Barriers to Treatment for Female Problem Gamblers: A UK Perspective

There is a paucity of research in the UK which examines problem gambling and that which does exist is mainly quantitative, focuses on male samples and fails to look at treatment seeking populations or obstacles preventing problem gamblers from seeking treatment. This paper presents findings from part of a larger qualitative study that explored the experience of treatment for female problem gamblers. Data were collected using semi-structured interviews with eight women who had received individual cognitive-behavioural therapy in the National Health Service for their gambling problem. An interpretative phenomenological analysis approach was applied in the research process, identifying three main themes, of which the subtheme ‘Barriers to Treatment’ is examined here. Internal and external barriers to treatment organically emerged in all female participants’ accounts and appear to have an impact on service utilisation. Input directly from gamblers can be combined with findings from other studies to devise better ways of reaching female problem gamblers. A better understanding of barriers to treatment can also provide valuable direction for future research and suggest applications in clinical service provision and treatment planning.     

Ecstatic things

Abstract

This article addresses the orchestration of domestic lighting as an object of anthropological study. It takes Bedouin domestic architecture in southern Jordan as a starting point in an analysis of how light is used as means of safeguarding spaces as part of hospitality practices central to Bedouin culture. By arguing that things are “ecstatic” in the sense that they transcend their own tangibility, the article shows how objects, such as tinted windows, impose themselves on other objects to shape the particular visual presence of the world that informants opt for. Such a presence of the world is analyzed through the notion of “atmosphere” as a contemporaneity of subjective emotions, cultural ideals, and material phenomena. Thus, while boundaries between interior and exterior may be upheld by tangible material strategies, such as walls, these boundaries may also simultaneously be permeated by the ecstasy of material things, which aim to safeguard other aspects of life through less tangible strategies.     

Conflicts in the habitus: the emotional work of becoming modern

This article argues that Bourdieu's concept of habitus, and, in particular, the way habitus is transmitted intergenerationally, can be enhanced by considering conflictual conscious and unconscious processes that emerge in relationships. We suggest that Christopher Bollas's discussions of the ‘unthought known’ and of ‘transformational objects’ add relational depth to the concept of habitus and thus contribute to developing a more psycho‐social understanding of the relation between agency and change. Drawing on in‐depth interviews with a socially mobile chain of a middle‐class grandmother, mother and daughter in a period of rapid change, we describe how conflicts in the habitus are produced relationally and can either impede or motivate desires for change. Relational and object relational psychoanalytic theories offer a way to move beyond what we consider a problem in Bourdieu's theory of habitus that derives from his assumption of a subject who either consciously opts for change in habitus when faced with new social demands or non‐consciously and unconflictually reproduces habitus.     

Are transformational and laissez-faire leadership related to state anxiety among subordinates? A two-wave prospective study of forward and reverse associations

ABSTRACT

The aim of this study was to determine the direction of associations between perceived leadership styles of an immediate leader and state anxiety among subordinates using time-lagged data from a large and heterogeneous probability sample of Norwegian employees. It was hypothesised that high levels of transformational leadership would be associated with a decrease, whereas high levels of laissez-faire leadership would be associated with an increase, in subsequent levels of anxiety. Reciprocal associations were also expected in that higher levels of anxiety were hypothesised to be related to subsequent increase in reports of laissez-faire, and decrease in reported exposure to transformational leadership. The sample comprised 1149 Norwegian employees. The design was a two-wave full panel study with a six-month time interval between the baseline and follow-up assessments. Contrary to hypotheses, neither transformational nor laissez-faire leadership were significantly related to subsequent levels of state anxiety. In support of hypotheses, baseline low levels of state anxiety were associated with reporting the immediate leader as less transformational and more laissez-faire six months later. In conclusion, the findings challenge theoretical models that explain leadership as a one-way superior–subordinate influence process.     

Inference Methods for Correlated Left Truncated Lifetimes: Parent and Offspring Relations in an Adoption Study

The associations in mortality of adult adoptees and their biological or adoptive parents have been studied in order to separate genetic and environmental influences. The 1003 Danish adoptees born 1924–26 have previously been analysed in a Cox regression model, using dichotomised versions of the parents’ lifetimes as covariates. This model will be referred to as the conditional Cox model, as it analyses lifetimes of adoptees conditional on parental lifetimes. Shared frailty models may be more satisfactory by using the entire observed lifetime of the parents. In a simulation study, sample size, distribution of lifetimes, truncation- and censoring patterns were chosen to illustrate aspects of the adoption dataset, and were generated from the conditional Cox model or a shared frailty model with gamma distributed frailties. First, efficiency was compared in the conditional Cox model and a shared frailty model, based on the conditional approach. For data with type 1 censoring the models showed no differences, whereas in data with random or no censoring, the models had different power in favour of the one from which data were generated. Secondly, estimation in the shared frailty model by a conditional approach or a two-stage copula approach was compared. Both approaches worked well, with no sign of dependence upon the truncation pattern, but some sign of bias depending on the censoring. For frailty parameters close to zero, we found bias when the estimation procedure used did not allow negative estimates. Based on this evaluation, we prefer to use frailty models allowing for negative frailty parameter estimates. The conclusions from earlier analyses of the adoption study were confirmed, though without greater precision than using the conditional Cox model. Analyses of associations between parental lifetimes are also presented.     

Child labour or school attendance? Evidence from Zambia

In this paper we investigate what affects school attendance and child labour in an LDC, using data for Zambia. Since the data comes from a household survey with information on all household members it allows us to take account of unobserved household effects by introducing household-specific effects in a logit model. The empirical analysis suggests that both economic and sociological variables are important determinants for the choice between school attendance and child labour. In particular, we find some support for the hypothesis that poverty forces households to keep their children away from school. JEL classification: J24, I21, O15 Received May 20, 1996/Accepted January 2, 1997     

Leading well: Challenges to researching leadership in occupational health psychology – and some ways forward

ABSTRACT

Studies on the effects of leadership in occupational health psychology build on the assumption that leaders influence their followers’ health and well-being. Although this assumption has received support, this introductory paper to a special issue of Work & Stress on leadership argues that a number of questions regarding leadership and follower health and well-being remain unanswered. We identify four issues that we argue warrant further attention. First, what is “good” leadership? Particular leadership types are associated with increases in employee performance, but since this will involve higher effort expenditure, adverse outcomes for employee health are to be expected. Although many types of leadership are associated with favourable outcomes, we still need to identify the leadership characteristics can be identified that account for these positive outcomes. Second, how can good leadership be promoted? There is a need to develop interventions that are effective in promoting desirable leadership styles. Third, what are the inter-mediate and long-term effects of leadership on follower health? Finally, we need to understand the boundary conditions for good leadership, including the resources available to leaders. Based on these considerations, we conclude that further research is needed to fully understand the effects of leadership on employee health and well-being.     

Mediating Role of Psychological Capital in the Relationship between Social Support and Wellbeing of Refugees

This study examines the relationship between social support from work and non‐work domains and the wellbeing of refugee employees. In addition, it examines the mediating influence of psychological capital on these relationships. Using data from 190 refugee employees living in Australia, we find that while perceived organizational support and perceived family support are positively related to the wellbeing of refugee employees, the relationship between perceived supervisor support and wellbeing is not significant. Additionally, while we find that PsyCap fully mediates the relationship between perceived organizational support and wellbeing, it only partially mediates the relationship between perceived family support and wellbeing.