Adlerian Lifestyle,Stress Coping,and Career Adaptability: Relationships and Dimensions

In the new millennium, workers are vested with the responsibility of managing their own careers. Additionally, workers are expected to engage in the continual development of skills applicable across various work environments. With this need for continual development come frequent work transitions and the need for building career adaptability. Stress can ensue from this constant need to update skills and transition to new work environments. The purpose of this study was to explore relationships among Adlerian lifestyle attributes, stress coping, and career adaptability. Canonical correlation was used to explore the relationships among these variables. The results indicated that 3 dimensions were significant and interpretable: socially attuned, compliant, and impassive. The results partially support the hypothesis that high feelings of belongingness are associated with high coping resources. However, the results also highlight that a high need for acceptance from others and for following social norms may impede the development of career adaptability.     

Compatibility,Leisure, and Satisfaction in Marital Relationships

This study challenges the prevailing view that marital companionship promotes marital satisfaction. By following a cohort of married couples for over a decade and by incorporating several methodological improvements—such as refining the measurement of marital satisfaction, determining how much spouses enjoy doing the leisure activities they pursue together and apart, and using diary data to portray marital leisure patterns—we found that the association between companionship and satisfaction is less robust than previously believed, and that it depends on how often spouses pursue activities that reflect their own and their partner's leisure preferences. Over time, involvement in leisure liked by husbands but disliked by wives, whether as a couple or by husbands alone, is both a cause and a consequence of wives' dissatisfaction.     

Relationships Among Internalized Homophobia,Sexual Identity Development,and Coping Resources of Lesbian and Bisexual Women

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this study was to explore the relationships among internalized homophobia, sexual identity development, and select coping resources (social ease, self-disclosure, social support, and financial freedom) for 182 lesbian and bisexual women. Bivariate analysis results demonstrated that internalized homophobia was significantly negatively correlated to social ease and self-disclosure. Sexual identity development was also found to be significantly correlated to social ease and self-disclosure. Regression analysis revealed that sexual identity, social ease, and self-disclosure accounted for 30% of the variance in internalized homophobia. Counseling implications, limitations of the study, and future research implications are presented.     

Intimate Relationships

The study examined differences between college stu- dents from divorced and intact families on several measures of intimate relationships. Analyses indicated that students from divorced families had more sexual partners and desired more sexual involvement when going steady than students from intact families. Regression analyses indicated that, for students from both divorced and intact families, parental marital conflict was a significant predictor of total number of sexual partners and negative attitudes toward marriage. In addition, parents' marital status was a significant predictor of sexual involvement while going steady and a significant predictor of self perceptions of socialbility and morality. For students from divorced families, conflict after the divorce was a significant predictor of sexual involvement while going steady and negative attitudes toward marriage. Number of years since the divorce occurred was also a significant predictor of sexual involvement desired after several dates, relationship beliefs, and attitudes toward marriage for students from divorced families. Implications of these results are discussed in terms of college students' development of intimate relationships.     

The Impact of Marital Quality,Divorce, and Remarriage on the Relationships Between Parents and Their Children

SUMMARY

This paper examines data from a panel study on the long-term effects of parental marital quality and divorce on relationships between parents and adult children. Attention is focused on whether these effects vary by age and gender of child as well as the theoretical explanations linking mother-father and parent-child relations. The relational quality between adult children (18-31 years old) and both mothers and fathers is examined from the perspective of both children and parents. Among intact families, parental marital quality has long-term effects on father-child relations, regardless of gender, whereas short-term effects are characteristic of mother-child relations and only perceived by mothers. Further, although divorce without remarriage hurts sons' relationships with both fathers and mothers, it hurts father-daughter relations even more. Mother-daughter bonds appear to be improved by divorce, with declines in income explaining a large portion of the tendency for divorce to affect father-child relations.     

Perfectionism and Binge Drinking in Canadian Students Making the Transition to University

Objective: In September 2005, the authors explored the relationship between perfectionism and binge drinking in a sample of first-year college students. Participants: The authors recruited 207 first-year college students (76 men, 131 women) to complete the Multidimensional Perfectionism Scale (MPS) and Frost Multidimensional Perfectionism Scale (F-MPS). Methods: The authors divided participants into 3 groups on the basis of frequency of binge drinking and conducted multivariate analyses of variance to compare the binge drinking groups on the 3 MPS subscales and the 5 F-MPS subscales. Results: The group with 2 or more binge drinking episodes in the past 2 weeks had higher levels of parental criticism and lower levels of self-oriented perfectionism, but they did not have lower scores on a measure of personal standards. Conclusions: These findings suggest that certain perfectionists binge drink in response to harsh parental treatment and that, at least initially, the pursuit of extreme standards of personal perfection is incompatible with binge drinking. The authors discuss the theoretical and practical implications of these findings.     

Coping Strategies for Victims of Crime: Effects of the Use of Emotion-Focused,Problem-Focused,and Avoidance-Oriented Coping

Assessment of coping strategies of crime victims is an integral function of the ensuing well-being for those victims. This study examines the relationship between coping strategies and levels of distress, social support, and subjective well-being among victims of crime. Interviews were conducted with 175 crime victims. Findings indicate a complex relationship between and among variables. A positive relationship was found between emotion-focused coping and well-being. Additionally, an inverse relationship between avoidance-oriented coping and well-being, social support, and levels of distress was found.     

Peer Relationships and Indonesian Muslim Adolescents' Religiosity and Religious Coping: Selection and Influence

The religious similarity of adolescents and their friends can arise from selection or influence. Prior studies were limited because of confounds that arose from the ethnic and religious heterogeneity of the samples and the use of cross-sectional designs. SIENA was used in this two-year longitudinal study of 825 Indonesian Muslim high school students (445 girls; mean age = 16.5 years) to assess peer selection and influence as these pertained to religiosity and religious coping. The analyses yielded significant influence but not selection effects for both religiosity and religious coping. This study is an important methodological advance over prior research and although limited by correlational data, nevertheless, provides evidence that adolescents influence their peers' religiousness.     

Marital Quality Assessment: Reviewing the Concept,Instruments, and Methods

Abstract

This study aimed to investigate which instruments have been used in marital quality research since 2005, and the concepts underlying each measure. We conducted a literature review in the following databases: PsycINFO, PubMed, Web of Science, and BVS. The review included 91 studies investigating 21 instruments. Half of the scales were multidimensional, but the most used instruments were unidimensional, except for the DAS. Most measures had exploratory evidence of construct validity and did not provide a definition of the construct under evaluation. Theoretical development is needed to address the problem of largely subjective, empirically based measures. We suggest network models can help to develop new measures and to provide a fresh understanding of the construct and the dynamics of marital relations.     

Views of Intimate Partner Violence in Same‐ and Opposite‐Sex Relationships

Attitudes toward same‐sex intimate relationships and intimate partner violence (IPV) are changing. Little research, however, has examined norms about IPV in same‐sex relationships. Using a fractional factorial (experimental vignette) design, we conducted random‐digit‐dialed interviews in four languages with 3,679 community‐residing adults. Multivariate analyses of responses to 14,734 vignettes suggest that IPV against gay male, lesbian, and heterosexual women is more likely than that against heterosexual men to be considered illegal and that it should be illegal, police called, and a stay‐away order issued. Regardless of gender and sexual orientation, the type of abuse and whether a weapon was displayed are the strongest predictors of respondents’ judgments about whether a behavior is illegal and merits a range of societal interventions.     

Perfectionism,Anxiety, and Depressive Distress: Evidence for the Mediating Role of Negative Automatic Thoughts and Anxiety Sensitivity

Abstract

Objective: This study assessed a mediational model in which negative automatic thoughts and anxiety sensitivity were hypothesized to mediate the relationship between perfectionism cognitions and depressive and anxiety symptoms. Participants: Participants were undergraduate students from an urban Canadian university. The data were collected from July 2009 to August 2010. Methods: In a cross-sectional evaluation, 992 undergraduate participants completed questionnaires that assessed perfectionism cognitions, negative automatic thinking, anxiety sensitivity, and anxiety and depressive symptoms. Results: Mediational analysis confirmed the role of anxiety sensitivity and negative automatic thoughts in mediating the association between perfectionistic cognitions, anxiety symptoms, and depressive distress. Furthermore, in line with previous studies, nearly a third of students displayed an elevated prevalence of anxiety and depressive symptoms. Conclusions: This study further clarified the associations and mediating relationships among mood states associated with perfectionism.     

Stress, Trauma, and Coping Strategies: Cross-Cultural Variations

This article examines three major issues. First, it considers the nature of trauma, its cognitive and emotional appraisal, and the cultural variations in its appraisal. In this context, it also distinguishes between universal traumas and culture-specific traumas with pertinent examples. In addition, the conceptual, epistemological, and methodological problems of investigating trauma across cultures are highlighted. Second, the article critically examines the controversies surrounding the nature, theoretical formulations, and methodologies currently adopted in stress research both in Western and non-Western cultures, with special emphasis being placed on the situation prevailing in Indian stress research. Third, it focuses on therapeutic issues and highlights some of the culture-specific healing techniques used by some people in Indian cultures to cope with stress and trauma. Finally, it suggests ways by which one might achieve a rapprochement between Western approaches and non-Western approaches to the study of stress and trauma.     

Implications of Overwork and Overload for the Quality of Men's Family Relationships

This study examined the implications of men's long work hours and role overload for the quality of their relationships with their wives and their firstborn (M= 15 years) and secondborn adolescent offspring (M= 12.5 years) in a sample of 190 dual‐earner families. Holding constant men's occupational self‐direction and level of education, long hours were related to less time spent with the wife but were unrelated to spouses' love, perspective‐taking, or conflict; high levels of role overload consistently predicted less positive marital relationships. In contrast, the combination of long hours and high overload was consistently associated with less positive father‐adolescent relationships, a pattern that was similar for older and younger adolescents and for sons and daughters.     

The Marital Scales: Measurement of Intent,Attitudes, and Aspects Regarding Marital Relationships

Studies on marital relationships focus on intent to marry, global positive or negative attitudes toward marriage, and expectations for what married life will be like. There are currently no instruments capable of assessing all three of these areas. This study outlines the development and validation of the Marital Scales. One is designed to measure intent to marry (Intent to Marry Scale), another is for general attitudes toward marriage (General Attitudes Toward Marriage Scale), and the last scale measures expectations for marital relationships (Aspects of Marriage Scale). They are also designed to be applicable for any individual, regardless of marital status or sexual orientation. Results demonstrated excellent factor structure, and good internal reliability and construct validity for the instrument.     

Evaluating a Web-Based Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy for Maladaptive Perfectionism in University Students

Abstract

Objective: This study assessed a Web-based cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) for maladaptive perfectionism, investigating perfectionism, anxiety, depression, negative automatic thoughts, and perceived stress. Participants: Participants were undergraduate students defined as maladaptive perfectionists through a screening questionnaire at an urban university. The data were collected from July 2009 to August 2010. Methods: Forty-seven maladaptive perfectionists were randomly assigned to a 12-week CBT or a wait-list control group and assessed via questionnaires at pre- and postintervention. Statistical procedures included t tests, Pearson correlations, and analysis of covariance. Results: At the postintervention measure, the CBT group demonstrated significant decreases in anxiety sensitivity and negative automatic thoughts compared to the control group. Within the CBT group, changes in perfectionism scores were significantly correlated with positive changes in depression, anxiety, stress, and automatic thoughts. Conclusions: The treatment group improved on psychological outcomes, demonstrating the effectiveness of a Web-based CBT for perfectionism in a university setting.     

Marital Quality,Context, and Interaction: A Comparison of Those Currently Receiving Government Assistance with Those Who Are Not

In this study the marital quality of respondents who were currently receiving government assistance was compared with those who were not. Contextual variables (e.g., gender, age, age at first marriage, religiosity, education, etc.) and interactional variables (i.e., escalating negativity, criticism, negative interpretation, withdrawal) were measured as potential correlates with marital quality. Results indicated that those who received government assistance differed significantly from those who did not on all six indicators of marital quality that were measured and on 8 of 11 contextual variables measured. Findings from this study will help policymakers, therapists, and other helping professionals gain an increased awareness of the needs of these two distinct populations and how to target educational programs to best address those needs.     

Women’s Employment Status,Coercive Control,and Intimate Partner Violence in Mexico

Findings from previous studies examining the relation between women’s employment and the risk of intimate partner violence have been mixed. Some studies find greater violence toward women who are employed, whereas others find the opposite relation or no relation at all. I propose a new framework in which a woman’s employment status and her risk of violent victimization are both influenced by the level of control exercised by her partner. Controlling men will actively prevent women from working and are also more likely to physically harm their partners. Using a statistical model in which the effect of omitted characteristics on women’s employment and their risk of violence are allowed to be correlated reverses the estimated association between employment and violence. The final results show that employment reduces women’s risk of violence. Data for the study are drawn from a sample of over 30,000 Mexican women in intimate relationships. The findings have broad implications given the increase in female labor force participation in many parts of the world.     

Status Compatibility,Physical Violence,and Emotional Abuse in Intimate Relationships

This article analyzing national data (N = 7,408) examines the connection between men's and women's relative economic contributions in families and the risk of husband‐to‐wife physical violence and emotional abuse. Family violence researchers have conceptualized the association between economic variables and the risk of intimate partner violence with respect to the structural dimensions of sociodemographic factors, whereas feminist researchers connect economic power to family dynamics. Marital dependency and stress frustration theories treat income, education, and employment as socioeconomic resources, whereas some feminist research points to the need for research that treats these economic variables as symbolic resources. Although income and educational attainment reduce women's risk of physical violence and emotional abuse by husbands, I find that status incompatibilities between partners that favor women increase the likelihood of emotional abuse.     

A Comparison of Sexual Assault Cases with Child and Adult Victims

Researchers have suggested that sexual assault cases involving children are treated differently than cases involving adults; they have suggested that cases with child victims are more likely to be dismissed and are less likely to result in conviction or incarceration of the offender. The present study used data from Detroit Recorder's Court to compare the outcome of sexual assault cases involving children and adults. The results indicated that cases with child victims differed in important ways from cases with adult victims, and that these differences affected case outcomes. Cases with child victims were less likely than cases with adult victims to be aggravated sexual assaults. When these differences were taken into account, offenders convicted of assaulting children faced a higher risk of incarceration than did offenders convicted of assaulting adults.     

Racialization,Othering, and Coping Among Adult International Adoptees in Finland

This qualitative interview study examined experiences of racialization and coping among 14 adult international adoptees in Finland. The results show that adoptees encounter a range of racializations by which they are made “other” and excluded from Finnishness. Racialization mostly occurs indirectly and subtly, and often by significant others, and consequently is more difficult to cope with. The findings suggest that the Finnish adoption community and adoption research should pay more attention to experiences of racialization among adoptees and take notice of the context-specific nature of coping when supporting adoptees to develop strategies that reduce discrimination and protect their well-being. However, eliminating racism requires interventions at all levels: from the individual to the family, community, and nation.