Recognition and Reform in Nordic Fiction: Jonas Gardell and Jussi Valtonen

While contemporary Scandinavian literature continues to discuss the problems of welfare state and social justice, it increasingly turns its attention to minority issues, multiculturalism, and the impact of digitalization. Jonas Gardell's HIV/AIDS trilogy Torka aldrig tårar utan handskar (Never wipe tears without gloves) highlights the family relations in the Swedish gay community. Jussi Valtonen's He eivät tiedä mitä tekevät (They do not know what they do) deals with the dystopias of social media and the power of global software companies. Religion and theology play a significant role in the works of both Gardell and Valtonen.     

Effects of perceived social support and family demands on college students' mental well‐being: A cross‐cultural investigation

The effects of perceived social support and family demands on college students' mental well‐being (perceived stress and depression) were assessed in 2 samples of Jordanian and Turkish college students. Statistically significant negative correlations were found between perceived support and mental well‐being. Multiple regression analyses showed that perceived family support was a better predictor of mental well‐being for Jordanian students, while perceived support from friends was a better predictor of mental well‐being for Turkish students. Perceived family demands were stronger predictors of mental well‐being for participants from both ethnic groups. Jordanian and Turkish participants who perceived their families to be too demanding were more likely to report higher depression and stress levels. None of the interactions between social support or family demands and either of the 2 demographic variables were statistically significant. These findings provide a more nuanced view of the relationship between social support and mental health among college students, and point to the relevance of some cultural and situational factors. They also draw further attention to the detrimental effects of unrealistic family demands and pressures on the mental health of college youths.     

Mothers', fathers' and children's perceptions of parents' expectations about children's family obligations in nine countries

Children's family obligations involve assistance and respect that children are expected to provide to immediate and extended family members and reflect beliefs related to family life that may differ across cultural groups. Mothers, fathers and children (N = 1432 families) in 13 cultural groups in 9 countries (China, Colombia, Italy, Jordan, Kenya, Philippines, Sweden, Thailand and United States) reported on their expectations regarding children's family obligations and parenting attitudes and behaviours. Within families, mothers and fathers had more concordant expectations regarding children's family obligations than did parents and children. Parenting behaviours that were warmer, less neglectful and more controlling as well as parenting attitudes that were more authoritarian were related to higher expectations regarding children's family obligations between families within cultures as well as between cultures. These international findings advance understanding of children's family obligations by contextualising them both within families and across a number of diverse cultural groups in 9 countries.     

Riding the waves: A functional‐cognitive perspective on the relations among behaviour therapy,cognitive behaviour therapy and acceptance and commitment therapy

Different types of therapy explain psychopathology and the effects of psychotherapy differently. Different explanations are, however, not necessarily mutually exclusive. Based on the idea that functional and cognitive explanations are situated at different levels, we argue that functional therapies such as traditional Behaviour Therapy (BT) and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) are not necessarily incompatible with Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT). Whether a functional and a cognitive therapy actually align depends on whether they highlight the same type of environmental causes. This functional‐cognitive perspective reveals various differences and communalities among BT, CBT and ACT.     

The primal scene and symbol formation

This article discusses the meaning of the primal scene for symbol formation by exploring its way of processing in a child's play. The author questions the notion that a sadomasochistic way of processing is the only possible one. A model of an alternative mode of processing is being presented. It is suggested that both ways of processing intertwine in the “fabric of life” (D. Laub). Two clinical vignettes, one from an analytic child psychotherapy and the other from the analysis of a 30 year‐old female patient, illustrate how the primal scene is being played out in the form of a terzet. The author explores whether the sadomasochistic way of processing actually precedes the “primal scene as a terzet”. She discusses if it could even be regarded as a precondition for the formation of the latter or, alternatively, if the “combined parent‐figure” gives rise to ways of processing. The question is being left open. Finally, it is shown how both modes of experiencing the primal scene underlie the discoursive and presentative symbol formation, respectively.     

The Long Arm of Religion: Childhood Adversity,Religion, and Self‐perception Among Black Americans

Significant associations between childhood adversity and adult mental health have been documented in epidemiological and social science research. However, there is a dearth of research examining this relationship among black Americans, as well as into what cultural institutions and practices may help individuals in dealing with childhood adversity. This study suggests that religion may be an important resource for black Americans in the face of early‐life socioeconomic and health disadvantage. Using data from the National Survey of American Life, a nationally representative sample of both African Americans and black Caribbeans (n = 5,191), this study outlines a series of arguments linking childhood adversity, religiosity, and self‐perception among black Americans. The results suggest some support for religious involvement in moderating—or buffering—the harmful effects of childhood adversity on the self‐esteem and mastery among black Americans, specifically religious service attendance and religious coping. In addition, the results reveal that religion may also amplify the deleterious effects of childhood disadvantage on adult mental health. Study limitations are identified and several promising directions for future research are discussed.     

Malchish‐Kibalchish: cultural factors in a clinical case

In this paper, a Jungian understanding of cultural factors influencing individual analysis is illustrated with the case of a patient suffering from panic attacks. The analysis revealed that, in addition to the patient's personal background, the collectivistic attitudes of the Soviet culture, which had a moulding effect on the patient in his childhood and obstructed his individuation, should be taken into account. The concepts of the totalitarian object and the Russian cultural complex encompassing a grandiosity pole and an inferiority pole are used to explore the patient's condition, and the crucial role of creating mutual language with the patient is outlined.