Pregnancy Intentions and Parents' Psychological Well‐Being

Extant research suggests that parents are more depressed than childless adults, yet the role of pregnancy intentions is largely absent from the discussion. Using 2 waves of data from the National Survey of Families and Households (n = 825 women, n = 889 men), the author found that pregnancy intentions are an important consideration for parents' well‐being. The results suggest that unintended births are associated with increased depressive symptoms among fathers and decreased happiness among mothers. This association persisted even after accounting for union status and measures of depressive symptoms and happiness prior to the birth. The author also investigated the social, psychological, and economic mechanisms that explain this relationship. Self‐efficacy and financial strain partially explain the link between unintended births and poorer well‐being.     

On the effect of free vs. restricted interaction during the exploration of virtual environments

Exploration of a Virtual Environment (VE) might vary as well in applied technology as in the conceptual design. A conceptual difference of exploring style and navigation type relates to the degree of freedom a user possesses. It ranges from completely unrestricted to completely restricted navigation. To assess the impact of different exploration styles, an experiment was carried out. Four different styles were compared in a large-scale VE. The navigation of the participants was either free or restricted in various levels concerning motion and viewing direction. During the exploration, the participants memorized the location of flags, which represented special events at these locations. The participant's task was to memorize position and color of the flags. Subsequently, they marked the positions and colors of the flags in a map of the scene. The performance in this task was captured, as well as data about their amount of experienced simulator sickness and subjective workload. Additionally, balancing tests were administered to investigate in an objective measurement of simulator sickness. Each condition showed the same achievement in the memorizing task and the subjective workload. Furthermore, the measured high variance in simulator sickness symptoms overrode other effects. In the balancing tests a basic influence of exposure with VE was found. However, subsequent interviews with the participants showed that the personal impression of the efficiency of exploration method was highly individual. By finding and matching exploration methods to individual persons, benefit by using Virtual environments could be enhanced.     

Putting emergence back in leadership emergence: A dynamic,multilevel, process-oriented framework

The study of leadership emergence has increased substantially over the past few decades. However, due to a lack of integrative theory, we believe limited advancement has been made regarding the full process of leadership emergence. To address this concern, first, we conceptualize the leadership emergence process from a complexity perspective and define emergence as a dynamic, interactive process grounded in three principles of emergent phenomena. Second, we review how previous research has modeled leadership emergence by focusing on the content areas of the lower-level elements, the mechanisms that facilitate their emergence, and the dynamism of the process once it has emerged. Third, based on the findings from the review, we introduce a process-oriented framework of leadership emergence. Fourth, we offer propositions to guide developing and testing emergent leadership processes, and we conclude with recommendations for future leadership process research. Our hope is that by realigning the study of leadership emergence with complexity and multilevel theory, we can reorient this area to focusing more on the process mechanisms within emergence, connecting back to research progress made over 60?years ago.     

Exploring the Relationship Between Stimulant Use and Gambling in College Students

Both gambling and stimulant use are common and can lead to problems on college campuses with consequences that impact the financial, emotional, academic and physical well-being of students. Yet few studies have been conducted to understand the co-occurrence of these conditions and the increased risk factors if any that may exist for gambling and related problems. The present study is among the first to document the co-occurrence of these behaviors in both a random sample of students (N = 4640), and then to explore to what extent stimulant use impacts subsequent gambling and related problems 12 months later in an at-risk sample (N = 199). Results revealed a three-fold higher rate of recent problem gambling for those who used stimulants versus those who had not (11 vs. 4 %). For those already gambling, stimulant use predicted an increased frequency in gambling 12 months later. Implications for prevention and screening are discussed.     

“I'm in this world for a reason”: Resilience and recovery among American Indian and Alaska Native two-spirit women

ABSTRACT

American Indian and Alaska Native sexual minority (two-spirit) women are vulnerable to substance misuse and mental health challenges due to multiple minority oppressed status and exposure to stress and trauma. Yet, these women find pathways toward healing and wellness. We conducted a qualitative data analysis of interviews derived from a national health study and gained an understanding of 11 two-spirit women's resilience and recovery patterns. Emergent from the data, a braided resiliency framework was developed which elucidates multilayered abilities, processes, and resources involved in their resiliency. We recommend that resilience-promoting strategies be incorporated into substance misuse and mental health interventions.     

Infants Associate Praise and Admonishment with Fair and Unfair Individuals

Recent evidence suggests that infants possess a rudimentary sensitivity to fairness: Infants expect resources to be distributed fairly and equally, and prefer individuals that distribute resources fairly over those that do so unfairly. The goal of this work was to determine whether infants' evaluations of fair and unfair individuals also includes an understanding that fair individuals are worthy of praise and unfair individuals are worthy of admonishment. After watching individuals distribute goods fairly or unfairly to recipients, 15‐month‐old (Experiments 1 and 2) and 13‐month‐old (Experiment 3) infants took part in a test phase in which they saw only the distributors' faces accompanied by praise or admonishment. Across all experiments, infants differentially shifted their visual attention to images of the fair and unfair distributors as a function of the accompanying praise or admonishment, although the direction in which they did so varied by age. Thus, by the start of the second year of life, infants appear to perceive fair individuals as morally praiseworthy and unfair individuals as morally blameworthy.     

Estimating the Prevalence of Sexual Function Problems: The Impact of Morbidity Criteria

Establishing the clinical significance of symptoms of sexual dysfunction is challenging. To address this, the fifth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5) introduced two new morbidity criteria (duration and symptom severity) to the existing criteria of distress. This study sought to establish the impact of these three criteria on the population prevalence of sexual function problems. The data come from a national probability survey (Natsal-3) and are based on 11,509 male and female participants aged 16–74, reporting at least one sexual partner in the past year. The key outcomes were: proportion of individuals reporting proxy measures of DSM-5 problems, and the proportion of those meeting morbidity criteria. We found that among sexually active men, the prevalence of reporting one or more of four specific sexual problems was 38.2%, but 4.2% after applying the three morbidity criteria; corresponding figures for women reporting one or more of three specific sexual problems, were 22.8% and 3.6%. Just over a third of men and women reporting a problem meeting all three morbidity criteria had sought help in the last year. We conclude that the DSM-5 morbidity criteria impose a focus on clinically significant symptoms.     

Social work students’ experiences in a Christianity and sexual minority intergroup dialogue

A tension between the lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) and (heterosexual) conservative Christian communities has been documented within social work. This qualitative study explores students’ experiences in a Christianity and LGB sexuality intergroup dialogue at an American graduate social work program. This dialogue was the first known case of intergroup dialogue being used to address these topics in a social work program. Students’ motivations for participating in the dialogue, challenges faced throughout the dialogue, and what they learned are discussed. Pedagogical implications for schools of social work and intergroup dialogue are outlined.     

Students' Experiences of University and an Australian Social Work Program: Coming,Going, Staying

Student engagement, retention, and professional commitment is strongly influenced during the early stages of the university experience. However, a number of factors can undermine engagement, which has implications for the individual, the professional workforce, and university funding and reputation. This paper reports on cooperative inquiry research that explored the beginning experiences of 17 social work students from one regional Australian university. In-depth, qualitative data were collected during six discussions that focused on understanding the experiences that influenced university retention, enjoyment, and success. Data analysis revealed three primary themes: (i) purpose and timing, (ii) balancing commitments, and (iii) a sense of belonging. Findings suggested that students often struggled to balance life, work, and family commitments, while appreciating university processes that reduced stressors and contributed to a sense of belonging.     

Exploring the strategic potential of internal communication in international non-governmental organisations

The role and importance of international non-governmental organisations (INGOs) has increased with globalization and the growth of global institutions. Despite this growth, academic research into INGO management remains limited and, due to their unique characteristics, management theories developed for for-profit organisations cannot be applied as is to INGOs. Internal communication is a critical area of management that has been proven to have a major impact on an organisation's effectiveness, particularly when managed strategically. Therefore this article explores the strategic management of internal communication within the INGO context. This study synthesised the current literature on this topic and included five case studies to understand the current state of internal communication within INGOs. It was determined that INGOs do not manage internal communication strategically. However, there is evidence that the implementation of strategic internal communication could help INGOs address several of their challenges and have an impact on their overall effectiveness. This study is exploratory and further research to identify the process for strategic internal communication in INGOs is needed.