This dissertation serves as a report on the qualitative exploration of best practices in animal-assisted therapy (AAT) with children. The aim of the study was to explore and describe best practices in the field of AAT with children in the Western Cape. The research made use of the case study design, which offered the researcher the opportunity to interact with a small number of individuals and look for patterns in the research participants’ words and experiences. Four participants, who were trained mental health professionals and had offered AAT to children, were selected to participate in the research. A literature review of animal-assisted therapy and best practice provided a theoretical basis for the research. The history of AAT, the uses and benefits of AAT and the animals incorporated in AAT were explored. The term “best practice” and its application in mental health and AAT were also discussed. The verbatim transcriptions of the audiotaped data were analysed and interpreted using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) and an AAT conceptual framework (brought about by the literature review). Themes were developed from the empirical data and substantiated by the literature review. Five main themes emerged as a result of the analysis. The first theme, Training of the animal-assisted therapist, focused on both the mental health training and the AAT training of the therapist. The second theme, Training of animals incorporated in animal-assisted therapy, revealed the importance of training the animal to be included in AAT. The third theme, Different client populations in animal-assisted therapy, looked at which populations should be included, excluded or included and carefully managed during AAT. The fourth theme, Ethical considerations in animal-assisted therapy, revealed the importance of considering both the child’s and the animal’s welfare. The fifth theme, Regulation of animal-assisted therapy, gave a more in-depth description of the current regulation of AAT in the Western Cape and provided suggestions for the regulation of AAT. Based on the findings of the five themes, recommendations were made for best practice in AAT with children in the Western Cape. / Thesis (MA (Psychology))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2013.

This thesis explores some of the themes and issues that social workers may wish to consider when investigating and addressing matters pertaining to wellness in individuals with sex-variances. Foundational literature includes writings by John Money, the Chicago Consensus, and the clinical guidelines of the Intersex Society of North America. A three pillars model is introduced as a potential means for fostering better understanding and diversity in relation to sex, gender, and sexuality. Semi-structured interviews surrounding wellness are conducted with four individuals who have sex-variances. Interview results are analysed using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis. Recommendations are put forth in a manner designed to allow social workers to work collaboratively with individuals who have sex-variances and their families, as well as with other medical and health professionals who provide services thereof. The analyses and recommendations presented in this thesis are situated within a context of evidence-based anti-oppressive practice.

Although parenting by lesbian, gay, and bisexual-identified (LGB) individuals has attracted increasing research attention over the past few decades, relatively little focus has been given to the personal identity development of adolescents raised in such families. There is scant qualitative data that describes the phenomenon from the viewpoint of Canadian adolescents; this study aims to give voice to those with parents that identify as non-heterosexual. In semi- structured interviews, participants were asked to explain how they made sense of being from an LGB-led family, particularly within the contexts of school and Canadian society, and of what unique needs they perceived families like theirs to have. For inclusion in the study, each participant needed to have at least one LGB-identified parent. Additionally, they needed to be a current or recent student in an Ontario secondary school. A convenience sampling method was used to locate nine (N=9) participants. Three of the participants were male, and six were female. All participants were Canadian-born English speakers who ranged in age from 13 to 19 years old, with a mean age of 17.5. The interview schedule was constructed with input from existing narrative psychology literature, consultation with fellow students and faculty, and inspiration from other semi- structured protocols such as The Life Story Interview (McAdams, 2008). Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) was employed to organize and evaluate responses. Thematic findings were organized within three domains. First, family-related themes were considered, such as interviewees’ responses to parental disclosures of an LGB identity, responses of extended family members, and perceived advantages of having LGB-identified parents. Second, school-related themes were found, such as how children choose to disclose their parents’ sexual identity to peers. Finally, themes related to queer identity were considered, since many participants revealed their parents’ sexual identity intersected with other narratives (e.g., being Canadian, being heterosexual, the master narrative of heteronormativity, etc.) to create multiple layers to their own sense of self. The study endeavours to add a qualitative approach to the literature so that Canadian adolescents’ narratives are represented in the overall understanding of the phenomenon of LGB- led families. It also has potential to impact the development of school policies and curricula and to enrich the quality of life for LGB-led families.

Thesis (M.A.)--Miami University, Dept. of Psychology, 2006. / Title from first page of PDF document. Includes bibliographical references (p. 51-55).

O presente trabalho sobre a Sonata para piano opus 55 nº 3 de Alberto Ginastera foi realizado tomando como referencial a análise desenvolvida por Lawrence Ferrara no Capítulo seis “An eclectic method for sound, form and representation” do seu livro “Philisophy and the Analisis of Music”. Dentro deste tipo de análise, apresentam-se diferentes enfoques analíticos: convencionais (que descrevem a forma musical ou sintaxe); fenomenológicos (descrições do som no tempo); e hermenêuticos (que descrevem os significados referenciais). Cada um destes enfoques é desenvolvido para finalmente favorecer uma visão holística, que permita estabelecer uma rede de relações estruturais, funcionais, significativas entre cada um dos elementos que o analista-intérprete determinou para abordar a interpretação musical da sonata. / The present work on Sonata nº 3 opus 55 for piano of Alberto Ginastera was carried through taking as referential the analysis developed by Lawrence Ferrara in the Chapter six “An eclectic method for sound, form and representation” of his book “Philosophy and the Analysis of Music”. Inside this type of analysis, different methods of analytical approaches are presented: conventional (describes the musical form or syntax); phenomenological (descriptions of the sound in the time); and hermeneutics (describes the referential meanings). Each one of these approaches is developed to finally favor a holistic vision, that allows to establish a net of relations structural, functional, significant between each one of the elements that the analyst-interpreter determined to approach the interpretation musical of the sonata. / El presente trabajo sobre la Sonata para piano opus 55 n°3 de Alberto Ginastera esta realizado tomando como referencial el análisis desarrollado por Lawrence Ferrara en el Capítulo seis “An eclectic method for sound, form and representation” de su libro “Philisophy and the Análisis of Music”. Dentro de ese análisis se presentan diferentes enfoques analíticos: convencionales (que describen la forma musical o sintaxis); fenomenológicos (descripciones del sonido en el tiempo); y hermenéuticos (que describen los significados referenciales). Cada uno de esos enfoques es desarrollado para finalmente favorecer una visión holística, que permita establecer una red de relaciones estructurales, funcionales, significativas entre cada uno de los elementos que el analista- intérprete determinó para abordar la interpretación musical de la sonata.

Introduction: Recent developments in the study of trauma responses have shown how some people may experience positive and life altering changes following traumatic life events which have been described as posttraumatic growth. Research is beginning to examine the role of trauma treatments in the facilitation of posttraumatic growth. Aim: This study sets out to explore participants’ experiences of posttraumatic growth during Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing therapy, and the role of the therapeutic relationship in facilitating posttraumatic growth. Method: Semi-structured interviews were carried out with participants to examine their phenomenological experiences. Methodology: Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis was employed to consider emergent meanings and themes within a hermeneutic circle of interpretation. Participants: Seven participants were interviewed who had received Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing therapy within National Health Service primary care psychological therapy services for posttraumatic stress disorder. Findings: Four superordinate themes emerged from the analysis of the participant accounts including: (i) Safe and secure; (ii) Taking back control; (iii) Reconstructing the self; and (iv) Journeying beyond trauma to the future. Conclusions: Person-centred conditions and client-therapist attachment were important elements of the therapeutic relationship which provided participants with the safety, trust, and relational depth necessary for the facilitation of experiences of posttraumatic growth during Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing therapy. Implications: The findings emphasise the importance of a clinical focus on the quality of the therapeutic relationship as a facilitative therapeutic environment allowing affective-cognitive processing and the emergence of posttraumatic growth.

O presente trabalho sobre a Sonata para piano opus 55 nº 3 de Alberto Ginastera foi realizado tomando como referencial a análise desenvolvida por Lawrence Ferrara no Capítulo seis “An eclectic method for sound, form and representation” do seu livro “Philisophy and the Analisis of Music”. Dentro deste tipo de análise, apresentam-se diferentes enfoques analíticos: convencionais (que descrevem a forma musical ou sintaxe); fenomenológicos (descrições do som no tempo); e hermenêuticos (que descrevem os significados referenciais). Cada um destes enfoques é desenvolvido para finalmente favorecer uma visão holística, que permita estabelecer uma rede de relações estruturais, funcionais, significativas entre cada um dos elementos que o analista-intérprete determinou para abordar a interpretação musical da sonata. / The present work on Sonata nº 3 opus 55 for piano of Alberto Ginastera was carried through taking as referential the analysis developed by Lawrence Ferrara in the Chapter six “An eclectic method for sound, form and representation” of his book “Philosophy and the Analysis of Music”. Inside this type of analysis, different methods of analytical approaches are presented: conventional (describes the musical form or syntax); phenomenological (descriptions of the sound in the time); and hermeneutics (describes the referential meanings). Each one of these approaches is developed to finally favor a holistic vision, that allows to establish a net of relations structural, functional, significant between each one of the elements that the analyst-interpreter determined to approach the interpretation musical of the sonata. / El presente trabajo sobre la Sonata para piano opus 55 n°3 de Alberto Ginastera esta realizado tomando como referencial el análisis desarrollado por Lawrence Ferrara en el Capítulo seis “An eclectic method for sound, form and representation” de su libro “Philisophy and the Análisis of Music”. Dentro de ese análisis se presentan diferentes enfoques analíticos: convencionales (que describen la forma musical o sintaxis); fenomenológicos (descripciones del sonido en el tiempo); y hermenéuticos (que describen los significados referenciales). Cada uno de esos enfoques es desarrollado para finalmente favorecer una visión holística, que permita establecer una red de relaciones estructurales, funcionales, significativas entre cada uno de los elementos que el analista- intérprete determinó para abordar la interpretación musical de la sonata.

O presente trabalho sobre a Sonata para piano opus 55 nº 3 de Alberto Ginastera foi realizado tomando como referencial a análise desenvolvida por Lawrence Ferrara no Capítulo seis “An eclectic method for sound, form and representation” do seu livro “Philisophy and the Analisis of Music”. Dentro deste tipo de análise, apresentam-se diferentes enfoques analíticos: convencionais (que descrevem a forma musical ou sintaxe); fenomenológicos (descrições do som no tempo); e hermenêuticos (que descrevem os significados referenciais). Cada um destes enfoques é desenvolvido para finalmente favorecer uma visão holística, que permita estabelecer uma rede de relações estruturais, funcionais, significativas entre cada um dos elementos que o analista-intérprete determinou para abordar a interpretação musical da sonata. / The present work on Sonata nº 3 opus 55 for piano of Alberto Ginastera was carried through taking as referential the analysis developed by Lawrence Ferrara in the Chapter six “An eclectic method for sound, form and representation” of his book “Philosophy and the Analysis of Music”. Inside this type of analysis, different methods of analytical approaches are presented: conventional (describes the musical form or syntax); phenomenological (descriptions of the sound in the time); and hermeneutics (describes the referential meanings). Each one of these approaches is developed to finally favor a holistic vision, that allows to establish a net of relations structural, functional, significant between each one of the elements that the analyst-interpreter determined to approach the interpretation musical of the sonata. / El presente trabajo sobre la Sonata para piano opus 55 n°3 de Alberto Ginastera esta realizado tomando como referencial el análisis desarrollado por Lawrence Ferrara en el Capítulo seis “An eclectic method for sound, form and representation” de su libro “Philisophy and the Análisis of Music”. Dentro de ese análisis se presentan diferentes enfoques analíticos: convencionales (que describen la forma musical o sintaxis); fenomenológicos (descripciones del sonido en el tiempo); y hermenéuticos (que describen los significados referenciales). Cada uno de esos enfoques es desarrollado para finalmente favorecer una visión holística, que permita establecer una red de relaciones estructurales, funcionales, significativas entre cada uno de los elementos que el analista- intérprete determinó para abordar la interpretación musical de la sonata.

I yrken med möten med människor som varit utsatta på något sätt och behöver stöd i en förändringsprocess krävs en kompetens för att möta den hjälpsökandes behov. Ständiga möten med människor i en utsatt situation alstrar ett lärande även hos den som förväntas stötta och uppmuntra till förändring. Föreliggande studie avser att undersöka upplevelser av lärande hos individer som arbetar med kvinnor utsatta för våld i en nära relation. Sex kvinnor i en mellanstor kommun i Sverige har deltagit i studien. De arbetar antingen yrkesmässigt eller ideellt i två samverkande verksamheter med utsatta kvinnor. Totalt har elva intervjuer genomförts där förfarandet haft en kvalitativ ansats. Det insamlade materialet har analyserats med en tolkande fenomenologisk analys, där resultatet består av följande tre teman: Ett omedvetet och medvetet lärande, formellt lärande samt informellt lärande. Resultatet visar också hur informanterna upplever olika förutsättningar för lärande samt vilken betydelse lärandet får för den dagliga verksamheten. Deltagarna upplever att de ständigt lär av andra och sig själva, där samarbete och samverkan är viktiga förutsättningar för att det dagliga arbetet skall fungera. Lärande är betydelsefullt för verksamhetens utveckling, individens personliga utveckling och för att den utsatta kvinnan skall få god hjälp. För att kunna lära behövs förutsättningar som exempelvis engagemang och intresse. Och för att dessa ska tillgodoses krävs förutsättningar av mottaglighet och utrymme som ges och fås, dels av individen själv men främst av individer i verksamheternas nätverk. / In occupations where encounters with people who have been exposed in some way and are in need of support in a process of change, competence is required to meet the needs of that person. Every encounter with people in vulnerable situations generates situations of learning also for the person that is expected to give support and encourage change. The present study aims to examine the experiences of learning within individuals who work with women victims of domestic violence. Six women in a medium-sized municipality in Sweden participated in the study. They either work with salaries or voluntarily in two collaborative units with abused women. A total of eleven interviews were conducted where the approach had a qualitative alignment. The collected material was analyzed with an interpretative phenomenological analysis and the result consists of the three following themes: Unconscious/conscious learning, formal learning and informal learning. The result also shows how the participants experience different conditions for learning and the importance learning adress to the daily worklife. Furthermore, the participants experience a constant learning from both other individuals and herself, where cooperation and collaboration are essential for the function of daily work. Learning is important for development of the workplace, personal development and so that the abused woman will get the help she need. To be able to learn, there are necessary preconditions such as commitment and interest. And for these to be met, other conditions are required such as receptivity and space, which are provided and obtained partly by the individual herself but mostly by individuals in the network surrounding the work places.

Trauma therapists increasingly use EMDR when working with Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and trauma clients as it is recommended by NICE guidelines (2005) however until recently research focused on the negative impact of trauma work. Posttraumatic Growth (PTG) appears to be the most commonly used term for ‘growth’ however attempts to define and measure it can be criticised for being reductionist in approach as it reduced five factors into three outcomes based on the client’s growth. Research on trauma therapists’ growth has relied on client definitions that is; Vicarious PTG is based on PTG although there are a couple of studies which collaborate these findings. This study aims to address the literature and practitioner gap by exploring EMDR therapists’ lived experiences of ‘vicarious growth’ when working with PTSD symptom clients. Semi-structured interviews were used to collect data from a homogeneous sample of six EMDR therapists who stated that they had positive experiences or experienced growth (positive change) when working with PTSD symptom clients. Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) was used to analyse the data. Rich, detailed findings in terms of how ‘growth’ is experienced emerged as four super-ordinate themes: A: Initial struggles; B: Experiences of the “healing journey”; C: Growth through connecting and D: Impact of growth on ‘self’. Implications of experiences of the therapeutic relationship as a “healing journey” for therapists were discussed in terms of a potential power imbalance where they might be viewed as ‘experts’. However, a better understanding of how therapists experience ‘vicarious growth’ with their clients enables them to utilise this knowledge to develop their own growth and self-awareness therefore supervision and training to encourage self-awareness was also discussed. These Positive Psychology (growth) findings such as self-belief in skills; use of ‘special set’ of clients; self-image as 3 ‘guide’ and the spread of growth to areas outside of therapy can be utilised to add Positive Psychology (growth) into existing supervision and training (EMDR and trauma) thereby enhancing existing models or creating new ones. Therapists growth and well-being may lead to lower occupational risk than was previously thought working amongst trauma clients and perhaps greater job satisfaction. KEYWORDS: Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR), Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Posttraumatic Growth (PTG), Vicarious Posttraumatic Growth (VPTG), Vicarious Growth (VG), Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA); EMDR therapists; Positive Psychology.