This is a study of the process of biographical learning and how it can be observed in narration. There have not yet been empirical studies focused explicitly on the learning aspects of biographical learning, as scholars have focused more on the biographical part of the concept -- more on the question of what is learned than of how it is learned.…

The aim of this paper is to identify and describe the key traits of research with life histories. Previous studies on disability and my own work conducting research with the life histories and university experiences of students with disabilities help to explain how these key characteristics manifest themselves in practice. There are six traits…

Drawing from Cervantes-Soon's (2012) framework of "testimonios" as confessions, counter-narratives, and "consejos," we explore how writing letters to our children serves as a process of historical documentation, healing, and a passing down of social justice principles and family history. Additionally, we expand on…

The main topic of this article is architectural barriers and infrastructures as identified by university students with disabilities. The data presented is part of a much wider research project, sponsored by Spain's Ministry of Economy and Competition. A biographical-narrative methodology was used for this study. The results presented have been…

This chapter applies the concept of narrative identity to college student development. The authors describe a narrative interview method that can be used to promote the development of a purposeful life story in the college years.

The present study provides partial findings from research currently underway at the University of Seville: "Hurdles & Help as Perceived by University Students Disabilities". (Directed by Dr. Anabel Moriña, project funding: MICINN, I+D+I, ref. EDU 2010-16264). How does the university, as an institution, open doors and/or put hurdles…

This article analyses the university experiences of 44 students with disabilities. The voices of Spanish students describe the reasons that lead them to choose a given university degree, their transition in the university, the perception they have of themselves as students and how they evaluate their academic results. This study was done with the…

This study explored how sharing past and future life events among late adolescents and their parents influenced the quality of their own time perspectives. Triads (N =104) of female students and their parents described three important life events from their past and future. The results showed that adolescents who shared past and future life events…

In this article, we discuss three cross-cultural memoirs used in three different university courses that introduced students to the complex identities that form both inside and outside of language classrooms. In arguing for the value of using such memoirs as content in university courses, we provide a detailed thematic analysis of Peter Hessler's…

Adequate policies for faculty training in diversity continue to be pending on the agendas of many universities. This paper presents the recommendations of 44 university students with disabilities not only for adequate faculty training, but also on informing them on both matters of the disability itself and how to respond to the needs derived from…

This manuscript aims to explore and delineate the common characteristics of college students with perfectionism, to promote an in-depth understanding of dynamic personality development of perfectionists from the views of life story model proposed by McAdams (1985). The researchers adopted a narrative qualitative research method. The life stories…

Research has documented the ways in which students of Mexican origin are not succeeding academically in the same proportion as the rest of the US population. This process of educational failure occurs in the context of overt and more subtle forms of racism experienced throughout their schooling and everyday lives. Undocumented Mexican students…

Drawing on life history data generated from interviews with young athletes at an English university, this paper explores the narrative maps provided to them by older team members and the ways in which these influence perceptions of self-ageing. Three possible selves associated with mid-life emerged from the analysis for detailed focus. These are…

A phenomenological interview process in two stages was employed to elicit the life stories of six academically gifted college students. Participants' stories were edited with themes identified and interpreted by the researcher. A sample life history of a high achieving female college senior is provided. Commentary by the researcher focuses on the…

Extending research on age norms in adults, the development of the knowledge of two components of the cultural concept of biography, biographical salience of and age norms for life events was studied from late childhood to early adulthood in Study 1 and across adulthood in Study 2. The largest increase in knowledge was found between ages 8 and 12,…