Care work is emotionally and physically demanding and is coupled with organisational challenges. As such, care work has been associated with emotional exhaustion which not only negatively impacts staff but also the care that they provide. Greater understanding of the psychological health of dementia care staff and their perceptions of their work will provide insights into how this group may be better supported. The first paper provides a review of the literature relating to psychological outcomes in dementia care staff. The literature identified was viewed in terms of an existing model of psychological health, the BASIC Ph, with the aim of evaluating the evidence and enhancing understanding of psychological health in this group. The utility of this model was also evaluated. The model highlighted areas for potential intervention as well as those for future research. Clinical implications for Clinical Psychologists were also discussed. The second paper aimed to increase understanding of the experiences of dementia care assistants who perceived themselves to be competent in their role. Eight care assistants who had high levels of self-efficacy were interviewed. Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) revealed four superordinate themes. Accounts of experiencing dilemmas provided important contextual information and constituted the first superordinate theme. The second theme 'togetherness and connection' described participants' experience of the need for support, closeness and the value of engaging with older people with dementia. The third theme encompassed the attunement between care assistants and the older people for whom they cared and described empathy, personal perspective-taking and circularity of emotion as guides to care. The final theme 'caring as part of life' described the link between caring and identity as well as a genuine interest in people, an accepting attitude and motivation to care. These themes provide fruitful areas for further research and have implications for care staff training.

No description available.

South African Tertiary Education Institutions (TEIs) are now faced with issues of globalisation, broadening access to higher education, changes in language policies, changes in government funding, an increased emphasis on technology, transformation, mergers, changing student profiles, high levels of student enrolment and increased competition (Wiese, van Heerden, & Jordaan, 2010; Higher Education South Africa, 2011). The increased workload necessitated by the increase of students within South African TEIs, in conjunction with the current financial situation of universities, is compounded by factors such as low staff morale, uncertainty among staff members and large-scale resignations (Maree, 2010). These challenges can be seen as increasing the demands and decreasing the resources of university staff, and as explained by the Job Demands-Resource Model of organisational wellbeing (JD-R) (Demerouti, Bakker, Nachreiner, & Schaufeli, 2001), could impact negatively on the wellbeing of the employees. These changes and the demands placed on the TEIs will inevitably have an impact on the levels of burnout as well as levels of engagement of employees (Coetzee, 2004). Stressful work situations (characterised by high job demands and lack of job resources), could lead to burnout, poor individual health and wellbeing of employees (Sonnentag, 2001). Burnout can lead to serious consequences, especially for university staff members, who form part of the human services industry (Adekola, 2010). The aim of this study was to establish the effectiveness of a physical activity and psychological intervention on burnout and engagement at a tertiary education institution. A longitudinal design was utilised where self-report as well as physical measures were used to evaluate the effect of the intervention. The convenience sample consisted of staff at a tertiary education institution (n(Time 1)=50, n(Time 2)=26; n(Time 3)=19). Burnout and engagement were measured using The South African Employee Health and Wellness Survey and physical measurement focused on: blood pressure values, fasting blood glucose levels, lipid profile Body Mass Index (BMI), waist circumference (WC), percentage body fat (%BF) and Lean Body Mass (LBM). The sample group was divided into two groups. In the first phase, the first group underwent a four-week physical activity intervention focusing on resistance training as well as cardiovascular fitness. The second group underwent a 4 week personal development plan focusing on increasing personal resources as well as social support. The groups were reassessed after the first four weeks and then switched interventions. After completion of both interventions, participants were once again assessed. MANOVAs were used to determine whether group differences occurred for more than one dependable variable (Salkind, 2009). ANOVAs (a one-way analysis of variance) were used to determine which intervention groups had been affected most with regard to the various constructs measured. Crichton (2009) explains that the Wilks’ Lambda test is used in MANOVA’ to test whether there are differences between the means of identified groups of subjects on a combination of dependent variables. Although there were no statistically significant movements observed for burnout and engagement scores, there are still indications of the effect the interventions showed. The psychological intervention increased engagement, and the scheduling of first a psychological intervention, and then a physical activity intervention, is suggested as more beneficial. None of the interventions were effective at alleviating burnout. Recommendations were made for future research. / MCom (Industrial Psychology), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2014

South African Tertiary Education Institutions (TEIs) are now faced with issues of globalisation, broadening access to higher education, changes in language policies, changes in government funding, an increased emphasis on technology, transformation, mergers, changing student profiles, high levels of student enrolment and increased competition (Wiese, van Heerden, & Jordaan, 2010; Higher Education South Africa, 2011). The increased workload necessitated by the increase of students within South African TEIs, in conjunction with the current financial situation of universities, is compounded by factors such as low staff morale, uncertainty among staff members and large-scale resignations (Maree, 2010). These challenges can be seen as increasing the demands and decreasing the resources of university staff, and as explained by the Job Demands-Resource Model of organisational wellbeing (JD-R) (Demerouti, Bakker, Nachreiner, & Schaufeli, 2001), could impact negatively on the wellbeing of the employees. These changes and the demands placed on the TEIs will inevitably have an impact on the levels of burnout as well as levels of engagement of employees (Coetzee, 2004). Stressful work situations (characterised by high job demands and lack of job resources), could lead to burnout, poor individual health and wellbeing of employees (Sonnentag, 2001). Burnout can lead to serious consequences, especially for university staff members, who form part of the human services industry (Adekola, 2010). The aim of this study was to establish the effectiveness of a physical activity and psychological intervention on burnout and engagement at a tertiary education institution. A longitudinal design was utilised where self-report as well as physical measures were used to evaluate the effect of the intervention. The convenience sample consisted of staff at a tertiary education institution (n(Time 1)=50, n(Time 2)=26; n(Time 3)=19). Burnout and engagement were measured using The South African Employee Health and Wellness Survey and physical measurement focused on: blood pressure values, fasting blood glucose levels, lipid profile Body Mass Index (BMI), waist circumference (WC), percentage body fat (%BF) and Lean Body Mass (LBM). The sample group was divided into two groups. In the first phase, the first group underwent a four-week physical activity intervention focusing on resistance training as well as cardiovascular fitness. The second group underwent a 4 week personal development plan focusing on increasing personal resources as well as social support. The groups were reassessed after the first four weeks and then switched interventions. After completion of both interventions, participants were once again assessed. MANOVAs were used to determine whether group differences occurred for more than one dependable variable (Salkind, 2009). ANOVAs (a one-way analysis of variance) were used to determine which intervention groups had been affected most with regard to the various constructs measured. Crichton (2009) explains that the Wilks’ Lambda test is used in MANOVA’ to test whether there are differences between the means of identified groups of subjects on a combination of dependent variables. Although there were no statistically significant movements observed for burnout and engagement scores, there are still indications of the effect the interventions showed. The psychological intervention increased engagement, and the scheduling of first a psychological intervention, and then a physical activity intervention, is suggested as more beneficial. None of the interventions were effective at alleviating burnout. Recommendations were made for future research. / MCom (Industrial Psychology), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2014

The only constant thing in today's world is change. Change is everywhere, even in the education sector. The education system has undergone tremendous changes in the past 10 years. This includes several curriculum changes. Change always contributes to stress, which individuals in the education department are experiencing quite intensively, judging by the popular media. Stressful events may lead to ill-health and might negatively impact the workforce and the overall well-being of these educators. The emergence of positive psychology has contributed to the increased research of well-being, rather than the negative antipode of illness, in relation to occupational stress. One of these positive aspects of wellbeing is work engagement, which is considered to be the opposite of burnout. Thus, describing burnout, engagement and stress is a first step in facilitating the work-related wellness of educators. Furthermore, individual dispositions that may act as resources or buffers in the handling of stress and burnout, facilitate engagement and protect educators7 health are also of interest. To measure burnout, engagement, stress and health, it is important to use reliable and valid instruments. Various studies are available on the reliability and validity of the burnout and engagement scales, but it is rather limited for educators in the South African environment. Furthermore, little information exists regarding the causes and effects of work stress, health, burnout and engagement of educators in South Africa. The first objective of this research was to standardise the Maslach Burnout Inventory-General Survey (MBI-GS) and the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale (UWES) for educators in the Goldfield region of the Northern Free State province. The second objective was to determine if biographical variables can be used to describe educators' burnout and engagement. The third objective of this research was to determine causes of stress among educators, and again to investigate the role of biographical differences. Lastly, the focus in this research fell on the determination of the role of optimism in predicting the health of educators in the Goldfield region of the Northern Free State province. A cross-sectional survey design, in which a sample is drawn from a population at one point in time, was used to attain the research objectives. Participants were randomly selected from the total population of educators in the Goldfield region of the Northern Free State province. A sample of 469 educators was used from the total population of 1014 (i.e. 46,25% of the total population). Schools in the Goldfields region of the Northern Free State province were randomly selected to participate in this research. The MBI-GS, the UWES, the Educator Stress Questionnaire (which was developed by the author for the purpose of this research), the Health Subscales of the Asset, the LOT-R and a biographical questionnaire was administered. Descriptive statistics, Cronbach alpha coefficients, inter-item correlations, exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses, Pearson correlations, multivariate analysis of variance, one-way analysis of variance, t-tests, dummy coding and multiple-regression analyses with interaction terms were used to analyse the data. Structural-equation modelling confirmed a three-factor model of burnout consisting of Exhaustion, Depersonalization and Professional Efficacy. All three factors showed acceptable internal consistencies for three main language groups. A three-factor model of engagement was also confirmed, consisting of Vigour, Dedication and Absorption. These scales also indicated acceptable reliability. Results of a second order factor analysis indicated that the work wellness of educators can be described as consisting of two dimensions. The Burnout dimensions of Exhaustion and Depersonalisation can be grouped together on one factor, while the Burnout dimension of Professional Efficacy can be grouped with the Engagement variables of Vigour, Dedication and Absorption. Results showed that biographical variables that consist of the gender, marital status, home language, age and years work experience of educators could be used to describe educator burnout and engagement. It was found that Exhaustion could be predicted by gender. Educators who speak an African language scored lower than Afrikaans-speaking educators in terms of Exhaustion. Marital status could also be used to predict exhaustion. Educators between the ages of 37 and 46 measure lower on depersonalisation than educators between the ages of 22 and 30 years. Educators who have between 13 and 20 years of experience, have higher levels of depersonalisation than participants with 6 or less years of experience. Both English and African-language-speaking educators measure lower on Professional Efficacy than the Afrikaans language group. Language remains a significant predictor of Professional Efficacy. Educators who are older than 31 years of age measure higher on Professional Efficacy than those younger than 31 years of age. Professional Efficacy could be predicted among educators who are English speaking and/ or older than 31 years of age. Additionally, being married or divorced measure lower on Professional Efficacy when compared to their single counterparts. The eldest educators measure higher on Professional Efficacy. Female educators measure lower on Vigour than their male counterparts. Educators between the ages of 47 and 64 measure higher on dedication than educators between the age of 22 and 30 years. Married educators measured lower on dedication, when compared to single educators. The ESQ, a measure of educators' occupational stress that consists of 48 items, was developed and administered. During analysis, 4 items were discarded due to non-loading, and a further 8 items were discarded due to significant secondary loadings. Five factors were extracted and were labelled Rewards and Participation, Support and Communication, Job Insecurity, Role Overload and Task Characteristics. Furthermore, the biographical variables that were used to describe burnout and engagement among educators (language, age, gender, work experience and marital status), could also be used to describe educator stress. The various stress factors that were identified through the ESQ, could also be used to determine well-being among educators. This includes Support and Communication, Rewards and Participation, Role Overload, Job Insecurity and Task Characteristics. In terms of predicting the physical and psychological health of educators, separate analyses were carried out for the burnout and engagement components. It was shown that that educators' home language, their experience of optimism, role overload and task characteristics predicts physical health, and home language, participants' levels of optimism, experiences of rewards and participation, support and communication, job insecurity, role overload and task characteristics predicts psychological health. Additionally, the interaction terms Professional Efficacy and Optimism, as well as the interaction between Vigour and Optimism, proved to be significant predictors of physical health. The interaction term of Depersonalisation and Optimism, as well as the interaction term of Support and Communication and Optimism, proved to be significant predictors of psychological health. Language was also shown to be a constant predictor of physical and psychological health, where educators speaking an African language experienced significantly better overall well-being than Afrikaans and English-speaking educators. By way of conclusion, recommendations for future research and the education department are made. / Thesis (Ph.D. (Industrial Psychology))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2007.

Background: The inclusion of women in the armed Forces is becoming increasingly commonplace, with figures currently standing at 10.2% of the regular Forces in the United Kingdom (UK). This is set to rise with the introduction of the new Ground Close Combat (GCC) ruling which came in earlier this year (2017), allowing women to serve on the frontline with their male colleagues. However, alongside these changes, women already face stressors and exposure to combat in the Forces that potentially contribute to difficult transitions back into everyday life when leaving the military environment. The aim of this study was therefore to engage with and explore the experiences of female veterans psychological health and wellbeing as they transition from the Forces into civilian life, understanding the different processes they encounter as they transition. Methodology: Six female veterans who fit the inclusion criteria were recruited for the study. In this qualitative study, semi-structured, one-to-one, in-depth interviews were conducted and analysed in accordance with Charmaz's (2006) Constructivist Grounded Theory (CGT) guidelines. This iterative and inductive analytical process was utilised to construct an understanding of the participant's experiences and understandings of their transition. Findings: Concurrent with the CGT approach, nine theoretical categories developed from the analysis of the interviews, including role reversal, sexism and loss. These contributed to the development of a transition model, representing an interaction between the military environment, no mans land and the civilian environment. Findings indicate that experiences of transitioning faced by female veterans are complex, and involve gender-related issues. The findings also suggest that problems with mental health such as Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder are common, and are heightened by additional stressors specific to women's experience in the military and civilian environments. Discussion and Conclusion: These findings suggest that female veterans health and psychological wellbeing experiences in the military are parallel to those they experience in civilian life. Consistent with previous literature, the female veterans interviewed appear to have experienced their transitions differently to male counterparts, with additional stressors present throughout their transitions. These stressors contribute to the uncertainty of identity, stigma and a loss of military ways when transitioning back into a civilian society. Consequently, more services that are tailored to female military veterans, are proposed, in order to support the increasing number of female veterans that will present in the future. This has implications for therapeutic practice in counselling psychology, whereby a deeper understanding of the difficulties and challenges experienced by female veterans during transition into civilian life can inform therapeutic interventions and signposting to specific services tailored their needs.

<p>Människans behov av fysisk aktivitet är lika stort idag som det alltid varit. Dock har människans genomsnittliga energiförbrukning minskat avsevärt i och med det mer moderna samhället. Enligt Fyss, (2008) är den åtgärd som skulle ha störst positiv effekt på folkhälsan ökad fysisk aktivitet. Fysisk aktivitet har visat sig ha positiva effekter på människors välmående, dock är verkningsmekanismerna okända. Idag använder samtliga landsting i Sverige sig av fysisk aktivitet som behandlingsform för olika sjukdomar. Syftet med den här studien var att undersöka vad olika träningsbeteenden hos studenter har för betydelse på den psykiska hälsan. En enkätstudie genomfördes med 80 högskolestuderande, varav 51 kvinnor, i åldrarna 19-42. Fysisk aktivitet visade sig ha betydelse för det psykiska välmåendet. De studenter som motiverades till att träna för att det är roligt upplevde högst psykiskt välmående. Slutsatsen blir att fysisk aktivitet har betydelse för det psykiska välmående, men fler studier behövs dock för att kunna utveckla dessa resultat.</p><p> </p>

The aims of this thesis were to estimate the lifetime prevalence of physical, sexual, and psychological abuse in a random population-based sample of women aged 18-60 years; to estimate current suffering thereof; and to investigate associations between abuse and health problems, more specifically to study abuse related variables associated with somatization and PTSD, respectively. The studies had a cross-sectional design. Studies I and II comprised 4150 women 18-60 years. Study III included 547 women, and study IV consisted of 213 women, randomly selected from the population-based sample of the first two studies. The first study found lifetime prevalence rates of 19.4% for physical abuse, 9.2% for sexual abuse, and 18.2% for psychological abuse. Abused women reported more ill-health and a less advantageous social situation than non-abused women. There was an association between magnitude of abuse and health problems. Even a low magnitude of abuse was substantially associated with ill-health. In the second study we found that of the 27.5% of women who had reported any kind of abuse in the first study, 69.5 % reported current suffering thereof. Abused suffering women reported more health problems than abused non-suffering women and non-abused women, and abused non-suffering women reported more health problems than non-abused women. In study three, psychological abuse and sexual abuse without penetration were found to be associated with somatization. Physical abuse and sexual abuse with penetration were not associated with somatization, when adjustments for other kinds of abuse were made. In study four, PTSD and somatization were found to be separately reported phenomena in abused women, although PTSD was positively associated with having somatic symptoms. Women with PTSD reported higher total magnitude of abuse and a higher number of perpetrators than women with somatization. Sexually abused women with PTSD more often described their experience as an act of abuse compared with sexually abused women with somatization. The present thesis demonstrates that even a low magnitude of abuse is associated with health problems. It also shows that a majority of the abused women, when investigating lifetime history of abuse, reported current suffering thereof, which warrants considering abuse an important societal problem. The relationship between somatization and posttraumatic stress in abused women is discussed in relation to abuse variables. Other factors than severity of abuse, such as whether the abused woman herself perceives her experience as abuse, seem to be more decisive for development of somatization in abused women. The findings suggest that PTSD is not a necessary mediator between abuse and somatization.

Människans behov av fysisk aktivitet är lika stort idag som det alltid varit. Dock har människans genomsnittliga energiförbrukning minskat avsevärt i och med det mer moderna samhället. Enligt Fyss, (2008) är den åtgärd som skulle ha störst positiv effekt på folkhälsan ökad fysisk aktivitet. Fysisk aktivitet har visat sig ha positiva effekter på människors välmående, dock är verkningsmekanismerna okända. Idag använder samtliga landsting i Sverige sig av fysisk aktivitet som behandlingsform för olika sjukdomar. Syftet med den här studien var att undersöka vad olika träningsbeteenden hos studenter har för betydelse på den psykiska hälsan. En enkätstudie genomfördes med 80 högskolestuderande, varav 51 kvinnor, i åldrarna 19-42. Fysisk aktivitet visade sig ha betydelse för det psykiska välmåendet. De studenter som motiverades till att träna för att det är roligt upplevde högst psykiskt välmående. Slutsatsen blir att fysisk aktivitet har betydelse för det psykiska välmående, men fler studier behövs dock för att kunna utveckla dessa resultat.

Psichikos sveikatos priežiūros organizavimo Anykščių ir Utenos rajonuose lyginamoji analizė Santrauka Psichikos sveikatos paslaugų organizavimas ir psichikos sutrikimų prevencija yra neatsiejamos ir prioritetinės sveikatos, švietimo ir socialinės apsaugos principas. Lietuvoje psichikos sveikatos stiprinimas ir psichikos sutrikimų prevencijos priemonės turi būti nukreiptos į plačiąją visuomenę ir į specifines rizikos grupes, skatinant apsauginius faktorius ir atsparumą, mažinant socialinę atskirtį, įgalinant pažeidžiamas rizikos grupes pačias spręsti problemas ir padedant joms integruotis į bendruomenę. Tyrimo problema: Nagrinėjant Utenos ir Anykščių Psichikos sveikatos centrų (toliau PSC) teikiamų paslaugų organizavimą kyla probleminiai klausimai. Ar PSC statusas gali turėti įtakos teikiamų paslaugų kokybei? Ar PSC teikiamos sveikatos priežiūros ir socialinės paslaugos tenkina asmenų turinčių psichikos sveikatos problemų lūkesčius? Darbo tiriamasis objektas - psichikos sveikatos priežiūros paslaugų organizavimas Anykščių ir Utenos rajonuose. Darbo tikslas – išanalizuoti psichikos sveikatos priežiūros organizuojamas paslaugas Darbo uždaviniai: 1. 1 Aptarti psichikos sveikatos priežiūros paslaugų specifiškumą sveikatos priežiūros sistemoje. 2. Apžvelgti Utenos ir Anykščių rajonų tarnybų, teikiančių psichikos sveikatos paslaugas sutrikusios psichikos suaugusiems asmenims, organizavimo aspektus. 3. Palyginti Utenos ir Anykščių rajonų psichikos sveikatos centrų teikiamas... [toliau žr. visą tekstą] / Summary The organization of the services of psychological health and prevention of psychological disorders is a principle of inseparable and underlying health, education and social care. The intensification of psychological health and the means of prevention of psychological disorders in Lithuania should be directed towards the society and specific risk groups, while encouraging preventive factors and resistance, decreasing social isolation, giving to these risk groups a chance to solve their problems and helping them to integrate into society. The problem of the research: Analysis of the organization of the services of Utena and Anyksciai Psychological health centres (furthermore PHC) raises some problematic questions. Could the status of PHC have some impact on the quality of provided services? Do the health care and social services of PHC meet the expectations of the persons having psychological health problems? The research object of the paper is the organization of the services of supervision of psychological health in Anyksciai and Utena districts. The aim of the paper is to analyse the organized services of supervision of psychological health. The aim of the research is implemented by these objectives: 1. To discuss the specificity of the services of psychological health within the health care system. 2. To survey the aspects of organization of the services of Utena and Anyksciai districts providing psychological health services to psychologically disordered adults. 3... [to full text]