The present dissertation investigated adolescents’ overall stress and perceived stressors, the effectiveness of a universal psychoeducational program about stress, the Stress Lessons, and... Show moreThe present dissertation investigated adolescents’ overall stress and perceived stressors, the effectiveness of a universal psychoeducational program about stress, the Stress Lessons, and adolescents’ self-referral to a targeted school-based intervention. Another aim was to examine whether adolescents from different demographic groupings vary in their experience of stressors and the effect of psychoeducation. A large and heterogeneous sample was recruited from schools with variation in educational tracks and self-perceived ethnic backgrounds. The sample consisted of 1613 predominantly young adolescents with an average age of 13 years old. Most adolescents have to maneuver through a world of stressors, mostly related to the school environment, their health, and future uncertainty, while adolescents experience less stress from social pressure and financial pressure. Furthermore, our results indicate that the Stress Lessons were effective regarding improving adolescents’ knowledge about stress, but not in terms of stress levels. Finally, we found that adolescents who reported higher levels of test anxiety were generally more likely to show interest in an intervention targeting reduction of performance anxiety after the Stress Lessons. However, we did not find that adolescents with lower levels of social skills were more interested in an intervention targeting improvement of social skills. Show less
The sexual behavior of people in any given society or subculture is guided by certain codes of conduct: written or unwritten rules on how to behave. Cupid on a Leash researches the different codes... Show moreThe sexual behavior of people in any given society or subculture is guided by certain codes of conduct: written or unwritten rules on how to behave. Cupid on a Leash researches the different codes of conduct that guided sexuality in Italy between c. 1450 and 1550. It identifies which codes were present for people of different genders, ages, social classes and sexual orientations. Moreover, the book examines how broadly these codes were shared within the source material, and analyzes the roots and rationalizations of their existence. A wide variety of sources, written by male as well as female authors, is used to analyze these sexual codes of conduct. These sources range from romance epics, novellas, and treatises on love, to sermons, anatomical treatises, and personal correspondence. By revealing the many, often contradictory codes of conduct guiding sexuality, Cupid on a Leash provides insight into the complexities of societal expectations in Renaissance Italy. It studies the arguments that people used to defend sexual codes of conduct, and analyzes the logic behind these arguments, seeking to explain why they were considered so important. Show less
Margaret of Burgundy (1374-1441) is known mainly for two reasons. Firstly, her marriage in 1385 to William of Bavaria, eldest son of the Count of Hainault, Holland and Zeeland, laid the foundation... Show moreMargaret of Burgundy (1374-1441) is known mainly for two reasons. Firstly, her marriage in 1385 to William of Bavaria, eldest son of the Count of Hainault, Holland and Zeeland, laid the foundation for the transfer of power in these principalities to the Burgundian dynasty some 50 years later. Secondly, she supported her only child Jacqueline of Bavaria, who fought many battles in order to prevent this. The combination of these two roles points to a conflict of interest. By supporting her daughter as the rightful Bavarian heir, Margaret inevitably came into conflict with members of her own dynasty of origin, the Valois Burgundians. The overarching question in the research presented in this thesis is what tilted the scales for Margaret as a political player in different phases of her life: was it her loyalty to the Burgundian or to the Bavarian dynasty, her connection with the Hook party in Holland, or was she driven mainly by self-interest, as is sometimes suggested? Related to this is the question whether her means were substantial enough to allow her to play her own game. In this biographical study, a chronological and a thematic approach have been combined. The loyalty question serves as guideline for the first part, in which the story of Margaret’s life is told chronologically within the broader context of political developments. The thematic second part is dedicated to her financial position as a widow, her court, and her religious and literary patronage. Show less
The clandestine revolutionary politics for women was marked by an environment in which gender roles and expectations were constantly challenged and reproduced as a result of the extraordinary... Show moreThe clandestine revolutionary politics for women was marked by an environment in which gender roles and expectations were constantly challenged and reproduced as a result of the extraordinary conditions under which they had to live and operate. These conditions were not stable but evolved and transformed in a dynamic environment in which not only various political actors were involved and interacted, but also the repercussions of their actions were influential on various levels. This study claims that, what the women involved in the clandestine revolutionary movements in Turkey and Iran in the 1970s experienced at the micro level was directly related to and influenced by both the macro level developments and political settings, and the meso level processes and mechanisms. Instead of holding only certain characteristics of the regimes, societies, or organizations responsible for the character of the women’s experiences, this study argues that causal mechanisms which played a significant role in the radicalization processes of the leftist movements in Turkey and Iran could also help us account for the similarities and differences between the women’s experiences in the two cases. Show less
The general aim of the studies in this dissertation is to provide more insight in the role of family characteristics, parent characteristics, and child characteristics in early child emotion... Show moreThe general aim of the studies in this dissertation is to provide more insight in the role of family characteristics, parent characteristics, and child characteristics in early child emotion socialization and children’s social-emotional development. In Chapter 2 the degree to which fathers and mothers elaborate on emotions with their daughters and sons is examined from toddlerhood to preschool age. In addition, the role of gender stereotypes in parents’ use of emotion talk is examined. Chapter 3 reports on the role of the gender combination of siblings on everyday (emotion-related) parent-child interactions. Chapter 4 focuses on the potential influence of the proportion of male siblings in fathers’ and mothers’ family of origin on their current gender-typed parenting characteristics, including parents’ gendered use of emotion talk. In addition to a direct relation between parents’ family background and their gender-typed parenting, an indirect effect through parents’ testosterone levels is tested. In Chapter 5 a mediation model is tested in which the link between parents’ psychopathology symptoms and preschoolers’ social-emotional functioning is mediated by the degree to which parents elaborate on negative emotions with their children. Finally, in Chapter 6 the main findings of these empirical studies are reviewed and integrated. Show less
This rich ethnographic study explores the life and work of successful marabout women in Dakar. it is set against the background of their private family lives, of developments in Senegalese society,... Show moreThis rich ethnographic study explores the life and work of successful marabout women in Dakar. it is set against the background of their private family lives, of developments in Senegalese society, and of global changes. While including female experts in spirit possession and plant-based healing, it also gives a rare insight in the work of women who offer Islamic knowledge such as Arabic astrology, numerology, divination and prayer sessions. With the analysis of marabout women's work this study sheds light on the ways in which women's authority is negotiated, legitimated, and publicly recognised in Dakar. The study focuses especially upon marabout women's strategies to gain their client's trust. Reference to rural areas is a significant element in this process. This study thus contributes to an understanding of a gendered way in which trust ans skepticism are related to marabout's work and of the the role of a connection between Dakar and the rural areas therein. Show less
