One ‘knows’: self-rated health and telomere length among ex-prisoners of war

Abstract

Objective: Ill-health and early mortality are amongst the most significant ramifications of trauma. Furthermore, trauma alters the subjective perception and experience of the body. The aim of this study is to examine the extent to which deteriorations in perceived health among traumatised individuals are associated with cellular health as manifested in telomere length.

Methods: Specifically, 88 former prisoners of war (ex-POWs) evaluated their health (self-rated health; SRH) at 18 (T1), 35 (T2) and 42 (T3) years after the war, and were assessed for telomere length at T3. Health behaviour, BMI, morbidity and PTSD were also examined at T3.

Results: The findings demonstrated that SRH was cross-sectionally correlated with telomere length. Furthermore, a significant sequential indirect effect was found, in which worse SRH in T1 was associated with shorter telomere length at T3, through worse SRH at T2 and at T3.

Conclusions: These findings demonstrate that long-term deteriorations in the subjective evaluations of health are implicated in actual cellular health among individuals exposed to trauma.     

Between an Example and a Precept,Which Has Greater Importance? A Comparison of the Channels of Socialization in Military Ethics

In this study, I examined what channels of socialization influence the moral behavior of cadets. We conducted a regression analysis of the effects of parents' attitudes to moral education, the standard and potential curriculum of schools, peer groups, and communication media on individual ethics and discipline using 399 sample participants. The participants were recruited through a questionnaire survey on cadets from academy of military, naval, and air force, and four-year based students from R.O.C. National Defense University. The analysis results showed that the cultivation of morality among cadets was directly influenced by the school's potential curriculum (i.e., intern cadres and officers in company) and their parents' attitudes to moral education during early childhood. The results also indicated that the influence of teaching by example was more significant than that of teaching by precept.     

The mercy of anxiety: A relational-psychoanalytic study of Dialogues des Carmélites

This article discusses the complex relationship between anxiety and religion in identity formation by analysing an intense, contemporary opera, the Dialogues des Carmélites by the French composer Francis Poulenc. The theoretical framework for our discussion was adopted from what is currently called relational psychoanalysis - and more specifically, from the theories of Erik H. Erikson, Ernest G. Schachtel and Donald W. Winnicott. We will try to demonstrate that existential anxiety forms part of the process of developing a (religious) identity, and need not necessarily be a sign of weakness or pathology. Nonetheless, feelings of anxiety may be paralysing in a cultural climate such as ours, which stresses the values of freedom and autonomy. A relational psychoanalytic reading of the opera leads to a re-evaluation of these values, showing that (religious) identity development is an intrinsically relational process. The attitude of receptivity (which is connected to the theological theme of grace) plays an important role in this respect. On completing our analysis, we concluded that relational psychoanalysis complements the existential view on identity and anxiety. We also advocate more attention for the theme of receptivity in the psychology of religion.