Fathers’ Perspectives on Strengthening Military Families: A Mixed Method Evaluation of a 10-Week Resiliency Building Program

A recent Institute of Medicine report on “The Assessment or Readjustment Needs of Veterans, Service Members, and Their Families” http://nationalacademies.org/hmd/Reports/2013/Returning-Home-from-Iraq-and-Afghanistan.aspx, (2013) underscored the need for effective support for military families with young children, and that effective engagement into existing services remains a challenge. This mixed-method study involved 14 fathers (previously deployed military) who engaged in the Strong Military Families Program, a resiliency-building group for families with young children. The purpose of this paper was twofold: first, to identify the efficacy of this brief intervention for reducing mental health symptomatology among previously deployed military fathers who completed the group, and second to better understand the perceptions and reflections of fathers who completed an effective symptom management program in order to fill the literature gap around this issue and guide future efforts at increasing engagement of this population. Pre- and post-group assessments were administered including depression and posttraumatic stress symptom ratings. Assessments also included interviews designed to elicit fathers’ expectations before the program and to capture their reflections after completion. Quantitative analyses examined changes in symptoms pre- to post-group, and qualitative analyses aimed to better understand fathers’ experiences and help guide future efforts to increase engagement of this population. A grounded theory approach was employed to analyze interview content, and two themes were identified reflecting a desire for (1) connection and (2) learning. The prominence of these themes both before and after group underscored the value of connection to others who shared experience and opportunity for learning effective parenting strategies. Corresponding quantitative analyses indicated a significant decrease in self-reported posttraumatic stress (p?<?.05) and trend level reduction in depression (p?<?.10), suggesting participation may contribute to more effective symptom management. Subgroup analyses contrasting the pre-group interviews of fathers who endorsed higher (n?=?9) versus lower (n?=?5) levels of symptoms revealed that those with greater symptomatology expressed more themes related to fear of committing to the program. Discussion will focus on effective outreach and engagement, and the need to align programs to the interests of previously deployed fathers of young children.     

Does a Perinatal Infant Mental Health Team Hold the Family in Mind? Opportunities and Challenges for Working Systemically in this Specialised Field

This paper considers whether systemic family therapy frameworks are used in current Perinatal Infant Mental Health (PIMH) practice. PIMH is a field that is, by nature, relational, focusing on enhancing the development of early parent–infant relationships. It is well accepted that the early years of an infant's life are crucial for brain development, and disturbances in early parent–infant relationships can impact negatively upon the child's development. Five clinicians from a PIMH service in a metropolitan area participated in a focus group related to key systemic concepts: genograms, family of origin, transitions, and morphogenesis. Findings suggest that the PIMH team does hold the family in mind, utilising systemic frameworks predominately in the engagement and assessment phase of intervention. They also highlight that PIMH clinicians focus on roles and boundaries occurring within the immediate and extended family unit and support families with the transition to family expansion phase. The application of working systemically differed significantly among participants, suggesting that the use of systemic frameworks in the PIMH field requires further exploration.     

Prevalence and predictors of PTSD among a college sample

Objective:This study examined the prevalence and correlates of probable posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in freshman entering college and prospective associations of probable PTSD with additional outcomes. Participants: 2,310 students with data collected from Fall 2014 through Spring 2015. Methods: Incoming freshman completed a survey assessing for relevant variables at the beginning of fall semester and during the spring semester. Results: Seventy percent of the sample endorsed experiencing at least one potentially traumatic event (PTE). 34.4% of PTE exposed individuals met criteria for probable PTSD. Female sex, higher depressive and anxiety symptoms, and interpersonal PTE count were positively associated with PTSD symptoms. Higher PTSD symptoms were associated with higher anxiety and depressive symptoms, and new-onset interpersonal PTE. Conclusions: Identification of factors contributing to risk for PTSD is essential to inform prevention and intervention efforts. Intervention efforts should be targeted to students experiencing PTSD symptoms as they enter college.     

Using the Multiple-Choice Procedure to Measure the Relative Reinforcing Efficacy of Gambling: Initial Validity Evidence Among College Students

The multiple choice procedure (MCP) is used to assess the relative reinforcing value of concurrently available stimuli. The MCP was originally developed to assess the reinforcing value of drugs; the current within-subjects study employed the MCP to assess the reinforcing value of gambling behavior. Participants (N = 323) completed six versions of the MCP that presented hypothetical choices between money to be used while gambling ($10 or $25) versus escalating amounts of guaranteed money available immediately or after delays of either 1 week or 1 month. Results suggest that choices on the MCP are correlated with other measures of gambling behavior, thus providing concurrent validity data for using the MCP to quantify the relative reinforcing value of gambling. The MCP for gambling also displayed sensitivity to reinforcer magnitude and delay effects, which provides evidence of criterion validity. The results are consistent with a behavioral economic model of addiction and suggest that the MCP could be a valid tool for future research on gambling behavior.     

Guess Who's Coming to Dinner ...

Qualitative Sociology -     

Coming full circle? Forging missing links along Nike's integrated production networks

Abstract ‘Global’ corporations are being held accountable for conditions at sites of production, formerly the domains of their foreign contractors. This shift was exemplified when consumers in Nike's largest markets began replacing the excitement of the latest pair of Nike shoes with a question: ‘Should I be wearing Nike shoes?’ With existing analytical tools, we cannot comprehensively answer this question. To do so, we need a more complete picture of international production networks, their interrelationships among agents and their geographies. The use of an integrated production network that links consumption and production analyses and place‐based conditions accomplishes this goal. This integrative approach allows for more thorough investigations of firm networks, the regions where they interact, the labour upon which they depend, and the consumers that influence their behaviour. Furthermore, investigating ‘feedback loops’ between these facets provides a means of understanding how reforms along production networks are mediated.     

What Kind of Mother Am I? Impression Management and the Social Construction of Motherhood

Previous research has examined the use of others as props for impression management (e.g., presidents' use of first ladies), but has left many areas underexplored, including the role of nonadults as important associates. This article focuses on the unacknowledged role of children's appearances in the maintenance of identities and management of impressions for their mothers. Using both participant observation of a playgroup and interviews with mothers of young children, the research described here investigates what these mothers think about children's clothing, mothers' concerns about when—and with whom—to manage impressions, and the impressions these women hope they portray through the physical appearance of their children. In addition to providing insight about these phenomena, the article also discusses responses surrounding the importance of first impressions, differences in meanings attached to children's spoiled appearances, and the sacrifices made in motherhood. Results show that women do use well‐dressed and groomed children to enact and confirm identities as “good mothers” and to protect and enhance their own self‐concepts during the course of everyday social interaction.