Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Connected Government: An Exploration Of The Department Of Education And King And Stiver’S Theory Of Connected Government, Lilia Iokhvidov

Dissertations and Theses

The frameworks of democracy and bureaucracy are becoming increasingly important in the political landscape. Considering the changes in policy and practice, primarily in education, administrators must contemplate the opinions and suggestions of the population at large. The need arises to initiate alternative legislative activities so the public can become more active in the political scene. The public is willing to voice their views when the policy directly affects the people. The participation process involves direct communication with bureaucrats during meetings among the public, stakeholders, and agency officials. The public participates in politics by being involved in civic duty, the rights …

A Word From The Writing Team (January 2023), Pam Walter, Mfa, Liz Declan, Ma, Mfa

A Word From the Writing Team (Newsletter)

This issue includes:

• New Year, Monthly Writing Sessions
• Upcoming Workshops

Cpaf In Focus Vol. 8 Cpaf 25th Anniversary Issue : Honoring The Past, Celebrating The Present, Paving The Future, Liborio S. Cabanilla, Carolina P. Santillana, Josefina T. Dizon, Virginia R. Cadenas, Rolando T. Bello, Rowena Dt. Baconguis

IN FOCUS: Development & Governance

In this issue:

• CPAf's Birth and Infancy: All for Rural Development, 2
• Humble beginnings, 5
• Revisiting our niche, 8
• Navigating change, laying the groundwork, 11
• Paving the way for global excellence, 14
• More hopes for CPAf, 18
• Thriving collectively, 21

Two Dimensions Of A Bodhisattva, Douglas Duckworth

International Journal of Transpersonal Studies Advance Publication Archive

This paper presents two dimensions of a bodhisattva, the ideal of Maha- ya- na Buddhism. One dimension involves contemplative practices that disclose a pure nature that is always already present; this reality is unveiled after the obscurations that cloud it are removed. I refer to this as a “top-down” approach because it is based on qualities of awakening that are already there, yet lie beyond an ordinary being’s comprehension. The second dimension, which I refer to as a “bottom-up” approach, involves directed training and discipline. Unlike the top-down approach, this is not about “going with the flow” or simply letting …

Authentic Mindfulness Within Mindfulness-Based Interventions: A Qualitative Study Of Participants' Experiences, Supakyada Sapthiang, Edo Shonin, Paul Barrows, William Van Gordon

International Journal of Transpersonal Studies Advance Publication Archive

There are concerns that participants of some modern mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs) are receiving a superficial form of mindfulness training. However, empirical investigation of this issue according to participants’ first-hand experiences has been limited. Thus, this qualitative study aimed to capture the first-hand perspectives relating to authentic mindfulness of participants who had recently attended an MBI in the UK. Ten adults completed a recorded, online semistructured interview. Based on a thematic analysis, the following four master themes were identified: (a) authentic mindfulness as a construct, (b) positive aspects of the training, (c) something missing, and (d) recommendations for authenticity. Although all …

Mindfulness Traps And The Entanglement Of Self: An Inquiry Into The Regime Of Mind, Richard Dixey, Ronald E. Purser

International Journal of Transpersonal Studies Advance Publication Archive

Mindfulness meditation can provide salutary therapeutic benefits, as well as lead advanced practitioners to states of calm and equanimity. In this paper, we argue that such forms of meditation may subtly entrap practitioners in circular, self-reflexive feedback loops. Because these meditation traps fail to clearly discern the operations of mind, they offer a temporary oasis of peace within an unaltered dualistic realm of mind that leaves the root delusion of self-identity intact. Drawing upon Tarthang Tulku’s seminal book Revelations of Mind, we present what he refers to as the “regime of mind,” the processes of cognition, identification and re-cognition in …

Cognitive Illusion, Lucid Dreaming, And The Psychology Of Metaphor In Tibetan Buddhist Dzogchen Contemplative Practices, Michael R. Sheehy

International Journal of Transpersonal Studies Advance Publication Archive

A classic set of eight similes of illusion (sgyu ma’i dpe brgyad) are employed recurrently throughout Indian and Tibetan Buddhist literature to illustrate the operations of cognition, its correlative perceptions, and experiences that emerge. To illustrate a Buddhist psychology of metaphor, the fourteenth century Tibetan scholar and synthesizer of the Dzogchen (rdzogs chen) or Great Perfection system, Longchen Rabjam Drimé Ödzer (1308-1363), composed his poetic text, Being at Ease with Illusion. This work on illusion is the third volume in Longchenpa’s Trilogy of Being at Ease (Ngal gso skor gsum) in which he presents a series of Dzogchen instructions on …

Buddhism And Transpersonal Psychology, Elías Capriles

International Journal of Transpersonal Studies Advance Publication Archive

In the debate between Freud and Romain Rolland the latter asserted the infants’ oceanic feeling to be saner than the adults’ limited sense of self, and that mystics recover the oceanic feeling without losing the learning achieved during socialization. Freud retorted that the oceanic feeling involved a sense of shelterlessness, and whoever went through derealization was psychotic and needed to be cured. However, the feeling of shelterlessness comes from the fledging sense of separation, and although derealization is a dangerous process, when it develops unhindered the result is greater sanity. So, Buddhism and TP agree in valuing transpersonal and holotropic …

Psychology Or Religion? Bridge-Building In The Translation History Of The Tibetan Book Of The Dead, Erin Prophet

International Journal of Transpersonal Studies Advance Publication Archive

The Tibetan Book of the Dead is one of the most popular Eastern scriptures in the West, in part because it has been framed outside of religion, as a kind of psychology. And yet its translators have also used it to stake claims in the debate about the relationship between psychology and religion, generally Buddhism, but also Theosophy, a religious and philosophical system founded in 1875, which tried to unify all religions. The first major English translation of the Book of the Dead was published in 1927, by W. Y. Evans-Wentz, who was a Theosophist, with the assistance of Kazi …

Zen And The Art Of Doughnut Economics: When Limits Are Strangely Liberating, Peter Doran

International Journal of Transpersonal Studies Advance Publication Archive

Kate Raworth's celebrated book, Doughnut Economics: Seven ways to think like a 21st century economist, calls for a reconciliation of our design principles for society and the economy with the rhythms and tolerances of ecological systems. It will demand something akin to a new axial revolution that will have to be experienced as much in the body and in the intimacies of a renewed care and appreciation for our relational and ecological selves as in the collective re-design of our societies, democratic decision-making and collective provisioning. Buddhist scholarship offers a distinctive contribution to this conversation invoked in a book that …

Continuities Of Consciousness, Life-Worlds, And Numinous Experience: Cognitive-Phenomenological Foundations For An Empirical Neo-Shamanism, Harry T. Hunt

International Journal of Transpersonal Studies Advance Publication Archive

Numinous experience—as the felt sense of the sacred—evokes feelings of allone unity, communality, humility, and healing. Its schematization in the absolutes of traditional religion can also be seen as all-encompassing symbolic unifications of an otherwise fragmented human life-world—as more analytically depicted in the life-world phenomenologies of Husserl and Heidegger. In both feeling and concept the numinous would be the semantic amplification of the more concrete organism-surround nonduality of non symbolic organisms—as reflected in a primary consciousness shared across Uexkuell’s sentient animal umwelten and Gibson’s “envelopes of flow.” H usserl’s phenomenology of passive synthesis and James on pure experience can be …

Wild Otherness Within: A Jungian And Zen Approach To The Untamed Self In The Ten Oxherding Pictures, Sara Granovetter

International Journal of Transpersonal Studies Advance Publication Archive

The Ten Oxherding Pictures are an ancient allegory for the process of enlightenment. This article analyzes the series of ten paintings through the lenses of Jungian psychology and alterity studies to suggest an unorthodox interpretation of the images. This interpretation highlights the relationship between the oxherd and the ox, suggesting that the ox is a wild other that seeks intersubjective understanding. In questioning the meaning of domestication in these images, this investigation deconstructs the traditional allegory of enlightenment as a process of domestication, suggesting that these images instead point towards the importance of releasing the appropriative attitude. Ultimately, the oxherd …

Examining Psychosocial Characteristics Of Female Serial Murderers, Rachael Strebel

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Previous studies of serial murderers have focused primarily on male serial murderers.The reason for this is unknown, but is primarily reflective of media patterns, gender roles, and social norms that often exclude females from conversations surrounding female serial murder. This study focused on the psychosocial characteristics of female serial murderers. Both solo female serial murderers and serial murderers who worked with one partner were studied. Using a grounded theory approach, based on the review of 11 secondary data case studies, 12 female serial murderers were studied; six who murdered individually and six who murdered within a team. Six main themes …

Mediators Between Job Stress And Health Quality Of Life Among Adults With Irritable Bowel Syndrome, Aida M. Benitez-Rexach

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a functional gastrointestinal affliction that affects millions around the globe, impacting health-related quality of life (HRQoL). The biopsychosocial model, Folkman and Lazarus’ transactional model of stress, Leventhal’s common sense model of self-regulation health and illness, and Bronfenbrenner’s human ecology theory are relevant to conceptualize interactions among environmental factors, biopsychosocial responses, and health-related quality of life (HRQoL). This quantitative, cross-sectional, complex correlational study sought to provide more understanding of how and whether IBS symptoms of pain, cognitive functioning, and interpersonal functioning serve as mediators between work stress and HRQoL. A total of 133 English-speaking volunteers from …

Mental Health In Black Women With Endometriosis-Related Symptoms During Covid-19, Anjanette Jaye Blunt

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Endometriosis is an incurable chronic illness impacting 190 million women worldwide. Despite the prevalence of this painful disease, research addressing how it affects Black women in the United States was limited. Research addressing this phenomenon during the COVID-19 pandemic was further limited. The purpose of this qualitative study employing an interpretative phenomenological analysis was to understand the mental health of Black women with endometriosis-related symptoms during the COVID-19 pandemic and how having the illness during the pandemic might have impacted individuals in this population. The strong Black woman schema and biopsychosocial model were the theoretical foundations for the study. Data …

Attachment And Its Prediction Of Emotional-Social Intelligence (Esi) Of African American Females During Mid-To-Late Adolescence, Lauren N. Callahan

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Attachment and emotional-social intelligence (ESI) have been an area of study among scholars since attachment has been shown to impact important areas of psychosocial development. This study involved exploring attachment or the adolescent bonding experience, and its prediction of ESI of African American females during mid-to-late adolescence. Researchers have demonstrated there are ethnic differences in terms of attachment and ESI but have not established predictive relationships among African Americans. The purpose of this study was to examine attachment and its prediction of ESI of African American females between 15 and 18. Using a quantitative design, the Adolescent Attachment Questionnaire and …

Non-Nightmare Recurring Dreams And Trauma, Asmai Fathelbab

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

This study examined the relationship between trauma and non-nightmare recurrent dreams (NNRD). Although there is extensive literature on the psychological consequences, diagnosis, and treatment of trauma, studies on the role of sleep processes have focused almost exclusively on nightmares. The potential relationship between NNRD and traumatic experiences has been overlooked by researchers. The purpose of this study was to assess if history of trauma and NNRD were correlated. More specifically, using Revonsuo’s threat simulation theory as a framework, the study evaluated if gender, quality of sleep, depression, anxiety, stress, and history trauma predicted NNRD. A cross-sectional correlational survey design was …

Stressors And Depression Among Adolescents With Co-Rumination As A Moderator, Angela Grosso-Burke

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Stress, depression, and co-rumination have been a focus of scholars in recent years. Although studies have considered the relationship among stressors, depression, and co-rumination, little is known about the moderating effects of co-rumination. This study aimed to address the gap in the literature by examining moderating effects of co-rumination on relations between stressors and depression, along with further moderating effects of sex, race, and grade. The current study examined mean-level race, sex, and grade differences in the relation among stressors (total, family, peer, physical appearance, sport/physical activity, school) and depressive symptoms in adolescents. Analyses were conducted to determine the relationship …

The Correlation Of Adverse Childhood Experiences And Pornography Consumption In Adulthood, Branden Henry

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Over the past 25 years, significant research has gone into understanding how adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) correlate with a variety of negative health and behavioral outcomes, while at the same time, pornography consumption has increased dramatically. However, limited research has been done to understand whether a relationship exists between ACEs and pornography consumption. Attachment theory, which was used as the theoretical framework for this study, includes the idea that childhood experiences play a major role in a person’s development of various behaviors throughout life, including coping mechanisms like pornography consumption. The purpose of this quantitative, cross-sectional, correlational study was to …

Impact On Retention For Students Participating In Supplemental Instruction At A Community College, Jacqueline Ann Larry

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

AbstractTitle III Strengthening Institutions Program is a supplemental grant that was designed to help eligible higher education institutions improve and strengthen academic quality, institutional management, and fiscal stability of eligible institutions. A community college in the Midsouth region was the focus of this quantitative study. Graduation and retention rates have steadily declined, and there are significant achievement gaps in terms of ethnicity and race, program completion, and failure rates in high-enrolled courses among first-year students. Using the retention model, this study involved examining the impact on retention for students participating in supplemental instruction upon entering college during their freshman year. …

Factors For Lgbt College Students That Predict Academic Success, Jonathan Mccormick

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Much research has been done on LGBT students in relation to campus climate and academic achievement, which suggested that a positive campus climate may positively influence students’ academic success. However, no research has yet been done to understand the value of campus climate, student levels of depression anxiety and stress, and student level of outness for predicting academic success. This quantitative study examined campus climate, depression, anxiety, and stress levels, and student level of outness together in their ability to predict self-reported grade point average of LGBT college students. Basic Psychological Needs Theory, a sub theory of Self-Determination Theory, was …

Correlates Of Mental Health Clinician Self-Awareness And Insight Of Attitudes Toward Older Adults, Susan L. Mcinvale

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

AbstractOlder adults (ages 65 and older) are expected to increase in the United States by over 70 million by the year 2030. The older adult population requires specialized medical and mental health services to address the needs related to aging. Mental health clinicians trained to address these needs may help older adults to utilize mental health counseling. Self-awareness of attitudes, insight, and knowledge may be skills that affect the attitudes of mental health clinicians toward older adults. Previous research has found that mental health clinicians who engage in self-awareness during a counseling session may improve counseling competency; however, little research …

Understanding The Connection Between Male Intimate Relationship Narratives And Domestic Violence Convictions, Stephanie Purdy

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Domestic violence (DV) continues to be a serious social challenge throughout the world. DV and recidivism rates are continuing to rise among individuals involved with intimate or familial relationships, with victims and perpetrators of all genders. This narrative inquiry study utilized narratives of intimate relationships among adult men, 18 years and older, who were convicted of domestically violent behaviors. The research question investigated participant experiences with female intimacy and how this was connected to domestically violent behaviors. The theoretical and conceptual frameworks were led by attachment and social learning theories, which were linked to understanding challenges with forming a less-than-positive …

Influence Of Conspiracy Mindset, Trust In Science, And Political Affiliation On Covid-19 Reactance, Bonnie L. Rinato

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The COVID-19 pandemic exposed extreme divisions in the social and political structure of the United States. When health organizations recommended strategies such as physical distancing, hand hygiene, sanitation of surfaces, and isolating when sick to slow the spread of the disease, Americans appeared to divide into two factions; those who followed the public health guidance and those who persistently ignored it, often voicing perceptions of loss of freedom due to the guidance. The purpose of this quantitative study was to examine the extent to which political affiliation moderated the relationship between conspiracy mindset, trust in science, and reactance responses to …

The Experiences Of Female Sexual Minority Service Members After 2013, Ada I. Rivera

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

In 2010, the United States Armed Forces ended the policy Don’t Ask, Don’t Tellthat excluded sexual minorities from being able to serve openly in the military. Full military benefits were extended to them and their family members in 2013. Despite these changes, victimization, stigma, and discrimination have continued to impact the lives of service members who identify as a sexual minority, as the result of microaggressions due to their sexual orientation. Past literature has examined experiences of sexual minorities, but little research has focuses on sexual minority women whose minority gender identity creates greater risk to experience micro assaults with …

Postsecondary Education, Self-Efficacy, And Organizational Commitment Impact On Previously Incarcerated Employee Job Satisfaction, Elizabeth Sadler Roney

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

A study was conducted to determine if previously incarcerated employee age, postsecondary education (PSE) attainment, prior incarceration status, and assessed self-efficacy predict job satisfaction. It also considered if organizational commitment had a moderating effect on the predictors ability to forecast the criterion. Two underlying theories considered in this study are Bandura’s social learning theory and Vroom’s expectancy theory. The obtained sample of 22 participants included seven previously incarcerated individuals. Demographic data used as predictors were employee age, PSE attainment, and prior incarceration status. Three instruments used included the New General Self-Efficacy Survey to assess self-efficacy as a predictor, the Job …

Cultural Competence: Minoritized Student Experiences With Faculty In Counselor Education And Supervision Programs, Mariangelly Sierra

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Minoritized students face additional challenges that contribute to poor experiences in higher education when compared to dominant populations. Multiculturally-competent faculty behaviors positively influence minoritized students’ lived experiences in higher education and promote culturally-responsive learning environments. This study investigated minoritized students’ experiences working with faculty teaching in Counselor Education and Supervision (CES) programs accredited by the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP) guided by the principles of Heidegger’s hermeneutic philosophy and Crenshaw’s theory of intersectionality. The specific research question of this study was about minoritized students lived experiences with faculty teaching in CACREP-accredited CES programs. Data were …

Professional Counselor Identity Development Relative To Professional Recognition, Brandon Shurn

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

This descriptive phenomenological study was conducted to explore how professional counselors described their professional identity development and if professional recognition from psychologists, social workers, psychiatrists, and other professional organizations contributed to professional identity development. Phenomenology was developed by Edmund Husserl and explores insights from others based on their experiences. Licensed clinical professional counselors in Maryland formed the purposive sample that included six participants; each participated in a semi-structured interview. Thematic coding highlighted themes that emerged and included (a) the importance of the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP), (b) licensure as a stressful process, (c) professional …

Exploring Care Recipients’ Health Conditions Influence On Caregivers And Caregivers’ Meaning Of Care Dependence, Yolanda Suarez-Calvo

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Little is known about the ways in which caregivers are affected or influenced by their care recipients’ health conditions. Additionally, the meaning of care dependence for caregivers is also understudied. The purpose of this generic qualitative study was to examine caregivers’ affection/influence due to the physical and psychosocial health conditions of the individuals for whom they care. Further, the meaning of care dependence, from the perspectives of the caregivers, was sought. The theoretical framework to further this research was Montgomery and Kosloski’s (2009) caregiver’s identity theory The research question addressed the ways caregivers are affected or influenced by the care …

Participant Perceptions Of Investigative Interviewing Utilizing Archival Pre And Post-Implementation Data, Shaun Michael Sylvester

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Scholars and practitioners have provided substantial literature and research into the efficacy of investigative interviewing as a method of police interrogation that mitigates false confession and coercion. This quantitative study examined archival data on participant perceptions of investigative interviewing before and immediately following an investigative course. Three areas representing principles of investigative interviewing and police investigator perceptions were examined: Confession and evidentiary testimony, confirmation bias, and deception detection through body language observation. Participants included sworn law enforcement officers, either newly employed or on the path to becoming an investigator. There were 206 responses for both the pre-test and post-test surveys. …