The causation of mental health problems remains burdened with an uncertainty which freely allows a variety of assertions to be made. It is therefore crucial, in this arena of confusion, that some sense be available. This chapter will bring together sociology, spirituality and philosophy, and describe the human need to seek meaning, arguing the crucial role of spirituality in making sense of mental distress. The concepts of death and dying will be explored with a view to introducing spirituality, before arguments (...) are applied specifically to mental health and the professional’s role in spiritual care. (shrink)

Despite being central to the foundation of a critical leisure studies tradition, due to the sport-focused work of the Leicester School the sociology of Norbert Elias remains a largely ignored perspective in the critical event studies terrain which has emerged from within this field. This chapter will focus upon Elias' contribution to research philosophy, primarily his work on involvement and detachment :226–252, 1956; Elias, What is sociology? London: Hutchinson University Library, 1978). This strand of Elias' work attempts to resolve the (...) dualism of induction and deduction and problematises the search for 'objectivity' in social research. The chapter uses Elias' work here in order to address an issue often prevalent in student research projects in the events terrain, namely, how to maintain analytical insight into issues of significant personal interest. Drawing on two case studies of significant personal interest to the authors, namely, live music events and Scotland national team football matches, the chapter considers how students can maintain distance from their subject without losing the rich understanding that comes from personal involvement. The chapter begins by outlining the basic, broad positivist versus interpretive debate which underpins many introductory discussions regarding research philosophy and strategy before outlining Elias' attempts to move beyond this in his discussions of 'involvement and detachment' :226–252, 1956; Elias, Involvement and detachment. Oxford: Blackwell, 1987). The above-mentioned case studies are then introduced to demonstrate how it is possible, by taking a 'detour via detachment', to create a methodology for the investigation of live event experiences. The chapter concludes with the assertion that, whilst an understanding of detailed methodological processes and practices is vital when successfully conducting research into the live event experience, it is a nuanced understanding of research philosophy which guarantees that such practices and processes are selected appropriately in the first instance. (shrink)

Construction management research, as a form of social research is confronted with the fundamental paradigmic dilemma of determining a core philosophical orientation, to be considered adequate and best suited to enquiry about construction phenomena. The underpinning argument being that, the differences in world views, will yield marked differences in the type of knowledge generated. An empirical profiling of cost overrun research reveals the predominance of mono-method studies based on questionnaire survey methods, correlative analysis and archival data modelling techniques, all of (...) which are underlain by positivism. Such positivist philosophies, although methodologically valid, cannot adequately explain and provide in-depth understanding of the contextual drivers in construction organisations that trigger the more tangible technical constructs leading to the phenomena of cost growth in projects. Joining in the chorus call for methodological pluralism in construction industry research, this study makes a case for critical realism specifically in the context of cost overrun research. (shrink)

Construction management research, as a form of social research is confronted with the fundamental paradigmic dilemma of determining a core philosophical orientation, to be considered adequate and best suited to enquiry about construction phenomena. The underpinning argument being that, the differences in world views, will yield marked differences in the type of knowledge generated. An empirical profiling of cost overrun research reveals the predominance of mono-method studies based on questionnaire survey methods, correlative analysis and archival data modelling techniques, all of (...) which are underlain by positivism. Such positivist philosophies, although methodologically valid, cannot adequately explain and provide in-depth understanding of the contextual drivers in construction organisations that trigger the more tangible technical constructs leading to the phenomena of cost growth in projects. Joining in the chorus call for methodological pluralism in construction industry research, this study makes a case for critical realism specifically in the context of cost overrun research. (shrink)

When embarking on a piece of research it is important to decide on which ontological basis the researcher stands. Do they see the world in absolute terms thereby having a positivist view or do they believe in observing through the constructions of the mind like the constructionists. Because it is from the ontological position that informs the epistemology, i.e. the empiricist who believes that knowledge can be gained via the senses would therefore take on an experimental methodology. Therefore the epistemological (...) stance of how to approach the study and interpret knowledge is key and when this is decided, then the researcher will know which method of data collection to use; is essential for a logical and correct process to be followed and adhered to in order for research into MSM and to stand up to the rigour of peer review [Ritchie, J., Lewis, J., Nicholls, C. M., & Ormston, R.. Qualitative research practice: A guide for social science students and researchers. London: Sage]. Qualitatively Interpersonal Phenomenological Analysis is chosen for investigating the straight men who have sex occasionally with men as it fits with the epistemology stance of the researcher and with the focus on trying to obtain ideas, values and beliefs of the MSM population in order to curb the spread of HIV among straight women. (shrink)

In this paper, we investigate the personal epistemology of computing students, that is, their conceptions of knowledge and learning. We review some models of personal epistemological development and describe one of the questionnaire tools that have been used to assess the epistemological beliefs of students studying in other disciplines. We describe an experiment that uses one of these tools, together with exploratory factor analysis, to determine the dimensions of epistemological beliefs of a cohort of computing students and compare the results (...) with that reported in other contexts. The results, while not reproducing the details of previous work, do seem to suggest that there are indeed multiple dimensions to personal epistemology, and that these can be identified, to a large extent, with those recognised by other researchers. Finally, we make some observations about the importance of personal epistemology for learning in Computer Science and outline further work in this area. (shrink)

'Personal Epistemology' is the analysis of the ways in which an individual perceives what constitutes knowledge, its boundaries, how it is justified, and how it is related to learning. While investigation of metacognitive strategies used by students is now an established research topic within Computer Science and Information Technology education, the study of personal epistemology is relatively undeveloped. This is so despite there being significant epistemological issues associated with learning the subject itself, such as those concerned with the way in (...) which programming exercises change from convergent to divergent problems, or the process by which software project management problems very quickly become ill-defined. In this paper, we describe a preliminary investigation into the personal epistemology of two cohorts of computing students. We review some models of personal epistemological development and describe an empirical study in which we investigated the dimensions of epistemological beliefs of two cohorts of computing students. The results show that there appears to be a wide range of epistemological belief amongst computing students. Finally, we make some observations about the importance of personal epistemology for learning in Computer Science and outline further work in this area. (shrink)

For most of Rwanda's post-independence past, the country has been marked by ethnic feuding, mass population movements and long exiles in neighbouring countries, and civil wars that culminated in the genocide in 1994. As this research shows in its review of literature of the history of Rwanda's post-independence period, the civil wars of those with ethnically-differentiated access to power and wealth have had social-, cultural- and economic effects. How has foreign culture - acquired by Rwandaliens - affected indigenous Rwandan culture, (...) and its influence thereof on the present leadership styles? This thesis assesses the most common leadership styles in companies / organisations in Rwanda, in order to build a theory of the predominant leadership styles and culture in Rwanda in the context of the post-genocide era. (shrink)

In this chapter we analyse two interrelated projects across the fields of visual art and music, philosophy and anthropology. Calendar Variations is a visual activity initiated by Anne Douglas, visual artist and researcher. A Day in My Life mirrors this activity in music and is developed by Kathleen Coessens, pianist and philosopher. The two projects are research driven and frame questions about the relationship of improvisation to experiential knowledge. First, what might experimentation be in the context of experience of life (...) and experience of art? Does improvisation as a concept and a practice offer new potential to inform experimentation in a distinctive way? We will use Dewey as a starting point for a phenomenological approach to experience as a form of ongoing experimentation and adjustment, a process of learning endemic to life itself. We will map this articulation onto Hallam and Ingold’s four characteristics of improvisation. These closely resonate with Dewey while nuancing/inflecting the resulting learning as an experience between people, formed socially and culturally. Moving deeper into experience, experiment, and improvisation as three key interrelated concepts, we look briefly at Bergson, who offers a way of imagining experience as time dependent: life is constantly in a process of formation that is unstoppable even in reflection. This implies a conflation of intuition and intellect into one single activity, leaving the artist-as-researcher in a paradoxical situation. How is knowledge created if we cannot look back on experience by stepping outside what is ongoing? Arnheim helps us to unravel this paradox: intellect and intuition are distinctive but interrelated modes of being. We limit ourselves in life, Arnheim argues, to what is useful and necessary to know, working within this contingent. Art enriches possible ways of imagining. These challenge and extend experience. We lay out this theoretical ground as the basis from which to analyse the two artistic projects. By interpolating between the theoretical and artistic experiences, we enlarge not only our perspectives on but also our actions in the world. (shrink)

As a cultural innovation, image-making is perhaps one of our most enduring forms of new media. The many technical developments necessary for the production of convincing images have emerged over the last 40,000 years, yet there is still widespread disagreement about how images actually function. Why, for instance, are animals largely indifferent to images whereas humans are fascinated by them? Several competing theories are in general circulation but it is a matter of considerable debate whether these adequately explain the mechanisms (...) at work in the substitution of flat objects made of paper, pigment or pixels for the objects they represent. Since the 1960's, Australian art theorist Donald Brook has been exploring the implications of a theory of representation that has been published widely during this period. This work has been positively received but considering its implications it is somewhat surprising that it is not more widely known and discussed. This presentation focuses on a crucial element of Brook's theory which shows how imagistic representations rely not only on systematic sensory discrimination failures but on the procedural principles by which such discrimination failures can be exploited. (shrink)

There is a close relationship between art and philosophy. From time to time, philosophy attempts to make art its theme. Invariably it has to acknowledge the very qualities of art that it seeks to explain - art’s elusiveness and its indeterminateness. On the other hand, it is the nature of art to philosophise within itself, about itself, and about the world. In this sense it operates as tacit philosophy. The language of art and the language of philosophy differ in form; (...) but recent turns in philosophy have led to the expression of its truth in terms that transcend language and question its own epistemic structure. At the same time, art has always acknowledged its approach to ‘truth’ and ‘knowledge’ as being ‘other’ to that epistemology. This ‘otherness’ to traditional ways of knowing is recognised in philosophical discourse as ‘alterity’. The thesis posits that in art alterity has always been, and remains, tacit and integral to art’s being. Thus, by exploring the ways in which – through alterity – art and philosophy intersect and interweave, the thesis aims to reveal a new kind of knowledge that transcends the rational and the empirical but is nonetheless not only valid, but of the very highest integrity. That knowledge is transmitted through a particular critical and creative approach to philosophy and to art that opens the possibility of the ‘event’ of Alterity. The thesis uses a discourse of philosophy and critical theory to reveal Alterity in philosophy, principally through the work of Derrida, Heidegger, Adorno, and Levinas; Alterity in art through the works of Fra Angelico, Pollock, Fantin-Latour, Malevich, Vermeer, and Saitowitz; and Alterity in my own art practice through a set of six sculptures. (shrink)