Doctor of Social Work / This doctoral thesis presents the findings of a qualitative research project which examines the impact of university study on a group of twenty female and male mature-age students at the University of Newcastle, Australia, who have entered university via a non-traditional pathway. The students who are the subject of this thesis are in the second to final years of their undergraduate degree programs and have all faced significant hurdles in gaining university entrance and persevering with their studies. The majority have come from lower socio-economic backgrounds with little, if any, family history of higher education and little positive experience of prior study. Postmodern feminist theory has primarily informed this research, using a narrative method to gather the data, analyse the results and present the findings. This thesis describes the experiences of the twenty individuals, derived from their individual narratives. As such, it gives voice to their stories: their triumphs and achievements as well as their struggles. It examines the gender issues that are at work in the shaping of their experiences, including the ways in which gender affected the type and extent of help and support on which they could rely. It highlights the transformative nature of these experiences for each of the students in this cohort, as well as potentially the next generation, and makes some tentative connections between these individual experiences and the experiences of the wider mature-age university student population. The narratives that individuals tell are socially and culturally located. Hence it is likely that the experiences of these twenty students may reflect, at least to some extent, the experiences of other mature-age students within a similar culture. The findings of this research also highlight the important role that higher education institutions can play, not only in widening access to higher education, but also in encouraging and assisting students, from a diverse range of backgrounds, to participate fully in higher education and achieve their goals.

The purpose of this study was threefold. Primarily it was to identify the underlying motivational influences determining why mature age men and women continue playing sport competitively, long after they have reached their peak performance level. Secondly, the study sought to ascertain whether there was a change in specific temperament attributes, such as competitiveness, as Squash players became older, and whether any changes were restricted primarily to the sporting environment, or did changes pervade other areas ofthe individuals' lives. The third purpose of the study was to design a new measurement instrument for use in effectively identifying the primary motivations of mature age squash participants within Australia. The research study comprised a multi-system methodology which allowed for triangulation analysis of results. It involved both quantitative and qualitative methodological approaches, with four phases of investigation. The first phase focused on the development of a new motivation measurement instrument, titled Masters Sport Motivation Inventory (MSMI). The second phase involved a Pilot study aimed at implementing the MSMI instrument and evaluating it for validity and reliability, and sampled mature-age participants from nine different sports. The outcomes ofthe Pilot study demonstratedvalidityandreliability ofthe MSMI instrument. The third phase ofthe research comprised the main area ofinvestigation, which was to examine the motivations of Masters squash players in Australia. It used the MSMI instrument to obtain relevant data concerning the motivation of this cohort of sports competitors.The fourth phase comprised in-depth personal interviews from Australian Masters squash players. Interviewees had the opportunity to provide a greater insight into the importance of continued sporting participation into their older adult years. The MSMI data for both the Pilot and Main studies was analysed with the SPSS 15 analysis program. It was determined that there were 12 logical and interpretable motivational factors that were relevant to mature-age sports people and Australian Masters squash players. The results of the quantitative approach generally concurred with the outcomes derived from previous research which has examined the motivations of mature-age athletes, which found that health, enjoyment, fitness and competitiveness were highly relevant motives. In addition, this study extended the outcomes to include other motives viewed as being important to older athletes' sporting aspirations, such as self-awareness, team, aesthetics, skill, stress, recognition, social, and travel, The interview information was examined in two ways. Firstly, it was examined manually by the researcher. The material obtained during the interview process was classified according to groups of responses with similarities in contextual meaning, and the descriptive response data were calculated in the form ofmanual frequencies and percentages. Winning was the primary motive/outcome. Interview responses were also examined via an analysis program called Leximancer, and results revealed that differences in responses among mature-age squash players based on gender, age-class and ability level were minimal. Interview results indicated that many Masters squash players in Australia were still highly competitive, still very determined to win their matches, and still very focused on their goals and game plans. The motives derived from the Masters squash players involved in the qualitative approach generally concurred with the outcomes derived from the quantitative approach, thereby adding consistency and outcome strength to the overall research. The opportunity for mature-age squash participants to elaborate on their feelings, sporting goals and motivations to continue playing their chosen sport enabled a greater depth and wealth ofrelevant information to be examined, and revealed a change in motivational emphasis from health and fitness issues to competitive and win-related issues. The results ofthis research as a whole, in relation to the outcomes obtained from the MSMI instrument, as well as from the personal interviews, differs somewhat from the philosophy of Masters sport, whereby it is assumed and promoted that older athletes primarily participate for fun, enjoyment and social opportunities. The results obtained in this research do not necessarily support this view. Many Australian Masters squash players play to win, and they give their all in an effort to achieve this goal and to reap the pleasure of recognition and rewards for doing so.

Doctor of Social Work / This doctoral thesis presents the findings of a qualitative research project which examines the impact of university study on a group of twenty female and male mature-age students at the University of Newcastle, Australia, who have entered university via a non-traditional pathway. The students who are the subject of this thesis are in the second to final years of their undergraduate degree programs and have all faced significant hurdles in gaining university entrance and persevering with their studies. The majority have come from lower socio-economic backgrounds with little, if any, family history of higher education and little positive experience of prior study. Postmodern feminist theory has primarily informed this research, using a narrative method to gather the data, analyse the results and present the findings. This thesis describes the experiences of the twenty individuals, derived from their individual narratives. As such, it gives voice to their stories: their triumphs and achievements as well as their struggles. It examines the gender issues that are at work in the shaping of their experiences, including the ways in which gender affected the type and extent of help and support on which they could rely. It highlights the transformative nature of these experiences for each of the students in this cohort, as well as potentially the next generation, and makes some tentative connections between these individual experiences and the experiences of the wider mature-age university student population. The narratives that individuals tell are socially and culturally located. Hence it is likely that the experiences of these twenty students may reflect, at least to some extent, the experiences of other mature-age students within a similar culture. The findings of this research also highlight the important role that higher education institutions can play, not only in widening access to higher education, but also in encouraging and assisting students, from a diverse range of backgrounds, to participate fully in higher education and achieve their goals.

Australia has a long history of accepting unmatriculated, return-to-study and equity group mature age learners into undergraduate courses. Universities enrol mature age students on the basis of, for example, their equity background, prior learning, work experiences, scores on a mature age entrance test, or results in an alternative entry program. This study examined the nature and outcomes of four alternative entry programs (AEPs) to higher education for mature age learners (21 years plus). Alternative entry programs provide mature age students with a way to explore their academic aptitude for, and confidence to, study. Prior to this research there was a lack of knowledge regarding the characteristics and outcomes of AEPs for mature age students. In addition, there was no study that examined a series of AEPs to show the relationship between AEP characteristics and learner outcomes. The inquiry addresses this shortfall. The project takes a qualitative case study approach. It provides a way of understanding the uniqueness, particularities and complexities of four AEPs for Australian resident mature age learners. The inquiry indicates implications of current policy and practices. Also it considers ways to advance program characteristics and outcomes.

Объектом исследования выступило психологическое благополучие в период зрелости. Предметом исследования стала связь между сочувствием к себе и биографической рефлексией в контексте психологического благополучия в зрелом возрасте Магистерская диссертация состоит из введения, двух глав, заключения, списка литературы (153 источника) и приложения, включающего в себя бланки применявшихся методик и результаты сравнения двух подгрупп внутри выборки для определения ее однородности. Объем магистерской диссертации 123 страницы, на которых размещены 9 рисунков и 14 таблиц. Во введении раскрывается актуальность проблемы исследования, разработанность проблематики, ставятся цель и задачи исследования, определяются объект и предмет исследования, формулируются гипотезы, указываются методы и эмпирическая база, а также этапы проведения исследования, научная новизна, теоретическая и практическая значимость работы. Первая глава включает в себя обзор иностранной и отечественной литературы по теме психологического благополучия и его предикторов биографической рефлексии и сочувствия к себе. Выводы по первой главе представляют собой итоги по изучению теоретического материала. Вторая глава посвящена эмпирической части исследования. В ней представлено описание организации и методов проведенного исследования и результатов, полученных по всем использованным методикам: методика «Шкала психологического благополучия» К. Рифф (адаптация Т.Д. Шевеленковой и П.П. Фесенко); методика «Шкала удовлетворенности жизнью» (SWLS) Э. Динера; оценка уровня развития биографической рефлексии (М.В. Клементьева); опросник сочувствия к себе (К. Нефф); шкала позитивного аффекта и негативного аффекта (ШПАНА) Е. Н. Осина. Также в главе представлен описательный и корреляционный анализ результатов исследования. Выводы по главе 2 включают в себя основные результаты эмпирического исследования. В заключении в обобщенном виде изложены результаты теоретической и эмпирической частей работы, а также выводы по выдвинутым гипотезам, обоснована практическая значимость исследования и описаны возможные перспективы дальнейшей разработки данной проблематики. / The object of the study was psychological well-being in the period of maturity. The subject of the study was the relationship between self-compassion and biographical reflection in the context of psychological well-being in adulthood The master's thesis consists of an introduction, two chapters, a conclusion, a list of references (153 sources) and an appendix, which includes forms of the methods used and the results of comparing two subgroups within the sample to determine its homogeneity. The volume of the master's thesis is 123 pages, which contain 9 figures and 14 tables. The introduction reveals the relevance of the research problem, the elaboration of the problem, sets the purpose and objectives of the study, defines the object and subject of the study, formulates hypotheses, specifies methods and empirical base, as well as the stages of research, scientific novelty, theoretical and practical significance of the work. The first chapter includes a review of foreign and domestic literature on the topic of psychological well-being and its predictors of biographical reflection and self-compassion. The conclusions of the first chapter are the results of the study of theoretical material. The second chapter is devoted to the empirical part of the study. It presents a description of the organization and methods of the research and the results obtained by all the methods used: the methodology «Scale of psychological well-being» by K. Riff (adaptation by T.D. Shevelenkova and P.P. Fesenko); the methodology «Scale of life satisfaction» (SWLS) by E. Diener; assessment of the level of development of biographical reflection (M.V. Klementyeva); self-compassion questionnaire (K. Neff); the scale of positive affect and negative affect (PANAS) by E. N. Osin. The chapter also presents a descriptive and correlation analysis of the results of the study. The conclusions of Chapter 2 include the main results of an empirical study. In conclusion, the results of the theoretical and empirical parts of the work are summarized, as well as conclusions on the hypotheses put forward, the practical significance of the study is substantiated and possible prospects for further development of this problem are described.

Объектом исследования явилась личностная тревожность. Предметом исследования стала связь личностной тревожности с мотивацией достижения, прокрастинацией и копинг-стратегиями у мужчин и женщин зрелого возраста. Магистерская диссертация состоит из введения, двух глав, заключения, списка литературы (121 источник) и приложения, включающего в себя бланки применявшихся методик. Объем магистерской диссертации 120 страниц, на которых размещены 7 рисунков и 12 таблиц. Во введении раскрывается актуальность проблемы исследования, разработанность проблематики, ставятся цель и задачи исследования, определяются объект и предмет исследования, формулируются гипотезы, указываются методы и эмпирическая база, а также научная новизна исследования. Первая глава включает в себя обзор иностранной и отечественной литературы по теме тревожности, мотивации достижения, прокрастинации и копинг-стратегий. Представлены разделы, посвященные исследованию связи личностной тревожности с мотивацией достижения, прокрастинацией и копинг-стратегиями у мужчин и женщин зрелого возраста. Выводы по первой главе представляют собой итоги по изучению теоретического материала. Вторая глава посвящена эмпирической части исследования. В ней представлено описание организации и методов проведенного исследования и результатов, полученных по всем использованным методикам: тесту Шкалы личностной тревожности Спилбергера-Ханина (State-Trate Anxiety Inventory, STAI), опроснику «Способы совладающего поведения» Р. Лазаруса и С. Фолкман, опроснику А. А. Реана «Мотивация успеха и боязнь неудачи», тесту Шкалы общей прокрастинации С. H. Lay. Также в главе представлены сравнительный и корреляционный анализ результатов исследования. Выводы по главе 2 включают в себя основные результаты эмпирического исследования. В заключении в обобщенном виде изложены результаты теоретической и эмпирической частей работы, а также выводы по выдвинутым гипотезам, обоснована практическая значимость исследования и описаны возможные перспективы дальнейшей разработки данной проблематики. / The object of the study was personal anxiety. The subject of the study was the relationship between personal anxiety and achievement motivation, procrastination and coping strategies in men and women of mature age. The master's thesis consists of an introduction, two chapters, a conclusion, a list of references (121 sources) and an appendix that includes the forms of the applied methods. The volume of the master's thesis is 120 pages, which contain 7 figures and 12 tables. The introduction reveals the relevance of the research problem, the elaboration of the problematics, the goal and objectives of the research are set, the object and subject of the research are determined, hypotheses are formulated, the methods and empirical base, as well as the scientific novelty of the research, are indicated. The first chapter includes a review of foreign and domestic literature on the topic of anxiety, achievement motivation, procrastination, and coping strategies. The sections devoted to the study of the relationship between personal anxiety and achievement motivation, procrastination and coping strategies in men and women of mature age are presented. Conclusions for the first chapter represent the results of the study of theoretical material. The second chapter is devoted to the empirical part of the study. It presents a description of the organization and methods of the study and the results obtained by all the methods used: the Spielberger-Hanin Personal Anxiety Scale test (State-Trate Anxiety Inventory, STAI), the Coping Behavior Methods questionnaire R. Lazarus and S. Folkman, A. A. Rean's questionnaire "Motivation for success and fear of failure", the test of the General Procrastination Scale S. H. Lay. The chapter also presents a comparative and correlation analysis of the research results. Conclusions from Chapter 2 include the main findings of the empirical study. In the conclusion, in a generalized form, the results of the theoretical and empirical parts of the work are presented, as well as conclusions on the hypotheses put forward, the practical significance of the study is substantiated and possible prospects for the further development of this problem are described.

Within the educational psychology literature there is an abundance of research in the field of metacognition. The concentration of this research however has been in primary and secondary school contexts with little attention given to tertiary students' understanding or use of metacognition; there has been even less attention to whether age is a factor in tertiary students' perceptions of their metacognitive processes. The primary purpose of this study was to explore the perceptions of two distinct groups of first year university students, towards their understanding and usage of metacognitive processes and strategies. The two groups defined were traditional school leavers and mature age students. The findings from the exploration of these perceptions were compared to ascertain the similarities and differences in metacognitive processes between the two cohorts. The data collected for this study were obtained through a process of individual face-to-face in- depth interviews. The choice of this methodology was deliberate in order to gather rich data about the students' perceptions and experiences rather than attempt to measure their levels of metacognition against some predetermined standard. Data were collected and analyzed on the two constructs of metacognition which were identified in the literature search. These were metacognitive knowledge and metacognitive control. A range of affective variables such as self efficacy, motivation and expectancy of success, which impact on students' metacognitive abilities and processes, were also considered in the data collection and analysis. The findings indicated that age was a factor in determining some differences and similarities in students' perceptions of their own and others metacognitive processes. In certain cases the traditional school leavers' recency of experience with formal study was deemed an advantage; in others the life experience of the mature age students was perceived an advantage. In some instances the age of the student had no discernable impact on their understanding of, and ability to, utilize metacognitive strategies. These findings assist to broaden the understanding of student perceptions of metacognition in the tertiary context. The findings also make it imperative that tertiary institutions make fewer assumptions about the skills and abilities of their commencing students based on the criterion of age and offer more opportunities to assist students to understand the value of developing and improving their metacognitive processes.