The 21st century has seen a dramatic rise in experiential learning research and practice. After the previous century, where research on subjective experience was for the most part excluded from academic journals, there is today a resurgence of scholarly research on experience and experiential learning. Yet, how do we know when a given educational…

Researchers have examined autonomous sensory meridian responses (ASMRs) focusing on known experiencers and the nuances surrounding those occurrences. This exploratory study was developed in response to existing ASMR research focusing on individuals who were not necessarily known ASMR experiencers. My goal was to better understand whether these…

There is no research on the lived experience of school-based occupational therapists providing sensory-based interventions for students with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The purpose of this study was to investigate how school-based occupational therapists are addressing sensory processing limitations for students with ASD. A phenomenological…

Experience of nature is widely linked to well-being, including psychological restoration. Benefits to creativity have been explored in a limited number of studies which refer to theories of restorative environments as frameworks, but it is unclear which aspects of the environment and person-nature transactions are implicated in these processes. In…

The measurement of sensation seeking has been mired in controversy since Zukerman defined it. The sensation seeking personality trait (SSPT) eliminates many of the psychometric issues found in previous scales and may allow researchers to better understand the role of sensation seeking in the engagement in health risk behaviors.

Restrictive and Repetitive Behaviors and Interests represent a core feature of autism since the earliest conceptualization of the condition. Related behaviors, such as hoarding and self-injurious behaviors, are under-researched in adulthood, resulting in limited knowledge about their various manifestation through the life span. This study expands…

This study investigated the digital existence of the food bank users in a university town in Texas, and subsequently, aligned with the research's pragmatic focus, the researchers designed a training model for these food bank users. Two research questions guided the study: What are the digital existence levels of the food bank users, and what…

Autistic people are over-represented at gender clinics, but there is limited research to guide clinical practice with this group. We investigated the perspectives of clinicians working with autistic patients who experience gender dysphoria. We asked clinicians about the relationship between autism and gender dysphoria, and whether they work…

The brain organizes somatosensory experience based on the body location from which it originated and the pathway by which in arrived. Here, I present a classroom discussion-based activity centered around the concept of a phantom limb to allow students to explore how cortical representation of sensory experience can be altered. The goal of the…

In this article, we argue that physical rooms cannot be replaced by virtual space without literally losing the student's body and that experimenting with rooms and active learning is imperative for improving and advancing students' learning. Our case study offers insight into a 'soft room experiment' without hard furniture or audio-visual…

The purpose of this action research is to explore the value of 'touching' when teaching in a ballet studio-based class. This method, as part of cultural heritage, is traditionally used and preserved to correct students, but in today's society, this could become challenging and problematic in Higher Education. Is this way of teaching still…

Sensory processing difficulties are consistently reported amongst individuals with an autistic spectrum condition (ASC); these have a significant impact on daily functioning. Evidence in this area comes from observer reports and first-hand accounts; both have limitations. The current study used the Adolescent/Adult Sensory Profile (AASP; Brown and…

It is generally acknowledged that alternative strategies are required to enable children with disability to access storytelling activities. In this study, we sought to analyse the benefits of one such strategy: an arts-based multisensory story and rhyme program delivered to children with Down syndrome and autism spectrum disorder. In order to…

This paper discusses the comprehensive and practical training that was delivered to students in a university classroom on how sensory evaluation can be used to determine acceptability of food products. The report presents how students used their training on sensory evaluation methods and analysis and applied it to improving and predicting…

First-person perspectives of children with autism spectrum disorder are rarely included in research, yet their voices may help more clearly illuminate their needs. This study involved phenomenological interviews with children with autism spectrum disorder (n = 12, ages 4-13) used to gain insights about their sensory experiences. This article…