Cultural differences in social support seeking: The mediating role of empathic concern

Prior research has found that East Asians are less willing than Westerners to seek social support in times of need. What factors account for this cultural difference? Whereas previous research has examined the mediating effect of relational concern, we predicted that empathic concern, which refers to feeling sympathy and concern for people in need and varies by individuals from different cultures, would promote support seeking. We tested the prediction in two studies. In Study 1, European Canadians reported higher empathic concern and a higher frequency of support seeking, compared to the Japanese participants. As predicted, cultural differences in social support seeking were influenced by empathic concern. In Study 2, both empathic concern and relational concern mediated cultural differences in support seeking. Japanese with lower empathic concern but higher relational concern were more reluctant than European Americans to seek social support during stressful times. Finally, loneliness, which was more prevalent among the Japanese than among the European Americans, was partially explained by social support seeking.

Medication-enhanced psychotherapy for posttraumatic stress disorder: Recent findings on oxytocin’s involvement in the neurobiology and treatment of posttraumatic stress disorder

Background Traumatic experiences may result in Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), which is characterized as an exaggerated fear response that cannot be extinguished over time or in safe environments. What are beneficial psychotherapeutic treatment options for PTSD patients? Can oxytocin (OXT), which is involved in the stress response, and safety learning, ameliorate PTSD symptomatology and enhance psychotherapeutic effects? Here, we will review recent studies regarding OXT’s potential to enhance psychotherapeutic therapies for PTSD treatment. Method We conducted a literature review on the neurobiological underpinnings of PTSD especially focusing on OXT’s involvement in the biology and memory formation of PTSD. Furthermore, we researched successful psychotherapeutic treatments for PTSD patients and discuss how OXT may facilitate observed psychotherapeutic effects. Results For a relevant proportion of PTSD patients, existing psychotherapies are not beneficial. OXT may be a promising candidate to enhance psychotherapeutic effects, because it dampens responses to stressful events and allows for a faster recovery after stress. On a neural basis, OXT modulates processes that are involved in stress, arousal and memory. OXT effectively counteracts memory impairments caused by stress and facilitates social support seeking which is a key resilience factor for PTSD and which is beneficial in psychotherapeutic settings. Conclusion OXT has many characteristics that are promising to positively influence psychotherapy for PTSD patients. It potentially reduces intrusions, but preserves memory of the event itself. Introducing OXT into psychotherapeutic settings may result in better treatment outcomes for PTSD patients. Future research should directly investigate OXT’s effects on PTSD, especially in psychotherapeutic settings.

“Everything Seems Unreal”: How Adolescents Cope with COVID-19 Quarantine Experience

Adolescents were a particularly vulnerable group at the time of the pandemic. Restrictions applied during quarantine brought a lot of stress and challenges for the youth. The aim of this study was to reveal how adolescents cope with challenges faced during the lockdown due to COVID-19. Twenty four 13–17-year-old adolescents participated in a qualitative study using semi-structured in-depth interviews via Zoom. Findings revealed seven themes related to youth coping behavior during lockdown: 1. withdrawal behavior, 2. focus on particular activities, 3. social support seeking within family and via the internet with friends, 4. expression of overwhelming emotions, 5. protest against quarantine restrictions, 6. attempts to maintain “active oneself”, 7. search for the personal meaning of the lockdown. Understanding the coping behaviors and helping adolescents reflect their mental states in stressful situations could be effective interventions in order to reduce the risk of future psychological problems.

EFFECTIVENESS OF THE COPING ENHANCEMENT PROGRAM ON THE MOTHERS OF THE SPECIAL CHILDREN: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW

Parenting is a hugely stressful job, and attering a mother of a child with a disability is one of the big stressful life events that can occur. The aim of this systematic review was to summarize coping strategies used by mothers of special children, identify which tools are most frequently used to measure coping strategies in mothers of special children and report on outcomes of useful coping strategies. According to PRISMA guidelines, the articles indexed in PubMed, Web of science, Psyc INFO, and CINAHL database using a combination of expressions including “Coping” AND “Special children” OR “Coping enhancement AND ‘‘Mother”, were searched and analysed. The researcher found that the mothers of special children used more functional coping styles. The most widely used strategy by mothers of special children appears to be social support-seeking. This review underlines that Coping measurement should be adapted to recognize effective strategies which decrease side effects of the reactions to stressful life occurrence.

Parent–student relational turbulence, support processes, and mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic

In Spring 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic introduced unexpected transitions for college students and their families. Informed by Relational Turbulence Theory, we examined associations among relational turbulence processes in students’ relationships with parents, social support seeking and reception, and mental health. Seven hundred forty-seven college students living at home with a parent completed an online survey during June 2020. Students’ self uncertainty, interference from parents, and relational turbulence were negatively associated with their support seeking and perceptions of support from parents, whereas facilitation from parents predicted increased support seeking and perceptions of support. In turn, support seeking and perceived support were negatively associated with students’ anxiety, depression, and stress. Finally, support processes mediated the association of turbulence with depression.

Love-stated Individuals' Eye Fixation under The Pain Conditions: Lovers VS. Mothers

As an old Chinese saying goes, “got married with a woman will make a man forget his mother”. It describes a situation that after a man establishing an intimate relationship, his psychological support and emotional input for his mother will be shifted to some extent to his lover. This research aims to explore the effects of love states and gender difference on the gaze of his lover or mother under the condition of pain. In this study, 35 college students were recruited, and 34 valid data (21 females, 13 males) were finally collected. Participants were divided into non-love group and in-love group by filling up the Passionate Love Scale (PLS). The length of tolerance under the cold pressor test and corresponding eye movement data are recorded. The results show that mother and intimate others’ picture can act as sources of social support which is helpful for pain relief. Non-love female participants significantly spent more time watching mothers’ pictures compared to lovers’ picture under the condition of pain. This distinction became smaller among in-love female participants. However, no statistical difference in the duration of mothers’ and lovers’ picture was found. In-love male participants significantly spend more time watching lovers’ pictures compared to their mothers under pain. The result suggests that love state affects the duration of mothers’ and lovers’ pictures among females. There is also gender difference in social support seeking.

Women Facing Psychological Abuse: How Do They Respond to Maternal Identity Humiliation and Body Shaming?

This research analyzes the decisions made by women facing simulated situations of psychological abuse. Seventy-three women (36.9 ± 13.6 years) who had been victims of domestic violence participated. The analysis was based on their coping strategies, early maladaptive schemes, and their decisions in response to vignettes describing the following domestic violence situations: humiliation to women’s maternal identity with children as witnesses and body shaming. We used Student’s t and Mann–Whitney tests to compare the results between groups. The participants presented some coping strategies (social support seeking, wishful thinking, and professional support seeking) and several early maladaptive schemes (emotional deprivation, defectiveness/shame, social isolation/alienation, failure to achieve, attachment, and subjugation) associated with their reactions facing a situation of humiliation with children as witnesses. When the humiliation was against the body image, their reactions were associated with some coping strategies (wishful thinking, professional support seeking, autonomy, negative auto-focus coping, and positive reappraisal) and one maladaptive scheme (defectiveness/shame). Women who reacted avoidantly showed higher social and professional support seeking but experienced higher indicators of discomfort and deterioration of self-esteem than those who opted for assertive decisions. The presence of children as witnesses seems to be a factor of stress in the configuration of coping strategies and maladaptive schemes in female victims of domestic violence. The evolution of early maladaptive schemes and coping strategies requires observation to avoid the risk of isolation and permanence in victimizing relationships.