bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Coming together: A grounded theory study of the role of coaching in the mergers & acquisitions process
Authors: Thomas Heike , Passmore Jonathan
Published: January 2023

This study explores the impact of coaching during mergers & acquisitions (M&A) and is based on constructivist grounded theory. While M&As have been an important growth strategy for many decades, few M&As have achieved the desired outcome. Many M&As leave a trail of emotional destruction throughout the affected organisations, requiring years of recovery. This qualitative study focuses on the exploration of coaching as a tool to positively impact M&A outcomes. This study draws upon insights from a combination of literature review, and personal interviews conducted with experienced M&A experts, representing different industries and cultures. Leadership and culture are consistently mentioned as the most impactful themes. The study disclosed potential risks and limitations associated with coaching and provided sufficient evidence to reinforce the significance of contracting and defined metrics. Different coaching profiles and methodologies are illustrated to address the aspects of M&As.
Coaching vulnerable youths for positive change: A coaching relationship model for promoting adolescent interpersonal relationships with trusted adults
Authors: Choaibi Rachid , Lomas Tim
Published: January 2023

Objective:Despite the growing research in Coaching Psychology, there is little literature on the psychology of coaching adolescents within community settings. This study aimed to explore youth work practitioner experiences to gain insights into how vulnerable adolescents are supported in their emotional wellbeing within the domain of Coaching Psychology.

Methods:The study explored, through semi-structured interviews with 13 qualified youth practitioners how emotional wellbeing may be promoted in adolescents within existing positive development and Coaching Psychology theoretical frameworks.

Results:The findings, using Grounded Theory methods presents a Holding-Containing-Attunement Coaching Model that conceptualises the coaching relationship processes for promoting an authentic, communicative environment to enhance adolescent interpersonal relationships with trusted adults. The emotions-focused model informs a coaching relationship framework based on the environment provided by participants (holding), their way of being (containing) and perceived emotions-related outcomes (attunement).

Discussion:The Model forms the basis of a framework for promoting emotional wellbeing in adolescents and an emerging Emotional Attunement theory on the coaching relationship that can be further researched and used to coach positive adolescent development.

Conclusions:The findings of this study go some way to addressing the gap in current adolescent coaching research, and provides valuable insights into the understudied area of Coaching Psychology within community settings. The Holding-Containing-Attunement Model and Emotional Attunement theory makes a significant contribution to the discussion on the need for a dedicated theory on the coaching relationship.
An Indian neuropsychology adventure
Authors: Kapur Narinder
Published: January 2023

In February 2018, I attended three neuropsychology-related conferences in India, as well as engaging in other activities such as helping to promote Neuropsychology there and showcasing a multi-media Gandhi exhibit. Here, I recount my ‘Indian Neuropsychology Adventure’.
Implementing a paperlite service within neuropsychology settings: A practice example and clinical considerations
Authors: Teager Alistair J. , Twigg Jessica , Methley Abigail
Published: January 2023

The following article describes how a neuropsychology department implemented ‘paperlite’ working across its tertiary outpatient, inpatient neurorehabilitation, and community neurorehabilitation services. The article includes discussion regarding the process undertaken, along with clinical, practical, and ethical considerations, and reference to relevant NHS, professional, and publisher guidelines. Overall, the move to paperlite working was a success, leading to recommendations for practice in both the department and the wider profession.
Does telephone testing of long-term memory retention and forgetting influence performance in young and older adults? An examination using the Crimes Test
Authors: Allen Richard J , Kemp Stephen , Morson Suzannah , Wells Christine , Grindheim Katherine , Baddeley Alan D
Published: January 2023

Measuring memory over long delays requires multiple sessions, often administered remotely (e.g. by telephone) to maximise convenience and participant access. However, the efficacy of testing delayed memory via telephone has not previously been examined. We administered the Crimes Test to young and older adults, with a one-week delay test, either in person or over the telephone. Testing via telephone had no detrimental effect, indicating this to be an appropriate method of examining delayed episodic memory.
Voice assistants in neurorehabilitation
Authors: Kapur arinder , Watson Callum , Parmar Heena , Watts Amy
Published: January 2023

Voice assistants, such as Amazon Alexa and Google Home Hub, have potential applications across a spectrum of disability and rehabilitation settings, with the visually impaired and those with marked motor disability particularly likely to reap benefits. We review some of the evidenced and potential applications, as well as our own preliminary experience in an inpatient rehabilitation setting. We conclude that voice assistants are likely to make a significant contribution to the wellbeing of a number of patients with neuropsychological conditions.
Steven Kemp interviews Gus Baker
Authors: Kemp Steven
Published: January 2023

Professor Gus Baker has been employed as an Academic Clinician for more than 30 years. He has worked equally between the Walton Centre for Neurology and Neurosurgery and the Division of Neurosciences at the University of Liverpool. During his career he has received many accolades including the BPS Award for Distinguished Contribution to Practie, the DoN’s Barbara Wilson Award and the Lord Hastings Award from the charity Epilepsy Action. In 1998 he was made a Fellow of the BPS and in 1999 he was made an Ambassador for Epilepsy. He is the author of over 260 articles, chapter and books and has presented lectures and workshops in 53 countries. He is currently a vice president of Epilepsy Action and Joint Chair of the International Bureau for Epilepsy Research Commission. He serves on the International League Against Epilepsy Neuropsychology Task Force and is the DoN’s representative on the European Neuropsychology Task Force and the BPS Expert Witness Advisory Group. He is married and lives in the Cumbrian North Lakes.
Interview with Professor Anna Abraham
Authors: Kemp Steven
Published: January 2023

Anna Abraham is a professor in the School of Social Sciences at Leeds Beckett University. Steven Kemp, recently appointed at Leeds Beckett, caught up with Professor Abraham to find out about her research on the psychology and cognitive neuroscience of creativity.
Determining Local and National Need for Neuropsychology Services Using UK ROC Tools
Authors: Moffitt Jenna , Bowers Hester , Price Jason , Brechin Don , Turner-Stokes Lynne
Published: January 2023

This article has two aims. Firstly, to describe how UKROC tools (which are mandated for use in every specialist inpatient neurorehabilitation unit in England: Standard Contract for Specialist Rehabilitation, NHS England, 2013) can be used to assess the level of need for neuropsychological intervention. We identify patients with a neuropsychological need using items from the UKROC data set. The methods and rationale for item selection is outlined here. This could be replicated by neuropsychologists locally to plan adequate neuropsychology services or highlight unmet need. Secondly, we have used these methods to assess the need for neuropsychological services across England over the last five years, using national UKROC data (N=26,484 episodes of care). The results indicate 62–75 per cent per cent of case episodes in specialist neurorehabilitation units in England, between 2014 and 2019, could be classified as having a neuropsychological need. We conclude this provides evidence to suggest neuropsychologists should be adequately funded to provide a service to every specialist neurorehabilitation unit in the UK and should be considered an essential part of any specialist inpatient neurorehabilitation team. We discuss the importance of considering this level of need at the national policy level.
Interview with Professor Laura Goldstein
Authors: Kemp Steven
Published: January 2023

Laura Goldstein is one of the UK’s most eminent clinical neuropsychologists. She is Professor of Clinical Neuropsychology at the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience (IoPPN) at King’s College London and she works clinically in the South London & Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust’s Neuropsychiatry service. Laura has been heavily involved in neuropsychology training, having led the postgraduate diploma at the IoPPN (or IoP as it was then) for 16 years, and she is co-editor of the trusted text, Clinical Neuropsychology: A Practical Guide to Assessment and Management for Clinicians (Goldstein & McNeil, 2013), which likely graces many readers’ shelves. Her particular research interests relate to epilepsy and Motor Neuron Disease. She has held numerous major grants on these topics, with a suitably extensive array of publications resulting, and – more importantly – consequent advances in knowledge and improvements in patient care. Our resident interviewer, Professor Steven Kemp, was pleased to have the opportunity to discuss with Laura some of her most recent work.
Correspondence between MMSE and detailed neuropsychological testing in Parkinson’s disease
Authors: Foley Jennifer A. , Dore Charlotte , Cipolotti Lisa
Published: January 2023

Although the Mini-Mental Status Examination (MMSE) has long been criticised as being insufficiently sensitive to cognitive decline, it is still considered fundamental for the diagnosis of cognitive impairment in Parkinson’s disease, with many papers continuing to use this tool to characterise cognition. This study investigates how intact performance on the MMSE in Parkinson’s disease relates to performance on detailed neuropsychological testing, and how intact performance on individual MMSE subtests corresponds to performance on cognate neuropsychological tests. We examined the wider neuropsychological performance of 264 PD patients screened using the MMSE. 85.7 per cent of PD patients passing the MMSE demonstrated impairment upon detailed neuropsychological assessment, more frequently on non-MMSE domains (76.1 per cent) than MMSE domains (40.8 per cent). Furthermore, despite performing flawlessly on individual MMSE domains, up to 22.6 per cent failed cognate tests upon detailed neuropsychological testing. We conclude that the MMSE is inadequate for the accurate detection or characterisation of cognitive impairment in PD.
Suspected dementia, the eye and the ‘mind’s eye’: How primary care eye specialists could support early identification of Alzheimer’s Disease and its variants
Authors: Rowley Claire , Cook Julia
Published: January 2023

The current article outlines the nature of visuoperceptual deficits in Alzheimer’s Disease (AD) and its ‘atypical’ variants. Evidence to highlight that visual and visuoperceptual difficulties are common in dementias driven by Alzheimer’s-based pathology will be discussed. Following this, the ways in which early identification of visual and lower-level visuoperceptual symptoms of dementia may be facilitated within primary care optical health settings will be considered. It is hoped that this may inspire work to support opticians and optometrists to identify where timely signposting to dementia services may be beneficial for people with suspected dementia who are experiencing visuoperceptual deficits. This is particularly important given that visual and visuoperceptual deficits can be early signs of dementia and often have a significant impact on activities of daily living (e.g. dressing, increased falls risk, accidents whilst driving, difficulties navigating familiar environments; Tippett et al., 2019). An illustrative case example is provided, outlining how timely detection of suspected dementia could have enabled early provision of appropriate treatment and support to enhance quality of life (e.g. medication for symptom management, provision of cognitive strategies and functional aids; Armstrong & Kergoat, 2015).
A radical approach to providing support to adults with dyslexia and other specific learning difficulties
Authors: Goddard Alison , Carss Vicki
Published: January 2023

In November 2011, the National Endowment for Science, Technology and the Arts (NESTA) together with The Observer newspaper, set out to find examples of inspirational ideas that are improving the lives of individuals and communities across Britain. Amongst the 50 winners of the so-called New Radicals awards is Lexxic Ltd, a consultancy that provides specialist services for adults in the workplace affected by dyslexia, dyspraxia, dyscalculia, ADHD and other neurological differences. Lexxic’s services are aimed at unlocking the potential of adults with specific learning difficulties, raising awareness of dyslexia and other neurological differences within the workplace, and creating ‘dyslexia-friendly’ environments.
New Voices
Authors: Neale Laura
Published: January 2023

Welcome to the launch of this new section aiming to encourage young members of the Division to engage with us more by contributing to our publication.
Conference raises money for local charity
Authors: Taylor Jim
Published: January 2023

In line with the Conference theme ‘Investing in the Future’, we invited Brighton and Hove High School Sixth Form photography students to photograph delegates and speakers at the event.
New Voices
Authors: Neale Laura , Goate Robert
Published: January 2023

Welcome to the New Voices section, which aims to encourage new/young members of the Division to engage with us more through contributing to our Divisional publication.
DOP 2015 – a crowd–sourced article!
Authors: McGlynn Stephen
Published: January 2023

In his keynote address, Dr Tomas Chamorro-Premuzic highlighted the role of crowd-sourcing in occupational psychology practice. Data provided on social media can be aggregated to paint a greater picture – and that’s exactly what we’re going to attempt here. This is our first crowd-sourced conference review for OP Matters!
The design and delivery of Assessment Centres
Authors: Baron Helen
Published: January 2023

This article shares the title of a new standard launched by the Division at the conference.
Using ‘R’ in psychology research
Authors: Dunn Thomas
Published: January 2023

The following article is designed to bring to the attention of researchers the possibilities of using statistical software other than SPSS, which has become something of a convention in psychology. It will briefly highlight the considerable advantages of using R (Ihaka & Gentleman, 1996) as well as offer directions for pursuing a more comprehensive ‘R’ education.
The psychology of conspiracy theories blog
Authors: Brotherton Robert , Jolley Daniel , Thresher-Andrews Christopher , Wood Michael
Published: January 2023

Example blog posts from the postgraduate contributors.
The British Psychological Society Cognitive Section Annual Conference 2012
Authors: Rowell Nancy
Published: January 2023

Glasgow, 29–31 August.
2nd Junior Researcher Programme Conference
Authors: Nagels-Coune Laurien , Dalsklev Madeleine
Published: January 2023

Cambridge, Corpus Christi College, 14–15 August 2013.

Junior Researcher Programme by European Federation of Psychology Students

Association:www.efpsa.org/junior-researcher-programme/
The F-Word in Contemporary Women’s Writing
Authors: Wray Rebecca
Published: January 2023

Queen’s University Belfast, 4–5 April 2013
An overview of recent adaptations to Dialectical Behaviour Therapy
Authors: Knott Georgina , Pitfield Christy , Richardson Thomas
Published: January 2023

Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT) is a treatment model, developed by Marsha Linehan, incorporating Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), assertiveness training and Eastern meditative practices (Linehan, 1993). Originally formulated to reduce suicidality and deliberate self-harming behaviour in those diagnosed with Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD), it became the first empirically supported treatment for this complex clinical population (Linehan et al., 1991). Since first conceptualised, this treatment model has been adopted and adapted across diverse settings and populations. This article evolved from a need to evaluate the evidence base in order to ensure that the authors were promoting evidence-based practice within their clinical practice at an adult acute inpatient unit. Specifically, it was aimed to assist with reviewing the content of a current transdiagnostic ward-based ‘Living Skills’ group that was incorporating elements of the original DBT model.
Exploring the experiences of parents who have a child with autism spectrum disorder: The need for more father-focused, qualitative research
Authors: McKnight Jill
Published: January 2023

To date, a wealth of literature has been conducted exploring the experiences of parents who have a child with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). However, studies have been mainly quantitative in nature and have focused predominantly on mothers. This poses an issue because fathers can make important contributions to the development of their children with ASD and understanding their experiences may improve outcomes for both children and families. This brief overview of the literature highlights the need for future research to focus on exploring the lived experiences and perspectives of fathers who have a child with ASD using qualitative methods, as neglecting fathers in research and practice in this area is worrying and potentially detrimental.
A personal history of the Psych-Postgrads Mailing List
Authors: Miles Jeremy
Published: January 2023

A key way that PsyPAG touches the lives of psychology postgraduates is by the Psychology JISC-listhttps://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/cgi-bin/webadmin?A0=psych-postgrads. This provides a forum for research and statistical questions among postgraduate researchers. In this commemorative 30th anniversary special, creator of the JISC-listDr Jeremy Milesreflects on his experiences leading to the development and maintenance of this invaluable resource.
Schools-based research: Hints and tips for successful data collection in schools
Authors: Jayman Michelle , Rix Kate
Published: January 2023

Both primary and secondary schools are a popular site for postgraduate research, with projects possible across educational, clinical and health psychology. This can be incredibly enjoyable but challenging. This article discusses some personal insights, experiences and top tips for researchers collecting data in schools. We hope that this will be useful for you. Some additional resources you may want to look at are Christensen and James’ (2008) very useful book on conducting research with children and Midford, McBride and Farrington’s (2000) paper on retaining a large sample of schools.
The PhD journey: A guide to applying, starting and succeeding
Authors: Pennington Charlotte , Norris Emma
Published: January 2023

To postgraduates, a PhD may seem like an ideal opportunity to improve research skills prior to future work. However, the application process is a competitive and often challenging experience. This article seeks to de-mystify some of the common questions surrounding PhD applications and provide some hints and tips for potential applicants.
The role of a supervisor and the impact of supervisory change during your PhD
Authors: Wyn Griffiths Alys , Blakey Heather , Vardy Emma
Published: January 2023

The most influential aspect of a PhD is choosing a supervisor as this shapes your PhD experience, subject area and research methods. Maintaining an effective relationship with your supervisor is essential to successful doctoral training (Zhao, Golde & McCormick, 2007). However, as anyone doing a PhD knows, it’s not necessarily a smooth ride from start to finish. While it is unlikely that students start their journey anticipating a change in supervisory team, this can happen, and for a variety of reasons. We cover some of these reasons, and also how to manage the process of change, in the current article. This article aims to summarise the role of a supervisor, the importance of maintaining a good relationship with your supervisory team, as well as providing helpful advice on why a change in supervisory team may be required and how to manage this process.
Top tips on writing blogs
Authors: Griffiths Mark
Published: January 2023

Blogs can be a useful way to present your thoughts and start conversations on topical issues or research interests. This article provides some advice on how to start and make the most of blogging.
Editor’s Column: A Social Psychology Special Issue
Authors: Pennington Charlotte R.
Published: January 2023

‘Psychologists have a penchant for irrational exuberances, and whenever we discover something new we feel the need to discard everything old. Social psychology is the exception. We kept cognition alive during the behaviourist revolution that denied it, and we kept emotion alive during the cognitive revolution that ignored it […]. But psychological revolutions inevitably collapse under their own weight and psychologists start hunting for all the babies they tossed out with the bathwater. Social psychology is where they typically go to find them. So the challenge for social psychologists watching yet another revolution that promises to leave them in the dustbin of history is to remember that we’ve outlived every revolutionary who has ever pronounced us obsolete.’
The contributions of stereotype threat research to social psychology
Authors: Pennington Charlotte R.
Published: January 2023

Stereotype threat describes the experience of being viewed through the lens of a negative stereotype. This socialpsychological phenomenon demonstrates the deleterious effects that negative societal stereotypes can exert on performance. The current article provides a general overview of the past two decades of stereotype threat research, and highlights the generality of these effects across a diverse range of tasks and populations. This article also appraises critically the mechanisms that have been proposed to moderate and mediate stereotype threat effects, interventions developed to ameliorate it, and provides future avenues for research. This theory showcases the importance of recognising how our social world, and not inherent differences between groups, may underwrite social inequality. In addition to its contribution to the field of social psychology, this theory has far-reaching implications for schools and educational reform, particularly in reducing achievement gaps among minority groups.
Conference review: Appearance matters: Reducing the COST of appearance dissatisfaction
Authors: Sharratt Nicholas
Published: January 2023

Studying for a PhD requires learning new skills and building a body of research for a thesis. One way that can facilitate the achievement of these tasks is through a brief study visit to another institution. In this article, I outline some of the key points you need to know when thinking about organising a study visit, including advice and suggestions of how to start the process, how to fund the visit, and how to get started with networking. Here, I also include reflections and examples from my own visit. The core message of this article is to encourage other PhD students to visit the research environment of another institution.
The application of health psychology theory to hearing loss research
Authors: Heffernan Eithne
Published: January 2023

Hearing loss (HL) is a widespread condition that can impair daily functioning, including communication and social participation. The last decade has seen an increase in the utilisation of health psychology theory to investigate the health-related behaviours of individuals with HL. There has been particular interest in the issue of individuals with HL under-using or not using hearing aids. This discussion paper examines several key HL research studies that have employed health psychology theories and models, such as the health belief model and the theory of planned behaviour. The paper concludes by exploring avenues for future research in this field.
Individual Paper: The worries of junior high school pupils in Taiwan
Authors: Kyriacou Chris , Yang Chun-Fang
Published: January 2023

This study used a questionnaire to explore the worries of 120 junior high school pupils in Taiwan and the coping strategies they use to cope with such worries. The data indicate that about a quarter of the respondents find being a pupil very or extremely stressful. They are particularly worried about tests and examinations, whether they will be able to gain entry to a good senior high school, and whether they will get a good job in the future. The most frequent coping strategies reported involved a mix of strategies: emotion control, problem solving, and social support. The study provides further evidence of the high level of worry commonly experienced by secondary school aged pupils in many countries.
Can a music intervention improve timing processes in reading behaviour?
Authors: Long Marion
Published: January 2023

The aim of this preliminary exploration was to investigate whether any change in the reading behaviour of school children occurred following participation in a rhythm-based music intervention. This investigation, underpinned by hypothetical processes of ‘temporal regulation’ and ‘temporal integration’, involved the application of the rhythm-based music intervention as an entrainment activity. The methodology of this small scale investigation employed a mixed experimental design. The randomly selected participants were school children, nine to 10 years of age. Although the sample was small, an effect was found in gains in reading comprehension, for the children that participated in the rhythm-based music intervention. Medium effect sizes were also found for gains in rhythmic discrimination and reading accuracy. The main limitation of this research was that the sample was small and was drawn from only one school.
The role of the non-disabled researcher in researching disability
Authors: Sullivan Heather
Published: January 2023

What follows is an account of how I, a part-time doctoral student researching in the field of learning disability, am attempting to position myself and my work within a particular discourse, and how this problematises my role as researcher.

First I will outline my understanding of how different paradigms have particular models of disability and how they highlight different issues as to the role of the researcher in disability research. The debatably particular position of intellectual impairment within disability will be considered. I will scrutinise my own intended research and my role as a non-disabled researcher into disability. I will then examine the work of Hausstratter (2004) as a possible solution to the paradigmatic dilemma. Finally I will look at some studies where a combination of paradigms and methods have been adopted.
Books available for review:
Authors: Sutherland Peter , Gray Colette
Published: January 2023

The autism spectrum and further education Understanding research in early Years Education Studying childhood and early years education.
Individual differences and academic performances of British and Chinese university students
Authors: Zhang Meng , Noyes Jan M.
Published: January 2023

Students in Britain and China are culturally very different in their approaches to studying. This paper examines cognitive style and learning approaches in conjunction with academic performances of British and Chinese students. It was found that, in either group, wholists were superior to analytics, and that verbalisers performed better than imagers at examinations when 16-years-old. It is suggested that both wholist organisation and verbal representation of information are favoured by the nature of studying and examinations in the native language, mathematics, and science in two educational environments. Additionally, the British students preferred to choose the learning approaches that were consistent with their own cognitive style, and the Chinese students, in contrast, tended to choose the approaches that compensated for the limitations imposed by their own cognitive style.
Chronological age rather than language age determines four- and five-year-old children’s moral reasoning ability
Authors: Thomas Katherine , Miles Gareth E.
Published: January 2023

The Early Learning Goals state that children must understand what is right, what is wrong and why (Qualifications and Curriculum Authority, 2003). This study explores rule learning and moral development of children in the early years in order to understand whether there is a difference between knowing rules and understanding them and if this difference is a chronological age or language age based variation. Four- and five-year-old children were asked to identify and give moral-based responses to scenes in a series of picture cards displaying commonly enforced rules. The results demonstrated that chronological age was a significant predictor of moral reasoning suggesting important developmental changes in rule learning and morality within the early years. Although the children’s responses to the moral reasoning task were language based, a child’s language age did not predict their ability to morally reason.
Individual Paper: The role of social pedagogy and civic engagement in helping troubled 14-year-olds
Authors: Kyriacou Chris
Published: January 2023

This paper focuses on the role that can be played by social pedagogy and civic engagement as a means of supporting troubled 14-year-old pupils to sustain their engagement in school work over the crucial two-year period leading up to their GCSEs.
Special Edition paper: Talking methods in achievement goal research
Authors: Costa Laura da , Remedios Richard
Published: January 2023

In recent years, there has been a sense of methodological unrest in the field of achievement goal research, a prominent theory of achievement motivation. In particular, the predominant use of questionnaires in measuring students’ achievement goals has come under closer scrutiny. Potential methodological weaknesses have included researcher-imposed development and measurement of achievement goal constructs, respondents’ masked misunderstanding of questionnaire items, and a continued potential for demand characteristics. It has been suggested that some of these possible methodological weaknesses can be addressed using interview methods. This paper explores the extent to which using interviews may be able to overcome the challenges posed by questionnaires for measuring students’ goals for studying.
Annual Conference 2014 paper: Synthetic phonics vs. an eclectic approach to reading instruction: Implications for the skills predicting early reading acquisition and development
Authors: McGeown Sarah
Published: January 2023

A significant body of research has been carried out to investigate the reading related and cognitive skills which underpin children’s initial reading acquisition and development. However, very little research has considered how method of reading instruction may influence this process and have consequences for children’s word reading strategies and the skills supporting early reading success. In two longitudinal studies, the effects of reading instruction on the cognitive skills supporting initial reading development were examined. Results revealed that method of reading instruction influences the reading related and cognitive skills predicting children’s initial reading development. Implications for research and education are discussed.
Annual Conference 2014 paper: What does ‘quality’ learning, in later life, look like? An exploration into the views of later life learners concerning the quality of teaching and learning
Authors: Potter Alan
Published: January 2023

This article reports on the initial findings of a qualitative study seeking to capture the ‘voice’ of later life learners concerning what makes a ‘quality’ learning experience. In conjunction with a successful charitable organisation, the research explores how informal learning meets the needs of adult learners and how, in doing so, they reap the benefits of learning. The findings presented have arisen from focus group discussions, which is one element of a larger mixed-method study where the overarching aim is to investigate older adults’ perceptions of what factors contribute to the quality in their learning experiences. This is set firmly within an interpretive framework where the thoughts and feelings of such learners have been acquired and valued in identifying what makes ‘quality’ learning. There is no strict definition of ‘quality’ but the study provides evidence of the learning characteristics learners expect to be present to constitute effective learning rather than simple entertainment. The conclusions being reached have enormous implications for how we enable learning in later life so it is of the quality that will make a positive difference to both the mental functioning and wellbeing of all those taking part.
Original article: Developing psychological services at a Pupil Referral Unit
Authors: Bruder Corinna , Spensley Jane
Published: January 2023

A small-scale evaluation of an innovation demonstrated that basing a clinical psychologist at a Pupil Referral Unit can significantly increase engagement of vulnerable young people and shape teaching staff’s understanding of their complex difficulties. This article describes the service and its outcomes alongside some reflections.
Student teachers’ perceptions of cyberbullying in schools
Authors: Kyriacou Chris , Issitt John
Published: January 2023

Objectives

This study aimed to explore the perceptions of student teachers regarding cyberbullying in schools of pupils by other pupils. Despite the growth of research on cyberbullying in schools and the development of practice in schools to deal with cyberbullying, our understanding of this phenomenon still needs to address more clearly the complexities involved.

Design

Student teachers are largely in their early 20s and are of an age to have been through the school system as pupils at a time when cyberbullying was becoming common and widespread, and will themselves soon be dealing with cyberbullying in schools as newly appointed teachers. The design of this study comprised a questionnaire survey of the views held by student teachers to inform our understanding of cyberbullying in schools and how best to deal with it.

Methods

The questionnaire explored the views of 97 student teachers regarding the motives that underpin cyberbullying and the strategies that could help reduce cyberbullying, together with a final open-ended question seeking the student teachers’ wider views.

Results

A quantitative analysis of their responses to the 20 rating-scale items and a qualitative analysis of their responses to the open-ended question, indicated that these student teachers viewed the main motive for cyberbullying as the cyberbully enjoying the exercise of power, and that the most effective strategy to reduce cyberbullying was to include cyberbullying in lessons on e-safety.

Conclusions

The views held by student teachers on cyberbullying reported here have important implications for school practice, teacher education and the professional development needs of newly appointed teachers.
Adolescent engagement in psychological research
Authors: Brewer Gayle , Qualter Pamela , Rashid Iqra
Published: January 2023

Relatively few studies recruit adolescent samples and there is a paucity of information relating to adolescent experiences of psychological research. Those researchers investigating adolescent participation have often focused on issues such as adolescent capacity to provide informed consent. However, positive outcomes such as increased scientific literacy may also arise when participants engage in psychological research. The current study investigates adolescent experiences of psychological research in order to improve current practice. Focus groups were conducted with adolescents (N = 87) aged 12–16 years, following participation in a series of psychological studies. Analyses revealed four themes: autonomy, information, learning and variation. Findings highlight those issues of importance to adolescent participants and suggest areas of potential future research.
A brief report on the use of educational technology with autistic pupils
Authors: Laurie Maggi , Manches Andrew , Fletcher-Watson Sue
Published: January 2023

The development of new technologies for autistic children is outpacing the creation of research evidence for their efficacy. As a result commercially available technologies that are used in practice often have received limited quality research evaluations. If research is to inform the real-world use of technology for user benefit, it must examine which technologies practitioners use, and how they use them. The survey reported here addresses this challenge by aiming to characterise technologies used in autism education. Tablets, computers and smart whiteboards were the most popular devices reported, but newer technological devices such as robots and tangibles were highly used when they were available. Technology was most commonly used to support learning, engagement and communication with autistic pupils. These results suggest that future research into getting the most benefit from current resources would be useful to practitioners, as well as evaluations of emerging newer technologies such as tangibles and robotics.
Improving wellbeing for pupils in early secondary education with Pyramid Club: A qualitative study investigating behaviour change drivers
Authors: Jayman Michelle , Ohl Maddie , Fox Pauline
Published: January 2023

Background:Children’s and young people’s emotional wellbeing is in decline and models of good practice are needed to help schools address the needs of vulnerable pupils. Effectiveness studies have provided empirical evidence for school-based socio-emotional interventions but few examine process issues to explain procedures and mechanisms underlying behavioural change.Aims:This paper explores behaviour change drivers elicited from a qualitative study of the Pyramid Club socio-emotional intervention; to gain an understanding of underlying processes and, thereby, determine the factors that contribute to behaviour change in programme recipients. Behaviour change drivers represents one of five global themes yielded from the complete dataset.Participants:Participants comprised a total of 65 young people aged 11–14 years (24 males; 41 females) who had attended one of eight Pyramid clubs at their respective school and 23 club leaders who had helped to run a club.Methods:Focus groups (in each school) were used to collect data from participants; groups for Pyramid attendees and club leaders were run separately. Data were thematically analysed jointly.Findings:Behaviour change drivers were organised into two thematic categories: Behaviour change procedures, which comprise contextual elements favourable to programme effectiveness and Behaviour change techniques, specific mechanisms prompting behaviour change.Conclusion:Findings extend Pyramid Club’s existing evidence base and can be used to better inform decision-makers in schools making implementation choices. More qualitative studies are needed to augment findings from effectiveness studies and to enable future programme development.
How do teachers communicate to students about forthcoming GCSE exams? An observational study
Authors: Wilkinson Hannah M. , Putwain David W. , Mallaburn Andrea
Published: January 2023

High-Stakes exams, such as the General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE), have significant consequences for students and educators, which affects how teachers communicate to students about these exams. This study aimed to explore communications about exams, in the classroom. Observations were conducted within 30 lessons in a secondary school in the North West of England. Thematic analysis of the data produced four higher order themes: instructional practices, grade point, direction of message, and efficacy appeals. The analysis suggests that teachers may use communications about exams for a variety of different purposes, including: motivating students to revise for their exams, controlling in-class behaviour, and providing guidance to students about preparing for their exams.
Teaching roots and affixes potentially improves reading comprehension with primary students
Authors: Ownby Kathryn
Published: January 2023

Based on the growing support that relates reading comprehension with morphological awareness, a short intervention was designed and piloted to see if instruction in morphological analysis could improve reading comprehension or vocabulary with primary school students. The intervention was piloted with a small group focusing on preand post-test measures. While there were increases in participants’ reading comprehension and receptive vocabulary size post intervention, they are viewed with caution due to small sample size. This demonstrates potential for morphological analysis intervention to improve reading comprehension and receptive vocabulary with primary school students.
Examining the contribution of motivation, adaptability, and buoyancy to course satisfaction and test anxiety among university students
Authors: Zong Yanyan , Holliman Andrew , Waldeck Daniel , Abbott Nicola
Published: January 2023

Individual differences in adaptability, buoyancy, and motivation – each of which are associated with regulatory processes – are theorised to influence course satisfaction and test anxiety among student populations; however, the unique contribution of each has yet to be examined. The present study recruited 156 undergraduate students who completed an online survey measuring adaptability, buoyancy, and motivation (predictor variables), along with their course satisfaction and test anxiety (outcome variables). The results showed that both motivation and adaptability were significant predictors of course satisfaction but not test anxiety, while academic buoyancy significantly predicted test anxiety but not course satisfaction. The findings may inform educators about the importance of supporting students’ self-determined motivation, academic buoyancy, and adaptability, to improve their learning experiences.
Broaden and Build? Examining student teachers’ understanding of teacher collaboration
Authors: Harvey Deirdre , Lehane Louise , Mohan Kate
Published: January 2023

Teacher collaboration is widely endorsed across the teacher continuum, including student teachers, due to its positive impact on teachers’ professional practice, knowledge and support, and learner outcomes. Notably, one’s definition of teacher collaboration informs beliefs and engagement in the process. Yet, little attention has been given to student teachers in this regard. Employing Broaden-and-Build theory (BBT; Fredrickson, 2004), this case study examines student teachers’ understanding and the perceived impacts they align to the teacher collaboration. 119 student teachers in one Initial Teacher Education (ITE) institution, in the Republic of Ireland completed a researcher-designed questionnaire seeking their definition of teacher collaboration and aligned impacts they afford to the process. Thematic analysis revealed participants’ understandings of collaboration included working together, sharing and a school-wide activity. Participants were positively disposed to collaboration, with enhanced intellectual, social and emotional resources attributed to collaborators. Inhibitory factors, such as lack of understanding, limited time and problematic working relationships were also identified as restricting collaborative opportunities and by extension associated gains. Discussion of the findings and their support of BBT are presented, as well as future research emanating from this study considered.
The language of resistance in a counselling group: Dynamics of authority and power
Authors: Kit Phey Ling , Wong Shyh Shin , D’Rozario Vilma , Bacsal Rhodas Myra
Published: January 2023

This study presents a qualitative exploration and analysis of the experiences of eight trainee group counsellors from Singapore, Malaysia, China and Japan, in an in-class face-to-face and online support group. The study sought to understand how participants co-constructed their experiences of the critical incident of resistance, which they had identified as significant in their post-group reflection papers. Conversation Analysis was used to analyse all session transcripts During the analytical process, it was found that two co-facilitators and one member had used interactional features such as the turn allocation process, conversational practices, declarations and prescriptions, to create and implement their authority and power in influencing the other group members in ways which were considered judgemental, disempowering and offensive by one member, who in turn became increasingly resistant.
What happens to psychological depth in brief-term therapy with trainee integrative therapists?
Authors: Evans Magda
Published: January 2023

Aim:A qualitative research project to explore how clients experienced their short-term therapy and the therapeutic relationship with trainee integrative practitioners; focusing on capturing clients’ unarticulated thoughts, feelings, transferences and interactions (i.e. psychological depth).

Method:IPA was chosen as it looks for em bodied, experiential meanings and uses a systematic analysis to examine in detail how individuals make sense of a phenomenon. Face-to-face semi-structured interviews were conducted individually with clients who had recently ended their therapy at a low-cost counselling agency. An ‘object-tray’ of miniature objects was used in each interview to facilitate access to clients’ intrapsychic processes and metaphorical thinking.

Findings:Clients entered therapy with wide-ranging fears and doubts that linked to negative, defensive and resistant behaviour, however, if they overcame their fears their commitment and collaboration in therapy increased. Findings also illustrate how clients reflected upon their therapy and therapeutic relationships. Three superordinate themes emerged: Therapy as dangerous; Feeling safe and understood; Journeying together for personal discovery and change.

Implications:The impact of this study could influence assessment procedures, counselling services, therapeutic practice and trainings by helping assessors and therapists develop their skills in addressing client fears and aid understanding of the underlying reasons for drop-outs. This study emphasises the need for therapists to surface and attend to client fears and to obtain client feedback both early on and continually throughout the course of therapy and for therapists to work collaboratively according to clients’ needs and wants.
The (almost) irresistible tendency to de-humanise human practices — and how to re-humanise them again
Authors: Shotter John
Published: January 2023

‘…the mass dehumanisation which characterises our time, the simplification of sensibility, homogenisation of experience, attenuation of the capacity for experience [currently at work in our societies] continues apace. Of all fields in the community of scholarship, it should be psychology which combats this trend. Instead, we have played no small role in augmenting and supporting it.’

(Koch, 1964, p.37)

‘The typical distinguishing marks of [this] kind of thinking [is that it is] focused on a ready-made and, so to speak, arrested individual… Characteristically, what undergoes systematisation is usually (if not exclusively) someone else’s thought. True creators – the initiators of new ideological trends — are never formalistic systematisers. Systematisation comes upon the scene during an age which feels itself in command of a ready-made and handed-down body of authoritative thought… Orientation in the dynamic flow of generative process can never be of the formal, systematising kind.’

(Voloshinov, 1986, p.78)