Transformative Theory in Social and Organizational Research

In social and organizational research, theory is conventionally used to explain social phenomena. However, theory may be transformative in the sense that in using and testing the theory in a practical domain, researchers may attempt to help practitioners transform and improve their social practices and institutions. This idea is illustrated by a research-and-development project in Denmark, headed by the author, which used transformative theory to design professional conferences that are more conducive to participant learning and involvement than is the conventional, lecture-based format. A number of learning techniques were derived from the theory and were tested as hypotheses: When implemented in thirty live conference experiments, did they contribute to learning, as specified by the theory? Used in this manner, transformative theory may supplement the aspirations motivating change agents by some of the well-known qualities of scientific research, including theoretical grounding, a coherent ontology, testable hypotheses, systematic evaluation, external validity, and theory–action consistency.     

Together we cry: Social motives and preferences for group-based sadness

Group-based emotions play an important role in helping people feel that they belong to their group. People are motivated to belong, but does this mean that they actively try to experience group-based emotions to increase their sense of belonging? In this investigation, we propose that people may be motivated to experience even group-based emotions that are typically considered unpleasant to satisfy their need to belong. To test this hypothesis, we examined people's preferences for group-based sadness in the context of the Israeli National Memorial Day. In two correlational (Studies 1a and 1b) and two experimental (Studies 2 and 3) studies, we demonstrate that people with a stronger need to belong have a stronger preference to experience group-based sadness. This effect was mediated by the expectation that experiencing sadness would be socially beneficial (Studies 1 and 2). We discuss the implications of our findings for understanding motivated emotion regulation and intergroup relations.     

Methodological Rigor in Journal of Counseling & Development Qualitative Research Articles: A 15‐Year Review

The authors conducted a content analysis on the type, frequency, and intensity of use of various indicators of rigor for 68 qualitative research articles published between 1999 and 2014 in the Journal of Counseling & Development. The authors identified the most frequently listed and implemented strategies for the research articles. The authors found a significant engagement in rigor strategies across time, variations in intensity in strategy use, and a significant positive relationship between intensity of strategy use across time.     

Learning and difficult experiences in graduate training in clinical psychology: A qualitative study of Japanese trainees’ retrospective accounts

This study examined the experiences of Japanese clinical psychology trainees in their graduate school with the aim of identifying factors that might enhance or hinder their learning and professional development. We analyzed the interview data obtained from 17 clinical psychologists using grounded theory approach. Two major category groups were generated: Developing as a Clinician and Difficulties. The primary positive learning experiences in Developing as a Clinician were labeled “Hot Learning,” in which trainees acquired professional knowledge and skills through close interpersonal engagement with clients, peers, faculty, and supervisors. In contrast, Difficulties involved trainees’ negative experiences resulting in feelings of self-doubt and incompetence. These experiences occurred in close but sometimes conflicted interpersonal contexts, where trainees felt evaluated in a manner incommensurate with the support they received. We found that the quality of interpersonal relationships, which provided the context for optimal learning for trainees, was paramount to the definition of positive versus difficult learning experiences. Implications for therapist training, professional development and future research are discussed.     

Springs,Nitre, and Conatus. The Role of the Heart in Hobbes's Physiology and Animal Locomotion

This paper focuses on an understudied aspect of Hobbes's natural philosophy: his approach to the domain of life. I concentrate on the role assigned by Hobbes to the heart, which occupies a central role in both his account of human physiology (which he names ‘vital motion’) and of the origin of animal locomotion (‘animal or voluntary motion’). With this, I have three goals in mind. First, I aim to offer a cross-section of Hobbes's effort to provide a mechanistic picture of human life. Second, I aim to contextualize Hobbes's views in the seventeenth-century debates on human physiology and animal locomotion. In particular, I will compare Hobbes's views with the theories put forth by Harvey, Descartes, the Galenic, and Peripatetic traditions. Also, I will show that Hobbes was receptive to advances within contemporary English physiology and chemistry. Third, by means of a comparison with Descartes, I advance some hypothesis to explain why Hobbes indentified the heart, and not the brain (as was increasingly common in his day), as the organ originating animal locomotion. In this regard, I trace out some possible implications of Hobbes's views on human physiology and locomotion for his psychology and political philosophy.     

Trait anxiety and attenuated negative affect differentiation: a vulnerability factor to consider?

Background and Objectives: Describing emotional experiences using distinct terms, or affect differentiation, has been associated with emotion regulation and adaptive behavior under stress. There is little data, however, examining the association between differentiation and dispositional factors underlying psychopathology. The current study examines the association between differentiation and trait anxiety (TA) given prior evidence of cognitive biases in TA relevant to higher order processing of emotional experiences.

Design: We examined cross-sectionally, via lab-based repeated assessment, the association between differentiation of negative and positive experiences and TA.

Methods: Two hundred twenty-two adults completed an emotion reactivity task including repeated assessments of affect. We hypothesized that individuals higher in trait anxiety (HTA) would have greater difficulty differentiating their experiences.

Results: HTA individuals exhibited lower levels of negative affect (NA) differentiation even when controlling for depression. Although negative emotion intensity was consistently associated with lower differentiation, this did not account for the influence of HTA on differentiation.

Conclusions: These data suggest that HTA individuals have greater difficulty differentiating negative emotions, regardless of negative emotion intensity and depression. As HTA is common to many emotional disorders; this evidence suggests that poor differentiation may also be an important transdiagnostic consideration in models of risk and of affective disease.     

Les autorisations d’équipements lourds d’imagerie médicale : un désordre organisé

Medical imaging is essential for all medical specialties and it is natural that the government wants to create a real healthcare provision policy in this area. Medical imaging and particularly the “heavy” equipment are subject to a regulatory and legal framework. This framework results in respect of administrative authorization mechanism. These authorizations are a major tool for development of medical imaging on French territory. This mechanism is an important instrument of economic regulation in controlling health costs. However, the access to this kind of equipment raises various issues in governance and administration but also in matter of economic regulation, distribution of healthcare supply in medical imaging in health territories and respect of public health issues. The authorization mechanism raises questionings, not only at national and regional level in terms of unequal access, but also at European and international level. Indeed, France is among the last countries in the ranking of CT (computed tomography) and MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) equipment rates in comparison with many OECD (Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development) countries. Now, these authorizations will integrate much more the concepts of accessibility and quality of patient care. The legal and regulatory framework of these authorizations will have to evolve and to adapt to new technologies and practices, which today should be a source of significant cost savings.     

Meaning in life and its relationships with intrinsic religiosity,deliberate rumination,and emotional regulation

Meaning in life is one of the core elements of well‐being. Although meaning in life has received considerable research interest over the years, much of this research did not differentiate between the two categories of meaning, that is, search for meaning and meaning in life. The present study first investigated collective explanatory powers that intrinsic religiosity, deliberate rumination, and emotional regulation – three predictors selected based on past literature – have on these two types of meaning. In addition, mediational effects of deliberate rumination and emotional regulation in the links between intrinsic religiosity and search for meaning and presence of meaning were investigated. The participants were 326 undergraduate students in Seoul, South Korea. The hierarchical regression analyses found that while intrinsic religiosity contributed significantly in explaining only presence of meaning, deliberate rumination and emotional regulation had significant contributions in explaining both search for meaning and presence of meaning. Also, double mediational analysis using structural equation modelling revealed that deliberate rumination, but not emotional regulation, mediated the relationship between intrinsic religiosity and meaning in life. The implications and directions for future studies are also discussed.     

Reviewing the research in children’s spirituality (2005–2015): proposing a pluricultural approach

Research on children’s spirituality seems to continue to be scarcely represented in the field of early childhood. In reviewing the literature, looking at empirical data-driven studies, this paper compiles an international review of the work completed in the last 10 years (2005–2015) on the topic of children’s spirituality. The research-based works reviewed are analysed and sorted taking into account: research methods, participant demographics (age, gender, ethnicity) and location (urban vs. suburban/rural, school vs. home), yet are presented in categories found related to their topic of study: (1) spiritual meaning-making and relationships to/with God, (2) children’s spirituality in education and (3) identity formation and sense of self. Finally, identification of gaps in the research literature regarding the study of children’s spirituality is presented. As well, avenues for future research are proposed, identifying methods and approaches. Also, the term pluricultural as a means to guide researchers in making sense of the complex phenomenon that is children’s spirituality is introduced.