Positive psychology interventions in patients with breast cancer

Cancer can be defined by both accelerated cell reproduction and the damage it causes to people's health regardless of type. Breast cancer is not specifically exclusive to women, it also affects men but is less frequent, in 2018 it was reported that in Mexico two out of every 10 deaths in women were due to corresponding breast cancer in the period 2011 to 2016. The goal of this review is to publicize the effectiveness of some of the psychological intervention programs since positive psychology in patients with breast cancer. The bibliographic search was made in databases such as Redalyc, SciELO, Dialnet, PubMed and Google Academia, as inclusion criteria it was taken into account that the bibliography had a period of age not more than 10 years. and as exclusion criteria, all interventions involving girls, boys and adolescents were ruled out. The results found that interventions from positive psychology applied in patients with breast cancer mainly work on both positive and negative emotions, welfare, optimism and self-concept trying from women living in that situation, providing as results the improvement of problem solving and coping with the disease and its consequences. It was concluded by noting that cognitive behavioral psychological intervention from positive psychology effectively helps to cope with changes in an adaptive way and has adapted to the new lifestyle caused by breast cancer. It was considered important that future interventions also work with the population of men even though the sample was small because the diagnoses in them are uncommon, however it is important to know the effects of psychological intervention on them from positive psychology, and the factors that usually affect mainly during and after the disease process.

The Challenges of Training in Psychology

The training of the clinical psychologist requires the development of competencies in the fields of mental health prevention, health promotion, diagnosis, and treatment of mental illness. This training has undergone many changes due to the pandemic, evolution of education, and the translation of clinical practices to an online format. The present proposal focuses on making a review and reflection on the best practices derived from the adaptation of the training of these professionals with a future-oriented look. This chapter seeks to address two critical questions: What practices are necessary for the acquisition of the disciplinary competencies of clinical psychologists? and What didactic strategies were integrated during the COVID-19 pandemic? In the light of the lessons learned from the pandemic, the main tasks to be faced by the clinical psychologist in the face of the new demands of practice that require the creation of programs of psychological intervention and psychosocial support to the community are pointed out.

The goal of psychological intervention and performed functions of psychologists as an aspect of the professional identity of psychologists: Latvian sample

Professional identity is formed by combination of several aspects, including professional practice, which for psychologists relates to psychological intervention and performed functions. The exclusive goal of psychological intervention and exclusively performed functions of psychologists are an important research subjects because more and more practicing professionals are performing activities linked to psychological intervention. The purpose of this paper was to investigate the exclusive goal of psychological intervention and exclusively performed functions of Latvian psychologists. Data was collected through an online survey developed in the framework of the international project “The Identity of Psychology” [1]. Three open-answer questions were used. Sample consisted of 54 Latvian psychologists of which 91% were women (n = 49) and 9 % were men (n = 5) aged from 25 to 60 years (M = 44.94; SD = 8.98). Data was analysed using thematic categorical content analysis. Findings indicate clear diversity in the opinion about the professional practice among Latvian psychologists. The results of this study indicate limited agreement and comprehension of Latvian psychologists about their professional practice which leads to necessity for further research to investigate the causes of such outcome to determine solutions on how to strengthen their professional practice and, more broadly, professional identity.