Playing for time: A psychotherapist's experience of counselling young people

This article describes the experience of a psychotherapist working for several years with adolescents and young adults at a centre offering weekly psychoanalytic psychotherapy. It describes some of the pressures placed on the therapist by young people engaging in considerable degrees of acting out and the difficulties in holding on to a sense of valuable work in the face of different attacks.     

Personality subtypes of young drivers. Relationship to risk-taking preferences, accident involvement, and response to a traffic safety campaign

The present study aimed at identifying subtypes of young drivers (N=2524) and evaluate how these responded to a traffic safety campaign. On basis of a cluster analysis of personality measures, six subtypes of young drivers were identified. The subtypes were found to differ on self-reported risky driving behaviour, attitudes towards traffic safety, risk perception, estimation of own driving skills, and accident involvement. Two of the subtypes were identified as high-risk groups in traffic. The first high-risk group consisted of mostly men, characterised by low levels of altruism and anxiety, and high levels of sensation-seeking, irresponsibility, and driving related aggression. The second high-risk group reported high sensation seeking, aggression, anxiety, and driving anger. The subtypes were also found to differ on how they evaluated and responded to the traffic safety campaign. The results indicated that the campaign seemed to appeal most to the low-risk subtypes. Gender differences within each subtype were also found on the different traffic related measures, as well as on response to the campaign. It is concluded that young drivers should not be treated as a homogenous group pertaining to road safety. Practical suggestions on how to promote safe driving among these subtypes are also discussed.     

Élaboration et validation du Test d’Orientation Temporelle (TOT)

Temporal orientation is an essential data of the human psyche that modulates how we relied to the times of life. This survey describes the creation of a psychometric measure of temporal orientation in young French adults. Starting with the observation that temporal orientation is difficult for youngsters, a team of psychologists developed a preliminary version of the instrument. The psychometric validity of the test has been analyzed. The data have been collected on 507 high school students and academic students in the region of Nantes. An exploratory factorial analysis shows four dimensions: “short-term”, “immediately”, “anticipation” and “long-term”. The internal consistency is generally satisfactory and the measure of convergence confirms the external validity. The weak interrelationships between dimensions indicate distinct psychological constructs. A validated version composed of 30 items of the Temporal Orientation Test (TOT) is proposed.     

Career and work attitudes of blue-collar workers,and the impact of a natural disaster chance event on the relationships between intention to quit and actual quit behaviour

Despite being part of a highly visible and important occupational group, blue-collar workers have, to date, been under-represented in careers research. We explore the relevance and applicability of new career concepts to blue-collar employees, specifically, bus drivers. Based on a survey of 112 bus drivers, we test a model specifying the relationship between career attitude, perceived organizational support, psychological contract, and job satisfaction, as well as intention to quit. Employing a two-phase data collection process, we also test relationships between intentions and actual quit behaviour. Our results support the validity of career theories for blue-collar workers but with notable exceptions, such as lack of relationships between protean career and intention to quit. Contrary to intention-behaviour theory we find that actual quit behaviour was not related to intention to quit, which we attribute to a significant external chance event, a devastating earthquake, which took place during the study period. In addition, we identify relationships that appear to be unique to blue-collar workers.     

Situation Awareness: Its proficiency amongst older and younger drivers,and its usefulness for perceiving hazards

The two studies reported here sought to measure and compare the Situation Awareness (SA) of younger and older driver groups whilst driving (Study 1), and watching video footage of actual car journeys (Study 2). In both studies this was achieved by recording a participant’s commentary on what s/he felt was of relevance to the driving task. The narratives produced were analysed by computer software that could abstract main concepts and calculate scores indicative of Situation Awareness. In Study 2, these scores were related to others for hazard perception proficiency (also derived from participant commentaries). It was found that the older drivers matched and often exceeded the younger drivers when their SA scores were compared individually, but not when assessed as a group. However, the younger drivers out-performed their older counterparts in hazard perception ability, and this was shown to be related to their Situation Awareness score. When the results from participants who undertook both studies were compared, it was found that Situation Awareness performance was significantly higher when commenting on video footage (Study 2) than whilst actually driving (Study 1).     

Exploration of older drivers’ speeding behaviour

Speeding increases crash risk and resulting injury severity. Older drivers are at increased risk of injury due to frailty, at increased risk of crashing due to slower reaction times, and have less agility judging time and distance compared to younger drivers. However, there is little objective evidence about older drivers’ speeding behaviour. Cross-sectional data from older drivers living in the suburban outskirts of Sydney, Australia, were used to determine the proportion of drivers involved in speed events, and examine factors that may influence this behaviour. Driving speed was estimated in approximately one-second intervals using Global Positioning System (GPS) location. Speed events were defined as driving 1 km/h or more, with 3% tolerance, above a single speed limit, averaged over 30-s of travel. Driving data from one-week were recorded for 344 participants aged 75–94 years (median 80). The majority of participants (78%) were involved in a speed event. Speed events per participant ranged from zero to 186 (median 8). Younger participants, those living in rural areas, and those driving on familiar roads closer to home were more likely to be involved in speed events adjusted for distance driven. In addition, rural residents were more likely to be involved in speed events when they had not been a driver involved in a crash during the previous year compared to those involved in a crash. Measures of visual and cognitive function did not predict involvement with speed events per distance (p > 0.2). These findings are important for policy-makers and researchers addressing older drivers’ speeding to reduce the incidence of crashes and resulting fatalities and injuries. As no evidence was found for speeding being associated with functional decline, countermeasures to address speeding for other drivers seem likely to be relevant to older drivers.     

Characteristics of college students who text while driving: Do their perceptions of a significant other influence their decisions?

IntroductionTexting while driving is a significant risk factor for automobile collisions. The use of cell phones is prevalent among young people and commonly reported when they drive.MethodA web-based survey of 861 college student drivers determined how texting was associated with other forms of risky driving, perceptions of risk, and their driving and texting interactions with a significant other.ResultsTexting drivers were more likely to engage in other risky driving behaviors, perceived less risk in texting and driving, felt more immune to traffic risks, and had friends who text and drive. Logistic regression analyses showed that even after adjusting for risky driving behaviors and perceived risk, texting drivers were significantly more likely to do so if they saw their significant other text and drive.ConclusionsTraffic safety campaigns need to address important social influences on this behavior.     

Psychological career resources identity and life orientation among young emerging adults in a Nigerian setting

This study explored whether young emerging adults’ psychological career resources identity predicted their orientation to life. The participants were a random sample of 400 predominantly full-time undergraduate students from four tertiary institutions in Nigeria (47% = female; age range 18 to 30 years). They completed psychological career resources and life orientation measures. The data were analysed by performing multiple regression analysis to explore whether psychological career resources accounted for the variance in life orientation. Overall, the results showed that those participants with well-differentiated career preferences and strong career drivers (sense of career calling, career goals and career intentionality) were likely to have a stronger sense of coherence. Developing a strong psychological career resources identity may potentially assist the young adult in developing a positive orientation to their life-career in developing country employment settings.     

Profiles of Resilience and Psychosocial Outcomes among Young Black Gay and Bisexual Men

Young Black gay/bisexual men (YBGBM) are affected by contextual stressors—namely syndemic conditions and minority stress—that threaten their health and well‐being. Resilience is a process through which YBGBM achieve positive psychosocial outcomes in the face of adverse conditions. Self‐efficacy, hardiness and adaptive coping, and social support may be important resilience factors for YBGBM. This study explores different profiles of these resilience factors in 228 YBGBM in New York City and compares profiles on psychological distress, mental health, and other psychosocial factors. Four profiles of resilience were identified: (a) Low self‐efficacy and hardiness/adaptive coping (23.5%); (b) Low peer and parental support (21.2%); (c) High peer support, low father support (34.5%); and (d) High father and mother support, self‐efficacy, and hardiness/adaptive coping (20.8%). YBGBM in profile 1 scored markedly higher on distress (d = .74) and lower on mental health functioning (d = .93) compared to men in the other profiles. Results suggest that self‐efficacy and hardiness/adaptive coping may play a more important role in protecting YBGBM from risks compared to social support and should be targeted in interventions. The findings show that resilience is a multidimensional construct and support the notion that there are different patterns of resilience among YBGBM.     

Drugs,Sex, and Condoms: Identification and Interpretation of Race‐Specific Cultural Messages Influencing Black Gay and Bisexual Young Men Living with HIV

Black gay and bisexual young men carry a disproportionate burden of HIV in the United States. This study explored Black gay and bisexual young men living with HIV's identification and interpretation of race‐specific cultural messages regarding substance use, sexual activity, and condom use. A total of 36 Black gay and bisexual young men living with HIV (ages 16–24, mean = 20.6 years) from four geographically diverse regions of the United States participated in qualitative in‐depth interviews. Results from this study elucidate the ways in which these young men interpret various forms of race‐specific cultural messages and experiences regarding substance use, sexual activity, and condom use. Participants discussed cultural messages and experiences promoting and discouraging condoms and substance use. Regarding sexual activity, only messages and experiences promoting sex were reported. Across all three categories, messages and experiences promoting risk were predominant. Data further revealed that socially transmitted cultural messages received by young men emanated from multiple sources, such as family, peers, sexual partners, community/neighborhood, and the broader society. Race‐specific cultural messages and experiences should be addressed in interventions for this population, and programs should assist young men in developing a critical consciousness regarding these messages and experiences in order to promote health and well‐being.