Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Modeling The Effects Of Quality In A Transformative Health Service, Shahriar Akter, Umme Hani

Shahriar Akter

Understanding the effects of service quality on economic (i.e., continuance intentions) and social (i.e., quality of life) outcomes is critical to extend the focus of transformative service research. This study specifies mHealth as a transformative service and models the impact of its overall quality on satisfaction, continuance intentions and quality of life. Based on cognition - affective - conation chain, the conceptual model explicitly identifies convenience, confidence, cooperation, care and concern as the primary dimensions of mHealth service quality. The study validates the higher-order quality model and its association with subsequent latent variables using PLS path modeling. The findings confirm …

Does Retirement Impact Health Care Utilization?, Norma Coe, Gema Zamarro

Gema Zamarro

Infant-Female Genital Mutilation (Ifgm) In Cities And The Role Of Women In Perpetuating Fgm: A Probe On Why Fgm Persists In Urban Centers In Nigeria, Blessing Onyima

Blessing Onyima

How Does Retirement Impact Health Behaviors? An International Comparison, Norma Coe, Gema Zamarro

Gema Zamarro

Are Journalists Qualified To Write About Health And Science?, Burnis R. Morris

Burnis R. Morris

This article examines the preparation of journalists to report on health and science issues. It traces the historical linkage between the news media and health and science and reports the results of a survey of college professors who teach reporting courses at 86 departments and schools of journalism and mass communication. The article, also intended to help explain the journalistic method to scientists, concludes that many young journalists are qualified to cover simple stories about health and science and other topics when they leave college and acquire the skills to report on more complex issues through on-the-job training and specialized …

Nutritional Narratives: Cultural And Communications Perspectives On Plant-Based Diets, Julie S. Dare, Leesa N. Costello, Lelia R. Green

Julie Dare Dr

This paper responds to a range of popular materials circulating in the public sphere asserting a plant-based (PB) diet is of benefit to humans and a protection against many chronic diseases. Although directed at a lay audience, books such as The China Study (Campbell & Campbell) are based upon extensive academic research, and highlight multiple health, environmental and social advantages of PB diets over traditional western diets. Arguments advocating PB nutrition, however, generally struggle to achieve traction in the public sphere. Narratives around PB food choices, and difficulties in shifting mainstream eating patterns, reflect the cultural symbolism attached to food, …

Young People's Help-Seeking For Mental Health Problems., Debra Rickwood, Frank P. Deane, Coralie J. Wilson, Joseph V. Ciarrochi

joseph Ciarrochi

This paper summarises an ambitious research agenda aiming to uncover the factors that affect help-seeking among young people for mental health problems. The research set out to consider why young people, and particularly young males, do not seek help when they are in psychological distress or suicidal; how professional services be made more accessible and attractive to young people; the factors that inhibit and facilitate help-seeking; and how community gatekeepers can support young people to access services to help with personal and emotional problems. A range of studies was undertaken in New South Wales, Queensland and the ACT, using both …

Identifying And Describing Feelings And Psychological Flexibility Predict Mental Health In Men With Hiv, Jodie Landstra, Joseph Ciarrochi, Frank Deane, R Hillman

joseph Ciarrochi

Early detection screening programmes have been well established for a variety of cancer types. More recently, anal cytological screening for anal cancer has been recommended (New York State Department of Public Health AIDS Institute, 2007). Population rates of anal cancer are 1.6 per 100,000 (Darragh & Winkler, 2011). However, men who have sex with men (MSM) and are HIV infected have considerably higher rates, estimated at between 42 and 137 per 100,000 (Darragh & Winkler, 2011). The psychological impact of cancer screening has been demonstrated in many different programmes and typically includes increased anxiety, reduced quality of life (QOL) and …

Improving Implementation Of Evidence-Based Practice In Mental Health Service Delivery: Protocol For A Cluster Randomised Quasi-Experimental Investigation Of Staff-Focused Values Interventions, Virginia Williams, Lindsay G. Oades, Frank P. Deane, Trevor P. Crowe, Joseph Ciarrochi, Retta Andresen

joseph Ciarrochi

Background There is growing acceptance that optimal service provision for individuals with severe and recurrent mental illness requires a complementary focus on medical recovery (i.e., symptom management and general functioning) and personal recovery (i.e., having a 'life worth living'). Despite significant research attention and policy-level support, the translation of this vision of healthcare into changed workplace practice continues to elude. Over the past decade, evidence-based training interventions that seek to enhance the knowledge, attitudes, and skills of staff working in the mental health field have been implemented as a primary redress strategy. However, a large body of multi-disciplinary research indicates …

When Simplifying Life Is Not So Bad: The Link Between Rigidity, Stressful Life Events, And Mental Health In An Undergraduate Population, Joseph Ciarrochi, Frank Deane, Terry Said

joseph Ciarrochi

Decades of research have generally shown that being more rigid is associated with poorer mental health. We investigated whether all aspects of what has been termed “rigidity” are harmful. In particular, we hypothesized that the desire for simple structure (DSS) will not be associated with poor mental health, and in some cases might be associated with better mental health. In contrast, the intolerance of uncertainty (IU) was hypothesized to be associated with a wide range of indices of poor mental health. We also hypothesized that people high in IU would be less resilient in the face of stressful life events. …

Cognitive Ability And Health-Related Behaviors During Adolescence: A Prospective Study Across Five Years, Joseph Ciarrochi, Patrick Heaven, Timothy Skinner

joseph Ciarrochi

Longitudinal research on the links between intelligence and health behaviors among adolescents is rare. We report longitudinal data in which we assessed the relationships between intelligence as assessed in Grade 7 and consequential health outcomes in Grade 11. The mean age of respondents (N=420; 188 males, 232 females) was 12.30 years (SD=0.49) in Grade 7and 16.17 years (SD=0.45) in Grade 11. They completed standardized verbal and numerical ability tests and a measure of conscientiousness in Grade 7 and health related questions in Grade 11. Results indicated that higher intelligence was associated with a number of healthy behaviors including delay in …

Disadvantages Of Being An Individualist In An Individualistic Culture: Idiocentrism, Emotional Competence, Stress, And Mental Health, Gregory Scott, Joseph Ciarrochi, Frank Deane

joseph Ciarrochi

Based on past cross-cultural research, it was hypothesised that people who had strong individualistic values and beliefs within an individualistic culture would have smaller social support networks, lower emotional competence, lower intentions to seek help from a variety of sources, and poorer mental health. A total of 276 first-year students attending an Australian university completed an anonymous survey assessing individual differences in individualism (i.e., idiocentrism), social support, emotional competence, hopelessness, depression, and suicide ideation. As expected, idiocentrism was associated with smaller and less satisfying social support networks, less skill in managing both self and others' emotions, lower intentions to seek …

Parallel Processes In Clinical Supervision: Implications For Coaching Menthal Health Practitioners, Trevor P. Crowe, Lindsay G. Oades, Frank P. Deane, Joseph Ciarrochi, Virginia C. Willliams

joseph Ciarrochi

No abstract provided.

Emotional Intelligence Moderates The Relationship Between Stress And Mental Health, Joseph Ciarrochi, Frank Deane, Stephen Anderson

joseph Ciarrochi

Despite a great deal of popular interest and the development of numerous training programs in emotional intelligence (EI), some researchers have argued that there is little evidence that EI is both useful and different from other, well established constructs. We hypothesized that EI would make a unique contribution to understanding the relationship between stress and three important mental health variables, depression, hopelessness, and suicidal ideation. University students (n=302) participated in a cross-sectional study that involved measuring life stress, objective and self-reported emotional intelligence, and mental health. Regression analyses revealed that stress was associated with: (1) greater reported depression, hopelessness, and …

A Preliminary Exploration Of The Working Allliance And 'Real Relationship' In Two Coaching Approaches With Mental Health Workers, Belinda J. Sun, Frank Deane, Trevor Crowe, Retta Andresen, Lindsay G. Oades, Joseph Ciarrochi

joseph Ciarrochi

Objectives: The coaching relationship has been described as the catalyst for change. This study explores the coaching relationship by comparing the working alliance and the 'real relationship'- the undistorted and authentic experience of the other- in participants in skills coaching and transformational coaching. Design: A 2 (coaching condition) x 2 (time) factorial design was used. Method: Staff from community psychiatric recovery services were trained in a new service delivery approach (Collaborative Recovery Model), followed by coaching from intemal coaches once per month to enhance implimentation of the training. All trained staff were invited to participate in the research. Forty coachees …

Value Congruence, Importance And Success In The Workplace: Links With Well-Being And Burnout Amongst Mental Health Practiticioners, Stephanie Veage, Joseph Ciarrochi, Frank Deane, Retta Andresen, Lindsay G. Oades, Trevor Crowe

joseph Ciarrochi

Living according to one׳s personal values has implications for wellbeing, and incongruence between personal and workplace values has been associated with burnout. Using the SGP Card Sorting Task (Ciarrochi & Bailey, 2008), this study explored mental health practitioners׳ personal life values and personal work-related values, and their relationships with wellbeing and burnout. Congruence between life and work-related values was related to wellbeing and perceived accomplishment at work. Those whose personal values were consistent with the commonly-shared values of a caring profession experienced lower burnout and higher personal wellbeing. Successfully pursuing one׳s work values predicted lower burnout and greater wellbeing. Honesty, …

Relations Between Social And Emotional Competence And Mental Health: A Construct Validation Study, Joseph Ciarrochi, Gregory Scott, Frank Deane, Patrick Heaven

joseph Ciarrochi

Researchers working fairly independently of each other have created numerous measures of social and emotional competence (SEC). These measures tend to correlate (sometimes highly) with each other and with measures of stressful events, suggesting potential redundancy. We evaluated which, if any, SEC variables predicted unique variance in social and mental health after controlling for other SEC variables in the study and the impact of stressful events. Three-hundred and thirty-one university students participated in an anonymous, cross-sectional study. We measured stressful events, and a wide variety of SECs, including: social problem solving skill (effective problem orientation, automatic processing, and problem solving), …

Implications Of Racial And Ethnic Relations For Health And Wellbeing In New Latino Communities: A Case Study Of West Columbia, South Carolina, C. Barrington, Deanne Messias, Lynn Weber

Lynn Weber

No abstract provided.

Perfectionism, Personality, Parenting Criticism And The Unemployed, Richard Hicks, Veronica Midon

Richard Hicks

Abstract: Few studies have examined the role of perfectionism in the unemployed though extensive studies on perfectionism in the general and student populations exist. Maladaptive perfectionism, or the possession of self-imposed, unrealistic and excessively high standards, has been seen to be related to depression, anxiety and stress, to negative personality characteristics and to critical parenting styles. Would similar relationships be seen among the unemployed? Correlational and regression analyses were used to examine a sample of 100 unemployed adult jobseekers. Results indicated a strong positive correlation between maladaptive perfectionism, psychological distress, personahty factors, and an authoritarian style of parenting. In particular, …

Sleep Well, Be Well: Teaching Students Positive Sleeping Habits To Create A Less Stressful Environment, Kate Magsamen-Conrad, Jeanette M. Dillon, Kayleigh Bondor

Kate Magsamen-Conrad

Although the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC, 2013) recommends that adults sleep seven to eight hours each night, it is estimated that college students sleep less than that (Cairney, Faulkner, Arbour-Nicitopoulos, & Kwan, 2013). Studies show that irregular sleep patterns have negative effects on students’ grades, reduce their ability to focus in class, and negatively affect their ability to memorize class material (Melton, Langdon & McDaniel, 2013; Orzech, Salafsky & Hamilton, 2011). Sleep is integral to a number of important functions including emotional well-being (NHLB, 2012). If sleep leads to decreased academic performance and negatively affects emotional well-being, …

Marathi Article On Socioeconomic Status Of Muslims In Maharashtra, Professor Vibhuti Patel

Professor Vibhuti Patel

Socioeconomic Statusof Muslims in Maharashtra

Global Trade Impacts: Addressing The Health, Social And Environmental Consequences Of Moving International Freight Through Our Communities, Martha Matsuoka, Andrea Hricko, Robert Gottlieb, Juan Delara

Martha Matsuoka

As ports and goods movement activity expands throughout the United States, a major challenge is how to make the adverse impacts of freight transportation a more central part of economic development, policy and planning discussions and transportation decision making. In 2009, faculty and staff from the Urban & Environmental Policy Institute of Occidental College and from the environmental health sciences and regional equity programs of the University of Southern California (USC) began a study of this evolving global trade and freight transportation system, focusing on areas in the United States where the system is expanding and where community, labor and …

The Benefits And Risks Of Storytelling And Storylistening Over Time: Experimentally Testing The Expressive Writing Paradigm In The Context Of Interpersonal Communicatio, Jody Koenig Kellas, Haley Kranstuber Horstman, Erin K. Willer, Kristen Carr

Jody Koenig Kellas

The overarching goal of the current study was to determine the impact of talking interpersonally over time on emerging adults’ individual and relational health. Using an expres- sive writing study design (see Frattaroli, 2006), we assessed the degree to which psychological health improved over time for college students who told and listened to stories about friends’ current difficulties in comparison with tellers in control conditions. We also investigated the effects on tellers’ and listeners’ perceptions of each other’s communication competence, com- municated perspective-taking, and the degree to which each threatened the other’s face during the interaction over time to better …