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Date: April 30, 2024 Tue
Time: 2:05 am
Time: 2:05 am
Results for wilderness programs (scotland)
1 results foundAuthor: Watson, Greg Title: From Wild Living to Living Wild: The Use of wilderness as part of an overall intervention strategy in programmes for young offenders in Scotland Summary: This study set out to investigate the use of wilderness as part of an alternative intervention programme for young offenders aged 16-24. The Venture Trust had recently adjusted their course from a residential base to a wilderness-based expedition journey called Living Wild. My rationale for this study was to answer the primary research question of whether the wilderness “works” and, or if has an effect on participants. A secondary purpose was to ask those who referred participants and those who worked with those participants how important they felt wilderness was in relation to the overall intervention programme. The author‟s full time work with the Venture Trust offered an opportunity to observe at first hand the effect of the wilderness environment upon participants. Over ten courses were used during a research study period between October 2008 and October 2009. Diary observations were made in the wilderness and narrative vignettes were written for each course. In addition over ten interviews were undertaken with representatives across the organisation as well as with key funders and referrers; including the Scottish Minister for Justice, sheriffs, probation officers and social workers. The main recurrent themes that appeared from the data collection supported the idea of wilderness as “working” were “offering a different perspective”, “involving real choices and consequences” and finally wilderness as “a catalyst” or “stressor”. This third and final theme was the hardest to quantify and yet it was the most pertinent and central to my rationale for the research the notion that the wilderness itself could have an effect on participants. Whilst other factors, such as facilitated personal and social development were acknowledged as been part of the overall intervention programme, the importance placed on wilderness was varied; there was consensus that the wilderness “offered a different perspective”, but it was less than conclusive on whether or not wilderness “involved real choices and consequences”. In relation to idea that wilderness could be “a catalyst”, the difference was a very subtle one of emphasis between those who saw the wilderness as a mere stage or “setting” and others who saw wilderness as more central to the process. There have been some concerns that wilderness based programmes can fail to address the social problems that they set out to solve. The results of this research suggests that the wilderness does at least offer a different perspective to people that are willing to begin the process of change and in some cases it may even be the catalyst for that change. Details: Edinburgh: Moray House School of Education, University of Edinburgh, 2011. 61p. Source: Internet Resource: Thesis: Accessed September 26, 2012 at: http://www.education.ed.ac.uk/outdoored/research/dissertation_watson.pdf Year: 2011 Country: United Kingdom URL: http://www.education.ed.ac.uk/outdoored/research/dissertation_watson.pdf Shelf Number: 126457 Keywords: Alternatives to IncarcerationJuvenile OffendersRehabilitation ProgramsWilderness Programs (Scotland)Youth Adult Offenders |