Thai Adolescents and Social Responsibility: Overcoming Violence in Schools and Creating Peace

There is a need to understand the nature of adolescent violent behavior across cultures as well as to learn more about adolescent’s social responsibility toward violence. Purpose: To describe social responsibility of adolescents toward violence and explain the aspects of adolescent’s social responsibility in Thailand. Design and Methods: Focus group and qualitative individual interviews (N=18) were conducted with 18 participants, including 10 adolescent students, 4 teachers, and 4 parents, to assess their perceptions and behavior on social responsibility and violent behavior. Thematic analysis was conducted in three phases to code transcribed interview data and identify themes of social responsibility toward violence. Findings: Violence has become recognized globally as a critical social problem that requires vital attention. The present study found that it is valuable that adolescent students could cultivate social responsibility toward violence. In this research, the social responsibility was categorized into 4 aspects: 1) Being influenced by others and feeling out of control; 2) Being frustrated with diffusion of responsibility for promoting non-violence; 3) Not accepting responsibility for escalating behavior; and 4) Seeing the larger picture and developing trust. Conclusions: Adolescents’ social responsibility should be promoted through collaborative social support between home and school. This was accepted among the participants as the way to reach the culturally-valued superior moral rank of social responsibility. The concerted collaboration to attain the highest value of social responsibility has the potential to solve issues of violence and latent violence as well as contribute towards a peaceful society. Key words: adolescence, violence, social responsibility, school mental health promotio

施設に入所中の認知症高齢者の自律神経活動の特徴

This study clarified the characteristic autonomic nervous activity of institutionalized elders diagnosed with dementia using Hasegawa’s Dementia Scale-Revised. Twenty-six healthy adult persons (HPs) in their 20 s - 40 s met the inclusion criteria, and 16 persons (27.6 ± 8.2 years old) completed the research procedure. Of 70 persons with dementia (PDs) residing at the one geriatric health services facilities, only 24 persons met the inclusion criteria, and only nine (N = 9, 83.44 ± 9.45 years old) completed the procedure. Actigraph and ambulatory electrocardiographic instruments measuring autonomic nervous activity were attached to the subjects for 24 hours. Activities and behaviors of PDs and HPs were observed by clinically experienced staff nurses and care workers. High frequency (HF) power indicating parasympathetic activity and LF/HF ratio indicating sympathetic activity were calculated. When awake, PDs’ LF/HF ratio was significantly lower than HP’s (Z = −2.60, p < 0.01), showing significant differences in the LF/HF ratios between waking and sleeping, more than those of the PDs (p < 0.001). Similarly, when awake, significant positive correlations were observed in the LF/HF ratio and actigraph activity count (AC) in 11 HPs and 3 PDs (range r = 0.17 to 0.49, p < 0.05); however, significant negative correlation was found in HF and AC of 12 HPs and 3 PDs (range r = −0.55 to −0.18, p < 0.05). While sleeping, significant positive correlations were observed in LF/HF and AC of 3 HPs and 1 PD (range r = 0.35 to 0.42, p < 0.05) and significant negative correlation was found in the HF and AC of 1 HP (r= −0.32, p < 0.001) and 1 PD (r = −0.32, p < 0.05). The mean value of LF/HF in a wakeful state was significantly lower for PDs than HPs. Combined results of behavioral observation, actigrapy and heart rate variability (HRV) analyses suggested that PDs showed positive correlations between LF/HF and AC in a wakeful state. Compared to those who showed no positive correlation, they did not require much nursing care

Intentionality in nursing: A foundational inquiry

Intentionality is a fundamental human dynamic that provides the context through which human-beings value, order, and live out the meaning of their lives. In nursing, intentionality is implicated in the quality, delivery, outcomes, and cost of patient care; the recruitment, development and retention of nurses and nurse educators; the design and efficacy of nursing curricula, and the ability of nurses to live transforming lives. Research on intentionality itself as a dynamic that influences, and directs nursing practice has remained largely unexamined. The research question of this study is, What is intentionality in nursing? Related questions are, Is intentionality in nursing different from intentionality in other disciplines? and, Does intentionality in nursing serve as an organizing matrix for patterns of thinking in nursing practice? A foundational inquiry with philosophical analysis and creation of a model was chosen as the research design best suited to achieve clarity in description, use, and value of the concept intentionality. Philosophic analysis consisted of linguistic analysis of the words intentionality, intention and intent, and philosophic reflection of how intentionality functioned in nursing, and in its relationship to nursing science. The sample consisted of select non-nursing classical works of philosophy and the nursing literature. Results of the philosophical analysis were synthesized in a model. Intentionality was revealed as a fluid dynamic framework or matrix extending recursively and cyclically from the unconscious to the conscious for the actualization of nursing. Intentionality, in which are embedded the values, ideals, and unique professional knowledge that distinguish nursing, shapes, guides, and directs practice. Nursing intentionality is expressed in such patterns as knowing, caring, and healing, and is a way of knowing the whole. The model demonstrates patterns of thinking in nursing practice, the interrelatedness and integrality of intentionality with Carpers (1978) fundamental patterns of personal, empirical, ethical and aesthetic knowing, and synthesis with the Phenix\u27 (1964) fundamental patterns of symbolic, and synoptic (integrative) knowing