Uncovering the Value and Meaning of a Horticulture Therapy Program for Clients at a Long-Term Adult Inpatient Psychiatric Facility

This qualitative study investigated the value and meaning of the Greenhouse Program and its impact on recovery goals of residents with severe and persistent mental illness at an adult, long-term psychiatric facility. Eight participants and two occupational therapists were interviewed. Findings revealed two main themes, relating to the essence of the program and personal growth of the participants, supplemented by six sub-themes. The findings suggest that initiatives, such as the Greenhouse Program, are an appropriate intervention that occupational therapy professionals can use in adult inpatient psychiatric facilities.     

��I��ll Get That for You��: The Relationship Between Benevolent Sexism and Body Self-Perceptions

Benevolent sexism has been shown to have negative consequences for women. In the present study, we investigated whether there were differences in reports of body self-perceptions between 93 college women in the southeastern United States who either witnessed or did not witness a staged act of benevolent sexism. Because we believed that benevolent sexism could make beauty norms more salient, we hypothesized that women who witnessed benevolent sexism would report higher levels of self-objectification, body surveillance, and body shame. Women who witnessed benevolent sexism did report higher levels of surveillance and shame, constructs associated with self-objectification, but not higher general levels of self-objectification. This research provides more evidence of the negative effects benevolent sexism has on women.     

Factor structure of the BASC-2 Behavioral and Emotional Screening System Student Form

The BASC-2 Behavioral and Emotional Screening System (BESS) Student Form (Kamphaus & Reynolds, 2007) is a recently developed youth self-report rating scale designed to identify students at risk for behavioral and emotional problems. The BESS Student Form was derived from the Behavior Assessment System for Children-Second Edition Self-Report of Personality (BASC-2 SRP; Reynolds & Kamphaus, 2004) using principal component analytic procedures and theoretical considerations. Using 3 samples, the authors conducted exploratory factor analyses (EFA) and confirmatory factor analyses (CFA) to understand the underlying factor structure of the BESS Student Form. The results of the EFA suggested that the SRP contained a 4-factor (i.e., Personal Adjustment, Inattention/Hyperactivity, Internalizing, School Problems) emergent structure, which was supported by CFA in 2 additional samples. Practical and research implications are discussed.     

The evolving vocabulary of the social sciences: the case of "socialization"

While the term "socialization" stands as a common and clearly understood term regularly used in social science and lay conversations alike, its history is complex. In the 19th century, socialization was introduced to refer to societal activities or projects, and only in the early 20th century did it gain usage as a term describing psychological processes transpiring within the individual. The architecture of the newer meaning harbored ambitions and problems of modern social science, including ideals of interdisciplinary theory and theoretic resolution of the individual/society dualism. Nevertheless, socialization became a central object of social scientific inquiry after World War II. This significant social scientific object was repeatedly altered: initially representing a vision of conforming citizens who were free from certain troubling characteristics depicted in psychoanalysis and well-suited to democracy, it later was engaged to create a vision of autonomous, resilient, and cognitively active actors able to negotiate a complex social world.     

The influence of haptic guidance on the production of spatio-temporal patterns

Haptic guidance by a robot is a recent technology to support motor learning. Its mechanisms and effects are not yet well understood. One of the hypotheses is that learning of temporal characteristics is particularly susceptible to the beneficial effects of robotic guidance. In this study we investigate the influence of robotic guidance on the production of spatio-temporal patterns. Participants practiced to draw circles with the velocity profile of ellipses. Performance during the practice phase, when participants were assisted by a robotic device, as well as during the test phase, when assistance was switched off, was compared to a control group. During practice participants with robotic assistance performed better on all three dependent measures, shape, timing of the velocity modulation, and modulation amplitude. However, these differences between groups largely disappeared in the test phase. Only the difference in the amplitude of the velocity modulation remained, which was more accurate in the robot-guidance group than in the control group. This remaining difference likely results from a secondary effect of robotic guidance, namely the experience of smaller visual errors and weaker velocity modulations during practice.     

Relations between Loss of Services and Psychiatric Symptoms in Urban and Non-Urban Settings following a Natural Disaster

Disasters have been associated with both acute and prolonged distress and significant post-disaster psychiatric symptoms. These outcomes may be further complicated by extended periods without vital services and supplies, such as electricity and drinking water. The present study investigated the relations between post-disaster loss of services and psychiatric symptoms in urban/non-urban disaster victims. Random-digit?Cdial methodology was used to interview 1,249 victims of Hurricane Ike, a strong storm that hit Galveston, TX in 2008. Findings demonstrated significant relations between loss of services and post-disaster symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, and worry. These relations varied by urban/non-urban settings; there were significant positive relations between loss of services and symptoms of depression in non-urban settings, but not in urban settings. Similarly, a stronger relation between loss of services and symptoms of PTSD also was demonstrated in non-urban compared to urban settings. Findings highlight the potential importance of pre-disaster preparation, post-disaster restoration of services, and post-disaster community support in post-disaster psychiatric outcomes, with a particular emphasis in non-urban settings.     

Role and group identity and adjustment to the possibility of running group disbandment

Role and group identities are distinct yet related constructs. Both identities may be relevant to exercise yet exercise identity research has focused mostly on exercise role identity.ObjectiveWe examined the relationship between role and group identity among runners. Further, the relationship of runner role and running group identity were examined relative to social cognitive and behavioural outcomes relative to running and the possibility of running group disbandment.DesignAn observational design was used.MethodRunning group members completed measures of runner role and running group identity, self-efficacy for running, and aspects of recent exercise and anticipated reactions to running group disbandment.ResultsRunner role and running group identity showed a small, positive correlation. Runner role identity was associated with self-efficacy for running, vigorous exercise, less group running and adaptive reactions to the possibility of group disbandment. Running group identity was associated with negative self-efficacy, greater percentage of runs being conducted with the group and maladaptive reactions to group disbandment. Runner role and running group identity did not interact in their relationship to exercise-related outcomes.ConclusionsIn the context of running, role and group identities are related but unique variables. Identification as a runner may not only be associated with exercise in the context of the group but may also have protective effects against disruptions to group running. Identification with the running group may compromise exercise in the face of group disbandment.     

An Examination of Disclosure of Nonsuicidal Self‐injury among University Students

Despite the widespread prevalence of nonsuicidal self‐injury (NSSI) among community‐based samples, little is known about which self‐injurers disclose their NSSI or the factors that promote disclosure among self‐injurers. To address this gap in the literature, we examined whether disclosers could be differentiated from nondisclosers on the basis of NSSI characteristics (e.g. frequency of NSSI and severity of NSSI), NSSI motivations (e.g. interpersonal and intrapersonal motivations) and psychosocial factors (e.g. suicidal ideation and self‐esteem). Participants consisted of a large sample of 268 self‐injuring undergraduate students (M_age = 19.07 years, 70.3% women) at a Canadian university. Results indicated that 57% of self‐injurers had never disclosed their NSSI to anyone. Self‐injurers were most likely to disclose to peers and romantic partners. Logistic regression analyses revealed that pain during NSSI, severity of NSSI, interpersonal motivations for engaging in NSSI, higher suicidal ideation and higher friendship quality were all associated with a greater likelihood of NSSI disclosure. Our findings suggest that individuals with severe NSSI and suicidal ideation may be more likely to disclose. Moreover, our findings underscore the importance of equipping friends and romantic partners with effective responses to NSSI disclosures to promote more formal help‐seeking behaviours among self‐injurers. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.