Towards an evidence‐base for student wellbeing and mental health: Definitions,developmental transitions and data sets

Against a background of huge changes in the world of university and college students since the turn of the millennium, together with a multitude of reports on student mental health/wellbeing, this article argues that the field of student mental health is hampered by the imprecise use of terms, a rush to action by universities in the absence of a robust evidence‐base, and a lack of overall coordination and collaboration in the collection and use of data. In response, we argue for clearer and more consistent use of definitions of, as well as differentiations between, student wellbeing and mental health, for a longitudinal approach to the student body that captures their developmental transitions to and through university, and a strategic and systematic approach to the use of bona fide measures in the collection of data on wellbeing and on the process of outcomes in embedded university counselling services. Such a coordinated approach will provide the necessary evidence‐base upon which to develop and deliver appropriate support and interventions to underpin and enhance the quality of students’ lives and learning while at university or college.     

Connecting to belonging: a cross-disciplinary inquiry into rural Australian Anglican Church engagements with people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds

People from diverse backgrounds enrich the rural, regional, and remote communities where they relocate and settle. Research about rural diversity tends to focus on demographics (age, gender, country of origin) while ignoring personal narratives of integration, for example, engagements with religious institutions (such as the local Christian church). This article presents the research themes from an investigation using co-operative inquiry into rural diversity and the Anglican Church, with specific reference to the Australian experience. It is a cross-disciplinary dialogic exchange between social workers and theologians. Positive narratives about connection, welcome, participation, and belonging are shared.     

Identification complexity and conflict: how multiple identifications affect conflict across functional boundaries

We integrate insights from the social identity complexity and dual identification literature to explore the influence of workplace identification on cross-functional conflicts at work. We propose that patterns of identification across multiple identity targets will affect the development of cross-functional conflicts within an organization. We test our hypotheses in a two-wave study of 156 military personnel over a period of 4 months, finding support for our propositions. Specifically, we find that less complex patterns of identification (defined as dominant identification with a single workplace identity) are associated with higher increases in process, task and relationship conflict during cross-functional working, compared to complex patterns of identification (identification with two or three targets) and weak identification. These findings have important implications for cross-functional working, and also provide new insights into the role of identification complexity in shaping workplace outcomes.     

Illness perception clusters and relationship quality are associated with diabetes distress in adults with Type 2 diabetes

This report aims to augment what is already known about emotional distress in Type 2 diabetes, by assessing the predictive value of illness perception clusters and relationship quality on four subcategories of Diabetes Distress.162 individuals with Type 2 diabetes responded to a postal questionnaire assessing demographics, depression, diabetes distress, illness perceptions and relationship quality. Long-term blood glucose was retrieved from participants’ General Practitioner. Three illness perception clusters emerged from the data, capturing three subgroups of participants sharing similar illness perception schemas. Regression analyses were performed across each diabetes distress subscale, with demographics, illness perception clusters, and relationship variables entered into three blocks. Covariates explained 51.1% of the variance in emotional burden, 41% of the variance in regimen-related distress, 20% of the variance in interpersonal distress, and 8.6% of the variance in physician-related distress. Cluster membership was strongly associated with emotional burden, regimen-related distress, and to a lesser degree interpersonal distress, but was not associated with physician-related distress. Relationship quality most strongly predicted regimen-related distress. Illness perception schemas and interpersonal issues influence emotional adjustment in diabetes. This study provides direction for the content of a novel approach to identifying and reducing diabetes distress in people with Type 2 diabetes.     

Gossip as a Burdened Virtue

Gossip is often serious business, not idle chitchat. Gossip allows those oppressed to privately name their oppressors as a warning to others. Of course, gossip can be in error. The speaker may be lying or merely have lacked sufficient evidence. Bias can also make those who hear the gossip more or less likely to believe the gossip. By examining the social functions of gossip and considering the differences in power dynamics in which gossip can occur, we contend that gossip may be not only permissible but virtuous, both as the only reasonable recourse available and as a means of resistance against oppression.     

Antecedents of Trust among Citizens and Non-citizens in Qatar

Utilizing new survey data on social capital, we examine the determinants and locus of generalized trust among citizens and immigrants in Qatar, a small, heterogeneous, wealthy, and non-democratic country in which immigrants far outnumber citizens. Scholars of social capital have explored the development of generalized trust in many countries. Most of this attention has focused on the Western world, and little is known about how trust forms in other contexts. Our findings show that important insights resulting from research in developed democracies apply and have explanatory power in some of the very different environments present in Qatar, that these insights do not apply and have explanatory power in some of the other environments present in Qatar, that circumstances and experiences that characterize this array of environments can be identified and described in terms of variable attributes, and that linkages can be established between these attributes and particular antecedents of generalized trust.