Addiction to near death in adolescence

This paper takes Betty Joseph's concept of ‘addiction to near death’, which describes a clinical situation in which sadism and masochism dominate the relationships of a particular group of patients, and applies it specifically to the case material of a girl in adolescent psychotherapy treatment. A link is made between the patient's retreat from mature genital sexuality as she approaches adulthood and the use of sadism and masochism towards this aim. The paper concludes with a discussion on the increase in strength and potency of sadism and masochism in adolescence as contributing to the high risk of destructive and self-destructive behaviour present in this age group.     

Well-suited partners: psychoanalytic research and grounded theory

Abstract

Research is a ‘core activity’ of ‘central importance in improving mental health and social care’ (NIME, CAMHS National Conference, 2005 CAMHS National Conference. January 2005. Research in CAMHS Conference Handbook January,  [Google Scholar]). This paper examines the philosophical issues confronted when considering psychoanalytic clinical research. It is argued that a well-suited partnership can be formed between psychoanalytic clinical research and Grounded Theory. The methodological issues encountered when using Grounded Theory to analyse qualitative clinical data are explored. The well-suited partnership formed between Grounded Theory and psychoanalytic clinical research has the capacity to provide explanatory mechanisms, findings that are translatable to routine clinical practice, and to discover new ways of grouping young people so that they are alike in the most significant aspects of their mental health presentations. This makes further clinical trials more reliable. Psychoanalytic clinical findings are used together with a range of material from different sources to develop concepts and theory that are readily accessible to the wider professional community. Illustrations will be provided from the author's doctoral research into Risk-Taking, Dangerous Behaviour.

Selon l'Institut National de la Santé Mentale en Angleterre [NIME], la recherche est une “activité fondamentale” d'une “importance cruciale pour l'amélioration des soins en santé mentale et dans le cadre social” [Colloque National des Services de Santé Mentale pour Enfants et Adolescents, 2005]. Dans cet article, l'auteur étudie les problèmes auxquels sont confrontés les chercheurs en clinique psychanalytique. Il affirme qu'un partenariat tout à fait opportun peut être établi entre la recherche clinique psychanalytique et la théorie inductive ancrée dans le réel (“grounded theory”). Il explore les difficultés méthodologiques que soulève cette théorie inductive appliquée à l'analyse des données cliniques qualitatives. Ce partenariat tout à fait opportun entre la théorie inductive et la recherche clinique psychanalytique est capable de fournir des mécanismes explicatifs et des résultats qui peuvent être mis en application dans la pratique clinique ordinaire; en outre, il permet d'envisager de nouveaux regroupements par catégorie basés sur les aspects les plus significatifs de la pathologie présentée par les jeunes. Les contrôles cliniques complémentaires sont alors plus fiables. Les observations cliniques psychanalytiques sont associées à un éventail de matériel de sources différentes pour développer des concepts et des théories à la portée de tous les intervenants de ce secteur. L'auteur illustre ses propos à partir de sa thèse de doctorat de troisième cycle portant sur la prise de risque et les comportements dangereux.

Mots-clés: Recherche clinique psychanalytique, méthodologie de la théorie inductive ancrée dans le réel (“grounded theory”), philosophie de la science, psychothérapeute d'enfants, spécialiste de Niveau 3 des Services de Santé Mentale pour Enfants et Adolescents, refuges

Riassunto: La ricerca è ‘attività principale’ di ‘importanza centrale per il miglioramento della salute mentale e dell'assistenza sociale’ (NIME, CAMHS National Conference, 2005). Questo articolo esamina le questioni filosofiche che si incontrano quando si considera la ricerca clinica in campo psicoanalitico. Si sostiene che un buon rapporto di partnership possa essere stabilito tra la ricerca clinica psicoanalitica e la Grounded Theory. Vengono esplorate le questioni metodologiche che si incontrano quando si usa la Grouded Theory per analizzare dati clinici qualitativi. Il rapporto di partnership che si stabilisce tra Grouded Theory e la ricerca clinica psicoanalitica ha la capacità di fornire meccanismi di spiegazione, risultati che sono traducibili nella pratica clinica di routine, e di scoprire modi nuovi di raggruppare i giovani in modo che siano simili per gli aspetti pi[ugrave] significativi della loro presentazione in salute mentale. Tutto ciò rende pi[ugrave] affidabili ulteriori prove cliniche. I risultati clinici psicoanalitici vengono usati con una serie di materiali di origini diverse per sviluppare concetti e teorie che siano facilmente accessibili alla pi[ugrave] ampia comunità dei professionisti. Verrà fornito del materiale dal lavoro di dottorato di ricerca dell'autore sul comportamento di rischio e sul comportamento pericoloso.

Parole chiave: ricerca clinica psicoanalitica, metodologia della Grounded Theory, filosofia della scienza, psicoterapia infantile, Tier 3 Specialist CAMHS, rifugi

Forschung ist eine ‘zentrale Aktivität’ von besonderer Wichtigkeit in der Verbesserung von psychischem Wohlergehen und Sozialfürsorge’ (NIME, CAMHS Nationalkonferenz 2005) Dieser Artikel untersucht philosophische Fragestellungen, mit denen man konfrontiert wird, wenn man psychoanalytische klinische Forschung in Betracht zieht. Es wird argumentiert, dass eine gut funktionierende Partnerschaft zwischen psychoanalytischer klinischer Forschung und grounded theory hergestellt werden kann. Es werden die methodologischen Fragen, auf die man stösst, wenn man grounded theory benutzt, um qualitative klinische Daten zu analysieren, exploriert. Die gut funktionierende Partnerschaft zwischen ‘grounded theory’ und psychoanalytischer klinischer Forschung hat die Fähigkeit, Erklärungsmechanismen und Ergebnisse bereitzustellen, die routinemässig in klinische Praxis übersetzt werden können, und neue Arten der Gruppierung von jungen Leuten zu entdecken, sodass sie sich in den signifikantesten Aspekten ihrer Präsentierung ähneln. Weitere klinische Versuchsreihen werden dann mehr verlässlich. Es werden klinische Ergebisse zusammen mit einer Reihe von Materialien von verschiedenen Quellen benutzt, um Konzepte und Theorien zu entwickeln, die für die weitere professionelle Gruppe leicht zugänglich sind. Es werden Illustrationen aus der Doktorarbeit der Autorin über das Eingehen von Risiko und gefährlichen Verhaltensweisen gegeben.

Keywords: Psychoanalytische klinische Forschung, Methodologie der ‘grounded theory’, Wissenschaftsphilosphie, Kindertherapeut, Kinder-und Jugendpsychiatrischer Dienst, Zufluchtsorte     

Dimensions of temperament and depressive symptoms: Replicating a three-way interaction

High negative emotionality (NE), low positive emotionality (PE), and low self-regulatory capacity (i.e., effortful control or EC) are related to depressive symptoms and furthermore, may moderate one another’s relations to such symptoms. Indeed, preliminary evidence suggests they may operate in a three-way interaction (Dinovo & Vasey, 2011), but the replicability of that finding remains unknown. Therefore, we tested this NE × PE × EC interaction in association with depressive symptoms in 5 independent samples. This interaction was significant in 4 of the 5 samples and a combined sample and approached significance in the fifth sample. In contrast, the NE × PE × EC interaction was unrelated to general anxious symptoms and thus may be specific to symptoms of depression. Implications, directions for future research, and limitations are discussed.     

Near-term fetal response to maternal spoken voice

Knowledge about prenatal learning has been largely predicated on the observation that newborns appear to recognize the maternal voice. Few studies have examined the process underlying this phenomenon; that is, whether and how the fetus responds to maternal voice in situ. Fetal heart rate and motor activity were recorded at 36 weeks gestation (n = 69) while pregnant women read aloud from a neutral passage. Compared to a baseline period, fetuses responded with a decrease in motor activity in the 10 s following onset of maternal speech and a trend level decelerative heart rate response, consistent with an orienting response. Subsequent analyses revealed that the fetal response was modified by both maternal and fetal factors. Fetuses of women who were previously awake and talking (n = 40) showed an orienting response to onset of maternal reading aloud, while fetuses of mothers who had previously been resting and silent (n = 29) responded with elevated heart rate and increased movement. The magnitude of the fetal response was further dependent on baseline fetal heart rate variability such that largest response was demonstrated by fetuses with low variability of mothers who were previously resting and silent. Results indicate that fetal responsivity is affected by both maternal and fetal state and have implications for understanding fetal learning of the maternal voice under naturalistic conditions.     

Homophobia in physical education and sport: The role of physical/sporting identity and attributes,authoritarian aggression,and social dominance orientation

We examined levels of, and reasons for, anti‐gay and anti‐lesbian prejudice (homophobia) in pre‐service physical education (PE) and non‐physical education (non‐PE) university students. Participants (N = 409; 66% female; N = 199 pre‐service physical educators) completed questionnaires assessing anti‐gay and lesbian prejudice, authoritarianism, social dominance orientation (SDO), physical/athletic identity and self‐concept, and physical attributes. ANCOVAs revealed that PE students had higher levels of anti‐gay (p = .004) and lesbian prejudice than non‐PE students (p = .008), respectively. Males reported greater anti‐gay prejudice (p < .001), but not anti‐lesbian prejudice, than females. Authoritarian aggression was positively associated with greater anti‐gay (β = .49) and lesbian prejudice (β = .37) among male participants. Among females, higher authoritarian aggression and SDO was associated with greater anti‐gay (β = .34 and β = .25, respectively) and lesbian (β = .26 and β = .16, respectively) prejudice. The physical identity‐related constructs of athletic self‐concept (β = .?15) and perceived upper body strength (β = .39) were associated with anti‐gay attitudes among male participants. Physical attractiveness (β = ?.29) and upper body strength (β = .29) were also associated with male participants’ anti‐lesbian prejudice. Regression analyses showed that the differences between PE and non‐PE students in anti‐gay and lesbian prejudice were largely mediated by authoritarianism and SDO. The present study is the first to examine the relationship between investment in physical/sporting identity and attributes and anti‐gay and lesbian prejudice in PE/sport participants. In the present sample, anti‐gay and lesbian prejudice was greater in pre‐service PE students than non‐PE students, but these differences appear to be explained by differences in conservative ideological traits. Additionally, physical identity and athletic attributes based around masculine ideals also appear to contribute to this prejudice in males.     

Traumatic Attachments and Self-Harm Behaviors

Abstract

Work and the structure it affords is one of the most important vehicles for the expression of worth in our society. With so much invested in the external world of position and achievement, threats to job security pose fundamental challenges to individual identity. Recent upheavals in the workplacedownsizings, early retirements, and corporate reorganizationshave shaken the psychological equilibrium of many of our clients, giving rise to feelings of despair and hopelessness. When disruptive and unwanted changes occur later in life, they become additionally tinged with latent concerns about aging and finding meaning as a mature adult.     

Network and mutual support for parents bereaved following the violent deaths of their 12- to 28-year-old children: A longitudinal,prospective analysis

Abstract

Social support provided by bereaved parents' networks was examined in this study. Seven dimensions of support were assessed over time. Of special interest to the investigators were the types and frequency of posttreatment contacts among bereaved parents who participated in an experimental support program. The study compared those who reported high versus low social support and high versus low numbers of network confidants on selected outcome and coping variables. The authors recruited a community-based sample of 171 bereaved mothers and 90 bereaved fathers whose 12- to 28-year-old children had died by accident, suicide, or homicide 4 months previously. Parents were randomly assigned to a 12-week bereavement program or control group. It was expected that intervention group parents would report more social network in involvement and greater satisfaction with support received than control group parents. This hypothesis was only partially supported. Only 20% of the parents who participated in the bereavement program remained in contact after the experimental program ended. Finally, significant differences detected between parents who reported high and low support were minimal and not sustained over time. The number of network confidants did not significantly affect the outcomes examined. However, in general, those with more confidants reported lower symptoms. Additional studies are needed to address these complex issues.     

Match-Action: The Role of Motion and Audio in Creating Global Change Blindness in Film

An everyday example of change blindness is our difficulty to detect cuts in an edited moving-image. Edit blindness (Smith & Henderson, 2008) is created by adhering to the continuity editing conventions of Hollywood, for example, coinciding a cut with a sudden onset of motion (match-action). In this study, we isolated the roles motion and audio play in limiting awareness of match-action cuts by removing motion before and/or after cuts in existing Hollywood film clips and presenting the clips with or without the original soundtrack whilst participants tried to detect cuts. Removing post-cut motion significantly decreased cut detection time and the probability of missing the cut. By comparison, removing pre-cut motion had no effect suggesting, contrary to the editing literature, that the onset of motion before a cut may not be as critical for creating edit blindness as the motion after a cut. Analysis of eye movements indicated that viewers reoriented less to new content across intact match-action cuts than shots with motion removed. Audio played a surprisingly large part in creating edit blindness with edit blindness mostly disappearing without audio. These results extend film editor intuitions and are discussed in the context of the Attentional Theory of Cinematic Continuity (Smith, 2012a).