Gender,Preloss Marital Dependence,and Older Adults’ Adjustment to Widowhood

I examine how preloss emotional and instrumental dependence on one's spouse affects older adults’ psychological adjustment to widowhood. Analyses are based on 297 persons from the Changing Lives of Older Couples (CLOC) study, a prospective study of widowhood among adults aged 65 and older. Women who were most emotionally dependent on their spouses had the poorest self‐esteem while still married, yet evidence the highest levels of self‐esteem following loss. Men who were most dependent on their wives for home maintenance and financial management tasks experience the greatest personal growth following loss. These results suggest that widowed persons who were once highly dependent upon their spouses reap psychological rewards from the recognition that they are capable of managing on their own.     

ON BALANCE AND SYNERGY: FAMILY THERAPY AND QUALITATIVE RESEARCH REVISITED

Our respondents have provided though-provoking counterpoints to our original paper (Moon, Dillon, & Sprenkle, 1990). Our response is one of synthesis. First, we describe a continuum of social science inquiry paradigms as a framework for exploring the assumptions underlying our respective positions. Second, we address the key issues raised by our respondents. Third, we encourage balance in our research efforts and continuing dialogue. Finally we restate our basic thesis-that qualitative research methodology has the potential to advance the science and practice of family therapy.     

FAMILY THERAPY AND QUALITATIVE RESEARCH*

Qualitative research is becoming accepted by the scientific community as a viable way to explore and understand socialscience phenomena. The purpose of this paper is to describe the essential features of the qualitative research paradigm and to encourage further development of that paradigm in the field of family therapy. First, typical characteristics of qualitative research designs are delineated; these characteristics are illustrated with two extended examples from the qualitative research literature in the field of education. Next, possible applications of the qualitative paradigm to research issues in the field of family therapy are discussed. Finally, potential pitfalls that could inhibit the development of qualitative family therapy research are examined. It is hoped that this paper will serve as a stimulus for the development of qualititative research in the field of family therapy.     

War-related mental health problems of today's veterans: new clinical awareness

1. Veterans of the military conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan may have been exposed to significant psychological stressors, resulting in mental and emotional disorders. 2. Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is characterized by symptoms in three domains: reexperiencing the trauma, avoiding stimuli associated with the trauma, and symptoms of increased autonomic arousal. 3. Treatment of PTSD often requires both psychological and pharmacological interventions. 4. In addition to PTSD, other mental disorders may be precipitated or worsened by exposure to combat, including depression, anxiety, psychosis, and substance abuse.     

ADHD in juvenile offenders: treatment issues nurses need to know

1. When working with juvenile offenders with ADHD, advanced practice nurses should consider prescribing stimulant medication in conjunction with other psychosocial interventions to achieve maximum treatment success. 2. Nurses working with young people with ADHD in the justice system must carefully coordinate care among all health care providers and juvenile justice personnel, including attorneys, probation/parole officers, and court assessment personnel. 3. Advocating for the individual needs of clients and their families is critical; often, this includes advocating for care that is not only evidence based, but also culturally competent.     

The Painful Truth: Interpretation of Facial Expressions of Pain in Older Adults

The purpose of this study was to determine whether it is more difficult to decode facial expressions of pain in older than in younger adults. The facial expressions of 10 younger and 10 older chronic pain patients undergoing a painful diagnostic test were viewed on videotape by untrained judges. Judges estimated the severity of pain being experienced by the patients. Ratings made of the older faces during painful moments described more pain, and appeared more accurate, than those made of younger faces. Judges also reported seeing more pain in posed, masked, and baseline facial expressions in the older adults. Age-related structural changes to the face were not responsible for this bias. This suggests that judges were predisposed to see pain in the faces of the older patients, and undermines the assumption that their ratings of pain in the painful moment segments were accurate.     

From the case files: reconstructing a history of involuntary sterilisation

Although it is well-known that numerous jurisdictions in North America adopted legislation in the first half of the twentieth century allowing the involuntary sterilisation of persons diagnosed as 'mentally deficient', analysis of its implementation has rarely progressed beyond the examination of the legislation and the aggregate data presented in official reports. In this paper we analyse the case files of the Eugenics Board for the province of Alberta. The primary sources contained in these files reveal something of the hand of officialdom: clinical reports, diagnoses, test results and 'patient' history. The files allow glimpses of the individual stories of those who were sterilised. Much more directly, they present the case made for involuntary sterilisation from professional, often custodial perspectives. Thus, they afford us a richer understanding of the culture which sanctioned the practice of forcible sterilisation.     

Perceived Stress and Sexual Orientation Among Breast Cancer Survivors

Little is known about the cancer survivorship experiences of sexual minority women (SMW). SMW breast cancer survivors are hypothesized to experience more stress compared to heterosexual breast cancer survivors. A convenience sample of 211 breast cancer survivors (68 SMW, 143 heterosexual women) participated in this cross-sectional online investigation of perceived stress. Regression analyses indicated significant differences in reported stress between heterosexual and SMW breast cancer survivors (β= -.15, p = .03). Our findings may reflect unique experiences had by sexual minority breast cancer survivors. Future research should explore the factors that contribute to elevated perceived stress in this group.