Daily Challenges and Resources of Adults with Chronic Dysphagia: A Qualitative Investigation.

Identifying and addressing daily challenges and resources associated with chronic oropharyngeal dysphagia (OD) is a pivotal, though still neglected component of person-centred care, yet overlooked in research studies. To investigate these dimensions, 25 Italian adults with chronic OD due to cancer or neurodegenerative diseases participated in semi-structured interviews, designed following a modified framework analysis approach. Two researchers independently transcribed and coded interviews, elaborated a working analytical framework, indexed and charted the data, solving discrepancies through negotiated agreement and discussion with a third researcher. Proportion agreement on extracted quotations was calculated. Overall, 457 quotations were extracted from the interviews (88% agreement). Daily challenges pertained to physical, practical, and social domains; most participants reported OD-related problems; almost half mentioned care needs and obstacles in using healthcare services. Concerning resources in OD management, most participants referred to problem-focused and meaning-focused coping strategies, personal capabilities, and support from family and healthcare services. Finally, almost half of the participants reported OD-related changes in life view and meaning. Findings suggest that adjusting to OD implies challenges and resource mobilization in different life domains. Future studies should longitudinally elucidate the dynamics of positive adjustment, to promote patient-centred OD care based on individually perceived needs and challenges, and to inform healthcare policies.

Children's Physical Proximity to Interparental Conflict: Resilient Process and Retrospective Perceptions of Parent-Child Relationships.

This retrospective study sought to determine (a) whether physical proximity to interparental conflict in childhood moderates the link between frequency of exposure to interparental conflict and subsequent levels of resilience in adulthood and (b) whether retrospective perceptions of parent-child relations and insecurity mediate the link between interparental conflict and resilient development. A total of 963 French students aged 18-25 years were assessed. Our study showed that the children's physical proximity to interparental conflict is a major long-term risk factor for their subsequent development and their retrospective perceptions of parent-child relations.

An exploration of successful psychosocial adjustment to long-term in-centre haemodialysis.

OBJECTIVES: Haemodialysis extends life for people with end-stage kidney disease (ESKD) worldwide, but it imposes significant psychosocial burdens and there is little evidence about successful adjustment. This study aimed to improve understanding of successful psychosocial adjustment to in-centre haemodialysis (ICHD; dialysis in a hospital or satellite unit). METHODS: Individual semi-structured interviews were conducted with a purposive sample of 18 people with ESKD who had all received in-centre haemodialysis in the UK for at least 90 days in the last two years. An inductive thematic analysis was employed to identify themes from the verbatim interview transcripts. RESULTS: There were four themes: 1) reaching a state of acceptance, which described the importance of accepting the necessity of dialysis; 2) taking an active role in treatment, which described how being actively involved in treatment gave participants greater feelings of autonomy and control; 3) utilising social support networks, which described the benefits of instrumental and emotional support; and 4) building emotional resilience, which described the importance of optimism and positivity. CONCLUSIONS: The themes demonstrated elements of successful adjustment that could be targeted by interventions to promote psychological flexibility and positive adjustment among people receiving in-centre haemodialysis worldwide.

Do Parental and Peer Support Protect Adjustment in the Face of Ethnic Discrimination? A Comparison between Refugee Youth and Youth of Immigrant Descent.

Applying a risk and protection perspective, this study paid special attention to the protective roles of parental and peer support in the face of perceived ethnic discrimination (PED) at school. Responding to the inconsistent findings of previous research, the survey study provides greater clarity regarding the interactions between PED at school, social support and positive adjustment (self-esteem, self-efficacy, optimism and school integration). The sample comprised 104 ethnic-minority youth (Mage = 17.73, SD = 3.29, 61% female), including refugee youth (n = 55) and second- and third-generation youth of immigrant descent (n = 49). Structural equation models across the whole sample confirmed peer support as a significant moderator, indicating that ethnic-minority youth who received low peer support were less optimistic when facing PED. In multi-group models, we tested whether results differ across refugee youth and youth of immigrant descent. Results revealed between-group differences concerning the moderating roles of parental and peer support: For youth of immigrant descent, while more PED was associated with lower self-esteem when receiving low parental support, we found a positive association between PED and optimism when receiving high parental support. Based on the findings that refugee youth were shown to be less optimistic when obtaining low peer support, the main interaction effect for peer support on optimism seemed to be driven by refugee youth. The results of our cross-sectional study highlight the importance of identifying specific social support factors for specific adjustment outcomes and also the importance of differentiating between minority groups. Further, the findings offer practical implications for the educational sector in terms of programs focusing on the development of peer-support networks to especially promote refugee youth resilience and resettlement in Germany.

Social Influence on Positive Youth Development: A Developmental Neuroscience Perspective.

Susceptibility to social influence is associated with a host of negative outcomes during adolescence. However, emerging evidence implicates the role of peers and parents in adolescents' positive and adaptive adjustment. Hence, in this chapter we highlight social influence as an opportunity for promoting social adjustment, which can redirect negative trajectories and help adolescents thrive. We discuss influential models about the processes underlying social influence, with a particular emphasis on internalizing social norms, embedded in social learning and social identity theory. We link this behavioral work to developmental social neuroscience research, rooted in neurobiological models of decision making and social cognition. Work from this perspective suggests that the adolescent brain is highly malleable and particularly oriented toward the social world, which may account for heightened susceptibility to social influences during this developmental period. This chapter underscores the need to leverage social influences during adolescence, even beyond the family and peer context, to promote positive developmental outcomes. By further probing the underlying neural mechanisms as an additional layer to examining social influence on positive youth development, we will be able to gain traction on our understanding of this complex phenomenon.

Appraisal and coping as mediators of the effects of cumulative risk on preadolescent adjustment.

This study examined the concurrent and longitudinal relations among cumulative risk, appraisal, coping, and adjustment. Longitudinal path models were tested in a community sample of 316 children in preadolescence to examine hypotheses that threat appraisal and avoidant coping mediate the effects of cumulative risk on child adjustment, whereas positive appraisal and active coping were hypothesized to predict better adjustment independently. Children and their mothers were assessed during in-home interviews at three time points at one-year intervals. Children reported on appraisal and coping strategies. Mothers and children reported on child adjustment problems and positive adjustment. Rank-order changes in appraisal and coping predicted rank-order changes in adjustment. Cumulative risk was concurrently related to higher threat appraisal and avoidant coping at each time point. Threat appraisal and avoidant coping mediated the relations of cumulative risk to rank-order changes in adjustment. There is specificity in the relations of cumulative risk to threat appraisal and avoidant coping, whereas positive appraisal and active coping are independent of risk and operate as individual resource factors.

Posttraumatic Growth and Sexual Violence: A Literature Review.

Posttraumatic growth (PTG) is the positive psychological growth that a person might experience after enduring a traumatic event. PTG is a relatively new area of research identified by researchers because it represents a shift in thinking. Rather than focusing on the negative consequences of trauma, it explores the potential for positive outcomes associated with trauma. Although PTG is well documented across different types of traumas, it is unclear how this kind of growth stems from sexual violence, specifically. This review provides an overview of the literature concerning PTG that is associated with sexual violence. Results across the literature indicate that sexual violence is consistently associated with PTG. However, given the inconsistency in research designs, assessment, and operational definitions used to study PTG, many researchers suggest that it might be difficult to determine how and when PTG occurs. This study provides a literature review of the research on PTG in the aftermath of sexual violence. Important implications for future directions and trauma-based therapy are discussed and include the identification of relevant predictors, the importance of context, and how service providers might benefit from a better understanding of PTG.

Exploring positive adjustment in people with spinal cord injury.

This study explored adjustment in people with spinal cord injury; data from four focus groups are presented. Thematic analysis revealed four themes, managing goals and expectations, comparison with others, feeling useful and acceptance, showing participants positively engaged in life, positively interpreted social comparison information and set realistic goals and expectations. These positive strategies show support for adjustment theories, such as the Cognitive Adaptation Theory, the Control Process Theory and Response Shift Theory. These results also provide insight into the adjustment process of a person with spinal cord injury and may be useful in tailoring support during rehabilitation.

Resiliencia en Pacientes Pediátricos Sobrevivientes de Quemaduras / Resilience in Pediatric Burn Survivivors

Las lesiones por quemaduras se consideran como unas de las lesiones más traumáticas que los niños pueden enfrentar y sus consecuencias van más allá de los problemas físicos, por lo qué conocer el ajuste positivo después de una quemadura resulta de gran importancia. Los objetivos de este estudio fueron identificar los niveles de resiliencia de un grupo de pacientes pediátricos sobrevivientes de quemaduras y evaluar las diferencias de acuerdo al sexo. Consistió en un estudio transversal en donde se evaluó a 57 niños y adolescentes sobrevivientes de quemaduras, quienes acudieron al Servicio de cirugía plástica del Hospital Universitario de la UANL. Los resultados mostraron que los niños y adolescentes de este estudio reportaron un alto nivel de resiliencia, por lo que puede concluirse que experimentar un evento traumático o devastador no necesariamente conlleva a presentar consecuencias negativas en el funcionamiento psicológico o comportamental.

Burn injuries are considered one of the most traumatic injuries a child or adolescent may experience and their consequences go beyond the physical problems, therefore the knowledge of positive adjustment after a burn is important. The aims of this study were to identify the levels of resilience in a group of pediatric burn survivors and to evaluate the differences by sex. This was a cross-sectional study in which 57 children and adolescents burn survivors, who attended to the Plastic Surgery Service of the UANL University Hospital, were evaluated. The results showed that children and adolescents of this study reported a high level of resilience, so it can be concluded that experiencing a traumatic or devastating event does not necessarily leads to negative consequences in psychological or behavioral functioning.