Managers' and employees' experiences of how managers' wellbeing impacts their leadership behaviours in Swedish small businesses

BACKGROUND: There is a growing interest in managers' wellbeing due to the observed associations between their wellbeing and leadership behaviours, and between leadership behaviours and employees' wellbeing. However, it is still unclear how managers' wellbeing influences their practiced leadership across different workplace contexts, which specific behaviours are affected, and how this varies across time. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was therefore to explore managers' and employees' experiences and perceptions regarding the consequences of managers' wellbeing for their leadership behaviours in small businesses. METHODS: Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 39 participants (20 managers and 19 employees) working at 12 Swedish small firms, and analysed using content analysis. RESULTS: The findings showthat managers were more constructive when they felt well, and more passively destructive when unwell. Variations in managers' wellbeing influenced their mood, energy level, and performance, as well as the company's working climate. However, these destructive leadership variations did not have a substantial impact, because several protective factors were present. CONCLUSION: This study shows that the wellbeing of managers in small businesses has perceptible consequences for their leadership behaviours. The study also shows that sustained leadership behaviours may coexist with temporary variations of these behaviours on a constructive-destructive continuum depending on the leader's wellbeing. Overall, the findings contribute to a more nuanced and dynamic understanding of how the interaction between managers' wellbeing and their behaviours unfolds in the particular context of small companies

Good practice in mental health care for socially marginalised groups in Europe: a qualitative study of expert views in 14 countries

This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited

Psychological abuse among older persons in Europe: a cross-sectional study

Purpose: Elder abuse is an issue of great concern world‐wide, not least in Europe. Older people are increasingly vulnerable to physical, psychological, financial maltreatment and sexual coercion. However, due to complexities of measurement, psychological abuse may be underestimated. The purpose of this study is to investigate the prevalence of psychological abuse toward older persons within a 12 month period. Design/methodology/approach: The study design was cross‐sectional and data were collected during January‐July 2009 in the survey “Elder abuse: a multinational prevalence survey, ABUEL”. The participants were 4,467 randomly selected persons aged 60‐84 years (2,559 women, 57.3 per cent) from seven EU countries (Germany, Greece, Italy, Lithuania, Portugal, Spain, Sweden). The sample size was adapted to each city according to their population of women and men aged 60‐84 years (albeit representative and proportional to sex‐age). The participants answered a structured questionnaire either through a face‐to‐face interview or a mix of interview/self‐response. The data were analysed using descriptive statistics and regression methods. Findings: The prevalence of overall psychological abuse was 29.7 per cent in Sweden, followed by 27.1 per cent in Germany; 24.6 per cent in Lithuania and 21.9 per cent in Portugal. The lowest prevalence was reported in Greece, Spain and Italy with 13.2 per cent, 11.5 per cent and 10.4 per cent, respectively. Similar tendencies were observed concerning minor/severe abuse. The Northern countries (Germany, Lithuania, Sweden) compared to Southern countries (Greece, Italy, Portugal, Spain) reported a higher mean prevalence (across countries) of minor/severe abuse (26.3 per cent/11.5 per cent and 12.9 per cent/5.9 per cent, respectively). Most perpetrators (71.2 per cent) were spouses/partners and other relatives (e.g. children). The regression analysis indicated that being from Greece, Italy, Portugal and Spain was associated with less risk of psychological abuse. Low social support, living in rented housing, alcohol use, frequent health care use, and high scores in anxiety and somatic complaints were associated with increased risk of psychological abuse. Social implications: Psychological abuse was more prevalent in Northern than Southern countries and factors such as low social support and high anxiety levels played an important role. Further studies are warranted to investigate the prevalence of psychological abuse and risk factors among older persons in other EU countries. Particular attention should be paid to severe abuse. Such research may help policy makers and health planers/providers in tailoring interventions to tackle the ever growing problem of elder abuse. Originality/value: The paper reports data from the ABUEL Survey, which collected population based data on elderly abuse

Surveillance of HIV Drug Resistance in Children Receiving Antiretroviral Therapy: A Pilot Study of the World Health Organization's Generic Protocol in Maputo, Mozambique

Between 2007 and 2008, the Mozambique Ministry of Health conducted an assessment of human immunodeficiency virus drug resistance (HIVDR) using World Health Organization (WHO) methods in a cohort of children initiating antiretroviral therapy (ART) at the main pediatric ART referral center in Mozambique. It was shown that prior to ART initiation 5.4% of children had HIVDR that was associated with nevirapine perinatal exposure (P < .001). Twelve months after ART initiation, 77% had viral load suppression (<1000 copies/mL), exceeding the WHO target of ≥70%; 10.3% had HIVDR at 12 months. Baseline HIVDR (P = .04), maternal prevention of mother-to-child transmission (P = .02), and estimated days of missed medication (P = .03) predicted HIVDR at 12 months. As efforts to eliminate pediatric AIDS are intensified, implementation of ritonavir-boosted protease inhibitor regimens in children with prevention of mother-to-child transmission exposure may reduce risk of virological failure in our settin

Inequalities in under-five mortality in Mozambique: differentials by region of residence and ethnic affiliation of the mother

Objective: To explore regional and ethnic differentials in under-five mortality in Mozambique in relation to other determinants. Design: Retrospective follow-up study. Setting: Mozambique. Results: Compared to children of Xitsonga mother's, children of Emakua and Cisena mother's had a mortality risk of 1.47 (CI = 1.06-1.90) and 1.21 (CI = 1.00-1.62) respectively. The excess mortality risks were partly explained by demographic, household environment, socioeconomic factors including region of residence.Conclusion: Ethnic affiliation of the mother (measured by the first language the mother spoke) was statistically associated with under-five mortality in Mozambique. Children of mothers of Emakua and Cisena ethnic affiliations and living in the North and Central regions had the worst survival chances. The relation between mother's ethnicity and under-five mortality was largely explained by demographic, socioeconomic and environmental factors. East African Medical Journal Vol. 83(5) 2006: 259-26

INEQUALITIES IN UNDER-FIVE MORTALITY IN MOZAMBIQUE: DIFFERENTIALS BY REGION OF RESIDENCE AND ETHNIC AFFILIATION OF THE MOTHER

Objective: To explore regional and ethnic differentials in under-five mortality in Mozambique in relation to other determinants.Design: Retrospective follow-up study.Setting: Mozambique.Results: Compared to children of Xitsonga mother’s, children of Emakua and Cisena mother’s had a mortality risk of 1.47 (CI = 1.06-1.90) and 1.21 (CI = 1.00-1.62) respectively. The excess mortality risks were partly explained by demographic, household environment, socioeconomic factorsincluding region of residence.Conclusion: Ethnic affiliation of the mother (measured by the first language the mother spoke) was statistically associated with under-five mortality in Mozambique. Children of mothers of Emakua and Cisena ethnic affiliations and living in the North and Central regions had the worst survival chances. The relation between mother’s ethnicity and under-five mortality was largely explained by demographic, socioeconomic and environmental factors

Contribution of household environment factors to urban Childhood mortality in Mozambique

Objectives: Household environment factors are known to be associated with child mortality in urban and rural areas of many developing countries. In Mozambique, no study to date has addressed this relationship. This study is aimed to access the contribution of household environment factors to urban childhood mortality in Mozambique. Design: Retrospective follow-up study. Setting: Urban Mozambique. Subjects: One thousand and forty eight children born in urban areas of Mozambique within five years of the 1997 Demographic and Health Survey. Methods: Cox regression analysis was performed on a sample of 1048 children born in urban areas of Mozambique within five years of the 1997 Demographic and Health Survey. Results: Children of mother's who lived in households with no toilet facility or with well as a source of drinking water had a high risk of dying compared to children who lived in households with flush toilet and piped water. Conclusion: Type of toilet facility and source of drinking water play an important role in the risk of childhood mortality in urban areas of Mozambique and the relationship seems to be mediated partly by demographic and socioeconomic factors. East African Medical Journal Vol.81(8) 2004: 408-41

The impact of psychological abuse on somatic symptoms : A study of older persons aged 60-84 years

Purpose– The purpose of this paper is to examine differences in the experience of somatic symptoms by domain (exhaustion, musculoskeletal, gastrointestinal, heart distress) between psychologically abused and non-abused older persons, and to scrutinize associations between abuse and somatic symptoms while considering other factors (e.g. social support).Design/methodology/approach– The design was cross-sectional. The participants were 4,467 women/men aged 60-84 years living in seven European cities. The data were analysed using bivariate/multivariate methods.Findings– Psychologically abused participants scored higher on all somatic symptom domains than non-abused, and thus were more affected by the symptoms. The regressions confirmed a positive association between psychological abuse and most somatic symptom domains, but other factors (e.g. depression, anxiety) were more salient. Demographics/socio-economics were positively (e.g. marriage/cohabitation) or negatively (e.g. education) associated with somatic symptoms depending on the domain. Social support and family structure "protected" the experience of somatic symptoms.Research limitations/implications– The research focused on psychological abuse. It did not incorporate other abuse types calling for further research on the effects of other abuse types on somatic symptoms. Nevertheless, the findings indicate that psychological abuse is linked to somatic symptoms, but the role of other factors (e.g. depression, anxiety, social support) is also important.Practical implications– Improvements in the older person's situation regarding somatic symptoms need to consider psychological abuse, co-morbidities, social support and living conditions.Originality/value– The paper reports data from the ABUEL Survey, which collected population-based data on elder abuse