Dans cette thèse, j’examine l’influence d’états aversifs (e.g., émotions désagréables, issues indésirables) sur les motivations et les comportements des consommateurs. Dans le premier essai, j’explore comment des sentiments de dégoût physique ou moral peuvent mettre en péril l’estime de soi des consommateurs et les motiver à se livrer à de la consommation compensatrice. Dans le deuxième essai, j’examine pourquoi et à quels moments les consommateurs font preuve de sentiments négatifs à l’égard des entreprises qui cessent de distribuer gratuitement des échantillons ou petits cadeaux aux consommateurs. Dans le troisième essai, j’explore comment la solitude affecte les préférences des consommateurs pour des produits et services qui peuvent ou non nécessiter des interactions interpersonnelles (ex : se faire masser vs. faire des achats en ligne). Considérés ensemble, ces trois essais contribuent à la littérature sur l’émotion, les menaces identitaires, et la consommation compensatrice, à la littérature sur les promotions commerciales et à la littérature sur la solitude. De plus, les résultats ont des implications pour les praticiens en marketing en ce qui concerne la publicité, le design des promotions commerciales, et l’haptique des consommateurs. Finalement, ces travaux de recherche offrent de nouvelles perspectives concernant le bien-être des consommateurs en soulignant les conséquences inattendues des actions des marketers qui cherchent à bénéficier aux consommateurs mais génèrent en réalité des comportements compensateurs pour faire face à leur aversion. / In this dissertation, I examine the influence of aversive states (e.g., unpleasant emotions, undesired outcomes) on consumers’ motivations and behaviors. In essay 1, I explore how feelings of physical and moral disgust can be threatening to consumers’ sense of self and motivate them to engage in compensatory consumption. In essay 2, I investigate why and when consumers exhibit negative behavioral intentions against firms that terminate unconditional business-to-consumer gift-giving initiatives. In essay 3, I explore how loneliness affects consumers’ preferences for products and services that do or do not require interpersonal touch and interaction (e.g., getting a massage vs. shopping online). Together, the three essays contribute to the literature on emotion, identity threats, and compensatory consumption, to the literature on sales promotion, and to the literature on loneliness. Moreover, the research findings inform marketing practice in the fields of advertising, sales promotions design, and consumer haptics. Finally, this research provides insights into consumer welfare by bringing attention to the unforeseen consequences of marketers’ actions that seek to benefit the consumers but instead generate compensatory behaviors to cope with their aversiveness.

Solitude and self have been common topics for discussion and scrutiny by philosophers, scholars and writers. However, it was not until the turn of the twentieth century, with women 's enlightenment, that one notices women writers ' interest in understanding their selves in moments of solitude. Women who were conscious of drastic social changes often examined their lives and explored their selves in solitude. Katherine Mansfield and Virginia Woolf represent women writers of their time who shared a common interest in portraying women's quests for self in solitude. The present study shows how the solitary state is a significant precondition for modern women to reflect on their lives or explore their selves at a time when society was undergoing drastic changes. A close study of Katherine Mansfield 's "Frau Brechenmacher Attends a Wedding" (19 l 0), "Kezia and Tui" (1916), "Prelude" ( 1918), "At the Bay" ( 1922), and "All Serene!" (1923) shows that Mansfield always offers her women characters punitive consequences in the endings because of their compromise with their mundane conditions even though they have gained some sense of the self through contemplation and meditation. In the case of Virginia Woolf, she situates her women characters in isolation and contemplation, and often presents her women characters as active seekers of self through meditation and alienation. Autonomy, authenticity, and vision define these women's emerging self in such novels as Night and Day ( 1919), Orlando ( 1928), and To the Lighthouse ( 1927). The present study reveals Katherine Mansfield and Virginia Woolf as two exemplary women writers who examine women in moments of solitude through the interplay of social and psychological reality. Solitude is a recurrent condition and theme in their fiction that is often presented in "contrapuntal" manner (Dunbar ix). The contrast between women 's public and performative existence and their private and unmasked self characterises the fiction of Mansfield and Woolf, allowing the two writers to examine patriarchal oppression of women's acquisition of self against the backdrop of modernity. Mansfield and Woolf's treatment of solitude is particularly important as it sheds light on their shared views and friendship. Solitude is treated as a critical state, a condition, a private space, an attitude, or a refuge from performativity for women in their texts. Yet they have adopted distinct writing strategies in dealing with the subject owing to their difference in experience and literary outlook. Mansfield creates heroines who are more practical and modest in their approach to the subject of self-construction. Woolf creates women characters who often resort consciously to solitude to challenge and reflect upon gender norms, gain a better sense of their selves, and deploy various means to attain self-realisation.

Passing and meeting or looking for a shared space where we could be together or where we could be alone together. Is it possible, for a short moment at least, to step into the other one's world? Finding yourself along with finding the other one. Will we be able to recognize the boundary, once we cross it? This work should focus on a) exploring the space, b) exploring the space within us, and c) on a conflict, touch, on two spaces getting closer and getting further away (both on a physical and psychological level) - private space and public space, whose boundaries are blurring nowadays. These topics are applied on art as well (particularly on the works of performance art) and accounted for the outcomes in its own creative work. KEYWORDS Subjectivity, intersubjectivity, space, body, solitude, tension

The narrative research journey and pilgrimage into and epistemological reflection on the relevance of the Benedictine, Franciscan and Taizé monastic-mystic traditions (associative spirituality) for retreat within the Dutch Reformed tradition (disassociate spirituality) began because of a passion for, an interest in retreat and because of lack of research done on the subject. The research developed in story form as a participative active process of story development, interpretation, and reflection in which the researcher and the research subject as valued co-researchers (co-pilgrims) constructed a shared reality and new story together. Consequently, the observations and experiences reflected on may tell just as much about the researcher as about the action of retreat and the research participants. The action of retreat was not approached in a neutral, objective stance but with self-awareness, particular presuppositions, and a postmodern philosophical mindset with ideological-critical, deconstructive and inclusive thought processes. The research problem was viewed as a narrative situation of action, explained by means of empirical research, and interpreted via epistemological reflection and theological theories. The focus has not been on new or adapted theory formulation, hypotheses, or “conclusions” as such but on the empiric interaction between the experiences of Mystery (noumenon), the Jesus narrative, stories of the co-pilgrims, monastic traditions, Dutch Reformed tradition, the researchers’ own story, and those who might read the thesis. A potential amplifying or expanding of the repertoire of existing options and meanings were viewed as a possibility in the creative development of a new reality or research story. The aim was to listen to, understand, and interpret qualitatively the subjective dimension and experience of the reality (story/ies) of retreat as a situation where pilgrims (from different traditions and spiritualities) were in relation with God, self and others. The research journey took me into the life world of the monastic-mystic traditions and my own internal dialectics and story within a Dutch Reformed context. From here arose questions, engagement, and re-engagement with the monastic traditions and a new story. The concern was the beliefs and practices of the retreatants (co pilgrims) under study as beings in real-life human experiential reality, taking seriously their concerns, expressions of belief, practice, perceptions, and stories. The data from the empirical encounter was subsequently investigated, mapped with the major themes and interests highlighted and reflected on in the process. The main themes and focal points that were identified and researched were: -- The lives and stories of St. Benedict, St. Francis, and Br. Roger, their respective communities’ monastic-mystic spirituality, the way these traditions approach retreat and the way they live or express their respective monastic rules or orders in comparison with the Dutch Reformed traditions’ retreat narrative. -- The main elements of Monastic retreat namely silence, solitude, lectio divina in facilitating an awareness of God and the mystery of God as part of the journey to the inner mountain, ever deeper into his presence. -- Different types of retreat and especially the experience of monastic retreat, the experience of holy places (desert spirituality) as places saturated by prayer, Eucharist and the community of pilgrims, and retreat as pilgrimage experience. -- Retreat as ritual following a rite of passage structure of separation, marginality and reincorporation focusing on structure and anti-structure (power of liminality) as helpful tool of analysis and framework for planning of retreat. -- The potential therapeutic or pastoral care qualities of a monastic way of retreat facilitating in pilgrims, life story interpretation and new understanding of stories. The research story ended in the form of findings and the posing of possible questions for future research. / Thesis (PhD (Practical Theology))--University of Pretoria, 2006. / Practical Theology / unrestricted

Andrej Kutarňa Carthusian Prayer Diploma thesis 2011 Abstract The Diploma thesis entitled "Carthusian Prayer" is trying to collect and arrange a body of information about the spiritual world of the Carthusian order. It aims at discovering the key characteristics of the life of prayer as seen by members of Carthusian order both in early and recent history of the Order and presented in their writings. First the thesis presents the wider context of carthusian prayer by showing the way of life of carthusian monks and what is specific to this particular monastic tradition, also trying to point at some possible sources of inspiration from older traditions. Then it proceeds to the matter of solitude and silence which are the formative elements that mould the carthusian prayer into the shape of simplicity and sobriety while retaining fine balance of community and solitary life, as well as that of great silence and living inner dialogue. The latter part of the thesis then attemps to show the inner dynamics of the prayer and the role of silence, liturgical and personal prayer and meditation of Scriptures for achieving unification with God, which is both the goal and the fruit of spiritual life. It also explains other fruits of prayer both for the praying monk himself and for other people. While it is not possible to...

Theme of loneliness generates in most of us negative feelings of fear and emptiness, while rarely on Loneliness, is regarded as positive, life takes effect. The actual problem is a taboo, hides in the background of the more popular social topics, so we usually lack information that would allow us to approach him other than "emotional" attitude. However, it is linked to a number of fundamental questions, whether by death, the awareness of one's own being, and as a result, it is also about taking responsibility for himself and perception of normality, individuality and conformity. For this reason, I believe that the relationship that we create to loneliness, forms then our relationship to ourselves, our close relationship and subsequently the functioning of the whole society.

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Mémoire numérisé par la Direction des bibliothèques de l'Université de Montréal.

Dans ce texte destiné à accompagner mon travail d’atelier, j’aborde mon besoin de solitude et son rôle dans ma pratique artistique. Je tenais aussi à expliquer l’importance que je porte à la dimension charnelle de l’art. D’abord, je décris la relation que j’entretiens avec mes médiums de création et mes matériaux, tout en observant les caractéristiques formelles de mon travail de dessin et de peinture. Puis, j’expose comment j’ai canalisé mes gestes instinctifs dans des contextes de création prédéterminés. Ainsi, j’explique que mes démarches picturale et graphique ont pris la forme de corpus qui ont généré des univers stylistiques et narratifs distincts. Durant mes deux années de maîtrise, j’ai réalisé des corpus qui composent trois mondes fictifs différents. En analysant ma façon de procéder, j’ai constaté que même si j’avais une approche figurative, je cherchais constamment à esquiver toute référence qui reproduisait directement le monde réel. J’ai par la suite réfléchi au rôle que l’émotion prenait dans mon travail. J’ai compris que, jusqu’à maintenant, ma démarche artistique cherchait à combler des besoins de contemplation et de rêverie. Finalement, ce texte est une occasion, pour moi, d’exposer la méthode de création qui a dirigé mon travail en atelier, durant mes deux années de maîtrise. Mots clés : solitude, dessin, peinture, corpus, monde, narration

This study examines the efficacy of psychotherapeutic services via computer-mediated communication (CMC). Its main purpose is to determine if goal-oriented cognitive-behavioural group teletherapy via IRC can reduce feelings of loneliness among chronically lonely people with physical disabilities. Using a comparison design with pretest, post-test, follow-up and waiting-list control, 19 participants formed seven groups of 2–3 people. Participants completed an in-person individual assessment during which individualized therapeutic goals were enumerated. They also attended twelve 2-hour group intervention sessions via inter-relay-chat (IRC). Results indicate that participants felt less lonely after intervention. Moreover, participants who completed intervention felt less lonely at post-test than a similar group that had been placed in a waiting-list control. Furthermore, results indicate that gains were maintained at a 4-month follow-up. The results of this study are discussed, along with participants' comments about the intervention, its practical implications and some special considerations for teletherapy, as well as future directions for research.