Understanding Normative Growth and Development in Aging

No abstract available for this article.     

Association of Personal Distress With Burnout,Compassion Fatigue,and Compassion Satisfaction Among Clinical Social Workers

ABSTRACT

Studies of empathy and empathy-related responding show that while some people respond to observing the suffering of another with a prosocial concern and urge to help the suffering person, others have an aversive, avoidant response that is primarily self-focused and aimed toward relieving their own distress rather than helping the other person. This self-focused response, labeled personal distress, is associated with various social and psychological problems. This article discusses the concept of personal distress and describes a study of licensed clinical social workers (n = 171) that examines the relationship of personal distress and three other aspects of the empathy construct with compassion fatigue, burnout, and compassion satisfaction. Results of ordinary least squares multiple regression analyses indicate that the model of empathy components and control variables explain 20% to 23% of the variance in the dependent variables. Personal distress is the only component of the empathy construct with significant associations with the dependent variables. Higher personal distress is associated with higher compassion fatigue and burnout and lower compassion satisfaction among clinical social workers. Implications for future research and for social work education are discussed.     

Daily reports of distress: Not for women only

Abstract

A context-dependence paradigm was developed for research into effects of the menstrual cycle in women. This involved the investigation of situational effects on self-reported distress in both men and women. For 35 consecutive days, 25 women and 36 men working in two occupations that varied in degree of situational stress completed Body Awareness Questionnaires (modified menstrual distress questionnaires) and daily subjective stress ratings. After controlling for contraceptive use, age range, and percentage of body fat, the following variables were selected for a multiple regression analysis as predictors of distress: (a) job stress, (b) feminine values, (c) life stress, (d) subjective stress, (e) type of job, (f) sex, (g) job experience, and (h) history of menstrual distress. Women working in the high-stress job (military police) reported significantly more distress than all the other groups. Life stress was identified as the dominant predictor of distress. In a separate analysis of daily distress scores and menstrual cycle phases for all the women, there was no interaction between the type of job and the menstrual cycle phase on reports of distress. A similar analysis of the effects on sex and shift revealed shift effects in distress for men but not women. Sources of variability for both sexes (shift-work rotation and cycle phase) are discussed.     

基于公司治理信息的财务困境预警实证研究

在分别借助因子分析和单变量检验对公司财务信息和治理信息进行统计处理的基础上，构建并实证检验中国上市公司财务困境预警的两大模型，即仅包含财务信息与融合财务信息和公司治理信息的Logistic回归预警模型。实证结果表明：公司治理信息对公司陷入财务困境具有显著的影响，引入公司治理信息的模型预测能力更强。     

The study of mental distress and the (re)construction of identities in men and women with experience of long-term mental distress

This article explores the possibility of using a theoretical framework drawn from disability studies in the field of mental health, and the study of identity (re)construction in the recovery process. In this PhD project, 33 narratives were analysed using framework analysis. The analysis showed that disablism was present and powerful in the participants’ lives, and also showed how disablism shaped how the participants thought and felt about themselves. As Carol Thomas argues, when analysing disablism one should also focus on who we are and are prevented from being, as disabled people. The conclusion is that processes of oppression were central when it comes to understanding the (re)construction of identities. A disability studies perspective is thus relevant in the field of mental distress, and can be used to enhance the understanding of the process of identity (re)construction.     

‘What about the couple?’ Interracial marriage and psychological distress

We explore the association between racial composition of couples—that is, whether they are interracial or homogamous—and the psychological distress of their members, as measured in a screening scale for non-specific psychological distress. We use a pooled 1997–2001 National Health Interview Survey sample of the married and cohabiting population of the United States. We compare the odds of distress for interracial vs. same race married/cohabiting adults. There are several key findings. Interracial marriage is associated with increases in severe distress for Native American men, white women, and for Hispanic men and women married to non-white spouses, compared to endogamous members of the same groups. Higher rates of distress are observed for intermarried persons with African American or Native American husbands or wives, and for women with Hispanic husbands. Lower socioeconomic status explains approximately half of the increased distress experienced by white women, while higher socioeconomic status partially suppresses increases in distress for Hispanic men and women.     

青年农民工心理症状及影响因素:未婚与已婚的比较

本研究采用社交回避及苦恼量表、社会支持量表和症状自测量表对407名农民工进行测量,探讨农民工心理症状及影响因素,并比较未婚与已婚的差异。结果发现:(1)农民工心理症状整体上处于严重状态,社交回避及苦恼较为常见,社会支持处于一般水平,未婚组与已婚组有显著差异;(2)农民工社交回避及苦恼与心理症状呈显著正相关,社会支持与心理症状、社交回避及苦恼之间都呈显著负相关,未婚与已婚组的相关系数有较大差异;(3)未婚农民工的社交苦恼直接预测心理症状,已婚农民工的社交回避与社交苦恼都直接预测心理症状,主观支持和支持利用度对已婚者保护心理健康更有作用。     

Relational problems and psychiatric symptoms in couple therapy

This article describes couples attending family counselling in Sweden. The study group is compared with clinical groups and non-clinical groups. Self-rating instruments were com-pleted by 317 women and 312 men to evaluate the following: marital satisfaction (DAS), expressed emotion (QAFM), family climate (FC), psychiatric symptoms (SCL-90) and sense of coherence (SOC). This group had several problems: marital relationships, disrupted family functioning, dyadic interactions characterised by criticism and open arguments, and multiple psychological symptoms. The women were espe-cially discontent in the relationship, and they exhibited higher symptom strain and lower sense of coherence than the men did. Compared with non-clinical populations, this group was severely distressed and was similar to in-patient families in child psychiatric clinics. The low sense of coherence of the individuals in the group under study means that their sense of having a meaningful life and their ability to comprehend and manage problems were severely compromised. Adequate and comprehensive treatment within the framework of social pro-grammes should be made available to these couples and others in a similar situation.     

论违约责任中的精神损害赔偿——兼评《中国民法典:合同编条文建议稿》(总则)第81条

通常以为违约责任中的损害赔偿范围限于财产上的利益 ,不包括精神损害赔偿 ,违约行为若造成精神损害赔偿 ,可以通过责任竞合制度解决。但责任竞合制度并不能完全补偿当事人所受到的利益损害 ,在比较法研究的基础上进一步认为 :在可预见性标准的限制下 ,违约损害赔偿应包括部分精神损害。     

Metaphors for mental distress as an aid to empathy: looking through The Bell Jar

This paper makes a case for the value of using metaphors when attempting to describe and understand extreme mental states. Examples of metaphors are given from practice, literature, myth and the visual arts and, in particular, a close reading of Sylvia Plath's The Bell Jar (1986). Commentary on and criticism of The Bell Jar are cited that highlight the value of this work as an aid to insight into how those in mental distress might feel. The nature and importance of accurate empathy is discussed, as is the difficulty of getting the balance right in empathic responses. Case studies linking theory and practice are cited. The hopes, ambivalence and displacement of the person seeking help are discussed, as are different ways of attempting to provide help. The paper concludes by emphasising the multi-faceted presentations of self by both caring professional and service user and the importance of recognising the subtleties of these in the context of the would-be therapeutic relationship.