Sampling Social Experiences in School: Feasibility of Experience Sampling Methodology on an iPlatform

This paper reports on a pilot study testing the feasibility of an app as a survey tool for exploring the social experiences of high school students who are vision impaired. The Participation in Everyday Life Survey app was designed for use with the Experience Sampling Method. This method uses in-the-moment surveys to understand individuals’ experiences of everyday activities and situations. Pilot testing shows the app to be usable and accessible for people with vision impairments and high school students who are sighted but who have other disabilities. This pilot study has also shown that the Experience Sampling Method has the potential to provide useful insights into the social experiences of high school students who are vision impaired

P.I.E.L. Survey Application Manual

This is the manual that accompanies the P.I.E.L. Survey App. This App is a simple survey tool that can be used offline in research by people with and without disabilities. It utilises the accessibility features of iDevices, in particular the text to speech voiceover options. It was designed for use with the Experience Sampling Method (ESM). This is an in-the-moment survey method in which participants, when alerted, fill in a short survey about their current activities and experiences

Understanding the ups and downs of living well: the voices of people experiencing early mental health recovery

Background: The aim of this study was to better understand early-stage mental health recovery experiences of people living with severe and persistent mental illness and complex needs.
 Methods: Semi-structured, in-depth interviews were conducted with 13 people engaged in an Australian program specifically designed for people facing complex barriers to their recovery. Interview data were analysed thematically using constant comparative methods.
 Results: Participants described engaging with seven interconnecting aspects of early recovery: (1) engaging with the challenge of recovery; (2) struggling for a secure and stable footing; (3) grieving for what was and what could have been; (4) seeking and finding hope; (5) navigating complex relationships; (6) connecting with formal and informal support, and finally, (7) juggling a complexity of health issues.
 Conclusions: This study illuminated the complexity of earlier-stage recovery which was characterised both by challenging personal circumstances and a hope for the future. It illustrated that even at an early point in their recovery journey, and amidst these challenging circumstances, people still actively engage with support, draw on inner strengths, source resources and find accomplishments. Stability and security was foundational to the ability of participants to draw on their own strengths and move forward. Stability came when material needs, including housing, were addressed, and an individual was able to connect with a supportive network of workers, carers, friends and family

The Sydney Playground Project: popping the bubblewrap - unleashing the power of play: a cluster randomized controlled trial of a primary school playground-based intervention aiming to increase children\u27s physical activity and social skills

Background In the Westernised world, numerous children are overweight and have problems with bullying and mental health. One of the underlying causes for all three is postulated to be a decrease in outdoor free play. The aim of the Sydney Playground Project is to demonstrate the effectiveness of two simple interventions aimed to increase children\u27s physical activity and social skills. Methods/Design This study protocol describes the design of a 3-year cluster randomised controlled trial (CRCT), in which schools are the clusters. The study consists of a 13-week intervention and 1 week each of pre-and post-testing. We are recruiting 12 schools (6 control; 6 intervention), with 18 randomly chosen participants aged 5 to 7 years in each school. The two intervention strategies are: (1) Child-based intervention: Unstructured materials with no obvious play value introduced to the playground; and (2) Adult-based intervention: Risk reframing sessions held with parents and teachers with the aim of exploring the benefits of allowing children to engage in activities with uncertain outcomes. The primary outcome of the study, physical activity as measured by accelerometer counts, is assessed at baseline and post-intervention. Additional assessments include social skills and interactions, self-concept, after school time use and anthropometric data. Qualitative data (i.e., transcriptions of audio recordings from the risk reframing sessions and of interviews with selected teacher and parent volunteers) are analysed to understand their perceptions of risk in play. The control schools have recess as usual. In addition to outcome evaluation, regular process evaluation sessions are held to monitor fidelity to the treatment. Discussion These simple interventions, which could be adopted in every primary school, have the potential of initiating a self-sustaining cycle of prevention for childhood obesity, bullying and mental ill health

Social inclusion and high school students with visual impairments

Parents and educators seek to guide students with visual impairments (VI) so they develop a robust sense of identity as they work alongside, and compete with, their typically-developing peers at school. In this study I explored the social inclusion of 12 Australian high school students with VI. I wanted to know how they described school social inclusion, whether they felt included, and what influenced these feelings. Seven times a day for one week, these participants responded to the same in-the-moment survey about the activity in which they were engaged. A questionnaire, the Psychological Sense of School Membership (PSSM), and an interview complemented these data. Despite as a group scoring highly on the PSSM, in-the-moment survey data revealed participants felt less accepted and fitted less at school than out of school. The presence of an additional disability significantly increased loneliness and negatively influenced PSSM scores, fitting in and enjoyment at school. In interview, participants described school social inclusion as being noticed by others. Four participants, including all with additional disabilities, had experienced peer exclusion. Five themes encompassed the influences on school social inclusion. These were: (a) putting myself forward; (b) knowing me; (c) having control; (d) having a place to shine; and (e) peer exclusion and rejection. These themes align with the needs for competence, autonomy and relatedness articulated in self-determination theory, a theory of motivation. This linking of school social inclusion and motivation suggests students with VI will put effort into engaging with, and feel included in, high school if activities and interactions fulfil their needs for competence, autonomy and relatedness. This link also requires closer scrutiny of the influence of school environment on social inclusion and motivation. Future research is needed to determine if this link applies more widely, to adolescents with impairments other than vision

The social experiences of high school students with visual impairments

Introduction: This study explores the social experiences in high school of students with visual impairments. Methods: Experience sampling methodology was used to examine (a) how socially included students with visual impairments feel, (b) the internal qualities of their activities, and (c) the factors that influence a sense of inclusion. Twelve students, including three with additional disabilities, completed the Psychological Sense of School Membership (PSSM) questionnaire as a measure of inclusion. They were subsequently asked to complete an in-the-moment survey seven times daily for one week using an iOS device. This survey asked about activities and ratings of internal variables: fitting in, acceptance, loneliness, awareness, and enjoyment. Each student was also interviewed. Z-scores were created for internal variables and correlations calculated to examine relationships between experiences, PSSM, and demographic variables. Results: This group felt included as measured by the PSSM (m = 4.24, SD =.67). Students’ most frequent activity was classwork. Doing nothing rated most negatively and was described as time wasting. Out-of-class activities were rated most positively. In the three participants with additional disabilities, it appeared that the presence of this additional disability negatively influenced a sense of inclusion (rb =-.67,

Fitting in or feeling excluded: the experiences of high school students with visual impairments

Introduction: This study compares the experiences of high school students with visual impairments (that is, those who are blind or have low vision) in and out of school. Methods: Twelve visually impaired high school students completed the same in-the-moment survey seven times daily for seven consecutive days. The frequencies of their activities, interactions, and ratings of internal variables (fitting in, acceptance, loneliness, and enjoyment) were compared across three contexts: home, school, and other (neither home nor school) contexts. Results: Participants spent much of their time out of school alone at home. They rated leisure and structured recreation in “other” locations as their most enjoyable activities. Doing nothing at school was the least positively rated activity. Participants fitted in significantly less and felt significantly less accepted at school than elsewhere. A large proportion of school interactions involved receiving help; few involved giving help. Participants with additional disabilities reported more school social challenges than their peers who were only visually impaired. Discussion and implications for practitioners: This study highlights the subjective dimensions of choice in everyday life. The social impact of doing nothing at school provides an imperative for staff members to ensure that adolescents with visual impairments can participate in lessons. Staff may also need to facilitate opportunities for these students to reciprocate with peers. Adolescents with visual impairments highly value activities with friends out of home and, as with most adolescents, may need to lean on their families for assistance in this area until they can participate in such activities independently

Being noticed for the way you are: social inclusion and high school students with vision impairment

This study explored the social inclusion in high school of Australian students with vision impairment (VI). We sought to understand how students described school social inclusion, whether they felt included and what influenced these perceptions. As part of a larger mixed methods study, 12 students with VI, who had previously answered the Psychological Sense of School Membership (PSSM) questionnaire, were interviewed about the social aspects of school. These interviews were analysed thematically. Participants described social inclusion as about being noticed and not overlooked by others. While two-thirds of participants reported satisfactory social relationships in high school, one-third, including all those with additional disabilities, reported being teased or rejected by their school peers. Five themes encompassed the varying influences on school social inclusion. These were: (a) putting myself forward; (b) knowing me; (c) having control; (d) having a place to shine; and finally a negative influence (e) peer exclusion and rejection. These themes largely parallel those of competence, autonomy, and relatedness found in self-determination theory. This suggests that staff can enhance the social inclusion of students with VI by facilitating these students’ self-determination. In practice, this would require school staff to focus on enabling students with VI to explore and build on strengths, fully access the curriculum alongside their peers, and have time and opportunity to develop friendships with these peers

Understanding the ups and downs of living well: the voices of people experiencing early mental health recovery

Abstract Background The aim of this study was to better understand early-stage mental health recovery experiences of people living with severe and persistent mental illness and complex needs. Methods Semi-structured, in-depth interviews were conducted with 13 people engaged in an Australian program specifically designed for people facing complex barriers to their recovery. Interview data were analysed thematically using constant comparative methods. Results Participants described engaging with seven interconnecting aspects of early recovery: (1) engaging with the challenge of recovery; (2) struggling for a secure and stable footing; (3) grieving for what was and what could have been; (4) seeking and finding hope; (5) navigating complex relationships; (6) connecting with formal and informal support, and finally, (7) juggling a complexity of health issues. Conclusions This study illuminated the complexity of earlier-stage recovery which was characterised both by challenging personal circumstances and a hope for the future. It illustrated that even at an early point in their recovery journey, and amidst these challenging circumstances, people still actively engage with support, draw on inner strengths, source resources and find accomplishments. Stability and security was foundational to the ability of participants to draw on their own strengths and move forward. Stability came when material needs, including housing, were addressed, and an individual was able to connect with a supportive network of workers, carers, friends and family