Australian rural women are stereotypically perceived as stoic, self-reliant, and used to handling adversity. Since this iconic portrayal of resilience is traditionally (and contemporaneously) located in the harsh countryside, it is surprising that there are few articles examining this environment, person, and resilience nexus. This thesis addresses this omission by exploring the development of resilience in two cohorts of single, older women, living on their own in rural Australia. Accordingly, an ethnographic study was conducted in a small Australian town in 2012. Documentary evidence, participant observation, and interviews captured the separate and intersecting environment and person related contributors to resilience, mediated and moderated through situational relations over time. The results revealed the persistence and reinforcement of rural historical cultural stereotypes about older women, and the systematic exclusion of younger women retirees who chose to move to the town but did not fit these embedded cultural norms. When confronted with a societal attitude that socially constrains their social identity and role, and boxes them in, the older old women pragmatically accepted their situation, and successfully adapted to their new circumstances. For them, resilience is a reactive response to regain and maintain equilibrium in their lives. Conversely, the late middle-aged retirees were boxed out from actively participating and contributing to the community; for these women, resilience is equated to resignation and endurance. And as there is a symbiotic relationship between a town and its residents, this community represents a constraining force, both in terms of its stalled response to sociodemographic and structural change, and its passive indifference to the older women as exemplars of resilience. In effect, the community exerts an oppressive, dampening effect on the women's agentic resiliency; thus contradicting the prevailing literature where resilience is widely portrayed as a positive and active agentic concept.

This study has the aim at verifying the impact of social support network project in families which receive Bolsa Família programme. Therefore it is important to consider the economic background of our current society, as well as the challenges for the municipalities in the creation of alternatives and deployment of public policies to include the most disadvantaged citizens economically. Thereafter, we describe the target of this research into contextualizing Projeto Rede de Apoio Social, as well as the implementation of it in Balneário Pinhal town. The theoretical research focuses on: Family, poverty, Bolsa Família programme, community therapy, resiliency, ethics, social networks and care, establishing a relation between the theoretical framework and the guiding study carried out. Afterwards the instruments that have been used in data collection are defined. Through the results obtained by the research we believe that it is possible to analyse the impact of Rede de Apoio Social Project, not only among the beneficiaries of Bolsa Família programme, but in the community as a whole, including municipal authorities. Through this, we intend to reaffirm the importance of the implementation of public policies that support iniciatives that make possible alternatives of income as well the civil society organization in order to benefit the independence / O presente estudo tem como objetivo verificar o impacto do Projeto Rede de Apoio Social nas famílias beneficiárias do Programa Bolsa Família. Considera-se, portanto, importante situar o contexto econômico da nossa sociedade atual, bem como os desafios presentes aos municípios na criação de alternativas e implantação de políticas públicas a fim de incluir os cidadãos menos favorecidos economicamente. Na seqüência, descreve-se o objeto da presente pesquisa, contextualizando o Projeto Rede de Apoio Social, bem como o propósito da implantação deste no município do Balneário Pinhal. O aprofundamento teórico concretiza-se a partir dos eixos escolhidos: Família e Pobreza, Programa Bolsa Família, Terapia Comunitária, Resiliência, Ética, Redes Sociais e Cuidado, estabelecendo uma relação entre o referencial teórico e o contexto que norteia o estudo realizado. Logo em seguida, definiram-se, com relação ao delineamento da pesquisa, os instrumentos que foram utilizados na coleta dos dados, juntamente com o levantamento dos mesmos. Através dos resultados obtidos com a pesquisa, acredita-se que se possa analisar o impacto do Projeto Rede de Apoio Social, não só entre os beneficiários do Programa Bolsa Família, mas na comunidade como um todo, inclusive no Poder Público Municipal. Através deste, pretende-se reafirmar a importância da implantação de políticas públicas emancipatórias, que favoreçam iniciativas que possibilitem alternativas de renda, bem como a organização da sociedade civil, favorecendo assim, a emancipação de cada cidadão de forma íntegra e digna.

Peru has undergone significant economic growth, but inequality between different groups still exists. In order to improve the training of professionals in Peruvian regions, the Master’s Program in Community Psychology at the Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú has developed different training programs in Cusco, Ayacucho and Huancavelica. These are excluded regions affected by social violence due to past conflict. This article describes and analyzes the characteristics and the impact of training programs on participants and the population. Furthermore, this article reflects on how to develop vocational training to foster and recreate knowledge in a way that avoids reproducing relations of domination. The con­ tribution of Community Psychology is highlighted, as well as the professional, political and personal training in Community Psychology. / El Perú es un país que muestra un crecimiento macroeconómico significativo, pero esto no ha disminuido las brechas de desigualdad existentes en el país. Buscando colaborar con la capacitación y formación de recursos humanos en las regiones, la Maestría de Psico­ logía Comunitaria de la Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú (PUCP), ha desarrollado diferentes programas de formación en las regiones de Cusco, Ayacucho y Huancavelica, zonas excluidas y caracterizadas por una violencia social posconflicto. Este artículo describe y analiza las características y el impacto de los programas formativos en los participantes y en la población. Plantea una reflexión sobre cómo desarrollar la formación profesional para construir y recrear el conocimiento, de tal manera que no se reproduzcan relaciones de dominación y evidencia el aporte de la psicología comunitaria en el fortalecimiento de capacidades locales, así como el carácter profesional, político y personal de la formación en psicología comunitaria. / O Peru é um país que demonstra crescimento macroeconômico significativo, mas que não tem diminuido as distancias de desigualdade existentes no país. Buscando colaborar com a capacitação e formação de recursos humanos nas regiões, o Mestrado de Psicologia Comunitaria da PUCP desenvolveu diferentes programas de formação nas regiões de Cusco, Ayacucho e Huancavelica, zonas excluídas e caracterizadas por uma violência pós conflito. Este artigo descreve e analisa as características e o impacto dos programas de formação nos participantes e na população. Apresenta uma reflexão sobre como desenvolver a formação profissional para construir e recriar o conhecimento de forma que não tenha a reprodução de relações de dominação e comprove a contribuição da psicologia comunitaria através dos for­ talecimentos locais, assim como o caráter profissonal, político e pessoal na formação em PC.

O presente estudo relata uma experiência psicológica em uma comunidade indígena Guarani-Mbyá. Especificamente propõe-se a descrever uma experiência de atenção psicológica na aldeia indígena Krucutu e descrever formas de intervenção psicológica utilizadas, suas vicissitudes e a importância do setting e do campo das relações emocionais estabelecidas nessa experiência psicoterapêutica. Este trabalho se deu em aldeia Guarani de Parelheiros, na região metropolitana da cidade de São Paulo num período de quatro anos, entre 2004 até início de 2009. São descritas duas intervenções grupais, denominadas oficinas, sendo uma delas realizada com adolescentes e jovens e outra com crianças; são também descritos dois casos de atenção psicoterapêutica individual: o acompanhamento de um jovem psicótico e o de uma mulher com distúrbio de comportamento. Os resultados dessa experiência revelaram, entre outros fatores, a presença de ambigüidade, entendida como uma dificuldade na constituição da identidade pessoal. Essa ambigüidade, causadora de sofrimento psíquico foi revelada no conteúdo verbal, não verbal e nas produções gráficas. Denotou intensa angústia, gerada pelo conflito entre o desejo, quase nunca consciente, de ter aquilo que é atrativo do mundo moderno capitalista e o sentimento de lealdade às origens, à preservação de hábitos, costumes, valores, ou seja, uma devoção à vida Guarani. Quanto ao manejo técnicoclínico, houve dificuldades na manutenção do setting, porém a partir da compreensão do campo das relações emocionais foi possível a elucidação de conflitos. A própria compreensão dos entraves, de vicissitudes relacionadas com os aspectos culturais e das relações emocionais (advindos do mundo externo ou interno) foi fundamental na manutenção e desenvolvimento dos grupos e dos atendimentos individuais. Foi possível observar que a utilização das técnicas e do arcabouço teórico psicanalítico puderam ser eficazes e contribuíram para compreensão e intervenção na saúde e sofrimento psíquico dessas pessoas de etnia Guarani-Mbya, respeitando-se sua cultura e seus valores / This is a report of a psychological experience in a Guarani-Mbyá indigenous community. It specifically reports a psychological intervention in the community and describes the psychological tactics that were used and the importance of the establishment of the setting and the emotional relational field in this psychotherapeutic experience. It was a four years experience, till 2009, held in a Guarani community located at Parelheiros, in the São Paulo metropolitan region. Here, it is reported two group intervention, called oficina, one of them with children, and the other with adolescents and young adults; it too describes two individual interventions: one for a psychotic young male and the other for a woman with behavior disorder. The common aspect in these four interventions is the presence of the so-called ambiguity. The ambiguity among them, and the related psychological stress, is shown as difficulties in the construction of one\'s self identity that appeared in verbal and non verbal expressions and graphic materials. They are torn between the rarely conscious desire of maintaining their cultural expression (language, customs, kinship concepts, religious notions) and the patterns of a non- indigenous society. This ambiguity appears in the emotional relational field of the psychotherapeutic context. There are ups and downs in the process and the comprehension of them is fundamental to maintain and improve the individual and group interventions. The psychoanalytical approach used in this experience was useful for the comprehension and treatment of the Psychological Stress and Mental Health of Indigenous Guarani- Mbyá

No contexto de estruturação do Sistema Único de Assistência Social, no qual os profissionais da psicologia passam a compor obrigatoriamente as equipes de atenção a famílias e indivíduos em situação de vulnerabilidade social, o objetivo desta pesquisa foi refletir sobre as possibilidades teórico-práticas da psicologia na proteção social básica, com base na interlocução com famílias de um garimpo de cassiterita na Amazônia Ocidental. Para tanto, realizou-se um estudo de cunho etnográfico, de incursões com frequencia semanal, durante aproximadamente um ano, no qual foram realizadas observações participantes, conversas informais e entrevistas semiestruturadas com os residentes do local. Buscou-se entender o contexto histórico e social do garimpo; as histórias familiares; os aspetos do cotidiano familiar; os sentidos e as expectativas de futuro das famílias; as formas de organização coletiva e participação social; bem como, os sentidos e experiências das famílias com a psicologia. A análise foi realizada à luz da abordagem teórica da psicologia histórico-cultural, que busca articular as dimensões subjetiva e objetiva, singular e coletiva, para o entendimento dos sujeitos e dos sentidos/significados por eles atribuídos às suas vivências. Os resultados revelaram como as condições objetivas de pobreza, baixa escolarização, não efetividade das ações públicas, exploração do trabalho e criminalização da atividade garimpeira atravessam as vivências dos moradores do garimpo e incidem em contradições entre o silêncio/grito e a inação/ação dos indivíduos e sua organização coletiva. Numa dimensão subjetiva dos processos psicossociais da desigualdade social, tais condições repercutem em sentimentos de humilhação, desvalorização e necessidade de reconhecimento. Numa dimensão coletiva da participação social, correlacionaram-se: as características do contexto neoliberal contemporâneo, a falta de espaços efetivamente democráticos nas instituições públicas na localidade e a dinâmica específica da comunidade e de seus sujeitos, que impõem limites, mas também apontam possibilidades, motivadas pela criticidade da população e a vontade de mudar o existente. Resultados que demarcam a importância de conhecer e compreender intensivamente as famílias e comunidades alvo da política de assistência social, por meio de visitas domiciliares e entrevistas, para com elas construir ações efetivamente participativas diante das problemáticas a serem enfrentadas. O psicólogo, nesta política, apresenta-se como o profissional que pode criar espaços dialógicos e educacionais para a reflexão sobre as condições objetivas que incidem sobre as vivências subjetivas dos sujeitos e as relações comunitárias, que permitam tomar consciência, imaginar e construir coletivamente outras possibilidades existenciais / In the context of structuring the Unified Social Assistance System, in which psychologists obligatorily begin to compose teams of attention to families and individuals in situation of social vulnerability, the goal of this research was to reflect on the theoretical and practical possibilities of psychology on basic social protection, based on the dialogue with families from a cassiterite mining in Western Amazonia. In order to do this a ethnographic study was developed, which included incursions with weekly frequency, that have lasted for about a year, in which were conducted participant observations, informal conversations and semi-structured interviews with local residents. We sought to understand the historical and social context of the mining, the families stories, the aspects of the daily family life; meanings and expectations to the future of the families; forms of collective organization and social participation, as well as the meanings and experiences of the families with psychology. The analysis was based on the theoretical approach of cultural-historical psychology, which seeks to articulate both subjective and objective, singular and collective dimensions, for the understanding of the subjects and the meanings attributed to the experiences. Results revealed how the objective conditions of poverty, low education, not effectiveness of public actions, labor exploitation and criminalization of mining activity crosses the experiences of residents of the mining and focus on contradictions between silence/scream and inaction/action of individuals and their collective organization. In a subjective dimension of psychosocial processes of social inequality, such conditions resonate as feelings of humiliation, devaluation and need for recognition. In a collective dimension of social participation, correlated with: the characteristics of contemporary neoliberal context, the lack of effective democratic spaces in public institutions in the locality and the specific dynamics of the community and its individuals, which impose limits, but also suggest possibilities, motivated by the criticism of population and a desire to change the existing one. Results that outline the importance of knowing and understanding intensively families and communities targeted by social assistance policy, through home visits and interviews with them, to build on effectively participatory actions about the problems to be faced. The psychologist, in this policy, presents itself as a professional who can create educational and dialogic space for reflection on the objective conditions that focus on the subjective experiences of individuals and community relations that allow them to become conscious, imagine and build collectively other existential possibilities

M.A. (Clinical Psychology) / In this project, the author explores, analyses and interprets the experiences of a group of students and teachers who worked together at a farm school for almost a year. Certain pertinent questions relating to the nature of therapy, training, research and community work are examined. The dominant view is that therapy and community work are different activities, requiring different sets of skills, for which different training is needed. Fundamental to this discussion is the issue of what is meant by community. The author proposes that community can be usefully conceptualised as the meaning people give to the evolving processes of their inter-connectedness, and their co-creation of ideas. Furthermore, these processes contain the potential for individuals to experience personal shifts that may be described variously as learning/growth/change/transformation. There is impetus for transformation at the interface between connectedness and disconnectedness. This renders unnecessary any differentiation between the process of training students for clinical and community work. Central to all training would be a person's ability to connect and utilise this connectedness, or its counterpart of disconnectedness, in a meaningful way. Essentially all interactions, including those in a training, therapy, research and community context, could then be viewed as a process of co-creation around people's sense of connectedness disconnectedness. The implications of all the above are that the processes of co-creation of community constitute fundamental elements of training, therapy, research and community work. The author uses an alternative research paradigm, subscribing to the principles of ecological inquiry, according to which research and intervention are inseparable.

Chapter 1: <div> <div> <div> <p>Maternity leave includes the time that mothers take off from work to care for their baby and heal after childbirth. Despite the growth of mothers in the U.S. workforce, the U.S. lags behind other countries in offering paid maternity leave, resulting in poor quality leave for working mothers. Scholars have continually examined maternity leave as an objective construct and this method of measurement, while important, may be inadequate in capturing mothers’ experiences. Quality maternity leave (QML) is a novel construct that captures mothers’ subjective leave experiences and includes time off, benefits, coworker support, flexibility, and an absence of workplace discrimination and microaggressions. However, little is known regarding individual predictors and outcomes of QML. Therefore, I will discuss prevalent societal-level, work-level, and individual- level predictors of QML and well-being and work-related outcomes of QML. I will also integrate these into a conceptual framework that researchers can use understand what may affect and result from QML. This review has important practical implications for US policymakers and organizations regarding their support of mothers in society and the workplace. Future research should continue to build on this framework to ensure that mothers are provided the QML they need to thrive. </p><p><br></p><p>Chapter 2:</p><p> </p><div> <div> <div> <p>Maternity leave is a critical part of decent work when mothers are able to heal from childbirth, care for their newborn, attend medical appointments, and integrate their identities. However, the United States is one of few countries that does not offer paid maternity leave and instead offers job-protected unpaid time off from work, despite the importance of maternity leave for important maternal work and well-being outcomes. Scholars have typically examined maternity leave with objective indicators (e.g., days off from work) instead of investigating mothers’ subjective experiences of the quality of their maternity leave (QML), contributing to a lack of understanding regarding what leads to and results from QML attainment. Therefore, in the present study, I drew upon a framework that I created through a thorough review of the literature to examine privilege and access to power and resources, workplace culture and support, and work characteristics as predictors of QML. Additionally, this study primarily explored work-related outcomes including organizational commitment, turnover intentions, and job satisfaction. I hypothesized that the former variables would indirectly predict the latter variables through QML. The findings of this study inform inclusive, equitable, and adequate organizational and U.S. maternity leave policies. </p> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div>

Reviewing literature on the histories of and the attitude studies about transgender people, the use of ‘they’ as a gender-neutral third-person singular pronoun, prescriptive grammar ideology, and aversive prejudice theory provides insight into how these topics are interrelated and relevant to current issues surrounding nonbinary transgender people. This review inspired my research study. My participants (n = 722) completed an online survey in which they reported demographic variables and answered scales that measured ‘they’ attitudes in generic and queer contexts, attitudes toward trans people, and prescriptive grammar ideology. I found that the majority of participants approved of using the singular ‘they’. Regression analyses revealed that in a queer context, negative attitudes toward 'they' were best predicted by trans prejudice, while in a generic context, both valuing prescriptive grammar and anti-trans prejudice similarly predicted 'they' attitudes. This indicates that negative attitudes toward the singular 'they' are not merely an issue of taking a principled stance against "improper grammar". Additionally, both sexual orientation and gender (trans vs. cisgender) moderate the relationship between prescriptive grammar ideology and 'they' attitudes. Age, sexual orientation, and education level also influenced my pattern of results such that older participants, queer people, and more highly educated individuals were more likely to have positive attitudes toward the singular ‘they’. These findings have implications for LGBTQ+ individuals’ relationships with cisgender and heterosexual people as well as for theories of prejudice, particularly with regard to the increasingly important area of attitudes toward people with diverse gender identities.

<p>The purpose of this research study was to look at the effects of perceived discrimination and sexual positivity on relationship and sexual satisfaction of sexual minority couples. The present study hypothesizes that there will be a moderating relationship between sexual positivity and perceived discrimination; higher levels of sexual positivity will predict higher relationship and sexual satisfaction, and perceived discrimination will negatively effect relationship and sexual satisfaction of couples with lower sexual positivity. Individuals who identify as a sexual minority were asked to participate in this study and answer survey questions pertaining to the level of satisfaction they experience in their romantic relationship and their sexual relationship, how sex positive the individuals are, and the amount of perceived discrimination that they experience; all through a minority stress lens. The results suggest that neither perceived discrimination nor the interaction between perceived discrimination and sexual positivity has a significant impact on the relationship and sexual satisfaction of sexual minority populations. However, the results of this study do suggest a statistically significant relationship between sexual positivity and relationship and sexual satisfaction of sexual minority couples.</p>

The study is an exploratory investigation of Pentecostal pastors' perceptions on psychological distress, using grounded theory. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with five senior pastors, of Pentecostal churches in Soshanguve township located near Pretoria in South Africa. Data was analysed using open, axial and selective qualitative research methods. Verification of the results by the participants enhanced the validity and reliability of the research. Results indicate that there seems to be certain similarities between the established frameworks in psychology and the worldview of pastors with regard to psychological distress. It seems as if the pastors share common views about psychological distress with the medical, interpersonal and cognitive schools of thought. Therefore, psychological distress would be regarded as impairment in the social and occupational life spheres. The pastors' referral patterns and strategies to deal with religious clients' psychological distress are discussed, as well as their limitations as mental health care workers for their communities. It is suggested that, to bring psychological services to the black community, psychologists form collaborative relationships with Pentecostal pastors. / Thesis (MA(Clinical Psychology))--University of Pretoria, 2003. / Psychology / unrestricted