"Each week feels like a mountain": The impact of COVID-19 on mental health providers' wellbeing and clinical work.

The SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) pandemic has placed a tremendous strain on healthcare providers. Although there is a burgeoning body of literature on how COVID-19 has impacted frontline healthcare workers (i.e., providers treating COVID-19 patients), little attention has been dedicated to second-line workers (i.e., providers treating the mental health of people impacted by COVID-19). In this paper, we present findings from a thematic analysis of open text responses (n = 136) examining how COVID-19 shaped both the wellbeing of second-line workers, specifically mental health providers, as well as their clinical work in the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States. Results indicated that mental health providers were experiencing significant COVID-19-related burnout and poor physical and mental health outcomes. Participants described diminished negative effects on the quality of their clinical care from the burnout and trauma associated with COVID-19. Many also demonstrated resilience, identifying the duality of both negative (e.g., exhaustion) and positive (e.g., pride in helping others) meaning derived from their second-line work experiences. We conclude with recommendations for preventing and addressing burnout among mental health professionals in the era of COVID-19 and subsequent health emergencies.

Examining Attempted and Completed Intimate Partner Homicide: A Qualitative Synthesis.

Intimate Partner Homicide (IPH) is one of the leading causes of death for women in the United States. Recent research has identified the strongest risk markers for IPH from quantitative studies, but there is still a need to synthesize what is known about IPH from qualitative studies. Additionally, few studies have examined perpetrator-reported motivations for IPH, along with victim's and co-victims' experiences of attempted or completed IPH. In order to synthesize the current qualitative literature surrounding motivations and risk factors for IPH, a thematic qualitative synthesis was conducted. This qualitative synthesis included 20 studies that examined IPH risk factors, motivations, and other pertinent themes related to IPH. Some of the most prevalent reported motivations for committing IPH were loss of control, jealousy, relationship termination, and a history of intimate partner violence (IPV) victimization (i.e., self-defense). A few of the most common risk factors for IPH found in the qualitative literature included previous IPV, coercive control, and the victim underestimating danger/lethality. It is important for both clinicians and law enforcement to know more about IPH so that that they are able to assess situations effectively.

Relationship Dynamics and Perpetration of Intimate Partner Violence Among Female Chinese College Students.

In China, most intimate partner violence (IPV) research focuses on male perpetration and female victimization, whereas studies on dating violence and female IPV perpetration are less common. Although research on female IPV perpetration in China has surfaced recently, there have been limited studies examining factors related to female perpetration in dating relationships in China. In the current research, we sought to examine how relationship factors, including anger management, communication problems, relationship conflict, and relationship distress, are linked with female physical and psychological IPV perpetration. We included 857 female college students in three regions in China from the International Dating Violence database. We found that Chinese women's anger management skills and communication problems were both significantly associated with physical and psychological IPV perpetration on both minor and severe levels. Furthermore, we found that relationship conflict was significantly associated with minor and severe physical abuse perpetration and severe psychological abuse perpetration. Anger management skills moderated the negative effects of relationship conflict on minor physical IPV perpetration as well as minor and severe psychological IPV perpetration. Anger management skills also moderated the negative effects of relationship distress on minor and severe physical IPV perpetration among Chinese women. Our findings suggest that it may be important to explore the role of college women's anger management skills, communication problems, and conflict resolution skills in their dating relationships, as well as to develop female-based intervention programs to increase Chinese college women's relationship skills to reduce their levels of IPV perpetration.