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Fifty-three fourth- and fifth grade children were tested on postdivorce adjustment immediately before and six months after participation in an eight-week preventive intervention program. At follow-up, most showed positive change, with those at special risk for adjustment problems showing substantial gains. Results did not vary with sociodemographic or divorce circumstances.
Self-reported depressive affect was examined in high school students in relation to stress and the quality of relationships with family and friends. Higher levels of depressive affect were connected with stress around sexuality and achievement, lower levels of family cohesion, and more problematic peer relationships. The effects of high stress were buffered for boys by positive peer relationships, and for girls by cohesive family relationships.
Among adults who experienced a childhood parental death, measures of depression were influenced by interactions with the surviving parent and by the nature of the family environment after the death. Individuals describing their surviving parent as empathic and warm, and as promoting autonomy, were less likely to report depressive experiences than were others. Less opportunity for participating in the mourning process was also associated with greater risk for depression.
The predictability of adolescent adjustment, based on teacher reports, in divorced and married families was examined in relationship to four variables: paternal mood, spouse-ex-spouse relationship, father-adolescent relationship, and parental visitation. Analyses indicated that the father-adolescent relationship was predictive of adolescent functioning in divorced families, and the spousal relationship and paternal mood were similarly predictive in married families.
Symptoms associated with histories of childhood sexual abuse and parental alcoholism were investigated in a sample of 364 university women. A significant association was found in occurrence between the two stressors, and a substantially higher level of symptoms was revealed in women who had experienced both during childhood.
Adult attachment status, concurrent and early relationships with parents, and depressive symptoms were assessed in 53 adults. Individuals with consistent reports of relationships--positive or negative--were most coherent in their narratives. Depressive symptoms were associated with negativity in both recalled and current relationships with parents, but were not correlated with coherence of narratives. Clinical implications of the findings are discussed.
Relationships among psychological adjustment, levels of perceived and actual social support, and perceptions of childhood familial adversity were examined among 52 low-income single mothers of preschoolers. Women showing high levels of psychological adjustment tended to perceive their supports more positively, but often reported lower levels of support than their more distressed counterparts. However, perceptions of childhood familial adversity were found to be the most powerful predictors of psychological adjustment.
The relationship between self-perception and adolescent psychopathology was examined on nine domains of self-perception in a group of adolescent psychiatric inpatients and a comparison group of nonpatients. Inpatients rated themselves significantly lower in four domains, and correlations between symptom reports and domains of self-perception supported a relationship between negative self-perception and psychopathology. Further analysis suggested less differentiated self-perceptions among inpatients than among nonpatients. Implications for developmental assessments and clinical interventions are discussed.
Although dependence in adults has typically been viewed as a flow or deficit in functioning, a review of the literature reveals that high levels of dependency are associated with both positive and negative qualities on the part of the dependent person. Studies confirming this association are discussed, along with the theoretical and practical implications of their findings.
A self-report measure of attitudes about seeking help from adults for psychosocial problems was administered to approximately 200 children and adolescents. More negative help-seeking attitudes were associated with male gender, adolescence, depressive symptomotology, and lower self-efficacy. Implications for effective delivery of mental health services to at-risk youth are discussed.
The roles of family, peers, and selected social factors in the origins of depression were assessed in a school-based study of adolescents. Social self-efficacy and social support from family and peers were found to be interrelated in their links with depression. Risk factors are delineated and suggestions for preventive intervention are offered.
Psychological adjustment was assessed in a sample of 525 female and 191 male adoptees. Analyses were conducted by gender; by search status, i.e., those who had never searched, those who were searching, and those who had made contact with their biological parents; and by history of mental health service utilization. Compared to normative data, the sample reported significantly higher levels of psychological maladjustment; only women adoptees scored higher on a scale measuring anger. Overall, adoptees' scores were elevated but did not approach levels typical of outpatient populations.
Do blind persons develop capacities of their remaining senses that exceed those of sighted individuals? Besides anecdotal suggestions, two views based on experimental studies have been advanced. The first proposes that blind individuals should be severely impaired, given that vision is essential to develop spatial concepts. The second suggests that compensation occurs through the remaining senses, allowing them to develop an accurate concept of space. Here we investigate how an ecologically critical function, namely three-dimensional spatial mapping, is carried out by early-blind individuals with or without residual vision. Subjects were tested under monaural and binaural listening conditions. We find that early-blind subjects can map the auditory environment with equal or better accuracy than sighted subjects. Furthermore, unlike sighted subjects, they can correctly localize sounds monaurally. Surprisingly, blind individuals with residual peripheral vision localized sounds less precisely than sighted or totally blind subjects, confirming that compensation varies according to the aetiology and extent of blindness. Our results resolve a long-standing controversy in that they provide behavioural evidence that totally blind individuals have better auditory ability than sighted subjects, enabling them to compensate for their loss of vision.
OBJECTIVE: To determine public awareness and knowledge of oral cancer in Great Britain. DESIGN: The respondents were selected according to a systematic probability sample designed to be representative of all adults in Great Britain (GB). The overall design was similar to previous omnibus surveys carried out by National Opinion Poll (NOP). The survey was carried out in ten regions of GB in September 1995 and was commissioned by the Health Education Authority (HEA). SUBJECTS AND METHODS: A random sample of 1,894 members of the public over the age of 16 years were asked in face-to-face interviews their knowledge relating to cancer, with particular reference to oral cancer, its causes and those at high risk and general attitudes to cancer. RESULTS: Oral cancer was one of the least heard of cancers by the public with only 56% of the participants being aware, whereas 96% had heard of skin cancer, 97% lung cancer and 86% cervical cancer. There was a 76% awareness of the link between smoking and oral cancer but only 19% were aware of its association with alcohol misuse. Whereas 94% agreed that early detection can improve the treatment outcome, a disheartening 43% believed that whether a person developed a cancer or not was a matter of chance and therefore was unavoidable. CONCLUSIONS: This survey highlights a general lack of awareness among the public about mouth cancer and a lack of knowledge about its causation especially the excess risk associated with alcohol. RECOMMENDATIONS: There is a clear need to inform and educate the public in matters relating to the known risk factors associated with oral cancer. A media campaign informing the public about oral cancer is clearly required. The need for the reduction in the incidence of oral cancer should be included in 'Our healthier nation' targets. An overall health promotion strategy to reduce cancers should include oral cancer as a priority. In addition the European Code against Cancer which aims to improve prevention, the early detection of oral cancer and the necessity for fast track referral should be made more widely known. Recognition of oral cancer in local strategies for oral health should be encouraged.
STUDY DESIGN: Case report. OBJECTIVE: To report treatment of spasticity in a spinal cord-injured person with intrathecal morphine after the person developed tolerance to intrathecal baclofen. METHOD: Spasticity in a 36-year-old man with T6 complete paraplegia was treated with increasing doses of intrathecal baclofen. When he developed tolerance to intrathecal baclofen, he was given continuous infusion of morphine intrathecally. SETTING: Regional Spinal Injuries Centre, UK. RESULTS: Spasticity was adequately controlled by intrathecal morphine. CONCLUSION: In spinal cord-injured patients with severe spasticity, who become tolerant to intrathecal baclofen, treatment with intrathecal morphine may be useful.
Methods of identifying adult children of alcoholics are described and their psychometric properties are reviewed. These methods include self-report single questions and questionnaires and interview schedules. The CAST-6, a shortened version of the Children of Alcoholics Screening Test, is compared with a variety of these methods. The CAST-6 is confirmed as a useful brief screening measure. It was shown to be internally reliable, have good retest reliability and to agree well with other measures. Using a face to face interview as the comparison standard, however, a number of single questions performed equally as well as the CAST-6 and other more complex methods.
Reports on the progress of British graduates in nursing focus on their early careers, when they are employed full-time. Part-time and non-employment is not discussed. This paper draws upon a longitudinal study, which began in 1981, to describe the cause and effect of graduates leaving full-time employment. The experiences of 45 female graduates in nursing from the University of Hull show that departure from full-time employment is associated especially with the establishment of a stable relationship, with child-rearing and, to a lesser extent, time for personal development.
To the clinical practitioner both nursing models and nursing research may currently be highly valued by practitioners or managers. Yet, by facilitating group reflection on the nursing model identified in the ward philosophy and adopting the enhancement approach to action research, surgical nurses were empowered to effect change and, consequently, to enhance the quality of patient care in their ward. The study was undertaken in two phases over a 15-month period and utilized a multi-method approach. In phase 1 triangulation of the data enabled the practitioners/co-researchers to identify and reflect on patients' psychological needs within the independence/dependence continuum of the Roper et al. (1990) model. Phase 2 involved a collaborative approach to the planning, implementation and evaluation of innovations which resulted from reflection on practice. Nurse-doctor relationships including anaesthetist noncompliance were, though, a controversial issue. Collaborative practice was undermined by the co-researchers' ambivalence concerning feedback from the medical staff. Overall, however, the individual contribution of each co-researcher was recognized and valued. They had both choice and control which enabled them to develop personally and professionally. Group reflection was seen as essential feedback strategy during the change process.