Mental health attitudes among Middle Eastern/North African individuals in the United States

ABSTRACT

Middle Eastern/North African (MENA) individuals may have heightened risk for developing mental health problems due to unique cultural stressors. However, traditional cultural and religious practices and beliefs socialised within the family environment may reduce the likelihood of seeking mental health services. This qualitative study aimed to better understand the intersection of cultural, religious, and mental health attitudes among MENA individuals. Semi-structured telephone interviews were conducted with MENA adults who had received therapy services (N?=?13) and were analysed for emergent themes. Respondents reported lack of understanding of mental illness within their communities, and prominent levels of perceived and self-stigma. Families and religious practices/beliefs played an important role in responding to mental illness. Results suggest that incorporating psychoeducation and community awareness campaigns alongside religious services may help to reduce barriers to receiving mental health treatment.     

The octopus and the child—Another perspective on American culture: A commentary on Stearns

Stearns argues that, in the twentieth century, American parents increasingly treated their children as frail and vulnerable. But the parental protectiveness that he describes is only one part of the story. Some American parents did hover over their children; others ignored, neglected, or abused them. Some did shore up their suspect self-esteem; others trusted in their strength and sturdiness and even demanded a new toughness and competitiveness. American culture is more complicated and contested than Stearns allows.     

中学生职业兴趣的结构及其特点

参考国内外有关资料,设计适合我国中学生的职业兴趣测验。对309名在校中学生测查结果的因素分析表明,共存在六个因素,可以解释为现实型（R)、研究型 (I)、艺术型 (A)、社会型 (S)、经营型 (E)和常规型(C),这与霍兰德的六种职业类型一致。但六种兴趣之间的关系与霍兰德的职业六边形不完全一致。进一步的分析表明,初三以上的中学生的职业兴趣已出现明显分化。年级和性别因素对职业兴趣均有显著影响,年级与性别的交互作用不显著。     

中学生人格五因素问卷的编制

本研究在综述国内外有关研究文献的基础上,对中学生进行深入访谈,编制了中学生人格五因素问卷,并用此问卷施测于北京某普通中学148名男生和156名女生。研究结果表明:(1)自编中学生人格问卷可以提取出五个因子,分别命名为开放性、外向性、宜人性、谨慎性和情绪性。(2)问卷有较好的信度和效度。问卷的克伦巴赫α系数,维度与总分的相关以及分半信度都达到心理测量学要求的水平。该问卷与NEO人格问卷以及与父母评价量表的相关都达到显著水平。     

Issues in the treatment of depressed children

Basic research into the cognitive, behavioral, familial, and physiological disturbances associated with depressive disorders during childhood is reviewed. Implications for the development of a treatment program are discussed and a comprehensive treatment model is proposed. The proposed model includes intervention strategies for the child, parents, family, and school. The child component consists of intervention strategies for the affective, cognitive, behavioral, and physiological disturbances that are evident from the existing research. The parent training component is designed to address disturbances in parenting due to cognitive disturbances and skills deficits. The family therapy component emphasizes changing interaction patterns that communicate schema-consistent maladaptive interactions. A school consultation component is proposed in which school personnel support the skills training through prompting use of the skills and reinforcement of the use of the coping skills.     

Child Characteristics,Parent Education and Depressive Symptoms,and Marital Conflict Predicting Trajectories of Parenting Behavior from Childhood Through Early Adolescence in Taiwan

The study examined how child and parent characteristics, and contextual sources of stress, such as marital conflict predict initial status and trajectories of parent involvement, support, and harsh control, over a 4‐year period in families in Taiwan (n = 4,754). Based on Belsky's (1984) ecological model of parenting, three domains predicting parenting were tested, child characteristics (age cohort and gender), father and mother characteristics (education and depressive symptoms), and contextual sources of stress (marital conflict). The study followed two cohorts of children; the younger cohort was followed from first to fourth grade and the older cohort from fourth to seventh grade. Initially, fourth graders reported more parental involvement, support, and harsh control than first graders. However, involvement, support, and harsh control decreased across the 4 years for the older cohort as they transitioned to early adolescence. In the first year, girls reported more parental involvement and support and less harsh control than boys. Across the 4 years, involvement and support increased, and harsh control decreased for boys; whereas involvement stayed the same, support slightly decreased, and harsh control slightly increased for girls. Children whose parents were more educated reported more parent involvement, support, and harsh control in the first year. Children whose fathers were chronically depressed and whose parents were experiencing marital conflict reported decreasing parent involvement and support over the years.     

Childhood antecedents of Agreeableness: A longitudinal study from preschool to late adolescence

Although the consensus view is that Agreeableness originates from childhood difficultness and regulatory deficits, few studies have investigated such assumptions longitudinally. In this study, we examined this issue by assessing enduring and mediating effects of self-regulation as well as the impact of parenting behaviors on the development of Agreeableness from preschool to late adolescence. Longitudinal data from 965 Norwegian families following children from 1.5 years to 16.5 years were used. Path analyses revealed childhood difficultness at age 4 to be related to Agreeableness at age 16.5; this effect was mediated through emotion regulation in late childhood. However, such mediation effects were primarily found when parents used punitive practices towards their children. Our findings point to personality coherence throughout development.     

中学生学业负担态度量表的编制

中小学生学业负担过重是长期以来中国基础教育中特有的问题。本文就“中学生学业负担态度量表”的编制过程及其量表评价结果做一报告。该量表分为认知、情绪和行为三个分量表,测验项目具有适当的通俗度和较高的区分度。通过对三个分量表的因素分析获得了它们各自的主要构成因素。分量表及其各因素具有较高的同质性信度,它们对学生的学业成就具有较高的鉴别力。