The following research projects have been completed, reviewed and approved for final grant funding from the FIELD PSYCH TRUST. They contribute to the further development of Perceptual (Field) Psychology in relation to the research and writings of Arthur W. Combs and we are pleased to make you aware of their existence.

John Douglas Wright (2006). Exploring the Relationships Among Dispositions Associated with Teacher Effectiveness and Indicators of Student Learning: A Perceptual Psychology Theory Approach. A dissertation submitted to the Graduate Faculty of the University of West Georgia in partial fulfillment for the degree Doctor of Education.

Abstract:
The primary purpose of this study was to use perceptual psychology theory to examine teacher dispositions associated with effectiveness or ineffectiveness, and determine whether there are relationships among these dispositions, student perceptions of teachers, and student learning. Four dimensions of dispositions associated with teacher effectiveness were studied: perceptions of self as identified, perceptions of students as able, perceptions of the purpose of education as larger, and a frame of reference that is people-oriented. More specifically, this study sought to determine if there are links among these four perceptual dimensions of dispositions associated with effectiveness, as measured by teacher Human Relations Incidents (HRI) interviews; student perceptions of teacher effectiveness, as measured by the Student Perceptions of Teachers Quick Check Scale (SPTQCS); and student learning, as measured by scores on Georgia End of Course Tests (EOCT) and final grades in classes that require an EOCT. The participants included 21 teachers of regular education classes and 1335 students they taught from grades 9-12 in one Georgia high school.

Pearson product-moment correlation analyses demonstrated significant positive relationships between teacher dispositions associated with effectiveness and student learning variables, and between teacher dispositions associated with effectiveness and student perceptions of teacher effectiveness. Correlations yielding significance were also found between student learning variables and dimensions measured by HRI and SPTQCS scores. A series of one-way ANOVAs based on student and teacher demographics yielded significant group differences associated with SPTQCS scores in relation to student gender, race or ethnic group, age, grade level, and socioeconomic status; and teacher gender, race, age, education, experience, and subject taught. Simultaneous multiple regression analysis suggested that teacher dispositions associated with effectiveness were significant predictors of the variance in student achievement in this study.

These findings have implications for the hiring practices of school systems, the preparation of student teachers, and the further study and better understanding of teacher dispositions associated with effectiveness. Means of strengthening the analysis of dispositions associated with teacher effectiveness and exploring the extent to which dispositions can be developed or changed are suggested for future research.

Key words: Teacher Dispositions, Teacher Perceptions, Effective Teaching, Student Perceptions, Student Achievement, Perceptual Psychology

Joshua Christopher Wilson (2006). Rights, Process, & Political Passions: A Study of Three Anti-Abortion Protest Regulation Cases. A dissertation submitted in partial satisfaction of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Jurisprudence & Social Policy. University of California, Berkeley.

Abstract:
This dissertation addresses the interaction between law and political passions as demonstrated in three litigation-based case studies involving anti-abortion protests and speech rights. The project asks if the Madisonian concept of enumerated rights as a means to a culture of civic virtue that “counteract[s] the impulses of interest and passion” has been actualized in our law saturated society.

The study concludes that there is ample evidence of a shared conception of the value and limit of speech rights. In addition, the study shows that a minority of participants were compelled by the norms and practices of courts and legislative bodies to realize the Madisonian ideal of rights and civic virtue. Yet, for a number of reasons, the majority of subjects did not reach this end. Instead, absolutist views of rights and aspects of the legal processes involved in these cases actually supported continued intolerance and helped to undermine the ability of law to constrain or structure political passions.

[NOTE from Field Psych Trust: This dissertation provides marvelous examples of the major premise in Perceptual theory – that an individual’s behavior is a function of his or her field of perceptions.]