Little research has identified the proactive psychosocial attributes and tactics that deaf individuals can use to maximise their potential with hearing peers. A comprehensive and systematic framework of psychosocial skills has also been absent in deafness-related research. / This study featured data gleaned from 49 participants from Australia, England, and the USA who were mostly highly educated, and vocationally and socially successful. These participants formed three groups: Oral Deaf (n=22), Hearing (n=19), and Culturally Deaf (n=8). All participants were over the age of 25 and self-regarded as maximising their potential in mainstream society. All hearing participants had had a close relationship with a deaf individual for more than one year and reported not having a disability. All deaf participants nominated whether or not they were culturally Deaf (CD) and reported not having an additional disability to deafness. / Most deaf participants reported pre-lingual deafness (n=18). All but one deaf participant reported greater than severe-to-moderate bilateral deafness. Eighteen (60%) deaf participants wore hearing aids, ten had a cochlear implant, and two had no assistive sensory device. Twenty-four (80%) deaf participants relied on speech-reading and all but one always used their voice to communicate. Nineteen (63%) deaf participants were educated solely in a mainstream school but only three (10%) were educated solely in a School for the Deaf. The majority (64%) of Oral Deaf (OD) participants had not learned Sign Language (SL) and only three continued or were fluent with SL. All CD participants used SL. Data trends also suggested that two CD participants were ‘purely’ CD, whereas the six other CD participants likely were ‘bi-cultural’. / This exploratory research used a framework of psychosocial themes used in a study with vocationally successful participants with a Learning Disability by Reiff, Ginsberg and Gerber (1995). These themes were grouped into Internal Decisions (Desire, Goal Orientation, and Reframing) and External Manifestations (Persistence, Goodness of Fit, Learned Creativity, and Social Ecologies). Control was the eighth theme that embraced all other seven themes. Reiff et al.’s framework was modified for the current study’s purposes so that the combined effect of the three thematic categories of Control, Internal Decisions, and External Manifestations equals Potential Maximisation. Potential Maximisation was therefore defined as the measure of a participant’s psychosocial attributes and tactics used in social and vocational contexts. / Screening surveys were used to glean demographic data and to determine the participants’ eligibility. Eligible deaf and hearing participants were then administered follow-up surveys. These follow-up surveys included identical items that were scored for the purposes of between-group statistical analyses. The follow-up survey for deaf participants featured additional deafness-specific items that were not in the follow-up survey for hearing participants. The follow-up survey items were allocated to themes in Reiff et al.’s (1995) framework. / Mixed-methods were administered on the data. Between- and within-group analyses were also conducted. Three between-group comparisons featured statistical analyses on each of the four variables of Control, Internal Decisions, External Manifestations, and Potential Maximisation. The results of the ANOVAs and t-tests (2-tailed) showed no significant differences in the mean scores for each of four variables. These trends indicated that 1) the deaf and hearing participants used similar or identical psychosocial attributes and tactics to maximise their potential, and that 2) hearing status and 3) deaf identity were not factors influencing the maximisation of psychosocial potential. / Three within-group analyses were then conducted. These included case studies, composite pictures, and reporting qualitative data trends. The case studies showed that the highest scoring participant provided comparatively numerous, richer, and detailed psychosocial attributes and tactics than the lowest scoring participant. The composite pictures further showed remarkable similarities, which, again, highlighted the participants’ use of similar psychosocial attributes and tactics. Qualitative data trends particularly illustrated that deaf participants also used additional psychosocial attributes and tactics for circumventing deafness-related challenges.

Thèse (Ph. D.)--University of London, 1996. / In MyiLibrary. Titre de l'écran-titre (visionné le 10 juin 2008). Description based on print version record. Bibliogr.: p. 281-292.

Thesis (M.A.)--Catholic Theological Union at Chicago, 2005. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 108-109).

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Graduate Theological Union, 2008. / Includes abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 345-362).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of London, 1996. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 281-292) and index.

Thesis (M.A.)--Catholic Theological Union at Chicago, 2005. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 108-109).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Miami University, Dept. of Educational Leadership, 2007. / Title from second page of PDF document. Includes bibliographical references (p. 97-100).

Thesis (Ed.D.)--Duquesne University, 2007. / Title from document title page. Abstract included in electronic submission form. Includes bibliographical references (p.143-152) and index.

This thesis takes its point of departure in the change of emphasis in the field of environmental and sustainability education (ESE) towards the inclusion of social and human development issues. The theoretical frames of the thesis are poststructural and postcolonial theories, from which different writings, central concepts and approaches are drawn. The thesis also builds on a pragmatist and anti-essentialist approach which argues that we socially construct the meaning of right and wrong and what works better in our lives on the current problematic or situation. The results are presented in four studies and the thesis has three purposes. The first purpose is to describe and investigate theoretical perspectives that take a critical stand on and offer alternatives to universal and consensus-oriented approaches. This purpose is the central focus in the first and second studies. The first study examines the re-emergence of classical cosmopolitanism and contemporary views of the perspective with the intent of discussing its potential for the development of education for sustainable development (ESD). The second study aims to clarify the philosophical problem of addressing universally sustainable responsibilities and values in environmental and sustainability education. The second purpose is to investigate teachers’ ethical reflections in a first-hand intercultural experience. This purpose is dealt with in the third study, where seven Swedish upper secondary school teachers facing particular conflicts of interest and moral situations during a study visit to Central America are interviewed. The third purpose is to investigate how teachers deal with the complex issues of intragenerational equity or social justice in their teaching. This is dealt with in the fourth study, which explores how teachers integrate issues of social justice into their teaching of global sustainability. My hope is that this thesis will contribute to the discussion about how teachers can develop a conscious and critically informed approach to the teaching of environmental and sustainability issues and also contribute to theoretical and philosophical discussions about universalism, normativity and global ethics within environmental and sustainability education research.

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / This study aims to examine the relationship between the State and railroad workers of Santa Maria during the first period of the Civil-Military Dictatorship in Brazil between 1964 and 1968. Given this, we seek to establish the main line of work as the idea that in this period due to the violent repression that followed mainly against the most active class-leaders, the pragmatism that characterized the political praxis of the railways during the so-called populist state (1945 -1964) came to an end. Likewise, the role of representative organizations scattered in associations, unions, etc. lost his sense of being due to policy interventions suffered at the summit which led to a depoliticization of workers and take a role especially bureaucratic in relation to conflicts at work. Thus, the railways have been jettisoned not only their influence on the other professional categories in the city, as well as the various spheres of power which had representatives. The issue of torture against political prisoners in Santa Maria was another important issue that has examined and direct connection with the practice intervention and demobilization class carried out by the authoritarian regime that was imposed in the country from 1964. / O presente estudo visa examinar as relações entre o Estado e os trabalhadores ferroviários de Santa Maria durante o primeiro período da Ditadura Civil-Militar brasileira, entre 1964 e 1968. Diante disto, procuramos estabelecer como linha principal do trabalho a ideia de que neste período devido à violenta repressão que se seguiu principalmente contra os líderes classistas mais atuantes, o pragmatismo que caracterizou a práxis política dos ferroviários durante o período do assim chamado Estado populista (1945-1964) chegou ao fim. Da mesma forma, a atuação dos organismos representativos dispersos em associações, uniões, etc., perdeu seu sentido de ser devido às intervenções sofridas na cúpula diretiva o que levou a uma despolitização do meio classista e a assumirem uma feição notadamente burocrática em relação aos conflitos do trabalho. Sendo assim, os ferroviários foram alijados não apenas de sua influência sobre as demais categorias profissionais da cidade, como também das várias esferas de poder onde possuíam representantes. A questão da tortura contra os presos políticos em Santa Maria foi outra questão importante examinada e que possui ligação direta com a prática de intervenção e desmobilização classista levada a efeito pelo regime autoritário que se impôs no país a partir de 1964.