Positive psychology (PP) is currently employing its modern research toolkit to examine how individual differences of hedonic (i.e. pursuing pleasure, fun, and painlessness) versus eudaimonic (i.e. pursuing meaning, self-worth, and growth) well-being motives play out against emotional and learning challenges or outcomes in life. Similarly oriented,…

Dimensional ontology is Viktor E. Frankl's theory that contends humans are composed of their biological, psychological, and noological (spiritual) dimensions. Frankl maintains that it is in the noological dimension where humans freely choose their responses to the environmental, psychological, and biological conditions that befall them. Frankl's…

Positive psychology provides a different perspective to that of traditional psychology. There is a growing research base of scientific study to validate the significance of this psychological approach in people's lives. Enabling courses have an increased number of students utilising them as an alternative pathway to gain access to university.…

Social justice is a critical component of many of the helping disciplines. Similar goals govern these different disciplines, which are reflected in the scholarship of their professional training. However, the crossover in scholarship is limited. This review of social justice andragogy literature from various fields in the United States creates a…

In China, the innovative development of education for older people is an important response to the aging population, and an important way to meet the spiritual, cultural, and social needs of older people. Current academic research mainly focuses on the social factors that affect the participation of older people in education and there are few…

Working adult students may have difficulty mastering complex concepts when taking courses online. Researchers have argued there is a need for in-person, peer-teacher interaction available in traditional classrooms that is lacking online. The purpose of this dual-focus phenomenological study was to explore the meaning of purposeful interpersonal…

For many adult learners transitioning into higher education is an intense experience that challenges their sense of themselves. This article reports on a study that examined the discourse of thirty-four undergraduate adult learners at the start and end of their first year in two Irish higher education institutions. The study focused on…

The lack of adequate numbers of people working with older adults in an aging society implies the potential of attracting students from other disciplines to the field. This qualitative study explored the experiences of 52 Chinese psychology students who took a gerontological psychology course designed to prepare them for aging-related careers. As…

John Dewey's educational philosophy provides a compelling resource for empowering adult vocational education through a cultural vision, ultimately rooted in a view of social democracy as the creative task of lifelong learning before us. This is supported by Dewey's interpretation of knowledge construction in its varied cognitive, ethical, and…

Older adult education is still under-researched, with many terminological ambiguities, clichés, and prejudices. Older adult teacher education and older adult English as a foreign language (EFL) teacher education is rare. Many factors can influence EFL teachers of older adults' teaching performance and its perception. Pre-service (presumably…

Transformative learning (TL) goals are becoming commonplace in higher education, continuing education, and other adult learning contexts; however, valid and reliable assessments of TL are not so common. This imbalance begs the development of assessment methods that allow for a deeper understanding of how, when, and why deep reshaping of self takes…

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to understand the nature of staff/employee (i.e. learning and teaching, curriculum support and administrative staff) perceptions, anxieties and worries about early merger change in the UK further education (FE) sector. Design/Methodology/Approach: Survey data were collected from 128 out of 562 employees to…

Viewed from the perspective of an action verb, and not just as a position occupied by the elite few, positive leadership drives productivity, employee engagement, and performance. Specifically, the field of positive psychology has gained momentum. Its emphasis on personal well being, and constructs like hope, optimism, and a focus on awareness of…

In the 21st century, classrooms within institutions of higher education are increasingly comprised of first-generation and non-traditional age adult students. These students are presented with additional demands that can impact their focus and dedication to academic responsibility. This article describes specific psychosocial techniques that aided…

In this article, the author will focus on Seymour's article titled, "And What is the Public Interest?" (Sarason, 1986). To the author, the core of the article is as follows: "And what is the public interest? At its phenomenological root it is a picture of a triad: the individual, the society, and the bases on which they give meaning to each other.…