<p> This hermeneutic study explores the phenomenon of love-suicide using Cleopatra VII as a case study. This research explores a variety of depth psychological perspectives of death and destruction, suicide, and romantic love in order to gain an understanding of the meaning of death for the psyche and the archetypal underpinnings of suicide in the context of romantic love. Through investigating how the experiences and situations generated by love and generated in love may enliven the archetypal energy of suicide, defined as &ldquo;destructive reconstruction,&rdquo; this investigation establishes a basis for the notion that the shadow side of love may pull the soul to suicide. </p><p> This study uses the myth of Cleopatra&rsquo;s love-suicide to test the ideas developed regarding the soul&rsquo;s pull to suicide in romantic love. By imagining and exploring the projections and identifications Cleopatra may have held and how they may have impacted her love relationship with Antony and her suicide, this study demonstrates how the alchemy of being in love can deconstruct and reconstruct psyche and how love can dissolve the ego and materialize new life. The study concludes that this deconstructive process, an alchemical dissolution, is directed by the Self and ultimately may lead to physical death. This study&rsquo;s symbolic inquiry into Cleopatra&rsquo;s love-suicide illustrates that unlocking the mausoleum of the heart and exposing the interior darkness is a destructive process that is also potentially creative. That is, it may uncover the buried treasure within or bury the body that houses it.</p>

<p> This study was designed to investigate the difficulties and challenges facing counseling practitioners that result in secondary traumatic stress, compassion satisfaction and burnout. Secondary traumatic stress, compassion satisfaction and burnout in Licensed Professional Counselors may have a relationship to their quality of life ratings. The risks of working directly with traumatized individuals on a regular basis are well documented. These three variables (Secondary Traumatic Stress, Compassion Satisfaction and Burnout) are prominent in the human services field with counselors being in the top five affected (in helping professions). A total of 77 participants completed a demographic questionnaire and the Professional Quality of Life Scale (ProQOL). This quantitative research design is classified as descriptive research/correlational study (non-experimental) between variables. A multiple regression analysis was utilized to collect the data. The findings were not as expected by the researcher. It appeared that counselors become satisfied from working with traumatized victims. Recommendations and future research directions are explained.</p>

<p> One of the primary pursuits of archetypal psychology has been to "unpack the backpack" of psychology&mdash;relying heavily on a methodological stance of <i>via negativa,</i> or description through negation, and deconstruction. This position has resulted in a wealth of critique that, while often controversial and even heretical, has had a significant impact on the field of psychology. It is important to note, however, that this deconstructive approach is also one fantasy amongst many. A move towards seeing through this methodology invokes an immediate encounter with the dismembering influence of Dionysus. It is the Dionysian presence that facilitates the radical re-visioning and tearing apart of stale, violently fixated, and dogmatic theory and practice. Through the work of archetypal psychology, Dionysus has presented as a dialectic partner to the abhorrent one-sidedness of Apollonian natural science psychology. As necessary as this deconstruction has been, James Hillman (2005) himself has noted, every archetypal image has its own excess and intensity. Without an explicitly constructive element, the clinical implications of archetypal psychology will remain largely dormant. Archetypal psychology has yet to produce a work that effectively encapsulates an archetypal approach to psychotherapy (Hillman, 2004). True to its Dionysian form, dismembered pieces of therapeutic method are strewn throughout the literature (Berry, 1982, 2008; Guggenb&uuml;hl-Craig, 1971; Hartman, 1980; Hillman, 1972, 1975a, 1977a, 1978, 1979b, 1980b; Newman, 1980; Schenk, 2001a; Watkins, 1981, 1984). This study will attempt to gather the disparate pieces of archetypal method and weave them together with dreams, fantasy images, and clinical vignettes in an effort to depict the particular style taken up by archetypal psychotherapy. While respecting the importance of deconstruction and <i>via negativa,</i> the aim of this research is to re-construct and clearly describe the primary elements of a therapeutic method derived from the literature of archetypal psychology using a theoretical design complemented by the alchemical hermeneutic method resulting in a depiction of an archetypal approach to psychotherapy. The face of archetypal psychotherapy that has taken form throughout this study is one in which the phenomenal presentation of psychic image is given radical autonomy and privilege. </p><p> <i>Keywords:</i> Archetypal, Dream, Image, Myth, Psychotherapy.</p>

<p> This study examined secondary data that originated from Kaiser Permanente's Multidimensional Chronic Pain Treatment Program and focuses on <b>&rdquo;primary social support&rdquo;</b> and its significance in predicting chronic pain outcomes. <b>Primary social support</b> refers to the support derived from the one person whom the participant feels is his/her main supporter (i.e., a spouse, friend, neighbor, etc.). This study divides <b>primary social support</b> into four subcategories: general social support (PreSS), emotional support (PreEM), instrumental support (PreIN), and <b>negative reactions</b> (PreNeg). The hypotheses in this study predict that each <b>social support subcategory</b> can predict post-treatment pain severity (PostPain). Four hundred twenty five participants from four Kaiser Permanente hospitals participated in a <b></b>Multidimensional Chronic Pain Treatment Program<b></b>. Of the 425 participants, the scores of 196 participants with moderate to severe pain and impairment were eligible for data analysis. The treatment program consisted of a 10-week, 2.5 to 3-hour structured group intervention, with the goal of improving functioning, activity levels, coping skills, and overall emotional well-being (Bertagnolli, 2001). The participants completed the <b>West Haven Yale Multidimensional Pain Inventory (WHY-MPI)</b> at both the start and end of treatment. Through hierarchical linear regression analyses, <b>negative reactions</b> were found to significantly predict an increase of post-treatment pain scores. Meanwhile, general social support, emotional support and instrumental support were not significant in predicting post-treatment pain scores. These findings may guide future research of social support within a <b>Multidimensional Chronic Pain Treatment Program</b>.</p>

<p> Based on Anxiety Sensitivity (AS) research, researchers have suggested a model of how beliefs about normal experiences sometimes associated with depression, such as sleep disturbances and difficulty concentrating, may precipitate increases in depression. Cox and colleagues have proposed the existence of a trait, which they refer to as Depression Sensitivity (DS), that leads individuals to catastrophically interpret such experiences as evidence of impending or irreversible depression (Cox, Borger, &amp; Enns, 1999; Cox, Enns, &amp; Taylor, 2001; Cox, Enns, Freeman, &amp; Walker, 2001). They suggest that this trait may be a depressive scar and that its effects on future depression may be mediated by rumination. The present research sought to provide an initial, albeit incomplete, test of the tenants of this model, and extend pilot research validating the first measure of DS, the Depression Sensitivity Index (DSI). </p><p> Using a sample of Northwestern undergraduates, this research examined the relationship between DS and various facets of AS. Results provided additional evidence for the convergent and discriminant validity of the DSI, indicating that, as predicted by theory, DS is more highly correlated with AS Mental-Incapacitation Concerns than with any other AS facet. Further, confirmatory factor analyses suggested that a hierarchical model consisting of a general factor underlying all items and four group factors representing AS Mental-Incapacitation Concerns, Physical Concerns, Social Concerns, and DS provided a good fit to the AS and DS data. </p><p> The current research also evaluated whether, in line with the theoretical model of the development of DS, past episodes of depression predict DS above and beyond current mood. Results suggested that, not only was having experienced a major depressive episode predictive of DS, but that participant estimates of the number of depressive episodes that they had experienced exhibited a linear relationship with this variable. Although the existence of a relationship between past episodes and DS is insufficient to conclude that DS is a depressive scar (Cox, Enns, Freeman, et al., 2001), it is a necessary precondition for retaining the scar hypothesis. </p><p> Additionally, the present research replicated pilot findings that DS prospectively predicts depressive symptoms, predicting symptoms three months later above and beyond baseline symptoms. Further analyses indicated that DS also had incremental predictive power above and beyond both the facets of neuroticism and the facets of AS in predicting depressive symptoms three months later in a two-wave longitudinal model. Likewise, DS was predictive of depressive symptoms over the course of three months in a seven-wave longitudinal model of DS and symptoms. However, when modeled in this manner, it appeared that variance common to DS and AS Mental-Incapacitation Concerns accounted for changes in symptoms from one month to the next (e.g., over the course of every three study timepoints). Although these results are insufficient to determine if DS causes increases in depression, establishing the temporal precedence of this trait is an important first step in evaluating its causal status. </p><p> Finally, the present research evaluated whether, as proposed by the Depression Sensitivity Model, rumination partially or fully accounts for the relationship between DS and future depressive symptoms. Unfortunately, latent rumination as measured in this study did not prospectively predict depressive symptoms in the direction expected, and therefore could not account for the relationship between DS and symptoms. The meaning and implications of these results are discussed.</p>

<p> Efficient, integrative methods to foster greater emotion regulation that are applicable to diverse populations are needed. Mindfulness meditation and resonant frequency breath training are independently positively correlated with changes in emotion regulation. The acquisition of effective emotion regulation strategies may be amplified by the interaction of mindfulness meditation practice and resonant frequency breath training. A sample of 82 undergraduate novice meditators were randomized in a four group design utilizing a control, mindfulness only, resonance only, and combined mindfulness and resonance breath training conditions delivered in a three-week intervention. Self-report measures assessed the use of emotion regulation strategies (ERQ), changes in rates of positive and negative affectivity (PANAS), acquisition of mindfulness skills (FFMQ), and sub-clinical symptoms of distress (DASS-21). Changes to low frequency heart rate variability, breath rate, heart rate, and temperature were evaluated. Results support the effect of resonance breath training on decreasing low frequency and increasing high frequency heart rate variability. The mindfulness training did not yield any effects. The effect of brief resonant breath training on heart rate variability suggests that this may be a viable intervention for re-regulation of sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous system functioning.</p>

<p>Divorce can significantly and negatively impact a child's well-being (Emery, Otto, &amp; O'Donohue, 2005; Kelly, 2000; Kushner, 2009). Although the majority of divorce disputes are settled with minimal court involvement, approximately 10% of divorcing couples require child custody evaluations. Typically, parents undergoing child custody evaluations are labeled "high-conflict," but some anecdotal evidence suggests that one parent may be driving the conflict while the other is reluctantly dragged into battle (Friedman, 2004; Kelly, 2003). Custody litigants (N = 137; 69 males, 68 females) were classified into categories of high- and low-conflict based on the presence or absence of certain variables, using archived data from a forensic psychology practice, and a rating system developed for the purposes of this study. Groups were then compared separately on the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-2 (MMPI-2) and the Millon Clinical Multiaxial Inventory-III (MCMI-III), using three different methods of high- and low- conflict group distribution. Custody litigants tended to demonstrate profiles that were not elevated on clinical scales. Multiple t-tests did not reveal significant differences between high-conflict and low-conflict parents on MMPI-2 and MCMI-III Clinical scales. However, correlational analysis of MMPI-2 scales and Conflict Scores did show significance for a few of the scales (Scales F, 3, 6, and 8), whereas only one MCMI- III scale (Scale 7) was significant. Results were discussed in relation to a profile of MMPI-2 and MCMI-III respondents and conflict valence. </p>

<p>Depression is a serious disability around the world that can cause harm to a person's physical and mental well-being. Little research has been done on the effects of social cohesion on depression. This study used a cross-sectional descriptive survey design to analyze a sample from the California Health Interview Survey (CHIS) to determine whether or not there was a relationship between how often a person feels depressed and social cohesion factors: (1) willingness of people in the neighborhood to help each other, (2) trust in people in the neighborhood and (3) doing volunteer work or community service in the past year. </p><p> Using, Chi-square analysis, it was determined that these three social cohesion variables showed a significant relationship with how often a person feels depressed. Having substantial social networks may act as protective barriers to stress, fear, and lack of control. These protections have positive impacts on depression and depressive symptoms. </p>

<p> The purpose of this study was to explore treatment options for aggression-related disorders. Two activities were examined to validate their use as frustration-reduction techniques --yoga and therapeutic drumming. Twenty-two college students were randomly assigned to participate in one of three groups--yoga, drumming, or silence (control)--following experimentally-induced frustration using a computerized Stroop color-word technique. Self-reported emotion levels and physiological responses were tracked at baseline, post-frustration, and post-treatment to measure responses to treatment. Results indicate that self-reported frustration levels were significantly reduced in all experimental groups, but physiologic responses showed no significant changes. A Multivariate Analysis of Variance (MANOVA) indicated no significant difference in lowered frustration for any of the treatment groups, suggesting that they are equally effective. These results also suggest that the passage of time may be key to successful emotion regulation. Further study should examine control variables and methodology to identify other factors that may be involved in regulating aggressive emotions. </p>

<p> Participants (N= 227) completed questionnaires pertaining to depressive symptomatology and trait intrusive thinking, and subsequently engaged in tasks assessing executive functioning, working memory, prospective memory, and episodic memory. The dependent variables assessed the influence of intrusive thinking on the relationship between depressive symptomatology and the four previously mentioned cognitive domains. A three-way interaction was conducted using the PROCESS macro created by Hayes (2013). The results revealed a significant three-way interaction for the working and episodic memory measure. Younger participants with low levels of intrusive thinking performed better on the working and episodic memory task as depressive symptomatology increased, while older adults with low levels of intrusive thinking performed worse on these tasks as depressive symptomatology increased. It is important to note that performance on these measures did not significantly vary by depressive symptomatology at high levels of intrusive thinking. These findings suggest that intrusive thinking may be a beneficial factor to explore in future research regarding the impact of depressive symptomatology on cognitive functioning across age groups.</p>