Emerging practices of action in systemic therapy: how and why family therapists use action methods in their work

A thesis submitted to the University of Bedfordshire in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Professional Practice.This thesis sets out to explore the processes involved when family therapists decide to introduce an action method into a therapy session. Action methods are defined as therapist led physical activities which are introduced into the session for the purpose of enabling the healing of relationships. The literature is examined in relation to connections between family therapy approaches using action and psychodrama psychotherapy relation to work with families and couples. Literature which integrates the two approaches is identified. The core of the study is composed of five interviews with experienced and senior family therapists about how they use action with clients in sessions. It focuses on the beliefs, behaviours and actions which are present at the moment the therapists decide to use action. The interviews examine the therapists’ training and current practice culture, their guiding beliefs and principles about the use of action and the theories on which they have drawn in considering the implementation of action methods. Participants were asked to describe an episode of action by giving a verbal account as well as undertaking a sculpt of the episode using ‘small world’ figures. The interviews were transcribed and analysed using a unique approach blending psychodramatic role analysis (Williams 1989) with the Coordinated Management of Meaning (CMM) (Cronen and Pearce 1985) a communication theory approach used by systemic psychotherapists. The findings indicate that systemic therapists do not have one overarching theoretical approach to using action in therapy, but draw on a range of different models which may be derived from different systemic approaches. The findings further indicate that theories of action which include neurobiological information processing and embodiment are introduced into systemic trainings as important in understanding how action methods impact on individuals and families. A format for therapists to evaluate their use of action methods is proposed for use in supervision or training. It follows the format that is used in the analysis, using psychodramatic role analysis and a CMM hierarchical structure which proposes opening space, spontaneity and playfulness as markers for the culture, identity and relationship levels of the analysis

Physicians' appraisal of responsibilities assumed by general duty nurses.

Thesis (Ed.D.)--Boston University

Characterization of Kpni Interspersed, Repetitive DNA Sequence Families and Their Association With the Nuclear Matrix

The KpnI, 1.2 and 1.5 kb families of interspersed repetitive DNAs from the African green monkey genome were isolated and characterized. Each family contains three populations of segments based on their sequence lengths and susceptibility to cleavage by the restriction enzymes KpnI and RsaI. The first population contains the smallest segments which are susceptible to both KpnI and RsaI cleavage and have fragment lengths of 1.2 kb (1.2 kb family) and 1.5 kb (1.5 kb family) respectively. The members in this population are referred to as KpnI-sensitive segments. The second population contains longer segments (\u3e 2 kb) which represent fusions of members from different families. The fusion sequences are cleaved by KpnI at their termini but lack internal KpnI sites at the junctions that join the individual component members. The third population contains members from each family that are cleaved occasionally by KpnI (KpnI-resistant segments) and remained linked to the bulk of the high molecular weight DNA. KpnI 1.2 kb, 1.5 kb and KpnI-resistant populations were isolated and analyzed for the presence of internal RsaI sites. All members from both populations were cleaved by RsaI into a simple series of low molecular weight fragments. Some members from both the KpnI-sensitive and the KpnI-resistant populations were found to contain internal RsaI sites. Other members from both populations lacked internal RsaI sites. Genomic KpnI 1.2 kb segments were cloned and two recombinants pBK(1.2)14 and pBK(1.2)39 identified. The partial nucleotide sequence of clone Kpn(1.2)14 was determined. The sequence content of KpnI 1.2 and 1.5 kb families in DNA fragments that anchor DNA loops to the nuclear matrix (att-DNA) was also studied. The relative sequence content of both 1.2 and 1.5 kb families was found to be impoverished when compared to their content in total nuclear DNA. However, members in each family were found to be present in detectable amounts. The association of KpnI 1.2 and 1.5 kb family sequences with the nuclear matrix was also demonstrated by metrizamide gradient centrifugation of nuclear matrix complexes. The results suggest that some KpnI 1.2 and 1.5 kb segments are differentially associated with nuclear proteins

Female student services staff perceptions of safety on a state college campus: An exploratory study

The purpose of this qualitative research study was to explore the perceptions of female student services staff members\u27 perceptions of safety on a state college campus. Through the lens of social construction theory, six staff members were interviewed about their views of safety both on and off campus. The goal of this study was to better understand how female staff members formed their perceptions of safety on campus, through social, political and cultural processes. The results of this study were that although the informants all were aware of the same threats and dangers on campus, they each had differing views on how safe they were while on campus. Of the six interviewed, two expressed daily concern for their safety, two were aware of dangers, but not overly fearful, and two did not feel fearful for their safety at all. Although each informant knew about their campus safety amenities, only two had used their services, one that expressed concern daily, and one that was not overly fearful. Social influences such as televised news programs and Internet articles played a factor in how the employees viewed their safety. Overall, seven major themes were discovered including campus concern, concern over student behavior, self-protection, off campus concerns, social influences, lack of concern, and lack of information. The study concluded with the researcher\u27s recommendations that female student services staff members become knowledgeable about crimes happening on their campuses and about utilizing services they have available to them, as well as emphasizing the importance of office location, especially the proximity to coworkers working similar schedules

Health related quality of life in patients with end stage kidney disease treated with haemodialysis in Malawi: a cross sectional study

Kidney Disease and Quality of Life Short Form Questionnaire (KDQOL-SFTM). (PDF 168 kb

Utility of FMS to Understand Injury Incidence in Sports: Current Perspectives

The Functional Movement Screen (FMS) is a popular movement screen used by rehabilitation, as well as strength and conditioning, professionals. The FMS, like other movement screens, identifies movement dysfunction in those at risk of, but not currently experiencing, signs or symptoms of a musculoskeletal injury. Seven movement patterns comprise the FMS, which was designed to screen fundamental movement requiring a balance between stability and mobility. The 7 movement patterns are summed to a composite FMS score. For an instrument to have wide applicability and acceptability, there must be high levels of reliability, validity, and accuracy. The FMS is certainly a reliable tool, and can be consistently scored within and between raters. Although the FMS has high face and content validity, the criterion validity (discriminant and convergent) is low. Additionally, the FMS does not appear to be studying a single construct, challenging the use of the summed composite FMS score. The accuracy of the FMS in screening for injury is also suspect, with low sensitivity in almost all studies, although specificity is higher. Finally, within the FMS literature, the concepts of prediction and association are conflated, combined with flawed cohort studies, leading to questions about the efficacy of the FMS to screen for injury. Future research on the use of the FMS, either the composite score or the individual movement patterns, to screen for injury or injury risk in adequately powered, well-designed studies are required to determine if the FMS is appropriate for use as a movement screen