This creative thesis illustrates how the writer initiated a ‘call-and-response’ dialogue as a healing strategy to heal her relationship with her non-abusive biological father after revealing to him that her stepfather had sexually abused her from ages 14 to 22. This memoir both contributes to the field of Women’s Studies and provides an example that other sexual abuse survivors can follow to heal their intimate relationships.

The essay makes a case for the use of the Nobel Prize-winning (1993) author Toni Morrison's novel The Bluest Eye (1970) in the English language classroom. The essay argues that the novel is an excellent reading choice and to what is appropriate according to the learning goals stated in Gy11's course syllabus English 6. Since the course English 6 syllabus is new some aspects different from previous course syllabus English B are mentioned by way of comparison.  In order to develop the arguments for using the novel, different perspectives of reading and the learning process are discussed and how they match the curriculum Gy 11. Some points about how Morrison has managed to voice the former unspoken experiences of African American society are made to make it clear why reading The Bluest Eye is such a superb text in relation to the learning goals that are outlined in Gy11.The essay focuses mainly on mother - daughter relationships because most pupils will easily relate to this theme since they have experiences of this relation themselves, and therefore they will find it easy to find issues to discuss after reading the novel.

The American Cancer Society estimates nearly 1.5 million Americans will be diagnosed with cancer this year. Existing on cancer and its effects on family communication indicate there are few things that have the potential to shake a family to its core like a serious illness (Anderson & Geist Martin, 2003; Gotcher, 1993; Northouse, 2005; Sherman & Simonton, 2001). Communication is one of the most important elements in determining and influencing families' emotions, patients' quality of life, patient care, family relationships and caregiver stress (Beach, 2001). The mother-daughter dyad represents one of the most significant relationships to analyze with respect to the impact cancer has within the family since mothers are typically the primary role models for their daughters (Miller, 1995). Using interviews with mother/daughter dyads, this study seeks to examine changes in communication between mothers and daughters following the mother's cancer diagnosis. The mother-daughter dyad is of most interest in this study for several reasons, most notably that this relationship is the “first dyadic relationship a female child has” (Bishop, 1992, p. 58); additionally, mothers are typically the primary role models for their daughters (Miller, 1995). This study aims to shed light on the relational changes that occur following a cancer diagnosis.

The aim of this monograph is to demonstrate the probable transgressions of Eliza Sommers who is the protagonist of The fortunes daughter (1999) written by the Chilean writer Isabel Allende. This novel is the base for our work and it was written in the postboom framework there we can evidently observe the strength of the feminist’s characters. Through investigating the model of conducts that was current by the chronological time the novel is based and by using the adequate theoretical model for this analysis we will either demonstrate or refuse our hypothesis. With this goal in mind and this theoretical framework we will try to explain the diversity of terms but principally patriarchy, feminism and stereotypes. Raising a few different questions helped us to come to the conclusion that all the transgressions the protagonist has been going through just helped her to get a better life as a woman, without hinders and in freedom.

The purpose of the study was to examine the relation of mother daughter relationship to well- being of the daughters with respect to self-esteem and life satisfaction. The sample was consisting of 426 female university students from Ankara and Kirsehir with a mean age of 21.62 (SD= 2.35). The scales which were used in that study are Adult Daughter Questionnaire (MAD) (Rastogi, 1995), The Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale (Rosenberg, 1965), The Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS) (Diener, Emmons, Larsen, &amp / Griffin, 1985). Adult Daughter Questionnaire (MAD) (Rastogi, 1995) has been used to measure the current mother-daughter relationship. The Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale (Rosenberg, 1965) has been used to measure global self esteem, and The Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS) (Diener, Emmons, Larsen, and Griffin, 1985) has been used to measure the global life satisfaction. The canonical correlation analysis was utilized to examine the relationships between the mother daughter questionnaire&rsquo / s subscales ( connectedness, interdependency and trust in hierarchy) and the two indicators of well being namely life satisfaction and self-esteem. The results of the study showed that the three indicators of the mother-daughter relationship (connectedness, interdependency, and trust in hierarchy) and the two indicators of well being (self-esteem and life satisfaction) were interrelated. In other words mother daughter relationship is positively related to life satisfaction and self esteem of the daughters.

My thesis film for the Master of Fine Arts degree is a 10-minute documentary entitled Loose Bodies. It traces my mom's recovery from knee replacement surgery, meanwhile exploring her relationship to her knees through interviews and archival footage and my own relationship to my body's ability to move. The film contains three animated sequences, using the Renaissance anatomical drawings of Andreas Vesalius. This report is an account of the filmmaking process from initial idea to finished film. / text

There is conflicting evidence on Black parenting, specifically Black mothers as it relates to their educational participation in their children’s lives. This study focuses on the intersection of Black parenting, specifically single Black mothers, their Black experience in society, and their participation in the educational experiences of their daughters. There is a need to explore the experiences, behaviors, and actions of single Black mothers as they raise their daughters from early childhood to high school. For example, some research depicts Black mothers as uncaring about their children’s education. The purpose of this study is to examine how these single Black mothers educate and care for their daughters to provide additional insight. The following areas of research were highlighted: the Black experience, the Black family, cultural roles of Black women, the Black mother’s standpoint, and the culture of acting white. The concept addressed in this study is the resiliency of the Black mothers. The statement of the problem is drawn from motherwork, a theoretical framework that looks at distinct ways Black mothers navigate the education experiences of their children. The research questions and qualitative methodological approach of portraiture is different from traditional qualitative work, which focuses on the goodness of the research participant, instead of the failure of research participants. Portraiture paints a portrait of the research participant with words and allows for in-depth dialogue. Some current research depicts single mothers in a negative perspective. This study provides additional insight on how single Black mothers educate and care for their daughters. This additional information may be applicable to all parents and educators and serves as another source about motherhood for children being raised from early childhood to high school. / text

Mexican-origin adolescent girls have some of the highest rates of unplanned teen pregnancy and births in the United States. Family ecological and feminist perspectives indicate that gender and sexual socialization processes contribute to girls' ability to promote their sexual health, yet little is known about how Mexican-origin girls develop sexual agency. In this culture, mothers are a primary socializing agent about sexuality in the family, and this study examined how mother-daughter sexual communication fostered or inhibited girls' sexual agency. The narrative method "scaffolded interviewing" was used to facilitate open talk about sexuality. Interviews were conducted with 25 girls ages 15-17 and separate interviews with mothers in a southwestern city, with a pilot study first conducted to refine the interview script. Mothers and daughters were asked reciprocal questions about what girls learned about sexuality from mothers and other contexts. The Listening Guide, a voice-based relational approach, was used to interpret the data. Analysis suggested that girls whose mothers provided more open and comprehensive sexual communication, and talked to them before puberty, felt more agentic to assert their needs for sexual safety. Girls who had infrequent, content-limited communication with mothers felt less able to manage fear-based school sex education messages and peer sexual exposure. Analysis of concordance between mothers' and daughters' narratives showed that different perceptions of what constitutes sex talk and sexual autonomy inhibited daughters' disclosure to mothers about sexual concerns. These findings suggest that mother-daughter relationships are critical for sexual health promotion. Implications for educators, practitioners, and families are discussed.

People high in socially prescribed perfectionism (i.e., those who perceive others demand perfection of them) often behave in ways that are incongruent with their efforts to be perfect for others. This research proposes and tests two models that explain why socially prescribed perfectionism is related to self-defeating behaviours (i.e., behaviours with negative effects on the self that are often detrimental to achieving one’s goals). In Study 1, socially prescribed perfectionism was proposed to contribute to a cycle of self-defeat involving perfectionistic discrepancies, perfectionistic self-presentation, depressive affect, and self-defeating behaviours (i.e., binge eating, procrastination, interpersonal conflict). To test the model, data was collected from 317 undergraduates who completed structured online daily diaries. Results of multilevel structural equation modeling largely supported hypothesized relations such that participants high in socially prescribed perfectionism engaged in, or experienced, patterns of self-evaluation, self-presentation, and emotion that contributed to their imperfect, self-defeating behaviours. These behaviours undermined their efforts to be or look perfect for others—creating a sense of deficiency that sets the stage for another cycle of self-defeat. In Study 2, I tested the perfectionism model of binge eating in 218 mother-daughter dyads using a mixed longitudinal and daily diary design. Results largely supported hypotheses suggesting daughters’ socially prescribed perfectionism and mothers’ psychological control contribute indirectly to daughters’ binge eating by generating situations or experiences that trigger binge eating (i.e., discrepancies, depressive affect, and dietary restraint). For young women who believe their mothers rigidly require them to be perfect and whose mothers are demanding and controlling, binge eating appears to provide a means of coping with or escaping from an unhealthy, unsatisfying mother-daughter relationship. Together, the results of Study 1 and Study 2 help to explain why people who strive to be perfect for others often engage in self-defeating behaviours. These findings have numerous implications for theory and research on personality, relationships, and self-defeating behaviours, and for prevention, assessment, and treatment of perfectionism and associated difficulties. These implications, along with the limitations and future directions of this research are discussed.

Study 1 examined the role closeness to father plays in the developmental-like process associating family form (divorced/non-divorced) with later young adulthood attachment style in a sample of 525 men and women. Participants reported their closeness to father while growing up and current comfort with closeness. As expected, closeness to father fully mediated the association between family form and comfort with closeness for both men and women, but more strongly for women. The association between family form and comfort with closeness was only evident for women; women who experienced parental divorce reported feeling less comfortable with closeness in relationships. Contrary to expectation, the mediating role of closeness to father in the association between family and form and comfort with closeness was not moderated by gender. The key role fathers may play in fostering their male and female children’s later attachment style in divorced and nondivorced families, as well as the attenuated role of gender in explaining young adults’ attachment style, are discussed. Study 2 examined the role of dyadic and family environment factors which are implicated in young adults’ insecure attachment in predicting relational resilience. Relationally resilient women were defined as women who experienced parental divorce yet experience comfort with closeness. Ninety-three women reported on the level of overt and subtle conflict in their families-of- origin, the effectiveness of their parents’ coparenting, and their closeness to father. Hierarchical logistic regression analyses predicted membership in the relationally resilient group based on these dyadic and family environment predictors. As expected, results demonstrate that lower pre-divorce subtle and overt conflict; higher levels of coparenting before separation, during separation, and after separation; and closeness to father while growing up all predicted membership in the relationally resilient group. However, no one variable uniquely predicted membership in the relationally resilient group. Study 2’s results are translated to preventative implications at the family, parental, dyadic and individual levels. Final remarks integrating the results of both studies follow. / Graduate