Codependency in mothers of addicted persons: Cross-cultural differences between Greece and Bulgaria

2016 ◽  
Vol 33 (S1) ◽  
pp. S622-S623 ◽  
Author(s):  
V. Giannouli ◽  
D. Ivanova

IntroductionThe people who maintain close relationships with relatives suffering from addiction to psychoactive substances may become more sensitive to develop a physical, mental and emotional state, similar to an emotional addiction.ObjectiveThe aim of this study is to give a cross-cultural perspective to codependence and reveal the profile of female relatives of addicted persons in Greece and Bulgaria.MethodThirty-nine Greek mothers of addicted persons from Greece (Mage = 43.97, SDage = 18.34, all high school graduates), a similar group of forty Greek female participants (32 mothers of non-addicted persons, Mage = 40.97, SDage = 17.22, all high school graduates), and thirty Bulgarian women (all mothers of addicted persons, Mage = 53.55, SDage = 5.58, all high school graduates) were examined with the STAI-state questionnaire, the ZUNG Self Rating Depression Scale and the Questionnaire of Establishment of Codependency.ResultsResults indicated that there are statistically significant differences between the Greek and the Bulgarian female relatives of addicted persons on the scores ofZUNG (MGreek = 51.64, SDGreek = 2.07, MBulgarian = 73.63, SDBulgarian = 4.04) and STAI (MGreek = 53.89, SDGreek = 2.68, MBulgarian = 74.16, SDBulgarian = 4.84), but not for the Questionnaire of Establishment of Codependency. Statistically significant differences in all three questionnaires were found for the groups of Greek mothers of dependent and non-dependent persons (P < .005).ConclusionsThis research suggests that although there is more anxiety and depression reported by the Bulgarian mothers of addicted persons, no cross-cultural difference was found for codependence in mothers of addicted persons.Disclosure of interestThe authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest.

2010 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-19 ◽  
Author(s):  
DOH CHULL SHIN

AbstractHow do contemporary publics understand happiness? What makes them experience it? Do conceptions and sources of their happiness vary across culturally different societies? This paper addresses these questions, utilizing the 2008 round of the AsiaBarometer surveys conducted in six countries scattered over four different continents. Analyses of these surveys, conducted in Japan, China, and India from the East; and the United States, Russia, and Australia from the West, reveal a number of interesting cross-cultural differences and similarities in the way the people of the East and West understand and experience happiness. Specifically, the former are much less multidimensional than the latter in their conceptions of happiness. Yet, they are alike in that their sense of relative achievement or deprivation is the most pervasive and powerful influence on happiness.


Author(s):  
Beata Dziedzic ◽  
Paulina Sarwa ◽  
Ewa Kobos ◽  
Zofia Sienkiewicz ◽  
Anna Idzik ◽  
...  

Introduction: Having impaired relations and limited interpersonal contact is associated with a sense of loneliness, and can result in a number of mental disorders, including the development of depression. Approximately one in five adolescents in the world suffers from depression, and first episodes of such are occurring at increasingly young ages. Due to a lack of appropriate support from parents, teachers and the healthcare system, the young person feels alone when dealing with their problem. Aims: The aims of this study are to determine the prevalence of anxiety, depression, aggression and sense of loneliness among high school students, and to analyze a correlation between loneliness and depression. Materials and methods: The study was conducted on 300 high school students in Poland. The study material was collected using the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS-M) and De Jong Gierveld Loneliness Scale (DJGLS). Results: A feeling of loneliness correlated significantly with depressive disorders (p < 0.005), with the strongest effect between the total HADS-M score and the total loneliness scale score (r = 0.61). The overall presence of disorders as per HADS-M was found to be 23%, and borderline conditions were found in 19.3%. In 24% of the students, disorders were revealed on the anxiety subscale and in 46.3% on the aggression subscale. On DJGLS, a very severe sense of loneliness was observed in 6.67% of the subjects, and in 42.3% of them, a moderate feeling of loneliness was indicated. On the social loneliness subscale, a severe sense of loneliness was found in 22.7%, while on the emotional loneliness subscale, it was found in 16.7% of the subjects. Conclusions: In this study, a quarter of the student participants experienced anxiety and depression disorders. Students showing higher levels of anxiety, depression, and aggression also showed enhanced loneliness. Girls showed higher levels of anxiety, depression and aggression, as well as emotional loneliness.


2016 ◽  
Vol 26 (4) ◽  
pp. 430-440 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. Stevanovic ◽  
Z. Bagheri ◽  
O. Atilola ◽  
P. Vostanis ◽  
D. Stupar ◽  
...  

Background.In order to compare estimates by one assessment scale across various cultures/ethnic groups, an important aspect that needs to be demonstrated is that its construct across these groups is invariant when measured using a similar and simultaneous approach (i.e., demonstrated cross-cultural measurement invariance). One of the methods for evaluating measurement invariance is testing for differential item functioning (DIF), which assesses whether different groups respond differently to particular items. The aim of this study was to evaluate the cross-cultural measurement invariance of the Revised Child Anxiety and Depression Scale (RCADS) in societies with different socioeconomic, cultural, and religious backgrounds.Methods.The study was organised by the International Child Mental Health Study Group. Self-reported data were collected from adolescents residing in 11 countries: Brazil, Bulgaria, Croatia, Indonesia, Montenegro, Nigeria, Palestinian Territories, the Philippines, Portugal, Romania and Serbia. The multiple-indicators multiple-causes model was used to test the RCADS items for DIF across the countries.Results.Ten items exhibited DIF considering all cross-country comparisons. Only one or two items were flagged with DIF in the head-to-head comparisons, while there were three to five items flagged with DIF, when one country was compared with the others. Even with all cross-culturally non-invariant items removed from nine language versions tested, the original factor model representing six anxiety and depressive symptoms subscales was not significantly violated.Conclusions.There is clear evidence that relatively small number of the RCADS items is non-invariant, especially when comparing two different cultural/ethnic groups, which indicates on its sound cross-cultural validity and suitability for cross-cultural comparisons in adolescent anxiety and depressive symptoms.


2016 ◽  
Vol 33 (S1) ◽  
pp. S623-S623
Author(s):  
D. Ivanova ◽  
V. Giannouli

IntroductionCo-dependent relationships are characterized as a type of dysfunctional helping relationship in which there is an excessive reliance on other people for approval and identity. This is very common for female relatives who support/enable another person's addiction, poor mental health, immaturity, and/or irresponsibility.ObjectiveThe aim of the present study is to reveal the co-dependence profile of mothers of addicted persons in Bulgaria.MethodFour hundred Bulgarian women coming from Blagoevgrad, Sofia and Stara Zagora (Mage = 53.55, SDage = 5.58; level of education: 71% with high school degree, 29%with university degree; all mothers of addicted persons) were examined at the Municipal Council on Drug Addiction Blagoevgrad with the STAI-state questionnaire, the ZUNG Self Rating Depression Scale and the Questionnaire of Establishment of Codependency.ResultsResults indicated that in a scale of scores ranging from 2 = minimum to 4 = maximum of co-dependence, this group of women had high self-reported levels of co-dependence (M = 3.6375, SD = .52610), a high depressive profile (M = 49.07, SD = 3.23, and high state anxiety (M = 66.60, SD = 5.58).ConclusionsThe present research suggests that mothers of dependent individuals in Bulgaria show a high level of co-dependency, anxiety and depression. Future research should clarify the reasons of this overall negative emotional profile.Disclosure of interestThe authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest.


2019 ◽  
Vol 19 (3-4) ◽  
pp. 256-272 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rawan Charafeddine ◽  
Hugo Mercier ◽  
Takahiro Yamada ◽  
Tomoko Matsui ◽  
Mioko Sudo ◽  
...  

AbstractDevelopmental research suggests that young children tend to value dominant individuals over subordinates. This research, however, has nearly exclusively been carried out in Western cultures, and cross-cultural research among adults has revealed cultural differences in the valuing of dominance. In particular, it seems that Japanese culture, relative to many Western cultures, values dominance less. We conducted two experiments to test whether this difference would be observed in preschoolers. In Experiment 1, preschoolers in France and in Japan were asked to identify with either a dominant or a subordinate. French preschoolers identified with the dominant, but Japanese preschoolers were at chance. Experiment 2 revealed that Japanese preschoolers were more likely to believe a subordinate than a dominant individual, both compared to chance and compared to previous findings among French preschoolers. The convergent results from both experiments thus reveal an early emerging cross-cultural difference in the valuing of dominance.


2019 ◽  
Vol 58 (1) ◽  
pp. 82-101
Author(s):  
Dauda Yillah

This article examines the cross-cultural perspective offered by the metropolitan French author Patrick Grainville in his novels Les Flamboyants and Le Tyran éternel, set each in a fictional post-1960 independent black African state. In doing so, it identifies an inherent contradiction in the vision and argues that, while setting out to celebrate cultural difference, Grainville ends up paradoxically, if perhaps unwittingly, reasserting the supremacy of the cultural self. The article does not seek to discredit entirely Grainville's cross-cultural endeavour, but does not attempt to overrate it either. Rather it shows how, writing in a post-imperial European historical context of the mid-1970s and the late 1990s, Grainville breaks with colonial modes of cross-cultural perception but only to restate in certain respects the cultural assumptions that tend to underpin those modes of apprehending cultural difference.


2019 ◽  
Vol 122 (2) ◽  
pp. 482-488 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas A. Brunner ◽  
Krittinee Nuttavuthisit

Purpose Edible insects might be the meat of the future. However, promoting insects as food, at least in western countries, is not an easy task. Segmenting consumers into various similarly behaving groups and targeting them separately is the first step to more successfully promoting insect cuisine. By taking a cross-cultural perspective on the topic of entomophagy and investigating the impact of different cultural settings, additional insights may be revealed that can be used to develop marketing strategies. The paper aims to discuss this issue. Design/methodology/approach Using survey data from Switzerland (N=542) and Thailand (N=500), a hierarchical cluster analysis yielded four consumer segments in each country. Findings Interestingly, in both countries, the segments themselves can be named identically and accordingly to Roger’s diffusion of innovation theory: early adopters, early majority, late majority and laggards. However, the size of the segments and the people within these corresponding segments are quite different sociodemographically and in some of the investigated psychographic scales, such as food neophobia. The authors conclude that consumers in countries with an entomophagy tradition behave quite differently from those without one. Originality/value To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first cross-cultural consumer segmentation study on the topic of entomophagy. Based on these results, initial conclusions can be drawn on how to successfully target the specific segments.


2019 ◽  
Vol 39 (9) ◽  
pp. 944-956 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tayana Panova ◽  
Xavier Carbonell ◽  
Andres Chamarro ◽  
Diana Ximena Puerta-Cortés

2008 ◽  
Vol 32 (2) ◽  
pp. 131-136 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mako Okanda ◽  
Shoji Itakura

We investigated whether children's response tendency toward yes—no questions concerning objects is a common phenomenon regardless of languages and cultures. Vietnamese and Japanese 2- to 5-year-old ( N = 108) were investigated. We also examined whether familiarity with the questioning issue has any effect on Asian children's yes bias. As the result, Asian children showed a yes bias to yes—no questions. The children's response tendency changes dramatically with their age: Vietnamese and Japanese 2- and 3-year-olds showed a yes bias, but 5-year-olds did not. However, Asian 4-year-olds also showed a yes bias only in the familiar condition. Also, Asian children showed a stronger yes bias in the familiar condition than the unfamiliar condition. These two findings in Asian children were different from the previous finding investigated North American children (Fritzley & Lee, 2003). Moreover, there was a within-Asian cross-cultural difference. Japanese children showed different response tendencies, which were rarely observed in Vietnamese children. Japanese 2-year-olds and some 3-year-olds showed a “no answer” response: they tended not to respond to an interviewer's questions. Japanese 4- and 5-year-olds also showed an “I don't know” response when they were asked about unfamiliar objects. Japanese children tended to avoid a binary decision. We discussed the cross-cultural differences.


2017 ◽  
Vol 41 (S1) ◽  
pp. S414-S414 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Mermerelis ◽  
S.M. Kyvelou ◽  
V. Akke ◽  
C. Papageorgiou ◽  
C. Stefanadis ◽  
...  

IntroductionThere has been an attempt to associate anxiety and depression with arterial stiffness. In the present study, we assessed differences in arterial stiffness among 3 groups of hypertensive patients compared to control normotensives as well as possible association with anxiety and depression scoring system.MethodsThe study cohort comprised of 127 patients (75 male, mean age 54 ± 14) who underwent assessment of their blood pressure levels and were divided in four groups: group I (normotensives, n = 34), group II (stage 1 HTN, n = 33), group III (stage 2 HTN, n = 30) and group IV (stage 3 HTN, n = 30). The evaluation of anxiety disorder was made by means of Hospital Anxiety Depression Scale (HADS), while the evaluation of depression was made with the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI). Arterial stiffness evaluation was done with Cardio-Ankle Vascular Index (CAVI). Statistical analysis was done with SPSS for windows. P-value was set at 0.05 for differences to be considered significant.ResultsBoth CAVI R and CAVI L indices were significantly higher as the severity of hypertension progressed (P < 0.001). BDI score was significantly correlated with CAVIR (Pearson r = 0.53, P < 0.0001) and CAVI L (Pearson r = 0.39, P < 0.0001). HADS score was also significantly correlated with both CAVIR (Pearson r = 0.53, P < 0.0001) and CAVIL (Pearson r = 0.43, P < 0.0001).ConclusionsThere is a burden in the arterial stiffness of this population with the increase of the levels of BP which is not surprising. However, the new finding is that there is a strong correlation with arterial stiffness indices and both anxiety and depression scoring system.Disclosure of interestThe authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest.


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