Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Therapeutic dialogue'

The thesis describes a detailed investigation into the quality of meetings between Swedish therapists and refugee families, and how this is affected by language and culture differences. In a series of books and papers under the heading, "OpenDialogue", the Finnish psychologist Jaakko Seikkula and his colleague have written about the importance ofdialogical quality in meetings with psychiatric patients. This Open Dialogue perspective was adopted in the research, particularly by using Dialogical Sequence Analysis (DSA), the method of text analysis as developed by Seikkula and his colleagues. The Thesis examines the first two or three meetings (but in one case, the eighth) between six refugee families from different homelands and three sets of experienced therapists, asking whether the talk was dialogical and led to some form of new understanding. It also asks whether DSA is an appropriate method of text analysis for such meetings, and by extension, how far the Open Dialogue (OD) approach is appropriate. A multi-perspective methodology was used, combining DSA, video-reflections - the interactive use of video-recordings, and interviews with the families concerned. Graphic display of DSA outputs turned out to be a valuable method for comparing meeting quality. The display showed that "new understanding" developed in these meetings under similar conditions predicted by DSA for psychotic patients. Statistical analysis also showed substantial agreement between DSA assessments of meeting quality and those made by the participating therapists. Thematic analysis of the video-reflections complemented the DSA by revealing more about the non-verbal aspects of the meetings, embodying the feelings of the participants. Interviews with the families gave their feedback on the meetings. The conclusions of the research are that the OD approach is highly appropriate, although therapists sometimes need to use more initiative than OD would suggest. The cross-cultural obstacles to dialogue were seldom the obvious ones of misunderstanding, but inhibitions on both sides and difficulties of achieving spontaneity through an interpreter. Given these obstacles, the dialogical quality turned out to be high though uneven, whether assessed by DSA or by the therapists concerned. Most families were also positive about the meetings. Guidelines emerge from the research that should improve the quality of meetings with refugee families, and strengthen the development of a therapeutic alliance.

This research was a preliminary pilot study meant to encourage further exploration on the intersection of art therapy, art making, spirituality, and dialogue. This study topic is an important area of investigation due to the long-standing challenges of interfaith dialogue, both historically and currently. An abundance of reviewed literature linking interfaith dialogue and dialogue through art making guided the research hypothesis, which states that the act of viewing and being viewed by the spiritual other through art making could deepen one’s own spiritual practice, increase empathy, foster dialogue, and inform clinical work as psychotherapists. To explore this, the researchers held an explorative arts-based workshop, encouraging participants to use the art individually and in pairs to further reflect on their spiritual beliefs and experiences. In addition, the workshop allowed a space for participants and pairs to share and discuss their reflective art and personal spirituality, then create a dyadic art piece together. The qualitative findings revealed similarities for all eleven participants in both the art and written experiences, with universal themes and shared visual elements emerging. The analyzed data connected the universal themes with the participants’ stated spiritual identity and evidenced experiences of connection in dyadic pairs. As future therapists, and art therapists, the researchers intended this preliminary pilot study to be a basis for further research and inspire wider exploration.

This thesis investigated how clients and therapists discuss the means by which clients can work towards their therapeutic goals. Cooper et al. (2016) termed such discussions meta-therapeutic communication or meta-therapeutic dialogue and Cooper and McLeod (2011) recommend carrying them out since outcomes are robustly related to whether the client accepts the therapeutic strategy as appropriate for their needs (e.g. Horvath et al., 2011). This thesis undertook the first discovery-oriented, Conversation Analysis (CA) study of how clients and therpaists actually carry out meta-therapeutic discussions. It represents a sustained attempt to bridge the practice-research gap and highlights the conceptual and practical challenges in doing so. 42 audio-recorded pluralistic therapy sessions were sampled across seven therapist-client pairs. Before carrying out the CA study proper, it was necessary to conceptually link broad descriptions of meta-therapeutic dialogue to participants’ concrete actions in therapy sessions. This involved a review of related concepts (Chapter Two), as well as a detailed conceptualization of how therapists’ stocks of interactional knowledge (SIKs) (Peräkylä & Vehviläinen, 2003) regarding meta-therapeutic dialogue might demonstrably link with their concrete actions as described by CA findings (Chapters Three through Five). Therapists’ questions to clients about what might be helpful were selected as a likely site for meta-therapeutic dialogue and were subjected to an in-depth CA investigation of the practical issues participants themselves treated as important in their interactions around these questions (Chapters Six through Eight). Findings show how some apparent opportunities for meta-therapeutic dialogue are less facilitative of clients’ independent input, and can sometimes be interactionally coercive. There is evidence that facilitating dialogical opportunities for talking about what might be helpful may require the therapist to move back-and-forth between opposing positions, such as treating the client as potentially unknowing but still also holding open a space for their contribution. These findings extend existing SIKs regarding meta-therapeutic dialogue by specifying some concrete considerations therapists orient to during such endeavours. Some practical similarities between meta-therapeutic dialogue and problem-solving/solution-focused approaches are also highlighted.

The aim of this study was to provide an account of the power relations that are implicit in the experience of clients who initially withhold but eventually disclose a sensitive issue in the psychotherapeutic dialogue. Mainstream psychotherapeutic literature has maintained that clients who withhold sensitive material implicitly express a psychological powerlessness. The literature review also turned attention to an alternative view, not arising from within the psychotherapeutic literature. Specific reference was made to the work of Foucault who suggests that although clients may appear to be empowered through self-disclosure, they are in fact constrained, since disclosing themselves constitutes. an appropriation of selfunderstanding which forecloses openness to other forms of self-understanding. The tension between these conflicting accounts about the relation of self-disclosure to empowerment was discussed as an issue requiring further exploration through clinical research. A phenomenologically orientated research method was used to describe the experiences of five clients who withheld and subsequently disclosed sensitive issues in psychotherapy. These descriptions yielded a thematically differentiated process of psychological change. The structure of client inhibition and self-disclosure was seen to correspond to the concepts of powerlessness and empowerment outlined in the psychotherapeutic literature. The apparent empowerment of clients during self-disclosure casts doubt on Foucault's perspective. However, on further reflection and through a review of the research method, it became apparent that the lack of support for Foucault's perspective was a consequence of the particular research method used rather than an indication of the non-existence of constraint. Ricoeur's hermeneutic phenomenology was used to develop the above methodological critique. Using this alternative approach the researcher critically evaluated the findings of the phenomenological study. This facilitated a reinterpretation of the clinical material. It emerged that the experience of empowerment represents a particular form of selfunderstanding, and it was shown, in relation to the clinical material, how this can indeed as Foucault suggests (because of its very specificity) constrain the client from understanding him/herself in alternative ways. It was revealed that the experience of empowerment is a necessary but limited component of successful client disclosure. This does not, however, go far enough. It was suggested that ideally, critical reflection on the constraints of self-understanding, rather than self-disclosure per se, should be regarded as the destination of the urge to self-disclosure.

The Interactive and Discursive View of Violence and Resistance proposes the existence of four-discursive-operations that “(i) conceal violence, (ii) mitigate perpetrators’ responsibility, (iii) conceal victims’ resistance, and (iv) blame or pathologize victims” (Coates & Wade, 2004, p.500). These linguistic operations produce incorrect representations of violence that ignore the unilateral nature of acts of violence and, instead focus on pathologizing victims (Coates & Wade, 2004). Examining how violence, victims, perpetrators, and responsibility for the violence are represented in therapy transcripts in which the presenting issue is violence, will allow us to see if linguistic strategies that are used to discredit victims in everyday talk are also used in therapy by therapists. Analysis of 19 therapy transcripts found that the four-discursive-operations were used in each of the transcripts and that therapists often initiated the use of these inaccurate representations or encouraged the perpetrator’s use of four-discursive-operations.
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Two empirical studies are presented which investigated Sexpert, a rule-based expert system for the treatment of couple sexual dysfunctions. The following hypotheses were evaluated: (1) couples' attitudes towards computerized psychotherapy would improve subsequent to an interaction with Sexpert, (2) couples would find Sexpert more engaging than other sources of information, (3) couples interacting with Sexpert would report learning more about their relationship than those exposed to other sources of information, and (4) Sexpert could influence the sexual behavior of volunteer couples. The research hypotheses were tested in 2 studies (81 & 77 couples respectively) which compared the effects of Sexpert, a sex education book and video, and a therapist, with a no-information control (crossword puzzles). A rigorous statistical analysis of the reliability of couples' self-report of their sexual behavior was made. In study 1, positive attitude shifts towards Sexpert were replicated with semantic differential as well as dissimilarity scales. In study 2, positive attitude shifts were only demonstrated via a ranking methodology. Sexpert was reported to be the most engaging of the experimental manipulations tested in either study. Couples provided with information via Sexpert, video, book, or therapist retrospectively reported significant positive changes in communication, sexuality, feelings, and relationship satisfaction. The highest change ratings were given by participants in the therapist group, followed by the Sexpert, video and book groups. Participants also reported significant learning about many aspects of their relationship and sexuality; however, there were no significant differences between the Sexpert, video, and therapist conditions. The sexual behavior monitoring data did not corroborate retrospectively reported changes in behavior. These inconsistencies in behavioral reporting were attributed to couple reactivity to the monitoring of sexual behavior and to s

This study started to explore the process of working therapeutically through an interpreter and whether it was possible to achieve interpersonal attunement with asylum seekers and refugees who have lived through traumatic experiences. Insider research was conducted by the manager of a third sector, specialist psychological therapies service that employed interpreters on a freelance basis. Three perspectives are offered to examine lived experience of the triadic relationship. Four counsellors, four interpreters and four clients were interviewed through a focus group and semi-structured interviews. Using these two qualitative methods, the data was analysed using interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA). Transcripts were examined for group patterns and idiographic accounts. Four super-ordinate themes: the therapeutic alliance, interpersonal attunement, communication and culture and a further ten sub-ordinate themes emerged from the analysis. The discussion raises issues about the specific role of the interpreter in this field, the management of emotion, differing cultures of mental health and verbal and non-verbal communication. When good practice guidelines are adhered to the findings indicate that the presence of an additional skilled professional may enhance the work and support both counsellor and client.

La place primordiale accordée à l’apparence physique dans la société actuelle, qui est une société de «l’image», a fait de la chirurgie esthétique la pratique chirurgicale la plus répandue et réclamée. Cette pratique, d’abord considérée illicite, puis exclusivement liée à des fins thérapeutiques, fut reconnue par la jurisprudence française à la suite d’une évolution prétorienne en 1936. Les raisons d’un tel retard de reconnaissance résident dans la spécificité qui distingue la chirurgie esthétique des autres branches de la médecine chirurgicale : en effet, la chirurgie esthétique se caractérise d’une part par sa nature qui est dépourvue de toute finalité curative et qui est réalisée sur une personne jouissant d’une bonne santé et, d’autre part, par sa finalité puisqu’elle vise à réaliser une amélioration de l’apparence physique et de la morphologie de la personne concernée. Cette double spécificité distingue également la chirurgie esthétique de la chirurgie reconstructrice et réparatrice. Ces caractéristiques mêmes de la chirurgie esthétique ont exigé, de la jurisprudence, mais également du législateur français, un traitement juridique spécial du chirurgien esthétique en vue d’éviter que ce dernier ne profite de la fragilité, aussi bien physique que psychique, de la personne ayant une obsession de beauté et de perfectionnement physique dans un domaine non curatif. C’est ainsi que nous avons abordé, dans la présente étude, les points spécifiques du traitement juridique du chirurgien esthétique, tant au regard de ses obligations que de sa responsabilité. Relativement aux obligations, la spécificité de la chirurgie esthétique exige tout d’abord un devoir d’information rigoureuse de la part du praticien afin d’aboutir à un consentement préalable éclairé du patient, ce qui suppose un devis écrit contenant tous les renseignements relatifs à l’intervention. Elle exige, d’autre part, un processus préalable en trois étapes […] Pour ce qui est de la responsabilité du chirurgien esthétique, elle est également spécifique, et ce sur les plans civil et pénal : Sur le plan civil, sa spécificité a poussé la jurisprudence française, qui a réalisé son approche du point de vue de la nature de l’obligation du chirurgien esthétique, à procéder à une démarche de « mutation » des règles applicables en droit commun dans une tentative de les adapter à la spécificité de l’intervention chirurgicale esthétique et de la responsabilité du praticien qui en découle. Cependant, la démarche jurisprudentielle était inadaptée à la spécificité de la chirurgie esthétique, et a entrainé une large confusion au sein de la jurisprudence et de la doctrine ; elle est donc critiquable. C’est ainsi que la présente étude propose un régime spécifique à la responsabilité civile du chirurgien esthétique à trois facettes : La détermination du cadre juridique de la responsabilité contractuelle du chirurgien esthétique liée à la spécificité du contrat de chirurgie esthétique ayant pour objet unique l’amélioration de morphologie et pour objectif la réalisation du résultat attendu qui a justifié l’intervention esthétique ; ainsi le chirurgien garantit le résultat esthétique de l’intervention. Le maintien de la responsabilité extracontractuelle en ce qui concerne les dommages qui surviennent à l’occasion de l’exécution de l’obligation contractuelle. L’institution d’un régime spécifique prenant en considération l’éventualité des dommages survenus en raison des aléas thérapeutiques et des risques exceptionnels, en envisageant un régime d’indemnisation automatique lié à des cas spécifiques qui se place en dehors du régime de la responsabilité civile. Quant à la responsabilité pénale du chirurgien esthétique, une incrimination spéciale et strictement adaptée à la nature de la chirurgie esthétique s’applique essentiellement dans trois circonstances : le remodelage sexuel, la publicité mensongère et l’expérimentation scientifique
The prominent place given to physical appearance in the current society qualified as the society of the “image”, has made cosmetic surgery, the most common surgical practice and claimed. This practice which was deemed illegal at one time and was then linked to the only therapeutic purposes has been recognized by the French courts following a change praetorian in 1936. The reasons supporting such a delay of recognition result from the specificity that distinguishes cosmetic surgery of the other surgical branches, it’s characterized by its very nature which is devoid of any curative purposes and is performed on a healthy person and its purpose is to achieve an improvement in the physical appearance and the morphology of the person concerned. This dual specificity also distinguishes cosmetic surgery from reconstructive and restorative surgeries. The specifications of cosmetic surgery required a special legal treatment of the cosmetic surgeon so it does not take advantage of the physical and mental fragility that has an obsession with beauty and physical development. Thus, we approached in this study the specific features of the legal treatment of the cosmetic surgeon in terms of obligations and responsibility.Regarding obligations, the specificity of cosmetic surgery requires a rigorous information obligation of the cosmetic surgeon to lead to a prior informed consent of the patient contained also on a written quotation. It requires a three-step process prior […] As for the cosmetic surgeon’s responsibility, it is also specific regarding its civil and criminal responsibilities : Specificity of its liability has led the French courts which made its approach towards the nature of the cosmetic surgeon’s obligation to conduct a process of «changing» the rules of common law in an attempt to adapt to specificity of cosmetic surgery and the resulting liability. However, the judicial process was not adapted to the specificity of cosmetic surgery, it led to a significantly wider confusion in the jurisprudence and doctrine, it is therefore questionable. Thus, we propose in this paper a specific regime for civil liability cosmetic surgeon three-sided : The contractual liability of the cosmetic surgeon linked to the specific contract cosmetic surgery that aims to improve morphology and has the objective of achieving the expected result which has justified the intervention. Thus, the cosmetic surgeon provides the aesthetic result of the intervention. Maintaining liability regarding damages that occur during the execution of the contractual obligation. The establishment of a special regime taking into account the case of damage due to therapeutic hazards and exceptional risks considering a compensation scheme automatically linked to specific cases that are placed outside the regime of civil liability. As to the criminal responsibility of the cosmetic surgeon, a special incrimination is strictly adapted to the nature of the surgery mainly applies in three situations : sexual remodeling, false advertising and scientific experimentation

Hepatitis C Virus (HCV) infects more than 170 million people worldwide but no vaccine is available yet. HCV entry may represent a promising target for therapies and is mediated by two envelope glycoproteins, E1 and E2, assembled as heterodimer onto the virus surface. However, how E1 and E2 dialog, structurally rearrange and act together during these steps remain poorly defined. In this work, we aimed to clarify the interrelation of E1E2 during virus entry, thus opening ways to potential new therapeutic strategies. We first investigated whether a strong genetic divergence between E1E2 heterodimers may highlight distinct functions. We observed that B-cell derived E1E2 were specialized for B-cell infection, suggesting that new functions can emerge from the E1E2 conformational plasticity. In a second approach, we identified a conserved dialog between E1 and the domain III of E2 that was critical for virus binding and fusion. Moreover, a computational model predicted a strong co-evolution between E1 and E2 as well as potential structural rearrangements, suggesting that HCV E2 is likely a fusion protein able to fold over via its domain III through the mediation of E1. Altogether, these different works highlight that E1 and E2 are involved in complex dialogs that regulate the heterodimer folding and functions, suggesting that E1E2 heterodimer is more likely a single functional protein entity than an association of two proteins with specific functions.

In Chapter One, a systematic literature review was conducted to analyze intervention studies that measured student- teacher relationships (STR). STR are important for all students (Burchinal, Peisner-Feinberg, Pianta, & Howes, 2002; Hughes, Luo, Kwok, & Loyd, 2008; Pianta & Stuhlman, 2004). Students who have positive relationships that include high levels of closeness with their teachers have better academic, behavioral, and social emotional outcomes (Mihalas, Morse, Allsopp, & McHatton, 2009; Roorda, Koomen, Spilt & Oort, 2011). In addition, students who have relationships with their teacher that are high in conflict are more likely to demonstrate negative behavior, social skills and academic achievement (Murray & Greenberg, 2001; Pianta & Stuhlman, 2004). Fourteen intervention studies were synthesized in this systematic literature review to identify strategies that can be used in the classroom to improve STR. Ten strategies were represented in two or more studies that had a positive impact on STR: (a) specific praise and positive feedback, (b) direct student intervention, (c) de-escalation by ignoring or redirecting, (d) increased one-to-one time, (e) helping students change their representational models, (f) adjusting the teachers representational models, (g) tangible reinforcement, (I) parent involvement, and (j) morning meetings. One intervention in Chapter One that improved STR was dialogue journaling (DJ). DJ is an ongoing, personal, and interactive written conversation between the teacher and student. Previous research suggests that DJ has the potential to help students and teachers improve their relationships as they develop a personal connection that is mutually respectful. DJ also has the potential to reduce students’ disruptive behavior, improve their interactions with the teacher, and enhance their writing skills. In Chapter Two, a multiple baseline across participants single-case design study was conducted to examine the relationship between DJ and disruptive behavior, teacher praise, writing length, writing quality, and STR with four middle school students with emotional and behavior disorders in a therapeutic school. Students responded to journal prompts or wrote to a topic of their choosing during baseline and maintenance. During intervention, students and teachers corresponded in writing through the dialogue journals. A functional relation was found between DJ and disruptive behavior, but not between DJ and teacher praise, STR or writing skills. However, there was an effect demonstrated between DJ and writing length for two students. In addition, three of the four students reported an increased perception of teacher-student relationships. Students and teachers expressed satisfaction with the intervention. Limitations and future directions are discussed.

L’étude d’un centre de soins énergétiques montréalais offrant un rituel de guérison révèle le besoin de composantes symboliques dans l’expérience de guérison. À partir de l’expérience rituelle et de la subjectivité des participants, mes objectifs seront de comprendre les raisons et les besoins d’une telle quête thérapeutique dans le contexte de la société québécoise. Dans cette perspective, je m’interroge sur la production de sens qui émane de représentations symboliques étrangères à la culture québécoise (chamanisme et alchimie) et ses répercussions sur l’expérience de guérison. Ces formes de subjectivités et d’actions thérapeutiques affirment une quête de sens face à la maladie que la communauté médicale ne peut soutenir. Dans cette quête de sens face à la maladie, le rituel du cercle de guérison s’impose comme une activité symbolique où le sujet, individuel ou collectif, met en scène son image, son identité et ses valeurs. Cet espace thérapeutique fournit une forme d’agentivité et un lieu pour remettre en question l’autorité médicale. J’examinerai donc le contexte et les raisons pour lesquels les gens se tournent vers ce type de soins, le symbolisme de la guérison et la place du rituel dans l’imaginaire des participants. En élucidant le contexte culturel et le sens que prend le rituel dans la vie des participants, je pourrai illustrer les opérations symboliques menant à la construction des expériences de guérison.
The study of an energetic cares center who is offering a healing ritual in Montreal reveals the need of symbolic components in the healing experience. Starting with ritual experiences as well as subjectivities of individuals, the aim of this presentation is to understand the needs and the meanings of such therapeutic itineraries in the context of contemporary Quebec. The growing popularity of alternative medicine such as neo-shamanic healing circle reveals the needs of symbolic components in the experience of healing. From this perspective, I’m questioning how these individuals can make sense of symbolic representations coming from different cultures (shamanism, alchemy). What are the meanings of the symbolic dialogue and his repercussion in the healing experiences? These forms of subjectivities and transformative actions affirm a meaning quest of illness that the biomedical community cannot provide. The ritual of healing circle is imposing himself has a symbolic activity allowing the subject to affirm his image, his identity and his values within an embodied transformative experience. This type of cares also provides a form of agentivity and a space to question the biomedical authority. I am going to examine the context in which people are turning to such care, the mechanism of transformation at work, as well as the role of the ritual in the imaginary of the participants. By shedding light on the cultural context and the meanings of the ritual for the participants, I will illustrate the symbolic operations leading to healing experiences.

Depuis la seconde moitié du 19e siècle, le paysage religieux guatémaltèque a subi d’importantes transformations. L’apparition et l’expansion phénoménale de nouveaux mouvements protestants ont entrainé une réorganisation progressive de l’espace religieux jusqu’alors homogène et déclenché l’affrontement idéologique de différents systèmes de croyances. Dans cette coexistence parfois tumultueuse, le chamanisme doit, à sa façon, lutter pour conserver une place de choix et éviter d’être relégué au passé. Par l’analyse de l’activité thérapeutique, ce mémoire vise la compréhension de la dynamique relationnelle chamanique/pentecôtiste. Le portrait du contexte religieux et l’historique des développements servent tout d’abord de base à l’étude des perceptions mutuelles entre chamanes, pasteurs et convertis. Cette dernière permet non seulement d’apporter un élément nouveau en se penchant sur la vision qu’ont développée curanderos et brujos à l’égard du pasteur pentecôtiste au sein du pluralisme médico-religieux guatémaltèque, mais permet également l’approfondissement et la compréhension de la perception dégradante et archaïsante de cette mouvance évangélique à l’égard des croyances ancestrales. Ce croisement des regards et l’observation des rituels curatifs respectifs m’amènent ainsi à considérer de près les prolongements entre ces deux univers à priori distincts alors que certaines continuations sur le plan thérapeutique sont perceptibles. L’enquête de terrain révèle finalement qu’en parallèle à ces opinions et concordances, des impacts négatifs sont engendrés sur les pratiques chamaniques, amenant les détenteurs du savoir traditionnel à opérer des modifications apparentes sur le plan de leurs propres pratiques rituelles et croyances en fonction du système de valeurs pentecôtiste.
Since the second half of the 19th century, the Guatemalan religious landscape has undergone important transformations. The advent and the exceptional expansion of new protestant movements have prompted the progressive reorganization of the religious space which was, until then, relatively homogenous and triggered ideological confrontations between the various belief systems. In this tumultuous coexistence, shamanism must struggle to preserve its pertinence and to avoid falling into oblivion. By analyzing the therapeutic activity, this thesis aims at elucidating the shamanic-pentecostal relational dynamic. The portrait of the religious context and the historical developments are used as a basis for the study of the mutual perceptions between shamans, pastors and converts. This approach allows us to shed some new light onto the curanderos and brujos’ perceptions of the pentecostal pastor within the guatemalan medico-religious pluralism. However, it also allows us to deepen our understanding of the degrading perception of ancestral beliefs within the pentecostal movement. These viewpoints and the observation of the respective curative rituals thus lead me to consider closely the connections existing between these two a priori distinct universes whereas certain continuations on the therapeutic level between the two belief systems can be perceived. The field investigation finally suggests that in parallel to these perceptions and similarities, the presence of the pentecostal movement have influenced shamanic practices, leading holders of traditional knowledge to operate apparent modifications into the plan of their own ritual practices, customs and beliefs according to the pentecostal system of values.
Desde la segunda mitad del siglo XIX, el paisaje religioso guatemalteco ha sufrido importantes transformaciones. La aparición y la extensión fenomenal de nuevos movimientos protestantes conllevaron una reorganización progresiva del espacio religioso hasta entonces homogéneo y han desencadenado la confrontación ideológica de distintos sistemas de creencias. En esta coexistencia, el chamanismo debe, a su manera, luchar para conservar un lugar destacado y evitar quedar relegado al pasado. Mediante el análisis de la actividad terapéutica, esta tesina se propone por objetivo comprender la dinámica de la relación entre el chamanismo y el pentecostalismo. El retrato del contexto religioso y la crónica de la evolución sirven en primer lugar de base al estudio de las percepciones mutuas entre chamanes, pastores y conversos. Este último permite no solamente aportar un nuevo elemento examinando la visión que desarrollaron curanderos y brujos respecto al pastor pentecostal en el seno del pluralismo médico-religioso guatemalteco, sino que también permite la profundización y la comprensión de la percepción arcaizante del evangelismo respecto a las creencias ancestrales. Este cruce de las miradas y la observación de los rituales curativos respectivos me llevan así a considerar de cerca las prolongaciones entre estos dos universos a priori distintos mientras que algunas continuaciones a nivel terapéutico son perceptibles. La investigación de campo revela finalmente que en paralelo a estas opiniones y concordancias, se generan impactos negativos sobre las prácticas chamánicas, llevando a los chamanes a realizar modificaciones aparentes en sus propias prácticas rituales y creencias en función del sistema de valores pentecostal.

Movement in Gestalt therapeutic intervention, using structured activities and free improvisations, is a successful alternative to punishing adolescents with disruptive behavioural tendencies in the classroom. An overview of the existing literature regarding the therapeutic value of movement in Gestalt therapeutic intervention for adolescents with disruptive behavioural tendencies is firstly presented. Various techniques supporting the adolescent in his quest to achieve equilibrium, ultimately improving his relationships with others and his environment, are described. A case study, involving eight adolescents with disruptive behavioural tendencies in group therapy follows, which indicates that movement in Gestalt therapy is an alternative to punishment. In the light hereof it is suggested that movement in Gestalt therapy could be implemented successfully in the formal school environment. This form of intervention can contribute to the adolescent's growth, his ability to communicate and his relationships with self, others and the environment, culminating in improved behavioural tendencies.
Social Work
M. Diac. (Play Therapy)

Extensive questions have been asked regarding the factors that influence psychotherapeutic effectiveness. Past research has addressed the methods, techniques, as well as the client and therapist variables which potentially influence psychotherapeutic effectiveness. The majority of the research indicates that the therapeutic relationship and other contextual variables exert the greatest influence on psychotherapy successes. This implicates the broader social context in psychotherapy processes. Language appears to be one of the primary contextual factors influencing psychotherapeutic processes and is also embedded in social discourse. Society dominant discourses appear to be based on deficit beliefs toward psychotherapy and emotional functioning. The more relevant issue concerning psychotherapeutic effectiveness therefore appears to be society's dominant discourses affecting the profession. Collaborative social discourses embracing psychology are seldom integrated into mainstream public discourse. A post-modern, ecosystemic perspective is applied to these concerns, proposing a collaborative approach to social discourse, psychotherapy and research. This utilizes reflective, multi-dimensional, respectful and nonjudgmental values, reflecting the shift in social paradigms from the Industrial Age to the Knowledge Age. This shift recognizes that cultural, social and language variables appear to have a greater impact on psychotherapeutic effectiveness than most therapeutic techniques or interventions. These discourses are explored and recommendations are made in an attempt to align psychotherapy with a shifting social paradigm. This alignment could enhance psychotherapeutic effectiveness and the general understanding of psychotherapy.
Psychology
D.Litt. et Phil. (Psychology)

Movement intervention in a Gestalt therapeutic setting using structured activities and free improvisation is a successful method in creating awareness of contact-making styles for late adolescents. An overview of the existing literature regarding the theoretical aspects of the interrelatedness of movement therapy, awareness, contact-making styles and the use of movement as a therapeutic intervention within a Gestalt context was presented. This included a description of the meta-theoretical assumptions that underpinned the research. A case-study consisting of eight late-adolescent females using the exploratory and descriptive nature within the qualitative research model was applied. All participants reported growth and awareness within themselves. The researcher concludes that movement intervention within a Gestalt therapeutic context can support an approach that adapts itself to the developmental phase of the individual and is a creative way of maintaining interest and focus.
Social Work
M. Diac. (Play Therapy)

This thesis examines the emerging intercultural dialogues around disability, performance dance and children in the multicultural context of KwaZulu-Natal. It focuses on creative dance (or modem educational dance), as it has emerged in KwaZulu-Natal schools post-1994. The intervention of the arts and a holistic approach to education is examined by appropriating Rudolf Laban (1948), Smith-Autard (1992) and other guiding principles for dance education. The thesis presents an analysis of how creative dance has come to influence notions of contemporary performance dance. This has provided a framework to argue in favour of dance making by untrained (sic) dance teachers and children with and without disabilities. The period under investigation post-1994 coincided with fundamental transformations within the South African cultural landscape, including the following: restructuring of performing arts council, the merging of former separate education departments and the strengthening of disability consciousness within human rights culture. These topics are briefly discussed. The transformation of the arts at The Playhouse Company in KwaZulu-Natal contributed to changes within dance development programmes. These dance development works addressed previously marginalized communities, including the disabled. The potential shifts to mainstream notions of performance dance by children with disabilities have provided an opportunity to theorise the practice of dance in special education and its relation to performance dance in the multicultural KwaZulu-Natal setting. Chapter one begins by firstly problematising disability, which it argues is an occurrence constructed by medical, social, political, historical, cultural and gender identities. Chapter one goes onto explore the changing concepts of dance for children with disabilities by offering a critique of existing notions of performance dance for children with disabilities. Distinctions between social dance. performance dance, dance therapy and educational dance are clarified and the practice of children's dance is contextualised. Chapter two argues that 'disability' within a context of multiculturalism in South Africa could be seen as a culture in and of itself. It does this by accessing the critical writings of Schechner (1991), Pavis (1992), Brustein (1991) and others. Definitions of 'culture' are problematised and the debates: high art vs culture, fusion, multi-, intra-, and inter-culturalism in the South African context are explored. Chapter three looks at three specific dance projects, which emanated from The Playhouse Company. The case studies explore how children between the ages of 8 - 18, who are defined as disabled, have engaged with dance and have had little or no interaction with the performing arts particularly as performers. It critiques and evaluates these projects in order to make conclusions around the following: the need for training of dancers and choreographers with disabilities and to underscore the role of the media in the disabled's plea for access to the performing arts. The idea of integrated 'enablers'(children and adults) with disabled children in the same performance dance work was innovative. Such inclusion and re-dress, as also expressed by The White Paper 6 on Special Education are supported by this thesis. Many children and their teachers have, through these creative movement and dance projects, begun to challenge notions of disability and of performance dance within the 'mainstream' performing dance environment as they emerge as potential artists in their own space. The thesis concludes by offering suggestions for how dance by those defined as 'disabled' is understood, critiqued and reported by reviewers and researchers of dance. It is hoped that these suggestions would strengthen the wider acceptance of notions of dance that emerge from a range of previously marginalised groups.
Thesis (M.A.)-University of Natal, Durban, 2001.