Mapping the terrain of person-centered supportive conversations

ABSTRACT

This study explores the conversational terrain of supportive conversations that vary in person centeredness (PC). Our team transcribed and unitized 223 conversations in which a discloser talked about an upsetting event to a listener trained to exhibit either low (LPC), moderate (MPC), or highly person-centered (HPC) comfort. Each utterance was coded for PC with a modified version of the traditional nine-level hierarchy. HPC-coded turns comprised 24% of HPC conversations, while LPC-coded turns comprised almost half of LPC conversations. Over 95% of turns in MPC conversations were classified as MPC. Additionally, turn-level coding and global ratings of PC differentially predicted outcomes. We discuss the implications of these conversational profiles in the context of how the PC content of conversations might aid in cognitive reappraisal.     

Childhood emotional maltreatment and mental disorders: Results from a nationally representative adult sample from the United States

Child maltreatment is a public health concern with well-established sequelae. However, compared to research on physical and sexual abuse, far less is known about the long-term impact of emotional maltreatment on mental health. The overall purpose of this study was to examine the association of emotional abuse, emotional neglect, and both emotional abuse and neglect with other types of child maltreatment, a family history of dysfunction, and lifetime diagnoses of several Axis I and Axis II mental disorders. Data were from the National Epidemiological Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions collected in 2004 and 2005 (n = 34,653). The most prevalent form of emotional maltreatment was emotional neglect only (6.2%), followed by emotional abuse only (4.8%), and then both emotional abuse and neglect (3.1%). All categories of emotional maltreatment were strongly related to other forms of child maltreatment (odds ratios [ORs] ranged from 2.1 to 68.0) and a history of family dysfunction (ORs ranged from 2.2 to 8.3). In models adjusting for sociodemographic characteristics, all categories of emotional maltreatment were associated with increased odds of almost every mental disorder assessed in this study (adjusted ORs ranged from 1.2 to 7.4). Many relationships remained significant independent of experiencing other forms of child maltreatment and a family history of dysfunction (adjusted ORs ranged from 1.2 to 3.0). The effects appeared to be greater for active (i.e., emotional abuse) relative to passive (i.e., emotional neglect) forms of emotional maltreatment. Childhood emotional maltreatment, particularly emotionally abusive acts, is associated with increased odds of lifetime diagnoses of several Axis I and Axis II mental disorders.     

Chinese preschool teachers’ emotional labor and regulation strategies

Situated within a cohort of Chinese preschool teachers’ emotional experiences, this study shows that preschool teachers’ emotional labor is characterized by its long duration, high intensity, and diversity in emotional interactions. The findings also reveal three rules governing preschool teachers’ emotional labor, including being adept in emotional control, active use of emotions, and keeping smiling service. In response to these rules, preschool teachers regulate their emotions with four major strategies of disguising, restraining, self-persuading, and releasing. The paper concludes with implications on how preschool teachers’ emotion regulation can be better supported.     

Emotional reactions and coping responses of employees to a cyber-attack: A case study

Cybersecurity is a serious threat to information technology (IT) systems, with most organisations now relying on their IT systems to function day-to-day. Therefore, it is crucial that organisations ensure they are protected. This research investigates the emotional and coping responses of employees towards a cyber-attack. Data was collected through an in-depth case study approach (24 semi-structured interviews) conducted at a global manufacturing company, along with primary observations and a corpus of secondary materials. Our data analysis applied a grounded approach which was then refined using an emotion theoretic lens with the application of Technology Threat Avoidance Theory (TTAT). Drawing on structural appraisal theory, our findings indicate the IT security team in the case study oscillated between positive problem-focused coping and negative emotion-focused coping. A key explanatory feature or turnaround mechanism that mediated this oscillation was senior management empathy and resource mobilization. Building on the analyses, a conceptual model is developed called the Transformation of Coping through Empathic Leadership (T-CEL). The research suggests the crucial role that senior management play in transforming the emotional and coping capabilities of employees through their intervention and support. The study extends the IS Security theoretical background through a TTAT-lens for the analysis of cyber-attack incidents.     

Gender differences in the association between emotional maltreatment with mental,emotional, and behavioral problems in Swedish adolescents

Emotional maltreatment is a common form of child abuse with a powerful negative impact on mental health. The aim of this study was to examine the effect of emotional maltreatment on mental health and mental well-being in a general population of Swedish 12- to 13-year old girls and boys. Data was collected via self-report questionnaires in classroom settings from 1134 students. Emotional maltreatment had significant effects on mental health and mental well-being for both girls and boys. Moreover, there were significant interaction effects between gender and levels of emotional maltreatment. Girls reported decreased mental health and mental well-being at lower degrees of emotional maltreatment compared to boys. Furthermore, girls reported larger decreases in mental health in response to exposure of emotional maltreatment. For internalizing symptoms, mental well-being and psychosomatic symptoms, exposure level of emotional maltreatment seemed to magnify the gender differences. For externalizing symptoms, there were no differences between girls and boys in the group reporting no emotional maltreatment and the increase in externalizing symptoms were of equal magnitude for both genders. Given the impact of emotional maltreatment on mental health in the general population, results from this study implies that a trauma-informed perspective is necessary in understanding gender differences in mental health in early adolescence. Further research is needed in order to understand the underlying processes generating the differences in girls and boys responses to emotional maltreatment.     

What makes good and bad days for beginning teachers? A diary study on daily uplifts and hassles

Beginning teachers’ first years in school have been described as demanding and stressful. In explaining beginning teachers’ stress, previous research mainly focused on either trait-like personality characteristics or general work-related stressors. In contrast, the present study focused on the day-to-day experience. The aim of the current study was (a) to identify the task-related daily uplifts and hassles of beginning teachers, (b) to examine the association of daily uplifts and hassles with teachers’ socio-demographic and personality characteristics, and (c) to investigate the effect of daily uplifts and hassles on teachers’ emotional exhaustion. The sample consisted of 141 beginning teachers up to four years in the profession who completed an online diary for 14 consecutive days. Results showed that most daily uplifts and hassles were related to teaching in class and interacting with colleagues. Both hassles and uplifts showed only a few unsystematic correlations with teachers’ characteristics. However, daily uplifts and hassles significantly explained beginning teachers’ daily emotional exhaustion.     

Negative parental attribution and emotional dysregulation in Chinese early adolescents: Harsh fathering and harsh mothering as potential mediators

The current study examined the potential mediating roles of harsh fathering and harsh mothering in the association between negative parental attribution and emotional dysregulation in Chinese adolescents and explored the moderating role of child gender on this indirect association. 864 students (367 girls, mean age = 13.55 years) with their parents were recruited as participants from two middle schools in Shandong Province, People’s Republic of China. The results demonstrated that both harsh fathering and harsh mothering could partially mediate the association between negative maternal attribution and child emotional dysregulation, whereas only harsh fathering could partially mediate the association between negative paternal attribution and child emotional dysregulation. Moreover, we found the moderating role of child gender only for the association between harsh fathering and child emotional dysregulation, in that harsh fathering could be associated with higher levels of emotional dysregulation in girls. These results shed light on efforts to prevent harsh parenting and child emotional dysregulation.     

Pathways from childhood sexual abuse to trait anxiety

BackgroundChildren exposed to sexual abuse are at risk for developing several psychological and behavioral difficulties during adulthood. Here, direct and indirect effects of family conflict, insecurity within the family system (manifested as disengagement and/or preoccupation), and negative feelings provoked by childhood sexual abuse (CSA) on trait anxiety scores were analyzed with structural equation modeling. Both Finkelhor and Browne’s traumagenic dynamics model and Davies and Cummings Emotional Security Theory were applied.MethodsA total of 168 female college student survivors of CSA participated in this study. Information regarding each participant’s abuse was obtained from a self-reported questionnaires. Emotional security was assessed with the Security in the Family System scale. To assess negative feelings regarding abuse and trait anxiety, Children’s Impact of Traumatic Events Scale-Revised and State-Trait Anxiety Inventory were applied, respectively.ResultsLevel of family conflict was found to directly relate to emotional insecurity and trait anxiety. In addition, preoccupation strategies were found to be directly related to trait anxiety. Conversely, disengagement strategies were indirectly related to anxiety through the negative feelings provoked by abuse. Experience with other types of abuse and/or neglect was also related to emotional insecurity and feelings provoked by CSA. Meanwhile, continuity of abuse only correlated with feelings provoked by abuse.ConclusionsStrong relationships between family conflict, emotional insecurity, negative feelings provoked by CSA and trait anxiety were observed. These results suggest that treatment of CSA survivors should focus on improving security within the survivors’ family system and reducing negative feelings provoked by abuse.     

Does fear of terrorism influence psychological adjustment of academic sojourners in Pakistan? Role of state negative affect and emotional support

This study adopted the psychological and emotional perspective of terrorism and the way it influences the psychological adjustment of international students in Pakistan. We investigated the effect of fear of terrorism, state negative affect, and emotional support on students’ psychological distress. Low psychological distress represented higher levels of psychological adjustment. Data was collected using a self-administered questionnaire from 121 internationals students of 18 different countries enrolled in a public university of Lahore city with a mean age of 21.7 years. A two-stage analysis was conducted by variance-based structural equation modeling technique in SMART PLS 3.2 software. Adequate convergent and discriminant validity of the latent constructs were ensured, and no evidence was found for common method bias. The results of structural model revealed that fear of terrorism is a positive and significant predictor of student’s psychological distress, which is fully mediated by state negative affect. Emotional support was negatively related to psychological distress and moderated the relationship between state negative affect and psychological distress. Conditional process modeling using process macro revealed that emotional support also moderated the indirect effect of fear of terrorism on distress mediated by negative affect. A significant contribution of this research is to investigate fear of terrorism as a stressor in international student’s acculturation research. Negative emotional state plays an intermediary role in relating fear with psychological wellbeing of international students while emotional support can be a potent coping resource. Several implications, limitation and future research recommendations are also discussed.     

都市报情感倾诉类报道传播伦理探讨

所谓情感倾诉类报道,指都市报倾诉类栏目中由记者采访主述人写成的口述实录类个人情感故事。其传播所营造出的夸张的"滥情化"拟态环境及其产生的广泛的社会影响,是对社会伦理道德和社会行为规范的一种动摇。因此,媒介当重新审视情感倾诉类内容传播的社会性选择。