Evaluating the effectiveness of employee assistance programmes: a systematic review

The rapid growth of employee assistance Programmes (EAPs) has not been matched by the accompanying research base of their efficacy. Given the inconsistent information relating to the effectiveness of EAPs in enhancing employee and organizational outcomes, the present review systematically appraised available evidence from organizational psychology and business databases and grey literature sources. A total of 17 studies examining the impact of EAPs, met the inclusion criteria. These were mostly from North America and utilized quantitative methodology and pre- and post-intervention designs. The majority of studies focused on EAPs offered by external providers and the counselling service, with the most common limitations being discrepancies in variable definitions and an absent comparable control group. Overall, this review found that utilizing EAPs enhanced employee outcomes, specifically improving levels of presenteeism and functioning. Absenteeism was most commonly investigated but produced mixed results. Presenteeism demonstrated a stronger effect size and greater improvement than absenteeism, suggesting presenteeism as a better variable for assessing EAP effectiveness. This review clarified parameters of existing evidence and highlighted the narrow range of measures used to date, omitting important constructs such as health and well-being and productivity. A broader evaluation capturing a wider range of variables is urgently needed.     

Associations Between the Rotter Incomplete Sentences Blank and Measures of Personality and Psychopathology

The Rotter Incomplete Sentences Blank (RISB; Rotter, Lah, & Rafferty, 1992) is a sentence completion test intended to detect psychological maladjustment. To investigate the construct validity of the measure, we investigated what aspects of personality and psychopathology are correlated with the RISB and also tested the incremental validity of the RISB in a combined sample of clinical (n = 72) and undergraduate participants (n = 69). Interrater reliability of the RISB was good (intraclass correlation > .80). The RISB overall adjustment score discriminated between clinical and undergraduate participants, and high scores on the RISB were associated with higher negative affect, more anxiety and depression, irrational thinking, and interpersonal problems. The incremental validity of the RISB was modest, but it did explain variance in satisfaction with life and personality disorder symptoms above and beyond an extracted measure of general psychological distress. Our findings support the construct validity of the RISB.     

The Home-Based Occupational Therapy Intervention in the Alzheimer's Disease Multiple Intervention Trial (ADMIT)

There is no way to prevent functional declines related to Alzheimer's Disease (AD). The use of occupational therapy (OT) has been shown to be successful in managing some aspects of AD. We added home-based OT to evidence-based best practice for AD with the aim of delaying functional decline in people with AD. OT was delivered in the home to a caregiver dyad including the person with AD and her/his caregiver. This article describes the OT intervention for the AD Multiple Intervention Trial, a parallel randomized controlled trial. We include baseline data on the 180 caregiver dyads.     

The Development of Family Therapy and Systemic Practice in Europe: Some Reflections and Concerns

This paper outlines the development of pan European systemic thinking and practice. This development has been enabled and supported with the establishment of the European Family Therapy Association (EFTA). EFTA has evolved over the last decade from an organisation of individual members to an organisation of organisations—representing also national associations of family therapy and family therapy training institutes across 28 European countries. There are three sections to this paper: (1) a brief summary of the development of family therapy practice in Europe; (2) a brief summary of the work of the national associations of family therapy in EFTA; and (3) a brief summary of current concerns of some senior family therapists and family therapy trainers within the EFTA organisation.     

Importance of fathers' parenting to African-American toddler's social and cognitive development

The present study examined the degree to which parenting attitudes and behavior (i.e., self-reported warmth, restrictiveness, and behavioral sensitivity as assessed during a freeplay session) were related to toddlers' development. Results showed a restrictive attitude was negatively related to social and cognitive development, whereas paternal sensitivity was positively related to aspects of social development that are less dependent on language skills (e.g., motor and daily living skills). Fathers of girls exhibited greater sensitivity in their freeplay interactions than fathers of boys. More globally, the present research demonstrates important relations between the parenting attitudes and behavior of low- to working-income African-American fathers and young children's development, and similarities to White, middle-income fathers.     

Salience of physical appearance characteristics among young women in Thailand

Our aim in the present study was to identify key components of physical appearance among young Thai women. Free listings, focus groups and pile sorting were used. One-hundred twenty young women generated 78 unique physical appearance characteristics. Ninety-four nursing students validated these characteristics in focus groups and then sorted them into piles that reflected separate domains of physical appearance and labeled them. Salience analysis revealed that facial appearance (e.g., bright facial skin, high nose bridge, big eyes) was the most important domain, followed by body weight and shape, skin color and texture, hair (color, texture, length), and ‘other’ physical appearance (e.g., slender neck, slim fingers). This is the first study to identify aspects of physical appearance that are most salient to young Thai women and that may differ from women in other cultural contexts. These findings could be used to develop culturally grounded measures of physical appearance in Thai women.     

The social function of imitation in severe dementia

We report the case of Jessie, an individual with severe Alzheimer's disease. Over two sessions, we examine Jessie's spontaneous conversation behaviour and urge to communicate using the ‘still face’ paradigm. Spontaneous and deliberate imitation are also examined to identify their importance in social interactions in severe dementia. Although Jessie has difficulty producing meaningful conversation, she retains the urge to communicate and participate in social interactions. These results confirm the importance of imitation in facilitating and maintaining people with communication problems in the social world. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.