Childhood physical and sexual abuse and lifetime number of suicide attempts: a persistent and theoretically important relationship

BACKGROUND: Research to date has indicated that childhood abuse is associated with suicide, though little research has examined the unique contribution of specific types of abuse to suicidal behavior. We predict that childhood physical and violent sexual abuse will have a greater effect on suicide attempts than molestation and verbal abuse. METHODS: The National Comorbidity Survey data were used to test these predictions while controlling for a number of psychiatric and psychosocial variables. RESULTS: As expected, childhood physical and violent sexual abuse showed similar effects on lifetime suicide attempts, which were stronger than the effects of molestation and verbal abuse. LIMITATIONS: This was a cross-sectional, retrospective study, so true causality cannot be shown. Some measurement limitations exist. Additionally, effect sizes were small but still significant. CONCLUSIONS: While all forms of childhood abuse are troubling and create risk for future psychopathology and suicidality, the present study indicates that childhood physical and violent sexual abuse should be seen as greater risk factors for future suicide attempts than molestation and verbal abuse.     

Parents' experiences in Child Protective Services: analysis of a dialogical group process

The authors qualitatively examine parent experiences in groups for persons seeking parental rights through Child Protective Services (CPS). The study focuses on 16 custody-seeking parent figures who participated in dialogical groups designed from a Collaborative Language Systems perspective. The grounded-theory analysis shows that parents initially described overwhelming emotions and conflictual relationships with CPS. It also identifies five therapeutic group processes that appeared to influence perceptions of hope and personal power and contribute to how parents position themselves relative to CPS: validation, sharing practical information and networking, highlighting strengths and resources, supportive confrontation, and sharing stories of change. The analysis provides insight into CPS parents' experiences, suggests that dialogical approaches may have potential to assist in reshaping experiences in CPS, and draws attention to the need for interventions at the structural and administrative levels.     

Traumatic loss and major disasters: strengthening family and community resilience

This article presents the core principles and value of a family and community resilience-oriented approach to recovery from traumatic loss when catastrophic events occur. In contrast to individually based, symptom-focused approaches to trauma recovery, this multisystemic practice approach contextualizes the distress in the traumatic experience and taps strengths and resources in relational networks to foster healing and posttraumatic growth. The intertwining of trauma and traumatic losses is discussed. Key family and social processes in risk and resilience in traumatic loss situations are outlined. Case illustrations, model programs, and intervention guidelines are described in situations of community violence and major disasters to suggest ways to foster family and community resilience.     

Assessment of family functioning in Caucasian and Hispanic Americans: reliability, validity, and factor structure of the Family Assessment Device

The purpose of this study was to examine the factor structure, reliability, and validity of the Family Assessment Device (FAD) among a national sample of Caucasian and Hispanic American families receiving public sector mental health services. A confirmatory factor analysis conducted to test model fit yielded equivocal findings. With few exceptions, indices of model fit, reliability, and validity were poorer for Hispanic Americans compared with Caucasian Americans. Contrary to our expectation, an exploratory factor analysis did not result in a better fitting model of family functioning. Without stronger evidence supporting a reformulation of the FAD, we recommend against such a course of action. Findings highlight the need for additional research on the role of culture in measurement of family functioning.     

The role of career adaptability in predicting entrepreneurial intentions: A moderated mediation model

Guided by the Career Construction Theory (Savickas, 2013), we view entrepreneurship as an adaptive vocational behavior driven by an individual's self-regulatory capacity to thrive in a complex entrepreneurial career context. Our research model posited that individuals rely on their adaptive resources and entrepreneurial self-efficacy as they form entrepreneurial intentions. Career adaptability, as self-regulatory competencies, is further strengthened by prior exposure to family business. We collected data over three measurement periods from Serbian business students (n = 380) and validated the Career Adapt-Abilities Scale (CAAS). The moderated mediation model was supported and as predicted: (a) career adaptability was positively associated with entrepreneurial intentions and (b) the mediated relationship between career adaptability and entrepreneurial intentions via entrepreneurial self-efficacy was stronger for individuals with prior exposure to family business. In addition, we provide evidence for the psychometric properties of CAAS by examining its internal consistency, test–retest reliability, and factor structure. Taken together, our study offers the groundwork for understanding successful adaptation in the entrepreneurial career context and supports the cross-national measurement equivalence and utility of CAAS in a developing economy.     

Psychological Distress in Australian Clients Seeking Family and Relationship Counselling and Mediation Services

There is little published data on the prevalence of psychological distress among individuals and couples seeking counselling and mediation services from non‐government organisations (NGOs). This national cross‐sectional study establishes the prevalence of psychological distress among clients seeking family and relationship counselling and mediation services from Relationships Australia. A national sample of 1,365 clients attending services in April to May 2012 completed the 10‐item Kessler Psychological Distress Scale (K10) after their first counselling or mediation session. Individual counselling (M = 23.01, SD = 8.97, 95% CI [22.05–23.97]) and couple counselling (M = 21.63, SD = 8.10, [20.86–22.41]) clients reported a mean K10 score comparable to those reported by clinical studies of clients with anxiety or affective disorders. One quarter to one fifth of these clients reported very high psychological distress. Clients accessing mediation services had a mean score of 18.13 (SD = 7.76; [17.51–18.75]), and one tenth of clients reported very high distress. These elevated rates of very high psychological distress suggest that mental health issues may be a significant problem for a large proportion of clients accessing counselling and mediation NGO services provided under Family Support Programs (FSP) funding. Implications for screening for mental health and appropriate treatment planning are discussed.     

Evaluating Outcome Domains Assessing Caregivers of Individuals with Mental Illness: A Review

In this article, we describe the properties and consider the outcome dimensions of a collection of self‐administered questionnaires that assess caregivers of offspring with mental illness. To this end, we searched the MEDLINE, Web of Science, and PsycINFO databases, as well as reference lists of studies published between 1980 and 2012. We reviewed 43 instruments, and found multiple outcome domains, associated with either objective burden or subjective burden, or both. A number of tools captured additional negative aspects of caregiving (e.g., strain, stress, and worrying) as well as positive aspects (e.g., personal growth, strength, support, rewards, and satisfaction), supplemented by measures assessing caregivers' perceptions and attitudes toward their offspring with SMI (e.g., insight, stigma, and efficacy). This current review of existing measures and their specific domains contributes to a more comprehensive understanding of the caregiving experience and allows both clinicians and researchers to select the most appropriate measurement tools for their purposes.