Gossip and Addiction Recovery in Rural Communities

2021 ◽  
pp. 104973232110411
Author(s):  
Amy R. Krentzman ◽  
Lauren K. Glass

Features of rural life, such as low population density and greater distances from urban areas, could worsen the prospects of addiction recovery for rural residents. Gossip is a central feature of rural life, and studies have shown that being the target of it can worsen health and well-being. However, no previous study has focused on the impact of gossip on addiction in rural communities. The current study employed semi-structured interviews with individuals in recovery, as well as addiction providers, to create a conceptual model of the relationship between gossip and addiction recovery in a rural region of Minnesota. The conceptual model depicted a bi-directional relationship between the individual and the community and suggested that gossip transforms from negative to positive over the course of addiction, early recovery, and long-term recovery. These data demonstrate that education at both the community and individual levels could support the transition to long-term recovery.

2021 ◽  
pp. 152483802110302
Author(s):  
Caroline Bailey ◽  
Jessica Shaw ◽  
Abril Harris

Adolescents experience alarmingly high rates of sexual violence, higher than any other age-group. This is concerning as sexual violence can have detrimental effects on teens’ personal and relational well-being, causing long-term consequences for the survivor. Still, adolescents are hesitant to report the assault or seek out services and resources. When an adolescent survivor does seek out services, they may interact with a provider who is a mandatory reporter. This scoping review sought to synthesize the current U.S.-based research on the role, challenges, and impact of mandatory reporting (MR) in the context of adolescent sexual assault. Database searches using key words related to MR, sexual assault, and adolescence identified 29 peer-reviewed articles. However, none of these articles reported on empirical investigations of the phenomenon of interest and instead consisted of case studies, commentaries, and position papers. The scoping review was expanded to provide a lay of the land of what we know about the intersection of adolescent sexual assault and MR. Results of the review indicate that though implemented broadly, MR policies vary between individuals, organizations, and states and have historically been challenging to implement due to this variation, conflicts with other laws, tension between these policies and providers’ values, and other factors. Based on the available literature, the impact of MR in the context of adolescent sexual assault is unknown. There is a critical need for research and evaluation on the implementation and impact of MR policies, especially in the context of adolescents and sexual violence.


2016 ◽  
Vol 33 (1) ◽  
pp. 64-82 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert Walker ◽  
T. K. Logan

Research typically compartmentalizes health and justice as separate areas of study. However, the current health literature on inequality suggests the two concepts are overlapping. For victims of partner violence, procedural justice (defined in this article as access to protective orders and enforcement of protective orders) potentially provides a step toward improved health and well-being by improving safety. There has been limited research examining these factors in rural compared with urban areas. This study examines the impact of procedural justice on health and well-being through interviews with rural and urban women 6 months prior to, and 6 months after, obtaining a protective order. Consistent with other literature, rural women who were victims of partner violence reported worse health, higher stress, and higher Stress-Related Consequences Scale scores compared with urban women. Women’s reported health consequences were related to the interaction of perceived ineffectiveness of the protective orders and their rural/urban environment. Thus, the perceived effectiveness of procedural justice may play an important role in alleviating victims’ safety, health, and well-being, all of which are components of contemporary views of justice.


2021 ◽  
pp. 001112872110226
Author(s):  
April N. Terry ◽  
Ashley Lockwood ◽  
Morgan Steele ◽  
Megan Milner

Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, girls and women represented one of the fastest growing populations within the juvenile and criminal justice systems. Since the spread of COVID-19, suggestions were provided to juvenile justice bodies, encouraging a reduction of youth arrests, detainments, and quicker court processing. Yet, the research comparing peri-COVID-19 changes for girls and boys is lacking, with an oversight to gender trends and rural and urban differences. This study used Juvenile Intake and Assessment Center (JIAC) data from a rural Midwestern state to look at rural and urban location trends for both boys and girls. Results suggest rural communities are responding differently to girls’ behaviors, revealing a slower decline in intakes compared to boys and youth in urban areas.


2020 ◽  
pp. 07-19
Author(s):  
Hiba Takieddine ◽  
Samaa AL Tabbah

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a highly infectious disease that has rapidly swept across the world, inducing a considerable degree of fear, worry and concern in the population at large and among certain groups in particular, such as older adults, healthcare providers and people with underlying health conditions. Authorities around the world tried to prevent the virus spread by imposing social distancing measures, quarantining citizens and isolating infected persons. Apart from its physical impact, COVID-19 pandemic has brought numerous changes to people’s lives. It changed daily routines, caused worldwide economic crisis, increased unemployment, and placed people under emotional and financial pressures. It affected people psychologically and mentally especially in terms of emotions and cognition. During the acute crisis, everyone to varying degrees experienced fear of infection, somatic concerns, worries about the pandemic’s consequences, loneliness, depression, stress, as well as increased alcohol and drug use. As part of its public health response, the World Health Organization (WHO) has worked with partners to develop a set of new guidelines and messages that can be used to prevent, manage, and support mental and psychological well-being in different vulnerable target groups during the outbreak. Whether people like it or not, the psychological sequela of this pandemic will emerge and persist for months and years to come leading to long-term consequences. New lifestyles and “New Normals” will surely emerge. The main purpose of this review is to summarize the impact of coronavirus pandemic on the psychological and mental health of people around the world especially vulnerable groups. It also presents the relevant intervention actions and recommendations to cope efficiently and effectively with the psychological short-term and long-term outcomes, mental changes, and the “New Normal” during and after COVID-19. Keywords: COVID-19; Coronavirus, Psychological; Mental; New Normal


Author(s):  
Julia Evangelista ◽  
William A. Fulford

AbstractThis chapter shows how carnival has been used to counter the impact of Brazil’s colonial history on its asylums and perceptions of madness. Colonisation of Brazil by Portugal in the nineteenth century led to a process of Europeanisation that was associated with dismissal of non-European customs and values as “mad” and sequestration of the poor from the streets into asylums. Bringing together the work of the two authors, the chapter describes through a case study how a carnival project, Loucura Suburbana (Suburban Madness), in which patients in both long- and short-term asylum care play leading roles, has enabled them to “reclaim the streets,” and re-establish their right to the city as valid producers of culture on their own terms. In the process, entrenched stigmas associated with having a history of mental illness in a local community are challenged, and sense of identity and self-confidence can be rebuilt, thus contributing to long-term improvements in mental well-being. Further illustrative materials are available including photographs and video clips.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Florina Guadalupe Arredondo-Trapero ◽  
José Carlos Vázquez-Parra ◽  
Martín De Jesús González-Martínez

Purpose The aim of this study is to analyse teachers’ perceptions of information and communication technologies (ICT) and the effect they have on their students, comparing male and female teachers in rural and urban areas of Mexico. Design/methodology/approach This is a quantitative study with a validated questionnaire that records the perception of school teachers from a state in the northeast of Mexico. The questionnaire was designed by interviewing 20 teachers who have had problematic situations in the use of technology by students. The main problems that were perceived in their students were cyberbullying, cyberviolence, online pornography, excessive use of videogames and also lack of ability to use digital technology. Hypothesis testing was applied to identify differences between gender (female or male) and region (rural or urban), considering these problems and the efforts made by the school to address these issues. Findings Both the gender of the teaching staff and the region where the school is located are variables that are influencing the willingness to incorporate ICT issues that are affecting the well-being of students into the educational agenda. While teachers are the main actors in preparing their students on how to face these challenges, students in schools with mostly male teachers, or located in rural areas, will be in a situation of greater vulnerability to be victims of the problems that arise as part of ICT risks in a digital society Research limitations/implications This article only offers a first approach to ICT and teachers’ perceptions. It is necessary to broaden the scope of this type of research to include different educational contexts and to ask questions that reveal in greater detail how schools are dealing with ICT and its possible risks and the factors that have influenced the successes or failures they are having in these attempts. Practical implications This finding can help schools to promote programs focused to apply ICT for student flourishment and help them to deal with the risk that digital technology is generating in young students. Originality/value Although multiple research have been conducted to address teachers’ perception about diverse topics, there has been no specific research on the self-perception of teachers in dealing with technology and preparing students for the problems presented by ICT and its risks. This research contributes to the literature on the impact that teachers’ perceptions can have on the adoption of technology in education, and how this can be different by gender and region.


Author(s):  
Poline Bala ◽  
Roger W. Harris ◽  
Peter Songan

This chapter highlights an initiative by a group of researchers2 from Universiti Malaysia Sarawak (UNIMAS) to connect villagers in the remote and isolated village of Bario to Information Communication Technologies (ICTs), which include computers, telephones, the Internet, and VSATs. This project has eased the information flow in and out of Bario, affecting the well-being of the people by providing a means to keep in touch with friends and relatives in urban areas. The response of the Bario community has been positive, but the objective of the e Bario project is more ambitious than to just provide access to the Internet, computers and other related technologies. The main objective is to identify opportunities for remote and rural communities in Sarawak to develop socially, culturally and economically from the deployment of the technologies. The results of the initiative are expected to demonstrate the many ways in which ICTs can be used to improve the lives of marginalized groups, specifically, here, the rural and remote communities in Malaysia. However, to ensure that the objectives will ultimately be met, the team has had to search for an appropriate methodology that will ensure the full benefits of the initiative to the community. This chapter describes and discusses the approaches adopted, emphasizing the benefits of a close association between the researchers and the community as well as the adoption of suitable participatory methods for engaging with the needs and opportunities that were discovered.


Out in Time ◽  
2019 ◽  
pp. 67-90
Author(s):  
Perry N. Halkitis

Gay men experience the process of coming out to various groups of individuals, in myriad contexts, and throughout the course of their lives. For many gay men, telling one’s parents and families represents the most significant act of disclosure. Methods used for coming out to parents, circumstances by which the men came out, and reactions of their families in both the short and long term are explored. A variety of different approaches are evidenced in the life stories. The impact of these critical life events is considered in relation to the well-being and health of each of the men. Coming out to parents and family is challenging in every generation, but the circumstances related to coming out are influenced and shaped by both the sociopolitical contexts of the time and the crisis of each generation.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jing Yuan ◽  
Daniel Grühn

Abstract Background and Objectives As informal caregiving becomes prevalent, its consequences for caregivers’ cognitive and socioemotional functioning gain more importance for society. There are inconsistent findings regarding the direction of the impact of caregiving—whether caregiving maintains or compromises functioning—and the impact of time—whether the effects accumulate or are stable. In this study, we elucidated 3 time effects of caregiving—concurrent, cumulative, and lagged effects—on cognitive and socioemotional functioning. Research Design and Methods We used data from Wave 1 (2002–2003) to Wave 8 (2016–2017) in the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing (ELSA) and latent growth curve models with the time-varying predictor to investigate 3 time effects of caregiving on cognitive function (memory and executive function) and well-being (life satisfaction and quality of life). Results Over and beyond age effects, current caregiving (concurrent effect) was related to worse well-being and better delayed recall. Little robust cumulative effect was found on cognition and well-being. In addition, there were significant and differential lagged effects of caregiving after controlling for concurrent and cumulative effects; that is, caregiving was related to worse well-being and better memory functioning 2–4 years later. Discussion and Implications The differential concurrent and lagged effects of caregiving on cognitive and socioemotional functioning suggest separate mechanisms for different domains of functioning. The nonsignificant cumulative effects but significant lagged effects imply that even one-time caregiving has long-term (2–4 years) consequences for the caregiver’s future functioning, and the mechanism of long-term caregiving effects may be more qualitative than quantitative.


2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. S709-S709
Author(s):  
Rachael Hemmert ◽  
Gabriella E Dull ◽  
Linda S Edelman

Abstract Opioid-based analgesic therapy is a common treatment for moderate to severe pain among long term care (LTC) residents. It has been estimated that 60% of LTC residents have an opioid prescription. Of these, 14% use opioids as part of a long term pain management strategy. LTC residents are particularly vulnerable to opioid misuse, exhibiting higher rates of adverse drug events. However, addressing pain, polypharmacological needs and resident well-being in the LTC setting is challenging. More research and education regarding opioid use in LTC is needed. The Utah Geriatric Education Consortium conducted interprofessional focus groups with LTC partners to 1) determine educational needs of staff regarding opioid use, and 2) gather qualitative data about the pain management experiences of staff when working with residents and families. Staff identified the following training needs: pain manifestation and assessment; certified nurse assistant education on opioid use; non-pharmacological options for pain management. Review of staff’s perception of the intersection of opioids, family and staff in a LTC setting revealed that 1) family is concerned about opioid use; 2) conversely, staff may not see opioid use as a problem; and 3) non-pharmacological options for pain management are often costly and unavailable to those in LTC. Identifying educational needs of LTC staff will help guide the development of educational materials and provide baseline data for future assessments of the impact of opioid education on long-term care patient outcomes.


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