The experience of counselling for UK egg providers

Objective

The aim of this study was to address current gaps in knowledge regarding the appropriateness and quality of counselling provided to egg donors in the UK.

Methods

The present study used a cross-sectional, qualitative design. Semi-structured interviews were carried out with 29 UK egg donors to explore their experiences of egg donation and the counselling received.

Results

Of the 29 participants, 24 had received counselling. The remaining five did not receive counselling because they were either not accepted as a donor (n = 4) or were offered, but chose not to take up the session (n = 1). The findings are presented in relation to five themes: feeling supported via counselling; feeling well-informed; welcoming an individualised approach; the counselling setting; and thinking about the future.

Conclusion

Egg donors in this study had varying experiences of counselling offered to them as part of the egg donation process in the UK.

Implications

The findings indicate that there are some aspects of counselling in the UK that could be improved, including the routine offering of counselling throughout the egg donation process and the tailoring of counselling to meet egg donors' individual needs.     

How ‘boundaryless’ are the careers of high potentials,key experts and average performers?

The talent management literature declares talent management a prime concern for HRM professionals while the careers literature calls talent management archaic. Three sets of assumptions identified through comparative review of both streams of the literature were tested in a large-scale survey (n = 941). We found more support for the assumptions advocated in the talent management literature. Those who organizations consider their ‘best’ people are more often found in traditional-organizational careers – both in terms of employer inducements and employee attitudes. Traditional–organizational careers yield more career satisfaction than careers displaying more boundaryless features. Individuals' career types are mostly determined by supervisor-rated performance, much more so than by personal career orientation.     

SKOOL versus ZOOL: Effects of orthographic and phonological long-term memory on nonword immediate serial recall

People can acquire both true and false knowledge about the world from fictional stories. The present study explored whether the benefits and costs of learning about the world from fictional stories extend beyond memory for directly stated pieces of information. Of interest was whether readers would use correct and incorrect story references to make deductive inferences about related information in the story, and then integrate those inferences into their knowledge bases. Participants read stories containing correct, neutral, and misleading references to facts about the world; each reference could be combined with another reference that occurred in a later sentence to make a deductive inference. Later they answered general knowledge questions that tested for these deductive inferences. The results showed that participants generated and retained the deductive inferences regardless of whether the inferences were consistent or inconsistent with world knowledge, and irrespective of whether the references were placed consecutively in the text or separated by many sentences. Readers learn more than what is directly stated in stories; they use references to the real world to make both correct and incorrect inferences that are integrated into their knowledge bases.     

Investigating the Efficacy of CoMeT,a New Mediation Model for High-Conflict Separating Parents

Although mediation has been effective for a large number of separating couples, it does not share the same effectiveness for highly conflicted couples, estimated to represent approximately twenty per cent of all separating couples. Twenty-three highly conflicted separating couples were recruited to investigate the impact of a new model that combines mediation with therapy (CoMeT). Comparing pre- and post-intervention scores, significant improvements were found in parent well-being and reductions in parent conflict, acrimony, and attachment. No gender differences were found. Results support this new, gender-neutral CoMeT model which significantly enhances the mediation process for high-conflict separating parents.     

When theory abandons us – wading through the 'swampy lowlands' of practice

This paper uses three clinical examples to illustrate the experience of feeling abandoned by theory – times when no one model has sufficient signposts to show the way. Therapy is considered to be an endlessly creative interpersonal encounter, to which the client brings the major resource for change. It is argued that the therapist is influenced by worldview, values and beliefs, and personal style, as well as by theoretical model. Further, it is suggested that there is a need to acknowledge and investigate the limitations of therapy. An argument is made for 'going beyond the model', for seeking an ethical practice based on what our clients tell us is important, and for sharing across models the common dilemmas and goals of therapy. Clinicians are encouraged to articulate their own 'swampy lowland' principles of practice.     

Maximizing,choice freedom,and duration judgments in choice making

This paper examines (a) whether people are less accurate in judging choice time as choice tasks involve more choice options, more choice information, or a combination of both and (b) whether people with a higher tendency to look for the best option in choice making (maximizers) have less accurate duration judgments of choice time as compared to people who are more easily settling for a choice outcome that is satisfactory (satisficers). A multilevel analysis is used to explore the relationships of interest using data collected through a series of choice tasks. In general, the results suggest that people seem to misjudge time durations when making choices. Moreover, empirical evidence demonstrates that people with an outspoken tendency to maximize in choice making do not differ significantly in estimating choice time accurately as compared to people who experience almost no need to maximize.     

Self‐esteem,stigma and community participation amongst people with learning difficulties living in the community

A cross‐sectional study examined the relationship between self‐esteem, community participation, age, perceived stigma and social support amongst a sample of 50 people with mild to moderate learning difficulties attending two day centres. Respondent‐paced, structured interviews following ethical and assessment guidelines were used to gather data. Retest interviews were conducted with 20% of the sample 3 months subsequently and only those measures with good test–retest reliability were used to test hypotheses. The results showed fairly high levels of community participation and self‐esteem. Self‐esteem was negatively correlated with stigma and a sub‐group with high concerns regarding meeting strangers was identified. In accordance with studies of non‐disabled samples, self‐esteem was positively associated with age. Social support was comparable to, or higher than, that observed in non‐disabled samples. High social support was observed for staff going out with respondents and for practical help from liked persons and friends. Community participation appeared to be related to higher self‐esteem in older participants but lower self‐esteem in younger participants. Implications for future research and practice are discussed. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Selfless or Selfish? Generativity and Narcissism as Components of Legacy

Erikson’s concept of generativity, or caring for the next generation, acknowledges the presence of narcissism or any type of self-preoccupation as potentially negative. However, other theories articulate generativity as including features of self-involvement, such as a drive for symbolic immortality (McAdams and de St. Aubin J Pers Soc Psychol 62(6):1003–1015. doi:10.1037/0022-3514.62.6.1003, 1992). Recent empirical research also supports this view by identifying generativity and narcissism as both incorporating the beneficial components of agency and communion (Frimer et al. J Pers Soc Psychol 101(1):149–163. doi:10.1037/a0023780, 2011; Gebauer et al. J Pers Soc Psychol 103(3):854–878. doi:10.1037/a0029629, 2012). Moreover, creating a legacy—something left behind when one dies—entails levels of both generativity and narcissism; thus, in the presence of generativity, narcissism may be seen as positive rather than negative. The current study examined generativity and narcissism, and their association with legacy, which was coded from midlife adults’ narratives concerning the future (age 55–58; N = 155). The findings indicated that a combination of high generativity and high narcissism was associated with the highest level of composite legacy, one in which both self and other are implicated. Results are discussed in light of the potentially positive outcomes of narcissism and its synergistic properties for legacy creation when combined with generativity.     

Watching for gains and losses: The effects of motivational challenge and threat on attention allocation during a visual search task

This experiment tests predictions based on research and evidence around the biopsychosocial model (BPSM) that people in a challenge state have faster, more gain orientated search patterns than those in a threat state. Participants (n = 44) completed a motivated performance task involving the location of a target appearing in one of two search arrays: one associated with gaining points and the other associated with avoiding the loss of points. Midway through the task, participants received a false feedback prime about their performance invoking either challenge or threat. We found that participants receiving a challenge prime (high performance feedback) spent longer searching the gain array and made fewer fixations on the loss array. Those receiving a threat prime (low performance feedback) made fewer fixations on the gain array. These findings are in line with the BPSM and provide evidence that allocation of attention (measured using eye movement data) is related to challenge and threat.