Traumatic dissociation of aspects of the feminine: an Asian cultural perspective

The paper explores the impact of the dissociated feminine principle resulting from the trauma of cultural displacement in a young Chinese woman keen to embrace a modern Western identity. A case study illustrates the outcome of the client both consciously and unconsciously rejecting the traditional stereotypical Chinese feminine identity and instead embracing the distorted, yet seductive, image of the Western (Caucasian) woman as independent, intellectual and confident. Her defensive denial of the traditional feminine was dealt with by intellectualising both personal and professional relationships. Then, unconsciously, the dissociated traditional feminine was projected into a separate aspect of her identity that held the traumatised feelings. The intellectualisation was eventually understood as being a necessary defence to cope with the cultural as well as geographical dislocation trauma. And with this realisation a space was created to accept and integrate the denied feminine–in a literal as well as a symbolic manner.     

Couple Therapy with Veterans: Early Improvements and Predictors of Early Dropout

Family services within Veterans Affairs Medical Centers fulfill an important role in addressing relationship distress among Veterans, which is highly prevalent and comorbid with psychopathology. However, even for evidence‐based couple therapies, effectiveness is weaker compared to controlled studies, maybe because many Veteran couples drop out early and do not reach the “active” treatment stage after the 3–4 session assessment. In order to improve outcomes, it is critical to identify couples at high risk for early dropout, and understand whether couples may benefit from the assessment as an intervention. The current study examined (a) demographics, treatment delivery mode, relationship satisfaction, and psychological symptoms as predictors of dropout during and immediately following the assessment phase, and (b) changes in relationship satisfaction during assessment. 174 couples completed questionnaires during routine intake procedures. The main analyses focused on 140 male Veterans and their female civilian partners; 36.43% dropped out during the assessment phase and 24.74% of the remaining couples immediately following the first treatment session. More severe depressive symptoms in non‐Veteran partners were associated with dropout during assessment. Relationship satisfaction improved significantly during the assessment phase for couples who did not drop out, with larger gains for non‐Veteran partners. No demographics or treatment delivery mode were associated with dropout. Although more research is needed on engaging couples at risk for early dropout and maximizing early benefits, the findings suggest that clinicians should attend to the civilian partner's and Veteran's depressive symptoms at intake and consider the assessment part of active treatment.     

Prospective Pilot Study of the Mastering Each New Direction Psychosocial Family Systems Program for Pediatric Chronic Illness

Psychosocial interventions for pediatric chronic illness (CI) have been shown to support health management. Interventions that include a family systems approach offer potentially stronger and more sustainable improvements. This study explores the biopsychosocial benefits of a novel family systems psychosocial intervention (MEND: Mastering Each New Direction). Forty‐five families participated in a 21‐session intensive outpatient family systems‐based program for pediatric CI. Within this single arm design, families were measured on five domains of Health‐Related Quality of Life (HRQL) self‐report measures; Stress, Cognitive Functioning, Mental Health, Child HRQL, Family Functioning. Both survey and biological measures (stress: catecholamine) were used in the study. Results from multivariate general linear models showed positive pre‐, post‐, and 3‐month posteffects in all five domains. The program effects ranged from small to moderate (η² = .07–.64). The largest program effects were seen in the domains of cognitive functioning (η² = .64) and stress (η² = .27). Also, between disease groups, differences are noted and future implications for research and clinical practice are discussed. Conclusions suggest that the MEND program may be useful in helping families manage pediatric chronic illnesses. Study results also add to the growing body of literature suggesting that psychosocial interventions for pediatric chronic illness benefit from a family systems level of intervention.     

Studying Stepfamilies: Four Eras of Family Scholarship

Historically, there have always been stepfamilies, but until the early 1970s, they remained largely unnoticed by social scientists. Research interest in stepfamilies followed shortly after divorce became the primary precursor to stepfamily formation. Because stepfamilies are structurally diverse and much more complex than nuclear families, they have created considerable challenges for both researchers and clinicians. This article examines four eras of stepfamily scholarship, tracing the development of research questions, study designs and methods, and conceptual frameworks from the mid‐1970s to the present and drawing implications for the current state of the field.     

Specificity of the Association between Marital Discord and Longitudinal Changes in Symptoms of Depression and Generalized Anxiety Disorder in the Irish Longitudinal Study on Ageing

This longitudinal study was conducted to evaluate actor and partner effects of marital discord on changes in symptoms of depression and generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) in a large population sample of Irish adults (N = 1,445 couples), adjusting for the potential confounds of quality of other social relationships and other psychopathology symptoms. The Actor–Partner Interdependence Model was used to examine actor and partner effects of marital discord on changes in symptoms of depression and GAD at a 2‐year follow‐up. Additional models examined these associations adjusting for family and friend discord and symptoms of the other type of psychopathology (depressive or GAD symptoms). Actor effects of marital discord on depressive and anxiety symptoms were greater for men than for women. There were significant, positive actor effects of marital discord on depressive symptoms for husbands and wives, which remained significant when adjusting for family and friend discord and GAD symptoms. There were significant, positive actor effects of marital discord on GAD symptoms for husbands, which remained significant when adjusting for family and friend discord and depressive symptoms. Results demonstrate that longitudinal associations between marital discord and depressive symptoms (for wives and husbands) and GAD symptoms (for husbands) are incremental to other rival explanations (family and friend discord and the other set of symptoms). Findings provide evidence for a potential causal association leading from marital discord to symptoms of depression and GAD.     

Modal Logic for Other-World Agnostics: Neutrality and Halldén Incompleteness

The logic of ‘elsewhere,’ i.e., of a sentence operator interpretable as attaching to a formula to yield a formula true at a point in a Kripke model just in case the first formula is true at all other points in the model, has been applied in settings in which the points in question represent spatial positions (explaining the use of the word ‘elsewhere’), as well as in the case in which they represent moments of time. This logic is applied here to the alethic modal case, in which the points are thought of as possible worlds, with the suggestion that its deployment clarifies aspects of a position explored by John Divers un-der the name ‘modal agnosticism.’ In particular, it makes available a logic whose Halldén incompleteness explicitly registers the agnostic element of the position – its neutrality as between modal realism and modal anti-realism.     

La rationalité de l'incohérence en conversation schizophrène (Analyse pragmatique conversationnelle et sémantique formelle)

We base on well known researches in pragmatics, linguistics and psychology of communication who define the schizophrenics troubles of thought according to their intrication with some properties of language, discourse and conversation. But we observe that those researches fail to represent the cognitive rationality of incoherence. We prepare a new method of analysis which takes the dynamical properties of verbal interaction sequences into account that constitute the natural context of the trouble's expression. This method connects a discourse representation theory (DRT) to aspects of pragmatics and conversational analysis. In the way we make such a model suitable to discontinuity in verbal interaction, we show it is possible 1) to describe the specific processes of thought of the schizophrenic speaker and “normal” and 2) to decipher the dialogical mechanism, probably in part archaic, which maintains the exchange despite disturbances.     

TIME AND ETERNITY: HYMNIC,BIBLICAL, SCIENTIFIC,AND THEOLOGICAL VIEWS

The book Time and Eternity, the English version of Zeit und Ewigkeit, by Antje Jackelén, contains scientific and theological treatments of these two topics, starting with the usage of such ideas in German, Swedish, and English hymns. This essay describes her work and explains how the scientific ideas provide a coherent framework for understanding the place of time.     

Physical and Mental Health and Functioning Among Traumatic Brain Injury Close Relatives: The Role of Posttraumatic Stress Symptoms

Severe Traumatic brain injury (sTBI) often instigates widespread long-lasting disability and is accompanied by extensive rehabilitation. Unsurprisingly, sTBI also holds malignant consequences for patients’ close relatives. The burden caused by the injury and its severity explains some of the ramifications for the relatives. Additionally, some findings demonstrate that patients with sTBI and their relatives develop posttraumatic stress (PTS) symptoms. However, although the link between PTS symptoms and physical and mental health is well-documented in literature, the effect of PTS symptoms on relatives of patients with sTBI has barely been examined. This study examines the influence of PTS symptoms of patients with sTBI and their relatives on the physical and mental health and functioning of the relatives. Patients who sustained a severe sTBI (Abbreviated Injury Scale of the head region > 3) and close relatives were included in a multi-center, prospective cohort study (TRAST-MI). One-hundred patients and their relatives were assessed at 2, 6, and 12 months post injury. Outcome variables included health-related quality of life (SF-12) as well as emotional, cognitive, interpersonal, and total functioning (PCRS). Relatives’ physical health was predicted by relatives’ PTS symptoms (Slope=−1.76; p = .043), and mental health was predicted by both patients’ (Slope=−2.77; p = .034) and relatives’ (Slope=−6.59; p < .001) PTS symptoms. Functioning level was only predicted by patients’ PTS symptoms (Slope=−.25; p_<.001). The findings emphasize that TBI should be considered a comprehensive traumatic experience reaching further than mere physical damage to the brain and its direct consequences, affecting the injured individual and close relatives.     

Promoting Recovery Identities Among Mothers with Histories of Addiction: Strategies of Family Engagement

Changes in identity are critical to managing transitions to recovery from substance and alcohol addictions. Identity change is particularly important for mothers, whose recovery processes are often in the context of critical but complex family relationships and societal expectations. But research and practice often underestimate the relational dimensions that promote or inhibit changes in one's identity during recovery. Here we analyze data from a study that involved interviews with 30 formerly incarcerated women participating in a community-based substance use treatment program in the Midwest. Drawing from Constructivist Grounded Theory Methods, our analysis identified three factors shaping levels of engagement with family members: (1) the relational consequences of a shared past; (2) ascribing permanence to the old identity of “addict” versus the ability to see women's capacity to change; and (3) the current provision of caregiving support to participants’ children. Our analysis supports and extends existing research by highlighting how family can both promote and inhibit a recovery identity process. We discuss potential implications for theorizing “recovery” and “identity” as relational and identify key elements to support practices more attuned to the hidden complexity of family support.