Life Choices Research Articles

Love Against all Odds: Unveiling the Triumphs of Pre-arranged Marriage in the B'laan Culture

Pre-arranged marriages, deeply rooted in various cultural traditions, involve the orchestration of unions by families. This practice has unique challenges, adjustments, and triumphs within this marital context. However, this practice has received little attention and understanding in the locality, hence the study was conducted. Mainly, the paper focused on exploring the challenges, dynamics, and outcomes of pre-arranged marriage within the context of the B’laan culture in Davao del Sur, Philippines. A qualitative case study was employed with three (3) participants from Davao del Sur who were carefully selected and willingly took part in the study. Findings revealed that in pre-arranged marriage, couples struggled to establish communication, accept unpleasant habits, establish intimacy, and adjust individual preferences in their relationship. Nevertheless, they could cope with this by building connections, sharing responsibility, and having quality time nurturing their union. The study’s findings reflected the uniqueness of individuals, their life choices, paths taken, and subsequent consequences. These success stories of pre-arranged marriage in B’laan culture can provide valuable perspectives on how couples navigate challenges, build trust, and maintain strong relationships. The implications of this study are for society to create safe spaces for these individuals and implement programs that would offer valuable insights and perspectives that could benefit various groups, contributing to greater understanding, empathy, and support for couples in pre-arranged marriages. Keywords: case study, Philippines, pre-arranged marriage, psychology, triumphs

Влияние организационной культуры педагога на формирование профессионального самоопределения студентов колледжа

The article examines the process of formation of students’ professional self-determination. Choosing a profession is one of the most difficult choices in life. The authors emphasize the importance of the assistance of adults, in particular teachers, in the formation of professional self-determination of young people. A study conducted at the Lyubertsy Technical School named after Yu.A.Gagarin, Lyubertsy with students of the technical school, shows that the successful formation of professional self-determination is a result of purposeful psychological and pedagogical interaction between the teacher and students. An example of such interaction is extracurricular activities in an educational institution of secondary professional education.

Reimagining motherhood:Media narratives and gender dynamics in contemporary Kenyan magazines

This study investigates the portrayal of motherhood in contemporary Kenyan media, focusing on how women's conventional roles within the family are depicted. Through critical discourse analysis (CDA), the research examines narratives from The Parents Magazine and True Love East Africa magazines, revealing how motherhood is framed as a natural and preferred life choice for women. The analysis uncovers the emotional and challenging aspects of motherhood, societal expectations, and the reinforcement of traditional gender norms. The study also highlights the evolving concept of millennial motherhood in Kenya, emphasising how modern Kenyan women navigate career and family challenges while defying traditional roles. Additionally, the study explores the construction of the ideal and authentic woman through media representations, challenging patriarchal structures and redefining gender roles, illustrating a shift towards a more liberated and self-sufficient model of motherhood. The findings underscore the complex power dynamics and persistent traditional norms that shape women's identities and social roles in contemporary Kenyan society.

Perspectives of patients, partners, primary and hospital-based health care professionals on living with advanced cancer and systemic treatment

Abstract Purpose An emerging group of patients lives longer with advanced cancer while receiving systemic treatment. This study aimed to investigate psychosocial aspects of living longer with advanced cancer, and experiences with psychosocial care, from the perspectives of patients, partners, and health care professionals (HCPs). Methods From May to December 2020, participants were purposively selected. In-depth, semi-structured interviews were conducted by video or phone call, containing open questions regarding psychosocial aspects and psychosocial care in oncology. The data was analysed following thematic analysis, leading to overarching psychosocial themes and indications for optimal organisation of psycho-oncological care. Results Fifteen patients, seven partners and eleven HCPs were interviewed. The main psychosocial aspects were increasing loss in several life domains, complexity of making life choices, ongoing uncertainty, and fluctuating fear and hope. Partners were affected by their loved ones’ condition and reported to put themselves second for longer periods of time, while sometimes missing adequate support. HCPs were challenged by addressing the altering psychosocial needs of patients, and tools to identify those in need for psychosocial support are currently lacking. Conclusions Living longer with advanced cancer presents unique challenges for patients and their partners, as well as for HCPs in delivering optimal psychosocial care. Implications for Cancer Survivors Identifying and addressing patients’ psychosocial needs from an early stage on, appointing a central hospital-based contact person, limiting the waiting time between scans and consultations, and addressing the partners’ wellbeing are suggestions to organise optimal psychosocial support in advanced cancer.

Struggles of vehicle residents in Squamish: Challenging the capitalist and colonial institution of housing

In this conversation, Thomasina Pidgeon discusses her decision to live in a vehicle in Squamish, north of Vancouver, in British Columbia, Canada. This was a choice originally driven by the lack of affordable housing, but she continued with it after falling in love with life on the road. Her story sheds light on the broader issues of housing, gentrification, and societal attitudes toward non-sedentary life choices. For Thomasina, living in a vehicle offered a sense of freedom for her and her daughter, despite occasional problems, as well as a deep connection with nature that conventional housing couldn’t provide. However, as Squamish has grown more gentrified, particularly after the 2010 Olympics, the town has increasingly cracked down on vehicle residents, categorising them as unhoused and treating them as a problem. These restrictive regulations, according to Thomasina, are part of a larger system that prioritizes property values and profits over human needs, echoing colonial practices that forced nomadic communities to settle for the benefit of those in power. Her story calls for a shift in how we think about housing, urging us to go beyond housing as a capitalist and colonial institution, and towards a deeper understanding of the systemic issues that lead to the so-called housing crisis. Despite facing stress and anxiety due to these crackdowns, Thomasina continues to advocate for the rights of vehicle residents with the organization Vehicle Residents of Squamish, and to connect different struggles from Palestinian solidarity work to struggles against an LNG terminal.

Freedom as a Matter of Perspective and Perception in Martin Luther's De servo arbitrio☆

AbstractMartin Luther's notion of freedom, as presented in De servo arbitrio, is often interpreted as a denial of free choice in matters of God (salvation) and as an affirmation of free choice in earthly life. This article questions this twofold distinction and argues that in De servo arbitrio Luther's notion of freedom is set into epistemic discourse in which he distinguishes between different perspectives or perceptions and reality. The article demonstrates that for Luther, freedom denotes human perception, misperception, and deception. This indicates that beneath the free choice debate lies a fundamental question of human ability to understand reality.

Research on Women's Educational Inequality

Education is a tool to achieve social equality. To achieve educational equality, it is necessary to prevent inequalities caused by student capital (such as gender, family, city where one lives and studies, etc.). This paper focuses on the inequalities faced by women in education. This paper uses online interviews to invite participants to discuss their educational disparities. This paper found that females are easily bound by the stereotypes around them in the process of making choices, such as major choices, schools, and life choices. This kind of constraint pushes females in the direction of the social stereotype that women are more suitable. However, some women rebel against these constraints. Stereotypes influence women's professional choices and, indirectly, their job choices. Finally, it leads to a gap for women in STEM fields.

Exploring the lived experience and coping strategies of Fear of Missing Out (FoMO) among emerging adults

AbstractThe Fear of Missing Out (FoMO) phenomenon has become increasingly prevalent in the 21st century, fueled by the rise of social media. FoMO, characterized by the apprehension that others may be having more rewarding experiences and a desire to stay continually connected, has significant implications for mental health, particularly among emerging adults. This qualitative study aims to explore the subjective lived experiences of FoMO and the coping strategies employed by emerging adults. Data were collected through in-depth interviews, and thematic analysis was used to interpret the data. The findings revealed that participants experienced FoMO as involving feelings of exclusion, disconnection, and inadequacy upon becoming aware of experiences peers were having. However, FoMO was also perceived as an important signal of unmet needs, prompting reflection on the misalignment between one’s actual life and desired life. FoMO was amplified in contexts involving identity formation and pivotal life choices, such as social, professional (education/work/career), and dating situations. Participants described various spontaneous coping strategies, such as cognitive reappraisal and perspective-taking to reframe it constructively, emotional coping through self-soothing, and behavioral approaches like temporarily disconnecting from social media. These self-initiated coping methods suggest a potential for developing new interventions aimed at empowering emerging adults to manage the effects of FoMO on their well-being. While most research emphasizes the connection between FoMO and technology, this study advances the understanding of FoMO by highlighting its characteristics as an everyday experience in various life domains along with ways of coping during the developmental period of emerging adulthood.

Keynes and the Long Run — to ‘Live Wisely and Agreeably and Well’

ABSTRACT This paper revisits Keynes’s essay titled ‘The economic possibilities for our grandchildren’, featuring Keynes both as a growth theorist and a moral and social philosopher of capitalism. We discuss the three broader trends identified by Keynes that he expected would come to characterize the socio-economic evolution of advanced countries under capitalism: first, continued technological progress and capital accumulation as the main drivers of exponential growth in economic possibilities; second, a gradual general rebalancing of life choices away from work; and third, a change in the code of morals in societies approaching an envisioned stationary state of zero net capital accumulation in which mankind has solved its economic problem and enjoys a lifestyle predominantly framed by leisure rather than disutility-yielding work. We assess actual outcomes by 2024 and attempt to peek into the future economic possibilities for this generation’s grandchildren.

Demise of fossil fuels part I: Supply and demand

According to United Nations , the world needs to reduce the emission of CO2 and other global warming gases by 45 % by 2030 and to negligible amount by 2050. According to UN, this is necessary to keep the goal of keeping earth temperature not exceeding 1.5 °C compared to pre-industrial level temperatures.To achieve this objective means reducing the fossil fuel consumption. Fossil fuels are largely responsible for emitting CO2; therefore, without significant reduction in fossil fuels consumption by 2050, the net zero emission by 2050 is not possible.One argument advanced in support of reducing fossil fuels consumption is limited supply. Using the principle of “Peak Oil Theory,” proponents state that fossil fuels is a limited resource and the world will simply run out of it. Based on the available data, we demonstrate that supply of fossil fuels is relatively abundant, and we will not run out of fossil fuels in near term. Using shale formations as an example, we demonstrate how the success of drilling horizontal wells with hydraulic fractures have significantly increased the oil and gas resource available for exploitation. To reduce fossil fuels demand, the available solutions include improving energy efficiency, reducing subsidies on fossil fuels, imposing carbon tax and life choice changes. We discuss some of those alternatives. Fossil fuel supply is relatively abundant and only possible solution to reduce the consumption is to reduce the demand. By comparing developed countries' consumption with developing countries’ consumption, we see a pathway where growth in GDP can be achieved without significant increase in fossil fuels consumption. Because of efficiency gains in energy usage, GDP in developed countries continues to grow without increase in fossil fuels consumption. Faster we reach the efficiency stage in developing countries, easier it would be reduce the fossil fuel consumption in the world.

318 - Examining the Impact of Intermittent Self-Catheterization on Quality of Life and Catheter Choice Preferences: Insights from the Continence Care Registry

318 - Examining the Impact of Intermittent Self-Catheterization on Quality of Life and Catheter Choice Preferences: Insights from the Continence Care Registry

Exploring the early experiences of assisted dying in Aotearoa New Zealand: a qualitative study protocol

IntroductionIncreasing numbers of jurisdictions are legalising assisted dying (AD). Developing research protocols to study the experiences and outcomes of legislation is imperative. AD is a topic that, by nature of...

언어 네트워크를 활용한 가정과 교육과정 비교 분석: 2015 및 2022 개정 교육과정을 중심으로

This study aims to compare the 2015 and 2022 home economics education curricula using a language network analysis, examining changes in core keywords and major topics between these two periods. Keywords from middle and high school home economics curriculum documents of both periods were used to construct language networks, analyzed using centrality measures and topic modeling. The results follow. First, the core keywords of the middle school 2015 revised home economics curriculum were ‘family’, ‘health’, ‘problem’, and ‘solution’, and the core keywords of the 2022 revised home economics curriculum were ‘life’, ‘choice’, ‘environment’, ‘routine’, and ‘change’. In addition, a comparison of six topics extracted by both periods revealed that the 2015 revised curriculum dealt with the contents related to ‘family’ and subject competency (practical problem-solving ability) as core elements, while the 2022 revised curriculum emphasized changes in living environment, daily life, and sustainable choices. Secondly, the core keywords of the high school 2015 revised home economics curriculum were ‘family’, ‘life’, ‘safety’, and ‘problem’, and the core keywords of the 2022 revised home economics curriculum were ‘living’, ‘family’, ‘culture’, ‘life’, and ‘welfare’. An examination of the five topics extracted by both periods confirmed that the emphasis on ‘family’ and ‘safety’ decreased and the influence of content related to life culture, digital environment, and life welfare increased in the 2022 revised curriculum. This study is essential in providing foundational data for developing the next curriculum and offers insights into subject competency, teaching and learning methods, and evaluation.

Apakah Masuk Akal untuk Berdoa: Kajian Filsafat Agama

Human anxiety about life leads to a prayer ritual for religious people. Praying is considered an effective way to realize dreams, but there is also an assumption that it is unreasonable. The purpose of this study is to present a perspective on prayer. The research methodology uses literature studies to support the achievement of research objectives. The results of the study are that prayer is not a shortcut to solving problems that require mastery of all relevant facts. Someone who prays only with the aim of using God to solve their own problems, means violating the basic principles of all social and moral relationships. Prayer has a great influence on humans psychologically, such as being able to calm, soothe and convince themselves of the life choices that have been decided to be lived. The essence of prayer is an extension of togetherness and community concern.

Apakah Masuk Akal untuk Berdoa: Kajian Filsafat Agama

Human anxiety about life leads to a prayer ritual for religious people. Praying is considered an effective way to realize dreams, but there is also an assumption that it is unreasonable. The purpose of this study is to present a perspective on prayer. The research methodology uses literature studies to support the achievement of research objectives. The results of the study are that prayer is not a shortcut to solving problems that require mastery of all relevant facts. Someone who prays only with the aim of using God to solve their own problems, means violating the basic principles of all social and moral relationships. Prayer has a great influence on humans psychologically, such as being able to calm, soothe and convince themselves of the life choices that have been decided to be lived. The essence of prayer is an extension of togetherness and community concern.

Apakah Masuk Akal Untuk Berdoa: Kajian Filsafat Agama

Human anxiety about life leads to a prayer ritual for religious people. Praying is considered an effective way to realize dreams, but there is also an assumption that it is unreasonable. The purpose of this study is to present a perspective on prayer. The research methodology uses literature studies to support the achievement of research objectives. The results of the study are that prayer is not a shortcut to solving problems that require mastery of all relevant facts. Someone who prays only with the aim of using God to solve their own problems, means violating the basic principles of all social and moral relationships. Prayer has a great influence on humans psychologically, such as being able to calm, soothe and convince themselves of the life choices that have been decided to be lived. The essence of prayer is an extension of togetherness and community concern.

Study on the Impact of Urban-Rural Education Resource Equitability and Student Endowment Differences on Promoting Educational Equity

Based on the empirical analysis of the China Education Panel Survey (CEPS), this paper explores the impact of the equitability of urban-rural education resources and student endowment differences on educational equity. The findings not only provide a new perspective and empirical support for the study of the theory of educational equity but also offer valuable references for policymaking and education reform to promote social equity and harmonious development. It is empirically found that cognitive abilities and parents' educational expectations have a positive impact on students' educational expectations, while the dropout situation of friends has a negative impact. Additionally, although health status has a positive influence on educational expectations, it does not significantly affect the choice of future residence. These factors together reveal the significant impact of the family environment, personal ability, and social relationships on students' education and life choices, emphasizing the necessity to optimize educational resources and family education support, holding significant theoretical and practical significance.

Социальный выбор личности в повседневности

The article examines the peculiarities of a person’s social choice in an everyday situation. Against the back-ground of global transformations, daily life is the most sustainable social education. However, information technologies in various spheres of society have also affected the daily existence of a person, which has led to an interest in an area that previously acted as a background for more significant processes. The study of the phenomenon of social choice in everyday life is interdisciplinary in nature due to its multidimensional and mul-tilevel nature. Analyzing everyday life allows for the identification of the principles governing decision-making processes. The article highlights both the negative and positive consequences of these choices in the context of human activity: anonymity, avoidance of responsibility, and stereotyping. Furthermore, it examines the influ-ence of everyday life as an essential attribute of social existence on the stages of individual decision-making.

Родительская зрелость: содержание и структура концепта в разрезе отечественных и зарубежных исследований

<p>The author analyzes the concept of parental maturity with the aim to operationalize it and define the structure. The construct is based on maturity understanding in the context of parenthood. Parental maturity is a complex, diversified form that reflects personal maturity. The structure of the construct is presented as a set of instrumental, motivational, and value components, integrating in the internal position of a parent in life choices regarding the birth, upbringing of children, and responsibility for the decisions made. The development of parental maturity is facilitated by the development of the parent’s internal position, including self-reflection. It helps to assess the level of personal maturity and analyze parental position, resiliency, involvement, control of a child’s development, and taking risks associated with children growing up. Within parenthood, the development of semantic and life-meaning orientations activates the setting of new self-development tasks by the parents themselves.</p>

Labour as a component of carceral circuitry: The case of asylum seekers

Building upon insights from carceral geography, this article conceptualises the ‘carceral’ as permeating beyond the prison walls to other areas of life through law and policymaking that confines and incarcerates without necessarily ‘imprisoning’. 1 Utilising the case study of asylum applicants in the UK, this article traces the role of ‘work’ as a component of carceral circuitry which enmeshes asylum seekers’ lives. Outside of immigration detention, this includes work exclusions which hinder mobility, life choices and economic independence, as well as fuelling engagement in both ‘voluntary’ unpaid work arrangements, and/or unregulated ‘criminal’ labour practices which arise as a result of exclusionary laws intent on creating a hostile environment. Inside of immigration detention analysis extends to the practice of ‘paid activities’ in which immigration detainees undertake millions of hours of work at a rate of £1.00 per hour, ostensibly ‘for their own benefit’. Labour law and its explicit exclusions, as well as the social welfare framework, thereby intersect with immigration control and the criminal law to construct, shape and reproduce this carceral sphere which seeks to control and govern asylum seekers’ lives as well as entrenching their vulnerability as an easily exploitable workforce from which value can be extracted.