Canadian Researcher Research Articles

Forty years of research on mathematical cognition: Summing it up.

In this article, I describe my academic journey as a Canadian researcher in the field of mathematical cognition. The article is a version of the talk I gave when I was presented with the Donald O. Hebb Award from the Canadian Society for Brain, Behaviour and Cognitive Science in July 2023 at the University of Guelph. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

Dignity Therapy as a Method of Palliative Psychological Assistance

Methodological and theoretical grounding of a brief psychological intervention, new for Ukraine, are presented ‒ of so-called dignity therapy created by a Canadian researcher Harvey M. Chochinov the aim of which is fostering the feeling of the personhood of patients, actualization of their feeling of dignity and, as a result, decreasing of sufferings and increasing the quality of their lives. The scope of requests and conditions where dignity therapy could be helpful is defined, palliative care and psychological support of the elderly in particular. The factor contents of the model of dignity around which the intervention is constructed is revealed: feelings around the illness, behavioural repertoire related to the feeling of dignity, and the social model of dignity. The stages of dignity therapy implementation (preparatory, the stage of interview, and the stage of creating Generativity Document), its eight components (setting, comprehension check, probing questions, exploration of one's life path, refocusing, encouraging for meaningful expressions, general processes of the therapy) as well as questions that a therapist asks a patient in order to start a foreseen process are listed and described. Approximate contents of Generativity Document which is a key material product of dignity therapy on the example of summarized results of thematic analysis in the relevant research from different countries is presented (the developed themes include “Family”, “Pleasure”, “Caring”, “A Sense of Accomplishment” and others). The description of the procedure of estimation of efficacy of dignity therapy is provided, in particular through the use of self-reports and with the inclusion of groups of experts. A brief outline of the demands for therapists who implement the intervention is defined (namely, the standardized training with standardized teaching materials, the work at standardized cases, providing supervisions and additional expert support). The importance of the attitude of a specialist towards realization of dignity therapy is stressed ‒ sensitive, self-aware as well as self-reflective.

Editorial

This next Canadian Journal of Learning and Technology issue is published on the heels of the well-attended ICDE (International Council for Open and Distance Education) conference. The Conference’s overlapping topics and attendant researchers, well-known to this journal, remind us that our field is important, well-subscribed, growing, and changing. An excellent overview of this ICDE Conference and information about the state of education transformation in the current global context can be found here in recent blog posts by the well-known expert and author on the topic of education and technology, Dr. Tony Bates.
 Learning and technology, the focus of research published by CJLT, is a microcosm in the much larger fields of open, distance, and digital education. Research spans all sectors: primary, secondary, post-secondary, higher education, and lifelong learning. Across issues and years, we seek to touch on the research, theory, and practice in these areas, particularly those where authors are in, or research topics are relevant to, Canada. Canadian researchers were well-represented at the recent ICDE conference, and a Canadian researcher received the conference’s best paper award!

Music editing in the aspect of interdisciplinary connections (according to pages of foreign studies)

Statement of the problem. Editing of a musical work and editorial activity as such is an integral part of the music-historical process. This is the area of musicological activity that, being at the junction of composer creativity and performing interpretation, can tell a lot: to point out the peculiarities of the genre in a certain historical period, to reveal the level of technical skill of the musicians, the canons of the performance style and sound image of the instrument, to mark figurative and substantive priorities. Since the second half of the 20th century, research on the topic of music editing has been spreading, in which the emphasis is placed on the interdisciplinary connections of musicology and philology (Brett, 1988; Bent, 1994; Grier, 1996; Hammond, 2007). In Ukrainian musicology (Hryschenko, 2015; V. & I. Khodorovski, 2016; Zymohliad, 2016: Pankova, 2013; Ekman, 2018; Zapevalova, 2021 and other), music editing was mostly considered on the materials of piano works through the analysis of the work of musician-editor on a music piece. Objectives, methods, and novelty of the research. However, we note the insufficiency of disclosure of this direction that requires further in-depth study. This determines the relevance and novelty of the article, which include systematized analytical results of research of the second half of the 20th‒beginning of the 21st century on the issues of music editing, in the aspect of connections between musicology and philology. The purpose of the article is to systematize the research materials of a number of foreign authors on the study of the phenomenon of music editing from the standpoint of interdisciplinary connections. The article uses the historical method, which reveals the peculiarities of the origin and formation of the process of music editing and its development as a phenomenon; methods of terminological analysis, generalization and systematization, in connection with the study of the positions of researchers in the disclosure of the above-mentioned problems. Results and conclusion. When developing the idea of interdisciplinary relations – musicology and philology in the field of editing – a Canadian Researcher J. Grier (1996 ) considers the ‘methods of critical assessment’ and ‘composition socialization’ to be the most effective for musicology. The literary term ‘philological monument’ projected by J. Grier onto a musical composition of the past, which consolidated in musical and performing practices on the rights of a canon, is equally important and relevant. In the work by S. L. Hammоnd (2006: 2), which covers the investigation of madrigal vocal art within the context of 15th‒17th century culture, the significant role of the figure of editor is emphasized, which could be played by a performer, a composer, a music teacher, a music publisher or a poet (the translator of the Italian texts). Each of them could complement the original work by their own vision acting as a co author. Consequently, changes and adjustments contributed by the editor were made for the contemporary consumers in order to popularize the musical works. The necessity of musical material distribution, often under the conditions of other cultural traditions, its adaptation to the performance realities of the other period, the pursuit for the interpretation of author’s intentions reflected in the creation of editorial versions directed on socialization of compositions and their further spread.

Evidence for employing post-secondary educated youth as research assistants in global health disability research

This paper presents a participatory qualitative case review of the employment of postsecondary educated assistants in a global health research program. The research program was initiated by a visiting Canadian researcher who was a supervised principal investigator exploring disability in Western Zambia. This research was supported by eight paid Zambian research assistants (RAs), three of whom participated in the case review. The case review was informed by a dialogue in which participants identified and shared their perspectives regarding the effects of the employment of RAs in the program. The perspectives of the RAs about the effects of their employment were identified as two themes: professional skill acquisition and increased quality of life. The perspectives of the visiting researcher regarding the effects of the RA employment were identified as four themes: increased productivity, access to skills, increased integration in the community, and continuity. From the collective perspective of all co-authors, the employment of RAs made this research program more productive, rigorous, and equitable while also creating opportunities for Zambian youth. The co-authors recommend that global health researchers consider employing post-secondary educated RAs and engage in a wider dialogue about expanding and improving this arrangement. These perspectives and recommendations have been generated according to a radical, participatory action, research tradition that should be taken into account as other members of the global health community assess this evidence to inform their own activities.

Listen to her: Re-finding culturally responsive poetic inquiry as home knowing for women of African descent

In response to critical turns in knowledge production, scholars of African descent have developed culturally responsive arts-based methodologies. Congruent with culturally responsive research is incorporating home knowing practices such as the poetics of many African and Africentric storytelling practices. This article presents my reflections as a Canadian researcher of African descent on “re-finding” culturally responsive poetic inquiry to interpret, represent, and re-tell the HIV service work experiences of African immigrant women living with HIV. I argue that researchers should strive to decolonize their research with, for and by peoples of African descent by incorporating knowledge precepts and practices grounded in participants’ home knowing. Using arts-based methodologies such as poetic inquiry creates an opportunity to critically reflect on knowledge production in research: who produces knowledge, what ways of knowing are valued, and what messages are conveyed through knowledge production and dissemination.

GENETICS OF OBSESSIVE-COMPULSIVE DISORDER

Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is characterized by recurrent episodes of obsessive thoughts, fears, and actions, which, in the opinion of the patient, can defuse frightening events. A patient himself is aware of his condition, but cannot prevent it by a simple effort of will. The prevalence of OCD in the general population varies between 0.7% and 3.0%. Patients with OCD often can have a lifetime diagnosis of other psychopathology – an anxiety disorder, depressive disorder, tic disorder and others. In addition, the OCD symptoms often accompany other mental disorders, such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, eating disorder and others.
 Family studies in OCD showed that the disorder risk of first-degree relatives of individuals with OCD were approximately 15%, that more likely to develop OCD than its prevalence in the general population. This indicates the presence of a genetic component in the OCD development, that is also confirmed by the significant reliable value of the heritability of OCD (42-53%). Males have an earlier age at onset of OCD than females. Moreover, males more likely to have symptoms in the forbidden thoughts and symmetry dimensions and females more likely to have symptoms in the cleaning dimension. In addition, geographical and cultural factors may shape the content of obsessions and compulsions.
 There are four publications that have shown OCD genetic linkage with defined regions of three chromosomes: 9p24, 3q27-28 and 14q23-32. It was also found that the region of chromosome 3q27-28 contains three genes of serotonin receptor subunits – HTR3C (5HT3C), HTR3D (5HT3D) and HTR3E (5HT3E). These genes can be candidate genes for OCD. In addition, the HTR3C gene (3q27.1) is expressed in the brain cells, where it produces the serotonin receptor 3 subunit, which is a very important neurotransmitter. All three genes involved in the pathogenesis of not only OCD, but also of schizophrenia.
 Now, according to scientific reviews and «MalaCard: The Human Disease Database» above 40 OCD candidate genes were offered by various researchers. But almost all these studies were conducted on statistically insignificant samples (mostly from several dozens to several hundred individuals), which gave discrepant findings. In addition, not fully used methodological possibilities, for example, case-control samples were used, but family studies were not used. For this reason, the Canadian researcher S. Taylor (2013) conducted a meta-analysis of the findings of 113 studies and obtained high reliable confirmation of an assumption that variants of several genes are involved in the risk of OCD. Two of these genes associated with metabolism of serotonin (SLC6A4 and HTR2A) and two genes, in males only, are involved in catecholamine modulation (COMT and MAOA). Some more three genes have moderate reliability, two of which are associated with the dopamine system (DRD3 and DAT1) and one is associated with the glutamate system (SLC1A1). In addition, in S. Taylor’s opinion, 13 candidate genes attract an attention and merit further investigation.
 The results of genetic studies showed that OCD has a polygenic nature, because it is associated with multiple genes, everyone of them makes small contributions to a risk for the disorder. To reveal of these small effects, further studies of fairly large samples are needed. In addition, environmental factors may be involved in the OCD etiology that further exploration of gene–gene and gene–environment interactions is needed. To identify reliable OCD candidate genes all comorbidities must take into account. The OCD picture is extremely various not only in a lifetime of one patient, but between patients within the same family that indicates genetic heterogeneity of the disorder, which complicates the study in addition. These problems induce to study the genetic nature and environmental risk factors of OCD to ensure an earliest and most accurate diagnosis of OCD with due regard for environmental factors.

Students’ civic engagement in Ukraine and Canada: a comparative analysis

<p>In this article, the authors have carried out a comparative analysis of students’ civic engagement in Ukraine and Canada. They have surveyed the students at Pavlo Tychyna Uman State Pedagogical University and compared the findings with the results of a study done by the Canadian researcher Catherine Broom at British Columbia University. Based on the research findings, the authors have identified Ukrainian students’ personal political and civic experience levels and compared them with the Canadian results. The study reveals Ukrainian students’ attitudes towards political and civic participation, democracy, the government in general and in comparison with Canadian data. The research results have identified the following key factors that influence Ukrainian students’ civic activity: students’ free time activities their attitudes and beliefs. According to the survey, gender, religious involvement, personality type, and family’s political involvement do not directly influence the students’ civic engagement. The survey has not reported any influence of school social study courses on civic engagement, stressing the importance of real-life experiences that result in attitudes and intrinsic motivation. The authors have also revealed examples of motivations and barriers for youth civic involvement.</p>

Strategic priorities of social production digitalization: world experience

Strategic priorities of social production digitalization: world experience

Review of the book Los sentidos del cuerpo: Un giro sensorial en la investigación social y los estudios de género. Center for Gender Research and Studies, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM), Mexico City, 2019

This collective endeavour is a recent contribution that, according to the foreword writer and international figure of renown in sensory sociology David Howes, makes a remarkable contribution to the matureness of the sensory turn in social sciences. For Howes this is a book that expresses solidly the consolidation of a stance regarding what he considers an appropriate study of the body, emotions and senses; i.e. understanding them as constructions and configurations produced by a constant interrelation between people and the material and social world surrounding them. Howes takes up on the review of work lines that he considers fundamental for the maturation of the sensory turn as axes that in one way or another are present in the different contributions to the book. The Canadian researcher highlights the adequate handling of the methodological strategies and the high grade of theoretical sophistication in each chapter.

On the use and abuse of verbatim quotations in qualitative research reports

On the use and abuse of verbatim quotations in qualitative research reports

The Output Hypothesis and its influence in the second language learning/teaching: An interview with Merrill Swain

ABSTRACT: This paper presents an interview with Merrill Swain, a Canadian researcher who proposed the Output Hypothesis, a way to understand the relevance of producing (by speaking/writing) the foreign language during its learning. According to Output Hypothesis, the learner may notice gaps while, test cognitive hypothesis and think in a metalinguistic way while producing the foreign language. This hypothesis influenced plenty of research in the second language learning/teaching field around the world, considering Brazil as well.

Diffusion and impact of Marshall McLuhan's published work in the Web of Science

This study gauges the scientific impact of Marshall McLuhan’s works on academic research. To this end, an analysis was undertaken to study published research that cited his works in the Web of Science (WoS) from 1957 to 2017. A total of 6,591 documents were found that record 8,989 citations from a range of McLuhan’s, mainly scientific documents (journal articles and monographs). The temporary distribution of the documents, the citations received by the different types of documents, the subject matter of the papers and the other co-authors cited along with McLuhan were analyzed. Among the main results, it was found that compared to the Canadian researcher’s journal articles, his monographs received the most citations received, notably his work entitled “Understanding Media: The Extensions of Man”. In addition, it was discovered that the interdisciplinary nature of McLuhan’s thought has had repercussions in different fields, such as communication, education, sociology and computer science. Since the second half of the 20th century, McLuhan is a benchmark, together with outstanding sociologists, philosophers and communication theorists such as Theodor Adorno, Pierre Bourdieu and Zygmunt Bauman, among others.

Отечественные музеи в условиях интерактивности: современные тенденции развития музейной образовательной среды

В статье рассмотрены основные тенденции развития современной отечественной образовательной среды музея, ориентированной на переход к коммуникативной модели взаимодействия с аудиторией (описанной канадским ученым Д. Ф. Камероном), при которой посетитель является активным познающим субъектом, вовлеченным в интерактивное пространство музея. Автор проанализировала культурно-образовательную деятельность наиболее посещаемых (по статистике Министерства культуры РФ) отечественных музеев и, опираясь на примеры из их практики, обозначила весомые изменения основных компонентов образовательной среды музея пространственно-предметного, социального, психодидактического, а также дала качественные характеристики современной молодежи как целевой аудитории музея.The widespread introduction of information technologies and the Internet, which developed in the post-industrial era, and changes in the centennials consciousness and thinking force museums as fundamental institutions of culture and education to significantly alter their functioning. The communicative model of the museum described by the Canadian researcher D.F. Cameron, in which a museum visitor is seen as an equal participant in the dialogue, came into domestic practice somewhat later than into the western one, and continues to this day. The author of the article analyses the development trends of the most visited domestic museums, according to the latest statistics of the Ministry of Culture of the Russian Federation for 2018, in the context of considering educational environment as part of the cultural and educational space of the museum. According to V.A. Yasvin, educational environment includes three structural components: spaсe-and-object (architectural features of buildings, equipment, special attributes, etc.), social (special community form inherent in this type of culture), psychodidactic (the corresponding content of education, methods of action mastered by students, organisation of training). Among the most striking trends in the change in the space-and-object component of the educational environment of domestic museums, the author distinguishes, firstly, the emergence of virtual museums and, secondly, the ubiquity of interactive sites that allow to include the visitor in the development of the museum space. The second component, the social one, is enriched through the integrative processes of the museum with other institutions and communities, which include the tradition of interacting with universities, schools, kindergartens, as well as specific collaborations of museum academic communities and a wide audience regarding joint projects based on one topic. There is a need for museums to promote and position themselves as a brand in the market of cultural and educational services, which leads to the emergence of PR products and professional activities in social networks. The psychodidactic component of the educational environment of the modern museum is supplemented, firstly, with such an entertaining educational format as edutainment. Secondly, interactive technologies allow the museum visitor to independently choose the format and pace of the development of the museum space at the same time, guides and cultural figures, adapting to the needs of modern youth, work on the way of delivering specific museum information, making it more accessible. Thus, the museum as a developing cultural and educational system makes changes to the format of interaction with the audience, based on the integration of traditional and non-traditional representations of their values.

Social transformation of gender and sexuality as viewed by I.S. Kon

The article examines the influence of Igor Kon on many aspects of modern research in the field of gender and sexuality. The authors conclude that it was Igor Kon who identified several key trends describing the current state of gender order in sexuality, namely, individualization and pluralization of cultures and lifestyles. It seems that the better way to speak about sexuality is not to refer to single or “normative models” but about a set of sexualities. In the proposed work, the variety of combinations of different gender identities with a multitude of sexual preferences is shown on the example of the theory of sexual configurations proposed by Canadian researcher Sari van Anders.
 The article emphasizes that, as I. Kon warned, it is gender relations and sexuality that are currently at the center of the agenda, since many more serious social problems are extrapolated to them. Cultural and, in particular, gender diversity is perceived by many people as the threat of losing the most basic landmarks in an unpredictable and changeable world. The article provides examples of different types of public policy in relation to binary and non-binary gender categories in different countries of Europe, Asia and North America.

The Politics of Nonassimilation: The American Jewish Left in the Twentieth Century by David Verbeeten

Reviewed by: The Politics of Nonassimilation: The American Jewish Left in the Twentieth Century by David Verbeeten Philip Mendes (bio) The Politics of Nonassimilation: The American Jewish Left in the Twentieth Century. By David Verbeeten. DeKalb: Northern Illinois University Press, 2017. 229 pp. From approximately 1830–1970 (and particularly between 1890–1950), an informal political alliance existed between Jews and the political Left. This was never an alliance of all Jews and all Left groups. But it was an alliance between key sections of the Left and key sections of politically active Jews at various times and in various places. Historians typically attribute this Jewish-Left association to a number of key factors, including that Jews were victims of both class and ethnic oppression; an implied association between Jewish religious and cultural values such as tzedakah (charity), tikkun olam (repairing the world) and socialist philosophy; the concentration of Jews in urban communities given that socialism was primarily an urban rather than rural or peasant phenomenon; the strong emphasis on education and intellectual training within the Jewish religious tradition that may have made Jews more receptive to ideas of social and political reform; and the fact that Jews were a global tribe and, as wanderers, had a much less parochial view of the world than other nations who were limited by national boundaries, cultures and traditions. A new book by Canadian researcher David Verbeeten proposes a new explanation for the ongoing Jewish-Left connection. He argues that Jewish Leftism serves as a means of preserving a secular ethnic Jewish identity in the face of external pressures to assimilate. He demonstrates that Jews in America have enjoyed unprecedented upward mobility since the early twentieth century as reflected in access to higher education and [End Page 317] professional occupations, and equally that antisemitism has significantly declined. Yet paradoxically, despite their growing affluence and acceptance, they have continued to stand up for oppressed groups such as the proletariat, African Americans, and even, ironically, the Palestinians. Verbeeten attempts to explain this sociological contradiction by exploring previously neglected case studies from three generations of left-wing Jews in America. The first generation, that of the mass wave of early twentieth century Eastern European immigrants, is examined through the memoirs of Alexander Bittelman, a prominent theorist and founder of the American Communist Party (CPUSA). Bittelman was born in the Ukraine in 1892 and moved to New York City in 1912. Like many Jewish radicals, Bittelman was not assimilated. Rather, he seems to have been influenced toward left-wing politics by his Jewish background, and particularly his childhood experiences of both poverty and antisemitism. Jews were disproportionately involved in the CPUSA, and Verbeeten notes that the CPUSA was significantly more middle class than other western Communist parties, precisely because of the presence of so many middle-class Jewish doctors, lawyers and dentists. These Jews appears to have formed a Yiddish-speaking Communist sub-culture comprising a close cultural network of friends, neighbours, work colleagues and family. The second generation in Verbeeten’s study is that of the children of the earlier immigrants who moved into adulthood during the inter-war period. Their experience is constructed through the anti-racist activities of the American Jewish Congress during and after World War Two, including its prominent participation in the civil rights movement. Verbeeten notes that the alignment of Jews (as one of the wealthiest subgroups in America) with African Americans (one of the poorest) in a supposedly common struggle for equality and social justice was increasingly rejected by many African Americans who questioned whether Jewish and black interests were in fact compatible. The third generation is that of the grandchildren born after World War Two, framed via their involvement in the New Jewish Agenda (NJA) from 1980–92, which supported numerous left-wing causes including gender equality, gay rights, the sanctuary movement for Central American refugees, and Palestinian statehood. This section adds considerably to our understanding of the revival in recent decades of Jewish-identifying groups on the political Left. NJA’s early endorsement of a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict provoked hostility from conservative Jews. But notably its public critique of Israeli government policies such as...

Kam reikia mokyti(s) istorijos Lietuvos mokykloje? Tikslų analizė teorinės didaktikos kontekstuose

Straipsnio siekis – istorijos mokymo(si) tikslų nūdienos Lietuvos bendrojo ugdymo moky­kloje analizė teorinėje didaktikoje plėtojamų idėjų kontekstuose. Remiantis užsienio autorių literatūra, nūnai galiojančiomis Lietuvos istorijos ugdymo programomis bei viešomis diskusijomis, skirtomis is­torijos mokymo Lietuvos bendrojo ugdymo mokykloje problemai, straipsnyje siekiama atsakyti į šiuos klausimus: kokie istorijos mokymo tikslai ar kryptys iš viso gali būti legitimūs XX–XXI amžių sandūros visuomenėse ir kodėl? kaip istorijos mokymo(si) tikslai apibrėžiami Lietuvos istorijos ugdymo progra­mose? kokie istorijos mokymo(si) tikslai iškyla Lietuvos švietimo politiką formuojančių ar jai neabejingų asmenų viešose diskusijose ir kokios šių tikslų preferencijos priežastys? kaip Lietuvoje apibrėžiami ar siū­lomi istorijos mokymo(si) tikslai vertintini teorinėje didaktikoje plėtojamų idėjų perspektyvoje? Šis ban­domasis tyrimas siekia: 1) istorijos didaktikos problemas sugrąžinti į nūdienos Lietuvos istorikų tyrimų darbotvarkę; 2) konceptualizuoti vieną esminių istorijos mokymo(si) problemų; 3) prisidėti prie istorijos ugdymo programų tobulinimo.

De la televisión a la televisión extendida a partir de Marshall Mcluhan

This text is composed of 4 sections. In the first one, I recovered the emotive speech made by WilburSchramm about the first television broadcasting carried out on January 26th 1926 by John Logie Bairdin order to support the relevance of the term “Age of television”. The television is actually considered asthe emblematic media in the “Age of electricity”. In the second section, I studied the thesis developed byMarshall McLuhan about the so-called “shy giant”. At the beginning of 1960s, the television captivatedMarshall McLuhan. From a particular ecumenical perspective, the Canadian researcher believed thatthe television would restore the sensitive balance, thus favoring the transition to the “global village”. Asthe years went by, his optimism about the television started to vanish, and McLuhan adopted a morecritical position, similar to Neil Postman’s, against the television. In the third section, I stood out thatMcLuhan anticipated the media convergence; then, I explained his Tetrada and pointed out the wayBob Logan (2010) used it to make an analysis of the television and the cable television. Finally, in thefourth section, I recovered the Tetrada from McLuhan to study some of the most interesting modalitiesof extended television: Youtube, Netflix and Internet Protocol Television (IPTV).

Canadian researcher in legal battle to keep her interviews confidential

Canadian researcher in legal battle to keep her interviews confidential

The Ukrainian Cultural Landscape in the New World through the Eyes of John Lehr

The article is devoted to the Canadian researcher John Lehr. It presents a review of his works on Ukrainian cultural landscape in North and South America as well as consideration of stages of his scientific biography.