Psychotherapy,complementary and alternative medicine and social dysfunction

This article investigates a bio-psycho-social approach to psychotherapy which works, where possible, with interdisciplinary complementary and alternative medicine teams. The model, called anthroposophic psychotherapy, sees body, soul and spirit as interconnected and the study discusses the bio-psycho-social aspects of the model by linking cardiovascular disease, psychological stress, asocial behaviour and social dysfunction utilizing single case study methodology. The limitations of this method are acknowledged and discussed, but it is also argued that the study has a valuable part to play in a research programme which may also later include efficacy and effectiveness research. The methodology incorporates the principle of data synthesis, as well as data analysis, in accordance with the holistic nature of the clinical model, since it takes the view that all of the elements in the research field are connected. The anxieties presented by the client were linked to arteriosclerotic symptoms and social problems. All of these elements had their roots in childhood and needed to be treated with a number of interventions, including anthroposophic psychotherapy and medicine, which incorporates the homeopathic principle of ‘like cures like’.     

Poverty tourism and the problem of consent

Is it morally permissible for financially privileged tourists to visit places for the purpose of experiencing where poor people live, work, and play? Tourism associated with this question is commonly referred to as ‘poverty tourism’. While some poverty tourism is plausibly ethical, other practices will be more controversial. The purpose of this essay is to address mutually beneficial cases of poverty tourism and advance the following positions. First, even mutually beneficial transactions between tourists and residents in poverty tourism always run a risk of being exploitative. Second, there is little opportunity to determine whether a given tour is exploitative since tourists lack good access to the residents' perspectives. Third, if a case of poverty tourism is exploitative, it is so in an indulgent way; tourists are not compelled to exploit the residents. In light of these considerations, we conclude that would-be tourists should participate in poverty tours only if there is a well-established collaborative and consensual process in place, akin to a ‘fair trade’ process.     

Attentional asymmetries in a visual orienting task are related to temperament

Spatial asymmetries are an intriguing feature of directed attention. Recent observations indicate an influence of temperament upon the direction of these asymmetries. It is unknown whether this influence generalises to visual orienting behaviour. The aim of the current study was therefore to explore the relationship between temperament and measures of spatial orienting as a function of target hemifield. An exogenous cueing task was administered to 92 healthy participants. Temperament was assessed using Carver and White's (1994) Behavioural Inhibition System and Behavioural Activation System (BIS/BAS) scales. Individuals with high sensitivity to punishment and low sensitivity to reward showed a leftward asymmetry of directed attention when there was no informative spatial cue provided. This asymmetry was not present when targets were preceded by spatial cues that were either valid or invalid. The findings support the notion that individual variations in temperament influence spatial asymmetries in visual orienting, but only when lateral targets are preceded by a non-directional (neutral) cue. The results are discussed in terms of hemispheric asymmetries and dopamine activity.     

Treatment Outcomes and Perceived Benefits: A Qualitative and Quantitative Assessment of a Women's Substance Abuse Treatment Program

This study examines outcomes of a women's substance abuse treatment program based on empowerment, choice, and client/therapist collaboration. The program was assessed through qualitative and quantitative research methods. The article includes extensive quotes from six client interviews as well as data from pre-post surveys of 50 women in the treatment program. Results show that the women felt they benefited from the collaborative treatment approach. Benefits to the women included feeling more empowered and learning to take responsibility for their lives. The importance of taking a broad view of recovery that includes ongoing evaluation of positive changes in various areas of the clients' lives is discussed.     

Inclusion of Alternative and Complementary Therapies in CACREP Training Programs

Abstract

Given a heightened focus within the mental health profession on creative, complementary, and alternative practices, the authors surveyed CACREP programs with respect to their inclusion of such approaches in counselor training. For the purpose of this study, these approaches were designated as complementary and alternative methods (CAM) and defined as those therapeutic practices that fall outside of the established traditional realm of medical, psychiatric, and psychological practice (hypnotherapy, breath work, meditation, Qigong, Reiki, Thought Field Therapy, etc.). Sixty-two programs responded. Over half (54%) stated that they currently include these approaches in course offerings. This article includes a discussion of creativity, expressive arts, and energy psychology as they relate to complementary and alternative therapies in mental health and medicine.     

Development and validation of a measure of cognitive and behavioural social self-efficacy

Although social self-efficacy appears influential across a broad spectrum of human behaviour, existing adult measures of social self-efficacy have conceptual and psychometric limitations. The current research brought together the realms of trait social intelligence and self-efficacy to develop and evaluate a measure of social self-efficacy which for the first time included assessment of cognitive domains of social self-efficacy. Items were administered to 301 participants, along with measures of general self-efficacy, subjective wellbeing, social anxiety, depression, general anxiety, and stress. An exploratory factor analysis (Maximum Likelihood with Direct Oblimin extraction) revealed two interpretable factors that were labeled “Social Understanding Self-efficacy” (cognitive) and “Social Skill Self-efficacy” (behavioural). Construct and criterion validity were evident and internal consistency and test–retest reliability were good. It was concluded that the new 18-item measure has sound psychometric properties. As such, this measure may serve as a meaningful tool for researchers and clinicians. While theoretical and empirical frameworks informed the current research, given the exploratory nature of this study, future research should further investigate the psychometric properties of this measure using confirmatory factor analysis and by examining the predictive validity of this measure in a clinical context.     

Single Motherhood Via Donor-Insemination (DI): Separation, Absence, and Family Creation

The formation of single motherhood by choice via donor-insemination became one of the alternative family structures in recent years. This paper presents the construction of pre-maternal processes, decision-making and the actual preparation for motherhood via a clinical case study. The therapeutic process is developed through mutual co-construction of patient-therapist relationships that implement analytic relational concepts. The absence of the paternal figure generates a unique creation of familial emotional space. The lack of a conceptual, as well as, a clinical body of knowledge leads both therapist and patient to find new boundaries and meaningful bonds for this family structure.     

The alternative explanation to the alternative‐outcome effect and the detection of the focal outcome effect

Abstract: Previous studies on subjective probability judgment indicate that pair‐wise comparison between the focal and the strongest alternative outcome plays an important role in probability judgment. This study, however, found that the randomness of alternative outcomes affected probability judgment for focal outcome. In the present study, 182 participants provided probability estimates for winning on hypothetical slot machines where both successes and losses were composed of multiple outcomes. The randomness of both the focal and alternative outcomes were defined by the expression used in Rappoport and Budescu (1997 ). The analysis indicated that the more random the distributions of both focal and alternative outcomes, the higher the estimated probability for focal outcome. Some theoretical suggestions are discussed.     

Alternative Possibilities, Luck, and Moral Responsibility

I first question whether genuinealternatives are necessary for moralresponsibility by assessing the assumption thataccessibility to such alternatives is vital tohaving the kind of control required forresponsibility. I next suggest that theavailability of genuine alternatives courtsproblems of responsibility-subverting luck foran important class of libertarian theories. Isummarize one such problem and respond torecent replies it has elicited. I then proposethat if this ``luck objection' against theidentified class of libertarian theories ispersuasive, a similar objection appears toafflict compatibilist theories as well.Finally, I show that reflections on luck maywell take some bite out of variousFrankfurt-type examples. These are examplesdesigned to establish that an agent can bemorally responsible for an action despiteacting with libertarian free will in theabsence of genuine or pertinent alternatives.     

Knowledge and attitude of Malaysia’s Muslim faith healers in dealing with the mentally ill

Muslim faith healers are often sought by the Malaysian public as an avenue to address psychological distress. “Ruqyah” refers to the recitation of verses from the Qur'an and/or sayings of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) and is used by Muslim faith healers as a method of treatment. This study was conducted to assess the knowledge and attitude of Muslim faith healers in dealing with psychiatric patients in Malaysia. Seven Muslim faith healers were interviewed. The interviews were transcribed verbatim, and analysed qualitatively using thematic content analysis. The authors identified four themes: understanding of psychiatric illnesses, diagnostic competence, patients' referral, and integrating “ruqyah” into mainstream psychiatry. It was found that the respondents had limited knowledge of psychiatric illness, focusing on “ruqyah” as the main intervention in treating psychiatric illness. Recognizing the important role played by Muslim faith healers in the treatment of psychiatric illness in Malaysia, collaboration between them and fellow psychiatrists is deemed highly necessary.