An ethic for flourishing in mental health practice : a philosophical and sociological study

The relevant literature suggests that ethical codes regulating mental health care are ‘more honoured in the breach than in the observation’ (Pritchard, 2001) and that current codes of good practice may, paradoxically, be bad for this. Patient-centred medicine with its emphasis on user autonomy and participation in care plans has provoked harsher questioning of traditional deontological codes and renewed interest in those based on neo-Aristotelian virtue ethics and the ethic of care. However, much recent work has claimed the latter as “essentially feminine”, whilst mental health practice itself is considered by feminists to be paternalistic in ideology and attitude. This dissertation asks, therefore, which type of ethic is best suited to flourishing mental health practice and what are the gender considerations relevant to answering this question? Ethical practice can be understood only in the context of its interpretation by the relevant players. This, in turn, requires an investigative approach true to the precepts of the relatively new discipline of empirical ethics, which combines sociological grounded theory and fieldwork, informed by philosophical ethics. This is, therefore, the theoretical and methodological framework of this thesis. Analysis of the data collected suggests that claims of gender differences in approaches to caring cannot be substantiated. Mental health professionals of both sexes practice either caring or emotional labour, or both, or neither. Ethical codes are widely disregarded by both male and female carers, who claim to act upon intuition and ‘common sense’ in addressing ethical dilemmas. Most users believe codes of good practice to be generally respected by healthcare professionals, but describe poor communication, disempowerment, a lack of “genuine” caring and, above all, adverse discrimination. Whereas practitioners echo their views, they blame poor care on a lack of resources. Both consider adverse discrimination in both clinical and social settings to reduce all chance of flourishing in mental health care today. Values are inherent to the recurring theme of stigmatisation, and to ethics and codes of good practice. Their influence is all-pervading, yet until recently they have not been considered central to ethics education curricula. Although all codes of ethics, regardless of their orientation, are regularly reviewed, revised and extended, until practitioners and policy-makers become fully aware of the essential role of values in practice and make education in these an a priori condition to training in ethics, such codes, lacking a solid base of understanding, will continue to be bad for good practice and the flourishing which should result from this

Research on Teaching and Learning In Biology, Chemistry and Physics In ESERA 2013 Conference

This paper provides an overview of the topics in educational research that were published in the ESERA 2013 conference proceedings. The aim of the research was to identify what aspects of the teacher-student-content interaction were investigated frequently and what have been studied rarely. We used the categorization system developed by Kinnunen, Lampiselkä, Malmi and Meisalo (2016) and altogether 184 articles were analyzed. The analysis focused on secondary and tertiary level biology, chemistry, physics, and science education. The results showed that most of the studies focus on either the teacher’s pedagogical actions or on the student - content relationship. All other aspects were studied considerably less. For example, the teachers’ thoughts about the students’ perceptions and attitudes towards the goals and the content, and the teachers’ conceptions of the students’ actions towards achieving the goals were studied only rarely. Discussion about the scope and the coverage of the research in science education in Europe is needed.Peer reviewe

Assuming Data Integrity and Empirical Evidence to The Contrary

Background: Not all respondents to surveys apply their minds or understand the posed questions, and as such provide answers which lack coherence, and this threatens the integrity of the research. Casual inspection and limited research of the 10-item Big Five Inventory (BFI-10), included in the dataset of the World Values Survey (WVS), suggested that random responses may be common. Objective: To specify the percentage of cases in the BRI-10 which include incoherent or contradictory responses and to test the extent to which the removal of these cases will improve the quality of the dataset. Method: The WVS data on the BFI-10, measuring the Big Five Personality (B5P), in South Africa (N=3 531), was used. Incoherent or contradictory responses were removed. Then the cases from the cleaned-up dataset were analysed for their theoretical validity. Results: Only 1 612 (45.7%) cases were identified as not including incoherent or contradictory responses. The cleaned-up data did not mirror the B5P- structure, as was envisaged. The test for common method bias was negative. Conclusion: In most cases the responses were incoherent. Cleaning up the data did not improve the psychometric properties of the BFI-10. This raises concerns about the quality of the WVS data, the BFI-10, and the universality of B5P-theory. Given these results, it would be unwise to use the BFI-10 in South Africa. Researchers are alerted to do a proper assessment of the psychometric properties of instruments before they use it, particularly in a cross-cultural setting

Leading Towards Voice and Innovation: The Role of Psychological Contract

Background: Empirical evidence generally suggests that psychological contract breach (PCB) leads to negative outcomes. However, some literature argues that, occasionally, PCB leads to positive outcomes. Aim: To empirically determine when these positive outcomes occur, focusing on the role of psychological contract (PC) and leadership style (LS), and outcomes such as employ voice (EV) and innovative work behaviour (IWB). Method: A cross-sectional survey design was adopted, using reputable questionnaires on PC, PCB, EV, IWB, and leadership styles. Correlation analyses were used to test direct links within the model, while regression analyses were used to test for the moderation effects. Results: Data with acceptable psychometric properties were collected from 11 organisations (N=620). The results revealed that PCB does not lead to substantial changes in IWB. PCB correlated positively with prohibitive EV, but did not influence promotive EV, which was a significant driver of IWB. Leadership styles were weak predictors of EV and IWB, and LS only partially moderated the PCB-EV relationship. Conclusion: PCB did not lead to positive outcomes. Neither did LS influencing the relationships between PCB and EV or IWB. Further, LS only partially influenced the relationships between variables, and not in a manner which positively influence IWB

ReInventing The University: Literacies and Legitimacy in the Postmodern Academy

Schroeder argues that, for students, postmodern instability in literacy and meaning has become a question of the legitimacy of current discourse of education. Schroeder is committed, then, to constructing literacies jointly with students and by so doing to bringing students to engage more deeply with education and society. To accomplish this, of course, he must advocate rebalancing instruction to a more radically student-centered curriculum. This does not mean he abandons traditional discourse or traditional practice in the classroom; rather, tradition becomes only one voice among many in the classroom, instead of being the dominating one. ReInventing the University is an extended discussion of why Schroeder feels this is necessary, how he tries to construct literacies that have legitimacy with students, and what his experiences could mean for classrooms, departments, and disciplines.https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/usupress_pubs/1128/thumbnail.jp

Proceedings of the 19th European Roundtable for Sustainable Consumption and Production Circular Europe for Sustainability: Design, Production and Consumption

Postprint (published version