Switching on and off … : Does smartphone use obstruct the possibility to engage in recovery activities?

This study examines the impact of work-related smartphone use on daily recovery from work-related efforts. The literature shows that work–home interference (WHI) is an important inhibitor of the recovery process. We propose that the extensive use of smartphones with its implicit request of 24/7 availability inhibits the process of engaging in activities that are required for daily recovery. A total of 80 employees (40 smartphone users, 40 controls) completed a 6-day diary questionnaire over a time period of 2 weeks. Contrary to our hypothesis, smartphone users did not experience more overall WHI than nonusers. Furthermore, four activities aimed at recovery were examined. We predicted that daily WHI would increase employees’ engagement in recovery activities, but only if they did not use a smartphone. Results showed that, for the control group, WHI was positively related to psychological detachment, relaxation, mastery, and control activities, whereas smartphone users facing high WHI did not succeed in engaging in these recovery activities. This implies that being connected to work in the evening hours through smartphones has consequences for the extent to which employees succeed in undertaking recovery activities.     

Towards a multilevel approach of employee well-being

In this commentary, I respond to Ilies, Aw & Pluut’s (Intraindividual models of employee well-being: What have we learned and where do we go from here?, European Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology, in press) call for a theory that distinguishes between traits and states of employee well-being. I use Job Demands–Resources theory to illustrate how we may integrate within- and between-person approaches and findings to design an overall multilevel model of employee well-being. My perspective builds on Ilies et al. and recent findings of research combining relatively stable “traits” with fluctuating states of employee well-being. My goals with this commentary are three-fold: (1) give more insight into possible differences between variables at different levels of analysis; (2) use research to show how trait and state levels of (predictors of) employee well-being may interact; (3) propose a multilevel model that may stimulate future research on the topic.     

The state version of the recovery experience questionnaire: A multilevel confirmatory factor analysis

Although many studies in the field of recovery from work utilize a quantitative diary design, little is known about the validity of the daily measures used in such studies. The present study analyses the factor structure of the state version of the Recovery Experience Questionnaire (REQ) on the between-person (trait) and within-person (state) levels. A total of 127 employees participated in the study. Most of them filled out the questionnaire on three consecutive workdays (N = 375 observations). Results of multilevel confirmatory factor analyses (MCFA) showed that a four-factor model fit the data better than alternative models at both levels of analysis (between and within). In addition, some factor loadings of the four recovery experience dimensions (particularly for relaxation and control) were lower on the day level as compared to the general level. Nevertheless, we conclude that both state and trait versions of the REQ show good psychometric properties. Implications for future research on recovery are discussed.     

Daily Activities and Happiness in Later Life: The Role of Work Status

The aim of this study was to examine the role of work status (i.e. working versus not working) in the relationship between time-use and momentary happiness. We employed a longitudinal research design using monthly assessments via the day reconstruction method over 3 years among 579 older adults. In total, participants reported 84,247 daily activities and accompanying momentary happiness levels. Hierarchical linear modeling results revealed that working older individuals are not happier than nonworking individuals in the overall. However, involvement in work as a daily activity does coincide with higher levels of momentary happiness. Furthermore, working older individuals experience more happiness during relaxing activities, and during weekends, whereas nonworking older individuals experience more happiness during administrative activities. These findings provide novel information on intraindividual differences in lifestyle relating to the everyday happiness between working and nonworking older people which cannot be accurately captured by global survey methods.     

The therapeutic relationship as a paradoxical experience

The therapeutic relationship exists within multiple levels of reality—including that of ordinary life and that of the therapeutic frame. This interplay between these two levels of reality gives rise to paradoxical experiences for both participants. Certain “principles”; or “rules”; of technique can be understood as a means of enabling the therapist to cope with what is usually referred to as “boundary”; issues. It is essential that the analyst or therapist demonstrate capacity to shift playfully from one level of reality to another. The “rule”; of abstinence and the asymmetry of desire that exists between the two participants are discussed. Gratification within the therapeutic frame is paradoxical in that gratification at one level of reality leads to privation at another level of reality. These paradoxical experiences for both patient and analyst are examined in relation to projective identification and to the analyst's countertransference.     

Professional Ethical Issues and the Development of Professional Ethical Standards in Counseling and Clinical Psychology in China

This article aims to summarize the current ethical issues in the field of clinical and counseling psychology and the process of developing professional ethical standards in China. First, through a review of the history of counseling and psychotherapy in China, general background information is provided. Important ethical issues are then discussed based on the results from several empirical studies. Finally, the process of developing the new edition of the Chinese Psychological Society Code of Ethics for Clinical and Counseling Psychology, the main contents as well as the considerations taken into account in the development of this code are presented.     

Coping in childhood: A comparative evaluation of different relaxation techniques

Abstract

This paper reports on the evaluation of relaxation trainings to improve the coping of children with stress situations. Over five training sessions, different relaxation techniques were presented to children to evaluate their short-term and long-term effects on different criteria. Included were a sensoric approach to relaxation (the Progressive Muscle Relaxation), an imaginative approach, and an imaginative approach with additional sensoric elements (combined training). Two control conditions were added. One of them presented non-tension producing stories instead of supplying a systematic relaxation training. The children of the second control condition participated at the measurements without any intervention. The participants were 826 children aged 7–14. The results show clear short-term effects on physiological parameters (blood pressure, pulse rate, body temperature) as well as on subjective ratings of the children's mood and somatic condition. In relation to the overall changes, the differences between the training conditions are comparatively small. Moreover, the long-term effects (recorded one week and two months after the five training sessions) were small in relation to the short-term effects.     

Emotional job demands and burnout among oncology care providers

Abstract

Recent studies by Söderfeldt et al. (1996) and de Jonge et al. (1999) have demonstrated that Karasek's operationalization of job demands in his well-known Job Demands-Control (JD-C) Model (Karasek, 1979), i.e. quantitative demands, cannot capture the complexities of working with patients or clients in health care work. In the current study on burnout among 816 Dutch oncology care providers, the “traditional” JD-C Model was extended by including two types of emotional job demands. Moreover, “susceptibility to emotional contagion” was included as a potential moderator of the relationship between emotional job demands and burnout. Emotional job demands significantly contributed to the prediction of burnout, after controlling for quantitative job demands and job control. In addition, care providers' susceptibility to emotional contagion moderated the relationship between “confrontation with death and dying” and burnout. Care providers high in susceptibility to emotional contagion were more “vulnerable” to the stress associated with high emotional demands than their counterparts.     

Influences on life aspirations among adolescents in a low-income community in Cape Town,South Africa

The aim of this study was to determine the influences on adolescents’ aspirations from a low-income community in Cape Town. A sequential mixed method exploratory design was used following two distinct phases. The qualitative phase comprised focus group interviews with 118 grade 12 learners attending a school in a low-income community (age range: 16–19 years) and focused on identifying factors influencing life aspirations. The quantitative phase with 191 adolescents (males?=?54.45 %, females?=?45.55 %); age range: 14–18 years) from the same community aimed to ascertain the influences of personal attributes on self-aspirations. Participants completed the Expectations/Aspirations measure, the New General Self-Efficacy Scale, the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale and the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support. Qualitative data were thematically analysed. Quantitative data were analysed using multiple regression. The findings revealed that self-efficacy, self-esteem and social support were the most critical factors influencing adolescents’ aspirations. Self-efficacy was a major determinant of life aspirations among the adolescents. Life skills programmes with youth from disadvantaged communities should seek to incorporate training aimed at developing adolescents’ self-efficacy.