HIV attacks the health of infected persons. Some of them will develop psychiatric illnesses. / The first chapter examines two of the many possible consequences on mental health. First, an increased incidence of suicide on the part of infected persons and second, the influence of HIV/AIDS on their decisions concerning treatment, in particular when they are terminally ill. / Some mentally ill persons with HIV/AIDS will be involuntarily hospitalized. The second chapter compares the mental health law of Quebec and Ontario governing involuntary hospitalization. / The third chapter examines consent to or refusal of treatment by mentally ill persons with HIV/AIDS in particular with respect to their competence. It explores the law governing substitute decision-making for incompetent persons. / The last chapter considers what protections of the rights of mentally ill people with HIV/AIDS are provided under Quebec and Ontario human rights codes and the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

<p> This paper, written in journalistic style, discusses the disclosure of mental illness and its relation to stigma and discrimination. It consists of two magazine length articles. The first article (designated as Chapter I) is about the personal disclosure of mental illness by mental health professionals, including psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers, and others who have experienced mental illness themselves. This article discusses the extent of mental illness among professionals, the reasons professionals often remain silent, the risks and benefits of disclosing, and the complexity involved in revealing mental illness. The second article (designated as Chapter I) discusses disclosure as it pertains to all people who have mental illness. This article discusses disclosure and its relationship to stigma and discrimination, why stigma exists and persists, the disclosure of mental illness on the job, and the role of work in stigma reduction and recovery.</p>

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The purpose of this study was to determine if persons with a history of chemical dependency have personality traits that differ from a norm group and to determine if personality traits are associated with the perceived level of recovery facilitation. Thirty-one subjects volunteered to fill out the research instruments (16 Personality Factor Questionnaire and a Self-Rated Perceived Level of Recovery Facilitation Scale). The results indicated that persons with a history of substance abuse are significantly more cool, shrewd, dominant, and undisciplined in self conflict, than the norm population. The sample population was also found to score more toward the constructs: abstract thinking, suspicious, apprehensive, self-sufficient, and tense. No correlation was found between self-rated levels of recovery facilitation and personality traits.

Coping has been implicated in health outcomes through a process of adaptation. The purpose of this study was to describe the coping strategies used by 37 patients undergoing Continuous Ambulatory Peritoneal Dialysis treatment in Taiwan. The Jalowiec Coping Scale was used to measure the use and effect of patients' coping styles. Descriptive statistics were used to analyze the data. Seven commonly used coping strategies and three never used coping strategies were reported. Subjects also reported six not helpful coping strategies. Results of t-tests indicated that there was a significant difference (p < .05) between those with a supportive person and those without. Several significant correlations (p < .05) were found between coping styles and demographic factors. Finally, the results of 2-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) showed a significant difference (p < .05) in the main effect of support, gender, and interaction in total effect of the Jalowiec Coping Scale.

The purpose of this study was to compare spirituality and subjective sense of time passage between Vietnam combat veterans diagnosed with post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and those without PTSD. Rogers' Principle of Helicy provided a theoretical perspective for the study. The abrupt interactive repatterning that may occur under the extreme conditions of combat can be translated into compromised abilities of the combat veteran to assume an acceptable lifestyle once he is out of the combat situation. A population of 32 Vietnam combat veterans answered questionnaires regarding their perspectives on spirituality and subjective sense of time. It was hypothesized that these variables may differ significantly among Vietnam combat veterans with and without PTSD. Findings revealed a statistically significant difference in sense of time in Vietnam combat veterans with PTSD compared to those without PTSD. There was, however, no significant difference in spiritual perspective when these same groups were compared.

This study explores the subjective catalyst influencing bulimic women to seek psychological treatment, as measured by the Subjective Factors Influencing Bulimics to Seek Treatment self report inventory. The factors addressed in the inventory designed specifically for this study were divided into five categories: Environmental, Thoughts and Behaviors, Emotional, Physical, and Spiritual. Both clinically diagnosed and self diagnosed female subjects participated in this study. The subjects voluntarily completed the anonymous self report inventory designed in a four point Likert format. Additional space was provided to write in any influencing factors on treatment seeking that were not included in the questionnaire. The data was collected, statistically analyzed, and summarized. Results were yielded through means, standard deviations and T-tests. Findings indicated that factors in the Emotional category had the greatest influence on bulimic participants to seek psychological help. The specific questionnaire item that was rated as having the strongest influence was "Hate your body".

Parental influences have been hypothesized to be among the most significant influences on teenage alcohol consumption. Parental influence is probably manifested primarily through the mediums of instruction, contingent reinforcement, and modeling; as well as through the more subtle influences of parental attitudes and beliefs about alcohol, and the overall parent-child relationship. Unfortunately, this hypothesis has been a difficult one to confirm experimentally and investigators have had to rely upon correlational techniques. The problems concerning cause-and-effect conclusions inherent to correlational studies have been exacerbated by using not only the adolescents' self reports, but their perceptions of their parents' behavior as well. / The present research sought to overcome this short coming by gathering data from not just the teenagers, but their mothers and fathers too. The sample of children were selected to demographically approximate the State of Florida. The 590 children in grades four through twelve were members of 490 families. Analogous questionnaires were completed by 315 mothers and 296 fathers. Data gathered from the teenagers, mothers, and fathers included self-reported frequency, quantity, and greatest amount consumed in the preceding 30 days as well as their perceptions of other family members' drinking. Besides the usual demographics, questions tapped attitudes about teenage drinking, family communication, relative influence of parents and peers, and the general relationship between parents and child. Test-retest correlations were strong, reflecting reliability over time. Validity data gathered from response convergence, archival comparisons, and convergence among collaterals were all favorable. / Multiple regression correlation techniques used a set of relevant independent variables to predict teenage consumption. Hierarchical and hierarchical-stepwise regressions were also used to enhance the precision of certain predictors. Discriminant analysis was employed to examine the systematic differences between abstainers and drinkers. / The results suggest that parental behavior and attitudes, as reported by the parents, has a minimal effect on offspring consumption and exert considerably less influence than parental behaviors as perceived by their offspring. Implications for other issues, such as the efficacy of parental behavior, the interaction between parental and peer influences, and the difference in risk factors for abstainers and users was discussed. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 49-08, Section: B, page: 3437. / Major Professor: Alan R. Lang. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1988.

This study investigated the effects of the experimental independent variable, sedative music, upon relaxation with heterosexual couples. Furthermore, five static independent variables, personality type, gender, perceived importance of music, perceived preferred music, and perceived relationship intimacy were analyzed for effects upon anxiety in the presence of music condition. / General Systems Theory and Family Developmental Life Cycle theory provided the theoretical framework for this research. A pretest-posttest control group experimental research design was utilized in which 63 nonclinical heterosexual couples participated and completed the Demographic Questionnaire, the Jenkins Activity Survey, and the Spielberger State-Trait Anxiety Inventory as pretest before music and posttest following music. Analyses were conducted using analysis of covariance and Pearson correlations. All variables were analyzed for both treatment and interaction effects. / Results indicated that sedative music reduced anxiety with couples irrespective of personality type, gender, personal preferences regarding music, perceived importance of music, and perceived relationship intimacy. Results also indicated that participants who perceived the music to be helpful to them both individually and as a couple had low post-state anxiety scores. Also, participants who explained that music was helpful to them both individually and as a couple because it was "relaxing, soothing, or calming" received sedative music during the experimental treatment. / These findings and implications for theory, research and practice are presented. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 57-04, Section: B, page: 2473. / Major Professor: Wayne Hill. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1996.

The present study examined three coping styles of hemodialysis patients--denial, optimism, and locus of control--and how these relate to treatment adherence and adjustment. The relationship between the measures of denial and optimism were also of interest in this study. / Subjects were 65 male and female hemodialysis patients receiving in-center treatment on a regular basis. Subjects ranged in age from 22 to 83. / Results of this showed that the measures used to assess optimism (Life Orientation Test) and denial (Rationality/Emotional Defensiveness Test) were positively correlated but not to a significant degree. The optimism measure was also a significant predictor of the adjustment measures of depression and anxiety, the Beck Depression Inventory and State Trait Anxiety Inventory - Form Y, respectively: More optimistic patients were more likely to have lower depression and anxiety scores. None of the coping style measures in the prediction model (Life Orientation Test, Locus of Control, Rationality/Emotional Defensiveness) significantly contributed to prediction of the two adherence measures--BUN or fluid. Based on this research one cannot conclude that optimism has a pervasively positive influence, which includes diet and fluid adherence, but it can be said that dialysis patients' emotional stability may be influenced by an optimistic attitude. / The correlational nature of this study does not allow for causal inferences but does suggest associations between variables. There may be so many factors associated with adherence that a good predictive model may be difficult to develop. Exploratory data from this study may help in identifying other relevant adherence and adjustment factors and encourage future research in this area. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 53-02, Section: B, page: 1075. / Major Professor: Wallace A. Kennedy. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1991.