Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Sexuality, Esoteric Energies, And The Subtleties Of Transmutation Versus Transformation, Barnaby B. Barratt

International Journal of Transpersonal Studies Advance Publication Archive

Transpersonal perspectives on the meaningfulness of being human, and especially the significance of subtle energy teachings, necessitate a rethinking of the notion of sexuality, beyond definitions in terms of sex acts, biological endowments, or perhaps even the complex fantasia of desire. This redefining of the erotic dimension of human life leads both to appreciation of healing as inherently sexual and to understanding how the processes of transmutation by the forces of subtle energies profoundly differ from the transformations that representation of thoughts, feelings, and wishes may undergo. Cognitive access (including that of reflective selfconsciousness) to these forces is inevitably limited …

The Religious And Philosophical Characteristics In A Consensually Nonmonogamous Sample, Akhila E. A. Kolesar, Seth T. Pardo

International Journal of Transpersonal Studies Advance Publication Archive

Consensual nonmonogamy refers to the variety of ways people partner romantically and/or sexually with multiple others. This study examined the spiritual identities of people who self-identify as consensually and openly partnered with more than one person, as well as if and how these identities changed since childhood. Moreover, to deepen previous transpersonal research that investigated how nonmonogamous paradigms of loving contribute to spiritual development, the study also examined between group differences of whether nonmonogamous sexual behavior and spirituality are emotionally linked. Data were gathered from 484 participants; they were mostly college-educated, Caucasian, bisexual women in their 30s, who were raised …

Toward A New Theory Of Gender Transcendence: Insights From A Qualitative Study Of Gendered Self-Concept And Self-Expression In A Sample Of Individuals Assigned Female At Birth, Seth T. Pardo

International Journal of Transpersonal Studies Advance Publication Archive

Sex and gender are two concepts that are often conflated in popular culture. However, those who experience dissonance between their assigned sex and gender identity intimately understand the difference between sex, a biologicallybased distinction, and gender, a confluence of social and behavioral factors that contribute to understanding who one is as well as how one is seen by others. The gendered self-understanding and self-expression of 170 North Americans who selfidentified as gender nonconforming and who were assigned female at birth were explored using a transpersonal lens and thematic analysis. Data suggested a range and variety of gendered self-concepts that aligned …

The Path To Enlightenment Of Sacred Married Home Life: Grihasthya Dharma As A Guiding Ideal For The Transpersonal Marriage Therapist, Stuart Sovatsky

International Journal of Transpersonal Studies Advance Publication Archive

This paper attempts to correct the unwitting reliance of much transpersonal psychology upon Indian texts that were indigenously specific to sannyasins (nonhouseholder, monastics). This includes teachings from advaita vedanta, yoga, and many Buddhist schools on releasement from desire, the diminishing role of the ego, guardedness toward “the mellow-drama” of “worldly” life (as Ram Dass famously cast relational involvements). Some forty years of the unwitting over-application of such teachings to modern non-monastic lives has helped create an artificial split in transpersonal and East-West spirituality teachings involving “engaged/ embodied” and implied “un-engaged/un-embodied” spiritual paths. This article describes the value system and lifelong …

From Romantic Jealousy To Sympathetic Joy: Monogamy, Polyamory, And Beyond, Jorge N. Ferrer

International Journal of Transpersonal Studies Advance Publication Archive

This paper explores how the extension of contemplative qualities to intimate relationships can transform human sexual/emotional responses and relationship choices. The paper reviews contemporary findings from the field of evolutionary psychology on the twin origins of jealousy and monogamy, argues for the possibility to transform jealousy into sympathetic joy (or compersion), addresses the common objections against polyamory (or nonmonogamy), and challenges the culturally prevalent belief that the only spiritually correct sexual options are either celibacy or (lifelong or serial) monogamy. To conclude, it is suggested that the cultivation of sympathetic joy in intimate bonds can pave the way to overcome …

Intimations Of A Spiritual New Age: Iii. Martin Heidegger’S Phenomenology Of Numinous/Being Experience And The “Other Beginning” Of A Futural Planetary Spirituality, Harry T. Hunt

International Journal of Transpersonal Studies Advance Publication Archive

The phenomenology of numinous or Being-experience in the later Heidegger is the focus in this third in a series of papers on a group of independent figures— also including Jung, Reich, Toynbee, Teilhard de Chardin, and Simone Weil—who beginning in the crisis years of the 1930s envisioned versions of a futural “New Age” spirituality to address a globalizing materialism and its disenchantments—and so also creating a context for much of contemporary transpersonal and consciousness studies. A preliminary consideration of Heidegger in the contexts of transpersonal psychology, religious studies, the macro-histories of Toynbee and Sorokin, James on “pure experience,” and spirituality …

The Castrated Gods And Their Castration Cults: Revenge, Punishment, And Spiritual Supremacy, Jenny Wade

International Journal of Transpersonal Studies Advance Publication Archive

Voluntary castration has existed as a religious practice up to the present day, openly in India and secretively in other parts of the world. Gods in a number of different cultures were castrated, a mutilation that paradoxically tended to increase rather than diminish their powers. This cross-cultural examination of the eunuch gods examines the meaning associated with divine emasculation in Egypt, Asia Minor, Greece, the Roman Empire, India, and northern Europe to the degree that these meanings can be read from the wording of myths, early accounts, and the castration cults for some of these gods. Three distinct patterns of …

Assessing The Effectiveness Of Core-Shamanism On A Group Of Westerners: A Brief Research Report, Joanic Masson

International Journal of Transpersonal Studies Advance Publication Archive

A study was conducted on Western adults who participated in a group undergoing initiation into therapeutic shamanism. It investigated how shamanic work could be a factor triggering changes in persons who never had been previously immersed in such a tradition. Five groups, each composed of six people for a total of 30 participants, met eight times over a period of four months. Analyzing questions asked of the 27 who completed the program resulted in the following identified themes: experiences of the group, trust in the shamanic practitioner, raised awareness of their feeling states, experiences of the shamanic journeys, understanding of …

Promoting Spiritual Wellness On A College Campus Through Community Based Participatory Research, Regina Idoate, Melissa Tibbits, Mark Gilbert, Michele Marie Desmarais, Christopher Fisher, Alicia Bower, Daniel J. Shipp, Joe Kaminski

International Journal of Transpersonal Studies Advance Publication Archive

This case study describes an initiative to promote spiritual wellness on a public state college campus and demonstrates evidence of the effectiveness of taking a community-based approach. We employed the community readiness model to develop an initiative to promote spiritual wellness in a Midwestern state university. We recruited informants through purposeful sampling and conducted interviews, both pre- and post-initiative launch. Baseline data was used to inform initiative efforts. The community’s level of readiness to promote spiritual wellness increased from stage three, vague awareness, at baseline to stage six, initiation, at follow up. Although these findings are specific to our community, …

Somatics Research Bibliography: A Working Tool For Somatics And Somatic Psychology, Eleanor Criswell Hanna

International Journal of Transpersonal Studies Advance Publication Archive

Many years ago when Somatics magazine was young, it occurred to me that it would be valuable to collect and publish research article references in Somatics magazine that were relevant to the different somatics disciplines to encourage the development of the field. There were next to no studies devoted to Somatics itself, but there were many studies devoted to the elements of somatic practices. Somatics is a multidisciplinary field. It builds on the research findings from many fields, such as anatomy, physiology, neurophysiology, psychology, dance, biomechanics, and education. The references are selected to be suggestive to the interested researcher and …

The Church’S Call To Minister To Refugees: A Case Study On Liberian Refugees In Minnesota, Rufus Kudee

Master of Theology Theses

The paper is divided into seven chapters. Chapter one explores a brief historical background of the Liberian Refugee Crisis. Chapter two discusses ministering to the refugees: a Biblical foundation. Chapter three quickly reviews different ways of ministering to Liberian refugee families. Chapter four identifies challenges that refugees face. Chapter five explores the potential blessings that refugees bring. Chapter six highlights the Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder among refugees. Finally, chapter seven addresses the conclusion.

Unity And Diversity: How A Bilingual-Multicultural Congregation Reflects The Nature Of The Trinity In Unity And Diversity, Albert W. Triolo

Doctor of Ministry Theses

This project used the lenses of adaptive change, transculturation, church size theory, love the stranger, led by the Spirit, unity and diversity in God’s family, imago Trinitatis, and missio Dei to study how action research interventions might affect a culturally diverse congregation. It was found that understanding culture is complicated, homogeneous units typically stay apart but do come together, crossing boundaries of homogeneity is difficult, ongoing education helps for transculturation, transculturation comes mostly through conversation, and people can experience Trinitarian equality through transculturation. In short, the Common Culture of a Community is Cultivated in its Context through Conversation and Communion.

Risen With Healing In Her Wings: An Ecclesiological Ethnography Of Three Young Congregations In St. Paul, Minnesota, Catrina Louise Ciccone

Doctor of Philosophy Theses

This dissertation assumes that death and resurrection is the rhythm of life for all disciples of Jesus Christ, and that this baptismal pattern of dying in Christ and being raised to new life in Christ plays itself out in many penultimate iterations across our lives until our ultimate Death and Resurrection. As such, living in a cultural climate in which the white North American Christendom Church is captive to an ecclesiology of death, fixated upon and anxious about its imminent demise, this dissertation seeks to provide a counter-narrative: an ecclesiology of the resurrection occurring in this new missional era, a …

Oral History Interviews In The Congregation – Part 3: The Interview Questions, Paul Daniels

Ask the Archivist

This article presents a sampling of interview questions for a congregational oral history project.

Oral History Interviews In The Congregation – Part 4: Final Interview Details And Conclusion, Paul Daniels

Ask the Archivist

This article discusses the technical aspects of completing a successful oral history interview, including technology considerations, transcription, and deed of gift forms.

Oral History Interviews In The Congregation – Part 2: Planning The Project And Next Steps, Paul Daniels

Ask the Archivist

This article focuses on choosing interviewers and interview subjects for a congregational oral history project.

Oral History Interviews In The Congregation – Part 1: Introduction, Paul Daniels

Ask the Archivist

This article present scope considerations for a congregational oral history project.

Remixing An Open Educational Resource: A Case Study Of The Uncommon “R”, Lusiella Fazzino, Julie Turley

University Libraries Faculty Publications

Open educational resources address the crisis college students face purchasing textbooks. Although academic librarians play a prominent role implementing the open educational resource solution, by engaging faculty in their use and creation, librarians could go further. At the College of New Rochelle, instruction librarians teamed up with the Scholarly Communications Librarian to revise and remix an already existing information literacy textbook. This case study outlines how an open educational resource textbook was altered and localized to reflect students’ lived reality. The textbook was used in a credit-bearing information literacy course for the College’s Liberal Arts adult education B.A. program.

Jet Magazine: Celebrating Black Female Beauty, Jazmyn Shepherd

XULAneXUS

Once referred to as, “the Negro bible” by famed actor and comedian Redd Foxx^[1], Jet has continued to be a pioneer in representing Black Americans as beyond the stereotypes to which they are so often relegated. The magazine has not only provided accurate coverage throughout momentous Black historical movements such as the Civil Rights Movement in the 1950s, the Black is Beautiful movement of the late 1960s, and the Natural Hair Movement of the 2000s, but it has also catered to the daily interests of Black Americans, such as fashion and beauty, lifestyle advice, dating advice, politics, health …

Rebooting Empathy For The Digital Generation Lawyer, Lauren A. Newell

Law Faculty Scholarship

There is a growing preference in today’s technology-saturated society for online interaction via email, text messages, social networks, and instant messaging, rather than real-world interaction through face-to-face or telephonic conversations. For today’s young people—the Digital Generation—this is more than a mere preference; it is a way of life. Research indicates that the movement toward virtual communication comes with negative consequences, such as poor real-world communication skills and underdeveloped social skills. Most significantly, research suggests that the Digital Generation are less empathic than elder generations are. Some researchers speculate that the rising prominence of information and communication technologies (ICTs) in everyday …

Supporting Psychological Well-Being In Emerging Adults With Mental Illness: Effect Of A Self-Affirmation Intervention On Resilience, Empowerment, And Self-Stigma, Robert Manning

Psychology Honors Papers

The primary aim of this study was to investigate the applicability of an empirically-validated self-affirmation intervention, under conditions of social identity threat for mental illness, in comparison to a control intervention, on resilience, empowerment, self-esteem, hope, group identity, and self-stigma. Data were collected from Connecticut College undergraduate students who identified with having past or present difficulties with their mental health over three time points. Participants responded to four questions about their mental health history as a social identity threat induction prior to engaging in a randomly assigned intervention. They also self- assessed their levels of the primary outcomes using established …

A Bird's-Eye View Of The Multiple Biochemical Mechanisms That Propel Pathology Of Alzheimer's Disease: Recent Advances And Mechanistic Perspectives On How To Halt The Disease Progression Targeting Multiple Pathways., Caleb Vegh, Kyle Stokes, Dennis Ma, Darcy Wear, Jerome Cohen, Sidhartha D. Ray, Siyaram Pandey

Touro College of Pharmacy (New York) Publications and Research

Neurons consume the highest amount of oxygen, depend on oxidative metabolism for energy, and survive for the lifetime of an individual. Therefore, neurons are vulnerable to death caused by oxidative-stress, accumulation of damaged and dysfunctional proteins and organelles. There is an exponential increase in the number of patients diagnosed with neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s (AD) as the number of elderly increases exponentially. Development of AD pathology is a complex phenomenon characterized by neuronal death, accumulation of extracellular amyloid-β plaques and neurofibrillary tangles, and most importantly loss of memory and cognition. These pathologies are most likely caused by mechanisms including …

Allocating In The Presence Of Dominance: A Mean-Variance Portfolio Choice Economic Experiment, Jack Gardner

Gettysburg Economic Review

I conduct a mean-variance portfolio choice economic experiment to evaluate how individuals’ portfolio choices deviate from what modern portfolio theory considers optimal. The experimental framework is comprised of three treatments. In each treatment the portfolio selection task involves choosing between two risky assets with zero correlation among their payoffs and one risk free asset. Participants are tasked with completing thirty choice rounds in which they must allocate a constant experimental capital amount to the available asset options after which they are shown period-by-period state-realizations. I utilize the definition of dominance as described in Neugebauer (2004), and Baltussen and Post (2011), …

The Gettysburg Economic Review, Volume 11, Spring 2019

Gettysburg Economic Review

No abstract provided.

The Alchemical Vessel, River Soma

MFA Statements

My work comes from a place of deep feeling on a bodily level. Amidst the decorative play, there is a sense of the primitive and primordial, and also a certain humanity and clumsiness through struggle. Through the hermetic tradition I relate the alchemical vessel and its symbolic process of interior development to my artistic practice. Focusing in mixed media sculpture, I discovered a concentrated accumulation of symbolism specific to my practice, but also the full recognition of my practice as a ritualized psychological undertaking.

Let's Take A Selfie! Living In A Snapchat Beauty Filtered World:The Impact It Has On Women's Beauty Perceptions, Angelina Cruz

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Snapchat's beauty filters have become a prominent force in the social media realm. It's vital in understanding the impact in how Snapchat's beauty filters shape beauty standards among young women. This became the primary motivation of conducting this qualitative study. Six focus groups were conducted to explore the depths of why female college students between the ages of 18-25 decide to post either selfies with Snapchat's beauty filters applied or natural images. Dialectical tensions theory was used as the foundation for this study to explore both the internal and external discursive struggles young women face when deciding to post natural …

Religion And Political Parties In Brazil, Pedro A. G. Dos Santos, Linsey Moddelmog

Political Science Faculty Publications

An overview of religion and politics in Brazil, including democratisation, party moderation and secularisation, social constituency representation and interest articulation.

Confederation Of African Football, Michael Goldman, Mlondi Mashinini

Sport Management

Representatives of Egypt, Ethiopia, Sudan, and South Africa officially established the Confederation of African Football (CAF, or the Confederation Africaine de Football) on February 8, 1957, in Khartoum, Sudan. During the subsequent 60-year development of Africa’s administrative and controlling body, CAF grew into the biggest of the six continental federations of FIFA. By 2018, CAF counted 56 associations as full or associate members, representing over 25% of FIFA’s 211 associations, although no African team had reached the semi-final stage of the men’s FIFA World Cup as yet.

This chapter documents the business and management research related to CAF, thereby providing …

Self As Gem, Fursona As Facet(S): Constructions And Performances Of Self In Furry Fandom, Jake Dunn

Award Winning Anthropology Papers

This ethnography explores constructions of selfhood in Furry Fandom, the organized body of people fascinated with anthropomorphism and zoomorphism. I argue that furs, who are members of the Fandom, construct the self similarly to a “gemstone,” using their fursonas—personally created (re)presentational entities imbued with a sense of personhood—to (re)present different facets of that gemstone. Through the performance of this (re)presentational entity, furs embody socioculturally sanctioned values they associate with their fursonas, and thus, their “true” or “ideal” senses of self. When this performance is validated by other furs, these socioculturally sanctioned values are reinforced in the construction of the self-as-gem, …

Ignatian Banners Of Hope And Support For Recently Detained Immigrant Families, Daniela Domínguez

Psychology

University of San Francisco (ASUSF) decided to allocate a portion of its annual budget each year to assist undocumented students with non-tuition dollars, most often used for the growingly expensive cost of living within the Bay Area. One year prior, in 2015, USF’s School of Law launched its Immigration and Deportation Defense Clinic to represent unaccompanied children and migrant women with children in Northern California and the Central Valley.

Altogether, these acts of solidarity demonstrate how Jesuit institutions have strived for greater acceptance and empowerment of migrants and refugees. Contributing to this effort, the collection of essays in this book …