Thesis (D.N. Sc.)--Catholic University of America. / Typescript. eContent provider-neutral record in process. Description based on print version record. Bibliography: leaves 95-101.

Thesis--Indiana University. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.Psych.Clin.) - University of Queensland, 2005. / Includes bibliography.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2006. / Title from title screen (site viewed on Oct. 6, 2006). PDF text: 121 p. ; 5.44Mb. UMI publication number: AAT 3213466. Includes bibliographical references. Also available in microfilm, microfiche and paper format.

Thesis (M.R.E.)--Cincinnati Christian Seminary, 1987. / Abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 165-166).

Thesis (Ed.D.)--Boston University / PLEASE NOTE: Boston University Libraries did not receive an Authorization To Manage form for this thesis or dissertation. It is therefore not openly accessible, though it may be available by request. If you are the author or principal advisor of this work and would like to request open access for it, please contact us at open-help@bu.edu. Thank you. / Bandura (1986,1997) asserts that a group's belief in its members' co-joint abilities, or its collective-efficacy, influences the degree to which that group seeks challenging goals, puts forth effort, and persists in the face of adversity. Group leaders serve important functions in the development of successful groups (Yalom, 1995). Since successful coaches are able to consistently demonstrate the ability to mold a group of individuals into a winning team, it is important to understand what methods coaches employ to develop team confidence. The purpose of this study was to understand how master football coaches develop team confidence. The participants for this interview-based, qualitative study included twenty "master" football coaches (6 professional and 14 collegiate). Criteria for inclusion were as follows: each participant had been a head football coach for at least ten years, and had a consistent record of success. Seventeen of the twenty had achieved success with three or more different teams. The findings reveal that these coaches employ a wealth of psychological strategies in different situations to enhance the development of team confidence. Their selective deployment of these strategies takes place throughout a series of developmental tasks, here described as the "Team Confidence Cycle." This includes seven key tasks: 1. Set the Course, 2. Create a Confidence Environment, 3. Promote Mastery, 4. Get Them to Perform, 5. Assess Performance, 6. Stay the Course and 7. Maintain High Performance. In the interviews the coaches revealed that team confidence was essential to their view of how teams achieve success. The constructs of team confidence and success were considered closely intertwined. Promoting mastery experiences, therefore, was primary among those strategies used by the master coaches to build team confidence. A second key strategy was that they pointed out successful experiences to their team(s). These coaches thus placed the greatest importance on "demonstrating ability" and then ensuring that improvement was noted. These findings are in accordance with Bandura (1997). Implications for coaches, especially of youth sport, are outlined in the final chapter. / 2031-01-01

M.A. (Clinical Psychology) / Please refer to full text to view abstract

Movies or films may be integrated into psychosocial interventions as springboards for conversation to enhance therapeutic gains. Therapeutic and inspirational engagements with movie texts, as opposed to viewing for entertainment, provide narratives that describe, interrogate and revise unique histories and culturally-mediated subjectivities. To examine narrative outcomes of the application of this strategy, a study was conducted with self-identified gay men in a group context. A postmodern paradigm with philosophical correlates from literary and critical perspectives framed the research approach. A hermeneutic method of investigation involving a reading guide extracted themes that emerged from the therapeutic conversations about connections to pre-selected movies. The first theme, a developmental lens, offered narratives of social isolation, intimacy, coming out and identity turmoil. The second theme, a local community lens, offered narratives of social hostility, religious values and monetary forces. The impact of integrating movies into therapy was evaluated within these narratives. A qualitative and self-reflexive approach enabled the creation of a postmodern research product, including the representation of the theme of community meanings in a modified screenplay format as a negotiation between creative and traditional writing practices. The use of movies in this study offered distinctive narrative findings about the sexuality of the participants, although their engagement with movies implied that conditions for useful therapeutic conversation depend upon psychological viewing characteristics. / Dr. Alban Burke

Magister Curationis / Because children have different needs and function differently from adults, special training for leaders of children's groups is required. Child group psychotherapy is a unique treatment modality and it requires specific facilitation skills. The primary objective of child group psychotherapy is to improve the child's immediate adaptation to his or her life situation, build ego strength and teach problem-solving skills. The aim of the study was to explore the knowledge, skills and attributes of facilitators of psychotherapeutic groups for children. / South Africa

South African and international statistics indicate that single mother families account for a large and growing proportion of the population. The economic, practical, and emotional stresses of single mothering have been documented and the experience of isolation that often accompanies their circumstances is noted in the literature. Group therapy has been utilised as a treatment plan with single mothers to provide social support and to help the women cope with stress. This thesis examines the experience of single mothers who attended a slow, open group therapy intervention for single mothers at the Child Guidance Clinic, University of Cape Town. The study is located in a feminist social constructionist tradition that recognises the multiplicity of social realities. It places the women's experiences at the foreground of the investigation so as to allow for insight into the socially constructed and first-order reality of the respondents. The research investigates the women's subjective experiences of single parenting; their experiences in the group and its impact on them; and their perceptions of group processes that may have facilitated transformation in their lives. Ten members of the single mother groups were selected for in-depth interviews. Five of the most recent graduates were interviewed and five more participants were selected as the five longest standing members currently participating in the groups. The participants' length of stay in the group at the time of interview varied between eight months and five years. The women were drawn from a range of race, class, cultural and educational backgrounds. The data was collected using individual semi-structured in -depth interviews. A constructivist grounded theory approach was employed to analyse the data. Results revealed the value of the group therapy intervention as a transformative experience for these women who face the challenges of being single parents. The participants highlighted the interpersonal factor of the group intervention as central to their experience and identified this relational aspect as the unique site of their emotional growth. The five interpersonal factors that were identified are: non-judgemental acceptance; support; commonality of experience; reciprocity; and challenge and confrontation between group members. Their accounts of personal changes brought about by participation in the group reflect internal intrapsychic transformations, which are understood in terms of increased se lf-acceptance, enhanced self-esteem, and improved self-confidence. Furthermore, their accounts of personal transformations include a reorganisation of their relational patterns from their immediate to their larger social context. The centrality of relational processes in this research reinforces contemporary theory of women's psychology, particularly theory emerging from the Stone Center, which offers a view of women's psychological growth as occurring in and through participation and engagement with others to achieve more mature and satisfying forms of relating. The accounts of personal and collective transformation provide further insight in to the concept of relational empowerment as it occurs in these groups and offer an understanding of the potentially restorative value of group therapy for single mothers. Future therapeutic interventions are considered and the need for further research in the field is discussed.