Wisdom, ageing and counselling psychology: a preliminary investigation of wisdom
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- Title
- Wisdom, ageing and counselling psychology: a preliminary investigation of wisdom
- Creator
- James Anthony Keith Erskine
- Supervisor
- Martin Adams.
- Date
- 2013
- Abstract
- Seventy-one participants wrote down their wisest general and practical life advice. These transcripts were then rated for wisdom by twenty independent raters, and analysed using thematic content analysis. Participants also completed questionnaire measures of wisdom (3-Dimensional Wisdom Scale, 3DWS, Ardelt 2003) mental and physical health in order to examine convergent and divergent validity for this new method of eliciting wisdom. Participants were chosen to test whether their age or background would affect wisdom. Specifically 59 participants had no psychological background in training (degrees/courses) or occupation (worked in non-psychological professions). Of these non-psychologists, 20 were young (18-30) 18 were middle aged (31-64) and 21 were older adults (over 65). The remaining 12 participants were counselling psychologists in training with at least 5 years psychology teaching and 100 clinical practice hours. Results indicated this method of eliciting wisdom correlated positively and significantly with Ardelts (2003) 3DWS. Our younger sample was significantly less wise than our middle aged, older or counselling psychologists. The counselling psychologists were significantly wiser than the young and middle aged samples, and showed a trend towards being wiser than older adults (p=.09). Qualitative analysis indicated the main general wisdom themes were persistence in the face oflifes' obstacles, do unto others as you would have done to you, look after your health, and be independent. Younger and older adults saw persistence in the face of difficulty as most important. For middle aged concerns about money predominated. For counselling psychologists the most important concerned being independent. The main themes from practical wisdom were: looking after money, the value of education, being independent, and working hard. For young the most important was gaining education and avoiding danger. For middle aged the most important was looking after your health. For older adults it was education. For counselling psychologists it was being independent.
- Subject
- Psychotherapy and Counselling
- Extent
- 325 pages : coloured illustrations ; 30 cm
- Format
- Publisher
- Regent's University London
- degree
- PhD in Psychotherapy and Counselling
- Description
- EThOS ID: 646071
- Language
- English
- Date Issued
- 2013
- Type
- Thesis & Dissertation
- Rights Holder
- Regent's University London & James Anthony Keith Erskine
- Item sets
- Theses or Dissertation