50716 research outputs found
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Exploring good mental health for people with intellectual disabilities:a qualitative interview study with mental health experts
No full textBackground: Most mental health research focuses on mental disorders, with a paucity of studies exploring good mental health. Widely used definitions of good mental health (e.g., WHO’s) include several aspects of positive human functioning as predisposing to mental health. According to diagnostic criteria, people with intellectual disabilities (ID) are impaired in their functioning levels (e.g., intellectual functioning, adaptive skills). Existing definitions of good mental health may therefore not be applicable to an ID population. Objective: We aimed to explore the perspectives of experts on good mental health in people with ID to shed light on the constitutive factors of good mental health in this population. Methods: Semi-structured expert interviews with open-ended questions (N = 12) were conducted with psychiatrists, psychologists, psychotherapists, and psychiatric nurses, working either academically or in practice with this population. Inductive, reflexive thematic analysis was applied to analyze and synthesize the data. Results: Four themes regarding components of good mental health in people with ID were derived: (1) Absence of Mental Illness, (2) Physical Health, (3) Psychosocial Functioning, and (4) Social Environment. Psychosocial functioning was divided into five subthemes, namely: (1) Emotional Competence, (2) Self-Concept, (3) Experience of Meaning, (4) Self-Determination, and (5) Personal Growth. Conclusions: According the participants of this study, the constitutive factors of good mental health are similar for people with and without ID. The importance of needs-based, individualized support and an appropriate social environment was particularly emphasized for people with ID, to facilitate positive human functioning and promote good mental health.</p
Novel youth mental health services in Australia:What differences are being reported about the clinical needs of those who attend and the outcomes achieved?
Get PDFGlobally, youth mental health services are evolving, with Australia’s headspace services presented as a leading exemplar. headspace services were designed as enhanced primary care-based entities and were expected to collaborate with local acute, and specialist clinical and psychosocial services. The lack of large-scale health services trials necessitates understanding their impact through systematic monitoring and evaluation. This paper compares data from differing sources that describe the demographic and clinical features, and functional outcomes, of young people presenting to various headspace services. headspace National reports that care is provided largely to youth with transient distress, minimal clinical disorders, suicidality or comorbidities and limited functional impairment. Almost 50% of clients are reported to have no significant psychological symptoms or risk factors, and less than 30% to have a clinical disorder. Consequently, 36% receive only a single session of care and the median number of clinical sessions provided is three. By contrast, empirically derived estimates, utilising data from an academic centre and its affiliated centres, other independent agencies and more refined analyses of headspace national data variously portray 50–60% of youth as presenting with at least moderate clinical complexity (including at least 20% with high complexity), and with another 27% requiring active clinical intervention. Together, these data suggest approximately 75% of attendees require substantive clinical care. Clinical outcomes data from all sources indicate limited impacts on functional outcomes, with less than a third achieving significant improvement. These data support the original intent of headspace services to focus on equitable access to multidimensional and clinical assessment, evidence-based early interventions for early stages of major anxiety, mood or psychotic disorders. As demand for youth services continues to rise, there is an urgent need to reconfigure our national youth service networks to address the unmet clinical and psychosocial needs of youth presenting in the early stages of major mental disorders.</p
Variation exists in the expression of romantic love:A cluster analytic study of young adults experiencing romantic love
No full textVariation exists in the expression of romantic love, but to date, no studies have specifically investigated this phenomenon. This study employed a TwoStep cluster analysis to group 809 partnered young adults experiencing romantic love from the Romantic Love Survey 2022 according to intensity of romantic love, obsessive thinking, commitment, and frequency of sex per week. The results revealed four clusters: (i) mild romantic lovers (20.02 %) characterized by the lowest intensity, lowest obsessive thinking, lowest commitment, and lowest frequency of sex; (ii) moderate romantic lovers (40.91 %), characterized by relatively low intensity, relatively low obsessive thinking, relatively high commitment, and relatively moderate frequency of sex; (iii) libidinous romantic lovers (9.64 %), characterized by relatively high intensity, relatively high obsessive thinking, relatively high commitment, and exceptionally high frequency of sex; and (iv) intense romantic lovers (29.42 %), characterized by the highest intensity, highest obsessive thinking, highest commitment, and relatively high frequency of sex. Each cluster differs on a range of personal and relationship characteristics. The findings can generate theory and hypotheses about romantic love and provide impetus for future research.</p
Evaluating the therapeutic use of music to address anxiety for women undergoing gynaecological and fertility treatments
No full textBACKGROUND: Music has been effectively used to address anxiety associated with medical treatments across broad applications. However, scant evidence exists about using music to reduce the significant anxiety experienced by women undergoing gynaecological procedures and fertility treatments. Such anxiety relates to the nature of procedures/examinations, invasiveness of the procedures, uncertainty around expectations, and intimate body part exposure, potentially affecting outcomes in triggering sympathetic nervous system responses. Music potentially contributes to anxiety management via known physiological and emotional effects. This funded collaborative project investigates therapeutic uses of music to address anxiety before and during gynaecology and fertility procedures, in order to assist participants with reducing their anxiety. METHODS: Participants attending office, day surgery and other hospital procedures (N = 41) completed validated self-report surveys before and after procedures, listening to specific music via a purpose-designed Music Star. Additional contextual and qualitative data was sought to understand the nature of the experience for the women. RESULTS: Results of this study indicated that the music intervention appeared to have a significant effect of reducing anxiety for women awaiting gynaecological and fertility procedures (p < .001, r = .82). CONCLUSIONS: The use of music forms an acceptable intervention to decrease anxiety in this context and can enhance the experience of women during treatment. Such an increased use of music can provide anxiety management benefits to women undergoing gynaecological and fertility treatments, with these experiences suggesting potential educational benefits to support women through this extremely stressful and complex stage of their life.</p
Flexible, adaptable, and supportive systems:qualitative description of factors underpinning an ideal mealtime delivery in rehabilitation care settings
No full textPurpose: Whilst evidence about mealtime delivery exists in acute and aged care settings, there is limited understanding of patient and staff preferences for rehabilitation settings. This study aimed to explore patient and staff perceptions about how mealtimes should be delivered to support rehabilitation goals of care. Method: This qualitative descriptive study involved semi-structured interviews with nine patients (previous or current admission) and ten staff from a single metropolitan rehabilitation service. Data were analysed using qualitative content analysis. Results: Two key categories were identified, including (1) the role of mealtimes in patients’ rehabilitation, and (2) factors underpinning ideal mealtime delivery for rehabilitation. Mealtimes help to facilitate recovery, support socialisation, rest, and routine, but were also a time of frustration and challenge for patients. The ideal mealtime was described as creating a therapeutic experience, integrating systems and processes that support rehabilitation, systems that offer flexibility and choice, enhancing mealtime care through interdisciplinary collaboration, and using supportive mealtime care practices. Conclusion: The ideal mealtime in rehabilitation should be underpinned by principles of flexibility, adaptability, and supportive care. Incorporating rehabilitation goals of care can be enabled through mealtime systems that encourage functional therapy activity, optimal nutrition, and time for rest and social engagement.</p
Rethinking Economic Foundations for Sustainable Development:A Comprehensive Assessment of Six Economic Paradigms Against the SDGs
No full textProgress toward achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) has been disappointingly slow, raising fundamental questions about whether our dominant economic framework can deliver sustainable development outcomes. This research systematically evaluates six economic paradigms—Neoclassical Welfare Economics, Green Growth, Degrowth, Agrowth, Steady State Economics, and Doughnut Economics—against all 17 SDGs to determine which might better support sustainability transformations. Using a rigorous mixed-methods approach, we first characterize each paradigm according to key attributes, then assess their alignment with SDG objectives using a four-point scoring system. Our analysis reveals that the dominant Neoclassical Welfare Economics paradigm shows the weakest alignment with the SDGs, while alternative frameworks demonstrate significantly stronger alignment: Degrowth, Steady State Economics, Doughnut Economics, Green Growth, and Agrowth. No single paradigm fully addresses all dimensions of sustainable development, with most showing notable weaknesses in people-centered SDGs. Each paradigm demonstrates distinct complementary strengths: Green Growth in technological innovation, Degrowth in redistribution mechanisms, Steady State Economics in resource boundaries, Agrowth in redefining welfare, and Doughnut Economics in balancing social foundations with ecological ceilings. We conclude that selective integration of complementary elements from multiple paradigms offers the most promising pathway forward and propose four specific recommendations: (1) developing integrated assessment frameworks, (2) establishing experimental policy zones, (3) reforming economics education, and (4) creating context-specific transition pathways. This research provides the first comprehensive evaluation of how alternative economic paradigms align with the full spectrum of SDGs, offering crucial guidance for policymakers seeking more effective approaches to sustainable development.</p
Mental health consequences of early life stress in children – The autonomic nervous system as a potential target for early detection and intervention?
No full textEarly life stress affects children worldwide, influencing behavioural, social, emotional, cognitive, and physical development. It is strongly associated with an increased risk of mental illness across the lifespan, with symptoms often emerging during childhood or adolescence. Parents experiencing acute and chronic stress may inadvertently contribute to adverse health outcomes in their children, as cumulative exposure to stress within the family unit can negatively impact both mental and physical well-being. Children exposed to parental stress and its associated emotional and physiological responses may be at a heightened risk for autonomic nervous system (ANS) developmental disruptions. Disruptions in the ANS regulation are linked to metabolic risk, cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes mellitus, and early mortality, as well as mental illness. Autonomic imbalance, characterised by sympathetic overactivity and/or parasympathetic (vagal) underactivity, has been proposed as a key mechanism connecting early life stress to increased vulnerability to mental health disorders later in life. However, the strength of this association may depend on moderating factors such as the type of early adversity, presence of psychopathology, and age. Heart rate variability (HRV), particularly the root mean square of successive differences (rMSSD) and high frequency HRV, provides a non-invasive, cost-effective and accessible method for assessing vagal activity and ANS function. The steep increase in vagal activity observed during infancy and puberty represents critical periods in ANS development, making these phases particularly susceptible to early life stress. This review suggests that HRV-based assessments of vagal activity could serve as an early marker of ANS dysregulation, helping to identify children at risk of mental health conditions. Moreover, childhood presents a crucial window for targeted lifestyle interventions, such as exercise, to enhance vagal activity, potentially mitigating the long-term consequences of early life stress.</p
‘Radical acceptance’:Yiyun Li lost both her sons to suicide. Her rigorous memoir reveals her as a very special writer
No full textHer first son, Vincent, died by suicide aged 16. Six years later, her second son James, aged 19, also died by suicide. In each case, she responded by writing. This book is James’ story; but it is also the story of Vincent, his beloved older brother – and of Li herself and her husband, and their life in the permanent absence of their sons
Physiological and Biomechanical Characteristics of Inline Speed Skating:A Systematic Scoping Review
No full textThe physiological and biomechanical characteristics of inline speed skating have not been systematically mapped nor research evidence synthesized. The aim was to identify and synthesize novel elements across studies, including participant characteristics, outcomes measures, experimental protocol, main outcomes and other relevant information, to inform evidence-based guidelines and recommendations. Following the PRISMA 2020 guidelines, a systematic search of databases was conducted to identify relevant studies. The extracted data were charted and synthesized to summarize the physiological and biomechanical aspects of inline speed skating. From 272 records, 22 studies met the defined criteria. Studies related to inline speed skating focused primarily on physiological variables (n = 14) and lower limb muscles function, with limited evidence on biomechanics of inline speed skating (n = 5) and the combination of biomechanics and physiology (n = 3). An overall unclear risk of bias was observed (59% of studies). Although studies have examined physiological and biomechanical variables, continuous physiological and biomechanical assessments of skaters performing different skills on both straight and curved tracks have not been conducted. Therefore, well-planned physiological and biomechanics studies are required to uncover underexplored areas in research and support the development of sport-specific studies.</p