Search results for ‘Subject term:"mental health problems"’ Sort:
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Doorways in the night: stories from the threshold of recovery
- Editors:
- SIMPSON Terry, (ed.)
- Publisher:
- Local Voices
- Publication year:
- 2004
- Pagination:
- 191p.
- Place of publication:
- Leeds
Doorways in the Night is a collection of personal true life stories of what it is like to live with emotional distress in its many forms and yet through all the weaknesses and darkness, find ways of recovery towards integrity and regained life.
Somatoform disorders: a help or hindrance to good patient care
- Authors:
- SHARPE Michael, MAYOU Richard
- Journal article citation:
- British Journal of Psychiatry, 184(6), June 2004, pp.465-467.
- Publisher:
- Cambridge University Press
Somatoform disorders include a hetero-geneous group of diagnoses united only by their tendency to present with somatic complaints. In DSM–III–R the specific subcategories included somatisation disorder, hypochondriasis, body dysmorphic disorder, conversion disorder and chronic pain disorder, but the classification proved inadequate to the clinical task and the most recent edition of DSM (DSM–IV) added the non-specific category of undifferentiated somatoform disorder. This diagnosis, which amounts to little more than relabelling the patient’s own complaint, has turned out in practice to be the most common of the somatoform diagnoses.
A question of burnout among reformed church ministers in The Netherlands
- Authors:
- TOMIC Welko, TOMIC David M., EVERS Will G.
- Journal article citation:
- Mental Health Religion and Culture, 7(3), September 2004, pp.225-247.
- Publisher:
- Taylor and Francis
- Place of publication:
- Philadelphia, USA
The present study examined to which degree reformed ministers suffer from burnout symptoms, to which degree these symptoms are comparable with other occupational groups and which organizational and personal traits like extroversion and emotional stability, increase the risk of falling victim to burnout. Ministers (n = 424; 83% men, 17% women) completed the following questionnaires: a work-factor questionnaire, the Maslach Burnout Inventory, and the extroversion and emotional stability Personality Inventory. Ministers of the Dutch Reformed Church had identical scores on the three burnout dimensions as their reformed counterparts, a more doctrinal denomination. Compared with workers in other human service professions, ministers scored lower on the three burnout dimensions. Ministers who seriously suffered from pressure of work had high scores on the three dimensions of burnout. Young ministers proved to be more susceptible to burnout than their older counterparts. Gender did not contribute to the onset of burnout. However, lack of social support at home, satisfaction, and motivation may have influenced the ministers' burnout level. Personality factors, such as extroversion and emotional stability, appeared to be significantly related to burnout. Tasks found to be weighty were: to conduct a service and to prepare sermon, pastoral care, administration or managerial and organizational tasks, catechism and meetings. Suggestions for future investigations were made.
In search of perfect motherhood for imperfect childhood - experiences of 22 Chinese mothers
- Authors:
- PUN S. H., MA Joyce L. C., LAI Kelly C. C.
- Journal article citation:
- Child and Family Social Work, 9(3), August 2004, pp.285-293.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
Motherhood is subjectively defined and contextually based. This article describes and unfolds the experience of 22 Chinese mothers in Hong Kong in cultivating a sense of perfect motherhood for their children who have mental or behavioural problems that require psychiatric consultation. The mother, the significant others and the general public perceive the latter as a form of imperfection. The mothering experiences were full of frustrations, ambivalence, stresses and tensions, and were crystallized by the repeated theme of mother-blaming and self-blame by the mother. Despite the hardships, these Chinese mothers have gradually developed self-confidence and pride, and have found ways to cope with the burden of care. Implications for practice are highlighted at the end of the paper.
The appropriateness and necessity of short term therapy in the context of the employee assistance programme
- Author:
- TAUTE Florinda
- Journal article citation:
- Social Work Maatskaplike Werk, 40(1), March 2004, pp.15-24.
Discusses critically the concept of short-term therapy within the EAP context, focusing on its appropriateness and necessity. The role of homework during short-term therapy for the employee as a client in EAP is highlighted. Definitions of short term therapy are provided for a better understanding of this work. The types of problems that can be addressed by short-term therapy in the workplace will be discussed.
Predictors of depressive mood, occupational stress, and propensity to leave in older and younger mental health case managers
- Authors:
- GELLIS Zvi D., KIM Jong Chun
- Journal article citation:
- Community Mental Health Journal, 40(5), October 2004, pp.407-421.
- Publisher:
- Springer
Age differences and relationships between occupational stressors, work environment, depressed mood, and propensity to leave were examined among 263 case managers (CMs) in community-based mental health agencies. For younger CMs, satisfaction with the supervisor, perceived job pressure and lack of organizational support were significant predictors of propensity to leave the job. Older CMs who reported lower satisfaction with financial rewards, the type of work they did, and greater use of avoidance/resignation and help seeking coping strategies were more likely to rate themselves higher on the depressed mood scale.
The effect of organizational conditions (role conflict, role ambiguity, opportunities for professional development, and social support) on job satisfaction and intention to leave among social workers in mental health care
- Author:
- ACKER Gila M.
- Journal article citation:
- Community Mental Health Journal, 40(1), February 2004, pp.65-73.
- Publisher:
- Springer
This study examined the relationships between the organizational conditions of social workers practicing in mental health agencies and their job satisfaction and intention to leave. A sample of 259 social workers, practicing in sixteen mental health agencies in New York State completed a questionnaire that included several measures: role conflict, role ambiguity, social support, extent of opportunities for professional development, type of work activities, job satisfaction and intention to leave. Results showed that the organizational conditions are strong predictors for job satisfaction and intention to leave. The author suggests that it is possible to find an appropriate balance between the professional expectations of social workers and the business-driven aspect of the mental health care environment.
Social phobia in ultra-orthodox Jewish males: culture-bound syndrome or virtue?
- Authors:
- GREENBERG David, STRAVYNSKI Aiel, BILU Yoram
- Journal article citation:
- Mental Health Religion and Culture, 7(4), December 2004, pp.289-305.
- Publisher:
- Taylor and Francis
- Place of publication:
- Philadelphia, USA
Social difficulties of the performing variety are reported by ultra-orthodox male referrals to a psychiatrist in Jerusalem and confirmed by key communal informants. Three cases of social phobia are presented, and the content concerns performing, either speaking on religious matters publicly, a role associated with status and authority, or leading prayers and ceremonies, a role of sanctity and duty. The absence of women sufferers may be understood as a consequence of the value placed on modesty in women and there being no expectation of women to participate in study and public prayer, while the absence of complaints of interactional social phobia may be a consequence of the general discouragement of social intercourse not related to religious study. Aymat zibur, literally meaning fear of the community, is a term used by ultra-orthodox Jews to describe these fears of performance, although in its original meaning the term expresses the respect that the leader of prayers is expected to have for his awesome role. The cases described, however, were motivated by personal shame, similar to social phobia of the performance variety found in other cultures, rather than fear and respect. The values of ultra-orthodox religious life are presented that invest a person who avoids interactional social behaviors with the status of zaddik (a righteous person) while one who avoids the performance behaviors of speaking publicly on religious matters or leading prayers suffers from an idiom of distress in this particular society. Religious law and societal mores appear to be critical factors in deciding whether symptoms of social phobia are perceived and experienced as idioms of distress.
The impacts of acculturative stress and social competence on the mental health of mainland Chinese immigrant youth in Hong Kong
- Authors:
- WONG Daniel Fu Keung, et al
- Journal article citation:
- British Journal of Social Work, 34(7), October 2004, pp.1009-1024.
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
Attempts were made to examine migration stressors, social competence, and mental health status of immigrant youth in Hong Kong and to examine the effects of social competence on stress and the mental health of immigrant youth. Data on 106 immigrant youth, which were collected through a structured questionnaire, were analysed. It was discovered that immigrant youth found survival issues and losses, rather than cultural differences and unfulfilled expectations, to be stressful. Male immigrant youth exhibited more psychological distress symptoms than female immigrant youth. Hierarchical regression analyses revealed that social competence exerted moderating effects on stress and the mental health of immigrant youth. Immigrant youth who had a higher level of social competence, in terms of self-control, empathy, assertiveness and the ability to read social cues, had less stress and enjoyed better mental health. In conclusion, personal and socio-cultural reasons are put forward to explain the findings. Practice and policy implications are also discussed.
Religiosity and the expansion of caregiver stress
- Authors:
- LEBLENC A. J., DRISCOLL A. K., PEARLIN L. I.
- Journal article citation:
- Aging and Mental Health, 8(5), September 2004, pp.410-421.
- Publisher:
- Taylor and Francis
The authors present a stress process framework as a model for understanding how religiosity may influence the expansion of stress. Survey data from informal caregivers to a spouse with Alzheimer'sdisease or a related dementia (n = 200) were analyzed to observe the relationships among three variables: (1) care-related stress, (2) religiosity, and (3) depression. This sample, which has a mean age of 73 years, demonstrates high rates of self-described religiosity, church attendance and frequency of prayer. Using these criteria, women and racial/ethnic minority caregivers are the most religious. In a series of multivariate analyses, we found strong evidence to suggest that there is an expansion of care-related stressors leading to depression in this sample. Religiosity, as measured here, appears to be largely unrelated to stress and stress expansion. The authors found no evidence to suggest that it moderates stress expansion. However, these data do suggest that one stressor--feelings of role overload--is correlated with greater levels of self-perceived religiosity, which among caregivers who have health problems of their own is associated with greater depressive symptomatology. Thus, for a sub-sample of these caregivers, the authors find weak evidence of a mediation effect wherein one subjective, non-organizational dimension of religiosity is a conduit of the harmful effects of stress (rather than a suppressor). Results and data limitations are discussed in relation to better assessing the role of religiosity and spirituality in the experience of the stress process.