Striving Towards Empowerment and Medication Adherence (STEP-AD): A Tailored Cognitive Behavioral Treatment Approach for Black Women Living With HIV

In the U.S. Black women with HIV face numerous psychosocial challenges, particularly trauma, racism, HIV-related discrimination, and gender role expectations, that are associated with negative HIV health outcomes and low medical treatment adherence. Yet many of these factors are unaddressed in traditional cognitive behavioral approaches. This study presents a case series of a tailored cognitive behavioral treatment approach for Black women living with HIV. Striving Towards EmPowerment and Medication Adherence (STEP-AD) is a 10-session treatment aimed at improving medication adherence for Black women with HIV by combining established cognitive behavioral strategies for trauma symptom reduction, strategies for coping with race- and HIV-related discrimination, gender empowerment, problem-solving techniques for medication adherence, and resilient coping. A case series study of five Black women with HIV was conducted to evaluate the preliminary acceptability and feasibility of the treatment and illustrate the approach. Findings support the potential promise of this treatment in helping to improve HIV medication adherence and decrease trauma symptoms. Areas for refinement in the treatment as well as structural barriers (e.g., housing) in the lives of the women that impacted their ability to fully benefit from the treatment are also noted.     

Exploring the links between gender,dwelling, and career orientations of African emerging adults

The study explored the socio-ecological (i.e. gender and geographical location) influences on the career orientations of emerging adults. The participants comprised a convenience sample of 159 black African South African university students (57% rural, 43% urban; 63% females, 37% males; mean age = 19.0, SD = 2.24). The emerging adults completed a career orientations inventory and also self-reported their demographics. We applied hierarchical regression analysis to predict the emerging adults’ career orientations from their gender and place of dwelling (geographical location) controlling for age. Results indicate that gender predicts interest in entrepreneurial creativity orientations for males rather than for females, and interest in service-oriented occupations for females compared to males. Geographical location predicted interest in entrepreneurial, general management, and service type of occupations for those from the rural rather than urban areas. Urban location predicted interest in technical and functional careers anchors. Career orientations among South African emerging adults appeared to be gendered and tied to place of geographical origin, suggesting social context socialisation influences.     

适合汉语全拼输入的提示性软键盘的研发与验证

本研究设计了两种基于汉语全拼输入的提示性软键盘:加粗加黑和颜色提示,并通过实证性研究验证了这两种提示性软键盘对汉字输入绩效的影响。结果表明,两种提示性软键盘均优于非提示性软键盘,在打字速度、使用方便程度、喜爱程度和总体评价上均更好,加粗加黑提示性软键盘还显著提升了输入正确率。该结果为基于汉字输入的提示性软键盘的研发和使用提供了科学依据和数据支持,也将为相关键盘的投入市场做出贡献。     

‘Black holes’: escaping the void

The ‘black hole’ is a metaphor for a reality in the psyche of many individuals who have experienced complex trauma in infancy and early childhood. The ‘black hole’ has been created by an absence of the object, the (m)other, so there is no internalized object, no (m)other in the psyche. Rather, there is a ‘black hole’ where the object should be, but the infant is drawn to it, trapped by it because of an intrinsic, instinctive need for a ‘real object’, an internalized (m)other. Without this, the infant cannot develop. It is only the presence of a real object that can generate the essential gravity necessary to draw the core of the self that is still in an undeveloped state from deep within the abyss. It is the moving towards a real object, a (m)other, that relativizes the absolute power of the black hole and begins a reformation of its essence within the psyche.     

The Second Vatican Council 50th anniversary: visions and re-visions

On 21 November 2014, the 50th anniversary of the solemn promulgation of Lumen Gentium and Unitatis Redintegratio was celebrated. Between ‘aggiornamento’ and ‘ressourcement’ the Catholic Church had been striving to understand itself and its Tradition more precisely, in order to be newly relevant, lastingly true and authoritative in the future ? an indispensible task, if the gospel were to be proclaimed to the contemporary world, but not an easy one. It is little wonder that this completion of the Council's endeavours was preceded by its so-called ‘black week’. Questions remain as to the outcome of it all, and the articles assembled in this issue assess the reception of these two conciliar texts after 50 years. Where do the achievements lie? Where are the shortcomings? Where do questions need to be asked today that reach beyond the horizon of Vatican II?     

Who is David and who is Goliath? The Eddie Long scandal and the black mega-church

The recent scandal involving Bishop Eddie Long of New Birth Missionary Baptist Church has led millions of individuals to evaluate the guilt or innocence of Bishop Long as well the significance of the black mega-church. This study examined the possible effects of a well-publicised scandal involving a black mega-church pastor on the mental health of African Americans within and outside of the church. To address this paucity in the research, over 3000 comments made by anonymous contributors on CNN's public website were analysed using a grounded theory methodology. The following five themes were identified: (1) Keep an Open Mind: “Most People Thrive on Negativity;” (2) Hypocrisy as Part of Religion: “They aren’t real Christians;” (3) Greed as Part of Religion: “Just in it for the money;” (4) Religion and/or Christianity as Problematic: “Christians scare the Jesus out of me;” and (5) Religious Leaders Actions are separate from Individuals’ Personal Faith and Their Relationship with God: “You don’t put your faith in a man.” Narratives will be offered to support and illustrate each of these themes, and the implications for the mental health of African Americans will be discussed.     

Occupational Stress in Workers and Managers in Steelworks in China

Occupational stressors and strains of 121 Chinese steelwork employees and 122 managers were measured using the Chinese version of the Occupational Stress Indicator (OSI). It was found that factors intrinsic to the job, Type A behavior, logic, and organizational structure and climate were the main predictors of mental ill-health and physical ill-health in managers. Organizational structure and climate and relationships with other people were important predictors for workers. Management processes and organizational forces were the strongest predicting factors of job satisfaction in both samples. On certain OSI scales and subscales, managers scored statistically higher than workers. It is proposed that these results reflect the enormous economic and social changes currently taking place in China, together with certain features inherent in Chinese organizational and managerial processes.     

Contrast and contradiction: Being a black adolescent in contemporary South Africa

This study aimed to gain in-depth understanding of the lived identity of black African adolescents in a contemporary South African setting. A purposive sample of 59 adolescents (females = 47%; Sesotho = 46%, Setswana = 36%, Other = 18%) from the Motheo district of the Free State, South Africa, participated in focus group discussions and in-depth individual interviews. Thematic analysis suggested that black South African adolescents experience transitional identities characterised by contrasts and contradictions. Altruism, autonomy, religiosity and cultural experiences were important to their lived identities. The interplay between African rituals, Christian principles, Western values and the globalisation of cultures provided fertile ground for developing a nuanced and multi-dimensional identity as an adolescent living in contemporary South Africa.     

Saving Face: Identifying Voter Responses to Black Candidates and Female Candidates

Much of what we know about the responses of voters to Black candidates and female candidates comes from experimental research. Yet the accuracy of experimental data can be threatened by the possibility that social desirability pressures contaminate self‐reporting. We address this threat in a project that considers psychological approaches to reducing social desirability pressures. Offering participants the opportunity to explain their decisions about sensitive subjects, such as voting for a Black or female candidate, can lessen social desirability pressures. We analyze this approach across three commonly used samples: undergraduate, adult convenience, and adult national. Our results suggest that existing experimental research overestimates voter support for Black and female candidates, but these issues can be mitigated with the simple innovation presented here.     

Perception of managers’ influence depending on status,power, and company performance

This research examines others’ perception of the influence of managers working in successful or unsuccessful companies who possess or lack status (to be respected by others) and power (control of valued resources). Study 1 shows that high‐status managers were judged as more influential in the firm than their low‐status peers, regardless of the company's situation. Study 2 finds that in a context of economic uncertainty, a manager with high status and power is perceived to be more capable of affecting the firm. The effect of power seems to be secondary since when a manager has low status, having high power does not significantly benefit the influence attributed to him or her. Furthermore, dominance (assertive behavior), not warmth, mediated the relationship between status and the attributed influence. Overall, these findings confirm that status is a very potent source of social influence, status and power are distinct constructs with different effects, and dominance rather than warmth is a key personal dimension linked to successful leadership.