Psychologie communautaire et psychologie de la santé : l’implication de la recherche psychosociale dans la promotion de la santé

This paper presents the issues and main principles of community psychology and community research as well as associated relationships and viewpoints in terms of health psychology and social psychology. In this perspective, the paper presents the context in which community psychology has emerged and its fundamental principles such as empowerment, community involvement and the ecological model. Using two examples of research in prevention of HIV infection, the paper leads to a greater comprehension of how a particular community-based approach to involve affected populations may be particularly relevant, not only to better understand their beliefs and behaviors but also to try to encourage them to change current behaviors or generate new ones. Research with adolescents involved in promoting condom use illustrates the use of psychosocial models of behavior change through a community approach. A second research focus on medical and psychosocial innovation through the use of non-routine, rapid screening tests for HIV - which are neither carried out nor supervised by medical personnel - aims to highlight the impact of the development of preventive action by directly concerned communities. The article aims to present the innovative methodological and epistemological issues which underpin community research.     

De la prévention à la promotion de la santé : intérêt de l’approche communautaire

Psychological research and practice shows increasing interest for prevention and health promotion in France. Current-scientific literature recommends the implementation of targeted actions, directed towards populations expressing specific needs. The community-based approach offers a framework corresponding to the flexibility, which is necessary to the effectiveness of this type of intervention. It includes the mobilization and the participation of the citizens in the development of each unique project, in the renewal of the project according to the needs, in finding possible solutions, and in assessing the actions carried out. This article aims at presenting the importance of a community-based approach in the field of health promotion; a field which would benefit from being better known in France in order to develop intervention programs adapted to each population.     

Représentations sociales de la personne obèse et de l’obésité : effets de la situation de contact

This paper introduces a study about social representations of obese people and obesity. Two hundred normal-weighted women divided in two groups (presence vs absence of contact with an obese person) completed a word association tasks with inductive words “obese people” and “obesity”. Two instructions were proposed: one in which they responded for themselves (standard instruction) and another in which they responded for someone else (substitution instruction). Results of the Correspondences Factor Analysis support the hypothesis of an intergroup contact effect on the explored social representations’ organization. Participants in contact with obese people seem to have a more empathetic representation than those who have no contact. Indeed, when participants did not respond for themselves, counter-normative representations were produced: stereotypical elements and a judgment on the physical characteristics were expressed. These results were discussed regarding theories of intergroup contact and of social representations.     

Effet de la thérapie des schémas sur la dépression de la personne âgée institutionnalisée : 3 études de cas uniques de type AB en lignes de bases multiples

IntroductionSchema therapy has confirmed its effectiveness in caring for depression. However, few studies have evaluated its effectiveness of an institutionalized elderly population.ObjectiveThe aim of this pilot study is to evaluate the efficiency of this therapy for the treatment of depression in 3 elderly people, with no neurocognitive disease, living in a nursing home.MethodClinician conducted a single case experimental protocol AB with multiple baseline for 3 participants who were experiencing depressive symptoms. Participants were randomized in 3 baselines and performed respectively 8, 7, and 6 intervention sessions.ResultsThe results highlight progressive effectiveness for two of the three residents. From baseline to the end of the therapeutic sessions (11 weeks), the improvement was significant and clinically observable for the activation of the schemas (–1.4 and –2 points on average) as well as for the level of depression (–8 and –9 points to the GDS).ConclusionThis pilot study indicates the effectiveness and replicability of schema therapy as therapeutic intervention for depression in elderly people.     

La rétention de sûreté : punir,prévenir et guérir des troubles de la personnalité ?

The law of February 25, 2008 introduced security detention. This is a post-sentence measure intended for offenders who have served their sentence. This may apply to people with personality disorders. Because of these disorders, they are considered too dangerous to be left in society but the importance of the disorders was not sufficient to benefit from the mechanism of criminal irresponsibility. Is the real objective of preventive detention, as indicated in the law, to treat disorders or, more pernicious, to eliminate ex-convicts from society?     

L’abord de la sexualité par les professionnel·le·s de santé en oncologie : une revue de la littérature

The improvement in medical techniques has drastically modified the practice of care in oncology. Supportive care, geared towards supporting patients with chronic illnesses, now occupies a greater place alongside treatments aimed at survival. These changes have conducted some health care professionals to be more interested in patients’ quality of life and, in particular, to the impact of cancer on sexuality. Repercussions on sexuality are actually one of the most problematic aspects of patients’ quality of life post cancer. The aim of this paper is to draw up a review of the English and French literature on this “new” concern which still seems to raise many challenges in practice. Our review emphasizes that despite the recognition of the importance of addressing sexuality issues post cancer in oncology, in their practices, physicians as the nurses alike find it difficult to address. In addition, it underlines that the dominant social representations of sexuality – in terms of gender, sexual orientation and age – have permeated health care professionals’ subjectivities and, at the same time, influence how sexuality is address and interfere with a systematic discussion of these issues throughout the care process. Our discussion tackles the lack of psychologists, both in research and clinic, regarding these issues. Finally, our conclusion highlights the contributions of psychology facing issue posed by sexuality in oncology.     

Stéréotypes de poids,jugement de valeur et de recrutabilité : les rôles modérateurs du sexe et de la personnalité

ObjectiveThe existing literature testifies to the presence of discrimination against obese people in hiring. The present study aimed to test the effects of candidates’ weight on value judgment and recruitability by taking into account their gender and personality. The study using the judges’ paradigm involved a sample of 279 recruiters. The recruiters were asked to judge eight fictitious CVs including a photo of the candidate, their education, their work experience and their answers to a personality test (proactive or reactive personality). The target job was a medical laboratory technician.ResultsAnalyses of variance revealed significant effects of applicants’ weight, and proactivity on judgements of agreeableness, effort, competence and recruitability. Indeed, obese people are discriminated against in hiring whereas proactivity would be a variable increasing the recruitability judgment. Moreover, the gender of applicants alone is no longer a variable that encourages discrimination.ConclusionThis study opens up a new field of research on proactivity as a social norm of judgement and corroborates previous studies on weight discrimination in personnel selection. The limitations of the study open up new avenues of research.     

Évaluation de la compréhension écrite de récits chez l’enfant de 7 à 10 ans : vers des profils de compreneurs

IntroductionThe aim of the study was to investigate reading comprehension skills in 7 to 10-year-old children and to present a new tool for assessing reading comprehension skills in elementary school children. Two aspects of text comprehension were assessed: literal comprehension skills and inference generation (with two subtypes of inferences, coherence inferences and knowledge-based inferences).MethodTwo narratives of varying length and complexity have been constructed and presented to 498 French-speaking children from second grade to fifth grade.ResultsThe results showed an evolution of performance with school level. Children's scores also depended on the type of comprehension skill evaluated (literal versus inferential) and difficulty of texts. Furthermore, cluster analysis yielded five profiles that clearly differ on children's ability to respond to either literal questions, coherence inferential questions, or knowledge-based inferential questions.ConclusionThe existence of different profiles of comprehenders is discussed in terms of theoretical implications. Finally, some limitations and way of improvement are presented.     

Révéler son humanité ? L’autorévélation du thérapeute à la lumière de la recherche empirique

Self-disclosure, which consists in revealing personal information about oneself to one's client, could be a beneficial therapeutic technique. There are yet many definitions of this concept. However, empirical research shows that self-disclosure may be favourably perceived by clients and that it could influence how they perceive their therapist. Moreover, it could positively influence treatment outcome. Self-disclosure about immediate feelings in the therapy and about the therapist–client relationship would be particularly effective in resolving problematic events by enabling feelings to be expressed and accepted and by providing clients with interpersonnal learning. Several authors finally advise using this technique infrequently, about moderately intimate but relevant themes in relation to the therapy, examining each client's specific needs, and always with the intention of helping them or improving the therapeutic relationship.     

Republication : Impact de la pandémie COVID-19 sur le sommeil du personnel soignant

The COVID-19 pandemic significantly impacted the sleep quality of healthcare workers.With differences depending on the questionnaire used, the professional's specialty, and the country studied, about half of caregivers developed sleep disorders during this health crisis.Sleep disorders were associated primarily by symptoms of insomnia, poor sleep quality, reduced total sleep time, and frequent nightmares.Sleep alterations affected both frontline and backline caregivers during the COVID pandemic.Healthcare workers’ sleep studies confirm the importance of spreading the recommendations published by sleep experts.     

Des psychologues en milieu hospitalier lors de la crise sanitaire de la Covid-19 : mieux comprendre leur vécu à l’aide du concept de générativité

IntroductionDuring the COVID-19 pandemic, everyone was confronted with their finitude, risking a crisis of meaning. Considering with Erikson (1950) that generativity is a great vector of meaning in life, which allows an individual to ensure the continuity of society through transmission and care, caregivers usually have a higher generativity score than the general population (Grossman & Gruenewald, 2017). This study then looks for signs of generativity among caregivers, hypothesising that it was particularly mobilised during this health crisis.PurposeThe purpose of this study is to explore the experiences of psychologists working in hospitals on somatic wards in order to identify the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and signs of generativity.MethodIn this exploratory, qualitative, prospective, multicenter study, nine psychologists working in hospital wards were interviewed individually to explore their experiences during a semi-structured interview.ResultsThe markers of existential crisis linked to COVID-19, such as signs of exhaustion and anxiety, were prominent in their discourse. Strong elements of generativity are also found in the interviews. This reflects the testing of their resources.ConclusionGenerativity allowed adaptation during the crisis but does not seem to be sufficient to protect against exhaustion and existential crisis.     

Évaluation de la douleur chez le bébé de moins de 36 mois : application du modèle de Rasch

This study has used an Item Response Theory model (IRT model), specifically the Rasch model, to construct a new observational scale for the assessment of pain in infants less than 36 months old. Results showed that the Rasch model is ideally suited to building an assessment instrument for postoperative pain in this particular age group. Indeed, based on this methodology 21 dichotomous items have been selected that fit to the assessment of postoperative pain in infants aged three to 24 months. Despite some limitations, this study makes a convincing case for the use of Rasch model in instrument design and allowed us to highlight some developmental and behavioral dimensions of the postoperative pain experience in infants.     

Impact de la pandémie liée au COVID-19 sur la pratique des jeux vidéo selon la personnalité et le type de passion dans une population adulte

IntroductionThe pandemic linked to Covid-19 has changed the daily habits of the population. In this context, some activities have been favored, sometimes even encouraged, such as the use of video games.ObjectiveThe objective of this study was to investigate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on video game use taking into account the type of passion and personality.MethodA mixed methodology was used. In addition to the amount of gaming use, the Big Five Inventory was used to assess personality and the Passion Scale to distinguish the type of passion according to the dualistic model. A semi-structured interview made assessed the impact of confinements on gaming use and the gamer's feelings during this period. Among the 137 gamers (mean age 30.26) who completed the self-questionnaires, 10 participated in the semi-structured interview.ResultsWhatever the type of passion, gaming use increased during the lockdown period (in frequency and time). A negative relationship was found between Openness and gaming use during the week before and during the pandemic, as well as with obsessive passion. Qualitative data showed that gaming use emerged as an occupational activity, source of pleasure, escape from negative emotions related to the COVID-19 pandemic, and social support.ConclusionThe use of video games was mentioned by participants as an effective strategy to deal with the difficulties caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.     

L’anxiété liée à la COVID-19 : une analyse de ses effets en milieu de travail

The anxiety engendered by the sanitary crisis of the COVID-19 is a novel emotional phenomenon. Due to its recency and novelty, this form of anxiety and its effects are largely unknown. To explore this issue, we conducted a study among 650 civil agents of the Quebec government during the first wave of the pandemic that examined the effects of COVID-19-triggered anxiety on four indicators of work adjustment: job engagement, organizational commitment, psychological empowerment, and ego depletion. While controlling for the effect of relevant contextual factors, our analyses indicate that COVID-19-triggered anxiety is positively related to organizational commitment and ego depletion and negatively related to psychological empowerment. In contrast, COVID-19-triggered anxiety was not significantly related to job engagement.