Effects of Maternal Views and Support on Childhood Development Through Joint Play

Background: Playful interactions draw a mother and child toward each other in positive ways; therefore, time spent in playful interactions with a responsive mother may be a developmental asset for a child. It is critical to examine how mothers support their children in joint play as well as their views of joint play. Methods: This mixed-methods study consisted of 32 mothers and their typically developing children. The Parent’s/Caregiver Support of Young Children’s Playfulness, the Test of Playfulness, the Environmental Supportiveness Assessment, and seven open-ended interviews were used to assess joint play and maternal perceptions of this experience. Results: Significant correlations were found between maternal support behaviors and a child’s playfulness manifestation. The more frequently the mother supported her child during joint play, the less playful a child was. However, the mothers who supported their children’s engagement in the process and promoted decision-making and creative play had children that were more playful. The theoretical framework explained maternal perceptions of joint play and what mothers thought was important for their children. Conclusions: The mothers perceived joint play as central to their lives and as an opportunity to teach and direct their children’s engagement. It appeared the children were more playful when their mothers supported their self-exploration, decision-making, and creative play

Book review: women of power: half a century of female presidents and prime ministers worldwide by Torild Skard

Women of Power is an ambitious project, one which attempts to map the contribution of all 73 female presidents and prime ministers across the globe onto the political landscape. Katherine Williams finds this a valuable contribution to the fields of gender studies and political history. Author Torild Skard contributes her own fascinating comments at the foot of the review

Pigment analysis by Raman microscopy and portable X-ray fluorescence (pXRF) of thirteenth to fourteenth century illuminations and cuttings from Bologna

Non-destructive pigment analysis by Raman microscopy (RM) and portable X-ray fluorescence (pXRF) has been carried out on some Bolognese illuminations and cuttings chosen to represent the beginnings, evolution and height of Bolognese illuminated manuscript production. Dating to the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries and held in a private collection, the study provides evidence for the pigments generally used in this period. The results, which are compared with those obtained for other north Italian artwork, show the developments in usage of artistic materials and technique. Also addressed in this study is an examination of the respective roles of RM and pXRF analysis in this area of technical art history

Strukturerende virkemidler - En narratologisk undersøkelse av muntlig

Since the early beginnings of human existence we have shared narratives with each other; from ancient cave paintings to the stories that we share from our everyday life by facebook statuses or the movies we watch on Netflix. Even though oral story telling is assumed to be the first medium of these narratives, according to historians, it has only recently been admitted into the Norwegian educational system. In this master thesis I shall examine this expressive art form in the light of the science of narratives; narratology. Narratology is in the context of this thesis, briefly summarized, a human science that seeks to interpret what is depicted in a narrative, and how this is done. It is common to apply the diconomy story level and discourse level on a narrative, where the first term corresponds with what and the latter one with how. Further the theory of narratolgy offers categories of devices to understand and to sort out what from the story level that is represented on the discourse level of the narrative, and how it´s done. When the discursive articulation through this process of representation is done, the narrative is ready to be manifested in a medium. In this thesis I attempt to discover how "Krigsfortellinger", as a representaive of the art of oral story telling, relates to different categories presented in narrative theory. The theoretical framework is mainly based on the perspectives of Seymour Chatman and Gèrard Genette, who are both described as structuralists in the field of narratology. Through hermeneutic interpretation I shall perform a narratological analysis where I examine "Krigsfortellingers" application of narrative effects.Master i estetiske fa

Hvilke prinsipper kan man som kroppsøvingslærer legge vekt på for å fremme glede i bevegelse hos elever på ungdomstrinn?

Denne oppgaven handler om det å fremme GLEvegelse hos elever på ungdomstrinn i skolen. GLEvegelse er et ord jeg har diktet opp som handler om gleden av å være i bevegelse. Jeg mener det er viktig for kroppsøvingslærere å gjøre sitt ytterste for å få flere ungdommer interessert i kroppsøvingsfaget, det å være fysisk aktiv i hverdagen og det å la elevene få kjenne på gleden av det å være i bevegelse. Jeg har tatt for meg totalt syv undervisningsprinsipper som jeg mener er viktige faktorer i arbeidet med å fremme bevegelsesglede hos ungdomskole elevene. Prinsippene er motivasjon, mestringsfølelse, ufarliggjøring, kreativitet, kroppslig aktivitet, preg av lek og sosialt fellesskap. Jeg ville lage et undervisningsopplegg basert på disse undervisningsprinsippene og prøve det ut i praksis for å finne ut om det var med å fremme elevenes glede. Jeg fikk utdelt tre enkle undervisningstimer sammen med en 9.klasse. I alle tre øktene har jeg hatt fokus på og valgt ut aktiviteter som er basert på prinsippene. I slutten av hver økt har elevene fått utdelt et enkelt spørreskjema som de skulle svare på. Jeg har i hver økt hatt fokus på motivasjon fordi det er noe jeg mener lærere alltid bør tenke på når de underviser. De andre prinsippene har jeg fordelt på de tre forskjellige øktene. I den første økten hadde jeg fokus på det å ufarliggjøre undervisningen og at elevene skulle oppleve mestringsfølelse. I den andre økten var det fokus på at elevene skulle være i stor kroppslig aktivitet og at elevene skulle få bruke kreativiteten sin i undervisningen. I den tredje og siste økten var det fokus på det å leke og å ha det sosialt i et fellesskap. Jeg har kombinert kvantitativ og kvalitativ metode i dette utprøvelsesprosjektet, der jeg har gjort ustrukturerte observasjoner under øktene og brukt spørreskjema med Likert-skala, altså skala fra 1-5, i slutten av øktene. Etter prosjektet har jeg tolket elevene sine svar på spørreskjemaene og sammenlignet disse med mine egne observasjoner. Etter å ha gjennomført disse øktene sammen med elevene, observert og etter å ha tolket spørreskjemaene har jeg funnet ut at en del av prinsippene som jeg har valgt å ha fokus på, overlappen hverandre. Noen av prinsippene var mer i fokus enn andre og jeg fant også ut at disse var viktigere for å fremme glede i bevegelse: lek, motivasjon og sosialt fellesskap. Nettopp disse prinsippene dekker de andre prinsippene, og er med på å skape GLEvegelse

Controversias de la Guerra Fría cultural. Una reflexión desde los American Studies, 1945-1975

Con el inicio de la Guerra Fría se desencadenó también una batalla cultural entre soviéticos y estadounidenses. El propósito de unos y otros fue irradiar sus respectivos modelos socio-culturales e ideologías en el campo rival y, sobre todo, frenar la expansión de los valores contrarios en el propio. La promoción y difusión de los Estudios Norteamericanos o American Studies en las universidades del bloque europeo occidental formó parte de aquel conflicto. Poco sabemos por el momento acerca de quién, o quiénes, y con qué medios intentaron que la Historia, el Arte, la Literatura o la Ciencia Política estadounidenses fuesen mejor conocidos por los ciudadanos del viejo continente. En las páginas que siguen pretendemos arrojar algo de luz sobre esos interrogantes. Simultáneamente y desde la perspectiva de lo sucedido en torno a los American Studies, se aportarán datos e indicios para la reflexión sobre cuestiones del contexto general de la Guerra Fría.The Cold War also triggered a cultural battle between the Soviets and U.S. Americans. Both aimed to radiate their own social and cultural models, together with their own ideologies, in their rival's sphere of influence, and above all, to check the expansion of their opponent's values in their own sphere. The promotion and diffusion of U.S. or American Studies in the universities of the Western European block was part of that conflict. To date, little is known about the people who tried to improve European appreciation of U.S. History, Art, Literature or Political Science, or about the means they used. This article will also discuss more general issues of the cultural cold war, such as: When did the U.S. propaganda machine start to function? or Did the Soviet Union invest more in propaganda than the United States

From brand experience to happiness: exploring the impacts on brand loyalty and price premium

Since the advent of the 21st century, the overemphasis on the utilitarian aspects of products has shifted the interest to the hedonic facets of consumption (Pine & Gilmore, 2011). Experience marketing presents a new approach to address this shift and to achieve long and lasting competitive advantages (Gentile, Spiller & Noci, 2007) and loyalty (Smilansky, 2009). Despite the increasing number and quality of articles addressing brand experience, this research area remains underdeveloped and not as well-established as other marketing constructs, such as consumer attitudes, consumer satisfaction and brand equity (Schmitt & Zarantonello, 2013). More recently, happiness has received attention from marketers, and studies examining happiness in consumer research have also begun to appear (Schmitt, Brakus & Zarantonello, 2015; Bhattacharjee & Mogilner, 2014; Schmitt, 2012; Bettingen & Luedicke, 2009). Further, in a world where social concerns are garnering more insistence, it is argued that brands should contribute to consumers’ happiness through experiences (Schmitt, Brakus & Zarantonello, 2014). The main aim of this study is to model the relationship between brand experience dimensions (sensory, emotional, relational and cognitive) on the one hand and happiness on the other hand through the three orientations to happiness (pleasure, meaning, and engagement) (Peterson, Park & Seligman, 2005), and to examine the influence of happiness on brand loyalty and price premium. Therefore, the current research represents a meeting point between brand experience and happiness—two unique areas in marketing and psychology that are being afforded more importance nowadays (Brakus, Schmitt & Zarantonello, 2012; Carter & Gilovich, 2010; Brakus, Schmitt & Zarantonello, 2009; Peterson, Park & Seligman, 2005). Figure 1 displays the conceptual framework and the suggested hypotheses of the study

Jesu tegnhandling i templet : sonofferkultens avløsning gjennom hans stedfortredende død

A presentation of his doctoral thesis "Jesu Kritik am Tempel : eine Untersuchung zum Verlauf und Sinn der sogenannten Tempelreinigung Jesu, Markus 11,15-17 und Parallelen" (MF. Norwegian School of Theology, Oslo, 1994