1,005 research outputs found
Exploring the ethical imagination: conversation as practice versus committee as gatekeeper
This conversation (from which some excerpts are reproduced below) was part of the preparatory work for my (Sabi) doctorate in education in which I focus on ethical decision-making in qualitative research in health care settings. Les and I hope that readers who share our concerns about how qualitative studies are reviewed may contribute to this dialogue so that, as a community of researchers, we can start to think and speak differently about ethics and ethical decision-making in qualitative research. Thinking and speaking differently, we hope, may bring about changes in the review processes to make them more congruent with the values of our work and reflect more faithfully the tensions and dilemmas we, and our students, face in our practice
The creativity of ‘unspecialisation': a contemplative direction for integrative scholarly practice
Within the context of health and social care education, attempts to define 'scholarship' have
increasingly transcended traditional academic conceptions of the term. While acknowledging
that many applied disciplines call for a kind of 'actionable knowledge' that is also not separate
from its ethical dimensions, engagement in the caring professions in particular provides an
interesting exemplar that raises questions about the nature and practice of 'actionable
knowledge:' how is such knowledge from different domains (the head, hand and heart) integrated
and sustained? This paper is theoretical and wishes to outline some philosophical ideas that may
be important when considering the characteristics of the kind of scholarship for caring practices
that draw on deep resources for creativity and integration. Firstly, there is an attempt to clarify
the nature of scholarly practice by drawing on Aristotle's notion of 'phronesis' (practical
wisdom). Secondly, a more meditative approach to the integration of knowledge, action and
ethics is highlighted. Finally, its implications for scholarship are introduced, in which scholarly
integration may best be served by more contemplative ways of being and thinking. Drawing on
Heidegger and Gendlin, we consider the challenges of contemplative thinking for pursuing
scholarly practice. We articulate contemplative thinking as an unspecialized mode of being that
is given to human beings as an intimate source of creativity. The sense in which unspecialization
can be cultivated and practiced is discussed
"In the middle of everywhere" : a phenomenological study of mobility and dwelling amongst rural elders
This study aimed to investigate the phenomenon of the meaning of mobility for elders living in rural areas. A phenomenological study was undertaken with older people living in rural South West England and Wales. Ten interviews were undertaken in peoples’ homes and focused on the spatial dimensions of what it was like to live in the rural area and the everyday experiences of traversing rural space. Spatial mobility was experienced by our sample as any of the possible ways that achieved personal life activities where the traverse of space was normally relevant. We describe the meaning of mobility sensitised by the terms used in the “continuum of mobilities” (Parkhurst et al., 2012): “literal mobility,” “virtual mobility,” “potential mobility,” and “imaginative mobility.” Our phenomenological findings revealed that the transport and mobility needs of older people living in rural areas could not be meaningfully understood without understanding their well-being priorities, the kinds of movement that constituted well-being, and how this related to the phenomenon of “dwelling,” which included their feeling of “at-homeness” in their rural environment. But also what emerged was a second phenomenon that we have called rural living as a portal to well-being in older people. The connection between well-being and rural place was constituted by two interrelated experiences: the importance of dwelling and slowing down in older age, and the importance of a “rich textured locale” for the well-being of rural older people. We conclude by considering how the elders in our study may have something important to remind us: that mobility and sense of place are mutually implicated and that our present culture places an over emphasis on mobility, which may obscure the value of dwelling
A Public Health Approach to Human Trafficking
Trafficked individuals experience physical, sexual and emotional violence at the hands of traffickers, pimps, employers, among others, and are exposed to various workplace, health and environmental hazards. The breadth of the harm suggests a role for a currently underutilized approach: public health methodologies. The field of public health offers vital skills and expertise in the fight against human trafficking
Beyond the Bedside: A Human Rights Approach to Adolescent Health
In the United States, discussions regarding adolescent health, particularly in the political and legal arenas, frequently focus on one of two issues: abortion and medical decision making. These are important issues that merit considered attention, but there is much more to adolescent health. Many other issues — ranging from violence to substance use to obesity — have a significant impact on the health and well-being of adolescents. This symposium essay aims to shed light on the breadth of health issues confronting adolescents and explore the utility of human rights law in understanding and responding to key health issues confronting adolescents today.
Employing a human rights framework, this essay seeks to forge a more holistic understanding of and approach to adolescent health. The essay begins by discussing the range of issues affecting adolescent well-being, focusing in particular on violence, substance use, and obesity. It then briefly addresses the limits of a medical model and related concerns with over-relying on the health care sector to address all adolescent health issues. Access to health care is crucial, but successfully addressing adolescent health issues will require law, policies, and programs that contemplate adolescent well-being beyond health care facilities. This essay then discusses the value of using human rights law as a starting point for developing a comprehensive response to adolescent health issues. Human rights law can facilitate identification of the breadth of issues affecting adolescents while simultaneously providing a legal framework for developing appropriate responses to the various harms that adolescents experience
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