Distress and Family Functioning in Oncogenetic Counselling for Hereditary and Familial Breast and/or Ovarian Cancers

We conducted a psychological assessment during oncogenetic counseling for hereditary breast/ovarian cancer. Anxiety and depression were assessed with the HAD scale, and family functioning and satisfaction with FACES III. HAD was administered at baseline (t ₁)_, at risk communication (t ₂), at genetic test result communication, or at first surveillance in not tested subjects (t ₃); FACES III was administered at baseline only. We analysed a total of 185 questionnaires administered to the 37 subjects studied. Although not pathological, distress was significantly higher at t ₂ and t ₃ (p = 0.027 and p = 0.039, respectively). Health and marital status were significantly associated with distress. In a disease-free condition, anxiety was higher (p = 0.027) at t _2, and for single status, depression increased from t ₁ to t ₂ (p = 0.026). Families were perceived to be well functioning, and subjects were satisfied with their families. The data collected in this analysis could help to improve the quality of oncogenetic counselling in clinical practice.     

Psychological counseling as an adjunct to stuttering treatment: Clients’ experiences and perceptions

PurposeStuttering can trigger anxiety and other psychological and emotional reactions, and limit participation in society. It is possible that psychological counseling could enhance stuttering treatment outcomes; however, little is known about how clients view such counseling. The purpose of this study was to gain an understanding of clients’ experiences with, and perceptions of, a psychological counseling service that was offered as an optional adjunct to speech therapy for stuttering.MethodNine individuals who stutter (13-38 years old) participated in semi-structured interviews. Six participants had taken part in psychological counseling; three participants did not do so. Interview data were analyzed using grounded theory as a guiding framework.ResultsFour thematic clusters emerged from participants’ accounts: insights into personal decision-making, why others may not participate in counseling, psychological counseling as a worthwhile part of therapy, and counseling as a necessary component in a stuttering treatment program.ConclusionIn addition to experiencing barriers and facilitators to help-seeking that are reported in related fields, participants accounts also revealed novel facilitators (i.e., a ‘why not’ mentality and the importance of having a pre-existing relationship with the clinician who offered the service) and barriers (i.e., viewing the service as a ‘limited resource,’ and, the overwhelming nature of intensive stuttering treatment programs). Findings suggest that clients value the option to access psychological counseling with trained mental health professionals to support the stuttering treatment provided by speech-language pathologists. Participants made recommendations for the integration of psychological counseling into stuttering treatment programs.     

L’influence longitudinale de la justice organisationnelle sur le bien-être psychologique au travail : quels types de justice sont déterminants ?

Regarding the relationship between perceived organizational justice and psychological well-being at work, few studies compare the influence of the four organizational justice facets, and even fewer do so longitudinally. The objective of this study is to evaluate the longitudinal relationships between these facets and psychological well-being at work. Social exchange theory suggests that distributive, interpersonal, and informational justices are better predictors of well-being than procedural justice. A sample of 192 Canadian workers from a diversity of occupations completed two self-reported questionnaires at a six-month interval. Results support the importance of rewards allocation (distributive justice) and information given on this allocation (informational justice) to promote workers’ well-being.     

Coparenting Conflict and Cooperation between Parents and Grandparents in Vietnamese Families: The Role of Grandparent Psychological Control and Parent–Grandparent Communication

Shared care between parents and grandparents is common in Asian cultures. This cocare practice provides many benefits to families but is also particularly complex, as both parents and grandparents must simultaneously fulfill their roles as cocaregivers as well as maintain their relationship with each other. This study aims to explore the determinants of coparenting relationships between parents and grandparents in Vietnam. Data were collected from 501 Vietnamese parents whose aging parents are active carers for their children. The results indicated that grandparent psychological control and parent–grandparent quality of communication explain the largest variance in both parent–grandparent coparenting conflict and cooperation. The results suggest that parenting interventions aimed at the Asian cultures, where grandparent care is common, may benefit from the inclusion of a content focus on promoting the coparenting relationship between parents and grandparents.     

Chicago Youths’ Exposure to Community Violence: Contextualizing Spatial Dynamics of Violence and the Relationship With Psychological Functioning

This study explores where and when community violence exposure (CVE) matters for psychological functioning in a sample of low-income, racial/ethnic minority youth (M) age = 16.17, 55% female, 69% Black, and 31% Non-Black/Latinx) living in Chicago. CVE was measured with violent crime data that were geocoded in terms of distance from youths’ home and school addresses, and then calculated in terms of three distinct spatial dynamics: chronicity, pervasiveness, and spatial proximity. These measures reflect indirect/objective CVE across different conceptualizations of time, space, and neighborhood context. We tested the relationship between each CVE measure and trait anxiety and behavioral and cognitive dysregulation while controlling for youth-reported, direct violent victimization (e.g., being attacked) to examine how indirect/objective CVE occurring within youths’ neighborhood contexts matters beyond direct/subjective violence exposure. Results revealed that long-term chronic, pervasive, and spatially proximal CVE was related to higher levels of behavioral dysfunction. In contrast, CVE within home- and school-based neighborhoods interacted to predict trait anxiety; youth living in low-crime neighborhoods and attending schools in high-crime neighborhoods had the highest rates of trait anxiety. Measuring CVE within both home and school neighborhoods at specific spatial measurements and time frames is critical to understand and prevent the consequences of CVE.