Rural Appalachian High School Students’ College‐Going and STEMM Perceptions

The authors examined perceptions of key social cognitive career theory (Lent, Brown, & Hackett, 1994) variables related to college‐going and science, technology, engineering, math, and medical (STEMM) careers in 10th and 11th graders (N = 892) attending 3 rural Appalachian high schools. The authors examined differences in perceptions related to gender, prospective 1st‐generation college student status, and the presence or absence of aspirations to pursue a STEMM career. Young women and young men scored similarly on all but 1 dependent variable, college‐going self‐efficacy (young women scored higher). Students who had STEMM career aspirations had higher scores on every measure than those who did not. Results suggest examining a 3rd prospective 1st‐generation college student status group—students who are unsure of their parents’ education level—as a distinct group in future research. By examining the college‐going and STEMM attitudes of rural Appalachian high school students, this study advances the literature and informs practitioners on reducing educational and vocational inequalities in this region.     

Examining the Psychometric Properties of the Sexual Excitation/Sexual Inhibition Inventory for Women (SESII-W) in a Sample of Lesbian and Bisexual Women

The Sexual Excitation/Sexual Inhibition Inventory for Women (SESII-W) assesses propensities for sexual excitation (SE) and inhibition (SI). Previous research utilizing the SESII-W included samples comprised exclusively or almost entirely of heterosexual women. The purpose of this study was to examine the psychometric properties of the SESII-W and assess its relation to aspects of sexual function within a sample of lesbian and bisexual women. The sample included 974 self-identified bisexual (n = 733) or lesbian/homosexual (n = 241) women who completed an online survey including items assessing women’s sexual behaviors, feelings, and functioning, sociodemographics, and the SESII-W. The sample was split; exploratory factor analyses were conducted on the first half, yielding eight lower-order factors with two higher-order factors. Confirmatory factor analysis was conducted on the second half and suggested reasonable model fit. SI was positively correlated with sexual problems and negatively correlated with sexual pleasure; the correlations were significant but small. Hierarchical regression analyses were conducted to examine the relationships between SESII-W scores and sexual problems/sexual pleasure, controlling for age, relationship duration, and relationship status. Four lower-order factors predicted reports of sexual problems. Findings indicated the SESII-W has similar psychometric properties among sexual minority women as it does among heterosexual women.     

Self-Reported Personal Well-Being of Youth Accessing Intensive Mental Health Treatment

Normative samples have been shown to rate their personal wellbeing (PWB) as positively high and high PWB is associated with many enduring benefits. Cummins (J Happiness Stud 10(6):1–17, 2009) has suggested that PWB has an equilibrium that is set at a rather high positive state and maintained through psychological mechanisms he termed homeostatic protected mood (HPM). Investigators who have explored PWB and mental health disorders have often focused on schizophrenia in adult populations, with varied results, and scant attention has been paid to clinical samples of youth with emotional and/or behavioral disorders. The purpose for this report was to explore the level of PWB reported by a subsample of youth who accessed residential treatment (n = 30) and intensive home based treatment (n = 33) at 12–18 months post-discharge, and explore whether clinical variables could predict PWB. Many youth reported high PWB despite experiencing continued challenges in symptoms and psychosocial functioning. Demographic and clinical characteristics did not predict participants’ PWB scores, lending support for the HPM theory with this sample of youth with emotional and behavioral disorder.     

The concept of reflection: is it skill based or values?

Reflection, reflectivity, reflective practice, reflective praxis and critical reflection are all dialogical terms used interchangeably to mean different things. It is timely to take time out and pause on this important concept to consider the wider implications of its use. Whatever reflection is, we know there are difficulties in identifying this complex idea writers, practitioners and scholars constantly engage with reflection in new debates about ‘how to do it better’ assuming the ‘it’ is something assessed and understood. More worryingly a student’s ability to reflect is assessed assuming the idea of reflective practice is a measureable phenomenon. Some have identified problems of assessing reflection. There is limited empirical evidence of what is reflection. In the substantial literature on reflection we have failed to ask the question – ‘What is reflection it if doesn’t exist that I might be able to perform it better and others can measure?’ The problem of reflection is more complicated when presenting reflective performance through language, which will also be explored. This article presents a challenge to contemporary ideas of the way in which reflection is conceptualised and understood. The article concludes with insights and a way forward for a new argument on reflection and how it might be linked to virtue ethics rather than it being viewed as a skill that can be taught.     

A midwife program of newborn resuscitation

A very small proportion of newborns fail to establish a normal respiratory pattern without some assistance at birth and newborns requiring resuscitative measures at birth should have a skilled practitioner able to provide it. In this small hospital midwives felt unskilled in newborn resuscitation and paediatricians were not always immediately available. A stakeholder group gathered to discuss the problem. A training program was implemented that improved the skills, confidence and support of the attending midwife to resuscitate the newborn effectively. The aim was to improve the outcome for the infant whilst maintaining the mother's choice of birthing in a small local hospital close to family and friends.     

Do Associations Between Pleasure Ratings and Condom Use During Penile–Vaginal Intercourse Vary by Relationship Type?: A Study of Canadian University Students

Research suggests the relationship between pleasure and condom use during penile–vaginal intercourse (PVI) is associated with relationship status. This online study examined pleasure ratings and condom use at last PVI, stratifying by partner type, among a national sample of Canadian university students. Participants were 715 undergraduates (60.7% women, 39.3% men) who reported on their most recent sexual experience. Condom use decreased with level of relationship commitment, whereas ratings of pleasure increased. Overall, participants were more likely to rate their most recent PVI as Very pleasurable when condoms were not used compared to when condoms were used. However, when stratified by partner type, these differences largely disappeared. For women, with one exception, there were no differences in pleasure between PVI with and without condoms across most partner-type categories. Women in committed dating relationships were more likely to report their last PVI as very pleasurable if condoms were not used than women in these same relationships who had used condoms. Across relationship categories, men who did and did not use condoms did not differ in terms of their pleasure ratings. The results of this study suggest relationship context should be taken into account when assessing condom use experiences.     

Challenging the Myth of Urban Regeneration: Raising the Profile of Problem Gambling with a Media Campaign

This paper is an examination of discourses challenging the myth of ‘gambling’ as a form of urban regeneration in Great Britain. The focus is primarily on the Daily Mail, which has continually waged a successful media campaign to “Kill the Casino Bill” and constructed a powerful public condemnation of gambling as regenerative. From an analysis of 156 gambling articles from January 2004 to December 2010 common and recurring themes emerged to dismiss gambling as a form of regeneration. These were gambling as immoral, criminal and pathological. These helped shaped discourses around which the debate on gambling was framed and structured.     

Sexuality in Older Adults (65+)—An Overview of the Literature,Part 1: Sexual Function and its Difficulties

Objectives: The aim of the current article was to provide an overview of literature on sexual function and sexual difficulties in older adults. Method: The authors conducted a narrative review of papers published in English between January 2005 and July 2015 based on an extensive search in PsycINFO. Results: The review showed that although common biological changes may adversely affect sexual function in old age, sexual experience seems to also be affected by psychological and interpersonal factors. Conclusions: Greater life expectancy and better medical care will result in older individuals with chronic diseases living longer. The need for help to cope with changes in sexual health is likely to increase in older adults, as sexuality may be negatively affected through several pathways.