Institute for Rural Development / PhDRDV / Household food deficit is a serious and prevalent public security issue, especially for people living in the dry areas of Zimbabwe. Yet national welfare surveys usually exclude a large portion of the dry areas. This explains partially why there is inadequate data on household food deficit. Food deficit confronting households living in isolated and inaccessible communities is unique. Studies have focused on the status, determinants and the factors influencing adoption of viable options. The current study was designed to assess the state of food deficit among families and how they survived during lean periods. Several dynamics of food deficit (incidence, determinants, coping strategies and the challenges affecting the adoption of viable coping options) were examined using insights from the Mortimore and Adams model, Actor-oriented model and the sustainable livelihood framework. Four separate studies were carried out. A sequentially integrated mixed methods design was used, split into interconnected qualitative and quantitative research phases. Results of the first phase informed the second one. A multi-stage sampling procedure was followed leading to the selection of Chipinge district, wards and villages as the study areas. Data were collected from 120 randomly and purposively sampled respondents. A household questionnaire survey, key informant interviews, citizen jury, participatory mapping and focus group discussions were utilised to gather data. A tape recorder was used as an assistive device in data collection. A 7-day food recall method was used to collect data on coping mechanisms that participants preferred. Thematic content analysis was applied to bring meaning to qualitative data and interpreting participatory maps. The quantitative data were captured and analysed using the International Business Machines (IBM) Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 24.0. Descriptive statistics, Household Food Insecurity Access Scale (HFIAS), point score analysis, household food balance model and Coping Strategy Index were used to analyse quantitative data. Approximately, 81 % of the respondents reported that they were vulnerable to food deficit. Households headed by women, children and the elderly were food insecure. However, those headed by people more than 60 years old and children were the most food insecure. All the households that experienced severe food deficit were concerned that they did not have money to purchase supplies. Respondents reported that they could not afford balanced diets. Highly significant associations (P < 0.001) were observed between household food insecurity and livelihood capital factors such as sex, age literacy, marital status, land size, off-farm activities and livestock ownership. Despite this, no significant association existed between food deficit and capitals such as rainfall index, access to extension amenities and distance to the water sources and market (P > 0.05). Households applied temporary food intake coping mechanisms to manage deficit situations. Furthermore, less preferred food was consumed as a food deficit coping strategy. Traditional foods such as meat of wild animals and fruits were used to supplement available food Sale of productive assets, changes in diet, withdrawal of food and migration were cited as some of the major strategies for coping with food deficit. The preferred coping measures did not reduce household food deficit adequately. Key informants perceived demographic, ecological, economic, social and infrastructural issues as factors that limited adoption of viable coping options. Drought, crop diseases, livestock pests, unpredictable rainfall patterns and drought were the major ecological factors affecting preferred coping measures. Decrease in land holdings and rapid population growth were some of the demographic factors hindering adoption of sustainable coping options. Poverty features such as lack of draft power and lack of investable excess money limited the adoption of sustainable coping options. Lack of irrigation amenities, reliance on rain-fed smallholder farming, and limited access to veterinary facilities were cited as the infrastructural challenges. Social factors limiting adoption of viable coping strategies included lack of savings and health complications. Based on the results of the current study, it was concluded that the degraded ecosystem should be rehabilitated and safeguarded from further destruction. Shortage of land, poor accessibility to rural credit and inadequate off-farm employment opportunities should be addressed. While farming played a critical role in reducing food deficit, the challenge in Chipinge district could not be addressed via agriculture only. The results of the current study are important because of their possible influence in agenda setting, informing interventions, advocating for programmes and policies that fortify household food security. Considering the diversity of coping strategies used in Chipinge district, stakeholders should utilise broad-based pro-food security programmes to support beneficial coping options that support household resilience. The expansion of this study to cover other areas with various climatic conditions might be a valuable avenue for a future study. Further research should establish how sustainable indigenous food systems can be developed and be buttressed by state policies in these dry areas. / NRF

The influence of self-complexity on coping behaviour and emotional adjustment is explored. The Role Construct Repertory Grid (REPGrid) Community of Selves procedure is used to assess self-complexity. Following a structured interview format, subjects completed a battery of measures including the REPGrid, Self-Rating Depression Scale, Hassles Scale, Major Stress Scale, and Coping Index. Results indicate that complex individuals utilize a wider variety of coping behaviours than less complex individuals, although the perceived severity of stressful events was. no different between groups. Micro-analyses at the individual self level revealed mixed or null results. Finally, more dysphoric individuals reported using more negative coping behaviours (drinking, smoking) than individuals not experiencing dysphoric mood. Findings are discussed a) in terms of the utility of the REPgrid in the assessment and understanding of self-complexity and its' relationship to mental health processes, b) in accordance with a person-event transactional model of health and illness, and c) in terms of the relevance to those psychotherapies that emphasize and encourage people to develop distinctions among their self-aspects, as well as new ways of construing the world, and new behavioural options, e.g. Fixed Role Therapy.

Background: Negative effects on health caused by work-related stress is widespread among nurses because of several factors, for example a high workload in combination with great responsibilities for patients' safety, health and wellbeing. In-patient care is an area where nurses experience particularly high demand and where the effects on patient safety also risk being especially severe, whereby it is not possible to ignore, it is of assence to explore what coping strategies are experienced as stress reducing. Aim:  The aim of this study was to describe nurses coping strategies to manage occupational stress in in-patient care. Methods: A qualitative literature review. Articles analysed using a thematic analysis method. Results: The findings are based on ten qualitative scientific articles. Three main themes were identified: Resoursces and support for managing stress, Attitudes for managing stress, Behavior and activity for managing stress. Conclusion: The authors of this study argue for the importance of combining implementation of education programs on stress-reduction with structural changes of outer conditions on a local as well as a global level.

Much research has shown that women are more empathic than men. Yet, women and men are equally forgiving. However, it is not clear whether empathy is more important to forgiveness for men or for women. The purpose of the present study was to examine gender differences in levels of empathy and forgiveness and the extent to which the association of empathy and forgiveness differed by gender. Participants were 127 community residents who completed self-report measures of empathy and forgiveness. The present results showed that women were more empathic than men, but no gender difference for forgiveness was apparent. However, the association between empathy and forgiveness did differ by gender. Empathy was associated with forgiveness in men—but not in women.

Cyberbullying can negatively influence adolescents' overall wellbeing. Previous studies on cyberbullying provided knowledge about ways youths cope with cyberbullying; yet the literature lacks information about the efficacy of the coping strategies of cyberbullying victims. The purpose of this straight qualitative study was to investigate what coping strategies cyberbullying victims found effective for handling cyberbullying. The transactional model of coping, approach-avoidance coping, and self-efficacy theory formed the conceptual model to explore, analyze, and understand coping with cyberbullying. Using flyers and snowball sampling, 6 adolescents in Grades 10 to 12 were recruited to participate in the study. Data from semistructured phone interviews were analyzed using the Colazzi method. Pattern matching was used to assess the validity of the findings and to examine the viability of previously used coping theories for explaining coping with cyberbullying. According to the findings, situational context influenced coping strategy development, use, and effectiveness. Adolescents' age, experience, and maturity were significant to their approaches to cyberbullying. Whether the adolescents were attempting to thwart or to keep the cyberbullying from being hurtful were significant to coping strategy use and effectiveness. Future research would benefit from further exploring the role of context in coping strategy use and effectiveness, developmental differences in coping with cyberbullying, examining the efficacy of the support cyberbullying victims receive, and developing a practical coping model for cyberbullying. These findings may inform prevention and intervention efforts for cyberbullying and may foster new research on coping with cyberbullying.

Objective: Pediatric cancer caregivers will encounter circumstances that will challenge their personal resources to face the diverse demands of care. Therefore, the objective of the study was to determine the relationship between burden syndrome and coping strategies in caregivers of pediatric cancer patients. Method: 93 main caregivers of pediatric cancer patients participated (69.9% women, 30.1% men, mean age = 37.20 years, SD = 11.32), selected in a non-probabilistic way. The Caregiver Burden Scale and the COPE-28 Questionnaire were applied. Correlational and comparative statistics were used for data analysis. Results: The results indicate the presence of significant and inverse correlations that vary between r =-.25 and r =-.56. However, no significant association was found between the dimensions of caregiver burden and substance use. On the other hand, those caregivers who use poorly adaptive strategies are more likely to generate overload in relation to their role, influencing their personal, family and social life. Conclusion: There is a significant relationship between overload syndrome and coping strategies. In addition, significant differences in overload are identified according to the place of origin and the hours dedicated to care.

Perinatal loss is a tragic event in a woman's life and is a time filled with much aguish and · grief. The care a women and her family receive during a perinatal loss experience can have an incredible impact on future subsequent pregnancies. Subsequent pregnancies have shown to be filled with apprehension and anxiety that can potentially lead to complications such as preterm labor or another loss. Depressive symptoms and decreased prenatal attachment are additional factors that play a role in the experience of a subsequent pregnancy. The purpose of this thesis was to complete a comprehensive review of research studies concerning the experiences of women and subsequent pregnancies after suffering a perinatal loss and develop strategies that can be used to promote effective coping in this population. A review of the literature was conducted using Cumulative Index of Nursing and Allied Health Literature Plus with Full Text, PubMed, and Medline databases. Results found higher pregnancy anxiety, more depressive symptoms, and decreased prenatal attachment in couples with a history of perinatal loss, a lack of bereavement education for nurses and midwives, and emphasized the need for support for both families and health care providers. Coping strategies for women and their families were identified and specific nursing implications for practice were established in order to facilitate coping in women and families.

Demenssjukdom är oftast åldersrelaterad och utvecklas i senare ålder, men det finns personer och familjer som drabbas tidigare i livet. Rollen som anhörig kan vara både psykiskt och fysiskt påfrestande och är därför viktig att belysa. Syftet med studien är att undersöka det komplexa kvalitativa sambandet mellan sorg, copingstrategier och stöd hos anhöriga, när en närstående utvecklar demenssjukdom i tidig ålder. För att analysera datamaterialet som samlades in har kvalitativ innehållsanalys använts. Det som studien framför allt visar på är att det finns ett ömsesidigt samband mellan de tre komponenterna, där stödet utgör grunden. Ett väsentligt tema som framkom var sökandet efter trygghet. För att sorgearbetet ska kunna ta plats behövs ett tryggt samanhang. Genom rätt stöd kan det yttre sammanhanget förstärkas och kompensera för den otrygghet den förändrade situationen medför för de anhöriga. Hur det trygga yttre sammanhanget ser ut påverkar de copingstrategier som de anhöriga använder. Om sambandet studien visar på kan appliceras på fler områden inom socialtarbete kan insatser och stöd utformas utefter detta och en mer hanterbar vardag kan skapas. / Dementia is often age related and develops in a late stage of life but people can fall ill in a younger age. The roll of the close relative can be both psychologically and physically wearisome and hence important to emphasize on. The aim of the study was to explore the complex qualitative connection between the components grief, coping strategies and support among close relatives to a person developing dementia in a young age. Qualitative interview study method was used with semi structured interviews using an interview guide. Qualitative content analysis was applied. There is an interrelated connection between the three components, with the support as the foundation. A discovered central theme is the searching for security as this is a necessity for the grieving process ability. A satisfying support can enhance the external context and compensate for the insecurity the close relative experiences in this altering situation. The extent of the secure external context influences the chosen coping strategies by the affected close relatives. This study provides insight into the emotional situation of a close relative of a person who is developing dementia. A connection between the components have been found and described. The understanding of this connection could potentially be applied in other areas within social work and hence guide the chosen actions and support to create a more manageable everyday life for the client.

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The primary objective of this dissertation was to seek an answer to the question of how agricultural insurance can potentially be an effective and efficient coping mechanism so that the poorest of the poor in isolated rural areas can avoid falling into the poverty trap amid rising global natural disasters in the most exposed region of East Asia and the Pacific. Observations in the field were conducted to investigate the disaster experiences and characterization, coping strategies, but the main focus was on farmer experience on agricultural insurance in two types of elevation (lowland and upland) and program implementation of the insurance providers in the developed country of Japan and the Philippines as a representation of the developing world. / 博士(現代アジア研究) / Doctor of Philosophy in Contemporary Asian Studies / 同志社大学 / Doshisha University