Understanding Face and Shame: A Servant-Leadership and Face Management Model

Clergy can have a negative impact on churches and other individuals when they knowingly or unknowingly attempt to save face, that is, try to protect their standing or reputation. The desire to gain face and the fear of losing face and feeling ashamed will likely permeate clergy’s decision-making processes without even being noticed. This study explores the essence of face and face management and the relationship between face management and two characteristics of servant-leadership—awareness and healing—in both Chinese and American churches through the methodology of hermeneutic phenomenology. Prior to this study, to my knowledge, no hermeneutic phenomenological research of face management has been conducted in a church setting. Through a review of the literature, four areas are explored: face and shame, face management, servant-leadership, and face, shame, and face management within the church. This study obtained approval from the Institutional Review Board and informed consent from the participants. Three Chinese and three American Christian ministers were chosen to complete a question sheet and participate in two semi-structured interview sessions. A first cycle of open coding and second cycle of pattern coding were used during data analysis. Face experiences are discussed in light of eight major themes: body, triggers, becoming, face concepts, strategies, emotions, servant-leadership, and the church. Findings from the study help build a servant-leadership and face management model, which can offer an anchored approach for clergy and pastoral counselors to address face and shame and to develop therapeutic interventions

Happiness matters : exploring the linkages between personality, personal happiness, and work-related psychological health among priests and sisters in Italy

This study responds to the challenge posed by Rossetti’s work to explore the antecedents and consequences of individual differences in happiness among priests and religious sisters. The Oxford Happiness Questionnaire was completed together with measures of personality and work-related psychological health by 95 priests and 61 religious sisters. Overall the data demonstrated high levels of personal happiness among priests and religious sisters, but also significant signs of vulnerability. Personality provided significant prediction of individual differences in both personal happiness and work-related psychological health. However, personal happiness provided additional protection against work-related emotional exhaustion and additional enhancement of work-related satisfaction. These findings suggest that acknowledging and affirming personal happiness may enhance the work-related psychological health of Catholic priests and religious sisters

‘It is hard to stay in England’:itineraries, routes, and dead ends : an (im)mobility study of nurses who became carers

This article presents findings from an Economic Social Research Council (ESRC) study on the roles of education in the trajectories of health care professionals who migrated to England and became carers. The study looks at the downward mobility and deskilling of these women, and their struggles to reverse their bungled career paths. The author maps the routes of women, who after receiving a nurse education in countries such as China, Malawi, Romania, Philippines, and India, attempt returns on their educational investments in England. The themes revealed that although these nurses developed ingenious strategies to advance their careers, many of them could not overcome the structural barriers that impeded their pathways to becoming health care professionals in a new country

Leg Ischaemia Management collaboration (LIMb): study protocol for a prospective cohort study at a single UK centre

Introduction Severe limb ischaemia (SLI) is the end-stage of peripheral arterial occlusive disease where the viability of the limb is threatened. Around 25% of patients with SLI will ultimately require a major lower limb amputation which has a substantial adverse impact on quality of life. A newly established rapid-access vascular limb salvage clinic and modern revascularisation techniques may reduce amputation rate. The aim of this study is to investigate the 12-month amputation rate in a contemporary cohort of patients and compare this to a historical cohort. Secondary aims are to investigate the use of frailty and cognitive assessments, and cardiac MRI in risk-stratifying patients with SLI undergoing intervention and establish a biobank for future biomarker analyses. Methods & analysis This single-centre prospective cohort study will recruit patients aged 18-110 years presenting with SLI. Those undergoing intervention will be eligible to undergo additional venepuncture (for biomarker analysis) and/or cardiac MRI. Those aged ≥65 years and undergoing intervention will also be eligible to undergo additional frailty and cognitive assessments. Follow-up will be at 12 and 24 months and subsequently via data-linkage with NHS digital to 10 years post-recruitment. Those undergoing cardiac MRI and/or frailty assessments will receive additional follow-up during the first 12 months to investigate for peri-operative myocardial infarction and frailty related outcomes, respectively. A sample size of 420 patients will be required to detect a 10% reduction in amputation rate in comparison to a similar sized historical cohort, with 90% power and 5% type-I error rate. Statistical analysis of this comparison will be by adjusted and unadjusted logistic regression analyses. Ethics & dissemination Ethical approval for this study has been granted by the UK National Research Ethics Service (19/LO/0132). Results will be disseminated to participants, via scientific meetings, peerreviewed medical journals and social media. Study registration ClinicalTrials.gov [NCT04027244