Factors associated with informal and formal help-seeking among Asian adolescents with nonsuicidal self-injury.

Although nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI) is prevalent among adolescents and is associated with an increased risk of adverse outcomes, many adolescents with NSSI do not seek help. However, there is a lack of research on the factors that may increase the likelihood of help-seeking, especially within Asia. To address this gap, the present study examined whether certain factors were associated with informal and formal help-seeking - specifically gender, severity of NSSI, functions of NSSI and authoritative parenting. 121 adolescents (Mage = 16.2 years, 71.1% female) were recruited from specialist outpatient clinics and inpatient psychiatric wards from a public hospital in Singapore. One caregiver per adolescent was also recruited. Data from self-report questionnaires were analysed using logistics regression analyses. The results suggest that the severity of NSSI increases the likelihood of informal help-seeking, while adolescents who have parents with more authoritative parenting style are less likely to seek informal help. Gender and functions of NSSI were not found to be associated with help-seeking. The findings from this study can guide professionals in their efforts to encourage help-seeking within Asian populations, as well as inform prevention and treatment programs for Asian adolescents with NSSI.

Factors that encourage Asian youths who self-harm to get help from non-professionals and professionals: There are many youths who engage in self-harm for reasons other than suicide. Although self-harm could lead to various negative outcomes, many youths do not seek help. However, not much is known about what encourages these youths to seek help from non-professionals (e.g., family, friends) and professionals (e.g., psychologists), especially within Asia. This paper looked at certain factors that may be linked to whether youths seek help ­ including gender, severity of self-harm, reasons for self-harm, and parenting style. Youths and caregivers were recruited from a public hospital in Singapore. The study found that youths with more severe self-harm are more likely to seek help from non-professionals, whereas youths with parents who are highly responsive and provide consistent discipline are less likely to seek help from non-professionals. None of the factors studied were relevant in whether youths sought help from professionals. The findings from this study can guide professionals to prevent and treat self-harm in Asia, as well as improve efforts to encourage Asian youths to seek help.

Parenting behaviors, parenting styles, and non-suicidal self-injury in young people: a systematic review.

Non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI) is a worrying phenomenon that is prevalent among young people. Prior theorizing and empirical evidence suggest that parenting may play a role in the etiology of NSSI. Thus, we conducted a systematic review to examine the association between parenting behaviors and parenting styles with NSSI in young people. METHODS: The following databases were searched for relevant articles in July 2020: PubMed, EMBASE, CINAHL Plus, and PsycINFO. Studies were included if they sampled young persons aged 10-25 years old with a history of NSSI, assessed parenting behavior or style, and tested associations between parenting and NSSI outcomes. RESULTS: A total of 26 studies were included in this review. Among parenting behaviors, low parental support, high psychological control, and high reactive control were more consistently associated with NSSI. Conversely, the evidence for behavioral control is equivocal. There is some evidence that invalidating parenting is also associated with NSSI. CONCLUSION: Consistent with the wider adolescent psychopathology literature, parenting that is perceived to be supportive, less psychologically controlling and reactive/punitive were less likely to be associated with NSSI. However, these results were largely based on child reports of parenting. Limitations and directions for future research are discussed.

Pathological Gambling, Gambling Disorder, and Problem Gambling Among the Chinese Ethnic Population Living in Western Countries: Is Culture a Sufficient Explanation for the Reported Excess Rates?

A significant gap remains in the understanding of the psychosocial and cultural factors and processes in the development and maintenance of pathological gambling, gambling disorder, and problem gambling among the Chinese ethnic population living in the Western countries. This narrative reviews papers on gambling and pathological gambling among the Chinese ethnic group in Western countries to provide a deeper understanding of the cultural and psychosocial factors and processes that lead to the development and maintenance of pathological gambling, gambling disorder, and problem gambling. The factors leading to development of problem gambling, which also carry distinctive cultural differences, include acculturation process among Chinese migrants to western countries, their social learning patterns in gambling, the patterns and motivation seen in Chinese gamblers, their gambling-related cognitive bias and distortions as well as barriers to their help-seeking behaviours. The collectivistic oriental culture may explain for intrafamilial development of gambling behaviour and this strong male authority in the traditional Chinese family set-up also reinforces this influence. The Chinese culture is associated with increased risk-taking behaviour. Superstitious thinking is more prevalent in the Chinese culture and this can be manifested in individuals' perceptions of fate and luck. Future research projects studying pathological gambling and ethnic minorities in the UK should seek greater understanding and improved management of this condition in a small but highly relevant population.

The Impact of COVID-19 on nurses working in a University Health System in Singapore: A qualitative descriptive study.

Given Singapore's high population density and extensive geographical interconnections, it is unsurprising that the country reported one of the highest numbers of COVID-19 cases in Asia. Past pandemic studies have suggested that nurses working in such crises might experience a deterioration of mental health, which could persist for years beyond the initial outbreak. This study used a qualitative descriptive design to explore nurses' experiences of working in tertiary hospitals during the COVID-19 pandemic. A total of 17 registered nurses who had worked for at least one year prior to the start of the COVID-19 pandemic were recruited from a University Health System in Singapore from March to June 2020. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews lasting at least an hour conducted over an online platform by the principal investigator. The data were analysed through Braun and Clarke's six-step thematic analysis independently by two researchers. Three main themes emerged: (i) challenging moments of COVID-19, during which the participants reported physical and psychological challenges relating to working conditions of the hospital in the initial months of the pandemic; (ii) the professional role as nurses, in where the participants dispelled their worries and demonstrated commitment to their role as nurses; and (iii) support for nurses, which originated from their family, friends and leaders from their organizations for them to persevere and overcome the unprecedented challenges of COVID-19. The nurses in this study demonstrated resilience and professionalism despite the challenges of COVID-19. The findings highlighted the importance of a robust support system for healthcare professionals.

Arts-based interventions to improve cognition in older persons with mild cognitive impairment: A systematic review of randomized controlled trials.

OBJECTIVES: As the global burden of dementia rises, the search for preventive measures such as interventions for mild cognitive impairment (MCI) remains a research priority. While arts-based interventions have demonstrated some success in improving cognitive functioning among older adults and those with dementia, its effectiveness for older persons with MCI remains unexplored. We conducted a systematic review to examine the effects of arts-based interventions on cognition in older persons with MCI. METHOD: The following databases were searched in November 2019: PubMed, EMBASE, PsycINFO, and CINAHL Plus, supplemented by Google Scholar and ALOIS. Study inclusion criteria were older persons aged ≥ 60 with MCI; arts-based interventions such as dance, drama, music, or visual arts; and randomized controlled trial with cognitive outcome. Database search, study selection, and data extraction were conducted independently by 2 reviewers. RESULTS: Eleven randomized controlled trials examining 13 interventions (817 participants) were identified, of which 4 involved visual arts, 4 dance/movement, 3 music, and 2 storytelling. Significant improvement on at least one cognitive outcome was reported in 10 of the 13 interventions. These included improvements in global cognition (6/7 interventions), learning and memory (5/9), complex attention (4/10), executive functioning (2/6), language (2/3), and perceptual-motor function (1/4). CONCLUSION: This review found that arts-based interventions can potentially improve various aspects of cognitive functioning in older persons with MCI, although our confidence was dampened by methodological limitations such as the moderate-to-high risk of bias present in studies and heterogeneity in the way MCI was defined. Recommendations for future research are discussed.

Neuroanatomy of Patients with Deficit Schizophrenia: An Exploratory Quantitative Meta-Analysis of Structural Neuroimaging Studies.

Little is known regarding the neuroanatomical correlates of patients with deficit schizophrenia or persistent negative symptoms. In this meta-analysis, we aimed to determine whether patients with deficit schizophrenia have characteristic brain abnormalities. We searched PubMed, CINAHL and Ovid to identify studies that examined the various regions of interest amongst patients with deficit schizophrenia, patients with non-deficit schizophrenia and healthy controls. A total of 24 studies met our inclusion criteria. A random-effects model was used to calculate a combination of outcome measures, and heterogeneity was assessed by the I2 statistic and Cochran's Q statistic. Our findings suggested that there was statistically significant reduction in grey matter volume (-0.433, 95% confidence interval (CI): -0.853 to -0.014, p = 0.043) and white matter volume (-0.319, 95% CI: -0.619 to -0.018, p = 0.038) in patients with deficit schizophrenia compared to healthy controls. There is also statistically significant reduction in total brain volume (-0.212, 95% CI: -0.384 to -0.041, p = 0.015) and white matter volume (-0.283, 95% CI: -0.546 to -0.021, p = 0.034) in patients with non-deficit schizophrenia compared to healthy controls. Between patients with deficit and non-deficit schizophrenia, there were no statistically significant differences in volumetric findings across the various regions of interest.