bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Religious Perspectives of Doctors, Nurses, Patients, and Families
Authors: Koenig Harold G. , Hover Margot , Bearon Lucille B. , Travis James L.
Published: May 2015

Reports the results of a survey examining religious denomination, belief in a higher power, church attendance, and religious coping among physicians (N=130), nurses (N=39), patients (N = 77), and families (N=60). Differences are noted and discussed. Notes that while a large proportion of patients and families found religion to be the most important factor enabling them to cope, only a small percentage of physicians felt that way. Observes that the results of this and other studies may indicate a gap in religious orientation between health care providers and patients and that such a gap could hinder the recognition of and proper care for spiritual needs in the hospital setting.
Clergy Burnout: A Self Psychology and Systems Perspective
Authors: Olsen David C. , Grosch William N.
Published: May 2015

Examines the underlying causes of clergy burnout and suggests that burnout may be an interaction of three factors: a narcissistic personality style on the part of clergy craving admiration and appreciation the demands of parish life, and the developmental needs of the clergy's own family. Attempts to understand the interaction of these three factors from the vantage points of self psychology and systems theory. Uses Kohut's description of narcissism to show how a narcissistic style interacts with issues in both the family system and in the congregational system of the pastor. Offers suggestions regarding prevention, including group work.
Racial and Gender Myths as key Factors in Pastoral Supervision
Authors: Robinson Eugene , Needham Miriam A.
Published: May 2015

Explores the various dynamics activated when a black male supervisor and a white female supervisee are part of a Clinical Pastoral Education team. Uses the notion of racial and gender myths as a way to understand such a relationship. Claims that it is exceedingly important to train culture and gender conscious supervisors and that such training can lead to significant racial and gender learnings having implications beyond the CPE context.
Breaking the Trance: Moving beyond the Straight, white, Middle-Class Male Script
Authors: Schurman Paul G.
Published: May 2015

Explores the creative roles men might play in a human liberation movement in which their privileged position will need to be modified. Sees pastoral counselors as “hope agents” who may faciliate the transition of men to new and different roles in which patriarchy will play less and less of a role in society. Details specific ways in which the loss of patriarchy can lead to a fresh and creative equality in which both men and women will experience new freedoms.
Affective and Congnitive Changes in First-Unit Clinical Pastoral Education Students
Authors: Vandecreek Larry , Valentino John
Published: May 2015

Reports the research findings of a study designed to answer two questions: What do Clinical Pastoral Education students learn? What changes result from the CPE experience? Presents statistical results of a test-retest design in which three paper-and-pencil instruments are employed. Discusses the results of the research and urges additional research.
Pastoral Counseling and the Informed Relationship
Authors: Rodgerson Thomas E.
Published: May 2015

Discusses the legal, ethical, and therapeutic advantages of the informed relationship. Guidelines for obtaining informed consent and a sample consent document are suggested.
Developing Models of Feminist Pastoral Counseling
Authors: Doehring Carrie
Published: May 2015

Proposes that feminist pastoral counseling brings into focus the patriarchal context which conditions much of life, including a great deal of traditional psychotherapeutic theory. Claims that empowerment and liberation ought to be the goals of pastoral counseling; and that the model of pastoral counseling proposed by Merle Jordan fits well a feminist perspective, one which treats seriously the unconscious dimensions of patriarchy—a patriarchy which has led to the violation of the sacred.
Empathy: A Bridge between
Authors: McCarthy Marie
Published: May 2015

Suggests that the capacity for a broad, rich, and encompassing empathy is an essential ingredient of an authentic intercultural experience and understanding for an effective ministry in a world church. Notes that empathy is a process as well as a disposition. Proposes that shared stories greatly enhance the possibility of empathy as do the realities of physical and psychic presence. Suggests that the theological notion of the Incarnation is a powerful metaphor for both the possibilities and the limits of empathy.
Pastoral Counseling in a Multicultural Context
Authors: Silva-Netto Benoni
Published: May 2015

Identifies some of the emerging issues in the practice and research of pastoral counseling within a multicultural context. Raises the question as to whether American pastoral counselors should advocate the preservation of a uniform cultural system or appreciate and understand the rich diversities present within society. Notes the negative aspects of the hermeneutics of suspicion and opts for the truly cosmopolitan counselor.
Spirituality and Psychotherapy: A Common Ground across Boundaries
Authors: Roy David E.
Published: May 2015

Identifies and defines certain concepts in the philosophy of Alfred North Whitehead and how these notions can provide a framework for the psychotherapist. Notes especially the implications of a process cosmology in doing psychotherapy and implies that the perspective can serve well all of psychotherapy, including cross-cultural counseling.
A Critical Analysis of Pastoral Counseling Across Cultures
Authors: Johanson Gregory J.
Published: May 2015

Summarizes and critiques David Augsburger's Pastoral Counseling Across Cultures. Expresses doubts regarding the possibility or desirability of intercultural counseling, suggesting instead that when possible more attention needs to be given to referral to culturally appropriate services. Notes that Westerners in other cultures might be advised to involve themselves in research, training, and consultation rather than in direct counseling services.
Different Voices, Different Genes: “Male and Female Created God Them”
Authors: Ashbrook James B.
Published: May 2015

Draws on a wide range of genetic, hormonal, and brain research to speculate regarding the sex-gender differences on such processes as experience, object-seeking behavior, psychosocial development, and meaning making. Notes possible implications for pastoral therapy and for the building of a future model of behavior which will be both fully human and truly Godlike.
Looking Back, Looking Ahead: Toward an Ecological-Systems Model for Pastoral Care and Counseling
Authors: Clinebell Howard
Published: May 2015

Identifies five paradigms which have been active in the development of the pastoral care and counseling movement and makes a plea for a sixth paradigm characterized by an ecological-systems form. Outlines ways in which pastoral care and counselor practitioners can implement an ecological-systems model in their work with those turning to them for assistance with life's problems.
Pastoral Research in a Hospital Setting: A Case Study
Authors: Hover Margot , Travis James L. , Koenig Harold C. , Bearson Lucille B.
Published: May 2015

Provides a summary of research procedures and outcome data of a utilization review of the pastoral services of a large university medical center. Notes particularly the value of such a project both in terms of concrete knowledge gained and in terms of serendipitous discoveries leading to further research.
Faith, Hope, and the “Urge to Merge” in Pastoral Ministry: Some Countertransference-Related Distortions of Relationship between Male Pastors and their Female Parishioners
Authors: Muse J. Steven
Published: May 2015

Explicates the nature, extent, and potential of countertransference developing as male pastors serve as caregivers to female parishioners. Provides a list of “warning signs” which can alert the pastor to inappropriate stances and offers recommendations for assisting caregivers to develop intimate relationships without sexualizing them.
Master's-Level Pastoral Counseling Training
Authors: Giblin Paul , Stark-Dykema Jay
Published: May 2015

Describes the rapid development and transformation of graduate training in pastoral counseling. Identifies and describes thirty-five Master's-level programs in terms of program variables, student demographics, theological and psychological curricula, support for personal formation, internship and supervision, and graduates' professional affiliation and employment. Notes that the findings reflect a surge of interest in spirituality and an evolving understanding of ministry, particularly lay ministry. Suggests recommendations for future research.
A Reconciling Approach to the Divorce Dilemma
Authors: Stanley-Stevens Christopher , Stanley-Stevens Leslie
Published: May 2015

Explores mediation as a relatively new and growing approach to the dilemma of divorce. Considers divorce mediation from historical, theological, and practical perspectives, and provides pastors and counselors with information for dealing with divorcing persons.
The Absent God: When Neglect Follows Sexual Violence
Authors: Doehring Carrie
Published: May 2015

Uses the experience and dreams of a woman who was sexually assaulted and then neglected to explore the intrapsychic forces of assault followed by neglect and family denial. Proposes a particular empathic stance as a therapeutic model for the healing and growth of such persons. Transposes this same model of empathy to the level of culture in order to allow a deeper understanding and a greater empowerment rooted in wider community relationships.
Assessment of Pastoral Needs among Medical Outpatients
Authors: VandeCreek Larry , Benes Susan , Nye Christina
Published: May 2015

Reports research findings on samples of hospital outpatients, hospital inpatients, and well persons from the community in an attempt to explore the content and extent of pastoral needs among medical/surgical outpatients. Analyzes and presents statistical data which lead to the conclusion that the spiritual needs of outpatients manifest greater similarity to healthy persons in the community than to hospital inpatients. Notes limitations of the study and discusses praxis implications for chaplains.
A Family Observed: Theological and Family Systems Perspectives on the Grief Experience
Authors: VanKatwyk Peter L.
Published: May 2015

Explores the grief experience in a family case study and proposes an integrative model of pastoral grief ministry in which personal grief reactions are attended to within the family context. Utilizes developmental/systemic perspectives to correlate the family grief experience with the process of family grief ministry, focusing especially on the pastoral task of facilitating the family in constructing a healing theory.
Doing Theology in a Clinical Setting
Authors: Nelson Randy A.
Published: May 2015

Explores the factors affecting theological reflection as manifested in Clinical Pastoral Education, notes the uniqueness of clinical settings in stimulating theological dialogue, and explicates some of the limitations of CPE as a place in which theological reflection takes place. Concludes that the full potential of CPE as a theological project can only be realized when there is more interaction between the theological educators whose primary home is in the seminaries and the agencies of the faith communities and those whose primary base is in the CPE movement.
“They Had to Beg Us to Pray”: Reflections on the Undesirability of Clinical Pastoral Education
Authors: Ahlskog Gary
Published: May 2015

Critiques certain assumptions and procedures of Clinical Pastoral Education and offers an alternative view designed to provide the pastoral caregiver with assessment and conceptual stances which would lead to an understanding of a client's situation. Claims that such an alternate understanding would allow power to religious texts and traditions as interventions leading to psychological stability and growth, whether or not such interventions match the client's manifest material or expectations.
Do Gender Issues Affect Clinical Pastoral Education Supervision?
Authors: VandeCreek Larry , Glockner Martha
Published: May 2015

Presents empirical data to support certain conclusions concerning the effects of gender issues upon Clinical Pastoral Education (CPE) supervision, including 1) that female students bond to their supervisors more strongly than male students, 2) that bonding style with father as a child is important in students reporting more than one unit of training, 3) that students' self-esteem, death anxiety, and depression influence their evaluation of the supervisory relationship, and 4) that female supervisors worked with students who possessed more self-esteem problems. Discussion of results, limitations of the research, and suggestions for future research are included.
Spiritual Formation and Motivation for Ministry as Measured by the Theological School Inventory
Authors: Hunt Richard A. , Hunt Joan A.
Published: May 2015

Observes that spiritual formation has been explored in relation to motivation for ministry, emotions, aspects of personality, and skills for Christian ministry by many authors across the ages. Notes that modern approaches to spiritual formation suggest the need for scales that are sensitive to the three major spiritual formation dimensions—reaching up to God, inward to oneself, and outward toward others. Demonstrates how the Theological School Inventory (TSI) scales are capable of measuring these dimensions. Concludes that the research reported, which includes data secured from 1230 seminarians, is capable of assisting in the future theoretical understanding of spiritual formation and may have practical consequences for the nurture of persons at various stages of life and career.
The Prevalence and Contributing Factors of Sexual Misconduct among Southern Baptist Pastors in Six Southern States
Authors: Seat Jeff T. , Trent James T. , Kim Jwa K.
Published: May 2015

Reports the results of a questionnaire survey designed to identify factors contributing to sexual misconduct of a sample of senior Southern Baptist pastors. Concludes that stress and sexual misconduct are significantly correlated and that pastors less confident in their training are more likely to engage in sexual misconduct than those confident in their training. Offers a list of guidelines for individual ministers to follow to reduce the likelihood of sexual misconduct taking place. Notes implications for pastoral care and for theological seminaries and judicatories in their efforts to confront the problem of sexual misconduct among clergy.
Chronic Mental Illness and the Family: Contexts for Pastoral Care
Authors: Govig Stewart D.
Published: May 2015

Details a personal encounter with a variety of systems designed to confront mental illness and explicates the limitations as well as the strengths of their interventions. Reports on a survey which indicates that persons caught up in severe mental illness desire clergy/congregational involvement but they also insist that quality care should coincide with contextual realities. Notes and applaudes four signs of healing and hope directed at meeting the growing challenges of long-term mental illness, particularly as it impacts families.
Brief Pastoral Counseling
Authors: Stone Howard W.
Published: May 2015

Introduces the major elements of brief pastoral counseling: establishing a brief counseling orientation and an emphathic relationship; a focus on specific problems; assessment of the problem; a search for exceptions; the establishment of limited goals; development of a plan; remaining active in the counseling; assignment of homework; and building on the counselee's strengths.
Five Group Dynamics in Team Ministry
Authors: Kelley Joseph T.
Published: May 2015

Considers how five dynamics which are characteristics of groups apply to a ministerial team. Focuses on the importance and structure of the team meeting, how a team goes through the stages of group formation and development, the influence of the family of origin and transference dynamics among the members of a team, the psychodynamics of projective identification and scapegoating, and the healing of a fractured team.
Swallowing the Shame: Pastoral Care Issues in Food Abuse
Authors: Bringle Mary Louise
Published: May 2015

Notes how women's experience and bodily experience–particularly the problems of food abuse–have been trivialized for centuries within Christian theology. Utilizes story, statistics, and personal strategies to address the issue, leading to a kind of wisdom which would include healthy eating free from debilitating shame.
A Woman Bleeding: Integrating Female Embodiment into Pastoral Theology and Practice
Authors: Kendrick Leslie Smith
Published: May 2015

Explores the connections between shame and secrecy historically associated with female embodiment, particularly evident in menstruation, and the liberating potential released when menstrual stories are able to break free from societal mandates of hiddenness. Claims that the dialogue about the uniqueness of female and male embodiment needs to take place in mixed groups if increased understanding of authentic humanness is to be achieved.
Pastoral Counseling of Women in a Context of Intense Oppression
Authors: Ruiz Brenda Consuelo
Published: May 2015

Details the transgenerational exposure to suffering experienced by women of Nicaragua and how their deep spirituality has provided them with an extraordinary capacity to live in the present and to work to overcome the massive catastrophies and injustices in their country.
Clergy Beliefs, Preparation, and Practice in Premarital Counseling
Authors: Jones Eric F. , Stahmann Robert F.
Published: May 2015

Reports data gathered from a national sample of clergy (N = 231) pertaining to their beliefs, practices, and training in premarital counseling (PMC). Notes that 94% of the clergy agreed that PMC should be required of all couples prior to marriage, and nearly 100% of the sample clergy provided PMC to couples they married. Points out that approximately 50% of clergy received no academic training in PMC, leaving 50% providing such services without having been trained in premarital counseling.
Pastoral Care for Infertile Couples
Authors: Devor Nancy Gieseler
Published: May 2015

Asserts that infertility is often a developmental faith crisis in the lives of individuals and couples requiring information and a knowledge of the grief process. Provides guidelines for the pastoral care and counseling of couples experiencing the realities of infertility.
The Birth of Evil—A Defamiliarization
Authors: Schellenberg Dennis H.
Published: May 2015

Evil is common, and most people who commit evil are asleep

Hannah Arendt

Don't be tempted by the shiny apple

Don't you eat of the bitter fruit

Hunger only for a taste of justice

Hunger only for a world of truth

'Cause all that you have is your soul

Tracy Chapman
Genres of Faith: God-Talk as Tragedy, Prayer, and Story
Authors: Allen J. Timothy
Published: May 2015

Provides examples of God-talk encountered during pastoral conversations and examines them under the categories of tragedy, prayer, and story. Explores each category in literary, biblical, and pastoral terms. Suggests how religious professionals can use the categories in their pastoral work.
No Sterile Field: The Role of Ethics in Pastoral Diagnosis
Authors: Denton Donald D.
Published: May 2015

Uses a theological case of a confessed war crime to explore the role of ethics and law in the practice of pastoral diagnosis. Illustrates the case by discussing it within the ethics of care, justice, prima facie duties, and current legal practice. Concludes with a discussion of how pastoral counselors may introduce ethical language into diagnosis and treatment planning in the current environment of care delivery.
Using INSPIRIT to Conduct Spiritual Assessments
Authors: VandeCreek Larry , Ayres Susan , Bassham Meredith
Published: May 2015

Notes that pastoral caregivers are increasingly interested in spiritual assessment of patients. Reports results when the Index of Core Spiritual Experiences (INSPIRIT) is used for assessment with medical and surgical outpatients as well as patient family members (N = 371). Reports subscales within the instrument, mean scores, and notes that 80% of all respondents reported at least one experience which they regarded as spiritual.
Has there been a Failure to Prepare and Support Parish-Based Clergy in their Role as Frontline Community Mental Health Workers: A Review
Authors: Weaver Andrew J.
Published: May 2015

Addresses the issue that parish-based clergy, functioning as frontline community mental health workers, often do so with inadequate training and limited support from the mental health community. Claims that although a clergyperson is as likely to have a severely mentally distressed person seek her or his assistance as is a mental health specialist, there is inadequate research on the function of clergy in the mental health network or the psychological dynamics of religion. Suggests that clergy can serve most effectively in the mental health network as skilled facilitators, identifying the needs of persons, and connecting them to a larger circle of specialized helpers. Argues that the mental health and religious communities share many common values and goals and need to work together more effectively for the best interest of those they are called to serve.
The Regroup Group: Career Exploration in a Church Setting
Authors: Nelson Stina C. , McWhirter J. Jeffries
Published: May 2015

Describes a church-related group-oriented program designed to help congregational members facing under-employment or unemployment deal with the psychosocial-spiritual issues related to loss of employment. Evaluative reports from program participants revealed many positive results.
When Pastors Divorce: A New Approach to Congregational Healing
Authors: Buxbaum Robert E.
Published: May 2015

Describes and explores in a systemic fashion the many nuances present when pastors divorce. Details three levels of intervention which might be used in providing counseling and education for divorcing pastors, the congregation, and others touched by the event.
The Intellectual Foundation of Pastoral Counseling: A Perspective on the Future of the Profession
Authors: Duffett Robert
Published: May 2015

Reflects on the intellectual nature of pastoral counseling, compares it with certain aspects of contemporary research in psychiatry and clinical psychology, and offers some observations regarding the uniqueness of pastoral counseling as a profession. Argues that pastoral counseling can offer a truly wholistic view of mental health if (1) its intellectual foundation is developed in theological perspective, (2) continues to integrate its theological dimension with clinical psychology and psychiatry, and (3) evaluates its applied research within the framework of the normative standards of mental health.
A Pastoral Response to Society's Polarization
Authors: Frazier Richard T.
Published: May 2015

Expresses a personal sadness over America society's current tendencies to polarize moral positions along extreme lines. Offers a pastoral response to such polarization tendencies by drawing upon prophetic traditions of both Judaism and Christianity. Offers some practical guidelines for pastoral caregivers, recognizing the inevitable ambiguities that accompany the search for God and for personal meaning within the complex realities and dynamics of a rapidly changing world.

Randall Terry [spokesman for the pro-life organization Operation Rescue]: “The bottom line is that killing children is not what America is all about. We are not here to destroy our offspring.”

Fay Wattleton [president of Planned Parenthood]: “Well, we are also not here to have the government use women's bodies as the instrument of the state, to force women into involuntary servitude—”

Randall Terry (laughing): “Oh come on Faye.”

Faye Wattleton: “I think that as Americans celebrate the Fourth of July, our independence, and when we reflect on our personal liberties, this is a very, very somber time, in which the courts have said that the most private aspects of our lives are now … not protected by the Bill of Rights and the Constitution. And I believe that that is a time for Americans to reflect on the need to return to the fundamentals, and the fundamentals of personal privacy are really the cornerstones upon which our democracy is built.”

Randall Terry: “I think that to assume or even suggest that the founding fathers of this country risked their lives and many of them died so that we can kill our offspring is pathetic.”
Encounter with the Spirits: An Adventure in Pastoral Care
Authors: Whitehead Claude W.
Published: May 2015

Reports an experience of responding to a call from a family troubled by unexplainable spiritual phenomena in their home. Details the rituals utilized within a context of pastoral concern for all involved in the unusual manifestations.
Storytelling and Pastoral Care
Authors: Eberhardt Tim
Published: May 2015

Notes parallels between storytelling and pastoral care and provides a theological rationale for the comparison. Describes four essential ingredients for the kind of skilled storytelling which leads to the evocation of emotion and to spiritual awareness and conviction.
Pushing against the Boundaries of Pastoral Care: Clinical Pastoral Education in Urban Ministry Settings
Authors: McWilliams Frances C.
Published: May 2015

Describes an alternative Clinical Pastoral Education (CPE) program rooted in an urban environment. Details the eight goals of the program and argues that traditional CPE can be enhanced by adding the foci of cross-cultural experiences, community-based work, and social analysis. Concludes that such a program addresses many of the contemporary issues of “soul and city.”
Minister as Midwife
Authors: Hanson Karen R.
Published: May 2015

Explores the notion of midwives and hospital chaplains being parallel professions, drawing on scripture, history, and personal experience to support the idea.
Pastoral Care of the Premature Baby
Authors: Purvis-Smith Terry A.
Published: May 2015

A chaplain shares his learning in his attempts to deliver meaningful pastoral care to premature babies in a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit of a hospital. Explicates some of the parallels between pastoral communication with adults and with babies, noting especially the necessity of recognizing the need for creative modification of adult modes of care.
The Applicability of Selected Rational-Emotive Therapy Principles for Pastoral Counseling
Authors: West Gordon F. , Reynolds JoLynne
Published: May 2015

Examines the compatibility and possibility of communication between pastoral counseling and Rational-Emotive Therapy (RET). Uses a Delphi technique to determine whether a randomly selected group of pastoral counselors (N=15) believe that the basic principles of RET can be used without surrendering theological tenets foundational to pastoral counseling. Concludes that some RET principles may be applicable for pastoral counseling.
“Hear a Just Cause, O Lord, Attend to My Cry”: Organ Donation and Pastoral Care
Authors: Gallagher Christine M.
Published: May 2015

Reports the findings of a survey of hospital chaplains, congregational clergy, and seminary students on the subject of organ donation. Points out the need for additional education and theological discussion focused on the donation of organs.
Healing through Differentiation: A Pastoral Care and Counseling Perspective
Authors: VanKatwyk Peter L.
Published: May 2015

Focuses on the function of healing as central to the cure-of-souls tradition of pastoral care and counseling and describes two prominent but contrary styles of healing in ministry. Proposes an interactional model of pastoral care which integrates the two healing styles of compassion and competence through the principle of differentiation, drawing from the perspective of constructivism as practiced in narrative therapy and the theory of natural systems as applied to the role of the pastor.
The Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD): The Pastoral Knowledge Explosion
Authors: Collie Robert M.
Published: May 2015

Notes that although the obsessive compuslive disorder (OCD) is rich in religious qualities, it has tended to be neglected by pastoral counselors as well as by the secular mental health community. Observes that current OCD studies throw light on some historic figures, including leaders in various religious traditions. Challenges the pastoral arts and sciences to rethink some basic theological and biblical understandings OCD from its perspective of neurological and biological inheritance, thus providing pastoral services fresh new opportunities and openings
Pastoral Counseling: An Alternative Path in Mental Health
Authors: Means J. Jeffrey
Published: May 2015

Claims that a strong professional identity is key to offering a healing presence and that pastoral counselors can use their dis-ease with conflicting paradigms and wave-trends in mental health care and the wider culture to maintain a professional identity rooted in the history of pastoral care and their respective theological and psychological worldviews. Identifies these wave-trends as the defensive use of language, the medicalization of normal human experience, the lack of interest in developmental perspectives on human life, and the overlooking and denial or internal mental processes of persons. Introduces the concept of pastoral counseling as cultural critique and points out implications of this for the direction of the profession of pastoral counseling.
Spiritual Direction and Pastoral Counseling: Addressing the Needs of the Spirit
Authors: Galindo Israel
Published: May 2015

Explicates the differences and similarities between pastoral counseling and spiritual direction and concludes that if pastoral counselors wish to include spiritual direction in their repertoire they need to consider a set of unique epistemological perspectives and a praxis stance often different from the traditional pastoral counseling role.
Religious Support from Parish Clergy for Hospitalized Parishioners: Availability, Evaluation, Implications
Authors: VandeCreek Larry , Gibson Stephanie
Published: May 2015

Reports the results of interviews with a random sample (N=500) of hospital patients responding to the following questions: What percentage of hospital patients consider themselves part of a church or synagogue? How many patients identify a specific parish clergy or some other source who could provide them pastoral support? How many patients received pastoral support during hospitalization from clergy or some other person, and by visit or phone call (excluding hospital chaplains)? How do hospital patients evaluate the helpfulness of these pastoral visits? Discusses the results of the survey, implications for pastoral caregivers, and suggests future research possibilities.
Euthanasia and Physician-Assisted Suicide: A Non-Consensus Reformed Reflection
Authors: Allman Richard L.
Published: May 2015

Argues against the growing acceptance of euthanasia in modern society. Offers both medical and theological reasons for affirming the dignity of the person, and claims that the church ought to take a firm stand against the “culture of death.”
The Incidence of the Obsessive Compulsive Disorder in North Indiana United Methodist Clergy
Authors: Collie Robert
Published: May 2015

Reports research designed to test the null hypothesis that the occurrence of the Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) among a clergy sample is not significantly different from that of the general population. Results raised substantial questions about the viability of the hypothesis as well as other issues identified in the research.
The Harvest is Plenty: A Guide for Visiting Outpatient Units
Authors: May Denise M. Giacomozzi
Published: May 2015

Alerts chaplains to the need to expand their traditional venue to encompass the needs of outpatients. Examines the typical outpatient's day and the dynamics of the waiting room. Suggests approaches for the chaplain to take to provide pastoral care in this setting. Utilizes the biblical themes of sowing, nurturing, and harvesting to describe ministry in the outpatient setting.
Theological Reflection in the Supervision of Pastoral Care
Authors: Long Bríd
Published: May 2015

Reviews some elements of group supervision in preparation for the ministry of pastoral care and suggests five steps in theologically processing a case study. Reflects on the Word of God as an interpretive resource to provide meaning to life experiences. Suggests four ways demonstrating how the habit of an interpretive approach and theological reflection can enrich the Christian community.
Gerontology, Spirituality, and Religion
Authors: Sorajjakool Siroj
Published: May 2015

Traces the development of religious gerontology, particularly as it has moved from its positivistic approach to its present phenomenological emphases. Opines that religion reframes reality and therefore tends to reduce suffering. Claims that to the extent one can reconcile one's self-definition with one's religious worldview, anxiety levels will be determined.
The Clergy and Art Therapy
Authors: Kae-Jé Bert
Published: May 2015

Defines the professional minister as subject to confining social attitudes and expectations. Posits clergy as good candidates for art therapy. Reports on a small pilot study that field tested a curriculum exploring the relationship between preaching and mental health and made use of several art activities. Uses results of this study to illustrate art therapy's potential to free clergy for authentic expression and to explore the potential and the problems posed by clergy as a target group for additional research.
Studying Pastoral Care in Congregations: A Hermeneutical Approach
Authors: Fowler Gene
Published: May 2015

Presents a new case model for studying pastoral care in the congregational setting. The model is developed in a critical dialogue with the older verbatim and makes use of contemporary hermeneutical theory. Includes an understanding of the case, the case writer, and what is needed for case writing.
Including the Ultimate: A Spiritual Focus Treatment Program in an Inpatient Psychiatric Area of a Hospital in Partnership with a Pastoral Counseling Center
Authors: Jensen Carl A. , Cozza Mary Anne , Flynn Susan , Karabin Joseph
Published: May 2015

Describes how an American Association of Pastoral Counselor (AAPC) accredited pastoral counseling center and a community medical center developed an inpatient psychiatric treatment program which integrated the spiritual/religious resources of patients. Outlines the process of collaboration, some basic principles of the integration of faith resources, the ways that staff resistance surfaced and substantially was overcome, and the positive responses of patients. Notes the decision to base treatment on the religious/spiritual position of patients (rather than of therapists), the role of the therapist in this model, and some relevant isomorphic replications.
The Unique Benefits of Religious Support during Cardiac Bypass Surgery
Authors: VandeCreek Larry , Pargament Kenneth , Belavich Timothy , Cowell Brenda , Friedel Lisa
Published: May 2015

Compares the self-reports of family members waiting during the cardiac artery grafting surgery of a loved one and explores whether they make distinctions between the contributions of nonreligious and religious support. Results from regression analyses suggests that the use of religious sources of, support was associated with both more positive religious and nonreligious psychosocial adjustment scores after the influences of nonreligious support were statistically removed. Notes that among the 13 religious support activities identified, family members reported using prayer most frequently. Concludes that using religious support sources to cope with this surgically related stress is associated with distinct subjective benefits beyond those contributed by nonreligious sources.
The Power of Valuing in Brief Pastoral Counseling
Authors: James Jan
Published: May 2015

Builds on the Christian faith's central tenet of the value of individuals to support the use of brief pastoral counseling, particularly by stressing the importance of recognizing the strengths of counselees and the treatment of them as experts.
An Interdisciplinary Approach to Integrative Professional Education
Authors: Smoot Fred L. , Yancey Valerie J. , Wagner Thomas J.
Published: May 2015

Reports on a professional formation course in integrative clinical learning for senior nursing students. Outlines the objectives and methods utilized in the course. Concludes that, given the characteristics and results of the course, vocational formation for ministry needs to include similar dimensions in designing educational curricula.
A Cowpoke Story for Clergy and Laity
Authors: Zerin Rabbi Edward , Zerin Marjory
Published: May 2015

Notes that the psychological phenomenon of “Constant Ego States” is a major stumbling block for both clergy and laity. Draws upon the theory and practice of Transactional Analysis to describe the nature of the Constant Parent, Child, and Adult Ego states and discusses their implications for the effective functioning of the minister, priest, and rabbi as well as affiliated and unaffiliated lay people.
Dealing with Cultural Diversity: A Hospital Chaplain Reflects on Gypsies and Other Such Diversity
Authors: Belgum David
Published: May 2015

Muses on the history and experiences of Gypsies and how they provide a dramatic example of cultural diversity. Suggests that cultural diversity can be lived with creatively and constructively and that pastoral caregivers have many opportunities to do just that.
Revisioning Christian Ethical Discourse on Homosexuality: A Challenge for Pastoral Care in the 21st Century
Authors: Griffin Horace L.
Published: May 2015

Argues that pastoral caregivers in the 21st century ought to rethink traditional attitudes on homosexuality as pastoral caregivers did in the 18th and 19th centuries regarding the institution of slavery. Points out the limitations of biblical hermeneutics traditionally used to support negative attitudes toward homosexuality and urges that a more open dialogue needs to take place in the next century. Draws on certain lesbian narratives and on narrative theology as ways to engage in an authentic dialogue regarding homosexuality.
Challenges of Faith: Transitional Objects, Faith, and Postmodernity
Authors: LaMothe Ryan
Published: May 2015

Examines sources and challenges of faith in postmodern society, utilizing a revised concept of transitional objects and H. R. Niebuhr's understanding of the dynamics of faith. Indicates that “transitional objects” and their associated rituals and narratives provide persons with a) a subjective and intersubjective sense of identity and continuity and b) an interpretive lens for recognizing and working through diverse contexts and meanings of trust and distrust and loyalty and disloyalty (a hermeneutics of faith). Claims that the characteristics of the postmodern situation undermine persons' beliefs in the transcendence, universality, and essentiality of their transitional objects, and that loss of confidence in religious “transitional objects” and their hermeneutics of faith reduces the safety and security of the intersubjective space that establishes and maintains subjective and intersubjective identity and continuity, thus contributing to experiences of alienation, shame, and isolation. Offers five types of faith responses representing the various ways people and groups handle religious transitional objects in a postmodern milieu.
The Family God Intends
Authors: Howe Leroy T.
Published: May 2015

Summarizes what the author considers the best visions of the family within a Christian framework. Claims that, given the many modern threats to the authentic family, ministry to family members continues to remain a vital center for all pastoral care.

…near the cross on which Jesus hung, his mother was standing with sister, Mary wife of Eleopas, and Mary of Magdala. Seeing his mother, with the disciple whom he loved standing beside her, Jesus said to her, “Mother, there is your son”; and to the disciples, “There is your mother”; and from that moment the disciple took her into his home.” ( John 19:25–27, REB)
Life and Death Matters: Toward a Sanctity of Death
Authors: Baroody Joe
Published: May 2015

Explores the theology behind the absolute nature of the Sanctity of Life Doctrine, and challenges the doctrine's rigid stance. Presents theological principles that support a sanctity of death ethic. Discusses a hypothetical case to demonstrate how those principles can impact pastoral care
Predicting Quality of Life in Caregivers of Alzheimer's Patients: The Role of Support from and Involvement with the Religious Community
Authors: Burgener Sandy C.
Published: May 2015

Examines the differences in caregivers of Alzheimer's patients and an age-matched comparison group on the variables of religious behavior; support and contact with the religious community; number of friends; quality of life; and well-being, and the relationship among these variables for predictors of the caregivers' quality of life. Findings included lower caregiver well-being, mental health, public religious behavior, satisfaction with church/synagogue support and contact, number of friends, support from and contact with friends, and quality of life indicators compared to comparison group subjects. Concludes that religious well-being and support from friends in the church/synagogue helps to explain a significant amount of the variance in the caregivers' well-being, health perceptions, mental health, and distress within the caregiving role.
Suffering and the Process of Transformation
Authors: Barrett Deborah A.
Published: May 2015

Explores elements of suffering and the process through which suffering can be transforming. Notes that although inexorable limitations may be placed in our paths, suffering tends to force persons back within themselves, into a place of utter forsakenness. Claims that it is in this place that we learn more about the limits of our humanness and come into a deeper, more conscious relationship with God, with ourselves and with others.
Promoting L2 Vocabulary Learning through Narrow Reading
Authors: Kang Eun Young
Published: May 2015

Krashen (2004) has advocated that narrow reading, i.e., reading a series of texts addressing one specific topic, is an effective method to grow vocabulary. While narrow reading has been championed to have many advantages for L2 vocabulary learning, there remains a relative dearth of empirical studies that test the impact of narrow reading on L2 learners’ lexical growth. The present study examines whether narrow reading results in L2 vocabulary learning. A total of 61 high intermediate learners read a series of texts either thematically related (narrow) or unrelated (wide) over one month. The findings showed that narrow reading considerably facilitated learners’ understanding of meanings of target words and their ability to appropriately use them. The narrow group’s responses to an exit questionnaire revealed several factors that could have accounted for this improvement in their vocabulary knowledge. Several implications for vocabulary teaching are discussed.
Creating Cosmopolitan Subjects: The Role of Families and Private Schools in England
Authors: Maxwell Claire , Aggleton Peter
Published: May 2015

This article examines the ways in which cosmopolitanism is imagined and planned for by 91 young women attending four private (elite) schools in one area of England. Despite many study participants coming from families where parents travelled internationally for business, few had a strong desire to reproduce such orientations in their own futures. Moreover, the elite schools attended placed relatively little emphasis on cosmopolitanism and transnationally mobile futures. For the few English young women doing the International Baccalaureate and/or actively considering higher education abroad, the decision to do so was driven by individual rather than family or social ambitions. Through our analysis we consider further whether cosmopolitanism is a form of (cultural) capital or a quality more embedded within the girls’ habitus. The relatively ambivalent attitude to cosmopolitanism found in the study schools ties in to an ethnocentrism which sees an ‘English education’ as among the most prestigious in the world.
A Job Announcement Analysis of Educational Technology Professional Positions
Authors: Kang YoungJu , Ritzhaupt Albert D.
Published: May 2015

The purpose of this research was to identify the competencies of an educational technologist via a job announcement analysis. Four hundred job announcements were collected from a variety of online job databases over a 5-month period. Following a systematic process of collection, documentation, and analysis, we derived over 150 knowledge, skill, and ability statements from the job announcements themselves based on a conceptual framework. We coded the frequency to which the competencies occurred in each announcement and summarized the results meaningfully in our article. Results suggest educational technologists must be competent in multiple areas, but especially in instructional design, project management, technical skills, and soft skills. Results provide compelling evidence that educational technology professionals must work with a wide variety of stakeholders in their work. The findings of our research are relevant to professionals, professional associations, and academic programs interested in competencies. A discussion for the results is provided.
Pedagogical Applications of Social Media in Business Education
Authors: Piotrowski Chris
Published: May 2015

There has been wide academic and research interest in the application of social media modalities, as pedagogical tools, in higher education. Recent research indicates that business-related topics are a major focus of study on this emerging educational issue. Yet a systematic review of outcome studies regarding instructional Web 2.0 adaptations in business education has not appeared. To chart, the contemporary landscape of scholarly research in this area, the current study (a) identified, based on a keyword search in the ProQuest database, the key empirically based studies on the business education-social media nexus and (b) summarized the major findings of a subset of these studies ( n = 11) with a focus on views of business students and faculty. The main social media tools used in instruction were Facebook, blogs, Twitter, and YouTube. Although a majority of studies reported positive attitudes by students regarding academic applications of Web 2.0 technologies, faculty views were more tepid and reserved. Transgression of “socializing” during academic interactivity, privacy issues, and data overload were the major drawbacks noted by students. Faculty were most concerned about the vast breadth of social media modalities and the lack of training support in emerging interactive-mobile technology. Future research needs to address the views of business school administrators on educational adaptation of Web 2.0 tools.
Examining the Effect of External Factors and Context-Dependent Beliefs of Teachers in the Use of ICT in Teaching
Authors: Salleh Sallimah , Laxman Kumar
Published: May 2015

Research into teachers' attitudes, beliefs, competence, and inhibitions in relation to their use of technology may provide answers to a series of questions from administrators that relate to teachers' classroom implementation of Information and Communication Technology. The theory of planned behavior is a useful model for providing a framework for predicting and explaining behaviors and a guideline for intervention purposes that would produce effective behavioral change. In this study, the elaborated theory of planned behavior model, Information and Communication Technology Use Model was used as a specific theoretical framework for the purpose of identifying factors that can be used for designing intervention or mounting professional development workshops for Information and Communication Technology implementation that will effectively induce change in teachers' behavior.