Browsing by Subject "Phenomenology"
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Item “Can I tell you something?” Intentionally Listening to Expressions of Third Grade Children’s Social Identities As a Means to Make Classrooms More Culturally Responsive(2016-08) Brennan, MelodyA large amount of research has been directed at culturally responsive teaching. This thread of educational research to date has largely focused on teachers who serve populations of students marginalized in schools for reasons such as language, socioeconomic status, and/or ethnic and racial diversity. Scholars offer various definitions and labels of culturally responsive teaching, sharing two prominent goals: 1) to support the achievement of all students, and 2) to utilize effective pedagogical practices in a culturally supported learning environment (Gay, 2002; Hollie, 2012; Ladson-Billings, 1994; Nieto, 1996; Villegas & Lucas, 2007). According to Murrell (2009), identity may be influenced by individuals' personal beliefs, reactions to, and impressions of others. The purpose of this study was to better understand how students’ social identities were supported through multimodal teaching practices while being engaged in culturally responsive strategies used in classrooms. I examined specific instructional strategies research identified as supportive instructional practices for diverse classrooms. In this study I also sought to understand the relationship between student expressions of social identities around culturally responsive teaching and multimodality practices. This phenomenological research study used theorists that highlight key ideas of student voice to listen attentively to students’ perceptions (Cook-Sather, 2006), culturally responsive teaching to connect students’ cultural knowledge and prior experiences to develop a caring learning community (Gay, 2010), multimodal instruction using social and cultural resources (Kress, 2009), and phenomenology and intentionality as an invisible thread of connection (Merleau-Ponty, 1964). These theorists guided and supported a post-intentional phenomenological approach (Vagle, 2014) through my exploration of the lived classroom experiences of five third graders and their expressions of social identities through language, stories, and other artistic creations. Through the use of students’ own voices, I accessed the five-component process from Vagle’s (2014) post-intentional phenomenological research design to explore the following three questions: 1) How might expressions of social identities take shape through language, stories, and other artistic creations in a third grade classroom? 2) How do third graders’ narratives express equity within culturally responsive teaching and multimodal learning in classrooms? And 3) What is the relationship between student expressions of social identities around culturally responsive teaching and multimodality practices? Data were collected with a narrative inquiry perspective through classroom visits, observations, co-teaching, and conversations with participants. The data were analyzed using the whole-part-whole phenomenological approach (Vagle, 2014) and following Jackson and Mazzei’s (2011) methodological requirements for using thinking with theory to focus on a specific concept from the work of theorists. With my data, I chose to focus on the theorists Clandinin and Connelly (2000), Cook-Sather (2009), Kress (2009), and Gay (2010). The findings represent five tentative manifestations: interests and abilities, belonging (fitting in), interaction, readers, and challenge. The tentative manifestation abilities and interest refers to how participant’s perceived personal traits that made them unique and different. Students usually responded by sharing something they were good at or liked. The second tentative manifestation belonging (fitting in) refers to how participants talked about a sense of being a part of their family and school contexts. The third tentative manifestation interaction refers to engaging in various contexts including peer-to-peer, students and teachers, with books, and also with elements of technology such as iPads and video games. The fourth tentative manifestation was readers and refers to how participants engaged in conversations about books, their feelings about reading, and their experiences with small book groups. The fifth tentative manifestation, identified as challenge, refers to expectations, guidance, and guidelines. Commonalities among participants were revealed through all five tentative manifestations. When culturally responsive teaching and multimodal practices are exhibited, classrooms develop a caring learning community that engages a variety of learners while honoring students’ learning styles, lived experiences, and backgrounds (Jones-Walker, 2015). The findings highlight that third graders’ social identities give weight to teachers’ practice of culturally responsive teaching, especially through multimodal strategies. Culturally responsive teaching needs to help empower the voices of marginalized students in settings that on the surface seem to not involve apparent diversity. Instead, what makes an instructional practice culturally responsive is mirroring students’ social identities regularly as part of a routine, with intentionality and consistency.Item Career Prepared – Taking up any Challenge: The Lived Experience of Brazilian Business Expatriates’ Career Development in the USA(2018-12) Polesello, DaianeExpatriates’ career development is a topic that has been presented as crucial to the competitiveness of Multinational Corporations’ (MNCs) in this global mobility era. The importance of this topic generated a large volume of literature. However, most studies examined the case of expatriates working for large organizations from developed countries. Despite the ascension of MNCs from developing economies, also known as late movers, research on expatriates’ career development in MNCs from Latin America are scarce. Thus, more research on the topic of expatriates’ career development, especially professionals from Latin America who are working for late movers MNCs in a developed country, is needed to enhance the global understanding of this phenomenon. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to explore the lived experiences of Brazilian expatriates working for Brazilian MNCs’ subsidiaries in the United States of America (U.S.). The research method selected was phenomenology which focused on the participants’ lived experiences, perceptions, and reflection on the phenomenon of expatriate career development. This indigenous Human Resource Development (HRD) research examined the lived experienced of five men and two women. The data were collected via interviews conducted twice or three times with each participant. The interviews addressed participants’ life stories, career advancements experiences, and their meaning of the expatriate career development phenomenon. The data analysis was performed with the active participation of the interviewees during and after the data collection and writing process. Findings revealed family is the priority to these expatriates and is likely to drive their career advancements. In addition, three career development themes emerged: (a) transcending difficulties, (b) embracing the challenge, and (c) balancing multiple priorities. In addition, this study resulted in the introduction of the career prepared construct to replace the career path/plan concept. Specifically, career prepared emphasizes expatriates’ and family members’ flexibility and adaptability to undertake challenges and embrace personal and professional opportunities, while considering frequent changes in organizations’ strategy and practices beyond national boundaries to embark on a unique transformational life journey.Item Cooperating teachers' lived expectations in student teaching; a critical phenomenologicale exploration of identity infusing arts-based research(2014-09) Weiss, Tamara RaeThrough an examination of the identity of the cooperating teacher, this study interrogates the relationships that exist between the pedagogical and the practical in pre-service teacher education, specifically within the phenomenon of student teaching. An investigation of the lifeworld of the cooperating teacher, exclusively through her use of language, reveals the experience of living one's expectations for another (the student teacher). Through a close examination of the identity of the cooperating teacher as mentor, a complex and dynamic relationship between two people is revealed, comprised of a myriad of power implications. To understand what it means to be a cooperating teacher is to understand the meaning structures that have come to restrict, challenge, or question the nature of mentoring and, consequently, student teaching. This study takes investigative and analytical methodologies towards a more nuanced approach to performing research, specifically through Mark Vagle's post-intentional phenomenology, Gunther Kress's multimodal discourse analysis, Norman Fairclough's critical discourse analysis, and critical arts-based research in the style of Postcolonial activist artist, Jean Michel Basquiat. The result becomes multimodal critical discourse analysis- visual critical paintings that: 1) Challenge the dominant notion of research as that of written or spoken language and 2) Interrogate the power positions revealed in and through the language of the cooperating teacher participants.Item Engaging disengaged students: the lived experience of teachers who try and try again.(2010-05) Beaton, Anne Marie MeitzIn public education and most recently with the No Child Left Behind Act, there is a nation-wide push for every student to learn regardless of his or her background or ability (H.R. Rep. No 107-63, 2001; U.S. Department of Education, 2006; Symonds, 2001). Engagement is thought to be a key to student success (Bowen, 2005; Shulman, 2002). As a result, teachers are called upon and expected to find ways to engage all students - even the most disengaged (Barkley, 2010). Research has focused on what motivates students (Barkley, 2010) as well as how teachers can better engage students (Bryson & Hand, 2007), yet research has not questioned the human aspect of this endeavor or stopped to ask what it is like for teachers to do this work. In this study, phenomenological interviews of 6 secondary English teachers are used to generate a description of the teacher's lived experience of working to engage disengaged students. A hermeneutic approach is used to deepen and interpret the meaning of the essence of the teacher's lived experience. Emerging themes reveal a recurring cycle that exposes the intellectual challenge and emotional drain for the teacher. Implications from the study reach past the nuts and bolts of instructional practice to draw attention to the teacher as human in this work and will inform teacher preparation and professional development.Item Entwined in the Complex Tapestry of Schooling: The Experience of Being Somali Newcomer Students in Outstate Minnesota High Schools(2015-06) Moriarty, SheilaAbstract The lives of Somali born high school students are complicated by intersections with both race and religion. They often carry refugee histories of trauma and displacement that are further exacerbated during the resettlement process. Schools are struggling to make the kinds of accommodations that will honor the Somali Muslim identity. This study uses hermeneutic and post-intentional phenomenology to look deeply at the lives of these young people. Bachelard's reverie is used to place the researcher critically within the analysis in an attempt to create a transparent and meaningful look at understanding the complexity of their experiences. Educators are called upon to recognize the hegemonic forces that marginalize these students as well as recognize how these forces are traumatic in their lives. Educators are also encouraged to adopt critical pedagogies that open themselves up to the life experiences of their Somali born students. Keywords: Somali, high school, refugee, critical pedagogy, adolescent trauma, cultural humility, intersectionality, hermeneutic phenomenology, post-intentional phenomenology, Bachelard's phenomenology of the imaginationItem The Experience of care-giving for a person with Parkinson’s Disease.(2010-05) Bogard, Connie LynnAs the population continues to become more aged and at risk for chronic illness, there will be a growing need for caregivers. Caregivers to persons with Parkinson's disease (PD) face the challenge of providing care over many years due to the chronic progressive nature of this neurological disorder. The purpose of this study was to understand and discover the multi-dimensional cognitive, affective and psychomotor capabilities and attributes of informal care-giving for individuals with PD. The research question was: What is the meaning of the caring experience from the perspective of the informal caregiver in the day-to-day interactions with the person with PD? This phenomenological investigation looks into the lives of 13 caregivers who perceived that they were in a caring relationship with a person diagnosed with Parkinson's disease. Caregivers participated in two in-depth, open ended interview sessions that were audiotaped and then transcribed verbatim for analysis. Three themes emerged from the analysis: (a) Care-giving is an unplanned journey; (b) I am living with the disease too; and (c) My relationshiop with the person I care for and others is changing. Subthemes for each were described. The findings suggested implications for clinical practice and future research. First, caregivers should be provided formal guidance and educational opportunities from health care providers over the course of the disease process. Second, caregivers and persons with PD should be viewed from a holistic perspective to ensure optimal care for the person with PD and support for the caregiver. Third, a multidisciplinary collaborative team approach should be used to facilitate communication across disciplines with the management of PD. Fourth, caregivers should be provided opportunity and connections with support groups. Fifth, caregiver health and wellness should be optimized over the course of the disease process to keep the caregiver-care recipient relationship intact and strong. Sixth, caregiver vigilance and concern for safety should be fostered and evaluated. Seventh, caregiver stressors and protective factors should be identified and appropriate internventions instigated.Item The experience of Korean immigrant grandmothers with their grandchildren.(2010-06) Kim, SoohongThe purpose of this study was to explore the following research question: “What is the experience of Korean immigrant grandmothers in their relationships with their adolescent, U.S. born grandchildren?” In the United States, the situation of Korean immigrant grandparents is complicated because they live in two cultures. Immigrant grandparents face struggles not only with their own families, including their grandchildren, but also with the American culture which is considerably different from their Korean traditional culture (Kim, 1997). These foreign-born grandparents tend to be marginalized and have been underrepresented in the research literature (Treas & Mazumdar, 2004). The experience of Korean immigrant grandparents’ relationships with their grandchildren has not been a major focus of the research community, and, thus, their experiences merit further research. The hermeneutic phenomenological method was employed for this study because this study focuses on Korean immigrant grandmothers’ everyday lives and their own perspectives of their world. Hermeneutic phenomenology is associated with interpretation of experience via some texts or via some symbolic forms (Van Manen, 2003). The participants in this study were 14 Korean immigrant grandmothers living in Atlanta, Georgia. All of the grandmothers had lived or currently were living with their children and grandchildren. At the time of this study, all the grandmothers had adolescent grandchildren who had been born in the United States. Phenomenological interivews were used to create textual data. The interview texts were analyzed using procedures specified by van Manen (2003) and Dahlberg, Drew, and Nystrom (2008). In addition, songs and poetry were identified to amplify the grandmothers’ experiences. Six themes were revealed. First, Korean immigrant grandmothers experience profound pain and despair as they lose their connection with their grandchildren. Among the several reasons for this disconnection, the lack of a common lanugage is dominant. Second, the grandmothers experience a longing for social interaction which they do not have with their grandchildren. Third, the grandmothers experience a spatial seperation from their grandchildren—whether or not they are in the same space. Fourth, the grandmothers pine for the past when they had close and caring relationships with their grandchidlren. Fifth, the grandmothers struggle to accept the reality of the changed relationships with their grandchildren. And, sixth, the grandmothers live as Koreans and persist in instilling Korean values and identity in their grandchildren. The results of this study could be the basis for developing an immigrant grandparenting education program which would ultimately enhance the quality of Korean immigrant grandparents’ lives in the United States.Item Expert urban youth workers and the stories they tell: a narrative of lived experience(2014-09) Ezaki, Jerilyn MayRelationships are the key to good urban youth work practice. The purpose of this hermeneutical phenomenological study was to give understanding to how youth workers create and maintain trusting relationships. A literature review looked at what relationship development looks like in the various ways adults work with youth. The literature on expertise in practice was reviewed to understand how youth workers use their experience and skills to create relationships with youth. The approach was to observe, interview, and have informal conversations with five expert youth workers over a period of nine months. The data was analyzed using a selective or highlighting approach.Three overarching themes emerged: The stance of youth work, the youth work dance and the relational nature of youth work practice. Under these three major themes several sub themes or aspects of each theme were discussed. From the stories of the youth workers a pattern t developed; a web of confluence. It is not linear, but for this group of youth workers most of these aspects are present in their creation of relationship. It starts with the stance; and the youth work dance and the relational nature of the work is interwoven with the stance to make it all come alive. The data supports the theory that relationship is the cornerstone of good youth work practice.Item Family conflict: the adolescent experience of parent-adolescent conflict and argument.(2012-01) Buzzetta, Chris AnthonyThis study explored the embodied teen experience of parent-teen conflict and argument. Using a hermeneutic-phenomenological approach, data were collected from eight teens living within 150 miles of Minneapolis, MN. Teens self-identified as (a) living in a family with everyday conflict, (b) not seeing a psychologist or counselor, (c) not having been in any drug or alcohol treatment programs, (d) not knowing the researcher ahead of time, and (e) being between the ages of 13 to 19 at the time the interview took place. The interview data were unstructured conversations with teens that were audio-recorded, transcribed, and analyzed using a phenomenological text analysis procedure. From these data, the following themes emerged: (a) feeling powerless, small, devalued, and oppressed; (b) experiencing irritation, frustration, hypocrisy, pettiness, and defiance; (c) wanting freedom and autonomy and the battle for control; and (d) needing safe space and "me" time. Each theme and the whole embodied essence of this experience were interpreted through teens' as well as the researcher's lenses. The interpretations provide insight for teens, parents, and parent educators that may help improve parent-teen relationships and provide strategies to use in the classroom setting.Item The Lived Experience Of Participating In Diversity Training: A Phenomenological Case Study(2018-12) Clark, JeremyDespite significant expenditures on diversity training by organizations and increasing interest in the study of diversity training as a phenomenon by organizational scholars and practitioners, little research has been conducted regarding the lived experience of diversity training. The present study utilized hermeneutic phenomenology and case study methodologies to investigate the lived experience of participating in diversity training in a county government setting. Six county government employees who recently attended a diversity training at a large Midwestern county served as study participants. Study participants shared their insights, feelings, thoughts, emotions, and experiences regarding this unique and complex phenomenon. The analysis revealed that participating in a diversity training is a complex and emotional phenomenon. A summary of findings suggests that the diversity training experience required participants to confront strong visceral emotions. Additionally, these emotions were cultivated over time and influenced by many facets external to the course itself with the course serving as the catalyst and providing the motivation for this convergence to take place. Finally, results indicate that study participants were left with a motivation to take personal responsibility, albeit to varying degrees, for mobilizing for change. The knowledge acquired from this study may assist Human Resource Development (HRD) practitioners by providing additional, in depth insights and analysis beyond trainee reaction measures which may inform the design, delivery, and evaluation of diversity training interventions. Furthermore, the insights obtained from this study may assist HRD scholars by contributing a new line of research for HRD scholars as it concerns the study of this complex organizational phenomenon.Item The lived experience of self-compassion in social workers.(2012-07) Rickers, SusanSocial workers often face challenging work situations. The result of these situations can be stress, burnout, and secondary trauma. Though social workers are known for having compassion for others, the concept of self-compassion, having compassion for oneself, is relatively new and understudied. The purpose of this study was to develop and advance an understanding of the lived experience of self-compassion among social workers. The study was guided by one research question: What is the lived experience of self-compassion in social workers who have completed Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction, a program on developing mindfulness? The conceptual framework and methodology are grounded in phenomenology. This dissertation is important as it provides critical knowledge about self-compassion for social workers, other helping professionals, and lay people living in a stressful world. Participants in this study included 10 social workers who have completed Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR), a program on mindfulness that also incorporates learning about self-compassion. The social workers represented a variety of practice experiences including: county human service work, private practice, non-profit work, school social work, hospital social work, nursing home social work, and crisis work. The participants had between five and 30+ years of experience as social workers. During an in-depth interview, each participant responded to the primary interview prompt: Please think about and describe a specific instance or situation in your social work practice when you experienced self-compassion. A thematic analysis of individual interviews was completed and validated by each study participant. Analysis across interviews revealed four distinct themes. First, the participants described the nature of self-compassion, emphasizing five elements. Second, participants described the value of self-compassion in stressful work situations. Third, the participants described self-compassion as a "conduit" of healing for others. Fourth, the participants described self-compassion as a life long journey. In a fifth finding, not shared by all participants, inclusion of self-compassion into the social work education curriculum and continuing education was advocated. This research leads to an understanding of what self-compassion is as well as what it means for practicing social workers. Implications of this study are relevant to social work practice, education, and research.Item The meaning of Korean women’s career-leaving experience.(2010-01) Lee, Yu-JinWhat is the meaning of Korean women's career-leaving experience? To answer this question, this study adopted a hermeneutic phenomenology approach. My intention was to search for the deeper meaning of Korean women's career-leaving experience from their perspective. Ten Korean women who had left their careers due to their domestic roles in their families were selected and interviewed. Tentative themes were drawn from the analysis of the first interviews, and 12 themes under four thematic categories were confirmed after follow-up interviews: Theme Group 1: Being a Woman is a Handicap at Work. 1-1) Glass Ceiling? There was a glass partition (or shield) for women at work. 1-2) The workplace did not welcome my marriage or motherhood. Theme Group 2: Leaving Work Was to Become a Better Mother. 2-1) I needed to protect my pregnancy away from the stress of work. 2-2) It is my job to raise my child by myself; I feel first-hand responsibility and full commitment to my child. Theme Group 3: Work after Career Leaving Becomes Being a Full-time Housewife. 3-1) Being at home is difficult. 3-2) Housework and childrearing are much more difficult. 3-3) I feel a loss of myself. Subtheme 3-3-1) I do not have time for myself. Subtheme 3-3-2) I do not have my own money. Subtheme 3-3-3) I do not have my own individuality. Theme Group 4: I Am Rethinking Myself and My Career. 4-1) The previous work experience was a good experience. 4-2) Getting credentials is the way to women's careers. 4-3) Career leaving could be a chance for a career change. 4-4) I design my own career path. 4-5) I am waiting for my time to come. The themes were then discussed through a post-analysis literature review, and recommendations for policy and future research were made.Item The medication experience of African-American women living with kidney-related diseases: A phenomenological inquiry(2023-07) Hillman, LisaChronic kidney disease affects 37 million Americans (14.0%), results in poor quality of life and mortality, is costly for the US Healthcare system and disproportionately impacts Black Americans. The optimal time to intervene in the course of chronic kidney disease is early, making treatment of the disease and risk factors, often with medications, a priority. The African-American woman’s lived experience lies at the intersection of race, gender, and other relevant social factors impacting medication use. Knowledge of the experience of medication taking of these women in the context of their everyday lives may shed meaningful insight into person-centered interventions aimed to improve patients’ use and experience with medications. Objectives are (1) Explore the medication experiences of African-American women taking medications for chronic diseases related to chronic kidney disease, and (2) Reveal individuals’ prioritization of medication-related decisions in the context of their everyday lives. A phenomenological approach was undertaken. One-on-one interviews were conducted with seventeen African-American adult women taking at least one medication for chronic kidney disease or a chronic disease that places them at high risk (hypertension or diabetes mellitus) for chronic kidney disease. The existential structures of the lifeworld as described by French Philosopher Merleau-Ponty were used to guide thematic analysis of data and was based in traditions of phenomenology. Five themes of (1) guided by a personal agency with medications, (2) sense of personal duty to care for self and others, (3) making sense of the body and self with medications, (4) staying on track with medications and with life, and (5) desire to living freely with medications and from their constraints are described. Priorities with medication taking behaviors in daily living experience were revealed to be: (1) safety and security, (2) singularity of experience, and (3) autonomy and vitality. Patient-centered care needs to consider the patient and their medication taking from the perspective of their priorities and daily living. Health care professionals need to practice self-awareness and listen attentively to understand the experiences their patients have with their medications. Knowledge of the medication experience can then inform strategies and interventions that are meaningful to patients.Item Mothers' experience of parenting with a former spouse(2008-12) Laird, L. MargotContinuing to share parenting with a former spouse following divorce, commonly referred to as coparenting, is rapidly becoming a favored custody choice of many families, professionals, and family court systems, affecting the lives of millions of individuals each year. In spite of its rapidly growing popularity, there is still much we do not understand about the nature of the coparenting relationship at the heart of this new parenting arrangement. What we do know is that developing a coparenting relationship that is healthy for all family members is difficult has a profound influence on the well-being of mothers, fathers, and children of divorce, but especially on the well-being of children. Among the many ways a child may be impacted negatively by divorce, research has shown that a negative and conflicted coparent relationship stands alone in its power to do harm to children. It is considered to be the root cause of many adjustment difficulties, producing predictable, direct, and far-reaching consequences throughout the remainder of children's lives. By contrast, a cooperative and supportive relationship between former spouses can minimize divorce's potential harm to children. Using Giorgi's descriptive phenomenological approach, this study seeks to ground our knowledge about parenting with a former spouse in a deep understanding of the experiential meaning of this phenomenon for mothers in their everyday lived worlds. The study explores the experiences of nine mothers who are coparenting with their former spouses. In-depth interviews were designed to draw out pre-reflective descriptions of their everyday experiences with regard to this phenomenon. Analysis of the mothers' naïve descriptions incorporated Giorgi's phenomenological principles, his procedural guidelines, and an incorporated phenomenological research process of my own that evolved during the analysis. The analysis revealed an everyday world characterized by inescapable and relentless threats to mothers' emotional and psychological equilibrium stemming directly from their experiences as coparents. In addition to revealing this unity of experience, the analysis also uncovered individual constituents of meaning and explored each of them at length. The meanings discovered in this study can benefit parents, professionals, and indeed all who are interested in the well-being of children and parents.Item Navigating Traumatic Stress, Substance Use and Parental Incarceration: A Phenomenological Study(2021-06) Bailey, MollyMass incarceration in the United States has left millions of parents behind bars. These parents face barriers to wellbeing throughout their lifespan, navigating demographic and structural barriers, cumulative disadvantage characterized by stress, harsh institutional practices and sociopolitical factors impacting their access to resources pre, during, and post incarceration. Little to no research has explored the intersection of traumatic stress, substance use and parental incarceration. Guided by ecological systems, family stress, and critical social science theories this study explores the lived experiences of parents who have been incarcerated, exposed to traumatic stress, and substance use. Employing hermeneutic phenomenology, qualitative interviews were conducted focusing on the way parents see and make meaning around navigating this milieu in their lives. Seven essential themes emerged from this analysis: (a) Interconnections between traumatic stress, substance use and incarceration (b) Stress pile-up characterizes life, (c) Peer relationships are critical, (d) Many information gaps exist, (e) Incarceration is harmful, (f) Spirituality is transformative resource, and (g) Desire for a better life. Primarily current policies and services for justice-involved families are not family oriented, systemic, or preventative and lack an overall fit with the lived experiences of the parents in this study. Theories guiding intervention development for justice-involved families need to account for proximal processes that impact life trajectories. Policies need to be just and consider the impact of the family, and traditionally siloed sectors need to work together to bring about healing and well-being for justice-involved families.Item A Phenomenological Exploration of the Apparel Sizing Practice of Small Womenswear Businesses(2019-02) Carufel, RobinInconsistent garment sizing has plagued the apparel industry from its inception. Solutions to the problem require large anthropometric databases and advanced skills in statistical analysis, which small businesses have no access to or training in. To give a voice to those engaged in sizing practice, this study conducted a phenomenological inquiry into six small womenswear business’ experiences regarding sizing practice. Findings suggest three major influences on sizing practice: Financial Resources, Experience, and Designer Mindset; and three themes are presented regarding how decisions about sizing are incorporated into the apparel design process: Timing of Decisions, Fit Model, and Design Intent. This study concludes with suggestions for how to incorporate technical design and entrepreneurship into apparel design curricula to better serve the student interested in design entrepreneurship, suggestions for easy improvement of sizing practice for small womenswear businesses, as well as suggestions for future research in sizing.Item A phenomenological investigation of Online learners' lived experiences of engagement(2014-10) Pazurek-Tork, Angelica L.This study examined the phenomenon of learner engagement as it was experienced by adult learners while learning online. Learner engagement has been suggested to be one of the most significant predictors of learning and academic achievement (National Research Council, 2004; Russell, Ainley, & Frydenberg, 2005; Skinner & Belmont, 1993), and several instructional design models have been proposed to meet the challenges associated with supporting engagement among learners in online learning environments (Kearsley, 2000; Conrad & Donaldson, 2004). However, many of these models are based on abstract conceptualizations of engagement, which vary greatly, rather than how it is actually experienced by online learners. As online learning becomes increasingly more prevalent in various adult learning and postsecondary educational contexts (The Chronicle of Higher Education, 2010), educators are prompted to consider how engagement is actually being experienced by adult learners within virtual environments, what dynamics influence it, and how their efforts might help promote and foster it. A phenomenological understanding of learners' perceptions as they experience engagement while learning in online courses holds great potential to provide new insights into online teaching and learning from an authentic, learner-centered perspective. To this end, the purpose of this study is to help adult and higher education professionals, including online instructors, facilitators, and instructional designers, understand more deeply how adult learners may experience engagement in online learning environments by addressing the following research questions: (1) What is it like to be an adult learner in online learning environments? (2) What is it like to experience engagement in online learning environments? and (3) How do various elements of learning online and dynamics of the learning environment influence adult learners' feelings of engagement?This qualitative study utilized interpretive phenomenological methodology and a post-intentional phenomenological research design (Vagle, 2010a) to investigate four adult learners' lived experiences of engagement while enrolled in a completely online, graduate-level, university course. For eight months following the conclusion of the course, qualitative methods were used to collect data from the research participants' personal narrative accounts shared through individual interviews, written lived experience descriptions (van Manen, 1990, p. 63-66), and other digital media artifacts created as part of the learning activities while the course was in progress. Iterative cycles of phenomenological data analysis using a whole-parts-whole approach captured tentative manifestations (Vagle, 2010a, p. 7) of the phenomenon of engagement as it was experienced in online learning environments and revealed in shifting and changing ways. Thematic analysis (van Manen, 1990, p. 78) was also used to identify three themes of pedagogic significance: (1) The unbounded nature of learning online may significantly impact the overall learning experience, especially how engagement is experienced; (2) Engagement may be experienced online as a form of praxis; and (3) There is a temporal nature to engagement in online learning environments, suggesting that it changes over time and space, according to the influence of various dynamics. Research findings also suggest particular dynamics that influenced the lived experience of engagement online, including learner autonomy and shared decision-making. The insights gained from this study were used to propose a flexible online engagement model that suggests research-based pedagogical design principles to help promote and foster engaging online learning experiences.Item The place of race in cultural nursing education: the experience of white BSN nursing faculty(2011-01) Holland, Ann ElizabethThe growing cultural diversity in the United States confronts human service professions such as nursing with challenges to fundamental values of social justice and caring. Non-White individuals have experienced long-documented and persistent disparities in health outcomes and receipt of health care services when compared to whites. Medical evidence suggests that health care disparities experienced by non-Whites in the U.S. are perpetuated, in part, by bias, discrimination, and stereotyping by health care providers. National experts recommend cultural competence education to fix this problem. The cultural competence focus in nursing education programs has been criticized by some nursing scholars for essentializing culture and failing to examine the dynamics of race and racism in U.S. society. Yet, the call for an explicit focus on race and racism raises the question, "Are nursing faculty, of whom 93% are White, prepared to teach students about race and racism?" This study investigated what White nursing faculty members who teach cultural nursing education think, believe, and teach about race, racism, and anti-racism. The study resulted in four conclusions that are of interest not only to nursing faculty who teach cultural topics, but to any nursing faculty who wish to prepare students to work for justice in a culturally and racially diverse society. First, the findings suggest that the Whiteness of the participants' personal and professional experiences and contexts obscured their understanding and teaching of race, racism, and anti-racism. Second, learning about race, racism, and anti-racism was best understood as a lifelong developmental process and warrants developmental learning goals. Third, teaching about race, racism, and anti-racism was most effective when grounded in relational, holistic pedagogies. Finally, the findings of the study suggest that the White faculty participants were not well prepared to teach about race, racism, and anti-racism, in most cases lacking the intention and academic knowledge to incorporate these topics into their culture courses. This study has implications for White nursing educators and administrators and offers recommendations to assist them in taking individual and systemic actions that may facilitate teaching and learning about race, racism, and anti-racism.Item The positive story of couples and wilderness(2014-12) Miller, Matthew CollinsInterdisciplinary researchers from a variety of fields have recently become interested in studying the consequences of wilderness experiences. Different scholars have theorized about the impact of time spent in the wilderness, including implications for individual-level physiological, psychological, and emotional health. Before attempting to incorporate wilderness experiences into programming for couples, we must first begin exploring the relational implications of shared time in the wilderness. The purpose of this study is to develop a preliminary understanding of how wilderness experiences affect couples. The specific research question being addressed in this work is: What are the perceived relational implications of positive shared wilderness experiences for couples? Using a qualitative methodology and a phenomenological approach, the author gathered and analyzed stories from times that couples ventured into the wilderness together. Ten couples participated by telling twenty stories of positive shared wilderness experiences. Findings shed light onto the lived experience of couples in wilderness. Shared wilderness experiences allowed for uniquely intimate encounters, provided opportunities for rest and rejuvenation, and brought couples closer together through both challenges and conversations. Implications for programming and future research are discussed.Item A Post-Intentional Phenomenological Exploration of Educator Emotional Efficacy (E³)(2023) VonGrey, GeriResearch indicates that 40% to 50% of new teachers leave the educational field within their first five years of service (Alliance for Excellent Education, 2014; Education Minnesota, 2021a, 2021b; Liuzzi, 2021). Teachers are experiencing exhaustion, compassion fatigue, and often symptoms of burnout (Shen et al., 2015). These risk factors can manifest themselves in a wide variety of ways, including; a diminished sense of hope, decreased compassion and empathy, adverse changes in work performance, feelings of bitterness towards their job, and a loss of emotional regulation ( Gozali-Lee & Connell, 2019; Hagaman & Casey, 2018; Kyriacou, 2010; Sparks & Malkus, 2011; Domitrovich et al., 2016). The research urges us to pay attention. Many teachers are exhausted and are living on the edge of these realities, and as a result, are simply not thriving. The deteriorating mental and physical health of teachers negatively impacts teachers, but it also erodes the assets that those teachers bring into their classrooms, including; their emotional availability, empathy, hope, presence, self-efficacy, and resilience, all of which contribute to their asset-based strengths (Levine, 2013; Maslach & Leiter, 2005, 2007, 2016; McCarthy et al., 2010; Pines, 1993; Platsidou & Agaliotis, 2017; Shen et al., 2015). Palmer (2007) states, “we must enter, not evade, the tangles of teaching so we can understand them better and negotiate them with more grace, not only to guard our spirits but also to serve our students well” (p. 2). This research project uses a post-intentional phenomenology (PIP) methodology to investigate how the phenomenon of Educator Emotional Efficacy (E³) is produced and provoked in the lived experiences of teachers. E³ is rooted in the belief that an educator can develop the abilities and skill sets needed to constructively respond to the full range of emotions they experience, both positive and challenging emotions, and have the necessary skills to react to these emotions in a way that is aligned with their values and beliefs. Ideally, the development of E³ can work to minimize the negative consequences that can lead to burnout. Therefore, this study explores how teachers' development and awareness of E³ might positively impact teacher identity and their holistic health. More specifically, the phenomenon of educator emotional efficacy (E³) is shaped by the constructs of empathy, mindfulness, hope, and self-compassion and how they might serve to diminish the three manifestations of teacher burnout, which include emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and lack of self-efficacy (Maslach & Leiter, 2005, 2007, 2016).