Stressors and Stress Management Mechanisms among First-Year School Research Paper

Stressors and Stress Management Mechanisms among First-Year School Principals - Research Paper Example Literature Review This study was conducted based on knowledge and experience brought forward by previous authors and researchers. To gain a wholesome understanding of the whole stress phenomenon, the literature review was conducted in threefold. Firstly, literature review on stressors among first-year principals was investigated. Secondly, studies on effects of stressors were evaluated in the lens of burnout theory. Finally, different ways of stress management options were considered. There is overwhelming evidence that first-year principals and assistant principals are predisposed to various stressors. Young did an elaborate study on some of the major causes of stress among school principals. He concluded, â€Å"The obvious problem of juggling multiple issues that vary in priority requires a blend of wisdom and maturity. New people are unlikely to poses these qualities at the start of their careers in administration† (Young 516). In another independent study on stressors on s chool principals Brock and Grady came up with a finding that â€Å"Some administrators feel overburdened with stress at work. They struggle to maintain high productivity despite the stress. Reluctant to ask for assistance and fearing being perceived as weak or lacking leadership ability (Brock and Grady 60). Whereas evidence points to presence of stressing conditions among first-year principals and assistant principals, it was reported that the condition could even be much worse for principals taking their first-year roles in institutions of special education. This is because these institutions need special attention and profound leadership due to its sensitivity in nature. Johnson claims, â€Å"Special educators are at the highest... The results of this paper confirmed similar previous works done under relatively similar conditions and frames of study. The major stressor was found to be high expectation from all stakeholders especially when the principal encountered a school with discipline and performance issues. The inability to make profound decisions due to lack of experience in the new environment was a major stressor among many of the principals. Overwhelming activities associated with the position was reported to be quite a challenge particularly for principals taking the position for the first time. Effects of stress were common among all the subjects of study. Stress manifested itself physically and psychologically. However, stress management mechanisms varied widely from one principal to another though there was considerable overlap of the same. It is therefore important that the results of this study were taken seriously by anyone considering making further progress in this matter. It has been found th at stress among first-year principals and their assistants is a reality. It is also important to note that there exists several stress management mechanisms that can be used by first-year principals to ensure that their integration on the new positions takes place effectively. The results of the study are not exclusive for first-year principals only but can be applied across a wide variety of other related disciplines.

How Do Dreams Work Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

How Do Dreams Work - Research Paper Example Dreams have been considered prophetic and delivered from the spiritual plane. The ways in which dreams have been stimulated include the concept of incubating in a place or chamber designed specifically to create a prophetic dream. However, dreams have been most used in the search for understanding the unconscious mind. Theories proposed by Jung and Freud have defined ways in which to approach dreams for their therapeutic values. The way in which dreams work has been studied for the brain waves that are associated to the different stages of sleep. As well, the way in which they are associated to the mental state of the individual has been examined for the many ways that dreams can be associated. The brain has been studied while sleep occurs in order to determine which parts of the brain are working compared to which parts are not working during the dream state. Still, the associations of the events in dreams to the biological event have yet to be fully explained. The state of dreaming has been somewhat defined for its biological function, but the true nature of dreams and how they work has yet to be fully established. Dreams: The Theoretical Divide Dreams have provided a great deal of study to psychologists, neurologists, and to disciplines that are concerned with the function of the brain. The concept of dreams has also been an interest to sociologists and anthropologists as they study culture. Sigmund Freud constructed his theory of dreams as purposeful in his theories of psychoanalysis where he insisted that dreaming had no connection to neurology and was a function of the mind rather than part of the brain. This divided the concept of mind and brain and even when modern scientists discovered REM and found evidence of brain functions in association with dreaming, it was still framed with the psychoanalytical structures, believing that the content of dreams was a separate issue to the physiology of dreams (Hobson 2005, xii). Previous to the work of Freud, peop le saw dreams, primarily, as nonsense of the mind. Some cultures believed in the mystical qualities of dreams, but the general belief about dreams was that they had no real value. Freud changed this through his discussions about the meaning of dreams in regard to psychoanalysis. He proposed that the mind had a hidden censor that could protect a person from sexual and aggressive threats, but that to act on every perceived threat would be socially unacceptable. The dream phase would allow for threatening thoughts to transform into harmless symbols within dreams. In allowing guilty feelings, anxieties, and inappropriate desires to manifest in dreams, the social world is safe from the intrusion of those thoughts (Plotnik and Kouyoumdjian 160). The two new concepts that Freud brought to the forefront of psychological evaluation was that dreams consisted of symbols and that they could be interpreted for psychologically relevant information (Plotnik and Kouyoumdjian 160). The idea that dre ams held symbols and could be interpreted was new from a cultural understanding as many religions and cultures had depended on the symbols and interpretations of those symbols for mystical meaning for centuries, perhaps back to the dawn of human history. However, that these symbols and interpretations could be used for the scientific study of the mind and focused upon the individual was a revolutionary idea. Freud had three