The effects of social anxiety and depression on the evaluation of facial crowds

Facial crowds of emotion connoting approval or criticism are linked to the fears of socially anxious individuals. We examined evaluation ratings and decision latencies of mixed facial displays by individuals with generalized social phobia (GSPs, n = 18), individuals with comorbid depression and GSP (COMs, n = 18), and normal controls (CONs, n = 18). First, we postulated that GSPs will assign more negative ratings to predominantly disapproving audiences as compared to CONs, and that GSPs will be faster in their evaluation of these audiences (negative bias hypothesis). Second, we expected depression, but not social anxiety, to be associated with diminished positive evaluation of audiences containing predominantly happy expressions and with a slower processing of such positive cues (the impaired positivity hypothesis). Results supported the negative bias hypothesis, and provided partial support for the impaired positivity hypothesis. The importance of examining the processing of complex non-verbal cues in social anxiety and in depression is discussed.     

Treatment seeking for posttraumatic stress in Israel Defense Forces veterans deployed in the Second Lebanon War (2006) and “Operation Cast Lead” in the Gaza Strip (2009): a comparative study

Background and objectives: The goal of the study was to determine the long-term prevalence of combat-related treatment seeking and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in Israel’s veterans deployed to the Second Lebanon War (2006) and “Operation Cast Lead” in the Gaza Strip (2009).

Methods: The prevalence of treatment seeking and DSM-IV-TR diagnoses among Israel Defense Force (IDF) veterans was assessed using seven and five year’s surveillance and records. The whereabouts and combat exposure of veterans during the war was determined based on the IDF’s Operations Directorate records.

Results: Overall prevalence of treatment seeking was 1.32% and 0.38% in the Second Lebanon War and “Operation Cast Lead”, respectively. The prevalence of treatment-seeking veterans from the Second Lebanon War and in “Operation Cast Lead” was significantly higher in soldiers deployed to high combat-exposure zones (2.19% and 3.1%, respectively), relative to low combat-exposure zones (0.24% and 0.06%, respectively), and relative to soldiers deployed elsewhere (0.26% and 0.02%, respectively). PTSD prevalence was similar among treatment-seeking veterans deployed in high combat-exposure zones in both combats.

Conclusions: There is a gap of anywhere between 3% and 11% between treatment seeking by IDF veterans following war deployment and the actual prevalence of PTSD in this soldier population.     

Values at Work: The Impact of Personal Values in Organisations

This paper reviews and integrates past research on personal values in work organisations, seeking to portray the role personal values play in shaping the choices and behaviour of individuals in work settings. We start by addressing the role of values in the occupational choice people make. We then review research on the relationships of personal values to a variety of behaviours at work. We continue with discussing the multiple paths through which managers’ values affect organisations and their members. In the last section, we address the interplay between organisational levels, and discuss the congruency between personal and organisational values and its implications for organisations and their employees. Together, the research reviewed indicates how the broadness and stability of values make them an important predictor of behaviour at various levels of the organisation. We end by discussing directions for future research on values in organisations.