Pretend play and positive psychology: Natural companions

In this article we posit that (1) research on pretend play fits under the umbrella of the positive psychology movement, (2) pretend play involves a multitude of processes that are linked to adaptive functioning, and (3) understanding and implementing knowledge of pretend play processes in therapy or interventions may lead to more optimal functioning in children. We review five areas of positive psychology in relation to pretend play: (1) creativity, (2) coping, (3) emotion regulation, (4) empathy/emotional understanding, and (5) hope. Implications for interventions and future research questions are discussed.     

Relations Among Children's Coping Strategies and Anxiety: The Mediating Role of Coping Efficacy

The current study tests a model that depicts the relationships among coping strategies (active, distraction, avoidance, and support seeking) and anxiety symptoms. SEM is used to test if the relationship between these variables is mediated by coping efficacy. A large sample of Canadian children (N = 506) aged 8 to 11 years (boys = 249, girls = 245, unknown gender = 12) participated in the study. Results showed that coping efficacy is a partial mediator of the relations between active coping strategies and anxiety symptoms, however support was not found for it to be an effective mediator for other coping strategies. This study contributes to the understanding of childhood anxiety by highlighting the importance of the relationship between anxiety and the methods children use to cope with stress and how perceptions of their coping abilities influence this relationship.     

The effect of passive heat stress on distress andself-control in male smokers and non-smokers

In the current study, we tested the effects of core body temperature increases (e.g. heat stress) on affect, self-reported physical discomfort, and subsequent self-control in male smokers and nonsmokers using a novel passive heat stress paradigm, within a distress tolerance framework. Twenty-eight men (14 smokers), completed both heat stress and control sessions in randomized order. Results revealed that increases in core body temperature were associated with increased anxiety, irritability, and body discomfort as well as decreased happiness, with stronger effects for smokers. Smokers and nonsmokers both evidenced less self-control during the heat session and did not differ on this measure, nor on a measure of interoceptive sensitivity. The current study indicates that heat stress is a viable method for studying distress tolerance in men, and suggests the value in examining dynamic changes in self-control as a function of distress. Implications will be discussed for distress tolerance in general and smokers in specific.     

Countering Perfectionism in Research on Clinical Practice. III: Implications for Randomized Designs of the Presence of Uncontrolled Interactions and Spontaneous Changes

In a crossover study, we took pre-test, post-first-treatment, and post-second-treatment measures of self-expressiveness (assertiveness) and of acute emotional distress while we successively trained different groups of students in assertiveness and group therapy exercises. Our (unfulfilled) expectations were straightforward: We thought that assertiveness training would produce specific improvement in self-expression measures with little impact on overall distress and that group therapy would produce specific improvement in general distress with little impact on assertiveness. Both treatments improved assertiveness and decreased distress. The fact that our treatments had impure effects enhanced the likelihood of Type II statistical errors and compromised the effectiveness of our design. In addition, quite surprisingly, assertiveness training selectively improved the mental health of women students, and group therapy selectively improved the assertiveness of men students more than the alternative treatment did. This interaction between gender and randomly administered experimental treatment procedures raises serious, generally important questions about the logic of statistically controlled experimentation that relies on randomization to eliminate the effects of uncontrolled, but relevant, variables.     

The Relation Between Social Interdependence and Psychological Health on the 1980 U.S. Olympic Ice Hockey Team

The relation between cooperative, competitive, and individualistic attitudes and psychological adjustment and health was examined in dedicated athletes. The respondents were 57 collegiate and semiprofessional ice hockey players who were trying out for the 1980 Olympic ice hockey team. The results indicated that the more cooperatively oriented the athletes, the greater their psychological adjustment and health; competitiveness was unrelated to indexes of psychological adjustment and health; and positive attitudes toward individualistic participation in athletics was correlated with psychological pathology and maladjustment.     

Relationships between cognitive coping,self-esteem,anxiety and depression: A cluster-analysis approach

It is important for prevention efforts and for designing appropriate interventions to identify people at risk of depression while considering cognitive coping and individual characteristics. This study with 334 French adults examined the ways in which people may combine the use of several cognitive coping strategies and investigated whether depression, self-esteem, and state- and trait-anxiety would differ across distinctive cognitive coping profiles. A two-phased cluster analytic plan was employed to derive clusters of cognitive coping profiles. We identified three profiles that differed according to the levels of depression, self-esteem, and state- and trait-anxiety. Research should therefore not focus on a single cognitive coping strategy, but on all cognitive coping strategies that are used simultaneously to investigate the relation between cognitive coping and emotional problems. Cognitive coping profiles provided a deeper understanding of how different individuals cope with negative and unpleasant events, and they allowed us to identify targeted groups that are most likely to benefit from specific mental health promotion and prevention campaigns.     

Internalized Classism:

Internalized classism refers to the process by which a personÆs experience as a member of the poor or working classes becomes internalized and influences her self-concept and self-esteem as well as her relationships with others. Internalized classism, often not recognized by clients or by therapists, may be manifested in a variety of ways in psychotherapy. Active clinical attention to internalized classism can carry significant benefits for people with poor or working-class backgrounds.     

Influence of Efficacy and Resilience on Problem Solving in the United States,Taiwan, and China

This study explores factors that influence problem‐solving coping style across cultures. There was no significant difference in applying problem solving across U.S., Taiwanese, and Chinese samples. The effective predictors of problem solving in the U.S. and Chinese samples were self‐efficacy and trait resilience, respectively. In the Taiwanese sample, predictors were self‐efficacy and trait resilience. Trait resilience was found to mediate the effect of self‐efficacy on problem solving in the Taiwanese and Chinese samples. Practical implications are discussed. Este estudio explora factores que influyen en el estilo de afrontamiento a la resolución de problemas aplicado a distintas culturas. No se halló una diferencia significativa en la aplicación de resolución de problemas entre muestras estadounidenses, taiwaneses y chinas. Los predictores efectivos de la resolución de problemas en las muestras estadounidense y china fueron respectivamente la autoeficacia y los rasgos de resiliencia. En la muestra taiwanesa, los predictores fueron las autoeficacia y los rasgos de resiliencia. Se halló que los rasgos de resiliencia mediaron el efecto de la autoeficacia sobre la resolución de problemas en las muestras taiwanesa y china. Se discuten las implicaciones prácticas.     

Perceived Ability to Cope With Trauma Among U.S. Combat Veterans

The Perceived Ability to Cope With Trauma (PACT) scale measures perceived forward-focused and trauma-focused coping. This measure may also have significant utility measuring positive adaption to life-threatening trauma, such as combat. Our objective was to examine perceived ability to cope with trauma, as measured by the PACT, and the relationships between this perceived ability and clinically pertinent information (anxiety, depression, posttraumatic stress disorder [PTSD]) among U.S. military veterans. Data were provided from 71 combat veterans, consisting of 47 veterans with PTSD and 24 veterans without PTSD who had subthreshold symptoms of the disorder. All veterans completed standardized clinical interviews as well as a battery of well-validated self-report symptom measures. We found that veterans with PTSD had significantly lower PACT scores than veterans without PTSD; those without PTSD self-reported more ability to engage in forward-focused and trauma-focused coping than those with PTSD. Importantly, we also showed relationships between the PACT scores and indices of psychological difficulties as both Forward Focus and Trauma Focus coping scores negatively correlated with PTSD, depression, anxiety, and alexithymia. Finally, the Forward Focus PACT scale improved prediction of PTSD severity over combat exposure alone. The PACT, especially the Forward Focus scale, appears to be a useful measure of perceived positive coping ability with trauma in combat-exposed veterans who report symptoms of traumatic stress, extending the utility of the measure from normative to clinical populations. The importance of adopting forward-focused coping is discussed.