Caribbean Families: Social and Emotional Problems

Families from the English-speaking Caribbean now comprise 30% of immigrants in New York State. Given the increase of Caribbean referrals to psychiatric hospitals and mental health clinics, it is important to begin examining more seriously the needs of this immigrant group. The concept of mental illness, risk factors that can lead to mental disorders, commonly accepted psychopathological disorders, issues in assessment and treatment as they apply to this cultural group are discussed in this article. A model for treatment—the multiculutral/multimodal/multisystems approach is examined.     

Voting here and there: political integration and transnational political engagement among immigrants in Europe

In this article, I examine voting patterns in origin and receiving country national elections among immigrants in Europe. The existing scholarship on transnational political engagement offers two competing interpretations of the relationship between immigrant integration and transnational engagement, which I classify as the resocialization and complementarity perspectives. The resocialization perspective assumes that transnational political engagement gradually declines as immigrants become socialized into the new receiving society. Conversely, the complementarity perspective assumes that immigrant integration increases transnational political engagement. I test these competing perspectives with survey data collected between 2004 and 2008 for 12 different immigrant groups residing in seven European cities. The analysis examines how immigrant political and civic participation in receiving countries affect their proclivities to vote in homeland elections. I also analyse the effects of receiving and origin country contexts on immigrant voting behaviour in homeland elections. While my findings support both the resocialization and complementarity perspectives, they also highlight the ways in which a set of origin‐country contexts shape immigrant propensities to engage in transnational electoral politics. I observe a degree of complementarity among immigrants with resources who are motivated and eligible to participate in both receiving and origin‐country elections.     

Normal life crises and insanity—mental illness contextualised

According to a 2005 survey, the people of Rosengård, a culturally heterogeneous borough of Malmö, Sweden, utilise considerably less mental health services in relation to their estimated needs than the rest of the city's population. A study based on interviews with people living or working in the area revealed several possible reasons. Most important was their perception of what constitutes mental illness. If the cause of one's disturbed mental state is viewed as a normal life crises rather than an illness, one does not seek medical treatment. The aim of this article is to illustrate how under-utilisation of mental health services by an immigrant population can be explained by their different perceptions of what constitutes mental illness. Interventions should add concerns regarding a client's socio-economic and psychosocial needs, rather than solely follow a medical model.     

The Role of Work on Family Relationships

Abstract

Work and family are two major institutions in society. Family has been considered as an important socializing agent for an individual's growth and development, while work provides the individual opportunities to develop a sense of identity and a self-image. For people with mental illness, work has been recognized as an important tool for facilitating psychiatric rehabilitation. In fact, the work experiences of those with mental illness have an effect on their family relationships, which may in turn affect their mental health. Using an intensive interview method, this article shows that work experiences from sheltered workshops have a significant impact on the family relationships of workers in Hong Kong.     

The Bengal Connection: Transnationalising America in The Namesake and The Tree Bride

Abstract

A reading is presented of The Namesake and The Tree Bride as diasporic novels that transnationalise the host culture by inscribing the ethnicity and history of Bengal on to the cultural topography of America. This interpolation is contextualised both in terms of the 'Bengal connection' — the now occluded saga of Bengal's rich commercial and intellectual contacts with New England from the seventeenth to the nineteenth centuries — and the changing paradigms of immigrant socialisation from the melting pot to multiculturalism and beyond. The inference drawn is that the non-Eurocentric and non-Atlantic 'Bengal connection', which may be taken as emblematic of other such strands in American society, not only troubles monologic myths of 'Americanness', but simultaneously interrogates the sufficiency of the 'Atlantic' template as the marker of a multi-ethnic nation. A suggested alternative is Tagore's 'vernacular nationalism' that admits intrinsic otherness as integral to its conception of national identity.     

The Mental Health System and Sense of Self Among Adults with Serious Mental Illness

Abstract

Development of a sense of self is a lifelong process. One's sense of continuity in the context of the demands of multiple role identities contributes to both psychological well-being and opportunities for acceptance into valued social roles. The onset of a mental illness can rupture an emerging sense of self and require intense and painful restructuring of one's beliefs and expectations. This study was a secondary analysis of qualitative data from interviews with twenty people who self-identified as having serious mental illness to explore how well the mental health system addresses the ingredients that promote, create, or restore a valued and adaptive sense of self.     

Perceived Marital Support and Incident Mental Illness: Evidence from the National Comorbidity Survey

Social support in marriage may be associated with reduced risk for mental illness. Past studies are limited by short follow up and a focus on depression. A two‐wave nationally representative survey in the United States (n = 2,503) is used to examine whether social support in marriage is associated with the onset of each of four clusters of disorders—internalizing, externalizing, phobic, and bipolar—10 years later. Results indicate that higher levels of perceived marital support were protective against internalizing, fear, and bipolar disorders, and against incident externalizing disorders for women. Protective effects of social support in marriage against mental illness are long‐lasting, and sometimes differ by gender. Findings suggest the importance of mental health assessment in clinical practice.     

Family Intervention and Services for Persons with Mental Illness in the People's Republic of China

ABSTRACT

Family services and intervention for persons with mental illness is crucial in mental health services. In this paper, the writer attempts to describe family intervention and services for persons with mental illness in the People's Republic of China. Family intervention and services like home-based care, guardianship network, family counseling, and psychoeducational programs are only preliminarily developed. Their effectiveness and challenges in future development are discussed.     

Some obstacles to the effective investigation and registration of children at risk—issues gleaned from a worker's perspective

Abstract

This paper describes a woman who is both damaged and damaging. The mental disorder/disturbance felt by this woman generates levels of anxiety that she cannot contain, and this anxiety is passed onto the others who constitute her community. For community care to work it must be possible within the community system to identify, think about and manage the anxieties generated by such mental disturbance. The new legislation of community care may encourage us to ignore the reality of mental illness and issues of power, conflict and pain, and their underlying anxieties. Current examples are given of the acute anxieties felt by many workers in the field which, if uncontained, lead to defensive anti-task strategies. When disturbance is projected and disowned it is put out of mind and may then be passed between parts of the system. Even though it may no longer be possible, except as a short term measure, to put the mentally ill out of sight in mental hospitals, the mental disturbance and those in whom it is located may still be marginalised. The paper proposes a model of community care which encompasses mental illness, professional workers and the community. These three elements are seen as the corners of a triangular space which theoretically becomes the container of mentally disturbing anxieties and within which these anxieties can be addressed, thought about and managed

It is argued that this model could enable workers to foresee some difficulties and to address others in a manner that would lead to greater containment and more effective management of mental illness in the community     

The Mental Health Advantage of Immigrant‐Background Youth: The Role of Family Factors

Children of immigrant background, despite problems with acculturation, poverty, and discrimination, have better mental health than children of native parents. We asked whether this is a result of immigrant families' characteristics such as family structure and relations. Using a new comparative study on the integration of immigrant‐background youth conducted in England, Germany, the Netherlands, and Sweden (N = 18,716), particularly strong associations with mental health (internalizing and externalizing problems) were found for family structure, family cohesion, and parental warmth. Overall, half of the advantage in internalizing and externalizing problems among immigrant‐background youth could be accounted for by our measures of family structure and family relations, with family cohesion being particularly important.     

Exploring the (Post) Industrial Subculture - Towards a Critical (Post) Anal-ytical Approach to Organizational Analysis

You could maintain incredulity toward metanarratives as much as you liked, but it wouldn't keep your feet on the ground. Not if you were an oilskin. If you were a fleece however, your feet may be on the ground, but your ideas may be in the air. Yet your problem wouldn't be how to resolve your differences - it would be how to recognise them.     

A Review of Lesbian Depression and Anxiety

SUMMARY

The Surgeon General's first report on mental health identified depression and anxiety as significant mental health issues that disproportionately affect women. Research indicates that lesbians experience depression at rates that parallel those of the general female population, suggesting that depression is an important mental health issue for lesbians. Given the high rate of comorbidity between depression and anxiety disorders, it is likely that many depressed lesbians have struggled with problems related to anxiety as well. This paper reviews literature pertaining to lesbians and depression including incidence rates, risk factors, suicidality and treatment approaches, and stress and anxiety that may also contribute to the experience of depression among lesbians.     

Practice Wisdom on Custodial Parenting with Mental Illness: A Strengths View

ABSTRACT

Social work principles of strengths, empowerment, and consumer-centered care for persons with mental illness are currently being adapted to broader contexts. This article presents study findings on practice wisdom about custodial parents with mental illness, a potentially increasing group of consumers in light of mental health reform. The research team organized thirty-six professionals with practice experience into five focus groups. Findings reflect strengths perspective categories of resilience, social support, family functioning, self-care, and parents' positive experience of their symptoms. Implications discuss how providers who work with custodial parents and their children can apply these findings in assessments and interventions.     

Evaluation of Lehman's Brief Quality of Life Interview in Assessing Outcome in Psychiatric Rehabilitation in People with Severe and Persistent Mental Disorder

Abstract

Lehman's Brief Quality of Life Interview (QOLI) was administered to psychiatric rehabilitation program clients 6 times at 6-month intervals. Participants were individuals with predominantly psychotic-type diagnoses. Results showed no change over time and few gender differences. No change over time indicates no improvement but also no deterioration in this chronic population. Correlations between test times indicated that the subjective scales were relatively stable in comparison to the objective scales. Results indicate that the QOLI has poor sensitivity, and therefore limited utility, for assessing change in psychiatric rehabilitation of individuals with severe and persistent mental disorders. However, the QOLI does have an important use: It provides a good indication of the clients' perspectives on the quality of their lives and services received.     

Neuroscience in Social Work Practice and Education

Abstract

In the past two decades, advances in neuroscience research have revolutionized the scientific community's understanding of branehavior connections. Social work is now taking note of this trend. Specialists in substance abuse, addiction, and co-occurring diagnoses are beginning to relinquish long-held beliefs in mind-body dualism in favor of a truly integrated biopsychosocial understanding. This article identifies challenges related to social work and argues that neurobiological knowledge is essential for a biopsychosocial understanding of substance abuse and addiction, other mental disorders, co-occurring conditions, and human behavior. It gives examples of drawing on neurobiological knowledge for practice applications. These include educating users, families, and providers about neurobiological aspects of substance abuse (psychoeducation); using neuroscience research on mental illness and addiction to develop integrated approaches for dually diagnosed persons; and considering a range of medication options to alleviate cravings and reduce relapse.     

College students coping with interpersonal stress: Examining a control-based model of coping

Objective: The ways that college students cope with stress, particularly interpersonal stress, may be a critical factor in determining which students are at risk for impairing mental health disorders. Using a control-based model of coping, the present study examined associations between interpersonal stress, coping strategies, and symptoms. Participants: A total of 135 undergraduate students from 2 universities. Methods: Interpersonal stress, coping strategies, depression, anxiety, and somatization were assessed via self-report. Results: Students reporting more interpersonal stress reported more depression, anxiety, and somatization, and they reported less use of engagement coping strategies and greater use of disengagement coping strategies. Engagement coping strategies accounted for a significant portion of the association between interpersonal stress and mental health symptoms. Unexpectedly, coping strategies did not moderate the association between stress and mental health symptoms. Conclusion: Interventions designed to improve students' coping strategies may be an effective way to reduce mental health problems on college campuses.     

A response to 'factitious disorders by proxy: A trap for the unwary' Parent induced illness,factitious illness by proxy (Munchausen by proxy)

Abstract

Introduction This form of child abuse is quite rare but perhaps not as unusual as the figures imply. The name itself and the recent changes confirm that there is increasing awareness of its significance; Munchausen Syndrome by proxy has been changed to factitious illness by proxy or parent induced illness. Roy Meadow (1977, 1982, 1990), first drew attention to this form of abuse where parents present their child with an organic illness. Bools et al (1994) has developed the work and there has been a recent important article from Gray and Bentovim (1996), based on work at Great Ormond Street Hospital. The complexity and diversity of these cases and the range of presentations seem to be part of the problem in recognition. An outline of the emergence of awareness of this form of child abuse and a review of the literature is well covered in the article 'Factitious disorders by proxy' (Randall & Parker, 1997). While drawing this difficult and complex form of abuse to the attention of professionals, what we would suggest is also needed is both an outline of the various forms of presentations and some thoughts about the processes that are present both within the professional system, intrafamilially, and intraphysically.