Cultural Engagement in California's Inland Regions

Cultural Engagement in California's Inland Regions explores patterns of cultural engagement in the San Joaquin Valley and the Inland Empire. Two major data collection efforts were undertaken. The first was a door-to-door intercept survey of more than 1,000 randomly selected households in six distinctly different neighborhoods, three in the Fresno area and three in Riverside and San Bernardino. The second was a self-administered survey of more than 5,000 residents of the two regions, promoted as the "California Cultural Census" and conducted online and through intercept work at various locations and events. It is important to note that this second data set aggregates multiple samples, including respondents who were selected at the convenience of outreach organizations. Although weighted to reduce potential biases, these data are not representative of all adults in the two regions. Results paint a detailed picture of the breadth and depth of cultural engagement in the two regions and reveal a range of activity in music, theater and drama, reading and writing, dance, and visual arts and crafts -- much of which occurs off the radar" of the traditional infrastructure of nonprofit arts organizations and facilities. The study identifies specific types of activities which, if supported at higher levels, might equitably raise participation levels and achieve higher levels of cultural vitality in millions of homes and hundreds of communities. It concludes that cultural providers and funders should look deeper into the fabric of their communities for new partners, new settings and innovative approaches to drawing residents into cultural experiences. This briefing provides a high level summary of the study's key findings, as well as discussion questions for cultural providers and funders. Comprehensive results are available at www.irvine.org, including an executive summary and detailed results by artistic discipline

White Counselor Trainees\u27 Racial Identity and Working Alliance Perceptions

Racial identity has been theorized to significantly affect cross-racial counseling relationships (Helms, 1984, 1995). This study examined the direct impact of White racial identity of 124 counselor trainees on working alliance formation in a same-racial and cross-racial vicarious counseling analogue. Regardless of the race of the client, disintegration and reintegration attitudes negatively affected working alliance ratings, and pseudoindependent and autonomy attitudes positively affected working alliance ratings. Implications for counseling, supervision, training, and research are discussed

White Counselor Trainees\u27 Racial Identity and Working Alliance Perceptions

Racial identity has been theorized to significantly affect cross-racial counseling relationships (Helms, 1984, 1995). This study examined the direct impact of White racial identity of 124 counselor trainees on working alliance formation in a same-racial and cross-racial vicarious counseling analogue. Regardless of the race of the client, disintegration and reintegration attitudes negatively affected working alliance ratings, and pseudoindependent and autonomy attitudes positively affected working alliance ratings. Implications for counseling, supervision, training, and research are discussed

Art and Medicine: A Collaborative Project Between Virginia Commonwealth University in Qatar and Weill Cornell Medicine in Qatar

Four faculty researchers, two from Virginia Commonwealth University in Qatar, and two from Weill Cornell Medicine in Qatar developed a one semester workshop-based course in Qatar exploring the connections between art and medicine in a contemporary context. Students (6 art / 6 medicine) were enrolled in the course. The course included presentations by clinicians, medical engineers, artists, computing engineers, an art historian, a graphic designer, a painter, and other experts from the fields of art, design, and medicine. To measure the student experience of interdisciplinarity, the faculty researchers employed a mixed methods approach involving psychometric tests and observational ethnography. Data instruments included pre- and post-course semi-structured audio interviews, pre-test / post-test psychometric instruments (Budner Scale and Torrance Tests of Creativity), observational field notes, self-reflective blogging, and videography. This book describes the course and the experience of the students. It also contains images of the interdisciplinary work they created for a culminating class exhibition. Finally, the book provides insight on how different fields in a Middle Eastern context can share critical /analytical thinking tools to refine their own professional practices

Learning Styles of College Students Enrolled in an Exeerience-Based Outdoor Leadership Program

The purpose of this study was to further the understanding of factors that may influence learning and, more specifically, how certain learning environments may affect individual learning style preferences. As is often the case with many outdoor programs, the emphasis is placed on experiential learning, or learning by doing. This is in contrast to more traditional college learning, which often relies heavily on didactic teaching where the instructor spends much of the time teaching in a lecture format. For this study, the learning style preferences of college students enrolled in an experientially-based outdoor leadership program were compared with those of college students enrolled in more traditional courses

The Role of Occupational Therapy in the Secondary Prevention of Transient Ischemic Attacks

A transient ischemic attack (TIA) is a condition in which an individual experiences an episode of temporary and focal neurological dysfunction of rapid onset, caused by cerebral circulatory failure and lasting no more than 24 hours (Shah, Cooper & Lyons, 1992, p. 358-359). Even though a TIA is temporary and leaves no permanent effects, it\u27s far from an irrelevant event. About one in three people who have a TIA eventually have a stroke, with about half occurring during the year after the TIA (Mayo, 2006). A TIA can serve as both a warning and an opportunity: a warning of an imminent stroke and an opportunity to take steps to prevent it. There is a need for individuals who have experienced a TIA to receive follow up treatments aimed at educational information and preventative interventions (Goldstein, Bian, Samsa, Bonito, Lux & Matchar, 2006). A comprehensive literature review was conducted by utilizing credible journal articles, textbooks and scholarly internet websites on the pathophysiology of TIAs, common risk factors, the delayed treatment sought after a TIA, depression related symptoms, the risk factors for TIA, possible treatment interventions and the role of occupational therapy. Furthermore, theoretical frameworks of occupational therapy were explored. It was determined that Occupational Adaptation model (Kramer, Hinojosa, & Royeen, 2003) was the most appropriate theory to guide this scholarly project. Through this process, it was determined that occupational therapists need to be informed about this undeveloped area of practice and seek out additional education on the various aspect of TIAs and the role of occupational therapy to better serve this population. An educational Microsoft PowerPoint presentation was developed for occupational therapists in order to provide them with information regarding TIA and the importance of secondary prevention in the form of lifestyle modifications and mental health management. The PowerPoint presentation and supplemental lecture notes pertain to the pathophysiology of TIAs, individual risk factors, the settings for occupational therapy services, the role of the therapist and treatment interventions. It is intended to be utilized at healthcare facilities, state occupational therapy associations as well as national organizations