Unraveling the role of forgiveness in family relationships

Testing the idea that the process of forgiveness is intrinsically different across diverse relationships, this study examined the role of forgiveness in different family relationships. In 2 laboratory sessions 1 year apart, 114 families (each including 2 parents and 1 child) completed a new measure of family forgiveness and many individual-level, relationship-level, and family-level variables that have been previously linked with forgiveness. After validating the measure of family forgiveness in cross-sectional analyses, investigators performed longitudinal analyses to examine the role of forgiveness in each family relationship over the 1-year interval. Results indicated many important positive consequences of forgiveness on individual traits, aspects of each family relationship, and general family environment. However, there were also important asymmetries in associates of forgiveness across parent-child and parent-parent relationships, demonstrating the relationship-bound nature of forgiveness.

Mind-Reading Accuracy in Intimate Relationships:Assessing the Roles of the Relationship, the Target, and the Judge

Using a video-review procedure, multiple perceivers carried out mind-reading tasks of multiple targets at different levels of acquaintanceship (50 dating couples, friends of the dating partners, and strangers). As predicted, the authors found that mind-reading accuracy was (a) higher as a function of increased acquaintanceship, (b) relatively unaffected by target effects, (c) influenced by individual differences in perceivers' ability, and (d) higher for female than male perceivers. In addition, superior mind-reading accuracy (for dating couples and friends) was related to higher relationship satisfaction, closeness, and more prior disclosure about the problems discussed, but only under moderating conditions related to sex and relationship length. The authors conclude that the nature of the relationship between the perceiver and the target occupies a pivotal role in determining mind-reading accuracy.

Gender differences in the relationships between bullying at school and unhealthy eating and shape-related attitudes and behaviours

Background. Previous research has found links between being a victim of bullying and reporting more unhealthy eating behaviours and cognitions, particularly in girls. However, little is known about the factors that might mediate these relationships. Aim. The present study compared the relationships between bullying, emotional adjustment, restrained eating, and body dissatisfaction in adolescent boys and girls. Sample/method. Self-report data were collected from a sample of 11- to 14-year-olds (N= 376) on experiences of bullying, emotional symptoms, and unhealthy eating and shape-related attitudes and behaviours. Results. Bullying, emotional symptoms, restrained eating, and body dissatisfaction were all correlated. Emotional symptoms were found to significantly mediate the relationships between verbal bullying with body dissatisfaction in girls but not in boys. Conclusions. Findings suggest that the experience of being verbally bullied places adolescent girls at risk of developing emotional problems which can then lead to body dissatisfaction. Longitudinal research is necessary to disentangle these pathways in more detail to facilitate the development of informed interventions to support children who are being bullied.

Are guanxi-type supervisor-subordinate relationships culture-general? An eight-nation test of measurement invariance

Three dimensions of subordinate-supervisor relations (affective attachment, deference to supervisor, and personal-life inclusion) that had been found by Y. Chen, Friedman, Yu, Fang, and Lu to be characteristic of a guanxi relationship between subordinates and their supervisors in China were surveyed in Taiwan, Singapore, and six non-Chinese cultural contexts. The Affective Attachment and Deference subscales demonstrated full metric invariance whereas the Personal-Life Inclusion subscale was found to have partial metric invariance across all eight samples. Structural equation modeling revealed that the affective attachment dimension had a cross-nationally invariant positive relationship to affective organizational commitment and a negative relationship to turnover intention. The deference to the supervisor dimension had invariant positive relationships with both affective and normative organizational commitment. The personal-life inclusion dimension was unrelated to all outcomes. These results indicate the relevance of aspects of guanxi to superior-subordinate relations in non-Chinese cultures. Studies of indigenous concepts can contribute to a broader understanding of organizational behavior. © The Author(s) 2014.

A snapshot of the lives of women with polycystic ovary syndrome:a photovoice investigation

Polycystic ovary syndrome affects 6  percent of women. Symptoms include hirsutism, acne, and infertility. This research explores the impact of polycystic ovary syndrome on women's lives using photovoice. Nine participants photographed objects related to their quality of life and made diary entries explaining each photograph. Three themes emerged from thematic analysis of the diaries: control (of symptoms and polycystic ovary syndrome controlling their lives), perception (of self, others, and their situation), and support (from relationships, health care systems, and education). These findings illuminate positive aspects of living with polycystic ovary syndrome and the role pets and social networking sites play in providing support for women with polycystic ovary syndrome.

Who is really in charge of contemporary education? People and technologies in, against and beyond the neoliberal university

This article reflects on the position of people in, against and beyond information and communication technologies. Firstly, using Jandrić and Kuzmanić’s work on digital postcolonialism, Raymond Williams's work on residual and emergent cultures, and Deleuze and Guattari's insights into the dynamics between territorialization, de-territorialization and re-territorialization, it develops a theoretical framework for inquiry into the hybrid identity of the contemporary university. Then, through critical discourse analysis (CDA), the article moves on to analyse the ways in which technology discourse resides in the dominating ideology of technological determinism and co-opts with neoliberal agendas by omitting humans from explicit mention in UK policy documents. It shows that true counter-hegemonic practice against dominating social practices is possible only through reinvigorating the central position of human beings in regards to information and communication technologies. Within the developed theoretical framework, it seeks openings to intervene subversively into current relationships between technologies, people, and (higher) education, and to identify opportunities for building a non-determinist identity of the contemporary university that reaches beyond the single-minded logic of techno-scientific development. In the process, it situates Paulo Freire's insights into critical pedagogy in the context of the network society, and places the relationships between human beings, language and information and communication technologies amongst central questions of today's (higher) education and society at large.

Innovating engineering education: the RVS approach:an empirically grounded method to improved practice and enhanced student experience

This paper builds on previous work (Clark, 2009; Clark & Andrews 2011, 2014) to continue the debate around a seemingly universal question…“How can educational theory be applied to engineering education in such a way so as to make the subject more accessible and attractive to students? It argues that there are three key elements to student success; Relationships, Variety & Synergy (RVS). By further examining the purposefully developed bespoke learning and teaching approach constructed around these three elements (RVS) the discourse in this paper links educational theory to engineering education and in doing so further develops arguments for the introduction of a purposefully designed pedagogic approach for use in engineering education.

Tackling transition! Peer mentoring in engineering education:a UK perspective

This paper builds on previous work (Clark, 2009; Clark & Andrews 2011, 2014) to continue the debate around a seemingly universal question…“How can educational theory be applied to engineering education in such a way so as to make the subject more accessible and attractive to students? It argues that there are three key elements to student success; Relationships, Variety & Synergy (RVS). By further examining the purposefully developed bespoke learning and teaching approach constructed around these three elements (RVS) the discourse in this paper links educational theory to engineering education and in doing so further develops arguments for the introduction of a purposefully designed pedagogic approach for use in engineering education.

Student response to a pub quiz style first year psychology assessment

The deterioration in staff-student ratios in UK higher education has had a disproportionate impact on assessment and feedback, meaning that contemporary students may have fewer assessments and much less feedback than a generation ago (Gibbs, 2006). Early use of a quiz assessment may offer a blend of social benefits (social comparison, shared problem solving leading to engagement, belonging and continuation), academic benefits (early formative assessment, immediate feedback) and administrative benefits (on-the-spot verbal marking and feedback to 230 students simultaneously). This study sought student views on the acceptability and contribution to learning of the quiz. Social benefits were apparent but difficulties in creating questions to elicit deeper reasoning and problem solving are discussed and the quiz had limited pedagogic value in the eyes of participants. The use of assertion-reason questions are considered as a way of taking the table quiz to a higher level and extending its pedagogic value.

‘Everything’s from the inside out with PCOS’:exploring women’s experiences of living with Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS) and co-morbidities through Skype™ interviews

Polycystic ovary syndrome is an endocrine disorder affecting 1 in 10 women. Women with polycystic ovary syndrome can experience co-morbidities, including depressive symptoms. This research explores the experience of living with polycystic ovary syndrome and co-morbidities. Totally, 10 participants with polycystic ovary syndrome took part in Skype™ interviews and analysed using thematic analysis. Four themes emerged from the data: change (to life plans and changing nature of condition); support (healthcare professionals, education and relationships); co-morbidities (living with other conditions and depression, self-harm and suicidal ideation) and identity (feminine identity and us and them). The findings highlight the need for screening of women with polycystic ovary syndrome for depressive disorders.

Bringing engineering education to life – an empirical approach to learning and teaching

Learning and teaching approaches to engineering are generally perceived to be difficult and academically challenging. Such challenges are reflected in high levels of student attrition and failure. In addressing this issue, a unique approach to engineering education has been developed by the paper authors. This approach, which is suitable for undergraduate and postgraduate levels, brings together pedagogic and engineering epistemologies in an empirically grounded framework. It is underpinned by three distinctive concepts: Relationships, Variety & Synergy. Based upon research, the R + V + S approach to Engineering Education provides a learning and teaching strategy, which in enhancing the student experience, increases retention and positively impacts student success [S2]. Based on the study findings, this paper shows how, by designing engineering education around the concepts of Relationships, Variety and Synergy, the student learning experience becomes one that is academically challenging yet beneficial to both students and engineering educators. The challenge is to widen and test the approach in other areas of engineering education, before going on to investigate the value of the approach in other disciplines.

Making mole-hills out of mountains:Peer Mentoring in Engineering education - A case-study

Based on the emergent findings of a pilot study which examined the issues around introducing Peer Mentoring into an Engineering School, this paper, which is very much a 'work in progress', describes and discusses results from the first year of what will be a three year exploratory study. Focusing on three distinctive concepts integral to the student experience, Relationships, Variety and Synergy, the study follows an Action Research Design in that it aims to find a realistic and workable solution to issues of attrition within the Engineering School in which the Project and Study are set. Starting with the research question "Does Peer Mentoring improve engineering students' transition into university?"', the Pilot Project and Study will run for three years, each year building on the lessons of the previous year.

Innovation in education. Commentary:teaching statistics using dance and movement and a case for neuroscience in mathematics education

Review: A commentary on Teaching statistics using dance and movement by Irving, L.T. (2015). Front. Psychol. 6:50. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2015.00050 A case for neuroscience in mathematics education by Susac, A., and Braeutigam, S. (2014). Front. Hum. Neurosci. 8:314. doi: 10.3389/fnhum.2014.00314