The purpose of this project was to explore the use of an eco-mapping protocol for measuring childrens social support networks. The project investigated two research questions: (1) what are the similarities and differences in the information provided by three informants in the eco-mapping protocol?, and (2) what information do eco-maps provide about childrens social support networks? Ten four-year-old children, their families, and teacher participated in the creation of eco-maps. Each informant identified the major people in the childs support network, described relationships, and identified the type and developmental area of support provided by each individual. All the information was graphically represented into an eco-map using shapes and color coding to distinguish variations. Mixed methods were used to analyze the data in order to answer the two research questions. Parents, teachers, and children provided varied and diverse information regarding the childrens social network. The use of multiple informants provided a more comprehensive picture of the childs support network. Qualitative analysis of the data sources for a subsample revealed four themes: the inner circle, only strong links, lots of shapes and colors, and symbols of support. Eco-maps with parents, teachers, and children may contribute to educational research and practice through providing detailed information about childrens social support network.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:LSU/oai:etd.lsu.edu:etd-04282010-164251 |
| Date | 30 April 2010 |
| Creators | Burnett, Lauren |
| Contributors | Buchanan, Teresa, Baumgartner, Jennifer, Chaney, Cassandra, Garrison, M. E. Betsy |
| Publisher | LSU |
| Source Sets | Louisiana State University |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | text |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Source | http://etd.lsu.edu/docs/available/etd-04282010-164251/ |
| Rights | unrestricted, I hereby certify that, if appropriate, I have obtained and attached herein a written permission statement from the owner(s) of each third party copyrighted matter to be included in my thesis, dissertation, or project report, allowing distribution as specified below. I certify that the version I submitted is the same as that approved by my advisory committee. I hereby grant to LSU or its agents the non-exclusive license to archive and make accessible, under the conditions specified below and in appropriate University policies, my thesis, dissertation, or project report in whole or in part in all forms of media, now or hereafter known. I retain all other ownership rights to the copyright of the thesis, dissertation or project report. I also retain the right to use in future works (such as articles or books) all or part of this thesis, dissertation, or project report. |
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