Search

The current study explored the language barriers to help-seeking in the context of reproductive coercion and abuse (RCA), domestic and family violence (DFV), and sexual violence (SV), drawing on observations by key informants supporting women from migrant and refugee communities. A lack of shared language has been identified as a key barrier to help seeking for migrant and refugee women experiencing DFV more broadly, though how language intersects with help seeking in the context of RCA is yet to be investigated. We conducted 6 focus groups with 38 lawyers, counsellors, and social workers supporting women experiencing DFV in Brisbane and Melbourne, Australia. Our findings address two main areas. First, consistent with past research in DFV, our participants identified language as a barrier for women when communicating about sexual and reproductive issues in the context of health and police encounters. More specifically, our findings suggest that the inability of health professionals and police to communicate with women who have low or no English proficiency not only negatively impacted victims/survivors' ability to access support, but also facilitated the perpetration of RCA. We conclude that language can be a mechanism through which coercive control is enacted by perpetrators of RCA and health and policing systems may not be equipped to recognise and address this issue. We also suggest that greater conceptual clarity of RCA is needed within the DFV sector in order to tailor responses., Author(s): Nicola Sheeran [sup.1] , Laura Tarzia [sup.2] [sup.3] , Heather Douglas [sup.2] Author Affiliations: (1) grid.1022.1, 0000 0004 0437 5432, School of Applied Psychology, Griffith University, , Mt Gravatt [...]

Previous research investigating the relationship between peer-assisted study sessions (also called supplemental instruction or peer-assisted learning) and academic performance has a number of concerns. These include the lack of inclusion of important variables such as academic motivation and personality. This study (N = 233) investigated how motivation, personality, and control variables (prior subject attempts, number of university semesters completed, prior academic achievement) have an impact on the relationship between peer-assisted study sessions attendance and academic performance for psychology students. The results indicated that peer-assisted study sessions attendance predicted academic performance when controlling for academic motivation, personality, and control variables; however, the magnitude of the relationship was almost halved (r = 0.27 to ß = 0.13). Peer-assisted study sessions attendance mediated the relationship between neuroticism (?[superscript 2] = 0.04) and prior academic achievement (?[superscript 2] = 0.05) and academic performance, indicating that participants with these characteristics benefit from the sessions. Finally, adjunct peer-assisted study sessions focused on assessment items appear to be a large part of its efficacy in this sample.

Educators and researchers are increasingly interested in the benefits of using Facebook groups attached to university courses, largely around connectedness, engagement and sense of belonging. However, thus far, there have been no broad-scale investigations on the potential outcomes of course-attached Facebook groups. The current study used both within- and between-group analyses on 471 participants, in order to investigate whether courses with an attached official or unofficial Facebook group was related to increased student engagement (in the categories of relationships with faculty members, peer relationships, behavioural engagement, cognitive engagement, valuing and a sense of belonging) and degree identity compared to courses without Facebook groups. Results indicated that students reported interacting more with unofficial than official Facebook groups. Courses with an official Facebook group had significantly greater staff connectedness compared to courses without an official Facebook group, while courses with either an official or unofficial Facebook group had a significantly higher peer relationships compared to courses without any Facebook group. Students with either an official or unofficial Facebook group had a significantly higher sense of belonging. Though students with either an official or unofficial Facebook group reported higher degree identity, this may be primarily due to the unofficial, rather than official Facebook groups; this difference may only exist in the unofficial, but not the official Facebook groups.

Patient-centered care (PCC) is the prevailing model of care globally. However, most research on PCC has been conducted in Westernized countries or has focused on only two facets of PCC: decision-making and information exchange. Our study examined how culture influences patients' preferences for five facets of PCC, including communication, decision-making, empathy, individualized focus, and relationship. Participants (N = 2071) from Hong Kong, the Philippines, Australia, and the U.S.A. completed an online survey assessing their preferences for exchange of information, autonomy in decision-making, expression and validation of their emotions, focus on them as an individual, and the doctor-patient relationship. Participants from all four countries had similar preferences for empathy and shared decision-making. For other facets of PCC, participants in the Philippines and Australia expressed somewhat similar preferences, as did those in the U.S.A. and Hong Kong, challenging East–West stereotypes. Participants in the Philippines placed greater value on relationships, whereas Australians valued more autonomy. Participants in Hong Kong more commonly preferred doctor-directed care, with less importance placed on the relationship. Responses from U.S.A. participants were surprising, as they ranked the need for individualized care and two-way flow of information as least important. Empathy, information exchange, and shared decision-making are values shared across countries, while preferences for how the information is shared, and the importance of the doctor-patient relationship differ. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Inadequate consideration has been given to patient preferences for patient-centered care (PCC) across countries or cultures in our increasingly global society. We examined what 1,698 participants from the United States, Hong Kong, Philippines, and Australia described as important when making health care decisions. Analysis of frequencies following directed content coding of open-ended questions revealed differences in patients' preferences for doctor behaviors and decision-making considerations across countries. Being well informed by their doctor emerged as most important in decision-making, especially in Hong Kong. Participants in Australia and the United States wanted their doctor to meet their emotional needs. The safety and efficacy of treatments were the most common consideration, especially for Hong Kong. Findings suggest that doctors should focus on information exchange and identifying patient concerns about efficacy, lifestyle impact, cost, and recovery speed. Rather than assuming patients prefer shared decision-making, doctors must assess patient's decision control preferences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite the importance of spoken language in psychotherapy processes with clients whose native language is distinct from the language of therapy, there is a dearth of research on mental health practitioners (MHPs) language competence. This research aimed to develop the Perceptions of Cross-lingual Practice (PCLP) scale designed to aid MHPs' cross-lingual practice. Study 1 developed items and collected data from Australian MHPs (n = 155) to test the scale's factor structure through exploratory factor analysis. Study 2 (n = 257) confirmed the emergent factor structure of the scale through confirmatory factor analysis and further assessed its reliability and convergent validity. The final 23-item measure had good reliability and validity. Three factors emerged; MHPs' perceptions of self-competence, MHPs' perceptions of difficulties faced by clients, and MHPs' perceptions of barriers for themselves imposed by language. The perceptions of self-competence subscale was weakly related to the other subscales highlighting a disconnect between MHPs' self-perceptions and perceptions of contextual factors. The PCLP is a reliable and valid measure of MHPs' perceptions of cross-lingual practice composed of three subscales each with good psychometric properties that can be used for various purposes in the evaluation and development of MHPs in post-graduate and professional settings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reproductive coercion and abuse is defined as behaviour that deliberately interferes with a person's reproductive autonomy. It is typically perpetrated by men against women in a context of fear and control and includes forcing a woman to become pregnant or to terminate a pregnancy. There is a dearth of qualitative research investigating experiences of reproductive coercion and abuse, particularly for women from minority ethnic backgrounds. In this study, we address this gap through qualitative analysis of data from six focus groups with service providers in Australia. Three main themes were developed: 1) exploiting structural inequalities; 2) women as reproductive property; and 3) pregnancy as a form of control. Findings confirm the complex interplay between reproductive coercion and abuse, intimate partner and sexual violence, and suggest that community attitudes towards women's role in sex and reproduction and structural risk factors may complicate this nexus even further for minority ethnic women. It is important for service providers supporting minority ethnic women – particularly in antenatal and abortion care – to be aware of reproductive coercion and abuse. Similarly, policies concerning access to financial support for minority ethnic women should acknowledge the critical role this could play in facilitating or preventing abuse. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Emerging research suggests that reproductive coercion and abuse (RCA), like intimate partner violence (IPV), is associated with poorer mental and sexual health outcomes, including greater symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and depression and poorer markers of physical and sexual health such as sexually transmitted infections, unplanned pregnancies and lowered sexual agency. Although victims/survivors of RCA report long-lasting impacts on future relationships, including fear and anxiety, little is known about impacts of RCA on anxiety and general wellbeing, nor emotional and mental components of sexual health that comprise a person’s sexual self-concept. With community samples of participants in Australia, we conducted two studies to explore the impact of RCA and IPV on psychological (study 1) and sexual (study 2) health outcomes. Study 1 (n = 368) found that experiencing IPV and RCA both significantly and uniquely contributed to poorer mental health outcomes. After controlling for age and IPV, RCA significantly predicted symptoms of depression, anxiety, stress, PTSD, and reduced satisfaction with life. Study 2 (n = 329) found that IPV and RCA differentially predicted various components of sexual health. IPV predicted decreased sexual satisfaction and increased sexual anxiety, depression, and fear of sexual encounters. After controlling for age and IPV, RCA significantly and uniquely predicted lower levels of sexual assertiveness and increased sexual depression and fear of sexual encounters, but not sexual satisfaction or anxiety. We conclude that RCA is associated with significant psychological distress and a negative sexual self-concept that may impact future relationships. Screening for both IPV and RCA across settings is warranted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reproductive coercion is any interference with a person's reproductive autonomy that seeks to control if and when they become pregnant, and whether the pregnancy is maintained or terminated. It includes sabotage of contraceptive methods and intervention in a woman's access to health care. Our study sought to explore the prevalence and associations with reproductive coercion within Queensland, Australia, where legislation addressing domestic violence and abortion are largely state based and undergoing a period of law reform. The study was a retrospective analysis of 3,117 Queensland women who contacted a telephone counseling and information service regarding an unplanned pregnancy. All data were collected by experienced counselors regarding circumstances within a current pregnancy between January 2015 and July 2017. Overall, experience of current domestic violence was significantly more likely to co-occur with reproductive coercion (21.1%) compared with reproductive coercion identified in the absence of other domestic violence (3.1%). Furthermore, significantly more mental health issues were reported by 36.6% of women affected by reproductive coercion, compared with 14.1% of women with no reproductive coercion present. Disclosure for reproductive coercion, violence, and mental health issues was much higher among women who made a repeat contact to the counselors about their pregnancy (17.8%) compared with those who disclosed at first contact (5.9%). These findings demonstrate the importance for health services to ensure that appropriate screening (and re-screening) for reproductive coercion is completed as a distinct part of screening for violence during a health care relationship. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Both international tourism and migration of people with low English proficiency (LEP) to Australia are increasing. Thus, health-care practitioners (HPs) increasingly use interpreters to communicate with patients with LEP. Although qualified interpreters are the most suggested and policy-endorsed mechanism for communicating with patients with LEP, family members (FMIs) are also used as interpreters. This study investigated (a) when do health professionals consider it appropriate to use FMIs and (b) what characteristics of family members health professionals believe make them suitable to act as FMIs. As part of a larger project examining the decision-making processes of HPs regarding interpreter use, 69 HPs from neonatal and pediatric departments in one hospital in Queensland Australia were interviewed. Results indicated HPs thought the appropriateness of using FMIs depended on the type of information, such that it was either completely acceptable (e.g., explaining some basic or non-medical information) or completely unacceptable (e.g., confidential information or consent). However, in an emergency, when no other options were available, FMIs were used. The characteristics of suitable FMIs included age, level of English proficiency and medical understanding, and the relationship between patient and FMI. Results were to some extent consistent with Queensland government policies but there were notable differences, including using children and regarding FMIs as first preference. Improving HP's knowledge of policies may increase their confidence in their practice and appropriate use of FMIs, thereby improving their care delivery to patients and families with LEP. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]