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ERIC Number: ED547876
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 2012
Pages: 219
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: 978-1-2674-6576-4
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
Participatory Reality Constitution: A Phenomenological Study of Generative Experiences in Higher Education Classrooms
Saiter, Sean M. Avila
ProQuest LLC, Ph.D. Dissertation, Institute of Transpersonal Psychology
This phenomenological inquiry into the felt experience of participatory sense-making and collaborative presence in small groups explores where and when a common field of resonance is generated among individuals. The experience is named "participatory reality constitution" (PRC). Nine co-participants who met criteria of having experienced PRC in a higher education classroom context were interviewed. To gain a deeper understanding of this phenomenon 2 research methods were synthesized: (a) the phenomenological method of Giorgi, and (b) Hartelius' somatic phenomenology. This inquiry uncovered a general meaning structure for PRC by attending to the entire description given by each co-participant and conducting a thematic analysis of interview transcripts. In this small sample, the analysis revealed that an individual has to come into a small group space with an intention to collaborate in order to create the conditions for PRC to be experienced. This intention is experienced as a sense of openness, which results in the building of trust, authenticity, and bonding via personal connection. These qualities contribute to an increasing depth of the experience. A sense of effortlessness becomes present, accompanied by excitement, awe, joy, and a sense of adventure. This leads to a deeper process of emergence or generativity of new insights, which have a clarity to them that leaves the individual feeling part of something greater. The individual feels inspired and has a strong desire to recreate the experience and is often positively transformed in a way that leads to long-term changes in identity or life goals. These results contribute to a nuanced understanding of PRC as an embodied generative process that serves as a meaning structure for further research and practice in psychology, education, and wherever such small groups occur. This study exemplifies a contribution to the development of transpersonal phenomenology based on a participatory worldview. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]
ProQuest LLC. 789 East Eisenhower Parkway, P.O. Box 1346, Ann Arbor, MI 48106. Tel: 800-521-0600; Web site: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml
Publication Type: Dissertations/Theses - Doctoral Dissertations
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A