Self-confrontation Method Research Articles

Characterisation of the professional identity of school principals (Caracterización de la identidad profesional de los directores de escuela)

ABSTRACT Despite the growth in research on the impact of school administration on educational improvement in the past 10 years, the characterization of the identity of school principals is a controversial, pending issue. In this study, we set out to undertake this characterization from a dialogic perspective by tracking four expert principals over the course of one academic year. Via a longitudinal design with multiple case studies, we analysed their repertoire of positions and their variations. The instruments included a reflective journal, interviews based on the self-confrontation method and a discussion group. Our results indicate not only that the principals share their positioning as promoters of learning and project managers when dealing with professional events but that dialogue among internal and external voices enables them to deal with the conflicts and tensions among positions constructively. We conclude that principals’ professional identity can be developed through conscious, strategic reflection on the positions they take within the context of their professional activity.

Self-authoring characteristics of the Montessori School graduates

The modern world requires a new mindset for people to enable them to become self-evaluating human beings. Kegan (1994) termed this complex system of mind the self-authorship. This is the ability to generate belief systems and intrapersonal states internally. The self-authorship analyses are culturally diverse. This paper presents two theories, namely the concept of self-authorship by Baxter Magolda (1998, 2001) and Obuchowski’s (2000, 2006) theory of self-authoring personality. The latter remains a framework of the description of central psychosocial attributes for the self-authoring personality of Montessori School graduates. The self-authoring studies of diagnostic character aimed at qualification of the authoring personality standard as well as subjective denotations of authoring attributes of the Montessori School graduates. The study covered 69 former students (56.5% women, 43.5% men) of the state Primary Montessori School in Lublin. The self-authoring personality standard was qualified using The Self-Authoring Personality Questionnaire elaborated by Obuchowski and colleagues (Blachnio & Obuchowski, 2011). The personal denotations conferred on authoring attributes were examined by means of the questionnaire My Experiences based on the adaptation of Self-Confrontation Method by Hermans (1991). The level of self-authoring personality in female and male groups was high and characterised by similar values. In the personal statements the persons being examined described themselves as those who perceive themselves as a source of behaviour and the own aims were object of their projects designed for accomplishment in relation with the other people. As follows from the data, the participants of the study acquired skills indispensable for making individual decisions about themselves and the outer world.

The Experience of Receiving and Transmitting a Genetic Disease

Legacies are key components of the aging experience. Three types of legacies have been described: biological, material, and values. This paper focuses on biological legacy, centering on the experience of receiving and transmitting the genes associated with transthyretin-related amyloid familial polyneuropathy (TTR-FAP). This study adopts the self-confrontation method (SCM) to explore narratives about biological legacies on individuals affected by TTR-FAP. The study included four participants, who are both in the receiver (affected by the condition, meaning they have inherited the disease-causing mutation) and in the transmitter (potentially passing on the mutation to their children) positions. The participants are two men and two women, aged 45–65 years old; all have children. Data analysis was performed by following the SCM, identifying life themes and determining affective meanings. The main findings suggested include: (1) in the receiver position, participants focus on treatment and adaptation regarding the disease attached to both negative and positive affective meanings; (2) in the transmitter position, they focus on awareness of the disease in children and grandchildren attached to negative affective meanings. Results are relevant for informing genetic counseling services and professionals about these patients’ feelings toward their condition.

Identity of the Teaching Staff: Significant Events in Its Construction from the Practice of University Teaching

At present, higher education plays a crucial role in the transformation, construction, and development of societies. Spending time on exploring the identity configuration of teachers could generate instruction and guidance processes that should take into account their cognitive representations, discourses, and actions within their teaching practice at a personal level; The objective and intention of this study are to demonstrate how significant events of university professors have over time influenced and determined their professional identity. This research is qualitative as it follows the principles and postulates of grounded theory, which permitted the analysis and description of these events. Data collection was carried out using the SCM (self-confrontation method) through a structured interview applied professors of the faculty of education, science, and technology that voluntarily took part in this research. As part of this research, the past, present, and future of those who took part in it were explored. The speeches of these professors were analyzed under established and emerging categories with the support of the MQDA2018. The results show how significant events and people throughout both their instruction and within their professional practice have been building their identity based on these interactions. In many cases, it revealed how the discourses learned have modified in some way the development and evolution of their teaching practice, as well as within significant events, the instruction processes are unmentioned, which theoretically should help and support this preparation process of the teaching staff.

A supervisão das práticas dos estudantes pelos professores de Educação Física

O presente estudo teve como objetivo descrever e analisar a supervisão das práticas dos estudantes pelos professores nas aulas de Educação Física. Quatro professores participaram deste estudo qualitativo, do tipo pesquisa-intervenção. O método da autoconfrontação simples e cruzada, oriundo da Clínica da Atividade foi utilizado para analisar a supervisão das práticas. Os professores assistiram os vídeos de suas aulas e dialogaram sobre as diferentes maneiras de agir durante a atividade de supervisão. Seis episódios de ensino foram descritos e analisados. Identificou-se diferentes tipos de supervisão das práticas dos alunos: observação silenciosa; intervenções por flash, por parada e por rastreamento. A análise promoveu a tomada de consciência das práticas de supervisão, bem como a visualização de outras maneiras de supervisionar o trabalho dos alunos, o que pode contribuir com a expansão do poder de agir dos docentes em situações de ensino futuras.

L’explication du diabète dans une séance d’éducation thérapeutique : une activité discursive contribuant au développement professionnel des soignants

Croisant la psychologie socioculturelle, la clinique de l’activité et l’analyse du discours, cette étude porte sur une séance d’éducation thérapeutique du patient (ETP) réunissant une infirmière, Inès, et un adolescent vivant avec le diabète. Elle vise d’une part, à analyser les mécanismes d’intercompréhension et d’ajustement mutuel en jeu dans l’explication, d’autre part à susciter le développement professionnel. Elle analyse une séquence explicative puis recourt à une méthode qui confronte la professionnelle à son activité (méthode d’autoconfrontation simple et croisée). Les résultats montrent que dans la séance d’ETP, le discours médical qui émerge instaure une forte asymétrie entre les interactants et laisse planer le doute sur la compréhension du patient. Alors que dans l’autoconfrontation simple, Inès s’interroge sur la compréhension et l’état émotionnel du patient, dans l’autoconfrontation croisée, les commentaires de sa collègue l’amènent à se souvenir d’une situation professionnelle précédente et à s’interroger sur ses propres états émotionnels et interprétations. La méthode d’autoconfrontation semble apte à saisir les mécanismes psychologiques sous-jacents aux explications fournies par les professionnels et à susciter une forme de développement professionnel.

Introjective and anaclitic psychopathology in self-narratives: Idiographic assessment with Hermans’ Self-Confrontation Method

Within a hybrid framework of attachment and depression theory, we investigated whether introjective and anaclitic vulnerabilities can be detected in a person’s self-narrative as elicited with the Self-Confrontation Method (SCM). One hundred participants held a thorough self-investigation with one of five trainees, in which every person formulated ‘valuations’ (i.e., short sentences about personally relevant concerns) and, subsequently, rated to what degree certain feelings were evoked by every separate text. We extracted several measures from these idiographic data, including scales representing the prominence of certain themes according to the SCM typology (e.g., ‘unfulfilled longing and loss’, ‘anger and opposition’, and ‘powerlessness and isolation’). By analyzing the correlational patterns of the aggregated SCM-based measures and the questionnaire-based measures about attachment orientation and depressive personality vulnerability, we uncovered meaningful relationships. The results of a canonical correlational analysis indicated that an intensified sense of ‘powerlessness and isolation’ is a sign of a general psychopathological vulnerability (related to depression), ‘anger and opposition’ is associated with introjective features (distrust in others and need for control), and ‘unfulfilled longing and loss’ is associated with anaclitic features (pleasing and dependency). In an exploratory qualitative study, we used a cluster-based classification into attachment groups for the exhaustive screening of the content of negative valuations of (a selection of) insecurely attached persons (n = 15). This hermeneutic approach disclosed characteristic themes for each of the preoccupied, dismissive-avoidant and fearful-avoidant attachment styles which are discussed in great detail.

O USO DA AUTOCONFRONTAÇÃO SIMPLES E CRUZADA PARA ANALISAR O ENSINO EM EDUCAÇÃO FÍSICA

Este artigo trata da Clínica da atividade e do Método da autoconfrontação simples e cruzada (ACSC), um dispositivo que permite a análise do trabalho docente no que tange ao ensino. Descrevem-se os fundamentos dessa abordagem, explicam-se seus procedimentos operacionais e ilustra-se sua utilização através da análise de episódios de ensino, no âmbito de um estudo multicasos, junto a quatro professores de Educação Física. As aulas foram filmadas, editadas e exibidas para coanálise pelos participantes com a mediação do pesquisador. Através da análise dos episódios, foi possível identificar a razão de agir dos professores, as atividades impedidas, as intenções de mudança e a comparação das maneiras de agir. Conclui-se que o método da ACSC contribui à análise das práticas pelos próprios professores, assim como para seu desenvolvimento reflexivo e profissional.

Is the self-confrontation method applicable to Naturalistic Driving Studies?

Since the year 2000, two methods are being increasingly used in driver behavior studies: on the one hand, Naturalistic Driving Studies (NDSs) that consist in gathering behavioral data during drivers’ usual trips over long periods of time; on the other hand, video confrontation methods, whose principle is to display sequences of usual driving activities to the driver to spell out subjective experience. Both practices aim to track inner user experience, but linking NDS and confrontation methods is a challenge. Indeed, displaying to a participant almost all traces of an activity (self-confrontation method) is not feasible for a large volume of data over extended periods of time collected in NDS. Therefore, setting up self-confrontation with NDS recordings raises the issue of identifying relevant video sequences before the interview. It also relies on the possibility for participants to relive sequences of a non-immediate past during the self-confrontation. The study of safety-critical situations and on-board secondary tasks in the first European large scale NDS (UDRIVE) was an opportunity to test video confrontation method within the framework of a NDS. The Knowledge Data Discovery (KDD) method was used for pre-selecting video sequences for 16 interviews. During each interview, three were presented to the participant. Efficiency was evaluated with qualitative indicators derived from explicitation interview. The priming revealed to be efficient for safety critical situations, but not for secondary tasks. This statement is in line with experimental work on memory processes which shows a correlation between memorization and emotional content. Consequently, the use of autoconfrontation methods in NDSs seems well suited for investigating specific driving situations, with limitations for more casual ones. At the same time, the knowledge gained from using self-confrontations will help refining indicators used in the data mining (KDD) process.

The food handlers’ practice on a cultural-historical perspective

This article informs on gender and style of action, contributing to new perspectives on organizational studies and new possibilities of understanding the subject within its work environment. The unit of analysis involves the subject, the object and the relationship with others, both in terms of gender and style that occur in an activity. The self-confrontation method is used to analyze the practice of Food Handlers (FHs) of a confessional school. The two phases of data collection provided by the method sought to explain the genre and the style of the activities of these workers. The rules and regulations system indicate that the workers a high degree of mechanicity of the workers and submitted to constant surveillance. Understanding that styles renew genres enables the manager to learn that the invention practiced by individuals within the activity – called stylistic invention – is essential because if it does not happen the genre may be extinguished.

Autobiographical Narratives of Oldest-Old Persons: What Matters at That Age?

This study adopts the Valuation theory and the Self-Confrontation Method to explore the autobiographic narrative in oldest old persons, considering a temporal perspective (past, present, future). The sample comprises three men and two women (84-95 years old). The findings suggest that the narrative of oldest-old persons emerges structured in a way that their narration of the past focus on outside connections (proximity with others; success achieved); their narration of the present centers on attaining a life philosophy and proximity with others and their narration of the future concentrates on self-enhancement (maintaining autonomy vs. experiencing powerlessness and lack of involvement).

Afektywne znaczenia doświadczeń szkolnych absolwentów klas Montessori – doniesienia badawcze

<p>Badania zrealizowano w okresie dziewięciu miesięcy, od września 2013 do kwietnia 2014 roku. Objęto nimi 94 absolwentów Szkoły Podstawowej nr 27 im. Marii Montessori w Lublinie, którzy kształcili się według zasad alternatywnego systemu kształcenia. Analizie poddano 69 zestawów narzędzi badawczych wypełnionych kompletnie przez osoby spełniające kryteriadoboru do grupy. Do badania emocjonalnych znaczeń doświadczeń szkolnych wykorzystano kwestionariusz <em>Autorefleksja nad kształceniemw systemie Montessori</em>, autorsko opracowanym na podstawie <em>Metody konfrontacji z sobą</em> Huberta Hermansa. Ogląd wskaźników wartościowań sytuacji szkolnej ujętej w stwierdzeniu: „Będziesz odpowiedzialny za kształcenie własnych dzieci. Zakładasz, że wybierasz zarówno system Montessori (przyszłość S = 15,40; O = 15,33), jak i doświadczeń ogólnych (S = 13,89; O = 14, 54) i idealnych (S = 18,18; O = 17, 91)" wskazał, że aktywne były wyróżnione przez Hermansa dwa motywy podstawowe (wysokie średnie wartości S i O), a ich działanie zostało zrównoważone (brak istotnych statystycznie różnic między S i O).</p><p>Analizowane w niniejszej pracy doświadczenia szkolne oraz ogólne i idealne prezentowały jeden z sześciu możliwych, ale najbardziej integralny typ klimatu emocjonalnego: siły i jedności (+HH), w którym intensywna samoświadomość występuje z „przyjemnym poczuciem przekraczania granic między własnym Ja, a kimś drugim” (Chmielnicka-Kuter, Oleś, Puchalska-Wasyl 2009, s. 14). Na tej podstawie uznano, że przestrzeń szkoły stanowiła dla badanych obszar samopotwierdzenia.</p>

Construction of narrative identity based on paintings

ABSTRACTThis article presents a new method for encouraging clients to articulate and explore their narrative identities. The method combines the advantages of perception of art and of construction of narrative identity. It is inspired by McAdams ‘Life Story Interview’ and Hermans and Hermans-Jansen’s Self-Confrontation Method. The material is a set of 100 colour copies of paintings that introduce a spectrum of life experiences and symbolic scenes. The person is asked to choose as many pictures as he/she needs to present his/her life story and to tell this story looking at the pictures. The clients construct their stories and they assume units of meanings in valuations (sentences). Afterwards they create life themes referring to sets of pictures or valuations.

Avaliação em larga escala, formação de professores e letramento: entre concepções e práticas no ensino fundamental

This paper addresses the teaching practices for reading and didactic conceptions underlying these practices, relating such issues to those of large scale assessments and to the continuing education of teachers raised by such assessments. There are described and analyzed teaching practices for reading of three teachers who work in groups of ninth grade in elementary school and who have participated in continuous training aimed at assessing the reading skills described in the reference matrix of the Basic Education Assessment System (SAEB) and, recently, the Educational Assessment System of Para (SISPAE). The impact of these trainings on the reading practices of these teachers is analyzed, verifying to what extent they are in line with the interactive reading model that bases the reference matrices. Our data – generated through classroom observations and the simple self-confrontation method – point to the persistence of traditional practices and to a near misunderstanding of the abilities evaluated in the SISPAE. It is concluded by the inefficiency of these trainings, what contributes to the maintenance of a reality that is still distant from the literacy objectives to the school population in Brazil.

Material inheritances: an affective story in the history of elderly persons

Material inheritance is an important theme in old age, tied up to the life story and with shaping the manner in which one will be remembered. This study adopts the self-confrontation method to explore the meanings and affects that elderly persons attach to the material inheritance, taking into consideration their experiences both as heirs and donors. The sample comprises five participants (80-95 years). Main findings suggest a process of transmitting material inheritance characterized by the creation of a material legacy throughout life and from both positions (donor and heir); resolution related to receiving inheritances (heir position); and transferral as a donor later on in life. This process seems to play an affective role at individual (self-autonomy vs. lost love) and familial (union vs. isolation) levels. The transmission of material inheritance represents a lifelong task that connects past, present, and future and links generations.

The Self beyond Somatic Symptoms: A Narrative Approach to Self-Experience in Adolescent Chronic Fatigue Syndrome

Background: The self and self-experience are often assumed to play an important role in adolescent patients presenting with severe somatic symptoms and bodily distress. Nonetheless, most empirical work on this subject is confined to studies of personality and patients' experience of negative emotionality. This study aims to move beyond mere descriptions of symptoms, traits and distress, and consequently adopts a narrative approach to self-experience in adolescent chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS). Sampling and Methods: The self-confrontation method (SCM) is a well-validated instrument to systematically analyze narrative self-experience. The SCM was used to study 42 adolescents with CFS, compared to 36 adolescents with juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) and 25 matched healthy controls. The Child Health Questionnaire (CHQ-CF87) was used to assess mental health, self-esteem, and physical and psychosocial functioning. Results: Both patient groups reported significantly less positive self-experience of autonomy and success compared to healthy controls. Furthermore, patients with CFS described significantly more negative self-experience of powerlessness, isolation and unfulfilled longing. In the CHQ-CF87, both patient groups scored significantly lower on physical functioning than controls. Adolescents with CFS also scored significantly lower on mental health and self-esteem. Conclusions: Adolescent CFS entails a serious threat to the self, which might be inherent to the condition. Not only are patients more impaired in mental health, self-esteem, and physical and psychosocial functioning than patients with JIA, they also suffer from a distinct combination of high negative and low positive self-experience. These findings stress the need for strategies that empower patients towards a ‘management of the self'.

Psychological Intervention for Adolescents with Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis: For Whom and When?

To study which adolescents with juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) benefit from psychological intervention, and what is the best moment for it. In 3 months, 28 adolescents with JIA and 14 healthy adolescents as a control group received psychological intervention with the Self-confrontation Method (SCM), which combines the personal narrative with its affective structure. The adolescents with JIA were split into groups with low health-related quality of life (HRQOL) and high HRQOL. The Child Health Questionnaire, Checklist Individual Strength, and Childhood Health Assessment Questionnaire were used to measure fatigue and physical and psychosocial functioning at baseline, and at 3 months and 9 months after baseline. Adolescents with JIA and low HRQOL at baseline reported less fatigue and better HRQOL after psychological intervention. These changes could not be explained by changes in disease activity. Low HRQOL at baseline was associated with a more recent onset of JIA, higher levels of pain, more severe physical disability, and higher levels of fatigue. Two-thirds of adolescents with JIA function well before and after psychological intervention. One-third of adolescents with JIA reporting low HRQOL at baseline benefit from guided self-reflections and should be the focus of psychological intervention. The most effective moment for this psychological intervention is when the adolescent reports difficulties in HRQOL.

Thrill and Adventure Seekers: Affective Organization of Personal Meaning of Extreme Weather

The aim of the article is the analysis of the personal meaning of extreme weather among a Thrill and Adventure Seekers. There are two affective motives, which play an important role in the analysis of personal meaning of extreme weather: (1) the striving for self-enhancement, (2) the longing for the unification with nature. Furthermore, the process of meaning construction can be examined on the basis of two types of emotions: positive and negative ones. In the research on the personal meaning of extreme weather a modified version of H. Herman's Self-Confrontation method and the Thrill and Adventure Seeking Scale of M. Zuckerman`s were used. 130 students (M = 20.40; SD = 1.5) were asked about personal experiences concerning the elements of nature: the thunderstorm, the fog, the heavy rain, the strong wind and the snowstorm. The results have indicated that a Thrill and Adventure Seekers in contact with severe weather conditions tend to reveal: score higher on the level of desire for self-enhancement, the level of positive emotions or the level of the longing for the unification with nature and score lower on the level of negative emotions than controls.

Perspectives on Death and an Afterlife in Relation to Quality of Life, Depression, and Hopelessness in Cancer Patients Without Evidence of Disease and Advanced Cancer Patients

Context It is unknown whether cancer patients with different life expectancies have different attitudes and emotions toward death and an afterlife. Also, it is unclear whether these attitudes and emotions toward death and afterlife influence patients’ distress. Objectives To assess the relationship of attitudes and emotions towards death and an afterlife with quality of life, depression and hopelessness in cancer patients without evidence of disease and advanced cancer patients facing death. Methods Ninety-one cancer patients without evidence of disease and 57 advanced cancer patients completed the Dutch Attitudes Toward Death and Afterlife Scale. Emotions toward death were measured using the Self-Confrontation Method. Quality of life was measured with the Satisfaction with Life Scale and the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC) Quality-of-Life Questionnaire. Depression and hopelessness were measured with the Beck Depression Inventory for Primary Care and the Beck Hopelessness Scale. Results Average scores on attitudes and emotions toward death and an afterlife were not significantly different between the two groups. However, in the no evidence of disease group, a negative association between negative emotions and social functioning was observed, which was not present in the advanced cancer group. In the advanced cancer group, associations were observed that were not present in the no evidence of disease group: positive associations between an explicitly religious attitude and global health status and between reincarnation belief and role and cognitive functioning, and a negative association between other-directed emotions and social functioning. Conclusion Patients without evidence of disease and advanced cancer patients do not differ in attitudes or emotions toward death, but the relationship between these attitudes and emotions and aspects of quality of life varies. When there is no evidence of disease, negative emotions play the most important role, whereas in the advanced cancer situation, attitudes toward death and an afterlife, which may provide meaning and value, become more prominent.

La méthode de l’autoconfrontation : une méthode bien adaptée à l’investigation de l’activité de recherche d’information ?

Dans cet article, nous discutons l’intérêt de la méthode de l’autoconfrontation pour étudier la recherche d’information. Nous décrivons les origines, bénéfices attendus, limites constatées et usages de la méthode dans différents domaines. Nous interrogeons la rareté de son emploi dans les travaux empiriques sur la recherche d’information. Nous tentons de montrer que les capacités spécifiques, remémoration de la dynamique de l’activité, et réflexivité des personnes interviewées, sont susceptibles de répondre aux exigences théoriques et méthodologiques de l’étude de l’activité informationnelle. Enfin, nous proposons un exemple d’emploi de l’autoconfrontation croisée, fourni par notre étude sur la recherche des élèves/jeunes.