The Experiences of Homeless Youth When Using Strengths Profiling to Identify Their Character Strengths

Individuals, particularly those considered “hard-to-reach,” often engage well with assessment tools that involve active dialogue and the co-construction of knowledge. Strengths profiling is one such tool that enables a person-centered and autonomy supportive approach to the identification of character strengths. Strength profiling is an adaptation of performance profiling used in sport psychology, which has not yet been utilized in broader psychological research or clinical practice. Supporting an individual by raising awareness of their personal character strengths is an effective and growing mechanism for promoting psychological well-being. Strengths profiling involves several stages of exploring, defining, and assessing character strengths, leading to the identification of signature strengths and goals for future development. Informed by personal construct theory, the present study explored the experiences of homeless young people living in sheltered accommodation (N = 116), when using strengths profiling at the start and end of a 10-week, strengths-based intervention. Mixed-method data was obtained from the strengths profiles, questionnaires measuring resilience, selfworth, and well-being, and diary entries. Findings revealed a rich array of character strength terminology and individual meanings. Participants found strengths profiling to be highly engaging, particularly due to their active role in strength identification, which prompted interesting and meaningful reflections on character strengths that were pertinent to them. Participants felt their signature strengths were vital protective factors within their lives and strengths profiles were correlated with resilience, self-worth, and well-being. Character strengths and resilience were also significantly and meaningfully improved pre/post-intervention, providing support for the use of strengths profiling as a tool for monitoring change in character strength perceptions. Overall, this study demonstrates the utility and versatility of strengths profiling as a new method in the discipline of positive psychology and strengths-based research and applied practice

Meditation-based interventions for family caregivers of people with dementia: a review of the empirical literature

Objectives: Providing care for a family member with dementia is associated with increased risk of adverse mental health sequelae. Recently, interventions utilising meditation-based techniques have been developed with the aim of reducing psychological distress among dementia caregivers. The present review aimed to critically evaluate the extant empirical literature in order to determine: (1) whether meditation-based interventions can reduce depression among dementia caregivers and (2) whether meditation-based interventions can reduce subjective burden among dementia caregivers. Method: After adhering to inclusion and exclusion criteria, a total of eight studies were included in the present review. Methodological quality was assessed using one of two scales dependent on study design. Results: The results provide tentative evidence that meditation-based interventions do indeed improve levels of depression and burden in family dementia caregivers. Conclusions: The review highlighted the strengths and weakness of the studies’ methodological designs. Whilst this novel review offers evidence in support of meditation-based interventions to improve the psychological distress of family dementia caregivers, future research should direct efforts to conduct larger scale, more rigorous studies. Clinical implications of the findings are also discussed

Juvenile king scallop, Pecten maximus, is potentially tolerant to low levels of ocean acidification when food is unrestricted.

The decline in ocean water pH and changes in carbonate saturation states through anthropogenically mediated increases in atmospheric CO2 levels may pose a hazard to marine organisms. This may be particularly acute for those species reliant on calcareous structures like shells and exoskeletons. This is of particular concern in the case of valuable commercially exploited species such as the king scallop, Pecten maximus. In this study we investigated the effects on oxygen consumption, clearance rates and cellular turnover in juvenile P. maximus following 3 months laboratory exposure to four pCO2 treatments (290, 380, 750 and 1140 µatm). None of the exposure levels were found to have significant effect on the clearance rates, respiration rates, condition index or cellular turnover (RNA: DNA) of individuals. While it is clear that some life stages of marine bivalves appear susceptible to future levels of ocean acidification, particularly under food limiting conditions, the results from this study suggest that where food is in abundance, bivalves like juvenile P. maximus may display a tolerance to limited changes in seawater chemistry

Beyond The Consulting Room: An Exploration Of Outdoor Talking Therapy

There is growing support for the outdoors as an alternative environment for talking therapy. Practitioners and clients venture outside to incorporate nature connectedness, bodily movement, and to improve access for clients whom conventional indoor therapy is less accessible. This thesis began with a review of existing literature on outdoor talking therapy (Chapter 1). A meta-synthesis of 38 articles collated the experiences of 322 practitioners (e.g., clinical psychologists, counsellors, and psychotherapists) and 163 clients. Outdoor activities ranged from sitting or walking in urban parks and woodland to more immersive outdoor pursuits and wilderness expeditions. These environments provided either a passive backdrop or were more actively incorporated into the talking therapy. Steps were taken to support safety and containment in the outdoors, such as informed consent, process contracting, and introducing predictability. Therapy was subsequently enriched through improved engagement, mutuality, freedom of expression, mind-body holism, interconnectedness with the natural world, and practitioner well-being. Despite these benefits, organisational barriers were identified, including a lack of orientation, support and guidance on outdoor talking therapy, particularly within clinical psychology and in public health services. Subsequently, the organisational culture in clinical psychology was further explored in an empirical study (Chapter 2). Using informed grounded theory, 15 experts and leaders in clinical psychology were interviewed (e.g., heads of services, training programme directors, and developers of therapy models). The themes comprised organisational factors that either support a practitioner to maintain a position of curiosity and flexibility towards the environment where therapy is located (‘environmental safe uncertainty’), or push them towards adopting a more fixed position (‘environmental certainty’). Themes included influences from therapy traditions, accessibility of alternative environments, internalised risk, workplace subcultures, business models, biomedical approaches, and the Covid-19 pandemic. The question of whether outdoor talking therapy should become a more mainstream option is discussed and a position of environmental safe uncertainty is encouraged

Layered stimulus response training improves motor imagery ability and movement execution

This study aimed to test Lang’s bioinformational theory by comparing the effects of layered stimulus and response training (LSRT) with imagery practice on improvements in imagery ability and performance of a motor skill (golf putting) in 24 novices (age, M = 20.13 years; SD = 1.65; 12 female) low in imagery ability. Participants were randomly assigned to a LSRT (introducing stimulus and response propositions to an image in a layered approach), motor imagery (MI) practice, or visual imagery (VI) practice group. Following baseline measures of MI ability and golf putting performance, the LSRT and MI practice groups imaged successfully performing the golf putting task 5 times each day for 4 days whereas the VI practice group imaged the ball rolling into the hole. Only the LSRT group experienced an improvement in kinesthetic MI ability, MI ability of more complex skills, and actual golf putting performance. Results support bioinformational theory by demonstrating that LSRT can facilitate visual and kinesthetic MI ability and reiterate the importance of imagery ability to ensure MI is an effective prime for movement execution.</jats:p