Unrequited love: The role of prior commitment,motivation to remain friends,and friendship maintenance

ABSTRACT

This study tested a moderated mediation model that commitment prior to an unrequited love episode will be related to higher levels of friendship maintenance behaviors after the episode and that this relationship will be mediated by the individual’s motivations to remain friends with the rejecter. We predicted that rejection distress would weaken the mediational model among those reporting high distress. Participants wrote about an unrequited love experience as a pursuer and completed measures of pre-unrequited love commitment, rejection distress, motivations to remain friends, and friendship maintenance behaviors. Our results confirmed the moderated mediation model when the motivations to remain friends measure overall score, the interpersonal connection motivation, or the social connections motivation was the mediator. When covariates were added, only the model with the overall motivations score as mediator was supported. These data can help laypersons and mental health professionals understand and potentially repair friendships following an unrequited love episode.     

Evaluation of a decision-making aid for parents regarding childhood immunizations.

This intervention study evaluates a decision-making aid for parents considering childhood immunizations. Participants (women in 3rd trimester of pregnancy, n = 100) rated likelihood of immunizing their child, anxiety, and perceptions of risk of the diseases and immunizations. Individuals were allocated to intervention group (received a decision aid) or control group (received standard care). Ratings were then repeated, and further ratings were obtained when the infant was 10 weeks old. The intervention compared with the comparison condition was associated with significant increase in likelihood of immunizing the infant on time, decreased perceptions of risks of immunizations, increased perceptions of risk of the diseases, reduced anxiety, and increased satisfaction. This intervention may form a useful basis for decision aids in health care settings.     

Personality and Situation in the Prediction of Women's Life Patterns

The present study examined the importance of both personality variables and family situational variables in determining the career activities of young women. In a longitudinal design, family situational variables producing constraint (marriage and children) predicted strongly negatively both career persistence and career activity pattern. Within various family situations, two personality variables—Self-definition and the need for Achievement—predicted these same life outcomes. Results were strongest in indicating that self-definition was associated with professional career activity among relatively unconstrained women, but with "freelance activity in the home" among married women with children. These effects were strengthened further when the length of time a woman had been relatively constrained or relatively autonomous was considered. Results indicate that at least in this sample of young women still caring for small children situational variables may set broad limits on probable behaviors, while personality variables may predict the choice of particular behavior within those broad limits. Personality variables may be most salient and predictive when considered in the context of a temporally stable situation.     

A GENERATIONAL ANALYSIS OF WOMEN'S RIGHTS ACTIVISTS

This article addresses the important issue of intergenerational similarities and differences among women's rights activists. We examined the attitudes, emotions, and experiences of three generations of reproductive rights activists, born between 1925 and 1975. Across generations, the participants were strongly pro-choice and identified as feminists. Despite these similarities, there were several differences that could be explained by considering the sociohistorical circumstances faced by each cohort. For example, the Civil Rights generation activists came of age during the boycotts and marches of the 1950s and showed the highest level of civil rights activism. Reflecting the coincidence of their young adulthood with the 1970s women's movement, the Protest generation activists identified the most with the label "feminist." Finally, the Poshvomen's movement activists, raised in the 1970s and 198Os, were the most likely to have taken college-level women's studies classes.     

Suicidality,Self‐Harm,and Body Dissatisfaction in Transgender Adolescents and Emerging Adults with Gender Dysphoria

Prevalence of suicide attempts, self‐injurious behaviors, and associated psychosocial factors were examined in a clinical sample of transgender (TG) adolescents and emerging adults (n = 96). Twenty‐seven (30.3%) TG youth reported a history of at least one suicide attempt and 40 (41.8%) reported a history of self‐injurious behaviors. There was a higher frequency of suicide attempts in TG youth with a desire for weight change, and more female‐to‐male youth reported a history of suicide attempts and self‐harm behaviors than male‐to‐female youth. Findings indicate that this population is at a high risk for psychiatric comorbidities and life‐threatening behaviors.     

Does Reintegration Stress Contribute to Suicidal Ideation Among Returning Veterans Seeking PTSD Treatment?

Although posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and other psychiatric symptoms are well‐established risk factors for suicidal ideation among returning veterans, less attention has been paid to whether the stress of reintegrating into civilian society contributes to suicidal ideation. Utilizing a sample of 232 returning veterans (95% male, mean age = 33.63 years) seeking PTSD treatment, this study tested whether reintegration difficulties contribute to suicidal ideation over and above the influence of PTSD symptoms, depression symptoms, and potential substance misuse. Logistic regressions indicated that reintegration stress had a unique effect on suicidal ideation over and above PTSD and depression symptoms. Reintegration stress interacted with substance misuse to predict suicidal ideation, such that the effect of reintegration stress on suicidal ideation was much larger for those with potential substance misuse. Exploratory analyses also examined which types of reintegration difficulties were associated with suicidal ideation, and found that difficulty maintaining military friendships, difficulty getting along with relatives, difficulty feeling like you belong in civilian society, and difficulty finding meaning/purpose in life were all significantly associated with suicidal ideation, beyond the effects of psychiatric symptoms and potential substance misuse. Findings highlight the importance of addressing reintegration stress for the prevention of suicide among returning veterans. Implications for treatment are discussed.