The processes and effects of a training group in clinical pastoral education

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Boston University.The need of the Church for pastoral care, including especially pastoral care of groups, and the opportunity in clinical pastoral education for training to meet this need stimulated this study. It was undertaken as a first step in research to develop systematic understanding of small group processes from the pastoral standpoint and to evaluate the training groups which are a regular part of the program in clinical pastoral education at Boston State Hospital. One group of eight members was studied to assess the group's effect on its members and to describe its processes. As foundation for the study four steps were taken. First, the literature was reviewed. The review was comprehensive for evaluation of clinical pastoral education, pastoral care of small groups, and group training in clinical pastoral education. Also reviewed were representative books and articles on group work from the perspectives of religious education and church life. Attention was briefly given to secular disciplines which had influenced pastoral care of groups, especially group psychotherapy, education, and group training [TRUNCATED]

Emotional health in adolescents with and without a history of specific language impairment (SLI)

Objective:  This study examined the emotional health of adolescents with and without specific language impairment (SLI). Method:  One hundred and thirty-nine adolescents with a history of SLI (15;10 years) and a peer group of 124 adolescents with normal language development (NLD) (15;11 years) participated, who were in their final year of compulsory schooling. The risk of emotional difficulties was assessed using the Moods and Feelings Questionnaire (MFQ) and the Child Manifest Anxiety Scale-R (CMAS-R). Comprehensive language and cognition data were available for all participants (NLD and SLI) concurrently and also longitudinally for those with SLI. Results:  A clear increased risk of emotional health symptoms was found for the SLI group on both self- and parental-report. Girls scored less favourably than boys when groups were combined, but these were due to the effect of the NLD group, with no gender differences found in the SLI group. Direct links with language and cognition were not obvious. Instead, more diffuse factors such as family history of emotional health difficulties may warrant further investigation. Conclusion:  There is a marked higher rate of anxiety and depression symptoms in adolescents with SLI. However, these do not appear to be a direct result of impoverished communicative experiences

DBT degradation enhancement by decorating Rhodococcus erythropolis IGST8 with magnetic Fe3O4 nanoparticles

Biodesulfurization (BDS) of dibenzothiophene (DBT) was carried out by Rhodococcus erythropolis IGST8 decorated with magnetic Fe3O4 nanoparticles, synthesized in-house by a chemical method, with an average size of 45-50 nm, in order to facilitate the post-reaction separation of the bacteria from the reaction mixture. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) showed that the magnetic nanoparticles substantially coated the surfaces of the bacteria. It was found that the decorated cells had a 56% higher DBT desulfurization activity in basic salt medium (BSM) compared to the nondecorated cells. We propose that this is due to permeabilization of the bacterial membrane, facilitating the entry and exit of reactant and product, respectively. Model experiments with black lipid membranes (BLM) demonstrated that the nanoparticles indeed enhance membrane permeability

Sensitive imaging of electromagnetic fields with paramagnetic polar molecules

We propose a method for sensitive parallel detection of low-frequency electromagnetic fields based on the fine structure interactions in paramagnetic polar molecules. Compared to the recently implemented scheme employing ultracold $^{87}$Rb atoms [B{\"o}hi \textit{et al.}, Appl. Phys. Lett. \textbf{97}, 051101 (2010)], the technique based on molecules offers a 100-fold higher sensitivity, the possibility to measure both the electric and magnetic field components, and a probe of a wide range of frequencies from the dc limit to the THz regime

A PRACTITIONER-RESEARCHER INQUIRY INTO CHOICE, VOICE AND AGENCY IN INDIVIDUAL DRAMATHERAPY SESSIONS: CO-RESEARCHING WITH CHILDREN IN A PRIMARY SCHOOL SETTING

This qualitative study engages seven children as co-researchers of their individual dramatherapy experiences within a mainstream inner-city primary school. The study adopted a practitioner research approach and data were collected over 18 months. The research questions address the ways in which children can engage as co-researchers in the reflective phase of dramatherapy sessions; whether choice-making can promote agency; and what the field of dramatherapy can learn from children’s reflections. Data collection took place across three phases: Phase One (two sessions) was concerned with assent choosing. The co-researching took place in Phase Two (10 sessions), during 15 minutes of reflection time towards the end of individual dramatherapy sessions. Phase Three (three sessions) focused on each child and myself reviewing their co-researching experiences. The children led the pace of their engagement throughout the phases, and reviewed their choice to co-research on a session-by-session basis. They also chose the nature of their engagement from 12 arts-based creative research methods, which had been identified and made available from the existing practice of dramatherapy and the additional resources already in the therapy room. The study is underpinned by theoretical frameworks relating to choice, voice and agency, and by practices – such as the provision of research methods that draw on creative processes – that invite children to be equal agents in matters which concern them. Also influential in the study’s design are practitioner research theories that aim to develop and improve practice, engaging the researcher as an active and effective listener whilst respecting the existing client-therapist relationship. 4 The findings are presented in the form of a thematic analysis and three case studies. The findings reveal that making choices about the ongoing nature of assent is an important way in which children can gain insight into their co-researching experiences – and therefore into themselves. They also show that the opportunity to choose creative research methods and resources, through which children can review and reflect upon their co-researching experiences, promotes and reveals their agency. This study has the potential to contribute to theory, practice and research in dramatherapy, and to the field of research with children

Information Systems and Health Care-III: Diffusing Healthcare Knowledge: A Case Study of the Care Delivery Network

This article describes the experience of the Care Delivery Network as it promoted the successful diffusion of an innovative stroke treatment protocol across a wide range of healthcare institutions and practitioners in southeastern Ontario, Canada. The article is founded on research by Adler, Kwon, and Signer on knowledge management in professional communities. The Care Delivery Network case provides partial to strong empirical support for 17 Adler et al. research propositions. The article concludes with a summary of lessons learned and strategies for information and knowledge dissemination in professional settings

Narrative skills in adolescents with a history of SLI in relation to non-verbal IQ scores

There is a debate about whether the language of children with primary language disorders and normal cognitive levels is qualitatively different from those with language impairments who have low or borderline non-verbal IQ (NVIQ). As children reach adolescence, this distinction may be even harder to ascertain, especially in naturalistic settings. Narrative may provide a useful, ecologically valid way in which to assess the language ability of adolescents with specific language impairment (SLI) who have intact or lowered NVIQ and to determine whether there is any discernable difference in every day language. Nineteen adolescents with a history of SLI completed two narrative tasks: a story telling condition and a conversational condition. Just under half the group (n = 8) had non-verbal IQs of 85. The remaining 11 had NVIQs in the normal range or above. Four areas of narrative (productivity, syntax, cohesion and performance) were assessed. There were no differences between the groups on standardized tests of language. However, the group with low NVIQ were poorer on most aspects of narrative, suggesting that cognitive level is important, even when language is the primary disorder. The groups showed similar patterns of differences between story telling and conversational narrative. It was concluded that adolescents with a history of SLI and poor cognitive levels have poorer narrative skills than those with normal range NVIQ even though these may not be detected by standardized assessment. Their difficulties present as qualitatively similar to those with normal range NVIQ and narratives appear impoverished rather than inaccurate

Do emotional difficulties and peer problems hew together from childhood to adolescence? The case of children with a history of developmental language disorder (DLD)

Children and adolescents with developmental language disorder (DLD) are, overall, vulnerable to difficulties in emotional adjustment and in peer relations. However, previous research has shown that different subgroups follow different trajectories in respect of quality of peer relations. Less is known of the trajectories of emotional development. We consider here the possibility that development in these two domains is interrelated: that is, the trajectories of emotional and peer problems will proceed in parallel. We conducted longitudinal joint trajectories analyses of emotional and peer relations in a sample of young people identified as having DLD at age 7 years and seen at intervals up to 16 years. Potential influences on joint trajectory group membership were examined. Findings revealed five distinct joint trajectories. Emotional and peer difficulties do hew together from childhood to adolescence for just over half of the sample, but not all. The variables most clearly associated with group membership were pragmatic language ability, prosociality and parental mental health. This is the first study to examine joint longitudinal trajectories of emotional and peer difficulties in individuals with DLD. We demonstrate that development in individuals with DLD is heterogeneous and identify three key variables associated with personal and social adjustment from childhood to adolescence. Theoretical and clinical implications of these findings are discussed