1,720,978 research outputs found
A systematic review of evidence-based psychological interventions and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people
Full text linkObjective: Limited empirical literature exists examining the application of evidenced-based psychotherapies when working with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. Further, Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people’s view of Social and Emotional Wellbeing (SEWB) differs to Western ideologies of mental health. In the present study, a qualitative systematic review explored evidenced-based psychological therapies with Indigenous clients.
Method: A systematic review was conducted using the PRISMA framework. A total of 12 articles that met criteria for inclusion in the review were extracted through hand- and database searching. Therapies identified in the articles included Narrative Therapy (NT), Cognitive-Behaviour Therapy (CBT), Acceptance-based Therapies (ACT) and Multisystemic Therapy (MST).
Results: CBT was the most commonly reported therapy in the review. Three articles, rated lower in quality, also identified NT. Although limited in quantity, acceptance-based and strength-based therapies and MST were also identified as having cross-cultural applications.
Conclusions: While, CBT, ACT and MST have been used when working at the cultural interface with Indigenous people, further empirical evidence with outcome data is required. Such evidence is required to assess acceptability and suitability of such psychotherapies and for clinicians to provide culturally responsive practice when working with Indigenous people.
KEY POINTS
(1) Indigenous SEWB differs from Western mental health conceptualisations.
(2) A cross-cultural interface was found in CBT, ACT, NT and MST.
(3) Further empirical testing of psychotherapy interventions with Indigenous clients to confirm cultural acceptability, suitability and efficacy
Explorations of understandings of mental health in an urban Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander sample
Full text linkIt has been acknowledged that the mental health of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people has been 'bedevilled' by the inappropriate application of non- Indigenous models of mental health. Given the poor health outcomes of Indigenous people, another approach to mental health practice is perhaps required. In order to enhance Indigenous health and wellbeing, it is necessary for non-Indigenous practitioners to find a culturally safe way in which to enter the negotiated space of cross-cultural mental health. Such practice can be facilitated through understanding both the points of similarity and divergence in perspectives of mental health across cultures. While the majority of Indigenous people live in urban areas, understandings of Indigenous mental health have primarily been derived from research in rural and remote communities. It is unclear whether findings from rural and remote research are applicable in urban Indigenous communities. The aim of the current research is to address this gap and to explore understandings of mental health in an urban Indigenous sample. This study provided a voice for urban Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to convey their understandings of mental health so that an accurate representation may be available for those who are engaged in health promotion and mental health treatment.
Using a positive psychology framework, a strengths-based approach was taken in this study in order to explore understandings of mental health. A qualitative research investigation was conducted with a sample of 19 Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander participants. Data was collected via individual semi-structured interviews and focus groups. Qualitative analysis was conducted using thematic analysis. A model of Indigenous mental health was developed taking an holistic perspective. Four themes emerged as reflecting health and wellbeing and are presented in a model of Indigenous mental health:-
• Coping Skills: emotional, behavioural and cognitive;
• Knowledge: regarding physical health and access to mental health care;
• Social Support: personal resources and help-seeking behaviours; and
• Connectedness: cultural, social and family and kinship.
The theme of connectedness emerged as reflecting a unique contribution to Indigenous health and wellbeing. The role of connectedness to country, family and kinship, knowledge and social networks was highlighted. Further, the theme of connectedness also emerged as central to supporting cultural identity. Not only did connectedness promote and protect mental health and cultural identity, factors that diminished cultural identity also negatively impacted upon mental health. The striking similarity between mental health and cultural identity, as seen in the common theme of connectedness, highlights the necessity of attending to cultural factors to facilitate positive health outcomes.
This model of Indigenous mental health begins to fill in the boundaries of the negotiated space that is cross-cultural psychology - the space where both Indigenous and non-Indigenous knowledge offers a path or guidelines to enhance health and wellbeing. It is essential to address those factors that are similar across cultures – coping skills, social support and knowledge, but also to engage at the cultural interface of connectedness to culture, kinship and social networks.
This information has implications for cross-cultural clinical practice, through providing a map for non-Indigenous practitioners to engage in culturally safe practice. Further, this information will support the development of culturally safe health and wellbeing programs that sustain and nurture the cultural identity and mental health of Indigenous people. In this way, meaningful contributions may be made by health professionals to 'close the gap' in health and mental health outcomes for Indigenous people
The impact of web-cameras on parent-infant attachment in the neonatal intensive care unit
No full textProblem: The introduction of web-cameras in neonatal intensive care units (NICUs) has made it possible for parents to see their sick or premature infant when they cannot be close to them due to prolonged hospital admissions. However, there is a paucity of research into the impact of this technology on the wellbeing of families. A systematic review was conducted to identify previous research and suggest avenues for future inquiry.
Eligibility criteria: Research studies written in English that investigated the impact of web-cameras on parent-infant attachment in the NICU were sought for inclusion. However, due to the dearth of studies focused on this question, the eligibility criteria were extended to include any study that assessed the impact of web-camera use on mechanisms that impact attachment quality, such as bonding, anxiety, stress, and depression.
Results: A total of 152 articles were identified. After duplicates and other non-suitable articles were removed, three studies met eligibility criteria for review.
Conclusion: There are promising indications that the use of web-cameras in the NICU enhances parent-infant attachment by strengthening parents' feelings of closeness to their infants, increasing parental responsiveness and reducing parental stress and anxiety. However, while the overall effects appear to be positive, negative impacts affecting a small proportion of parents were identified. This highlights the need to identify who is most likely to benefit from web-camera technology and who requires alternative supports.
Implications: Web-cameras are a useful adjunct to methods of family-centred care, however, more research is needed to optimise their use and minimise potential harm
Reflective functioning: parents of term and preterm infants' experiences
Full text linkObjective/Background: Secure attachment is characterised by the ability of a sensitive caregiver to mentalise their emotional and cognitive experience and help to develop the self-organisation of their child's own experiences. Premature birth and its associated changes to early parenting practice may interrupt the social and emotional interactions that underpin attachment. It may be that experience of preterm birth changes or impacts upon the parent's capacity for reflective functioning due to associated stressors and distress of early birth. Currently, there is limited research and literature regarding attachment in the neonatal context. This study explored parent's experiences of parenting in the child’s first five years of life. Specifically, the study compared experiences of parents of term infants with parents of preterm infants.
Method: 161 parents completed a paper or online survey exploring reflective functioning. There were 122 term parents and 39 parents of preterm children under the age of 5 years who completed the survey.
Results: Overall, most term and preterm parents reported high levels of good reflective functioning. Preliminary results indicate no significant differences in reflective functioning between parents of term and preterm infants.
Conclusion/Discussion: Although this is a small study, results are encouraging for existing practices that support attachment in the neonatal context. It will be important to conduct further research in a larger sample to replicate these findings. These findings provide novel insights into our understanding of attachment in the neonatal context and will guide work practices of neonatal staff with a view to optimising outcomes for neonates and their families
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Full text linkThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Variations on the Author
Full text link“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
Appropriate Similarity Measures for Author Cocitation Analysis
Full text linkWe provide a number of new insights into the methodological discussion about author cocitation analysis. We first argue that the use of the Pearson correlation for measuring the similarity between authors’ cocitation profiles is not very satisfactory. We then discuss what kind of similarity measures may be used as an alternative to the Pearson correlation. We consider three similarity measures in particular. One is the well-known cosine. The other two similarity measures have not been used before in the bibliometric literature. Finally, we show by means of an example that our findings have a high practical relevance.information science;Pearson correlation;cosine;similarity measure;author cocitation analysis
Complicated Grief Following the Traumatic Loss of a Child: A Systematic Review
Full text linkComplicated grief is a disabling condition that occurs when the natural grief process is disturbed or prolonged. Research demonstrates that complicated grief is more prevalent following the sudden or violent loss of a child. Despite the high incidence of accidental death worldwide, little research has focused on parental grief trajectories following this form of traumatic loss. A systematic review was conducted to explore parental bereavement outcomes following accidental death. Studies were included if they specifically examined complicated grief in parents bereaved by the accidental death of their child. A total of 767 articles were identified and seven studies met the eligibility criteria for review. Poorer outcomes were identified in relation to the mode of death, relationship type, time post-loss, perceived support, perceived justice and comorbidities. Results of the current study may be used to inform the development of clinical practice guidelines for the treatment of complicated grief
Dispelling the Myths Behind First-author Citation Counts
Full text linkWe conducted a full-scale evaluative citation analysis study of scholars in the XML research field to explore just how different from each other author rankings resulting from different citation counting methods actually are, and to demonstrate the capability of emerging data and tools on the Web in supporting more realistic citation counting methods. Our results contest some common arguments for the continued
use of first-author citation counts in the evaluation of scholars, such as high correlations between author rankings by first-author citation counts and other citation
counting methods, and high costs of using more realistic citation counting methods that are not well-supported by the ISI databases. It is argued that increasingly available digital full text research papers make it possible for citation analysis studies to go beyond what the ISI databases have directly supported and to employ more
sophisticated methods
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