Search results

1 – 6 of 6
Article
Publication date: 27 February 2023

Yolanda Muñoz-Martínez, Cecilia Simon Rueda and MªLuz M. Fernández-Blázquez

This study analyses the barriers and facilitators for the educational inclusion of students with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) from the perspective of their teachers.

Abstract

Purpose

This study analyses the barriers and facilitators for the educational inclusion of students with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) from the perspective of their teachers.

Design/methodology/approach

A qualitative methodology was applied, specifically a multiple case study from which 24 in-depth interviews were conducted with teachers who had worked previously with students with ASD. The participants were Spanish teachers from different educational stages (from early childhood education to baccalaureate) and with different roles (ordinary classroom teachers and support teachers).

Findings

The results show that collaboration amongst teachers, their attitudes, the way of understanding the supports, the creation of collaboration between students and the organisation of both the school and the classroom are important for the inclusion of students with ASD. The analyses and discussion of the facilitators for the inclusion of these students are especially relevant, since they provide useful guidance for teachers who want to respond to the right of these students to an inclusive education.

Research limitations/implications

The limitations and future research lines of this study are related to the logic of amplitude and depth, respectively. Regarding amplitude, the authors highlighted the importance of gathering the voices of professionals committed to the development of more inclusive practices; however, the authors also identified the need to expand the listening to the voices of teachers who do not have such experience. This raises a possible future research line: to explore how to reach teachers with no experience in inclusive education in order to contribute to the transformation of their practice.

Practical implications

There is extensive knowledge within the classrooms, which the authors aimed to demonstrate in this study, with the hope that others can learn from it. The obtained results are useful to every teacher who wishes to create an inclusive school. In agreement with the consideration of inclusive education as a process, this investigation identified strategies and resources that facilitate the learning and participation of students with ASD, as well as barriers that must be tackled to advance in this regard.

Originality/value

The authors aimed to contribute to understanding the advances in the development of the right to inclusive education. To this end, the authors gathered the voices of teachers (those from the ordinary classroom and those considered “support teachers”) from regular schools that welcome students with ASD and which had a history of commitment to the development of more inclusive education. There is extensive knowledge within the classrooms, which the authors aimed to demonstrate in this study, with the hope that others can learn from it. The obtained results are useful to every teacher who wishes to create an inclusive school.

Details

Equality, Diversity and Inclusion: An International Journal, vol. 42 no. 6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2040-7149

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 17 April 2023

Md Sajjad Hosain and Umma Jakia

As Covid-19 became a pandemic, numerous people were forced to stay at home, leading to increased intimate partner violence (IPV) in many countries, particularly in developing and…

Abstract

Purpose

As Covid-19 became a pandemic, numerous people were forced to stay at home, leading to increased intimate partner violence (IPV) in many countries, particularly in developing and least-developed ones. This paper aims to highlight the IPV based on 15 different cases formed from the practical evidence of five developing countries.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors interviewed 15 women from five countries who were the victims of IPV during the early periods of Covid-19 outbreak. Due to geographical remoteness, the authors conducted informal telephone interviews to collect the participants' personal experiences. The conversations were recorded with participants' permission; afterwards, the authors summarized participants’ experiences into 15 different cases without revealing their original identities (instead, disguised names were used).

Findings

It was revealed that the women were the primary victims of such violence, particularly from their intimate partners (husbands). In most cases, such IPV, as reported by the interviewees, originated or increased after the pandemic when they were forced to stay at home, losing their partners’ jobs or income sources.

Originality/value

The authors summarized the causes of IPV and put forward a few action recommendations based on the interviewees’ practical experience and existing literature. This paper will open a new window for research investigations on IPV during emergencies such as Covid-19 outbreak.

Details

The Journal of Adult Protection, vol. 25 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1466-8203

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 13 March 2023

Vrinda Acharya, Ambigai Rajendran and Nandan Prabhu

The present study develops, conceptualizes and validates a scale based on the transactional stress theory to assess the perceived challenge and hindrance demands of doctoral…

Abstract

Purpose

The present study develops, conceptualizes and validates a scale based on the transactional stress theory to assess the perceived challenge and hindrance demands of doctoral programs that impact doctoral students’ psychological well-being.

Design/methodology/approach

This research employs an exploratory-mixed methodology comprising five phases with a sequential qualitative-quantitative approach. A rigorous scale development process is adopted to validate the instrument’s psychometric properties. The study respondents are Indian full-time doctoral students in the management discipline.

Findings

The findings show that the construct of perceived challenge and hindrance demands is a first-order four-factor and a second-order two-factor model. The study has validated the scale to capture the challenge and hindrance demands of doctoral research programs with the following sub-constructs: doctoral program resource inadequacies, doctoral program ambiguity, doctoral program workload and complexity.

Practical implications

The recommended challenge demands and hindrance demands (CHD) scale provides a benchmark for doctoral institutes and program supervisors in focussing on research students’ perception of their doctoral education demands to reduce the strain and increase their well-being during their doctoral program journey.

Originality/value

Hindrance demands adversely influence the motivation resources needed for doctoral education; challenge demands positively impact the research students’ internal resources.

Details

Journal of Applied Research in Higher Education, vol. 16 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2050-7003

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 28 April 2023

Fiona Hutton, Geoff Noller and Alice McSherry

This study aims to explore people’s experiences of taking cannabis therapeutically and to gather some real-world evidence (RWE) about the products they were using, their efficacy…

Abstract

Purpose

This study aims to explore people’s experiences of taking cannabis therapeutically and to gather some real-world evidence (RWE) about the products they were using, their efficacy and what kinds of positive or negative effect/s patients experienced. The focus of this discussion is the efficacy of cannabis for the participants in this study.

Design/methodology/approach

This was an exploratory study that used a mixed methods approach: a survey and semi-structured interviews. The data presented here focus on thematic analysis of five of the open-ended survey questions. Results from a purposive survey sample are also briefly reported. Interview data are not reported on here.

Findings

Across the sample (n = 213), 95.6% of participants reported that taking cannabis helped them with a number of conditions. The most common three themes across the thematic analysis were that cannabis helped with pain relief, sleep and anxiety. Negative effects, some of which related to having to source cannabis from the illicit market, were relatively minor and experienced by 28% (n = 58) of participants. An important finding was that 49% (n = 76) of those who said their use of prescribed medicines had decreased (n = 155), significantly decreased and in some cases stopped their use of prescribed medications.

Originality/value

This study reports on a sample of participants with clinically diagnosed conditions and adds to the RWE base about the efficacy of using cannabis for therapeutic purposes in the New Zealand context.

Details

Drugs, Habits and Social Policy, vol. 24 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2752-6739

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 31 January 2023

Patricia Gooding, Rebecca Crook, Melissa Westwood, Claire Faichnie and Sarah Peters

This study aims to examine the following across a six-month period in post-graduate research (PGR) students: mental health and well-being; the effect of academic pressures on…

Abstract

Purpose

This study aims to examine the following across a six-month period in post-graduate research (PGR) students: mental health and well-being; the effect of academic pressures on depression, anxiety and well-being; and the extent to which psychological resilience buffered against academic pressures.

Design/methodology/approach

This was a longitudinal questionnaire study with predictor variables of six types of academic pressure, outcome variables of depression, anxiety and well-being, and a moderator of resilience.

Findings

Well-being significantly worsened across the six-month timeframe, but levels of depression and anxiety remained relatively stable. Negative perceptions of academic challenges at baseline significantly predicted anxiety, but not depression or well-being, six months later. Negative appraisals of relationships with supervisors, other university staff and work peers were not predictors of anxiety. Social support resilience which was present at baseline buffered the relationship between perceived academic challenges and anxiety.

Practical implications

Higher education institutions have a duty of care towards PGR students, many of whom struggle with the escalating interactions between mental health problems and academic pressures. Actively nurturing psychological resilience related to social support is key at the level of individual students and the PGR community but more broadly at an institutional level.

Originality/value

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study to examine the effects of negative perceptions of multiple facets of academic life on depression, anxiety and well-being longitudinally. Additionally, it is the first study to investigate, and demonstrate, the extent to which psychological resilience can lessen the relationship between academic challenges and anxiety over time.

Details

Studies in Graduate and Postdoctoral Education, vol. 14 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2398-4686

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 14 August 2023

Sohail Ahmad, Aisha Naz Ansari, Saman Khawaja and Sadia Muzaffar Bhutta

This paper aims to explore contribution of informal learning space - Research Cafe - to enrich research learning experiences of graduate students. Developing strong research…

Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to explore contribution of informal learning space - Research Cafe - to enrich research learning experiences of graduate students. Developing strong research skills among graduate students is a prime focus of higher education around the world. Thereby, universities are striving to maximise opportunities that can foster and enrich students’ learning experiences of research; however, the focus is mostly confined to formal opportunities such as research method courses and thesis writing. The provision of informal learning spaces has been recognised as a useful tool for fostering research learning experiences of graduates. This reflective paper is among a few focusing on a model of student-led informal learning space for enriching research experiences in higher education in the context of Pakistan.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper uses a reflective approach to generate a metalogue. The research experiences shared by the participants were further reflected by the authors after each research café session. The authors then shared their collective metacognitive reflections with each other, generating a metalogue, which was used as the data set. The metalogue was analysed thematically to generate themes.

Findings

Findings reveal that the research café is an informal space to promote academic socialisation by providing a conducive environment, peer support and informal supervision opportunities to foster the research learning experiences of graduate students. Importantly, the model presented in this paper provides a complimentary pathway for boosting learning experiences.

Research limitations/implications

This paper would be useful for graduate students, faculty and university manager to acknowledge the potential of informal learning spaces in promoting research learning experiences. This paper highlights opportunities for replication, and further empirical research are needed to establish the efficacy of research café.

Originality/value

This study contributes to the global debate about graduate research learning experiences through informal learning space, which is yet to be explored, particularly in developing contexts like Pakistan. The idea of the research café is original, as it was conceived keeping in consideration the contextual and cultural aspects. The methodology used in this paper was specifically derived which can be replicated by other researchers.

Details

Studies in Graduate and Postdoctoral Education, vol. 14 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2398-4686

Keywords

Access

Year

Last 12 months (6)

Content type

Article (6)
1 – 6 of 6