Internet-based acceptance and commitment therapy for psychological distress experienced by people with hearing problems: a pilot randomized controlled trial

Psychological distress is common among people with hearing problems, but treatments that specifically target this aspect have been almost non-existent. In this pilot randomized controlled trial, an eight-week long Internet-based treatment, informed by Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, was administered to explore the feasibility and efficacy of such a treatment. Included participants were randomized to either treatment (n = 31) or wait-list control (n = 30) condition. All participants were measured prior to randomization and immediately after treatment ended using standardized self-report instruments measuring hearing-related emotional and social adjustment (Hearing Handicap Inventory for the Elderly – S, HHIE-S), quality of life (Quality of Life Inventory, QOLI), and symptoms of depression and anxiety (Patient health Questionnaire, PHQ-9 and Generalized Anxiety Disorder scale, GAD-7). Linear mixed effects regression analysis using the full intention-to-treat sample demonstrated that the treatment had superior outcomes on the main outcome measure as compared with the control group, Cohen’s d = 0.93, 95% CI [0.24, 1.63]. The benefits of treatment over control were also evident in scores of depression, Cohen’s d = 0.61, 95% CI [0.04, 1.19], and quality of life, Cohen’s d = 0.88, 95% CI [0.14, 1.61]. The results provide preliminary support for Internet-delivered acceptance and commitment therapy as a potentially effective treatment of psychological symptoms associated with hearing problems.     

Migration Factors in West African Immigrant Parents’ Perceptions of Their Children's Neighborhood Safety

Immigrants make up large proportions of many low‐income neighborhoods, but have been largely ignored in the neighborhood safety literature. We examined perceived safety's association with migration using a six‐item, child‐specific measure of parents’ perceptions of school‐aged (5–12 years of age) children's safety in a sample of 93 West African immigrant parents in New York City. Aims of the study were (a) to identify pre‐migration correlates (e.g., trauma in home countries), (b) to identify migration‐related correlates (e.g., immigration status, time spent separated from children during migration), and (c) to identify pre‐migration and migration correlates that accounted for variance after controlling for non‐migration‐related correlates (e.g., neighborhood crime, parents’ psychological distress). In a linear regression model, children's safety was associated with borough of residence, greater English ability, less emotional distress, less parenting difficulty, and a history of child separation. Parents’ and children's gender, parents’ immigration status, and the number of contacts in the U.S. pre‐migration and pre‐migration trauma were not associated with children's safety. That child separation was positively associated with safety perceptions suggests that the processes that facilitate parent–child separation might be reconceptualized as strengths for transnational families. Integrating migration‐related factors into the discussion of neighborhood safety for immigrant populations allows for more nuanced views of immigrant families’ well‐being in host countries.     

A process of mourning in the life and in the analysis of an adolescent

Abstract

This paper concerns the subject of “loss”, and the way “loss” is dealt with. A loss occurs which may be related to a real object - such as the death of a loved one - or to anything else which may represent a lost object, such as a stage or a function lost in life. Thus in adolescence, one has to face the loss of an infantile state.

Being alive, growing up, developing oneself presupposes losses and gains. One loses something in order to gain something else. This paper attempts to examine the subject, both in its theoretical and clinical aspects. In its theoretical aspect, I bring forward the points of view of Sigmund Freud, Melanie Klein and Wilfred Bion, concerning loss and how one deals with it.

In its clinical aspect, I present the case of an adolescent who, already in the process of having to face up to the loss of an infantile state - as happens to every adolescent - is obliged also to face the death of a loved one. Besides, the process of analysis itself presupposes that a person, in order to develop psychologically, has to face other losses, such as that of one's omnipotence, that of one's idealised objects, etc. Therefore, I am presenting for examination a situation in which a particular person deals with his losses in the light of the analytical transference.     

Planning bridges the intention–behaviour gap: Age makes a difference and strategy use explains why

Objective: This study examines age-differential association patterns between intentions, planning and physical activity in young and middle-aged individuals. The effectiveness of planning to bridge the intention–behaviour gap is assumed to increase with advancing age. We explore the use of behaviour change strategies that include selection, optimisation and compensation (SOC) as underlying mechanisms for age differences. Methods: In N = 265 employees of a national railway company (aged 19–64 years), intentions, planning, SOC strategy use and physical activity were assessed at baseline (Time 1) and again 1 month later (Time 2). Hypotheses were tested in two different path models. Results: Age moderates the extent to which planning mediates the intention–behaviour relation due to an increasing strength of the planning–behaviour link. As a possible psychological mechanism for these age differences, we identified SOC strategy use as a mediator of the age by planning interaction effect on physical activity. Conclusion: These findings suggest differential mechanisms in behaviour regulation in young and middle-aged individuals.     

Self-efficacy as a moderator of the planning-behaviour relationship in interventions designed to promote physical activity

Individuals who lack perceived self-efficacy may benefit less from planning interventions because they fail to apply their plans when encountering situations that appear challenging. Thus, self-efficacy may operate as a moderator in relation to the effects of planning interventions on behaviour. This article reports from two experimental studies using cluster randomisation. Study 1 included 58 patients with diabetes who received a face-to-face action planning intervention to improve their physical activity levels. Study 2 targeted the roles of planning and self-efficacy for the maintenance of regular running and for relapse prevention in 187 active individuals over a 2-year period. The email-delivered intervention prompted specific goal setting and facilitated planning to mobilise social support to secure relapse prevention. Results of the two studies were consistent with a moderating effect of self-efficacy in relation to the planning-behaviour relationship. Individuals with high self-efficacy benefited from planning interventions. If a person lacks self-efficacy, planning may not effectively promote physical activity.     

Contribution of the dorsal subiculum to memory for temporal order and novelty detection using objects,odors, or spatial locations in the rat

The contribution of the dorsal subiculum (DS) to memory for temporal order and novelty detection was assessed using a spontaneous exploration paradigm with objects (visual/tactile stimuli), odors, or spatial locations (Hunsaker, Fieldsted, Rosenberg, & Kesner, 2008). Rats with selective excitotoxic lesions of the DS were compared to sham-operated rats (SHAM) in the two exploration tests. In temporal order tests, two previously explored stimuli were presented and normal rats typically show a preference for exploring the stimulus that was first explored compared to the other stimulus. In novelty detection tests, a familiar and a new stimulus were presented and normal rats typically have a preference for exploring new stimuli. In temporal order tests, results indicated that Group SHAM explored significantly more the first than the last stimulus they met when the stimuli were odors or objects. In addition, SHAM rats predictably displayed a significant preference for the new stimulus in the novelty detection tests with objects, odors, and spatial locations. Group DS did not differ from controls on the temporal order and the novelty detection tests with objects or odors. However, on the novelty detection test with spatial locations, Group DS differed from Group SHAM. These results suggest that the DS is necessary for the memory of spatial locations but not of objects and odors.     

Linking organizational resources and work engagement to employee performance and customer loyalty: the mediation of service climate

This study examined the mediating role of service climate in the prediction of employee performance and customer loyalty. Contact employees (N=342) from 114 service units (58 hotel front desks and 56 restaurants) provided information about organizational resources, engagement, and service climate. Furthermore, customers (N=1,140) from these units provided information on employee performance and customer loyalty. Structural equation modeling analyses were consistent with a full mediation model in which organizational resources and work engagement predict service climate, which in turn predicts employee performance and then customer loyalty. Further analyses revealed a potential reciprocal effect between service climate and customer loyalty. Implications of the study are discussed, together with limitations and suggestions for future research.     

Role of Stressful Life Events in Homelessness: An Intragroup Analysis

The present paper describes the results of an analysis of individual differences—using multidimensional strategies—in stressful life event data collected from a representative sample of homeless people (N = 289) in Madrid, Spain, which revealed the existence of three subgroups within the sample. Each subgroup can be defined by the following differentiating characteristics: The first cluster (n = 124) was characterized by economic problems; the second (n = 80) by health problems, alcohol abuse, and death of one or both parents; and the third cluster (n = 50) by an accumulation of stressful life in childhood events and alcohol abuse. In order to define the subgroups, the article also examines the differences found in other variables such as total duration of homelessness, mental and physical health status, and social support availability, among others. The existence of such subgroups within the homeless population emphasizes the importance of designing different interventions for each of these groups, adapted to their diverse needs.     

Feeding upon awakening in breastfeeding and bottlefeeding mothers does not affect the awakening cortisol response

An acute breastfeeding stimulus is generally followed by a transient decrease in cortisol levels in mothers. It is currently not clear whether breastfeeding upon waking up would affect the awakening cortisol response (ACR), a significant increase in salivary cortisol levels occurring within 30-45 min after awakening. In the present study, we measured the amplitude and stability of the ACR in response to infant feeding in women who were exclusively bottle-feeding (n = 16), or breastfeeding (n = 13) or feeding their child solid food (n = 12). The results show that the type of infant feeding did not affect the amplitude and stability of the ACR. Given that the ACR has been reported to reflect physical and psychological well-being, our finding that infant feeding upon waking up might not be a confounding factor in ACR studies on the postpartum population represents valuable methodological information.     

When One Plus One Equals Three: The Role of Relationships and Context in Community Research

This paper explores the role of relationships within and between the community of the researchers and the community of the research participants, as they relate to qualitative, community psychology research. Although relationships are salient to all research, their role is particularly prominent in qualitative research, in which a closer rapport is established between researcher and research participant than in quantitative research, and the impact of both sides of this interaction on the research process is acknowledged. Instead of merely looking at the community and relationships of the participants, the usual focus of research, this paper also explores the often-overlooked community and relationships of the researchers and then goes on to look at the impact on the research process of the interaction of these two separate communities. This inside story, while seldom explicitly explored or articulated, has implications for community research in general and particularly for applied research.