scholarly journals Critical Events as Factors Shaping Life Experiences

2021 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 429-446
Author(s):  
Katarzyna Sygulska

The article presents the life story of an elderly woman, the sense of the quality of her life, the critical events that shaped her life, and the lessons learned from her experiences. The study adopted a biographical paradigm, which explains the importance of individual biographies in the education process and indicates the need to study the history of life as a source of knowledge about man and his learning. The main aim of the undertaken research was to recognise the meanings that the respondent gives to critical events in shaping the quality of her life. The biographical method was used, and, within it, an autobiographical narrative interview. The most significant events assessed as positive were the births of her children. The negative events were in particular: the deaths of close ones, a failed marriage and an accident. In coping with suffering, the woman was helped by: help from others, faith, strength, optimism, activity, activities for the benefit of others, and her value system. Lessons emerged from the subject’s history, helpful in her life, which can also inspire others. The narrator tried to live in harmony with her conscience and the accepted principles, which gave her satisfaction. Biographical research has an educational function. Life stories can teach what is important in life, what is worth living for, and they can lead to reflections.

2012 ◽  
Vol 33 (4_suppl3) ◽  
pp. S281-S292 ◽  
Author(s):  
James P. Wirth ◽  
Arnaud Laillou ◽  
Fabian Rohner ◽  
Christine A. Northrop-Clewes ◽  
Barbara Macdonald ◽  
...  

Background Fortification of staple foods has been repeatedly recommended as an effective approach to reduce micronutrient deficiencies. With the increased number of fortification projects globally, there is a need to share practical lessons learned relating to their implementation and responses to project-related and external challenges. Objective To document the achievements, challenges, lessons learned, and management responses associated with national fortification projects in Morocco, Uzbekistan, and Vietnam. Methods Independent end-of-project evaluations conducted for each project served as the primary data source and contain the history of, and project activities undertaken for, each fortification project. Other sources, including national policy documents, project reports from the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN) and other stakeholders, industry assessments, and peer-reviewed articles, were used to document the current responses to challenges and future project plans. Results All projects had key achievements related to the development of fortification standards and the procurement of equipment for participating industry partners. Mandatory fortification of wheat flour was a key success in Morocco and Uzbekistan. Ensuring the quality of fortified foods was a common challenge experienced across the projects, as were shifts in consumption patterns and market structures. Adjustments were made to the projects' design to address the challenges faced. Conclusions National fortification projects are dynamic and must be continually modified in response to specific performance issues and broader shifts in market structure and consumption patterns.


Urban History ◽  
1980 ◽  
Vol 7 ◽  
pp. 53-62 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bill Luckin

Now that the debate about the standard of living during the first half of the nineteenth century appears to have entered a relatively quiescent phase, historians have begun to turn their attention towards the more elusive concept of the quality of life. The incidence of fatal and non-fatal disease is clearly central to research of this type and so, too, is a delineation of the physical context in which infections have flourished and in which those who have been afflicted by them have lived. Although there has been a tendency to underestimate the ferocity of epidemics in rural areas in the period after about 1750, historians working on disease in the modern period are inevitably most usually concerned with processes which are specifically urban in character. And urban historians, especially those interested in such topics as the development of utilities, the growth of administrative bureau-cracies or the spatial segregation and different life experiences of the classes, can undoubtedly benefit from a knowledge of patterns of infection in the past.


2017 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 127-143 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sidney Jay Levy

Purpose This autobiography sums up the life story of one of the contributors to the history of inquiry and instruction in the field of marketing, with special attention to the historical developments that have influenced the study of consumer behavior and the concept of branding. Design/methodology/approach This paper is an autobiographical essay, a personal history. Findings The reminiscence illustrates the way life experiences evolve, showing the interaction among personal growth, education, career choices and work experience that led to Professor Levy’s contributions to the field of marketing education and its research literature. Originality/value The paper describes a unique life, and an unusual explication of the personal life sources of influential ideas. It is novel in its large perspective and integrative narrative, and the unusual exposure of its various conceptual issues and links. It should be of interest to marketing historians, managers and scholars of marketing education.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Josephine May

PurposeThe article sets out primarily to fill in some of the gaps in the biography of Lucy Arabella Stocks Garvin (1851–1938), first principal of Sydney Girls High School. As a reflexive exercise stimulated by this biographical research, the second aim is to explore the transformative work of digital sources on the researcher's research processes that in turn generate possibilities for expanded biographical studies in the history of education.Design/methodology/approachThis article encompasses two approaches: the first uses traditional historical methods in the digital sources to provide an expanded biography of Lucy Garvin. The second is a reflexive investigation of the effects of digitisation of sources on the historian's research processes.FindingsThe advent of digital technologies has opened up more evidence on the life of Lucy Garvin which enables a fuller account both within and beyond the school gate. Digital sources have helped to address important gaps in her life story that challenge current historiographical understandings about her: for example, regarding her initial travel to Australia; her previous career as a teacher in Australia and the circumstances of her appointment as principal; her private and family life; and her involvement in extra school activities. In the process of exploring Garvin's life, the researcher reflected on the work of digital sources and argues that such sources transform the research process by speeding up and de-situating the collection and selection of evidence, while at the same time expanding and slowing the scrutiny of evidence. The ever-expanding array of digital sources, despite its patchiness, can lead to finer grained expanded biographical studies while increasing the provisionality of historical accounts.Originality/valueThe article presents new biographical information about an important early female educational leader in Australia and discusses the impact of digital sources on archival and research processes in the history of women's education.


Author(s):  
David Herrera Pastor ◽  
Nick Frost

This article analyses the basic epistemology of biographical research methodology. This analysis is grounded on the life history of a Moroccan boy who entered Spain illegally, but after being processed by the juvenile justice system, became a social educator. Some methodological aspects of this case are examined, including biographical hermeneutics; the often-confused concepts of 'life story' and 'life history'; the main characteristics of the method, including the usually neglected vision of the 'other'; life as a process; and the idea of subject. The educational, ethical, and political dimensions analysed make visible counter-narratives that question the status quo and pursue social justice.


2009 ◽  
Vol 7 (4) ◽  
pp. 393-404 ◽  
Author(s):  
Karen E. Steinhauser ◽  
Stewart C. Alexander ◽  
Ira R. Byock ◽  
Linda K. George ◽  
James A. Tulsky

AbstractObjective:Patients approaching the end of life not only face challenges to physical well-being but also threats to emotional and spiritual integrity. Yet, identifying appropriate, effective, and brief interventions to address those concerns has proven elusive. We developed an intervention based on life review and emotional disclosure literatures and conducted a pilot study to determine feasibility and acceptability. This article presents qualitative intervention responses.Method:We conducted a three-armed randomized control trial to evaluate the effects of preparation and life completion discussion on health outcomes in patients with advanced serious illness. Hospice-eligible subjects were randomly assigned to one of three groups: (1) intervention (life completion discussion intervention), (2) attention control (relaxation meditation), and control (no intervention). Subjects in the intervention arm met with a facilitator three times. Session 1 focused on life story, Session 2 on forgiveness, and Session 3, on heritage and legacy.Results:Eighteen subjects participated in the pilot intervention interviews. Subjects from a range of socioeconomic backgrounds completed the intervention with equal facility. Results from Session 1 demonstrate narrative responses participants gave as they reconnected with previous life roles, values, and accomplishments. The second session illustrated reflections of choices one might have made differently and exploration of forgiveness offered and sought. Content from the first and second sessions laid the foundation for discussing Session 3's lessons learned and heritage and legacy. Responses are summarized to assist clinicians in anticipating life review content that may improve overall quality of life at the end of life.Significance of results:Discussions of life completion may improve important health outcomes for patients at the end of life. This intervention may provide a brief, standardized, and transportable means for improving the quality of life of patients with advanced serious illness.


Author(s):  
Arturs Medveckis

Pedagogical researches on educational system or the history of some educational establishment traditionally deal with documents reflecting the institution establishment regulatory documents, structure, management hierarchy, education content and regulatory upbringing documents. For deeper focus on pedagogical research biographical approach is useful. This article looks at three publications of different genres written and compiled by the author of this publication. These are Liepāja University Academic Staff Biographical Index, Liepāja University Staff Life Stories published in three books and a monograph about the Liepāja University women’s choir “Atbalss” conductor and music teacher Kārlis Rūdolfs Kreicbergs. Creation of the editions is based on extensive empirical data biographical research. The article highlights specificity of three newly-created works. Basing on methodology of creating these works and their further analysis a system-oriented view on pedagogical paradigm of the period, characterising the collisions between personalities and the period, was developed


Author(s):  
David Morgan

Traditionally, art historians have relied on iconography, biography, and connoisseurship as the fundamental means of studying images. These approaches and methods stress the singularity of an image, its authenticity, and its authorship; therefore, they reflect an enduring debt to the humanist tradition of individualism. The image is understood principally as the product of the unique and privileged inspiration of an individual artist and is regarded as a measure of this individual's genius. Iconographical and biographical research secure authorial intent; connoisseurship authenticates the work. While this scholarly apparatus certainly offers the art historian indispensable tools, it is important to understand that its commitment to original intent is singularly ill-equipped to assess the reception of images, the ongoing history of response that keeps images alive within a culture from generation to generation.


2013 ◽  
Vol 154 (8) ◽  
pp. 294-304 ◽  
Author(s):  
György Miklós Buzás

After a short overview of the history of probiotics, the author presents the development of human intestinal microflora based on the newest genetic data and the microbiological features of main probiotics. The indications of probiotic administration have been defined and extended in recent years. The author reviews significant results of probiotic treatment in some gastrointestinal diseases based on meta-analytical data. Probiotics are useful in preventing and treating diarrhoea caused by antibiotics and Clostridium difficile caused diarrhoea. In the treatment of Helicobacter pylori infection, preparations containing certain Lactobacillus,Bifidobacterium strains or Saccaromyces boulardii could enhance by 5–10% the rate of successful eradication and reduce the incidence and severity of the side effects. Some symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome and thus the quality of life can be improved by probiotics. Their beneficial effect in ulcerative colitis was proven, while in Crohn’s disease has not yet been defined. The use of probiotics is not included in guidelines, with the exception of the Maastricht IV/Florence consensus. For each disease it is advisable to use probiotics containing strains only with proven beneficial effect. The efficiency of preparations containing mixed strains has not yet been properly investigated. The author reviews the rare but potentially serious side effects of probiotics. In Hungary, there are many probiotic preparations available which can be purchased in pharmacies without prescription: their use is more empirical than evidence-based. The European Food Safety Authority has recently rejected claims for probiotics to be classed as medicines given the lack of convincing evidence on the effects of probiotics on human health and well-being. Clearly, further research is needed to collect evidence which could be incorporated into the international guidelines. Orv. Hetil., 2013, 154, 294–304.


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