How do patients understand chronic orofacial pain?

Part one of this volume presents a review of the literature on the relationship between chronic pain and socioeconomic status. It examines the evidence supporting the association and considers the psychological meaning of the findings. Part two consists of a qualitative empirical paper which samples patients with chronic orofacial pain to explore their understanding of their pain and their beliefs and fears about the causes and maintenance of their pain, both before and after an initial consultation at a specialist pain clinic. The final section is a critical appraisal of conducting this thesis. It contains a personal reflection of conducting both the literature review and empirical paper and describes some of the obstacles encountered during the process

Organisational legacy and employee relations in UK shipbuilding

Shipbuilding on the River Clyde in Glasgow has long been a source of fascination for historians and social scientists alike, due to its connections to the industrial heritage of the city and the associations with the wider industrial legacy across the UK. In the 1970s, shipbuilding became synonymous with industrial action, with the events of the Upper Clyde Shipbuilders work-in gaining notoriety around the world as a display of successful workforce militancy, solidarity and defiance. This study offered the opportunity to gain an insight into this unique context from an organisational studies perspective, some fifty years on from the events of the Upper Clyde Shipbuilders’ action. This study was undertaken to explore the impact of organisational memory on contemporary employee relations, to help understand the extent to which events of the past impact on the organisational present. This study also sought to investigate empirically the multiple factors at play within the contemporary employee relations environment. Theoretically, this study contributes to the conversation across a number of areas; firstly, it provides a contribution to the conceptualisation of organisational legacy. It also provides a contribution to the study of organisational memory, especially memory as a social construct. The recent literature on “organisational ghosts” suggests a need for more studies which investigate the concept to help understand the tangible role that the past can play in the organisational present; this study adds an additional perspective to this research. Through the theoretical lens of labour process theory, organisational legacy, memory and “organisational ghosts”, this research also examines the impacts of individualism and workforce differentiation and unpacks the complexities of employment in shipbuilding today. This research was conducted as a single case study, with a focus on qualitative data. Data was collected through semi-structured interviews, and a researcher reflective diary. The data was thematically analysed, and theoretical contributions subsequently derived from the emergent themes. The findings contribute to the organisational legacy literature, detailing several significant components which impact on organisational legacy and memory: history, identity, storytelling and organizational spaces. The findings also contribute to the growing body of literature on organisational ghosts; exploring aspects of temporality and spatiality to help explain the ways in which the past, present and future interact in organisations. This study adds an additional perspective to the discussion on contemporary employment relations, outlining the changing role of trade unions, and the challenges presented by workforce division and differentiation. Finally, this thesis presents some implications for labour process theory, articulating the need for a more open debate about the future of work and sustainability of current work structures

Real-world evaluation of an acceptance and commitment therapy–based group programme for breast cancer survivors with fear of cancer recurrence

Purpose: To evaluate the effectiveness and acceptability of a 6-week acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT)–based group programme on participants’ fear of cancer recurrence (FCR), quality of life (QoL), psychological distress and psychological flexibility at the end of the programme and 12-week follow-up. Methods: A one-group, post-test service evaluation of a real-world psychological programme was carried out to evaluate collected outcome measures and attendance for a total of 21 groups facilitated between 2017 and 2019. Participants were breast cancer survivors who attended a 6-week group programme led by NHS clinicians. Descriptive statistics and repeated measures ANOVA analyses were carried out for each outcome measure. Attendance levels were examined to assess acceptability. Results: A total of 97 group participants who had completed curative treatment for breast cancer took part. Of whom, 89% completed at least 4 of the 6 weekly group sessions and 76% attended the 12-week follow-up session. Eighty-four (87%) participants returned outcome measures at all three time points relative to group participation (T1 = pre, T2 = post T3 = 12-week follow-up). Group participants were female, mean age 51.9 years. FCR was highest at T1 (mean 25.2, SD 4.7), reduced T2 (mean 21.2, SD 5.4) and further lowered T3 (mean 19.5, SD 6.2). This difference was statistically significant (p < 0.001). QoL was lowest at T1 (mean 62.4, SD 15.7), increased T2 (mean 71.7, SD 18.1) and further increased at T3 (mean 75.9, SD 17.5). This difference was statistically significant (p < 0.001). Psychological distress measures were shown to reduce, and psychological flexibility increased. Conclusions: This real-world evaluation of an ACT-based group programme led to improvements in FCR, QoL, psychological distress and psychological flexibility in this population. This evaluation provides basis for further investigation to determine if these results can be replicated by controlled research design across diverse populations