Hurricane Katrina and the Gulf Oil Spill: Lessons learned about short-term and long-term effects

The impact and lessons learned from Hurricane Katrina and the Gulf Oil Spill are described as an example of work done reflecting best practices and theory to gain a better understanding of risk and resilience for children and families. Hurricane Katrina, described as the worst natural disaster in the US history, resulted in traumatic separations of children and families and devastation of communities and schools. The impact was greater on families with fewer resources before the hurricane who were provided limited support to return and rebuild. Insufficient community support and economic resources contributed to prolonged traumatiaation and slow recovery. Many were still recovering from Hurricane Katrina when impacted by the Gulf Oil Spill. For families with multigenerational ties to the fishing and oil industries, the Gulf Oil Spill resulted in both cumulative trauma and increased risk. In implementing the behavioural health response, much was learned about promotive and protective factors for individual and community resilience. Services provided following the disasters were based on precepts of individual, family, and community resilience. To enhance recovery and support resilience, the development of regional coalitions across at risk areas provides important coordination before disasters occur for better preparation and response.     

The Effect of Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy on Irrational Career Beliefs of Students of Electrical Electronics and Other Engineering Trades in Technical Colleges in Nigeria

Irrational beliefs are factors that can explain students’ emotional and/or pragmatic problems. Irrational career beliefs are career myths, maladaptive cognitions and inaccurate beliefs regarding career and the work world which impact negatively on career decision-making. The present research investigated the effectiveness of rational emotive behavior therapy (REBT) on irrational career beliefs of students of electrical electronics, automobile trade, building/woodwork and mechanical trades in technical colleges in Nigeria. Using a pretest–posttest control group, 173 participants were assessed quantitatively at four time points. One-way ANOVA, repeated-measures ANOVA and paired sample t test were utilized for analysis of data. Posttest results indicated that the irrational career beliefs of the REBT participants declined significantly compared to a waitlist control group. Furthermore, results of both 3- and 6-months follow-up evaluations showed that the significant reduction in irrational career beliefs of the REBT participants was maintained. Therefore, supporting interventions which aim to promote functional career beliefs and thoughts among the citizens, beginning from the early school years to the graduate school level and in the workplaces, should be considered a top policy issue in Nigeria. Further studies are needed to examine whether exposing students to an REBT program can lead to less anxiety related to career decision-making and improved career self-efficacy beliefs.     

Identification of Individuals at Risk for Lynch Syndrome Using Targeted Evaluations and Genetic Testing: National Society of Genetic Counselors and the Collaborative Group of the Americas on Inherited Colorectal Cancer Joint Practice Guideline

Identifying individuals who have Lynch syndrome (LS) involves a complex diagnostic work up that includes taking a detailed family history and a combination of various genetic and immunohistochemical tests. The National Society of Genetic Counselors (NSGC) and the Collaborative Group of the Americas on Inherited Colorectal Cancer (CGA-ICC) have come together to publish this clinical practice testing guideline for the evaluation of LS. The purpose of this practice guideline is to provide guidance and a testing algorithm for LS as well as recommendations on when to offer testing. This guideline does not replace a consultation with a genetics professional. This guideline includes explanations in support of this and a summary of background data. While this guideline is not intended to serve as a review of LS, it includes a discussion of background information on LS, and cites a number of key publications which should be reviewed for a more in-depth understanding of LS. These guidelines are intended for genetic counselors, geneticists, gastroenterologists, surgeons, medical oncologists, obstetricians and gynecologists, nurses and other healthcare providers who evaluate patients for LS.     

The Effects of Video and Paper Resumes on Assessments of Personality,Applied Social Skills,Mental Capability,and Resume Outcomes

In this laboratory experiment we examined the effect of resume format (paper resume only, video resume only, or both) on applicant evaluation. Differences in applicant personality trait evaluation were found for extraversion and agreeableness when video resumes were reviewed compared to when only paper resumes were reviewed. In addition, social skill and mental capability ratings were lower when only video resumes were reviewed. These findings indicate that video resumes may result in different assessments of applicant personality and harsher evaluations of applicant skills and abilities than paper resumes. Human resource personnel are cautioned in the use of video resumes until more research has been completed.     

Innovation Motivation: The Need to Be Different

All choice points mandate a dichotomous initial decision: whether to attempt to replicate a response previously used in similar situations or to essay a different approach. Individuals are hypothesized to differ in the direction and degree of their relative preference for consistent vs. innovative approaches. According to social learning theory, innovation motivation should be determined by (a) the generalized expectancy that innovation produces reinforcing outcomes and (b) the need value of the opportunity to engage in "different" behaviors. In a series of studies (cumulative N = 397), an inventory measuring the self-attributed value of behavioral variation (the value set on being different, hence, the vDiffer scale) displays adequate internal consistency (mean a =. 79) and independence of social desirability and psychological health-distress. The vDiffer scale correlates strongly (mean r =. 46) with sensation seeking, modestly (r =. 23) with imaginative involvement, and very strongly (r =. 66) with Openness to Experience; predicts divergent production of ideas (r =. 36) on a changes in society test; and correlates quite strongly (mean rs =. 62) with peer nominations.     

Religions in the modern world: Traditions and transformations

The global trafficking in women and children (primarily girls) for prostitution and sex work has become a multi-billion dollar industry in recent decades, especially in parts of South and Southeast Asia. Despite their common goal to eliminate or diminish the sex trafficking industry and assist the victims, the various entities engaged in anti-sex trafficking efforts have sharply disagreed about a variety of issues, including a basic definition of sex trafficking and the appropriate strategies for combating it. In this article, I examine one central area of disagreement, which revolves around the issue of the morality of prostitution and other forms of commercial sex work. This issue brings with it divergent, even antithetical, views regarding women's gender roles, self-identity and moral agency in relation to sex work. I show how the religious dimensions of this issue have been inadequately attended to by demonstrating how anti-trafficking discourse is devoid of non-Western religious perspectives. Since Thailand has been the centre for sex trafficking and the commercial sex industry in the Asia-Pacific region, where the greatest percentage of sex trafficking takes place, this article will discuss Thai Buddhist perspectives to illustrate how the anti-sex trafficking discourse has ignored cultural differences in its analysis.     

Parent Grief 1–13 Months After Death in Neonatal and Pediatric Intensive Care Units

Objective. Describe changes in mothers’ and fathers’ grief from 1 to 13 months after infant or child neonatal or pediatric intensive care unit death and identify factors related to their grief.

Methods. Mothers (n = 130) and fathers (n = 52) of 140 children (newborn–18 years) completed the Hogan Grief Reaction Checklist at 1, 3, 6, and 13 months postdeath.

Results. Grief decreased from 3 to 13 months for mothers and from 3 to 6 months for fathers. Grief was more intense for mothers of deceased adolescents and mothers whose children were declared brain dead.

Conclusion. Mothers’ and fathers’ grief intensity may not coincide, resulting in different needs during the 13 months after infant or child death.     

Body dissatisfaction, maternal appraisal, and depressive symptoms in Hong Kong adolescents

Body dissatisfaction, its risk factors and association with depressed mood have been well investigated in the West. However, more studies are needed to examine further the relation between body dissatisfaction and depressive symptoms and the factors influencing body dissatisfaction in non-Western cultures. The present study examined in a sample of Hong Kong Chinese adolescents the relation between body dissatisfaction and depressive symptoms, and the relation of maternal appraisal of their adolescent's figure to the adolescent's body dissatisfaction and depressive symptoms. We obtained information from 379 boys and 254 girls about their body dissatisfaction and depressive symptoms. Their mothers provided information about their appraisal of their adolescent's body shape and size compared to ideal. Body dissatisfaction was related to depressive symptoms in girls (B = 2.58, p <.01), but not in boys (B = -0.08, p >.10). Negative maternal appraisal did not have direct effects on adolescents' depressive symptoms (B = 0.14, p =.75), but the association between negative maternal appraisal and body dissatisfaction was significantly stronger in adolescents whose ideal was smaller than they perceived themselves to be (B = 0.32, p <.01) than those whose ideal was larger than their own perception (B = 0.14, p < .01). Our findings suggest that maternal appraisal had indirect effects on mood, acting through adolescents' body dissatisfaction, and that body dissatisfaction may be a sex-specific risk factor for depression. This study points to the need for testing and adapting programs to reduce body dissatisfaction particularly in girls at risk for depression, and to raise mothers' awareness of the link between their negative appraisals and their adolescents' body dissatisfaction and depressive symptoms.     

Self-specific priming effect

Priority of the “self” is thought to be evolutionarily advantageous. However, evidence for this priority has been sparse. In this study, subjects performed a gender categorization task on self- and non-self target faces preceded by either congruent (same gender as target) or incongruent (different gender) periliminal (33 ms) or subliminal (17 ms) primes. We found that subliminal primes induced a priming effect only on self target faces. This discovery of a self-specific priming effect suggests that functional specificity for faces may include timing as well as spatial adaptations.