Browsing by Title

In this thesis, taking place within the clothing industry of Finland, the impact of the globalisation of the economy on the pattern-maker's job was studied and the present day fields of know-how of the job were found out. The thesis answers the questions, what are the characteristics of the pattern-maker's job nowadays, and what areas of the know-how in the pattern-maker's job form the core know-how, which is repeated in every organisation. Earlier studies of the subject do not exist in Finland. Similar studies have been made in USA (Staples 1993) and in Estonia (2002). Pattern-makers who took part in this study were located in the Finnish clothing companies manufacturing or having clothes manufactured in series production, like clothing industry or chain of stores. A methodical triangulation was used in the thesis. In a phenomenological research of experience seven pattern-makers were interviewed and in a quantitative research 26 pattern-makers filled in a structured questionnaire. The phenomenological analysis has 2 parts. In the first phase using the professional background of the pattern-makers, the historical development of the clothing industry for the last 40 years was described. In the second phase of the phenomenological analysis the description of the pattern-maker's job was created based on the organisational strategy of the companies nowadays. The analysis of quantitative research material was performed by one-dimensional study of variables, where the variations in the amounts of variables lead to proportional conclusions. As a result of the structured questionnaire, the core know-how of the pattern-maker was pointed out. In the thesis, the concept of situationality was used to describe the continuous change in the clothing industry. This explains the continuous requirement of pattern-makers' commitment to the time and location. The researcher has a background of a pattern-maker and she works as a specialist instructor. With the thesis the researcher updates her professional competence. The analysis of the pattern-maker's job can be used to update the content of pattern-makers' education in the vocational schools.

The purpose of this study is to investigate the ways in which craft identity is manifested in An adult sewing enthusiast. Handicraft is not only a popular hobby, but also a widely implemented educational practice undertaken in liberal adult education institutions. Leisure activities have a significant impact on a person’s identity. Craft identity forms one part of the identity of a maker. This study investigated the craft identity of sewing enthusiasts who participated in craft classes within a liberal adult education and the role of teaching and the craft group in the formation of the makers’ craft identities. Research on leisure identity shows that individuals are driven to hobbies by certain identity images and social narratives. Crafts are also known to strengthen a person's own identity construction. The data of the study were collected with semi-structured thematic interviews. Seven sewing enthusiasts who had participated in sewing courses in liberal adult education took part in the interviews. Three of the interviewees were from Uusimaa and four from Pirkanmaa. All participants were women, aged between 40 and 69 years. The interview data were analyzed with theoretical content analysis. This study shows that sewing enthusiasts take pride in what they do, are creative and versatile craftspeople and enthusiastic about learning new. They feel empowered by making things with their hands and are happy to share their experiences with others. They are environmentally conscious consumers who want to sew for real needs, both for themselves and for their loved ones. Participation in the liberal educations sewing hobby offered a wide and varied range of benefits for hobbyists. The identity of the sewing enthusiast was developed through the influence of the craft classes and the teaching group. Their self-esteem improved and they became more courageous hobbyists. Social interaction was also important and people described enjoying and experiencing the joy of making crafts andbeing part of a group. Identity is built through social interaction with others and it reinforces a person's own identity, but also forms group identities. The research will help to reveal the diverse craft identities of the sewing enthusiast and the role of liberal education in supporting the identity work of the students. A strong craft identity is reflected in the hobbyist's overall well-being by strengthening the person's self-esteem. The results can be used both in designing and planning teaching in adult education and they also provide groundwork for the field of craft identity research.

The aim of this study was to analyze the stories of disabled people, when it comes to their school paths and working life. I wanted to give these adults a voice and to participate in the conversation of disability policy. The ongoing discourse has lately been about the equal rights that disabled people should have within the field of education and working life. I studied the discourses that emerged from the interviewees’ narration, also mirroring these discourses to the results of earlier political studies on disabled people. The aspect of this study is sociocritical given the fact that disability was studied through the hurdles rising from the rooted structures of society. This study focused on questions how well these interviewees have been able to use their self-determination and decide on the matters that touch their own personal lives as well as what kind of experiences of exercise of power they have faced. I interviewed three adults aged 28 to 46. The approach was narrative, the narration focusing on turning points of the interviewees’ lives. The analysis part of the study results is based on critical discourse analysis, as it critically examines the society and its use of power. It became apparent that the education these interviewees have had, was largely determined by third parties instead of interviewees’ own personal choices. The interviewees had experi-enced an additional school year after comprehensive school, after which future studies for the disabled within the field of kitchen, cleaning as well as rehabilitative instruction and guid-ance for the disabled came into play. After graduating each one of the interviewees had tak-en steps towards working life through service centre, and they were involved in rehabilitative work that lasted for many years. The interviewees’ narration introduced a discourse of ”real work” based on which I examined different possibilities for these people to be part of working life. An actual employment offers an employee a far more active role than rehabilitative work. We need more information about disability and to acknowledge the fact that being disabled should by no means be an obstacle for participating in working life. The legislation concern-ing the employment of the disabled should be more precise, so that employers would not be able to take advantage of defects of rehabilitative employment such as not having to give certain rights for the disabled for long-term work.

Objectives. My bachelor thesis (Hietala 2015) indicated that a coach has a major influence to the development of athlete's self-esteem. Previous studies show that the interaction skills of a coach are linked to the level of activity of youth sports and it enables the support of the children's self-esteem (Forsberg & Matilainen 2011; Hintikka 2011; Räsänen 2015 & Tiirikainen 2012). The purpose of this master's thesis is to describe the different methods gymnastic coaches apply to support the gymnast's self-esteem. This research discovers how the coach should act in order to support gymnastics self-esteem and how the gymnastic coaches are educated to face the challenges of supporting the self-esteem. Methods. The research is a qualitative study with Grounded theory methodology. The research material was collected by interviewing four aesthetic group gymnastic coaches and it was analyzed by coding the material to categories. As a result, I compared the merged categories to the theory and studied the relationships between the findings. The gathering of the material and familiarizing of the theory was an on-going simultaneous process throughout the research, until the saturation point of the material was achieved and material was processed. The research results are presented side by side with the theory. The coaches were over 25-years old and had experience of coaching from 6 to 25 years. Results and conclusions. The results of the research indicated that the support of gymnastics self-esteem divides into three main categories; dealing with disappointments, setting goals and giving feedback. The interaction skills and educational background of the coach, affects to these categories. Coaches strongly felt that the education arranged by the Finnish gymnastics Federation (Suomen Voimisteluliitto) doesn't offer the necessary practical information regarding the support of self-esteem. Discussion of disappointments is important supportive factor to the building of self-esteem and it should be higher prioritized in the planning of coaches' time management. Finnish gymnastics Federation should provide education for aesthetic group gymnastic coaches, concerning the development of interaction skills and children psychological growth. As a result of the research was developed a cyclic model to support the self-esteem of gymnasts. This theoretical model can also be applied to other similar educational relationships.

Depression is an affective disorder that causes low mood and feelings of guilt and hopelessness. Rumination is a persistent, negative and self-focused form of thinking. Rumination has been found to predict higher levels of depressive symptoms, but also the onset of depressive episodes. The connection between rumination and depression should be studied more in order to develop better methods for intervention The purpose of this study was to examine the associations between rumination, self-reflection and depression. The participants were recruited from the University of Helsinki by sending online questionnaires to the student associations' mailing-lists. Rumination was measured with the self-rumination scale, self-reflection with self-reflection scale and depression with BDI. 588 students answered the questionnaire (512 women). The second questionnaire was sent 18 months later to those who gave their email in the first data collection. 296 students answered the second questionnaire (266 women). Participants ranged in age from 18 to 60 years, with a mean of 27 years. Rumination was a relatively stable trait in the study. Changes in rumination appeared to be closely linked to changes in depressive symptoms. Those who were depressed in the second data point and those who were depressed in the first data point but not in the second one, ruminated more than those who had never been depressed. Rumination also predicted depression in the 18-month longitudinal study. Self-reflection was only weakly linked to depression. Rumination had an independent role in maintaining and predicting depression. Tendency to ruminate was still high after recovery in previously depressed participants. Focused interventions could help people with ruminative tendencies to get over depression and prevent depression.

Depression is a phenomenon determined by multiple factors and it can be conceptualized both from psychological and physiological point of view. Psychological and physiological risk factors form a vulnerability that predispose to depression. The purpose of this study was to research the relationship between the psychological risk factors of depression and physiological stress reactivity. Cloninger's temperament trait harm-avoidance (Temperament and Character Inventory) and tendency for ruminative thinking (Self-rumination Scale) were used as psychological risk factors in this study. The physiological stress reactivity was measured by the individual differences in the heart rate variability. 58 women were invited to laboratory based on the earlier web-based study (n=588). In laboratory the women answer to self-report questionnaires and their EKG was measured under a stressful task. Study found a statistically significant association between psychological risk factors of depression and physiological stress reactivity. Psychological risk factors of depression constituted a whole that predicted physiological stress reactivity in a specific experimental setting in a statistically significant way. The results of this study can be used as a foundation for the development of more effective medical interventions and psychotherapies, and for the development of more specific categorization of depressive subcategories.

Objectives: Depression is one of the most common mental disorders. It causes significant individual suffering as well as societal economic burden. In this study hostility refers to a multidimensional personality trait, which includes cynicity and paranoia towards others and feelings of anger. Previous studies have shown that hostility is associated with depressive symptoms and different psychosocial problems. However, it is not known if there is a two-way relationship between depressive symptoms and hostility over time. Thus, the aim of the current study was to examine, whether depressive symptoms predict higher levels of hostility, and also, whether hostility predicts later depressive symptoms. The hypothesis was that depressive symptoms would predict higher hostility. No hypothesis was set to whether hostility would predict later depressive symptoms. Methods: The sample of this study (n=1528) has been collected in a longitudinal and still ongoing study (the Young Finns study) started in 1980 of the risk factors for coronary heart disease of Finns of age 24–39 in 2001. Depressive symptoms were measured in 2001 and 2007 using a modified version of Beck's depression inventory (mBDI). Hostility was evaluated in 2001 and 2007 using three different scales which measure cognitive and affective dimensions of hostility. The scales of cognitive dimensions (cynicity and paranoia) are originally a part of the MMPI and SCL-90R inventories. Affective dimensions were measured using the anger scale included in Buss and Durkee's hostility scale. The research setting controlled for perceived social support, socioeconomic status and health behavior and they were assessed in 2001. Results and conclusions: A two-way relationship between depressive symptoms and hostility was found. The controlled factors did not attenuate the association between depressive symptoms and hostility. In addition, this study found that perceived low level of social support, a lower socioeconomic status, smoking and the male sex were weak predictors of hostility. This study also supports earlier results that depressive symptoms and hostility are relatively permanent traits. Recognizing a two-way relationship of depression and hostility may help in developing interventions for both conditions.

The purpose of the present study was to examine predictions of mathematics self-concept and math-anxiety and mathematics intensions on the 15 year old participants. In addition, the study examined whether the students' mathematical performance and gender contribute to their mathematics intentions. Self-concept is the image that people have of themselves. Mathematics anxiety is a feeling of discomfort that arises when a person comes into situations that require mathematical reasoning skills and problem solving. Previous studies have shown that the mathematical self-concept, mathematics anxiety and mathematical skills predict students' course enrollment intentions and future career plans. In this study the participants came from the 2012 nationwide Pisa study. The study involved 8829 15-year-old students, of which 5688 students responded to questions measuring mathematical self-concept and mathematics anxiety. Mathematical self-concept and mathematics anxiety were measured with 4-point Likert scales. Five forced-choice items measured students' plans regarding mathematics at some stage in the future. Logistic regression analysis was used to identify variables that explained the students' mathematics intentions in the future. Self-concept, mathematical performance and gender significantly predicted future mathematics intentions but math anxiety did not. Based on this and earlier studies it can be concluded that higher mathematical self-concept predict the intentions of young people to study mathematics in the future

Objectives. Early mathematical skills predict future academic success. The development of mathematical skills during primary school years tends to be weaker in children learning Finnish as a second language as compared to native speakers. However, these skills beginto develop early in life, with mathematical vocabulary playing a crucial role. Given that learning the Finnish language is a time-consuming process, there is a growing demand for valid and reliable assessment methods for mathematical skills and vocabulary that do not necessitate speech production in the second language. The SMST Picture Vocabulary Test aims to assess the recognition of words related to mathematics. The first objective of this study is to analyze the reliability and validity of this test, while the second is to examine the role of age, home language, gender, and the duration of participation in Early Childhood Education (ECE) in relation to knowledge of vocabulary. Methods. The data was gathered from children who were Finnish language learners aged 5–7 years (N=100) attending public ECE centers in the capital area. The reliability of the test was evaluated through internal consistency analyses. Additionally, known-group validity and concurrent validity assessments were conducted. Knowledge of mathematical vocabulary was examined through test results, with additional background data collected from teachers. Teachers evaluated the overall language and mathematical skills of the children. The study employed a quantitative approach with statistical analysis methods using the IBM SPSS program. Main results and conclusions. The study suggests that the SMST Picture Vocabulary Test demonstrates weak reliability, yet moderate validity, to be used for children learning Finnish as a second language. Concurrent validity analysis affirms the test to be primarily a vocabulary knowledge assessment tool. The SMST test demonstrated the ability to differentiate between two pre-established groups (Finnish language learners and native speakers) in mathematical skills through knowledge of mathematical vocabulary, thereby supporting the known-group validity of the test. The duration of participation in ECE emerged as the strongest indicator for mathematical vocabulary test results, followed by age, predicting 29 % of the vocabulary knowledge. Gender differences were found, with the results favoring girls. Home language showed no significant relation to competency in math vocabulary. The findings from this study pave the way for further research into the assessment of mathematical vocabulary knowledge among Finnish language learners, with a particular focus on understanding the factors influencing this knowledge.

Research of emotional atmosphere and aspects affecting it is important, because emotional atmosphere affects students' learning and well-being. In this thesis the emotional atmosphere is treated as a whole that comprises both the students' and the teacher's affects and their interactions in the classroom. The aim of the thesis is to increase understanding of the emotional atmosphere in mathematics lessons. The main focus is to determine how emotional atmosphere changes from 3rd grade to 5th grade. Furthermore I'm trying to determine which factors could explain the change in emotional atmosphere in a class where it had shifted towards positive, and in a class where it had shifted towards negative. The data consisted of a total of 260 drawings about mathematics lessons drawn by 3rd and 5th graders. The pupils were from eight different mathematics classes in five different primary schools in the Helsinki metropolitan area. To analyze the drawings I used drawing analysis. I examined the emotional atmosphere in mathematics lessons from 3rd and 5th grade on a general level. As part of this analysis I examined the students' affects concerning their feelings towards studying mathematics, their beliefs on the difficulty of the subject and their attitude towards the subject. Teachers' affects were studied from the perspective of the drawer. On this basis I determined the teachers' emotional states and whether their speech had negative or positive characteristics. Furthermore I examined the drawings from two mathematic classes that had undergone the greatest positive or negative changes in their emotional atmosphere to determine what could explain this shift. As a summary it can be concluded that the emotional atmosphere in mathematics lessons was mainly positive even though the emotional atmosphere was more negative in 5th grade than 3rd grade. Furthermore there were also great differences between classes both in 3rd grade and 5th grade. Aspects that could explain the positive change in emotional atmosphere were open interaction, culture of helping and meaningful experience of mathematics. Aspects that could explain the negative change were negativity of interactions, problematic social relations, differences in mathematic skills of pupils and boredom.