Faith without Answers: The Use of Religion among Cold Case Homicide Survivors

2014 ◽  
Vol 69 (1) ◽  
pp. 19-39 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ashley R. P. Wellman

Through data gathered from interviews with cold case homicide survivors, this article reveals the important role of religion and faith in the aftermath of an unsolved murder. Using qualitative methodology, the author highlights the lived experiences and personal journeys of cold case homicide surviving family members, who are often a forgotten and an overlooked segment of victims. Qualitative data suggests that these cold case homicide survivors found religion to be critical in the aftermath of their loved one's murder. Specifically, survivors indicated their faith was fundamental in coping with the homicide and provided hope for anticipating a resolution in their cases. From these intimate, personal survivor accounts, scholars and practitioners can begin to develop future research and programs that are specifically designed to highlight the role of religion in moving forward after an unsolved murder.

Author(s):  
Leana A. Bouffard ◽  
Haerim Jin

This chapter provides an overview of the literature examining the role of religion and military service in the desistance process. It also identifies outstanding issues and directions for future research. It first presents an overview of research examining the role of religion in desistance and highlights measurement issues, potential intervening mechanisms, and a consideration of faith-based programs as criminal justice policy. Next, this chapter covers the relationship between military service and offending patterns, including period effects that explain variation in the relationship, selection effects, and the incorporation of military factors in criminal justice policy and programming. The chapter concludes by highlighting general conclusions from these two bodies of research and questions to be considered in future research.


Author(s):  
Sam A. Hardy ◽  
David C. Dollahite ◽  
Chayce R. Baldwin

The purpose of this chapter is to review research on the role of religion in moral development within the family. We first present a model of the processes involved. Parent or family religiosity is the most distal predictor and affects moral development through its influence on parenting as well as child or adolescent religiosity. Additionally, parenting affects moral development directly, but also through its influence on child or adolescent religiosity. In other words, parent or family religiosity dynamically interconnects with parenting styles and practices, and with family relationships, and these in turn influence moral development directly as well as through child or adolescent religiosity. We also discuss how these processes might vary across faith traditions and cultures, and point to directions for future research.


2018 ◽  
Vol 31 (2) ◽  
pp. 334-351 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ronald Busse ◽  
Ufuk Doganer

Purpose Fuelled by the latest scandals at Siemens, VW or Walmart, there is a lively debate on the role of compliance and ethics programmes. Unlike large corporations, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) arguably tend to underestimate their significance and lag behind. Hence, the purpose of this paper is to shed light on the process of introducing compliance codes and its effects on employee acceptance and performance. Design/methodology/approach In line with the qualitative methodology, the authors conducted 12 in-depth interviews with German SME employees which the authors evaluated with the qualitative content analysis. Findings As for the major contribution, results indicate the emergence of a lack of understanding, anger, anxiety and operational performance losses – both at the individual and the corporate level – especially when employees feel uninvolved in the initial introduction stadium. Originality/value Practicing managers may benefit from the recommendation to facilitate staff involvement at earlier stages. As for theory advancement, the authors draw on Kotter’s (2007) long surviving “Eight Steps Change Management Model” and find significant support for shifting the spotlight of attention towards the first four phases. The authors discuss the original value of the research, admit limitations and illuminate some promising future research trajectories.


Religions ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (11) ◽  
pp. 631 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mona M. Abo-Zena ◽  
Allegra Midgette

Religious and spiritual experiences have implications for many aspects of development across the lifespan, including during early childhood. A focus on religion and spirituality expands beyond a discrete domain of social science (e.g., cognitive development) and involves developmental, social-psychological, affective and emotional phenomena, and personality. This conceptual paper contributes to the literature regarding the understudied role of religion and spirituality in the lives of young children and their families in order to contribute to a comprehensive study of human development. After a concise review of the literature on religious development, this paper draws from the sociocultural perspective and illustrative examples of lived experiences to frame young children’s religious participation and gives particular consideration to religious minorities. While the sociocultural perspective captures the range of children’s experiences, this manuscript introduces the understudied role of emotion as a motivator for children’s selection of experiences. The paper concludes with implications for practitioners and suggestions for future research, practice, and policy.


2019 ◽  
Vol 33 (6) ◽  
pp. 721-734 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paula Lam ◽  
Constanza Bianchi

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate how family members co-create value and improve the well-being of patients with chronic developmental disorders, such as Asperger syndrome (AS) that undertake permanent therapy services. Design/methodology/approach Qualitative methodology is used to identify family value co-creation activities and well-being outcomes. Extensive interviews with family members and professional therapists of AS patients were conducted as the main data collection method. Findings Drawing from previous conceptualizations of value co-creation activities in health contexts, the findings of this study identify the specific value co-creation activities held by family members that influence the different dimensions of well-being for AS patients and their families: co-learning, combining therapies, changing ways of doing things, connecting, co-operation and co-production, managing daily life, motivating, protecting, regulating and establishing roles. The findings also reveal improvements in the following dimensions of patient well-being: autonomy, self-acceptance, purpose in life, positive relationships with others, control of the environment and personal growth. In addition, value co-creation activities also improve family relationships at home and the well-being of patient family members. Originality/value This study contributes to the services literature and addresses a gap in transformative service research by exploring the value co-creation activities of family members for improving well-being outcomes of patients with chronic developmental disorders. People with chronic developmental disorders engage in permanent therapy services and tend to have below-average well-being scores, which also extends to their family members.


Author(s):  
Elizabeth Fones-Wolf ◽  
Ken Fones-Wolf

This introductory chapter provides an overview of the role of religion and faith in the life of working people. In many studies, religion served as an impediment to workers' understanding their class interests. Religion either divided workers of different faiths, served as a tool for the upwardly mobile, or provided a numbing fatalism that prevented working people from taking action against their exploiters. In other studies, the stimulus provided by Herbert Gutman weighed heavily. He was drawn to the examples he uncovered of a Christian spirit infusing the rhetoric and writings of labor activists and offering a postmillennial justification for working-class solidarity. Neither group of scholars tried to grapple systematically with the messiness of spiritual convictions and how those convictions interacted with lived experiences to shape the consciousness and actions of average working people.


2014 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 815-825 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cara L. Wallace

AbstractObjective:Patients and families coping with a terminal illness are faced with a number of decisions over the course of their disease. The role that family communication plays in the process of decision making is an important one. The objectives for this review are to examine the current state of empirical literature on the relationship between family communication and decision making about end-of-life care, to identify gaps, and to discuss implications for policy, practice, and future research.Method:Articles were identified using systematic keyword searches within the following relevant databases: Academic Search Complete, CINAHL Plus, Communications and Mass Media Complete, ERIC, PsychINFO, MEDLINE, SocINDEX, and ProQuest.Results:The three bodies of relevant literature that emerged during this review include: (1) the importance of family communication at the end of life (EoL); (2) family decision making at the EoL; and (3) the interrelationship of communication (both within the family and with healthcare professionals) and decision making at the EoL. While the literature highlights the role of communication between medical professionals and the patient or family members, there is very little focus on the process of how family communication among the family members themselves contributes to decision making at the end of life.Significance of results:Barriers to end-of-life care are important considerations for helping patients to access timely and appropriate services. Understanding the pertinent role of family communication as it relates to the decision for EoL care is the first step in working to provide another avenue for overcoming these barriers.


2008 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 116-129 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrew K. T. Yip

This paper highlights some thematic reflections primarily based on two empirical research projects on lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) Christians and Muslims. It begins by discussing reflexivity by way of contextualising the subsequent exploration of specific themes. This is followed by a discussion of the plight of LGB Christians and Muslims which renders research on this population highly sensitive. The paper then explores the theme of researching meanings and lived experiences sensitively, focusing on the importance of being theoretically and culturally sensitive; and the relevance of methodological pragmatism and pluralism. It then proceeds to a detailed discussion of accessing ‘hidden’ populations and trust building; and the dynamics of the insider/outsider status. The paper concludes with a call for LGB research to take seriously intersectionality of contemporary LGB identity (e.g. sexual, religious, cultural, ethnic), and the role of religion/spirituality in LGB lives and politics.


2021 ◽  
Vol 17 (5) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ataklti Abraha ◽  
Luo Siming

Brain-Based Instruction methods have become influential at almost all educational levels. This paper examined the extent to which Natural and Computational Sciences and Engineering instructors in Ethiopian Higher Education Institutions apply Brain-Based Instruction principles (i.e., relaxed alertness, orchestrated immersion, and active processing) in their learningteaching process. This paper used a descriptive survey research design with a concurrent mixed (quantitative and qualitative) methodology. A questionnaire was used to gather quantitative data from a random sample of 512 instructors (292 from Natural and Computational Sciences and 220 from Engineering). Qualitative data were gathered from six selected instructors (three from Natural and Computational Sciences and three from Engineering) via a semistructured interview. A pilot study was used to confirm the validity and reliability of the research instruments. Quantitative data were analyzed by standard univariate methods. Qualitative data were analyzed by thematic analysis. The findings depicted that limited implementation of Brain-Based Instruction principles. Furthermore, the study showed that Higher Diploma Program training and length of teaching experience positively influenced the use of Brain-Based Instruction principles. The paper discusses implications for Brain-Based Instruction in Ethiopia and suggests areas for future research.


2017 ◽  
Vol 39 (7) ◽  
pp. 1904-1932 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrea K. Henderson ◽  
Christopher G. Ellison ◽  
Norval D. Glenn

Despite research on religion and marriage, little is known about the role of religion in the relationships of nonmarried couples. This study addresses two questions: (a) Do various dimensions of religious involvement—shared religious beliefs, affiliation and attendance, and theistic sanctification—influence the relationship satisfaction and marital expectations of dating and cohabiting individuals? (b) Is the association mediated by positive and negative relationship behaviors by the respondent and/or partner? We investigate these questions using the National Survey of Religion and Family Life, a nationwide sample of working-age adults, aged 18 to 59 years ( n = 468) with oversamples of African Americans and Latinos. Various dimensions of religious involvement are positively associated with the relationship satisfaction and expectations to marry among nonmarried individuals. Positive and negative relationship behaviors slightly diminish the link between religion and (a) relationship satisfaction and (b) expectations of marriage. Several implications and promising directions for future research are discussed.


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