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IntroductionObjectiveMethodResultsConclusionEach year, over 700,000 people die by suicide worldwide, and far more attempt and are impacted by the outcome. Agriculture is one of the most dangerous industries in which to work; it is also exposed to a lot of external stressors, such as climatic conditions, market forces (both input and output) and government regulation, as well as internal such as employment and of staff, multiple skills required and isolation. These stressors contribute to the higher rate of farm suicide cases. While there is growing evidence of the protective circumstances (factors) that protect against suicide and suicidality, more needs to be done in the agricultural sector.To review global literature and consolidate the current knowledge regarding protective factors against suicide and suicidality in agricultural communities and elucidate the implications of these findings.A systematic scoping review following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-Sc). A range of databases was searched for the terms “suicide*” or “suicidal behavior”, “suicide attempt”, or “suicidal ideation”, or “suicidality”, and “farm*” or ‘agricultural worker*’ or ‘rancher*’ and ‘protective factors’ or protect”. Paper included had to be peer reviewed in English, include people living, working in or with agriculture or lived in an agricultural area.Fourteen studies met the study criteria, predominately (72%) from the United States of America and Australia. Four (29%) articles discussed individual coping mechanisms and self-reliance as protective factors against suicide and suicidality, while six (43%) described the influence of social support and perceived sense of belonging on suicide risk. Five (36%) papers examined the association between health-promoting and suicide-prevention initiatives as protective factors in agricultural communities.There is limited, however, growing literature about protective factors for the prevention of suicide in agriculture; however, it is skewed to high-income countries. This review demonstrates a link between the development of individual coping skills as a protective factor against suicide in agricultural communities, with a primary focus on farming occupations within this setting. Social support was found to help reduce suicide risk by increasing a sense of belonging. These need to be exploited to drive down suicide rates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sparse professional literature on complaints against social workers, focuses on a few specific variables, discussing them from a universal/contextless viewpoint. This study considers such complaints as a holistic (integrative) issue which should be studied within particular contexts. The research traced service users' complaints against social workers, investigating social workers' conceptions concerning the extent and type of complaints, and the social workers' coping mechanisms. A phenomenological approach elicited data from semi-structured in-depth interviews with 16 social workers from Arab welfare bureaus in Israel. Findings indicated that formal complaints are rare despite many grievances (tazamur) concerning the service. There are almost no complaints concerning serious offences, because in addition to formal punishment, community cultural punishments are severe. Complaints can be lodged in eight regulatory bodies, inside or outside the bureau, distinguished as either educational or disciplinary in policy. Coping strategies (expressing internal or external loci of control) depend on the complaint type (against the system or against the social workers' professional functioning and/or ethical behaviour) and the regulatory body's character. A professional-ethical complaint is a context-informed pragmatic challenge that social workers should understand and be trained to consider as an opportunity for professional development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

AbstractObjectiveMethodResultsConclusionsFinancial exploitation of older adults results in devastating emotional, health, and economic consequences for victims, their families, and society at large. Examining reactions of Holocaust survivors to financial exploitation can provide informative insights into the effects of re-traumatization in highly traumatized older adults. This study examined the personal experiences and meaning that Holocaust survivors attribute to being victims of financial exploitation, thereby assessing an underexplored issue: the effects of financial exploitation on previously traumatized older adults.Fifteen Israeli Holocaust survivors (10 females; 5 males) aged 79–92 (M = 84.66), participated in semi-structured interviews. Data were analyzed according to the phenomenological approach.Analysis yielded four themes. Negative emotional reactions toward financial exploitation included feelings of anger, hurt, shock, and helplessness. Coping mechanisms included adaptive (i.e. acting for the benefit of the self and offspring, helping others, alertness, and caution), and maladaptive (i.e. self-blame and rationalization) mechanisms. Positive life motto relates to participants perceiving themselves as vital and optimistic, grateful, helping the weak, and content with little. Protective and risk factors included family and community protection (versus living alone without resources), education (versus lack of), and taking preventive measures.This study adds to the literature on the experience of revictimization among previously traumatized older adults, Holocaust survivors exposed to financial exploitation, by highlighting adaptive and maladaptive coping mechanisms alongside positive mottos in life, and victims’ perceptions of risk and protective factors. Overall, findings indicate that the participants were characterized by both resilience and vulnerability in the face of financial exploitation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The research highlights challenges involved in ensuring professional authentication faced by social workers working in cultural minorities. The findings contribute to the knowledge corpus that discusses authentication. They describe and explain possible consequences of linguistic difficulties arising in Arab minority social workers’ work in Israel. These workers acquired their profession in a foreign language (Hebrew) but work with their native minority population whose mother tongue is Arabic. A phenomenological study elicited data from semi-structured in-depth interviews with 19 Arab welfare bureau social workers. The workers encounter three language difficulties when working with their service users: They are accused of identifying with the hegemon because they adopt its language; they are viewed as foreign because they have difficulty conveying professional messages accurately; and are seen as alien because the Hebrew terminology they use is anchored in a secularist-individualist culture. The research also identified three coping mechanisms: Ignoring the language barriers; being aware but passive, and adopting three active strategies: self-improvement, getting help from the immediate professional milieu and harnessing external resources. The findings reinforce the requirement of ethical codes for language competence in three fields: lifelong learning, policy design (laws, procedures and guidelines) and implementation (interventions, mentoring and supervision). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Qualitative researchers delve into the lives of their study's participants and embark on profound explorations to attain in-depth information and rich contextual data. For those who research trauma and victimization, they share a close, empathetic relationship with their study participants who communicate intimate, non-abstract information regarding traumatic events. These researchers give voice to and archive the traumas of everyday life as experienced by victimized and traumatized individuals. However, qualitative researchers are at risk of vicarious trauma as a result of listening to the narratives of survivors of trauma and violent crime. In Trinidad and Tobago, this is an under-researched topic. As a result, twelve qualitative Social Sciences researchers at Institutes of Higher Education (IHE) in Trinidad and Tobago were interviewed to elicit their lived experiences of being immersed in qualitative research, the existence of vicarious trauma, and coping strategies employed. The study adopted a phenomenological approach, and the data were analyzed using thematic analysis. The results indicated the presence of vicarious trauma among the study's participants as well as a host of coping mechanisms employed to manage its effects, which raises policy implications for IHE which employs qualitative researchers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

AbstractThis study explores the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the lives of adolescents with disabilities, utilizing an ecological approach. The investigation aims to comprehend the experiences of these individuals in family, society, education, and individual dimensions throughout the pandemic. This study carried out with a qualitative research method, used the Ecological Approach and phenomenological design and focused on mentally disabled, physically disabled and deaf adolescents in Turkey. This research has an “exploratory” feature regarding the method used and the findings obtained. Twenty face-to-face interviews were conducted, employing semi-structured questionnaires and Maxqda (2020) software for data analysis. The results revealed four themes and nine categories, elucidating the challenges faced by adolescents with disabilities during the pandemic. These encompassed Individual Factors, Familial Factors, Educational Factors and Social Factors. The study underscored that the COVID-19 process significantly impacted adolescents with disabilities in bio-psycho-social terms. Furthermore, coping mechanisms varied based on ecological factors and motivation levels. The findings provide valuable insights for future research, addressing a literature gap and emphasizing the need for tailored support systems to mitigate the challenges faced by adolescents with disabilities during and post the COVID-19 era. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study aimed to investigate nursing students' psychological distress and their response to stress during the COVID-19 pandemic. Participants were 370 South African nursing students (female= 75%; mean age= 21.9 years, SD = 3.9 years). Students completed the following scales: Compassion Satisfaction and Fatigue, Kessler Psychological Distress, and Response to Stressful Experiences. Findings from the descriptive statistics and inferential statistical analyses indicated that students meeting the criteria for being well were likely to have higher resilience scores. Protective factors such as self-efficacy, active coping, and spirituality suggest higher resilience during COVID-19-related stressful events. Physiological factors such as self-reported medical conditions and lack of sleep were associated with poorer mental well-being. These findings provide a profile of nursing students' coping and adaptation to a community-spread pandemic. From these findings, nursing schools could manage students' well-being by providing needed resources in their current and future work health support programmes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Work stress is a double-edged sword to creativity. Some analysts call stress a creativity killer while others describe it as a creativity driver. Journalists face a myriad of daily work stresses that forces them to establish a coping mechanism that could evolve over time. The Covid-19 pandemic is a new problem in itself and has also brought new challenges to the daily work stresses of journalists. This phenomenological study, anchored on the Transactional Model of Stress and Coping, had explored the changes in 13 Filipino journalists' work stresses and coping mechanisms and how these developments affected their creative processes during the Covid-19 pandemic. The study yielded six themes that described the changes in journalists' work stressors and their coping mechanisms, as well as the reasons behind their attempt to remain creative despite the stressful nature of the profession. The study also puts forward a definition of daily work stress in journalism and establishes an inventory of identified work stresses under the "new normal." Study findings will help newsrooms adopt and implement necessary measures that would ease their employees' negative stressors, while improving the work environment to induce creativity through positive stressors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on four interviews with parents committed to climate protection, it is shown how they deal with the existential threat posed by the climate crisis and how it affects their relationships with their children. It becomes apparent that these parents are profoundly unsettled by the climate crisis, because they are aware of their own responsibility for their children and future generations. The interviewees describe how much of a burden it is for them to deal with the ominous forecasts for the future without being able to simply ignore them – as many others do. They feel guilt toward their children about how they have lived their lives so far, wasting resources. Although they often feel helpless and powerless, they are also actively involved in the climate movement for the sake of their children, which gives them some hope. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Internally displaced youth and adolescents may continue to suffer from displacement-associated trauma and stress many years after initial displacement. Hence, our study initially aimed to qualitatively explore how displaced youth and adolescents in Nigeria are coping with the trauma and stress associated with protracted displacement. However, through serendipity, results from the thematic analysis of semi-structured interviews from 22 displaced youths and nine professionals in Abuja revealed that in addition to some positive coping mechanisms, some displaced young males turn to drugs, while some young women turn to transactional sex and multiple sexual partners to deal with the impact of protracted displacement. This may lead to increased crime, morbidity, and mortality, thus requiring immediate intervention. This paper concluded by recommending that social workers help displaced youth and adolescents deal with their current stressors by advocating for the improvement of their living situation while also working with other professionals to intervene on the issue of drug misuse and unhealthy sexual behaviours through continuous education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of the present study was to determine the level of stress, anxiety, and depression among Slovenian parents of children with autism spectrum disorder and their coping mechanisms. The study included 42 parents of children with ASD who were enrolled at a specialised clinic for children with hearing and speech difficulties. We used the Depression Anxiety Stress Scales (DASS), the Coping Orientation to Problems Experienced (COPE) inventory, and a demographic questionnaire which included questions on satisfaction with life and social support received. The respondents reported no clinically elevated levels of stress, depression or anxiety. However, the mothers reported more stress and anxiety related symptoms then did the fathers. The results showed that coping strategies of positive reinterpretation and growth were positively correlated to higher perceived social support and greater satisfaction with life, and were negatively correlated with depression and anxiety. Perceived social support was highly negatively correlated with anxiety. Strategies of acceptance were used significantly more often by individuals with a higher level of education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The loss of a companion animal results in millions of pet owners grieving annually. To date, little information has been synthesized on the grief response and coping mechanisms of bereaved pet owners. The aim of this review was to examine the relationship between pet loss and owner grief response. Major themes included: factors that influence the grief response, the disenfranchised nature surrounding pet loss, ambiguous pet loss and coping mechanisms used. Across the 48 studies included in this review, bereaved pet owners frequently reported feelings of embarrassment and loneliness following the loss of their pet. Types of coping mechanisms used by bereaved pet owners were identified and included: isolation, social support, continuing bonds, memorialization, religion, and relationships with other animals. Overall, this review was able to identify a consensus among the literature that bereaved pet owners are likely to experience disenfranchisement surrounding their loss. Based on the present findings, suggestions for future research include a focus on the effectiveness of coping mechanisms used by bereaved pet owners. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Artificial eye clinics address physical and aesthetic aspects of orbital prostheses, but psychological effects may not be formally addressed. In general, without effective coping mechanisms, stress can lead to anxiety and depression. This study aims to determine, in the context of having an artificial eye, whether coping strategies, as well as perception of illness and other demographic and clinical variables are associated with anxiety or depression. Consecutive patients attending two artificial eye clinics were invited to participate in this audit. Participants completed questionnaires: HADS, Brief IPQ and Brief COPE. Variables with a correlation coefficient of ≥0.2 with anxiety or depression were included in regression modeling. The extent to which the participants' emotional and cognitive representations of their artificial eye related to feelings of anxiety and depression was determined. In the cohort of 208, clinically significant anxiety was present in 29.5% and clinically significant depression was present in 8.4%. Perceptions of the impact of the artificial eye and self-blame as a coping strategy were correlated with anxiety. Depression levels were higher when participants believed that their artificial eye had a greater impact on their life, when they lived alone, and when they used substances as a coping strategy. Significant levels of anxiety exist in those living with artificial eyes, with various coping strategies used. Addressing this and offering alternative coping strategies may improve patient well being and overall satisfaction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The prevalence of teacher stress, anxiety, and depression (SAD) has been confirmed and investigated in various contexts. This research aimed to study the (dys)functional coping strategies (CSs) of teachers and their experienced SAD levels. Of the 549 invited language teachers, 398 (75%) teachers with various occupational attributes participated in this study by completing the (Dys)functional Coping Strategies Scales (DCSS) and the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scales (DASS). The results indicated high teacher SAD rates (M = 31%). Regarding teacher professional characteristics, preservice teachers were more susceptible to suffer from stress, while expert teachers were at risk of experiencing anxiety and depression. Among the recognized functional CSs, talking with friends, parents, etc. and self-monitoring to control feelings appear to be the two important protective cognitive-behavioral (C-B) mechanisms to deal with teacher SAD. Using negative self-talk and self-blame and smoking cigarettes (excessively) were the concerning coping mechanisms of teachers with SAD. It is suggested that effective and continuous interventions should be developed and incorporated into teacher education programs to equip teachers with required CSs and to promote functional C-B conducts and strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this contribution, using a case-study approach, we focus on the assassination of Ján Kuciak and his fiancée and explore the impact and consequences that it had on the community of investigative journalists in Slovakia. By conducting a series of semi-structured interviews with top investigative journalists (N = 12), we seek to answer two questions: How have they coped with the murder of their colleague? And, how has this incident changed their everyday journalistic practices and routines when it comes to achieving and maintaining safety? We identified 12 coping actions which, based on their function, were organised into five higher order families of coping: emotional purging; sharing and support seeking; avoidance and displacement; defiance and defence; and spreading the legacy and giving meaning to the tragedy. Regarding safety and security practices, the journalists claim that their approach has fundamentally changed. A variety of measures to stay safe, both online and offline, were adopted both on the organisational and on the individual level. However, many of these measures are not used consistently, mostly because they are not deemed necessary when covering non-sensitive topics, but also because of their impracticality in everyday journalistic work, and sceptical and fatalistic approach of the journalists to safety. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Whilst post-GFC austerity state retrenchment is widely studied, there is little research which focuses on the experiences of those who work at the front-line of austere public services. Drawing on qualitative evidence with front-line workers in four UK local authorities significantly impacted by austerity, this paper explores 'coping mechanisms' developed by workers to manage resource restriction. It argues that existing conceptualisations of coping mechanisms, such as either resistance or adaptation, are insufficient to understand how workers manage contemporary austerity. This paper proposes an additional mechanism – absorption – and explores analytically how workers cope with austerity in terms of resistance, adaptation and absorption. The paper concludes that front-line local government workers are coping with austerity cuts, in large part, by acting as 'shock absorbers' of state retrenchment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract This study examined the capacity of sex as leisure approach to serve as a coping strategy with the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on sex life and its relationships with people’s tendency to use other coping mechanisms and benefit from them. The cross-sectional data were collected using an online survey (N = 675, 65.9% women, age range:18-76yo). The analysis included t-tests and multivariate multiple regressions. Results show that many people used sex as leisure approach as a coping strategy with the impacts of the pandemic on their sex lives and found it useful. Sex as leisure approach included attitudinal, behavioral, and technologically mediated strategies. The use and capacity to benefit from sex as leisure coping strategy had significant (and in most cases, large) effects on people’s propensity to use and find useful other sexual coping mechanisms, including creativity and pleasure, diversion, goal-setting, relational, educational, caution/logistical, online and technology, and innovation/experimentation coping strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since the 1990s, integrated catchment management (ICM) has been promoted as a holistic and integrated approach to water resources management. However, there is evidence to show that the costs and benefits associated with ICM are often inequitably distributed. This study investigates impacts of the implementation of catchment strategies on four rural communities and the coping mechanisms available to residents to cope with concomitant socioeconomic hardships within the Densu River basin, Ghana. The study relies on data collected through reviewing regulatory and policy documents, interviews, observations, and a household survey of 327 respondents. The results show that the implementation of the catchment strategies has negatively impacted the economies of all communities leading to local resistance. Increasing unemployment, decreasing incomes, and decreasing sales are generating increasing crime rates, out migration, and changing gender roles with additional burden on women. What compounds the problem are that socioeconomic interventions and coping mechanisms have failed to make any significant impact. We argue that for effective ICM, proportional representation of local people on catchment committees should be central in order to incorporate a thorough understanding of the local socioeconomic issues and integrating those issues into the implementation process; otherwise catchment strategies risk disproportionately impacting rural communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article formulates some key aspects of the experiences of Estonian men who served in World War I, and went through subsequent critical situations during and after World War II–including interrogation, imprisonment, and forced settlement. By focusing on the case study of Oskar Nõmmela (1893–1969), the article analyzes various coping mechanisms and strategies – especially those relating to interpersonal relationships – that were used in difficult situations. We investigate how successful or unsuccessful these strategies turned out to be in aiding Nõmmela to navigate between hope and despair; and how the strategies evolved throughout his life from one critical situation to another. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Correctional officers are at high risk of exposure to workplace violence, and many report experiencing severe mental health symptoms, including post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety, and depression. Despite growing concern for these issues, however, we do not yet fully understand the coping mechanisms correctional officers employ to manage work-related stress, or how coping mechanisms affect workplace outcomes. To address these questions, we utilize original survey data about California correctional officers. We draw on the Stress Process Paradigm to model the relationship between exposure to violence and mental health, the impact of occupational stress on the development of coping mechanisms, and whether differential coping mechanism utilization impacts officers' levels of cynicism and desire to leave corrections. Our findings suggest that emotion-focused coping (e.g. having someone to talk to) is associated with lower intention to leave correctional employment, while the opposite is true for avoidant coping (i.e. alcohol abuse). These insights shed light on the problem of officer turnover and retention, and provide potential direction to policymakers and practitioners seeking to create an effective, healthy workforce. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This exploratory study of 34 religious, traditional, and secular Arab Muslim social workers in Israel traces the dilemmas caused by potential clashes between their professional and religious values. The findings suggest that although all the interviewees were aware of such clashes, only the religious ones adopted coping strategies to address them. The traditional workers regarded the conflicts in universal moral terms, and the secular workers distanced themselves from their religion. None of the respondents were familiar with the Islamization of social work in the Arab world that might have helped them resolve their dilemmas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The objective of this study was to determine the positive and negative coping mechanisms practiced by parents of paediatric inpatients and outpatients in order to prepare a health educational comic aimed at improving these response mechanisms. Data were collected from parents visiting general paediatric outpatient clinics or hospitalisation units, at a children's hospital in a metropolitan city. Data analysis was based on 258 completed surveys received from 308 (83.77%) respondents. Each parent completed a survey that included the Brief-COPE-Coping Orientation to Problems Experienced questionnaire that encompassed 14 subscales of positive and negative coping mechanisms. Parents used both positive and negative coping mechanisms in outpatient clinics and hospitalisation units. Scores involving negative coping mechanisms were increased and associated with the severity of a child's reason for visiting a children's hospital. The lowest scores were reported by parents whose children were seen at outpatient clinics, whereas the highest scores were reported by parents whose children were treated in critical care units. Learning about parents' coping mechanisms provided key information for preparing an electronic health education comic book (electronically distributed free of charge) and can be used to teach and promote the reinforcement of positive rather than negative coping mechanisms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Past research has shown farmer anxiety and stress have significantly affected many farmers and their families due not only to the impact on feelings of happiness and success, but also on output efficiency, accident rates, and health. The past approach to ameliorating anxiety has been through utilizing coping mechanisms such as sharing with significant others, venting, planning, self-blame, and positive thinking. A problem has also been farmers' reluctance to voice difficulties and seek help. Method: An alternative, more basic approach to anxiety amelioration is possible. This involves isolating the human characteristics that lead to anxiety, and subsequently modifying these to reduce anxiety and its associated impacts. Accordingly, the extensive literature on anxiety and stress was reviewed to facilitate developing an hypothesis outlining the important components explaining farmer anxiety. To assess the parameters of farmer anxiety, a random survey of New Zealand farmers was used to obtain their ratings on their anxiety. Regression models were used to quantify the relationships. Results: Specific farmer personal characteristics were shown to be highly related to anxiety. These included a farmer's personality, objective set, belief in their ability to control outcomes, as well as education and age. Conclusion: This analysis provides the information required to direct counseling efforts to modify the anxiety creating personal variables and, consequently, reduce anxiety and its impact on a longer term basis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

'Non-offending pedophiles' or 'minor attracted persons' are individuals who suppress an attraction to children. Previous analyses of this population's mental illness employed overt self-report methods, limited by social desirability. Additionally, studies assessing the coping mechanisms employed to remain offense-free are underpowered; understanding of these would facilitate the rehabilitation of prior offenders. A thematic analysis of coping mechanisms and mental illness was conducted on 5,210 posts on the 'Virtuous Pedophiles' forum. Four themes emerged for coping mechanisms: Managing risk and attraction to children, Managing mood, Managing preferences prosocially and Friends, family and relationships, with 13 subthemes. Five themes emerged for mental ill-health, including: Addiction, Anxiety, Depression, Self-hatred/Self-harm/Suicide and Other. Self-hatred/Self-harm/Suicide accounted for almost a third of discussed mental ill-health. These results highlight the severity of mental ill-health amongst this population and the coping mechanisms employed to remain offense-free. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study considers the impacts on staff of supporting people who have reported sexual violence and attend a Sexual Assault Referral Centre (SARC). This paper focuses on the staff's perspectives of the stresses and emotional tolls they experience including the coping mechanisms they utilise. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 12 staff, and a focus group was held with a further four staff of a SARC. The data were examined using thematic analysis. Findings indicated that staff experienced positive emotions connected to the meaningfulness of the work and team spirit as well as a range of unpleasant emotions. Staff also reported emotional numbing, in connection to the specificity, volume and sometimes unpredictable nature of the work. Coping mechanisms used by staff focused on the supportive connection to family, nature, and other team members; the value of clinical supervision; and the avoidance of topics related to work. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dissociation is a lack of information integration resulting from a process that ranges on a continuum from normative experiences (e.g., daydreaming) to a pervasive traumatic response involving alterations and/or fragmentation in mental processes such as memory, emotion, and perception. Perceived coping self-efficacy (CSE) is a cognitive appraisal ability utilized to regulate internal and external stressors that arise from traumatic events, and is crucial for effective adaptation after extreme stress or trauma. Thus, CSE may be a critical component in decreasing dissociative experiences following a traumatic event. In the present study, 136 undergraduate students (M age = 22.36 years, SD = 6.27; 81% female, 69.1% Caucasian, 77.2% attended some college) completed self-report measures of trauma, dissociation, and coping self-efficacy. All measures were completed by the same participants at two different time points (Time 1 and Time 2) two months apart; all participants reported a history of exposure to at least one Criterion A traumatic event (according to the DSM-5) at Time 1. We hypothesized that CSE for posttraumatic coping demands at Time 2 would mediate the relationship between dissociation at Time 1 and dissociation at Time 2, and subsequently found evidence of significant mediation, 95% CI [.02,.18]. These findings suggest that initial levels of persistent dissociation negatively predict CSE, which in turn directly and negatively influence persistent dissociation at a later time point. This highlights how CSE may serve as a protective factor against persistent dissociation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite the availability of free medicines under the Directly Observed Treatment Short-course (DOTS) strategy, the treatment of tuberculosis (TB) still involves high costs that push people into poverty. This study aims to assess the resulting economic burden of TB and examine the coping mechanisms practiced at the household level in Pakistan. A cross-sectional study was conducted at TB centers by interviewing 269 patients. Statistical tests and binary logistic regression were used to explore the relationship between catastrophic health expenditures (CHE) and socio-economic factors. Results show that the incidence and intensity of CHE were higher for households in the lower income-quintile. Several coping strategies were practiced and varied among the different income-quintiles. The independent determinants of CHE were as follows: age >40 years, male-patient, location, earner-ratio, patient as the earner, caretaker visits, treatment delay, and co-morbidity. It is recommended that health policymakers develop post-MDGs TB-control strategies to ensure free TB-services with financial protection around the globe. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research examined the stressor–strain relationship, specifically as it applies between social stressors and the behavioral strain of drug-alcohol-tobacco (DAT) use. Using a transactional model of the job stress process, this article examines the mediating role of coping strategy between perceived workplace-conflict types and employee DAT use. Of the conflict types, nontask organizational conflict emerged as an incremental predictor of employee DAT use. Results also indicated indirect effects from workplace stress upon employee DAT use, especially through avoidant, withdrawal, and disengagement type strategies. Implications for workplace interventions and future research considerations are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The purpose of the present study was to examine whether coping mechanisms predict physical health, after controlling for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptom clusters in a non-clinical sample of adults. Data were collected from 483 adults through an online survey. Most of the participants (66.7%) reported lifetime exposure to at least one traumatic event. The final sample of this study included 319 trauma-exposed individuals. Results indicated that PTSD symptoms on the avoidance and hyperarousal clusters had significant positive relationships with self-reported physical health symptoms. After controlling for gender and PTSD, denial, behavioral disengagement, and self-blame significantly and positively predicted physical health symptoms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This contribution addresses two questions. First, what forms and shapes does European Union (EU) differentiation take in the realm of representative democracy in the multilevel constellation that makes up the EU? Second, what are the implications of differentiation for the theory and the practice of democracy? The question is whether citizens are capable of governing themselves in a political entity marked by patterns of authority and/or policy-making that vary in unprecedented ways along territorial and functional lines. Drawing on differentiation rather than the more commonly used term differentiated integration entails a somewhat different research focus and allows considering the democratic challenges of patterns of integration and disintegration actualized by the euro crisis. The contribution establishes a set of democratic standards and assesses the democratic implications of differentiation in the EU. Doing that requires paying explicit attention to the distinctive character of the multilevel EU's structure of democratic representation. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Accountability is of growing importance in contemporary governance. The academic literature on public accountability is fraught with concerned analyses, suggesting that accountability is a problematic issue for public managers. This article investigates how public managers experience accountability and how they cope with accountability. The analysis highlights a number of ways in which public managers do indeed “suffer” from accountability, although, conversely, most of the respondents were able to identify strategic coping mechanisms with which apparently problematic accountability requirements can be converted into practically useful procedures. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Theravada Buddhism is the religion of Thailand and is acknowledged by a majority of population underpinning the values of the dominant group and tending to effect non-dominant groups. Therefore, it is undoubted that Buddhism has a strong influence on the everyday life of Thai people and their society and culture. In addition, Buddhism has influenced Thai society for centuries in terms of acceptance and kindness towards fellow people in order to maintain harmony in the human race. However, how much the influence of Buddhism is actually perceived and functioned in the everyday life of Thai people and the difference of Thai culture from other cultural groups is little understood. A constructivist paradigm with semi-structured interviews was employed. This paper analyses avoidance of confrontation as one of the characteristics of the Thai personality that is different to Western societies because Thai people avoid expressions of anger, displeasure and criticism while Westerners are perceived as more confrontational. These mild manners of Thai people bring a certain degree of harmony to their society. In this paper, Buddha's teaching and the Thai personality, not least avoidance of confrontation, underpins the reflection on how Thai people respond to sociocultural changes. This paper discuss why local people accept tourism as well as why they apparently attribute blame elsewhere. In addition, coping strategies, in terms of Thai psychology, how they respond to the sociocultural impacts of tourism is examined at the end. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study seeks to determine which job demands (role ambiguity, role conflict, and role overload) and work or job resources (training, rewards, supervisory support, and service technology) are most closely associated with the three major components of burnout (emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and reduced personal accomplishment). A related objective of the study is to ascertain which coping mechanisms seem to be relied on by frontline employees in dealing with the dysfunctional effects of burnout. Frontline bank employees in New Zealand serve as the study setting. Results and their implications are discussed and suggestions for future research are offered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The depth and geographical scope of the impacts of the 2007-2008 food price hikes have received wide attention, and calls have been made for urgent actions to minimise the short- and long-term negative effects on vulnerable groups, including women in farming communities. This article, based on research from farming households in Bangladesh and Ethiopia, confirms that it is gender inequality that makes women more vulnerable to the food price hikes, yet they are resourcefully devising ways to cope with scarcity in availability, access and consumption of food. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article focuses on the complex nature of eating disorders, specifically highlighting their use as coping mechanisms for underlying emotional and psychological concerns. Case examples of college counseling center clients are discussed in order to illustrate common ways in which eating disorders are utilized by clients with varying symptomatology. Offering reflections on their work with clients in the college setting, the authors discuss implications for counselors who work with similar clients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The purpose of the present study was to investigate agroforestry adoption by smallholder farmers in Gutu District, Zimbabwe. Design/Methodology/Approach: The methodology was based on field data collected through household questionnaires, key informant interviews and direct observations. Findings: Major findings reveal that traditional agroforestry was common in the study area. There were no cases of innovative agroforestry other than dwindling remnants from a former trees-with-pasture project. Majority of respondents were willing to adopt innovative agroforestry technologies to improve yields and income. Damage and destruction of plants by pests and animals due to lack of fences emerged as the major challenges to the adoption of agroforestry. Other challenges included seed availability and labour requirements. Possible coping strategies, identified through consulting farmers and other stakeholders, would include local initiatives and support from outside the community. Local and external efforts are required especially to secure inputs and raise awareness, knowledge and skills with respect to specific agroforestry technologies. Practical Implications: The paper presents pointers on the involvement of women in agroforestry and on the cultural significance of indigenous and exotic fruit trees. It provides practical lessons useful to extension or rural development workers in a localised set-up. Originality/Value: The case study gives an insight into the problems faced by peasant farmers and the requirements to make agroforestry successful. Practitioners in southern Africa could learn a great deal about issues relating to smallholder farmers from reading this paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The main objective of this study, part of an investigation into the health of guardians of HIV/AIDS orphans, was to explore the guardians' coping mechanisms. Previous research has shown that there is a relationship between the use of social support networks and the guardians' ability to cope with the challenges of caring for HIV/AIDS orphans. Data were collected by means of a socio-demographic questionnaire and individual semi-structured interviews with guardians who attend a support group organised by a non-governmental organisation in Alexandra, the oldest township in Gauteng and a very poor area of South Africa. The article concludes that harnessing social support networks is an effective strategy that could help guardians cope with the challenges of caring for HIV/AIDS orphans. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Gay men, like lesbians, bisexuals, and transgender persons, must negotiate their sexual orientation due to the socially constructed negative view of homosexuality in our culture. Stigma is experienced in various ways according to the meaning that the individual applies to it. This study gleans lessons from the life stories of 15 gay men who recognized the stigma of homosexuality and devised strategies to cope with it. An important finding was that mentors, acting as “cultural brokers,” played a significant role in helping to cope with stigma. The intent of this study is to add to the literature regarding mechanisms that social workers can employ to help gay men cope with stigmatization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article looks at the various ways in which the Mozambican writer, Luís Bernardo Honwana, displays colonial trauma and oppression in his short story collection, Nós Matámos o Cão-Tinhoso, first published in 1964, and then in 1969 as an English translation with the title We Killed Mangy-Dog and Other Mozambican Stories. Due to the scope of this study my analysis will concentrate on three stories from this collection: 'Inventory of Furniture and Effects', 'The Old Woman', and 'Dina'. I show how the writer uses specific objects and actions to display the traumas and psychological fragmentation affecting colonial subjects and illustrate how those are directly linked to the brutality of the Portuguese colonial regime. Honwana's literature qualifies as 'literature of the eye'. The author is more interested in 'displaying' than overtly 'saying' or explaining. His writing becomes what can be described as the acute optical surveillance of a failed regime that dehumanizes both oppressed and oppressor: it functions as the literal mirror of oppression, self-oppression, unconsciousness, humiliation and trauma. By putting that mirror before our eyes the author is taking a firm stand against a highly inhumane regime, and informing the oppressed (and perhaps also the oppressor) about their own condition, and thus, one can argue, inciting them to take action against the regime responsible for such a condition. In the last two stories, special attention is given to self-oppression, internalized oppression, and the various coping mechanisms developed by the colonized subjects and how these constitute symptoms of an alienated society - a society where individuals lose their spiritual, emotional, psychological and rational integrative connections, becoming unconscious beings who cannot be, or have great difficulty being, 'whole' again, 'seeing' the full spectrum of their lives and envisaging a 'freer' state of being. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Adaptation to already discernible climate changes, particularly an increase in extreme events, is an urgent task for all nations. This article argues that adaptation is an urgent priority, especially for the developing world, to build a resilient society. For poor nations, poverty alleviation is the main policy driver, although changes in livelihood strategies are driven by a range of factors. Using a case study, direct and indirect adaptation is examined with reference to the specific livelihoods of the Chagga people on Kilimanjaro, Tanzania. Evidence suggests that coping strategies to maintain livelihood systems can work against long-term adaptation to climate change, unless there is linkage to poverty alleviation. Linking climate change adaptation to project development through notions of additionality does not carry sufficient leverage to simultaneously address poverty alleviation and climate change. It is suggested that, rather than micro-economic project management, a broader macro-economic frame be established. A rights-based approach is argued as a vital driver for informing financial, institutional, political and technological policies and instruments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In an exploratory study of loss and recuperation in six Bosnian refugees, loss of place, home, and a way of life appeared to be overwhelming. In spite of such major losses, respondents used numerous coping mechanisms to deal with the loss. Cognitive coping appeared to be more appropriate, given the limited avenues for active coping. Making meaning out of their experience appeared to be an important avenue of healing. Some used limited active and emotional coping that when combined with cognitive methods helped give them a sense of control over their situation, however minor. Thus they couldmaintain a part of themselves unaffected by the onslaught of trauma and loss. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This study utilized the Delphi methodology to collect the opinion of experts in the clinical treatment and study of physically traumatized children and their families on the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU). Nurses, social workers, psychologists, a physician, and a family therapist were asked to identify sources of stress, response patterns, and coping mechanisms exhibited by family members following a physically traumatizing event and during the child's subsequent treatment on a PICU. Conclusions indicate that a secondary traumatic stress response may be experienced by these individuals, as well as a systemic traumatic stress reaction experienced within the family system. Recommendations for future research and clinical implications of the research findings are also discussed. This study was one of the first to utilize the Internet as it's primary means of expert recruitment and data collection. A full description of the methodology is included. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

A group of 43 student nurses were studied before and immediately after their first eight weeks of nightwork. Volunteers answered questions about their general health, sleep, and eating habits, as well as their social lives and relationships with friends. In all measures there was a deterioration produced by nightwork. About half the subjects volunteered the view that the forthcoming nightwork would cause a decline in the standard of their lifestyle or that it would improve now that nightwork had finished. This subgroup showed a significantly greater deterioration in interpersonal relationships, even though general health status was not significantly different. These results indicate that the problems associated with nightwork can arise before coping mechanisms can be expected to have been devised, and even in anticipation of nightwork. They imply that counselling is needed before nightwork is actually started. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]