Search

Background: Students' word choice when writing in a reflective journal may reveal their emotional development, sense of belonging, cognitive processing, and ability to appraise their own growth and understanding. New linguistic analysis software can scan and categorize these journals for the use of pronouns, positive and negative emotions, and cognitive keywords. Methods: A retrospective study design evaluated student journaling from a psychiatric clinical course. Journal entries from weeks 1 and 12 were compared by z -score analysis. Findings: Significant increases were found in the use of "we" (P =.001), positive emotions (P <.001), inclusion words (P <.001), and insight words (P =.004), whereas the use of cause and self-discrepancy words were not significantly different. Conclusion: Identification of learning as expressed in words could have an impact on how student assignments are designed by including the use of the Linguistic Inquiry and Word Count software to assess changes in student cognition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article describes a qualitative research method that weds the cyberspace technology of e-mail with a phenomenological research approach. Examples are provided from 2 separate data sets. One data set explored the meaning of health for Japanese elders; the second explored Chinese nurses' experience of taking care of patients with severe acute respiratory syndrome. Lessons learned while using the cyberspace method are discussed, including guidance for organizing a long-distance research team, the central place of trust, and the time when e-mail communication demands to be supplemented with face-to-face interaction. The potential for bridging distance and culture with this cyberspace method is introduced for consideration and critique. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]