scholarly journals A Qualitative Exploration into the Sensory Experiences of Autistic Mothers

Author(s):  
Moyna Catherine Talcer ◽  
Orla Duffy ◽  
Katy Pedlow

AbstractResearch has found 96% of autistic individuals experience sensory processing difficulties, and being a parent presents many sensory demands that may be especially challenging for autistic mothers. Despite the high prevalence, no research exists exploring the sensory experiences of autistic mothers, highlighting the gap in current knowledge. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 7 autistic mothers, data were analysed using thematic analysis identifying 5 major themes: antenatal experiences, sensory experiences in motherhood, the impact of sensory processing difficulties, strategies and needs, diagnosis. This research provides greater insight and understanding into the sensory experiences of autistic mothers which can influence earlier diagnosis and inform appropriate support and adaptations for autistic mothers in a variety of different sectors and highlights a possible emerging role for Occupational Therapists.

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jake Shelley ◽  
Sam N. Thrower ◽  
Andrea Petróczi

Background: Doping has been a prominent issue for the sport of athletics in recent years. The endurance disciplines, which currently account for 56% of the global anti-doping rule violations in athletics, appear to be particularly high risk for doping.Objective: Using this high-risk, high-pressure context, the main purpose of this study was to investigate the human impact of doping and anti-doping on “clean” athletes. The secondary aim of the study was to better understand the reasons for, and barriers to, competing “clean” among this group of athletes.Method: Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 11 elite distance runners from the UK to explore: (1) the reasons and motivations for competing clean. (2) Perceptions of the anti-doping system, and experiences of being part of that system. (3) Views on the prevalence and causes of doping and the impact of doping on the lives of clean athletes. The interviews were audio-recorded, transcribed verbatim, and analysed using Reflexive Thematic Analysis.Results: Four major themes were identified: (1) The participants in this study have not been tempted to use prohibited substances or methods; they compete in their sport for the personal satisfaction of seeing how good they can be, rather than in pursuit of winning at all costs. (2) Anti-doping does not currently prevent doping effectively and is not implemented evenly across the globe. (3) Doping was perceived as a major issue and was felt to be borne out of certain sporting cultures in which doping is enabled. (4) Doping has impacted the careers of clean athletes in irreversible ways and presents a continuing challenge to the psychological preparation for competition.Conclusions: Clean athletes suffer negative consequences from both doping and anti-doping. ADOs must collaborate across borders to ensure a more even implementation of anti-doping activities, to facilitate a more level playing field on the global stage. ADOs must also acknowledge the existence of a large group of athletes who would never consider deliberately doping and make anti-doping work for these athletes too.


2018 ◽  
Vol 13 (8) ◽  
pp. 184 ◽  
Author(s):  
Umar Altahtooh ◽  
Thamir Alaskar

Despite the importance of milestone as a key knowledge in project management, there has been lack of research to understand the relationship between milestones and decision-making. This paper presents a pragmatic research context that aims understanding the nature of milestones and their relationship with different decision-making structures and responsibilities across projects. Data were collected through 14 semi-structured interviews with project managers and analyzed using thematic analysis. The findings explore the concepts of project milestones among project managers in Saudi Arabia. The paper finds that there is a relationship between milestones and the impact on decision-making.


2020 ◽  
pp. bmjspcare-2020-002632
Author(s):  
Philippa Tollow ◽  
Jane Ogden ◽  
Candida S McCabe ◽  
Diana Harcourt

ObjectivesExisting research has established the importance of appearance concerns for individuals with cancer and identified appearance as an important factor in dying with dignity. No research, however, has explored in depth the role of appearance in the experiences of individuals who have incurable cancer. This research aims to explore patients’ experiences and perspectives in relation to the role of appearance issues in adults with incurable cancer.MethodsSemi-structured interviews were conducted with 24 adults with incurable cancer (20 women, 4 men; mean age 54.5, SD 11.32).ResultsThematic analysis generated three themes: ‘Identity: Embodying Cancer’, ‘Communication: Wearing your illness’ and ‘Support: Holistic Care’. Appearance was felt to be an important element of identity, which was often dominated by cancer, leading to feelings of separation from the participant’s previous self. Appearance changes also influenced the way in which individuals communicated with their external world, forcing discussion of their diagnosis, and increasing focus on their cancer, with participants having to manage the emotional impact of this on loved ones, as well as the impact on their legacy. Finally, participants highlighted the positive impact of appearance-related support in their well-being and identified peer connections and refocusing on the self as key elements of such support.ConclusionsAppearance changes play an important role in the experiences of individuals with incurable cancer with regards to both identity and communication and challenged participants’ ability to maintain normalcy. Further psychosocial support relating to appearance concerns was considered necessary to promote dignity and provide truly holistic patient care.


2014 ◽  
Vol 26 (4) ◽  
pp. 647-658 ◽  
Author(s):  
Muhammad Kashif ◽  
Mubashir Ayyaz ◽  
Sara Basharat

Purpose – There is plethora of advertising research that has highlighted the mothers’ perspective to TV food advertising. However, the fathers’ perspective on children food advertising in societies that score high on masculinity is important but absent from literature. The purpose of this paper is to present opinions of respondents as fathers, concerning the impact of TV food advertisements on children buying and consumption habits. Design/methodology/approach – The qualitative data through semi-structured interviews has been collected from 32 males having at least one child between the ages of seven and 14 years. The respondents were purposefully selected from a private sector university located in the province of Punjab, Pakistan. The collected data have been analysed through thematic analysis. Findings – Thematic analysis revealed six themes; quantity of ads, negative impact of TV food ads, changing buying patterns, positive/productive impact on children, father's perceptions of TV advertising, and advertising changes to be incorporated. The findings have some social, cultural, and managerial implications for core advertising stakeholders. Practical implications – This study is useful for marketing managers whose job is to persuade children and their families into buying their products. They can benefit from the findings of this study to customize the brand communication strategies as per the expectations of respondents as fathers. Furthermore, the study proposes useful insights that will help in devising consumer-led advertising policies in Pakistan. Originality/value – The gender role of males while influencing family decision making with regards to food products marketing has been a new area of research. The study is pioneer in the field of consumer socialization in that it focuses upon the fathers’ perspective on TV advertising to children.


Dementia ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 18 (2) ◽  
pp. 776-784 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tanya Hobden ◽  
Mary Swallow ◽  
Charlotte Beer ◽  
Tom Dening

Swimming is a non-weight bearing form of exercise that can be enjoyable and promote physical fitness. This qualitative study investigated a local group established as part of a national dementia swimming initiative. Semi-structured interviews with people with dementia (N = 4), carers or companions (N = 4) and the organisers and facilitators of the group (N = 6) were analysed using thematic analysis. This revealed four main themes: (1) the pleasure of swimming and its benefits as a form of exercise and for building confidence and empowering participants, (2) the importance of insight and empathy in creating a safe and secure experience, (3) the impact of dementia and (4) how participants valued being part of a group ‘all in the same boat’. ‘Dementia friendly swimming’ appears to be a valuable form of exercise, but it requires considerable preparation and support to make it happen.


2020 ◽  
Vol 30 (1) ◽  
pp. 30-35 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kerri Haggart ◽  
Lindsay Robertson ◽  
Mei-Ling Blank ◽  
Lucy Popova ◽  
Janet Hoek

IntroductionMany smokers who begin using electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS) report vaping in settings where they would not have smoked and believe secondhand aerosol (SHA) is simply steam. However, current understanding of how ENDS users differentiate between secondhand smoke and SHA, or how vaping norms develop, is limited.MethodsWe conducted in-depth, semi-structured interviews with 39 current ENDS users (dual users and former smokers, now exclusive ENDS users) from New Zealand to explore participants’ perceptions of SHA. We probed how these perceptions arose and examined implications for vaping practices and policy. We managed the data using NVivo V.11 and used a thematic analysis approach to interpret the transcripts.ResultsParticipants had limited understanding of SHA, its constituents or its possible effects on others. They drew on the absence of harm information, and their sensory experiences and perceptions of others’ views of vaping, to support the conclusion that SHA posed few, if any, risks to bystanders. Yet despite this perception, some felt they should recognise others’ rights to clean air and most would not vape around children to avoid setting an example.ConclusionsIn the absence of trusted information, participants used sensory heuristics to rationalise their ENDS practices. Policy-makers face the challenge of correcting misperceptions about SHA without deterring full transition from smoking to ENDS use. They could consider including vaping in current smoke-free area policies; this measure would signal that SHA is not harmless, and could protect clean-air settings and reduce potential normalisation of vaping among non-smokers.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tegan Jemma Reeves ◽  
Natalie L. Dyer ◽  
Sara Borden ◽  
Jeffery A. Dusek ◽  
Sat Bir Singh Khalsa

Abstract Background: While there is growing evidence for resilience building programs, to date research has not explored how professionals construct their understanding of program impact. Methods: Using a qualitative exploration of reflections on a yoga-based retreat at Kripalu Center for Yoga & Health, nested in a larger study, the current inquiry aims to explore long-term perceptions of an occupation-oriented program designed to improve resilience. Called RISE (resilience, integration, self-awareness, engagement), the immersion program was a 5-day professional development for professionals in high-stress jobs. Through a grounded constructivist lens, inductive coding and iterative thematic analysis was employedResults: Semi-structured interviews of 17 adult professionals who attended RISE, conducted 3 months after completion of the program, illustrated two integrated perceptions woven through five themes. Persistent threads of experiential learning and sense of permission provided structure for themes found. Five interrelated themes related to psychological health and workplace dynamics were: (1) use of acquired behavioral skills and practices; (2) lived mindfulness; (3) resilience to stress and emotion regulation (4) self-care and self-compassion, and (5) sharing with others. Conclusion: Findings provide meaningful interpretation of previously reported program efficacy by contextualizing perceived benefits within participants constructed understanding of change. Specifically, environmental, social, and experiential considerations have suggested implications for resilience building programs.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Huda Masood ◽  
Len Karakowsky ◽  
Mark Podolsky

PurposeThe purpose of this qualitative exploratory study was to investigate the capacity of job crafting to serve as a viable response to abusive supervision. Although considerable literature has emerged on employee reactions to abusive supervision, the role of job crafting as a coping mechanism has received relatively little attention.Design/methodology/approachUsing qualitative exploration, we conducted semi-structured interviews to examine how individuals engage in job crafting as a means to respond to or cope with abusive supervision. Critical Incident Interview Technique (CIIT) was used to obtain in-depth details of this topic. We analyzed the interview-based data using the thematic analysis (TA) technique. We also integrated topic modeling to cluster the identified categories of job crafting behaviors within our TA. The cultural context of our findings was further analyzed using interpretive phenological analysis (IPA).FindingsThe results of our thematic analysis led to four recurring themes in the interview-data: (1) Job crafting as a viable coping response to abusive supervision; (2) The type of coping relates to the type of crafting: Approach and Avoidance; (3) The role of perceived control; (4) Emotions play a role in the type of crafting employed. Findings from our IPA generated the following super-ordinate themes. (1) Job crafting fluidity, (2) effectiveness of job crafting, (3) resilience and (4) cultural dynamics.Research limitations/implicationsThis research reveals the ways in which individuals may turn to job crafting behaviors as a means to cope following instances of abusive supervision. Given the qualitative exploration of our research approach, we identify generalizability to be an issue.Practical implicationsJob crafting is a proactive phenomenon that equips employees with coping abilities in the workplace. While Wrzesniewski and Dutton (2001) suggested that job crafting behaviors tend to be hidden from management, there may be merit in organizations explicitly acknowledging the benefits of allowing employees to be active agents in their work, capable of using multiple domains of job crafting to improve their personal and professional lives (Petrou et al., 2017).Originality/valueThe current research reveals the ways in which individuals may turn to job crafting behaviors as a means to cope, following instances of abusive supervision. We further fine-grained our analysis to explicate employee job crafting behaviors in response to abusive supervision within a cross-cultural domain.


2003 ◽  
Vol 47 (3) ◽  
pp. 203-220 ◽  
Author(s):  
Katherine Porterfield ◽  
Albert Cain ◽  
Amy Saldinger

The current report is a qualitative exploration of the ways in which an adult's childhood experiences with death subsequently influence their parenting of their own parentally-bereaved children. Findings stem from semi-structured interviews with a community sample of 41 bereaved spouses, interviews that are part of a broader, longitudinal investigation of the determinants of the impact upon children of parent death. While some researchers have examined how childhood loss globally affects parenting, none has looked at the unique experience of the impact of such early experiences on parenting during bereavement. Moreover, in contrast to most studies of childhood loss which operate exclusively from an impairment-focused stance, this study also documents the long-term competency-building that may result from the experience of bereavement during childhood.


2020 ◽  
Vol 83 (4) ◽  
pp. 228-236 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tatiana Barcelos Pontes ◽  
Katie Mah ◽  
Adrianne K Arnold ◽  
Helene J Polatajko ◽  
Jane A Davis

Introduction Children with mobility difficulties are thought to share similar participation repertoires due to the impact of their physical impairments. However, with these children, as with all others, individual differences and contexts should mediate occupational repertoires and experiences, resulting in participation differences, at least in part. This study aimed to explore the occupational repertoires of children with mobility difficulties and their view of their occupational participation. Methods Five children with mobility difficulties were assessed using the paediatric activity card sort, to establish their occupational repertoires. Semi-structured interviews were used to understand the children’s occupational participation. Findings Our findings suggest that children with mobility issues are more likely to participate in quiet occupations, but not exclusively. The children defined participation in their own way. Conclusion The knowledge about how children with mobility difficulties understand participation in occupation can help occupational therapists to establish goals with their clients and personalise interventions.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document