ERIC Number: EJ774709
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2004-Jun
Pages: 26
Abstractor: Author
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0826-4805
EISSN: N/A
Available Date: N/A
Lonely or Bored: Children's Lived Experiences Reveal the Difference
Kirova, Anna
Interchange: A Quarterly Review of Education, v35 n2 p243-268 Jun 2004
In spite of the growing body of research on loneliness, the relationship between the phenomena of loneliness and boredom has not been sufficiently addressed, especially in respect to children. The question, "How does the child's experience of boredom stand phenomenologically in relation to the experience of loneliness?" is explored from a hermeneutic phenomenological perspective. A critical examination of the literature regarding the phenomenology of both loneliness and boredom provides a theoretical background to the study. Elementary school children's experiential accounts of loneliness and boredom are collected through research conversations. An original interpersonal communication board game is devised and used to initiate these conversations. The themes of loneliness and boredom emerged in a process of phenomenological reflection based on the participants' lived experiences, the author's personal experiences, and experiential accounts available in the literature. Distinctions between the two phenomena are derived from the exploration of these themes. Both boredom and loneliness are viewed as important pedagogical ingredients in the formation of the child's inner self.
Descriptors: Interviews, Interpersonal Communication, Elementary School Students, Phenomenology, Psychological Patterns, Student Attitudes, Hermeneutics, Games, Communication Strategies, Self Actualization, Child Development, Student Experience, Data Collection, Emotional Experience, Elementary Education
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Publication Type: Information Analyses; Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Elementary Education; Elementary Secondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: N/A