Supporting conservationists' mental health through better working conditions.

Biodiversity conservation work can be challenging but rewarding, and both aspects have potential consequences for conservationists' mental health. Yet, little is known about patterns of mental health among conservationists and its associated workplace protective and risk factors. A better understanding might help improve working conditions, supporting conservationists' job satisfaction, productivity, and engagement, while reducing costs from staff turnover, absenteeism, and presenteeism. We surveyed 2311 conservation professionals working in 122 countries through an internet survey shared via mailing lists, social media, and other channels. We asked them about experiences of psychological distress, working conditions, and personal characteristics. Over half were from and worked in Europe and North America, and most had a university-level education, were in desk-based academic and practitioner roles, and responded in English. Heavy workload, job demands, and organizational instability were linked to higher distress, but job stability and satisfaction with one's contributions to conservation were associated with lower distress. Respondents with low dispositional and conservation-specific optimism, poor physical health, and limited social support, women, and early-career professionals were most at risk of distress in our sample. Our results flag important risk factors that employers could consider, although further research is needed among groups underrepresented in our sample. Drawing on evidence-based occupational health interventions, we suggest measures that could promote better working conditions and thus may improve conservationists' mental health and abilities to protect nature.

Mejores condiciones de trabajo para apoyar la salud mental de los conservacionistas Resumen La conservación de la biodiversidad puede ser difícil pero gratificante y ambos aspectos pueden tener consecuencias en la salud mental de los conservacionistas. Sin embargo, sabemos poco sobre la salud mental de los conservacionistas, sus patrones y los factores de protección y riesgo asociados al lugar de trabajo. Un mayor conocimiento ayudaría a mejorar las condiciones de trabajo, pues impulsaría la satisfacción laboral, la productividad y el compromiso de los conservacionistas, mientras se reducen los costos derivados de la rotación de personal, el ausentismo y el presentismo. Encuestamos a 2,311 profesionales de la conservación de 122 países con una encuesta virtual compartida por listas de correo, redes sociales y otros medios. Les preguntamos a los profesionales sobre sus experiencias de estrés psicológico, condiciones de trabajo y características personales. Más de la mitad trabajaban y procedían de Europa y Norteamérica; la mayoría respondió en inglés, contaba con estudios universitarios y actualmente desempeña funciones académicas y profesionales. La carga de trabajo excesiva, las exigencias laborales y la inestabilidad organizacional se relacionaron con un mayor estrés, mientras la estabilidad laboral y la satisfacción con la contribución propia a la conservación se asociaron con un menor estrés. En nuestra muestra, los encuestados con baja disposición y un optimismo específico hacia la conservación, mala salud física, apoyo social limitado, las mujeres y los profesionales que inician su carrera son los que corren un mayor riesgo de sufrir estrés. Nuestros resultados señalan importantes factores de riesgo que los empresarios podrían considerar, aunque es necesario seguir investigando entre los grupos menos representados en nuestra muestra. Con base en las intervenciones de salud laboral respaldadas con pruebas, sugerimos medidas que podrían promover mejores condiciones de trabajo y, así mejorar la salud mental de los conservacionistas y su capacidad para proteger la naturaleza.

Accounting for spatial heterogeneity in the added conservation value of land protection when prioritizing protected areas.

To combat biodiversity loss, there is increasing interest in safeguarding habitat by expanding protected areas. Given limited resources in conservation, organizations must invest in places that will add the greatest amount of value in species protection. To determine the added conservation value of protection, one needs to consider the level of human disturbance in areas that would result if they were left unprotected. In recent years, data resources have become available that reveal the spatial heterogeneity in human disturbance over large spatial extents worldwide. We investigated how accounting for heterogeneity in future disturbance in unprotected areas affects prioritization of protected areas by determining the added value offered by protection of different areas. We applied a complementarity-based framework for protected area prioritization to select protected areas in the coterminous United States under different assumptions about the heterogeneity of future disturbance in unprotected areas. Prioritizing protected areas while incorrectly assuming spatially homogeneous disturbance in unprotected areas, a common assumption, led to a loss of 76% of possible conservation gain for a given budget. The conservation return on investment from protecting candidate areas was positively correlated (0.44) to future human disturbance in that area if it was left unprotected. Our results show that the ability to identify cost-effective protected area networks depends on how one accounts for the ecological contribution of private lands that remain unprotected.

Existe un creciente interés por salvaguardar los hábitats mediante la expansión de áreas protegidas para combatir la pérdida de la biodiversidad. Debido a los recursos limitados para la conservación, las organizaciones deben invertir en localidades que adicionarán la mayor cantidad de valor a la protección de las especies. Para determinar el valor de conservación adicionado por la protección se necesita considerar el nivel de perturbación humana en las áreas que ocurriría si se les dejara desprotegidas. En años recientes, han quedado disponibles recursos informativos que revelan la heterogeneidad espacial en la perturbación humana a lo largo de grandes extensiones espaciales a nivel mundial. Investigamos cómo considerar esta heterogeneidad en las futuras perturbaciones de las áreas desprotegidas afecta la priorización de las áreas protegidas mediante la determinación del valor adicionado que ofrece la protección de diferentes áreas. Aplicamos un marco de trabajo basado en la complementariedad para la priorización de áreas protegidas para seleccionar estas áreas en los estados colindantes de los Estados Unidos bajo diferentes suposiciones sobre la heterogeneidad de las perturbaciones futuras en las áreas desprotegidas. La priorización de las áreas protegidas mientras se asumía incorrectamente la perturbación espacial homogénea en las áreas desprotegidas, una suposición común, resultó en una pérdida del 76% de la posible ganancia de conservación para un presupuesto dado. El rendimiento de la conservación en la inversión a partir de la protección de las áreas candidatas estuvo correlacionado positivamente (0.44) con las perturbaciones humanas en el futuro si el área permanece desprotegida. Nuestros resultados muestran que la capacidad de identificar las redes rentables de áreas protegidas depende de cómo se consideran las contribuciones ecológicas de las tierras privadas que permanecen desprotegidas.

At the feet of storytellers: Equity in early relational health conversations.

Early Relational Health (ERH) focuses attention on family-baby relationships during the first 1000 days of life. Positive ERH enhances child health and development and family wellbeing. Universal, early identification of RH and vulnerability could add value to care. How to screen, when, where, and with whom is the question. Tools and models for screening are practitioner-centered. Bias can affect family engagement and outcomes. This may be problematic for African American families. Authors present findings of a discourse analysis and phenomenological study of experiences of African American families' and HealthySteps Specialists' (HSS) of color with screening ERH in Washington, D.C., USA (N = 13). Findings indicate relevance, acceptance and utility may be influenced by positionality, cultural context, issues of equity, and engagement in mutual reflection. A family-centered approach that opened space for non-dominant knowledge about ERH made positive differences in engagement and utility for families and practioners alike. Health and vulnerability were detected reliably using this approach. Outcomes include new theories about ERH-focused visits with African American families and infants, and a new model for centering ERH in pediatric practice, entitled Early Relational Health Conversations. ERH-C is a family reflection model, not necessarily dyadic. It may have value for other populations. Future directions in ERH-C research are suggested.

La Temprana Salud de la Relación (ERH) enfoca su atención en las relaciones entre la familia y el bebé durante los primeros 1000 días de vida. Una positiva ERH mejora la salud y el desarrollo del niño y el bienestar de la familia. Una identificación universal y temprana de RH y la vulnerabilidad pudieran ser valiosas para el cuidado. La pregunta es cómo detectar, cuándo, dónde y con quién. Las herramientas y los modelos para la detección se centran en los profesionales de la práctica. Los prejuicios pueden afectar la participación familiar y los resultados. Esto pudiera ser problemático para familias afroamericanas. Los autores presentan resultados de un análisis discursivo y un estudio fenomenológico de experiencias de las familias afroamericanas y los especialistas de HealthySteps (HSS) de raza negra con respecto a la detección de ERH en Washington, D.C. (N = 13). Los resultados indican relevancia, aceptación y utilidad para las familias afroamericanas y que circunstancias de posición, contexto cultural, asuntos de equidad y participación en reflexión mutua pudieran influir a los HSS. Un acercamiento centrado en la familia que abrió la oportunidad para el conocimiento no dominante acerca de ERH produjo diferencias positivas en la participación y utilidad tanto para las familias como los profesionales de la práctica. La salud y la vulnerabilidad se detectaron confiablemente usando este acercamiento. Los resultados incluyen nuevas teorías sobre los acercamientos a la detección y un nuevo modelo de detección: Las Conversaciones de la Temprana Salud de la Relación (ERH-C). ERH-C es un modelo de reflexión familiar, no necesariamente diádico. El mismo pudiera ser valioso para otros grupos de población. Se aportan futuras directrices en la investigación de ERH-C.

La Santé Relationnelle Précoce (SRP en français) met l'attention sur les relations famille-bébé durant les 1000 premiers jours de la vie. Une SRP positive renforce la santé de l'enfant, le développement, et la santé de la famille. Une identification universelle et précoce de la Santé Relationnelle et de la vulnérabilité pourrait ajouter de la valeur aux soins. La question se pose: comment dépister, quand, où et avec qui. Les outils et les modèles de dépistages sont centrés sur les praticiens. La partialité peut affecter l'engagement de la famille et les résultats. Ceci peut s'avérer problématique pour les familles noires. Les auteurs présentent les résultats d'une analyse de discours et d'une étude phénoménologique des expériences des familles noires et des Spécialistes de Healthy Steps (HSS) racialisés avec le dépistage ERH à Washington DC aux Etats-Unis (N = 13). Les résultats indiquent que la pertinence, l'acceptation et l'utilité peuvent être influencées par la position, le contexte culturel, les problèmes d'équité et l'engagement dans une réflexion mutuelle. Une approche centrée sur la famille qui a ouvert un espace pour des connaissances non-dominantes à propos de la SRP a fait une différence positive dans l'engagement et l'utilité pour les familles ainsi que pour les praticiens. La santé et la vulnérabilité ont été détectés avec fiabilité en utilisant cette approche. Les résultats incluent de nouvelles théories sur les visites centrées sur la SRP avec des familles noires et leurs nourrissons, et un nouveau modèle de centrage de la SRP dans la pratique pédiatrique, appelée Conversations sur la Santé Relationnelle Précoce. La C-SRP est un modèle de réflexion familiale, pas nécessairement dyadique. Ce modèle peut avoir une valeur pour d'autres populations. Des directions futures pour des recherches sur la C-SRP sont suggérées.

Development and Validation of the Family Relationship Assessment Scale in Korean College Students' Families.

The nature of family relationships is a critical measure for healthcare professionals who work with families. In particular, non-Western cultural groups display a higher level of collectivism that emphasizes relationships between family members. This paper reports the development and psychometric testing of a new scale, the Korean Family Relationship Assessment Scale (FRAS). Using DeVellis' Guidelines in Scale Development, a pool of 40 items was created after a review of the literature, followed by an assessment for content validity by six experts. Both exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses were conducted with data from a sample of 217 Korean family triads (father, mother, and college-aged offspring) (N = 651). The final evaluation yielded three factors with 15 items: family support, family conflict, and family togetherness. Since the FRAS demonstrated good internal consistency and validity, it would be able to facilitate research on the relationships between family support, conflict, togetherness, and health. Applying this new instrument in theory-based research may contribute to knowledge about the role of the family in the health and well-being of family members within a Korean context. For clinical practice, this culturally sensitive and valid instrument has the potential to measure changes in family relationships after family therapy or interventions.

La índole de las relaciones familiares es una medida fundamental para los profesionales de la salud que trabajan con familias. En particular, los grupos culturales no occidentales muestran un nivel más alto de colectivismo que enfatiza las relaciones entre los miembros de la familia. Este artículo informa el desarrollo y la evaluación psicométrica de una nueva escala, la Escala de Evaluación de las Relaciones Familiares Coreanas (Korean Family Relationship Assessment Scale, FRAS). Utilizando las pautas de DeVellis en el desarrollo de escalas, se creó un grupo de 40 elementos después de una revisión de la bibliografía, seguido de una evaluación de la validez del contenido por parte de seis especialistas. Se realizaron análisis factoriales exploratorios y confirmatorios con datos de una muestra de 217 triadas de familias coreanas (padre, madre e hijos en edad universitaria) (N = 651). La evaluación final arrojó tres factores con 15 elementos: apoyo familiar, conflicto familiar y unión familiar. Como la FRAS demostró buena coherencia y validez interna, podría facilitar la investigación sobre las relaciones entre el apoyo, el conflicto, la unión y la salud de la familia. La aplicación de este nuevo instrumento en la investigación basada en la teoría puede incrementar el conocimiento acerca del papel de la familia en la salud y el bienestar de los miembros de la familia dentro de un contexto coreano. Para la práctica clínica, este instrumento culturalmente sensible y válido tiene el potencial de medir los cambios en las relaciones familiares después de la terapia o las intervenciones familiares.

Paternal Support and Involvement in Unmarried Fragile Families: Impacts on Long-Term Maternal Mental Health.

Fragile families are defined as those that include unmarried or romantically unstable parents who have children and are socioeconomically disadvantaged. Mothers in fragile families may experience risk factors that lead to increased depressive symptoms that inhibit their ability to bounce back after stressful events. Risk factors for poorer maternal mental health may include declines in father involvement and a lack of coparenting support. This study examined the connected nature of coparenting and father involvement over time among continuously unmarried mothers from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study. A bidirectional latent growth curve analysis demonstrated that early father involvement was associated with a more gradual decline in coparenting support over the child's first 5 years, while early coparenting support also predicted a slower decline in father involvement over time. Steeper declines in coparenting support and father involvement over time were linked with more maternal depression and lower maternal life satisfaction when their child was nine. Results demonstrate a clear need for targeted intervention with both parents in fragile families to promote involved fathering behavior and enhance coparental relationships.

Las familias frágiles se definen como aquellas formadas por padres inestables solteros o románticamente inestables que tienen hijos y son desfavorecidos socioeconómicamente (Carlson & McLanahan, 2010). Las madres de las familias frágiles pueden sufrir factores de riesgo conducentes a mayores síntomas depresivos que inhiben su capacidad de recuperarse después de situaciones estresantes (Kalil & Ryan, 2010). Entre los factores de riesgo de deterioro de la salud mental materna se encuentran la disminución de la participación del padre y la falta de apoyo en la cocrianza. Este estudio analizó la índole asociada de la cocrianza y la participación del padre con el paso del tiempo entre las madres continuamente solteras del estudio sobre las "Familias Frágiles y el Bienestar de los Niños" (Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study). Un análisis bidireccional de la curva de crecimiento latente demostró que la participación inicial del padre estuvo asociada con una disminución más gradual del apoyo en la cocrianza durante los primeros cinco años del niño, mientras que el apoyo inicial en la cocrianza también predijo una disminución más lenta de la participación del padre con el paso del tiempo. Las disminuciones más pronunciadas del apoyo en la cocrianza y de la participación del padre con el paso del tiempo estuvieron ligadas a una mayor depresión materna y a una menor satisfacción materna con la vida cuando su hijo tenía nueve años. Los resultados demuestran una clara necesidad de una intervención orientada a ambos padres de las familias frágiles a fin de promover una conducta participativa del padre y mejorar las relaciones de cocrianza.

The early biopsychosocial development of boys and the origins of violence in males.

We apply a biopsychosocial approach to introduce early-in-life experiences that explain a significant part of the male preponderance in the perpetration of violence. Early caregiver abuse and neglect, father absence, and exposure to family and neighborhood violence exacerbate boys' greater risk for aggressive behavior and increase the probability of carrying out violent acts later in life. We examine the development of the psychological self and explore conditions that encourage physical aggression, focusing on the impact on the infant and toddler's emergent mental representation of self, others, and self-other relationships. Boys' slower developmental timetable in the first years of life may enhance their vulnerability for disorganization in emergent neurobiological networks mediating organization of socioemotional relationships. Emergent attachment and activation relationship systems may differentially affect risk and resilience in boys and girls, particularly in single-parent families. Evidence has suggested that the dramatic increase in single-parent families is especially linked to corresponding increases in behavioral undercontrol, antisocial behavior, and the emergence of violence in boys.

MEDIATING ROLE OF MATERNAL SENSITIVITY: ENHANCING LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENT IN AT-RISK FAMILIES.

Home-visiting programs have gained increasing importance in family-centered prevention and intervention. However, few studies have examined the mechanisms underlying early intervention treatment effects. The goal of this study is to analyze the mediating role of maternal sensitivity in enhancing language development with the home-visiting program Parents as Teachers (PAT). Data were collected and analyzed within the ongoing, long-term ZEPPELIN study, a randomized controlled trial with 251 participating at-risk families. Via longitudinal mediation analysis, we examined whether effects of the PAT on receptive and expressive language outcomes at 24 and 36 months were mediated by maternal sensitivity at 12 months. Within a moderated mediation framework, we investigated whether the level of family psychosocial stress affects this mediation. Results showed that intervention effects on language outcomes are mediated by maternal sensitivity-weakly and through specific pathways. Moderation and moderated mediation analyses indicated that effects of the PAT and also specific mediation effects increase with the level of psychosocial stress. Implications of the results for practice are discussed.

WIDENING THE SCOPE OF SOCIAL SUPPORT: THE FLORIDA MATERNAL, INFANT, AND EARLY CHILDHOOD HOME VISITING PROGRAM.

The Florida Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting (MIECHV) program is designed to support pregnant women and families in developing skills and utilizing resources necessary to promote their children's physical, social, and emotional development. Little evaluation attention has focused on large-scale, public policy driven home-visiting programs. Social support provision is a critical component of a successful home-visiting program; therefore, there is a need to better understand participants' perceptions of social support provided to them in this context. Forty-five home-visiting participants from five Florida MIECHV programs completed semistructured telephone interviews. Participants discussed their experiences with the MIECHV program, including descriptions of their interactions with home visitors. Content analysis revealed that participants experienced multilayered social support from home-visiting staff. Families needed and received substantial emotional, instrumental, informational, and appraisal support at the individual level. This support was embedded within and strengthened by the strategies and activities of the home-visiting model of service provision. Results highlight the powerful opportunity home visiting offers as a method of service delivery within the larger system of care to increase social support in families experiencing high risk for negative maternal and child health outcomes. Implications for policy and practice are discussed.

Ambiguous Loss Experienced by Transnational Mexican Immigrant Families.

In this study, an ambiguous loss framework as described by Boss (1999, Ambiguous loss: Learning to live with unresolved grief, First Harvard University Press, Cambridge, MA) was used to examine and understand the family experiences of Mexican immigrant agricultural workers in Minnesota. Transcripts from interviews with 17 workers in Minnesota and 17 family members in Mexico were analyzed using qualitative methodology to identify experiences of ambiguous loss in the participants' narratives. Key dimensions of ambiguous loss identified in the transcripts include: psychological family, feelings of chronic/recurring loss, finding support, and meaning making. In the category of psychological family, participants in both Mexico and the United States mourned the physical absence of their family members and experienced ambiguity regarding family responsibilities, but worked to maintain their psychological roles within the family. In the category of chronic/recurring loss, participants in both countries experienced chronic worry from not knowing if family members were safe, ambiguity regarding when the immigrant would return, and chronic stressors that compounded these feelings of loss. Participants in both countries coped with both real and ambiguous losses by accessing family support and by using ambiguous communication to minimize worry. Participants in Mexico also accessed work and community-based support. Participants in both countries made meaning of the ambiguous loss by identifying ways their lives were improved and goals were met as a result of the immigration for agricultural work in Minnesota.

Improvements in Unmarried African American Parents' Rapport, Communication, and Problem-Solving Following a Prenatal Coparenting Intervention.

This report examines effects of a coparenting intervention designed for and delivered to expectant unmarried African American mothers and fathers on observed interaction dynamics known to predict relationship adjustment. Twenty families took part in the six-session "Figuring It Out for the Child" (FIOC) dyadic intervention offered in a faith-based human services agency during the third trimester of the mother's pregnancy, and completed a postpartum booster session 1 month after the baby's arrival. Parent referrals for the FIOC program were received from a county Health Department and from OBGYNs and Pregnancy Centers in the targeted community. All intervention sessions were delivered by a trained male-female paraprofessional team whose fidelity to the FIOC manualized curriculum was independently evaluated by a team of trained analysts. At both the point of intake ("PRE") and again at an exit evaluation completed 3 months postpartum ("POST"), the mothers and fathers were videotaped as they completed two standardized "revealed differences" conflict discussions. Blinded videotapes of these sessions were evaluated using the System for Coding Interactions in Dyads. Analyses documented statistically significant improvements on 8 of 12 variables examined, with effect sizes ranging from moderate to large. Overall, 14 families demonstrated beneficial outcomes, 3 did not improve, and 3 showed some signs of decline from the point of intake. For most interaction processes, PRE to POST improvements were unrelated to degree of adherence the paraprofessional interventionists showed to the curriculum. However, better interventionist competence was related to decreases in partners' Coerciveness and Negativity and Conflict, and to smaller increases in partner Withdrawal. Implications of the work for development and delivery of community-based coparenting interventions for unmarried parents are discussed.

Eschewing certainties: the creation of family therapists in the 21st century.

I reflect here on Family Therapy's origins, our present dilemmas, and future possibilities. Using the lens of training new Family Therapists for current public sector domains, I examine our field's strengths, vulnerabilities, and contradictions. I critique the current vogue of model certainty and branding. Our responsibilities to trainees, young practitioners, and the families we serve are highlighted.