<p> Spiritual emergence is a natural part of the human developmental experience. The process is unique to each individual and may gradually unfold or suddenly arise. Yet, because there is no mainstream cultural framework to provide context for the broad spectrum of anomalous experiences that may occur within it, there can be resistance to the process. The purpose of this exploratory study was to elucidate the phenomenon of spiritual resistance within the spiritual emergence process. Using the heuristic method, 18 participants who self-identified as having experienced spiritual resistance were interviewed. Based on data gathered through this research, 5 types of spiritual resistance and 11 ways of overcoming it were named. Spiritual resistance has both a protective and inhibiting function. Although at times it may serve to stifle the progression of spiritual development, it may also be the intermediary in protecting the ego from the tumultuous process experienced during spiritual emergency. </p><p>

Individuals commonly fail to document their current experiences such that they often forget about these experiences altogether. In the context of learning, for example, experts may have difficulty remembering the experience of being inexperienced, making it difficult for them to help and train novices. Across three chapters, I explore the personal and interpersonal benefits of rediscovery—the process of revisiting past experiences that are non-salient or inaccessible in the moment. In the first chapter, I test whether individuals understand the benefits of rediscovery for themselves. Using a time capsule paradigm, I demonstrate that rediscovering past experiences, particularly ordinary ones, generates more interest and curiosity than expected. Whereas the first chapter focuses on the benefits of rediscovery at the individual level, the second and third chapters explore the interpersonal benefits of rediscovery. In the second chapter, studies with interns and medical students demonstrate that relative to relying on memories of past experiences, rediscovering these experiences (e.g., by reading their past accounts of these events) better equips individuals to understand and advise those with less experience. In the third chapter, a study of expert guitarists reveals that rediscovering the experience of inexperience enables experts to better relate to novices, helping them give advice that novices rate as more helpful and encouraging. / Organizational Behavior

Abstract not available.

Abstract not available.

Using the theoretical framework of Self-Determination Theory (Deci, 1975; Deci, & Ryan, 1985, 2000; Ryan, & Deci, 2002) and Cognitive Evaluation Theory (Deci & Ryan, 1985, 1991, 2000) it was hypothesized that a specific coach behavior, the provision of training plans in advance to athletes, could positively impact athlete intrinsic and self-determined motivation as well as other positive athlete attributes such as sport satisfaction, goal setting, vitality, and better preparation and planning for training. A mixed methodology approach was employed as both qualitative and quantitative data were obtained. The qualitative component involved the use of structured interviewing to understand better how individual sport athletes (N = 13) perceive their coaches in relation to their communication of training plans. For the quantitative components, a daily diary methodology was used with the goal of investigating how track athletes (N = 11) working with the same coach would perceive either receiving no training plan information over time as well as receiving detailed training plan information over two-week periods. Finally a correlational study (N = 130) using athletes from fourteen sports was undertaken to more clearly determine the links between coach communication of training plans, athlete perceptions of coach behavior, athlete self-determined motivation, and goal orientation. The qualitative component of the study revealed that athletes current motivation, the coaching tradition in a sport, and the development stage of an athlete's career all play a large role in the communication of training plans between a coach and athlete. The analyses of the daily diary study suggested some positive consequences may be associated with advance communication of training plans such as better athlete preparation and planning for training as well higher moods and motivation at practice. Regression results from the correlational study provide some clear links between advance communication of training plans, coach clarity of communication, and coach interpersonal behaviors related to athlete needs for relatedness, competence, and autonomy. In turn coach interpersonal behaviors are highly related to athlete self-determination and other positive consequences such as a mastery goal-orientation and high vitality and sport satisfaction. These finding are discussed in terms of how they relate to self-determination theory, and more specifically Deci and Ryan's cognitive evaluation theory (1980, 2000). Practical implications for coaching are also discussed.

Purpose of the study. Although the use of intuition has been ongoing throughout history and documented in the literature, we do not really know how people actually experience and use their intuition, and consequently there is little information about how to nurture and develop the process. The purpose of this study is to discover how intuition is accessed, used, confirmed, understood, nurtured, and developed. The nature, process, and experience of intuition are explored in order to create a better understanding of this way of knowing. Personal narratives elicit information about how one knows intuitively, responds to and utilizes this information, and develops this inherent ability. Methodology. A qualitative research method was employed to initiate an exploratory, phenomenological investigation. In the traditional approach of the cognitive anthropologist, in-depth interviews were conducted as carefully guided conversations to allow the participants to fully express and explore their own experience, world views, and belief systems. From the interviews, profiles were constructed and subsequently examined by using the technique of content analysis. Information, presented in the profiles, was qualitatively analysed and interpreted to identify domains of understanding and specific dimensions of the intuitive experiences. Results and conclusions. Seven dimensions of the intuitive experience were identified as significant areas of interest and concern. Examining the dimensions of access, response, use, confirmation, meaning, development, and constraints provided the format to compare and contrast the participants' experiences, understandings, and beliefs. The themes of trust and source of intuitive information were elucidated. The full experience of intuition as a gestalt was explored to better understand the essence of the intuitive experience. The participants articulated many ways they use intuition, identified ways they nurture it, and speculated about ways they can further develop it. The participants gained expanded insights into their own process and experience, while generating information that has far reaching implications for further study. They found intuition intrinsic in developing interpersonal relationships, communicating caring, reaching meta-levels of understanding, making decisions, and creating meaning. Sometimes surprised, they spoke of the pervasive use of intuition at the physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual levels of awareness.

An empirical study was performed to test two explanations of changes in beliefs following from major life events. On the one hand, Cognitive-experiential Self-theory would predict that, in the aftermath of major life events, individuals go through a personal process of adjusting their basic beliefs about self and world on the basis of what they have experienced. On the other hand, script theory and social constructionist thought would predict that the well socialized individual has prior knowledge of the changes in cognition that should accompany any major life event. According to these approaches, when the event occurs, the individual undergoes the very changes he or she already knew one should undergo. Reports of actual and hypothetical experiences of seven major life events by 272 undergraduates indicated that for six of the seven events those who had and had not experienced the event had virtually identical understandings of the effects of the event. For the seventh event, sexual abuse, a coherent pattern of differences between the reports of those who had and had not experienced the event was found. The results were interpreted as largely supporting the script and social constructionist position. The contribution of personal experience to socially held scripts was also discussed.

Research on the cessation of violence is important in light of the dramatic increase in public and scientific interest on family violence. Although the marital violence literature more than tripled during the eighties, much of the work has focused solely on the correlates and determinants of marital violence, ignoring the issue of how couples eliminate violence from their relationships. This is an exploratory study of the cessation of men's use of violence against their female partners. Longitudinal survey data were used to evaluate cessation rates, the relationship between demographic characteristics and risk factors for wife abuse and cessation, and the help seeking behavior of partners who ceased the violence. In depth interviews with two couples who had ceased the use of violence were used to elucidate the characteristics of the cessation process. It was found that contextual factors such as financial hardship, increased number of children at home, increased levels of marital conflict, and inadequate conflict resolution skills were negatively related to the cessation of violence. On the other hand, cessation was associated with immersion into a social network that supports nonviolence, development of alternative ways to resolve conflict, and the partners' commitment to the relationship.

The number of human service professionals who are migrating from Puerto Rico to the United States increased since the 1970's, and intensified during the 1980's (Petrovich, 1983; Turner, 1982). Among these professionals there are many psychotherapists who come to work in community mental health centers with poor and low income Puerto Rican migrants. The literature on cross-cultural psychotherapy, however, has virtually overlooked the possible effects on therapy of differences in social class when both parts of the therapeutic dyad are Latinos. This study explored the perceptions of twelve Puerto Rican psychotherapists who migrated from Puerto Rico to the U.S. primarily during the 1980's about how their own condition as migrants and the differences in social class between themselves and their clients affect the therapeutic relationship. Using a qualitative research approach, data was gathered through a structured open-ended interview. Twelve in-depth interviews were conducted with Puerto Rican psychotherapists who work in mental health centers in Massachusetts primarily with poor and low income Puerto Rican migrants. A grounded theory model guided the data analysis in the pursuit of similarities, differences, and patterns among respondents. All interviewed therapists identified significant differences between themselves and their Puerto Rican migrant clients related to social class, including differences in values, belief systems, and general lifestyle. Furthermore, it was found that the concept of migrant is negatively charged in the understanding of interviewed therapists, and it was difficult to match a self-perception as a professional with that of a migrant. It is concluded that the differences identified by interviewed therapists between themselves and their poor and low income Puerto Rican clients in the context of migration makes the therapeutic situation a "cross-cultural" one for all practical purposes, despite the fact of being from the same national origin. Consequently, it is recommended that social class be acknowledged as a highly significant variable in the therapeutic relationship, regardless of nationality of the parts involved. Training about the importance of social class issues in therapy is strongly recommended, both at the level of graduate schools and at the level of employment recruitment.

No description available.