scholarly journals Negotiating Intimate and (A)sexual Stories

2015 ◽  
Vol 20 (4) ◽  
pp. 186-199 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jo Woodiwiss
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Abuse ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Traumatic Experiences ◽  
Western World ◽  
Adult Women ◽  
Sexually Active ◽  
Self Help ◽  
Sexual Stories ◽  
Compulsory Sexuality ◽  
Do So

Drawing on a research project looking at women's engagement with therapeutic/self-help literature this paper uses the concept of narrative frameworks to explore women's negotiation of currently circulating stories of healthy womanhood, intimacy and sexuality. In a (western) world increasingly informed by therapeutic discourses, adult women are told they are entitled to happiness and success and failure to do so is seen to result from past (often traumatic) experiences which might or might not be remembered. Central to this construction of womanhood is what (drawing on Rich 1980) I have called ‘compulsory sexuality’ whereby the healthy adult woman is constructed as sexually knowledgeable, active and desirous. This not only puts pressure on all women to construct a (particular) active sexual self but helps to construct those who do not as problematic and directs them to seek both cause and solution in their damaged psychologies. One such cause is said to be childhood sexual abuse and the self-help literature aimed at survivors of such abuse encourages readers to use the idea(l) of an active sexual self as a measure of health, well-being and ultimately womanhood. In this paper I argue that contemporary narrative frameworks of healthy womanhood not only allows for women who are not, or do not wish to be, sexually active to be identified as problematic, but directs them to see themselves as damaged. In critiquing the sexual abuse recovery literature I also show how this can be used to create different a/sexual selves, albeit ones currently perceived to be ‘damaged’.

The Effects of Similarity Versus Dissimilarity of Spouses' Traumatic Childhood Events on Psychological Well-Being and Marital Quality

2003 ◽  
Vol 24 (6) ◽  
pp. 737-752 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rachel Lev-Wiesel ◽  
Marianne Amir
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Abuse ◽  
Marital Quality ◽  
Sexually Abused ◽  
Adult Survivors ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Traumatic Experiences ◽  
Post Traumatic Stress ◽  
Child Survivors ◽  
Post Traumatic ◽  
Holocaust Child Survivors

This study compared spouses who had experienced similar versus different childhood trauma in terms of post-traumatic symptomatology, psychological symptoms of distress, and marital quality. The sample comprised two groups: Holocaust child survivors who were sexually abused during the Holocaust and are married to Holocaust child survivors ( n = 44) who were also sexually abused, and adult survivors of childhood sexual abuse married to nonsurvivors of sexual abuse ( n = 43). All participants were administered the post-traumatic stress disorder, Symptom Checklist 90-Revised, and Enrich Scale for Marital Quality questionnaires. The results revealed that compared with survivors married to partners with different past traumatic experiences, survivors who shared similar past traumatic experiences with their spouses had higher levels of PTSD, anxiety, depression, somatization, phobic-anxiety, and hostility but also expressed greater levels of marital quality.

scholarly journals Social Support for Child Abuse Cases in Institutional Care

2013 ◽  
Vol 4 (11) ◽  
pp. 508-513
Author(s):  
Abdul Razak Abd
Keyword(s):  
Social Support ◽  
Sexual Abuse ◽  
Child Abuse ◽  
Qualitative Study ◽  
Institutional Care ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Traumatic Experiences ◽  
Critical Issues ◽  
Psychosocial Challenges ◽  
Sexual Abuse Victims

The purpose of the study is to initially examine the experience and interpretation of support received by the sexual abuse victims living in institutional care. Five teenage female participants were interviewed. Preliminary results of this qualitative study revealed a number of critical issues that may be considered seriously by the stakeholders. One of the concerns is the on-going traumatic experiences faced by the victims. Dealing with several psychosocial challenges, participants are more likely to share their problems and get support from their peers that are close to them in comparison to the staffs in the institution. The findings of this study suggested a number of social work implications that must be addressed regarding the welfare and well-being of sexual abuse victims.

scholarly journals The Promise of Sustainable Happiness

2009 ◽  
pp. 666-678 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julia K. Boehm ◽  
Sonja Lyubomirsky
Keyword(s):  
Social Comparisons ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Ancient History ◽  
Randomized Controlled ◽  
Self Help ◽  
Life Circumstances ◽  
Intentional Activities ◽  
Happiness Level ◽  
Sustainable Happiness ◽  
Do So

From ancient history to recent times, philosophers, writers, self-help gurus, and now scientists have taken up the challenge of how to foster greater happiness. This chapter discusses why some people are happier than others, focusing on the distinctive ways that happy and unhappy individuals construe themselves and others, respond to social comparisons, make decisions, and self-reflect. We suggest that, despite several barriers to increased well-being, less happy people can strive successfully to be happier by learning a variety of effortful strategies and practicing them with determination and commitment. The sustainable happiness model (Lyubomirsky, Sheldon, & Schkade, 2005 ) provides a theoretical framework for experimental intervention research on how to increase and maintain happiness. According to this model, three factors contribute to an individual's chronic happiness level: (a) the set point, (b) life circumstances, and (c) intentional activities, or effortful acts that are naturally variable and episodic. Such activities, which include committing acts of kindness, expressing gratitude or optimism, and savoring joyful life events, represent the most promising route to sustaining enhanced happiness. We describe a half-dozen randomized controlled interventions testing the efficacy of each of these activities in raising and maintaining well-being, as well as the mediators and moderators underlying their effects. Future researchers must endeavor not only to learn which particular practices make people happier, but how and why they do so.

Investigating the Efficacy and Cost-Effectiveness of a Web-based Self-help Program for People With Adjustment Problems After an Accident (SelFIT): Protocol for a Randomized Controlled Trial (Preprint)

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julia Hegy ◽  
Noemi Anja Brog ◽  
Thomas Berger ◽  
Hansjoerg Znoj
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Psychological Distress ◽  
Cost Effectiveness ◽  
Well Being ◽  
User Friendliness ◽  
Adjustment Problems ◽  
Health Care Consumption ◽  
Web Based ◽  
Self Help ◽  
Wide Range

BACKGROUND Accidents and the resulting injuries are one of the world’s biggest health care issues often causing long-term effects on psychological and physical health. With regard to psychological consequences, accidents can cause a wide range of burdens including adjustment problems. Although adjustment problems are among the most frequent mental health problems, there are few specific interventions available. The newly developed program SelFIT aims to remedy this situation by offering a low-threshold web-based self-help intervention for psychological distress after an accident. OBJECTIVE The overall aim is to evaluate the efficacy and cost-effectiveness of the SelFIT program plus care as usual (CAU) compared to only care as usual. Furthermore, the program’s user friendliness, acceptance and adherence are assessed. We expect that the use of SelFIT is associated with a greater reduction in psychological distress, greater improvement in mental and physical well-being, and greater cost-effectiveness compared to CAU. METHODS Adults (n=240) showing adjustment problems due to an accident they experienced between 2 weeks and 2 years before entering the study will be randomized. Participants in the intervention group receive direct access to SelFIT. The control group receives access to the program after 12 weeks. There are 6 measurement points for both groups (baseline as well as after 4, 8, 12, 24 and 36 weeks). The main outcome is a reduction in anxiety, depression and stress symptoms that indicate adjustment problems. Secondary outcomes include well-being, optimism, embitterment, self-esteem, self-efficacy, emotion regulation, pain, costs of health care consumption and productivity loss as well as the program’s adherence, acceptance and user-friendliness. RESULTS Recruitment started in December 2019 and is ongoing. CONCLUSIONS To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study examining a web-based self-help program designed to treat adjustment problems resulting from an accident. If effective, the program could complement the still limited offer of secondary and tertiary psychological prevention after an accident. CLINICALTRIAL ClinicalTrials.gov NCT03785912; https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT03785912?cond=NCT03785912&draw=2&rank=1

scholarly journals The impact of poly-traumatization on treatment outcomes in young people with substance use disorders

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sidsel Karsberg ◽  
Morten Hesse ◽  
Michael Mulbjerg Pedersen ◽  
Ruby Charak ◽  
Mads Uffe Pedersen
Keyword(s):  
Substance Use ◽  
Substance Use Disorders ◽  
Psychological Trauma ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Traumatic Experiences ◽  
Treatment Entry ◽  
Trauma Types ◽  
Using Data ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Drug Use Disorder

Abstract Background It is believed that clients with psychological trauma experiences have a poor prognosis with regard to treatment participation and outcomes for substance use disorders. However, knowledge on the effect of the number of trauma experiences is scarce. Methods Using data from drug use disorder (DUD) treatment in Denmark, we assessed the impact of having experienced multiple potentially traumatic experiences on DUD treatment efficacy. Baseline and follow-up data from 775 young participants (mean age = 20.2 years, standard deviation = 2.6) recruited at nine treatment centers were included in analyses. Results Analyses showed that participants who were exposed multiple trauma experiences also reported a significantly higher intake of cannabis at treatment entry, and a lower well-being score than participants who reported less types or no types of victimization experiences. During treatment, patients with multiple types of trauma experiences showed a slower rate of reduction of cannabis than patients with few or no trauma experiences. The number of trauma types was not associated with number of sessions attended or the development of well-being in treatment. Conclusion Overall, the results show that although traumatized youth in DUD treatment show up for treatment, helping them to reduce substance use during treatment is uniquely challenging. Trial registration ISRCTN88025085, date of registration: 29.08.2016, retrospectively registered.

“God, why?”: The Experience of Mothers from the Israeli Ultra-Orthodox Sector after their Child’s Disclosure of Sexual Abuse

2021 ◽  
pp. 088626052110219
Author(s):  
Aiala Szyfer Lipinsky ◽  
Limor Goldner
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Abuse ◽  
Minority Groups ◽  
Phenomenological Study ◽  
Meaning Making ◽  
Initial Step ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Drawing Task ◽  
Qualitative Phenomenological ◽  
Qualitative Phenomenological Study

Studies dealing with the experiences of non-offending mothers from the general population and minority groups after their child’s disclosure of sexual abuse are scarce, and studies on mothers from the Jewish ultra-Orthodox community are non-existent. This study takes an initial step in filling this gap by exploring how the normalization of sexual abuse shapes these mothers’ experiences. A qualitative phenomenological study was conducted on a sample of 21 mothers from the ultra-Orthodox sector whose children had been sexually abused. It consisted of in-depth, semi-structured interviews of the mothers followed by a drawing task on their experience. The analysis of the interviews yielded four central themes: the role of social stigmatization and religion on the mother’s ability to share her child’s abuse; the effect of the disclosure on the mothers’ mental state and maternal competency; the mothers’ ongoing experience in the shadow of this unprocessed/unresolved trauma; and the mothers’ coping strategies, including acceptance, faith, and meaning making. The findings highlight the influence of the tension between the need to adhere to religious norms and preserve the social fabric and the need to enhance mothers’ and children’s well-being.

Losses Associated With Childhood Sexual Abuse in Women Survivors: A Scoping Review

2021 ◽  
pp. 152483802110131
Author(s):  
Baaqira Kays Ebrahim ◽  
Ansie Fouche ◽  
Hayley Walker-Williams
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Abuse ◽  
Childhood Sexual Abuse ◽  
Women Survivors ◽  
Scoping Review ◽  
Adult Women ◽  
Negative Effects ◽  
Female Survivors ◽  
Review Question ◽  
Abuse Treatment ◽  
Sexual Abuse Treatment

Childhood sexual abuse is a complex trauma with unique trauma-causing factors that could have devastating long-term, negative effects on survivors. To date, little attention has been given to loss and specifically stigmatized or hidden loss as a unique trauma-causing factor. Method: This article reports the findings of a scoping review designed to identify research exploring the losses associated with childhood sexual abuse in women survivors. A systematic search of databases for articles published between 1983 and 2019 were conducted using keywords related to loss and women survivors of childhood sexual abuse. Findings: Twenty studies were selected for review using predefined inclusion criteria: studies that include adult women survivors of childhood sexual abuse, studies that include child/childhood sexual abuse, studies that include stigmatized loss, studies that indicate stigmatized loss in adult women survivors of childhood sexual abuse. Sources were subject to quality appraisal and data were extracted in line with the review question. Discussion and Contribution: Findings acknowledged and extended on Bloom’s model of stigmatized loss and suggested that female survivors of childhood sexual abuse may experience an overall loss of self-efficacy, presenting as a loss of personal agency, interpersonal agency, and sexual agency. The results of this research suggest that loss be considered in support interventions with women self-reporting childhood sexual abuse. It is recommended that further research be conducted to confirm these findings so that they may advocate for inclusion in childhood sexual abuse treatment interventions.

scholarly journals HPV and Cytology Testing in Women Undergoing 9-Valent HPV Opportunistic Vaccination: A Single-Cohort Follow Up Study

Vaccines ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (6) ◽  
pp. 643
Author(s):  
Rosa De Vincenzo ◽  
Nicola Caporale ◽  
Valentina Bertoldo ◽  
Caterina Ricci ◽  
Maria Teresa Evangelista ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Pap Smear ◽  
Cox Regression ◽  
Vaccine Dose ◽  
Pap Smears ◽  
Adult Women ◽  
Sexually Active ◽  
Time Intervals ◽  
Dose Administration ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Single Cohort

Background: This study evaluates the possible effect of 9-valent (9vHPV) vaccination on the results of HPV and cytological tests in a cohort of adult women. Methods: This study is a retrospective, single-cohort, monocentric study. Sexually active women aged 14–70 years, who underwent 9vHPV vaccination, were enrolled. Dose administration dates, side effects and data on Pap smears and HPV tests performed before and after the first vaccine dose were collected. Subjects were considered “unexposed” to the vaccine for all time intervals before the first dose administration, and “exposed” to the first, second and third vaccine doses in all time intervals following each specific dose. Results: A total of 512 women underwent the first 9vHPV dose administration and were enrolled in the study. Median age at vaccination was 30.5 (14–70). Log-rank tests and Cox regression analyses showed a highly statistically significant (p < 0.0001) difference in the time to negativization after the exposure to the third vaccine dose in the 207 women starting with a Pap+ smear (HR (95% C.I.), 2.66 (1.83–3.86)) and in the 198 women starting with an HPV HR+ test (HR (95% C.I.), 7.80 (4.83–12.60)). Conclusions: 9vHPV vaccination may play a role in shortening the clearance time of HPV HR+ or Pap positivity in sexually active adult women.

scholarly journals Social capital in cooperatives: an evolutionary Luhmannian perspective

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vladislav Valentinov ◽  
Constantine Iliopoulos
Keyword(s):  
Social Capital ◽  
Economic System ◽  
Empirical Literature ◽  
Western World ◽  
Agricultural Cooperatives ◽  
Recent Contribution ◽  
Human Needs ◽  
Self Help ◽  
Extensive Range ◽  
Broad Variety

AbstractIn a recent contribution to this journal, Deng et al. (2021) draw on an extensive range of theoretical and empirical literature to make the case for the tendency of social capital resources of agricultural cooperatives in the Western world to decline over time. The present paper revisits this argument by drawing on a Luhmannian systems-theoretic perspective that takes the capitalist economic system to be limitedly sensitive and receptive to a broad variety of human needs. Whereas many of these needs remain marginalized and neglected, some of them may be codified or translated into a profit-making calculus. Cooperatives are shown to present one of the channels through which this codification may be possible; namely, the codification effect of cooperatives enables the incorporation of a multitude of mutual self-help activities into the economic system. This incorporation gives rise to intrasystemic adjustment processes that can be considered complete when the mutual self-help activities introduced by cooperatives no longer require the cooperative form and are integrated into the activities of investor-owned firms. If this view is accepted, then declining social capital may be an indicator of the successful codification process, which helps to make the economic system less exclusionary and more sensitive to human needs.

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