Volume 7, Issue 3

ABSTRACT

During 2020, the world experienced a pandemic that led to sickness, death, and a global shutdown. Businesses closed, governments worked to keep people paid during the shutdown, children learned from their homes, and adults worked from home (for those who could).  Other adults lost their jobs due to downsizing during the pandemic, while others quit their jobs, starting the great resignation (Cook 2021). Among those affected were African American women who launched their own companies, even those with leadership roles in higher education. Whether they did so as a side business or as a second full-time career, the pandemic provided them an opportunity to take a risk. While starting a business is a cause for a celebration, the reasons behind women leaders in higher education starting their own companies is more complex. The purpose of this study, using narrative inquiry and semi-structured questions was to understand why African American women leaders, working in higher education, chose to launch their businesses during the COVID pandemic. Analyzing the participants’ life stories, the researcher discovered that familial history of entrepreneurship, inequities in the workplace, and valuing authentic leadership led African American higher education leaders to create businesses for themselves while also remaining in their higher educational roles, which they enjoyed.

Keywords: entre-employees, narrative research, higher education, African American women.

ABSTRACT

This article demonstrates the process of coding textual data, using QualCoder, a free and open-source software tool for supporting the qualitative data analysis process. The aim is to introduce novice qualitative researchers and undergraduate students of qualitative methods to the process of open coding in a clear and concise way. The systematic coding of the empirical data is a crucial first step in many popular qualitative methods like Thematic Analysis or Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis. The initial coding phase is a prerequisite for analyzing and making sense of the data. By using QualCoder, the researcher utilizes a dependable, efficient, and easily accessible tool to work with coding without losing transparency, rigor, and depth in the process. The article concludes by discussing the multiple benefits of using such a tool for the coding process, as well as limitations and potential risks, and thus highlighting the multi-purpose pairing between technology and qualitative research.

Keywords: coding, open-source, QualCoder, thematic analysis.

ABSTRACT

Little is known about the experiences of Advanced Standing Program (ASP) nursing students and instructors who practice Transcendental Meditation® (TM®). The purpose of this qualitative study was to uncover themes from the written descriptions of ASP nursing students and instructors who were taught to practice TM in order to gain a deeper understanding of how this practice might have meaning for and influence their lives and well-being. At the same time, discovering ways that TM could be incorporated into nursing education and practice as an effective stress reduction intervention and opportunity to enhance nursing care. Thematic analysis was employed. Twenty students and three instructors volunteered and were provided with education sessions by certified TM teachers involving the correct way to practice TM twice per day. Written descriptions were collected via written monthly reflective journals over 11 months. Descriptions were analyzed from the journal entries, uncovering major themes describing the experiences of participants when practicing TM and the resulting positive impact on their lives for managing stress, enhancing productivity, and improving relationships. In conclusion, recommendations involve the use of TM to be introduced and implemented as a useful stress reduction intervention tool in nursing programs for students and their instructors. 

Keywords: Transcendental Meditation, nursing students, nursing instructors, advanced standing nursing program, thematic analysis, qualitative research.

ABSTRACT

Two South Asian educators from the neighboring countries, Nepal and India, embarked on a collaborative autoethnographic inquiry into the emotional dimensions of teaching during the time of the pandemic using reflective letter-writing as a method of generating data. We have used a narrative dialogue method to analyze our reflective letter-writing method and draw attention to the themes that emerged throughout the process of generating data. Our research points out the significance of affective understanding through listening and sharing each other’s narratives as a way to build resilience as teacher leaders during times of crisis to improve our practices and gain insight into each other's lived experiences.

Keywords: autoethnography, letter-writing, reflexivity, emotional intelligence, teacher leaders, teachers as researchers

ABSTRACT

Time and again, criminology has been criticized for its lack of inclusion in research regarding diverse populations. Scholars continuously call for criminological research to diversify its focus and measurements, particularly regarding individual characteristics such as race, sex, gender, and, more recently, sexuality. This study utilizes summative content analysis to examine the inclusion, measurement, and context of sexuality and sexual orientation in all articles published between 2011-2020 from four criminological and criminal justice (CCJ) journals. Specifically, we explored to what extent sexuality is incorporated in the selected publications among the sections of each article and if it varies among journals, if sexuality is being measured in the empirical articles examined and, if so, as what type of variable, if the calls for inclusion in 2014 changed the amount of sexuality included in articles, and if the gender makeup of the author team impacts inclusion of sexuality. Results indicate that sexuality and sexual orientation are rarely mentioned in the literature and are measured even less. While sexuality is included more as time passes, much of this is limited. Additionally, articles published by female authors and within the more gender-specialized journal incorporate sexuality more frequently while still limited.

Keywords: sexuality, sexual orientation, criminal justice research, criminology research.

ABSTRACT

Eating disorders (ED) are serious and potentially life-treating mental disorders that affect millions of individuals worldwide. Researchers have indicated that athletes who participate in sports are at a greater risk of developing an ED than members of the general population. Previous research has focused on investigating the prevalence and symptomatology of eating disorder sufferers. Limited qualitative research has sought to analyze the lived experiences of patients and especially athletes with an ED. Therefore, the purpose of this research is to provide a platform for an athlete who was clinically diagnosed with an ED to share their story and highlight how playing a sport affected their condition. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with one female athlete who participated in a non-weight-centered sport. Interpretative phenomenological analysis was used to understand the experiences of the athlete and investigate how participation in a competitive sport impacted their eating disorder. Four superordinate themes emerged from the data: family dysfunction, life transitions, control over emotions, and social support needs. The findings from this study were atypical in comparison to current research. Although participating in football exacerbated the symptoms of the participant’s eating disorder, it was not involved in the aetiology as previous research has indicated. Football provided the participant with an outlet to separate from the powerful stressors she faced.

Keywords: Athletes, bulimia nervosa, eating disorders, interpretative phenomenological analysis.

ABSTRACT

Self-authorship describes holistic development in epistemological, intrapersonal, and interpersonal dimensions. Individuals who are self-authored have an integrated identity across all dimensions and act from an internally defined orientation. Developmentally effective experiences are central to self-authorship and create cognitive dissonance, prompting individuals to reconsider their existing beliefs and understanding. After these experiences, individuals move forward relying on internal definitions of understanding the world, themselves, and their interactions with others. These concepts have not been considered in seasonal employment settings for emerging adults. Using a case study approach, five participants with varying experiences with summer camp were purposefully selected from a study of camp employment. Each individual participated in four interviews over two years. Transcripts were coded to identify developmentally effective experiences. We found camp employment is rich in experiences in the intrapersonal and interpersonal dimensions, and thus this type of employment may be a complementary setting for self-authorship and holistic development.

Keywords: emerging adulthood, holistic development, seasonal work.

ABSTRACT

Savoring contributes to human flourishing by enabling individuals to optimize, enhance, and prolong pleasurable moments. One unique dimension of savoring, communication savoring, refers to the practice of mindfully attending to and elevating pleasurable or meaningful moments that are experienced in language and social interaction. The grounded model of communication savoring identified the types and phenomenological experiences of communication savoring. The purpose of this study is to continue grounded theoretical development of the communication savoring model by adding new cases to build and refine the model and by applying the model to a novel setting. Using a priori and emergent coding, we analyzed 268 communication savoring narratives from 107 emerging adults and 161 mature/older adults. Our findings demonstrate high fidelity across groups and suggest a refinement to one communication savoring type (i.e., extraordinary communication). Our novel application of the model also revealed generational similarities within the contexts for communication savoring (e.g., people and events) and generational differences regarding the valence (i.e., savoring the bittersweet) and target of communication savoring (i.e., giving vs. receiving). Our paper advances qualitative theory-building in positive social science and offers new insight into age differences in communication savoring.

Keywords: positive communication, model of communication savoring, savoring, grounded theory development, communication and aging.

ABSTRACT

Research shows that clinicians use music, either as music therapy or as an adjunct to talk therapy, in providing treatment to patients with a history of trauma, ones struggling with depression and anxiety, as well as in treating patients whose diseases have organic etiologies. However, the endopsychic structural permutations as the result of encountering music are understudied. The unique qualities of psychoanalysis mean researchers can use it as a tool to study unconscious transmutations and processes. The purpose of this phenomenological qualitative research was to understand the endopsychic structure changes during and after music improvisation based on the subjective experiences of 20 adult individuals. The researcher used unstructured interviews. The results show that participants moved toward partial ego positions during improvisation and felt whole after the intense moments of improvisation that involved the experience of heightened emotions. The research result can help inform treating patients with an array of psychological disorders including personality disorders and eating disorders.

Keywords: Endopsychic structure, improvisation, object relations, psychic splitting.

ABSTRACT

Campus climate informs student encounters on university campuses. Research indicates that discriminatory campus experiences impact the social, emotional, professional, and academic development of students. Although many studies discuss inequity among marginalized student groups, institutional Anti-Semitism is minimally discussed in scholarship. The current qualitative phenomenological study contributes to this literature gap by providing insight into the lived experiences of Jewish students in Counseling and Couple and Family Therapy programs who encountered Anti-Semitism at a public university. The guiding research question for this study was: What are the lived experiences of Jewish students who encounter Anti-Semitism on university campuses? Data collection involved online semi-structured interviews of participants and was followed by data analysis processes of thematic analysis and cross-case synthesis. Results indicated that being Jewish on campus includes four main challenges of (a) experiences of disclosing, externalizing, or embodying Jewish identity, (b) experiences of Anti-Semitism, (c) exclusionary experiences within multicultural education and courses, and (d) exclusionary experiences within social justice advocacy and minority status. Findings prompt future utilization of historical trauma informed instructional models and intergroup contact interventions within research and teaching in Counseling and Couple and Family Therapy programs.

Keywords: institutional anti-Semitism, phenomenology, campus climate, Jewish identity, historical trauma informed instructional models.

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