Impact of Conflict on Mental Health in Northern Ireland: The Mediating Role of Intergroup Forgiveness and Collective Guilt

The aim of the present research was to investigate the mediating role of group-level forgiveness and guilt in the relationship between victimhood (the extent to which the conflict affected an individual's life), exposure to violence (the level of violence in their area of residence), and group identity on the one hand, and mild psychiatric morbidity on the other. Specifically the study focused on the psychological impact of the ethnopolitical conflict in Northern Ireland, utilizing people's identification with either the Catholic or Protestant community. Our results revealed that intergroup forgiveness mediated the relationship between both victimhood and group identification, as predictors, and mild psychiatric morbidity. Collective guilt, on the other hand, mediated the relationship between both exposure to violence and group identification, as predictors, and intergroup forgiveness. Overall this study shows that forgiveness and collective guilt can act as mediators in the relationship between impact of ethnopolitical conflict and mental health, at the group level, and thus demonstrates their centrality to the reconciliation process. Implications for intergroup reconciliation initiatives in Northern Ireland are discussed.     

Wellness and mattering: the role of holistic factors in job satisfaction

A study was conducted with 82 employees in varied positions to determine the variance in job satisfaction that could be accounted for by holistic wellness and mattering. Results of regression analyses revealed that both wellness and mattering contributed significantly to the variance in job satisfaction; however, wellness was the stronger predictor. When block variables such as age and job tenure were held constant, the contributions of wellness and mattering to job satisfaction were not significant.     

"I don't mean to sound arrogant, but . . ." The effects of using disclaimers on person perception

Limited research has examined the effects of using disclaimers on person perception, and none has examined disclaimer effectiveness. Four studies test whether disclaimers effectively ward off negative judgments regarding the specific disclaimed traits. Study 1 finds that using an arrogance disclaimer ("I don't mean to sound arrogant, but . . .") increased judgments of the speaker's arrogance but only when followed by an arrogant comment. Studies 2 and 3 yield similar findings using laziness and selfishness disclaimers. Studies 2, 3, and 4 examine five possible underlying mechanisms regarding why disclaimers can backfire. The most support was obtained for the notion that disclaimers increase an audience's expectations that the speaker will say something consistent with the unwanted trait, which then increases perceptions of that trait in the speaker. We discuss some possible moderating variables as well as some implications of these findings for general impression formation models.     

A randomized trial comparing the efficacy of cognitive-behavioral therapy for bulimia nervosa delivered via telemedicine versus face-to-face

OBJECTIVE: A major problem in the delivery of mental health services is the lack of availability of empirically supported treatment, particularly in rural areas. To date no studies have evaluated the administration of an empirically supported manual-based psychotherapy for a psychiatric condition via telemedicine. The aim of this study was to compare the relative efficacy and acceptability of a manual-based cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) for bulimia nervosa (BN) delivered in person to a comparable therapy delivered via telemedicine. METHOD: One hundred twenty-eight adults meeting DSM-IV criteria for BN or eating disorder-not otherwise specified with binge eating or purging at least once per week were recruited through referrals from clinicians and media advertisements in the targeted geographical areas. Participants were randomly assigned to receive 20 sessions of manual-based, CBT for BN over 16 weeks delivered either face-to-face (FTF-CBT) or via telemedicine (TV-CBT) by trained therapists. The primary outcome measures were binge eating and purging frequency as assessed by interview at the end of treatment, and again at 3- and 12-month follow-ups. Secondary outcome measures included other bulimic symptoms and changes in mood. RESULTS: Retention in treatment was comparable for TV-CBT and FTF-CBT. Abstinence rates at end-of-treatment were generally slightly higher for FTF-CBT compared with TV-CBT, but differences were not statistically significant. FTF-CBT patients also experienced significantly greater reductions in eating disordered cognitions and interview-assessed depression. However, the differences overall were few in number and of marginal clinical significance. CONCLUSIONS: CBT for BN delivered via telemedicine was both acceptable to participants and roughly equivalent in outcome to therapy delivered in person.     

The Freedom of a Teenager: Vocation and Service Learning as the Future of Youth Ministry

Abstract : This article asserts the value of service learning as integral to youth ministry's future. However, service learning often lacks an appropriate philosophical foundation and an effectual process. Therefore, we offer Luther's doctrine of vocation as a framework for engaging youth in service experiences, which in return becomes a concrete way to experience the doctrine of vocation and, more importantly, the freedom of a Christian. Framed and interpreted through a vocational lens, service experiences aid youth in recognizing the urgency of a life of faith,     

IS SELF-OBJECTIFICATION RELATED TO INTEROCEPTIVE AWARENESS? AN EXAMINATION OF POTENTIAL MEDIATING PATHWAYS TO DISORDERED EATING ATTITUDES

Although there has been considerable empirical support for Objectification Theory ( Fredrickson & Roberts, 1997 ), findings have been mixed regarding self-objectification's relationship to interoceptive awareness, an awareness of one's internal physical and emotional states. We examined whether interoceptive awareness mediated the relationship between self-objectification and disordered eating attitudes, exploring more specifically the relative contributions of difficulties recognizing feelings of hunger and satiety versus emotions. College women ( N = 195) completed measures assessing self-objectification, interoceptive awareness, awareness of emotions, and disordered eating attitudes. Self-objectification correlated significantly more strongly with interoceptive awareness when internal cues about hunger and satiety were assessed. The relationship between self-objectification and disordered eating attitudes was partially mediated by interoceptive awareness. Results revealed that interoceptive awareness may best be captured by a measure that includes lack of awareness of both hunger and satiety and emotional states. Research and clinical implications of these findings are discussed.     

Associative learning over trials activates the hippocampus in healthy elderly but not mild cognitive impairment

The ability to form associations between choice alternatives and their contingent outcomes is an important aspect of learning that may be sensitive to hippocampal dysfunction in memory disorders of aging such as amnestic mild cognitive impairment (MCIa), or early Alzheimer disease. In this preliminary study we examined brain activation using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) in 12 healthy elderly participants and nine patients with MCIa during an associative learning task. Using a high-field 3.0-Tesla MRI scanner, we examined the dynamic neural response during associative learning over trials. The slope of signal attenuation associated with learning was analyzed for differences between groups within an a priori defined hippocampal region. Results indicated dynamic signal attenuation associated with learning in the healthy elderly sample, but not in MCIa. The absence of an associative learning effect in the MCIa sample reaffirms an important link between the learning difficulties that are commonly encountered in MCIa and the mesial temporal region.     

Forum on Paulo Freire's pedagogy: Leaning educationally into our future

This forum revisits Paulo Freire's Pedagogy of the Oppressed on the 50^th anniversary of its publication in 1968. William R. Myers's opening essay reflects on his discovery of the book and the impact it has had on his life as a Christian minister and theological educator. He provides a Freirean critique of his own schooling and of church and society today. He pulls out several themes in Freire's work, demonstrating their usefulness for cultural analysis and critique in a variety of educational contexts. Succeeding essays by Tina Pippin, Neomi De Anda, and Cláudio Carvalhaes describe specific Freirean‐style pedagogies they have used in their classrooms.     

Fear of Hypoglycemia and Self Reported Posttraumatic Stress in Adults with Type I Diabetes Treated by Intensive Regimens

This study investigated the prevalence of hypoglycemic fear (FH) and hypoglycemia-specific posttraumatic stress (PTS) among individuals with Type I diabetes. Over 25% of participants met diagnostic criteria for current PTSD. High percentages of participants endorsed PTS symptom clusters, suggesting that individuals may be experiencing distress without necessarily meeting diagnostic criteria. Hierarchical multiple regression analyses revealed that perceived threat of death from hypoglycemia and FH were significantly related to PTS. Number of recent hypoglycemic episodes did not predict PTS/PTSD. Depression and nonspecific anxiety did not contribute to the statistical prediction of PTSD, suggesting that symptomatology endorsed represents hypoglycemia-specific anxiety rather than global psychological distress. The hypothesis that greater PTS symptomatology would relate to poorer glycemic control was unsubstantiated. Perceived death-threat from hypoglycemia and nonspecific anxiety were the only variables that contributed to prediction of glycemic control, suggesting that PTS did not represent a significant barrier for glycemic control in this sample.