherapists since its introduction by Eric Berne in the 1960s, the ego state functioning constructs, a seminal part of the theory, have not been adequately validated. Previous research has focused on whether therapy using TA methodology works. This study tested the TA ego state constructs by measuring client change occurring during psychotherapy and comparing those changes with predictions from the TA theory. Fifty-six subjects, who were clients at a university counseling center in the Rocky Mountain region of the United States, were tested before and after therapy using two standardized instruments, the Adjective Check List (ACL) and the Brief Symptom Inventory (BSI) and client and therapist global ratings of success of therapy. Critical Parent, Nurturing Parent, Adult, and Adapted Child ego state scores from the ACL all changed in the predicted directions and reached statistical significance. Free Child ego state score changes did not reach statistical significance. Ego state scores correlated with BSI Global Severity Index in predicted directions and all correlations except Critical Parent were statistically significant. Changes in ego state scores did not correlate with client and therapist ratings of success with one exception--Nurturing Parent was related to Client ratings of success. Changes in ego state scores did not correlate with subject pretest symptomatology, number of sessions, or the therapist's level of experience. Limitations of the study and recommendations for further research are discussed.