Treatments for PTSD and Pathological Gambling: What Do Patients Want?

This study explored the treatment preferences of 106 people with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), pathological gambling (PG), or both. It is the first know study of its type for this comorbidity. Sixteen different treatment types were rated, with a broad array of modalities including manualized psychotherapies, medication, self-help, alternative therapies, coaching, and self-guided treatments (use of books and computerized therapy). A consistent finding was that PTSD treatments were rated more highly than PG treatments, even among those with both disorders. Further, of the sixteen treatment types, the sample expressed numerous preferences for some over others. For example, among PG treatments, self-help was the highest-rated. Among PTSD treatments, psychotherapies were the highest-rated; and individual therapy was rated higher than group therapy. For both PG and PTSD, medications were rated lower than other treatment types. Non-standard treatments (i.e., computerized treatment, books, coaching, family therapy, alternative therapies) were generally rated lower than other types. Discussion includes implications for the design of treatments, as well as methodological limitations.     

What Do Men Want?

Abstract

Men play a key role in determining good sexual health outcomes for themselves and their sexual partners. However, many interventions and much of the programmatic focus and effort in reproductive and sexual health care delivery, are focused on women. This paper shows how international goals for development (the Millennium Development Goals), and international agreements on population and development (such as that agreed at the International Conference on Population and Development, Cairo,1994) cannot be met without the full and active involvement of men. We argue that achieving international goals and targets requires more than simply encouraging men to take more responsibility for their actions, it requires a detailed understanding of men's own concerns in the field of sexual health and a commitment to address those concerns to achieve better sexual health for all.

Using examples from south Asia, the paper explores the evidence surrounding the burden of men's sexual ill-health in the Region. We find that while public health programmes are (rightly) focused on controlling HIV (and sexually transmitted infections to some degree), evidence from population-based surveys of men across south Asia shows that men are most concerned with ‘psycho-sexual conditions’ including discharge syndromes, weakness, and erectile dysfunction. There is evidence that some of these conditions may be linked to higher rates of risk-taking and gender-based violence in some men. We further review patterns of care seeking for men reporting these and other sexual health problems.

We conclude that the challenges facing public health professionals are how to ensure that men receive interventions which are appropriate (and affordable and accessible and of high quality) for addressing their own sexual health concerns whilst also meeting wider public health goals of improving population levels of sexual and reproductive health.     

Personal space invasions: What happens when the invader asks permission?

Male or female college students seated outdoors and alone on a university campus were approached by a same-sexed invader who sat 9 inches or 18 inches away. The invader asked permission before sitting down or said nothing. An unobtrusive observer recorded (1) the amount of time before subjects left and (2) the presence of compensatory reactions (moving away, interposing barriers, orienting away, leaning away, or leaning forward). Results showed that males left more quickly with silent invaders; females tended to leave more quickly if permission was asked. Compensation was greatest among closely invaded subjects who remained in their seats longest (males who were asked; females who were not asked). These findings agree with equilibrium theory. They have implications for the concept of personal space.This paper was presented at the 1976 conference of the American Psychological Association in Washington, D.C.The authors would like to thank Andy Derryberry, Cheryl Haley, Jeffrey Lewis, and Patricia Seipp for acting as invaders.     

Collegiate Recovery Communities Programs: What Do We Know and What Do We Need to Know?

As the broad construct of recovery increasingly guides addiction services and policy, federal agencies have called for the expansion of peer-driven recovery support services. The high prevalence of substance use and abuse in colleges and universities in the United States constitutes a significant obstacle to pursuing an education for the unknown number of youths who have attained remission from substance use dependence. Collegiate recovery programs (CRPs) are an innovative and growing model of peer-driven recovery support delivered on college campuses. Although no systematic research has examined CRPs, available site-level records suggest encouraging outcomes: low relapse rates and above-average academic achievement. The number of CRPs nationwide is growing, but there is a noticeable lack of data on the model, its students, and their outcomes. We review the literature supporting the need for the expansion of CRPs, present information on the diversity of CRP services, and outline key areas where research is needed.     

Perceptions of Misogyny in Hip Hop and Rap: What Do the Youths Think?

This article presents the results of an exploratory study conducted at a community forum sponsored by a prominent African American church and a historically Black university. These institutions are concerned with negative messages given to African American females about their appearance and their morals. The data presented describe the population of female (68.6%) and male (31.4%) participants ages 18 to 24 and inform us about their perceptions about hip hop and rap music, especially as they relate to misogyny. This study found that listening habits and age were significant in understanding youths' views about misogyny.     

What to Do with the Informal Sector?

Almost all informal firms in the Kenyan manufacturing sector are managed by Kenyans of African origin. Formal enterprises are run by Kenyans of both African and Asian origin. These three groups are distinct in terms of experience, productivity and access to finance. Asian formal firms are the most efficient, while there is no significant productivity difference between informal and formal African firms. There are thus weak incentives for African informal firms to become formal. At the same time, Kenya needs higher investments and larger exports to achieve economic take‐off, and this can only be achieved through an efficient formal sector. Therefore policy should aim to integrate the sectors by improving infrastructure, capacity‐building, credit delivery, and supporting networks.     

Constructing Personal and Couple Narratives in Late‐stage Cancer: Can a Typology Illuminate the Caring Partner Perspective?

There is a large body of work focusing on the well‐being and relationships of couples facing late‐stage cancer. The systemic study underpinning this paper explored a less researched topic: How do people caring for a partner with terminal cancer construct their experience and relationships through personal and couple narratives? This UK‐based study drew upon dialogical approaches to narrative analysis to focus on six caring partners and their care relationships. Following individual case analysis, two methods of cross‐narrative analysis were developed, and an analysis of narrative themes and a typology of archetypal narratives were drawn from the data. This paper focuses on the typology. The clinical implications of the study are considered, focusing on the contribution of a typology to this and future studies.     

ADHD and Brain Anatomy: What Do Academic Textbooks Used in the Netherlands Tell Students?

Studies of brain size of children classified with ADHD appear to reveal smaller brains when compared to ‘normal’ children. Yet, what does this mean? Even with the use of rigorously screened case and control groups, these studies show only small, average group differences between children with and without an ADHD classification. However, academic textbooks used in the Netherlands often portray individual children with an ADHD classification as having a different, malfunctioning brain that necessitates medical intervention. This conceptualisation of ADHD might serve professional interests, but not necessarily the interests of children.     

What Can We Do To Protect the Environment?

THE progress of modern science and technology has brought with it not only the rapid growth of the global economy but the large-scale exploration and utilization of natural resources as well. Increasingly, people are realizing that they cannot afford not to pay attention to issues of ecological balance and environmental protection. Taking     

Chronopolitics: What Time Do People Vote?

Insights from time-budget studies are applied to reassess previouswork on factors conditioning the time of day when people vote.In sharp contrast to expectations raised by the literature,the findings reveal weak multivariate effects of attitudinal,behavioral, and situational conditioning factors.     

Sustainability and Disaster Planning: What Are the Connections?

In this article, we examine the connections between resiliency and sustainability by asking: Can disaster planning lead to more sustainability actions? In a survey we conducted of 1,899 cities, towns, and counties across the United States in 2015, we found that disaster plans are three times more common than sustainability plans. Our regression models find both types of plans lead to sustainability action as does regional collaboration across the rural‐urban interface. However, we find that hazard mitigation planning may be done without including sustainability staff, citizens, and other officials. After controlling for motivations, capacity, and cooperation, we find that rural communities are more likely to have sustainability plans than suburbs, though their level of sustainability action is lower due to capacity constraints. Our models of multilevel governance find local motivations balance sustainability’s concept of environmental protection, economic development, and social equity—and are more important drivers of action than grassroots or higher‐level government funding and policy. This bodes well in a context where federal government leadership on sustainability is absent.     

Private and Confidential? Handling Personal Information in the Social and Health Services

Abstract

The present article examines the strengths of small group teaching within the context of the professional and ethical requirements of social work education. It outlines some of the strategies adopted to ensure that reliance on this mode of educational delivery contributes to the excellence of practice knowledge and teaching standards to which universities commit and which professional associations and clients expect. Small group teaching continues to be perceived as an integral component in the preparation for professional social work practice and has important functions in the mentoring and socialisation of beginning practitioners. It would be valuable, in the light of developments in technology-assisted educational modes of delivery, to further research the relative impact of face-to-face teaching and its alternatives, given contemporary pressures upon both tertiary institutions and social work students.     

Schooling and Globalization: What Do We Tell Our Kids & Clients? What Are We Being Told?

SUMMARY

With the effects of globalization everywhere, what should we say to our children and grandchildren about globalization and education? What are the print media–the books and magazines–telling us about globalization and education? This article examines what a person may take from the print media to talk with their children about effects of globalization and education. Let the reader beware!     

“No Matter What I Do They Still Want Their Family”: Stressors for African American Grandparents and Other Relatives

Grandparents and other relatives increasingly assume the role of primary caregiver to minor children. This study interviewed family members caring for children whose parents were not available due to parental incarceration, other involvement in the criminal justice system, and substance abuse-related issues. Interviews with 25 African American women examined the impact of caregiving including stress and depression. Stress included caregiver issues related to finances, time allocation, care responsibilities, and concerns about the absent parent, as well as issues specific to the children related to school concerns, child behavior, and emotional problems. These stresses were examined along with caregiver depression scores using the Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale, which indicated more depression related to caregiver illnesses, older caregivers, and care for older and a larger number of children. This study suggests that caring for these children is both challenging and stressful, and caregivers are at risk for depression and other mental health concerns. Health and service providers should carefully assess the needs of caregivers when determining the needs of families where children are under care of nonparental relatives. Family-based services are needed that include caregiver supports as well as support for children.     

What's in a Name? Distinguishing Between Routine Disclosure and Self‐Disclosure

A lack of specificity between two types of disclosure has emerged in research on adolescents’ relationship and communication with their parents. Researchers are obscuring the distinctions between self‐disclosure and routine disclosure (i.e., disclosure of their whereabouts and activities to parents). In this article, we describe where the problems have arisen and then outline the conceptual differences between the two. Illustrations of how the two types of disclosure overlap or co‐occur are provided to demonstrate how fruitful areas for future research can emerge from attending to the distinctions between these two constructs.     

Where Does Religion Matter Most? Personal Religiosity and the Acceptability of Wife‐beating in Cross‐National Perspective

Does religion justify violent acts against wives, or does it reduce approval of this type of intimate partner violence? We examine whether personal religiosity raises or lowers the acceptability of wife‐beating. In addition, we investigate how the relationship between personal religiosity and attitudes toward wife‐beating differs depending on the overall normative context of the country where a person lives. Using multilevel modeling with data from the fifth wave of the World Values Survey (2005–2008), we find that greater individual‐level religiosity reduces the acceptability of wife‐beating. More importantly, cross‐level interactions show that these reductions are greatest in countries where there is a general lack of normative restraint as measured by the “anomie” scale. These observations suggest that religiosity may influence an individual's norms the most in countries where secular controls are absent or weak.     

Objectives and Evaluation in Public Relations Work: What Do They Tell Us About Expertise and Professionalism?

This article investigates objectives and evaluations used in 111 prize-winning case studies to understand types of knowledge used in public relations and ways that the effectiveness of such a professional service is ascertained in practice. The discussion of the empirical findings is framed by ideas from the sociology of the professions, focusing specifically on the complex relationships between the professional body of knowledge, skills, and power strategies used by professional groups as well as ideas from the ongoing debate about evaluation in public relations. This article concludes by identifying 2 strategies in current practice: introspective focus and public performance.