‘It's like there are two people in my head’: A phenomenological exploration of anorexia nervosa and its relationship to the self

This study explores the lived experience of anorexia nervosa from the perspective of those who use pro-recovery websites for eating disorders. Fourteen people participated in an online focus group or an e-interview. Data were analysed using interpretative phenomenological analysis. Participants described their disorder as a functional tool for avoiding and coping with negative emotions, changing their identity and obtaining control. A central theme was the experience of an ‘anorexic voice’ with both demonic and friendly qualities. This voice felt like an external entity that criticised individuals and sometimes dominated their sense of self, particularly as anorexia nervosa got worse. Applying dialogical theory suggests a new model of anorexia nervosa, where the anorexic voice is a self-critical position, which disagrees with and attempts to dominate the more rational self. It is suggested that to move on from anorexia nervosa, the individual needs to address his/her anorexic voice and develop a new dominant position that accepts and values his/her sense of self.     

Religious Discrimination in the Workplace: A Review and Examination of Current and Future Trends

Purpose

Over the last decade, religious discrimination claims have risen more rapidly compared to most other protected categories under the Civil Rights Act (CRA). The goal of this review paper is to summarize the psychological and HR practitioner-focused research on religious discrimination as it relates to the CRA to understand these religious discrimination claims. In doing so, this review also highlights what future research is needed, and what the challenges and practical implications of religious discrimination are for managers.

Design/methodology/approach

We conduct a systematic literature review of the psychology and business research on religious discrimination.

Findings

Building from the literature review and case law, we highlight four trends that contribute to religious discrimination in the workplace: (1) legal ambiguities, (2) increased religious diversity in the American workforce, (3) increasing expression of religious beliefs, and (4) the unique nature of religion.

Implications

The trends identified in our review paper highlight the need for employers to understand and address religious discrimination issues in the workplace and the lack of empirical research in this area points to a critical gap in our understanding of workplace religious discrimination that warrants future research.

Originality/value

In addition to highlighting trends that contribute to religious discrimination in the workplace, this literature review addresses where there are gaps in the existing research that call for further research and offers practical implications for employers and organizations.     

Psychological stigma costs as barriers to healthcare use in former soldiers of the German Armed Forces: A qualitative analysis

Individuals decide to use healthcare when the expected benefits outweigh the perceived costs. One of these cost factors in this decision can be stigma. So far, it has not been researched how former soldiers of the German Armed Forces with a service-induced mental illness perceive stigma and how it influences their healthcare use. As stigma is shaped by the socio-cultural context, the setting of the potential healthcare use must be considered. Narrative interviews were conducted with 33 former soldiers with mental health problems. The data were analyzed using a thematic analysis approach, in which codes were formed and emerging themes were systemized. The relationship between stigma and healthcare use was analyzed. Occupational discrimination and social exclusion were experienced in both in the military and civilian context, but stigma functioned differently in each context. In the military context, former soldiers’ self-stigma of mentally ill individuals being weak was in stark contrast to their internalized military standards. This contrast let them avoid disclosure and subsequent healthcare use. In civilian context, the participants perceived 2 different stigma costs: mental illness stigma and former soldier stigma (i.e., stigmatization because of their military past). Both were perceived as barriers to healthcare use. A model, illustrating these different stigma costs in the different contexts, was developed. Further research on the link between stigma and healthcare use of this group is urgently needed.     

Rape Myth Acceptance: A Comparison of Military Service Academy and Civilian Fraternity and Sorority Students

Although both the military and fraternities have been theorized to be characterized by norms and attitudes that serve to legitimize violence against women, no previous work has examined the potential similarity and differences in rape-supportive beliefs of these 2 environments or the people drawn to them. Further, the belief systems of women within these organizations have received little attention. As such, the current study sought to serve as an initial exploration of the rape-supportive belief systems of people drawn to these groups. Participants were recruited from students entering 2 military service academies (U.S. Military Academy, n = 1,169, 1,003 men, 166 women; U.S. Naval Academy, n = 1,916, 1,551 men, 365 women) and fraternities and sororities at a Midwestern university (n = 393, 188 men, 205 women). All participants completed the Illinois Rape Myth Acceptance Scale–Short Form. Consistent with previous findings related to gender, men were more accepting of rape myths than women. Further, there was more variability in the levels of rape myth acceptance among military service academy and fraternity men than among military service academy and sorority women. Although across all groups the women expressed significantly lower levels of rape myth acceptance than the men, women and men from the United States Military Academy were more closely aligned in their beliefs than women and men from the other samples. Implications for sexual assault prevention education are discussed.     

The Predictive Power of Combined Neuropsychological Measures for Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder in Children

The present study explores the predictive power of seven neuropsychological assessment tools used in combination in classifying children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Twenty-one ADHD boys and 22 community control children participated. Group differences were significant on the continuous performance test only; however, battery analysis did increase overall predictive power, which was moderate. This study highlights the difficulty in identifying consistent mean differences on tests of frontal/executive functioning across studies, as well as the need to assess the predictive validity of these tests in classifying children with ADHD. The study suggests that these tests may provide greater predictive validity when used in combination. Inconsistencies in the literature are discussed, with consideration of research methodology, the heterogeneity of the ADHD population, and comorbid diagnoses.     

Secondary-ion mass spectrometry of superconducting YBa2Cu3 O7 and insulating La2 CuO4 materials

Abstract

The superconducting compound YBa₂ Cu₃O₇ and the insulating material La₂CuO₄ have been examined using liquid-metal ion-induced secondary-ion mass spectrometry. The results revealed surface reactions with moisture as well as some contamination by hydrocarbons. These surface layers were readily sputtered away, but the apparent presence of yttrium, barium and lanthanum hydroxides could play a significant part in their surface conduction characteristics. The relative intensity of the sputtered ion MO⁺ was found to be a logarithmic function of its dissociation energy.     

Book reviews

Abstract

Marriage Counseling in Groups, by M. M. Ohlsen. Champaign, IL: Research Press Co., 1979, paperback, 200 pages, $6.95.

Common Sense in Therapy, by Yoosuf A. Haveliwala, Albert E. Scheflen and Norman Ashcraft. New York: Brunner/Mazel, 1979, 199 pages, $13.50.

Handbook of Suicidology: Principles, Problems and Practice, by Louis Wekstein. New York: Brunner/Mazel, 1979, 303 pages, $17.50.

Making It as a Stepparent: New Roles, New Rules, by Claire Berman. New York: Doubleday, 1980, 202 pages, $8.95.

Invitation to a Dialogue: Union and Separation in Family Life, by Otto Pollak and Ellen S. Wise. New York: Spectrum, 1979, $9.95.     

Positive affectivity and attentional control moderate the link between negative affectivity and depressed mood

Research and theory suggest that deficits in trait positive affectivity (PA) and in capacity for executive control of attention (i.e., attentional control or AC) may each intensify risk for depressive symptoms associated with high trait negative affectivity (NA). In contrast, high levels of PA and AC should protect against that risk. However, prospective tests of such predictions are rare. Furthermore, if PA and AC both modulate NA-related risk, it remains to be seen if those effects are independent and complementary or if they operate in an overlapping manner. This study assessed baseline temperament and change in depressed mood across one month in a sample of 125 adolescents. Results supported both PA and AC as modulators of NA’s association with changes in depressed mood. Furthermore, results suggested that these modulating effects are largely non-overlapping and complementary, such that when both PA and AC are low, high NA predicts increases in depressed mood. In contrast, high NA predicts decreases in depressed mood when both PA and AC are high. Limitations of these findings, directions for future research, and implications for prevention are discussed.     

I Knew It All Along,Unless I Had to Work to Learn What I Know

After receiving knowledge regarding some topic, people usually overestimate their prior topic knowledge. Two experiments investigated whether people would claim less prior knowledge if they worked to earn their present knowledge. In Study 1, students finishing a psychology course claimed less precourse psychology knowledge if they reported devoting more effort toward the course. In Study 2, the knew-it-all-along effect was stronger for participants who were simply given the answers to questions than for participants who studied for 20 minutes to learn the answers. Both cognitive and motivational factors can account for the observed effects of effort investment on retrospective knowledge judgments.