A Qualitative Investigation of Psychotherapy Clients' Perceptions of Positive Regard

This qualitative study aimed to investigate psychotherapy clients’ phenomenological experience of positive regard. Though positive regard is broadly accepted as a useful and effective clinical tool across orientations, it has been under-researched and overlooked in favor of more clearly conceptualized variables, such as empathy and working alliance. Designed as a follow-up to a quantitative study that yielded a tentative factor structure and inventory for measuring positive regard (Psychotherapist Expressions of Positive Regard, PEPR), the study also aimed to elucidate the extent to which those findings could be replicated in a qualitative format. Following Consensual Qualitative Research (CQR) methodology, 15 psychotherapy clients, primarily white women, participated in semi-structured interviews eliciting the factors that contribute to their experience of positive regard in therapy, the absence of positive regard in therapy, and the impact of positive regard on the course of psychotherapy. Nine domains and several key findings emerged from the analysis. While clients named a wide range of therapist behaviors and actions that served as markers of positive regard in the relationship, three constituent attitudes appeared repeatedly throughout the CQR categories, suggesting an underlying tripartite structure of positive regard – warm authenticity, flexible responsiveness, and empathic understanding. Clients viewed positive regard as a crucial ingredient of therapy, suggesting that it facilitates self-disclosure, risk-taking, personal growth, and rupture resolution. In relationships where positive regard was lacking, clients became disengaged from treatment, and terminating without explanation was not uncommon. Clinical implications and recommendations for optimizing the experience of positive regard are offered. The substantial overlap and interdependence of positive regard with the other Rogerian facilitative conditions of congruence and empathy is discussed. Convergence and divergence between the PEPR factor structure and the results of the current study are also highlighted, with future directions proposed

Behavioral destabilization induced by the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor fluoxetine

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) are widely used to treat mood and anxiety disorders. However, neuronal bases for both beneficial and adverse effects of SSRIs remain poorly understood. We have recently shown that the SSRI fluoxetine can reverse the state of maturation of hippocampal granule cells in adult mice. The granule cell "dematuration" is induced in a large population of granule cells, and greatly changes functional and physiological properties of these cells. Here we show that this unique form of neuronal plasticity is correlated with a distinct change in behavior of mice.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>We chronically treated adult male mice with fluoxetine, and examined its effect on several forms of behavior of mice. During fluoxetine treatments, mice showed a marked increase in day-to-day fluctuations of home cage activity levels that was characterized by occasional switching between hypoactivity and hyperactivity within a few days. This destabilized cage activity was accompanied by increased anxiety-related behaviors and could be observed up to 4 weeks after withdrawal from fluoxetine. As reported previously, the granule cell dematuration by fluoxetine includes a reduction of synaptic facilitation at the granule cell output, mossy fiber, synapse to the juvenile level. Mossy fiber synaptic facilitation examined electrophysiologically in acute hippocampal slices also remained suppressed after fluoxetine withdrawal and significantly correlated with the fluctuation of cage activity levels in individual mice. Furthermore, in mice lacking the 5-HT₄receptor, in which the granule cell dematuration has been shown to be attenuated, fluoxetine had no significant effect on the fluctuation of cage activity levels.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Our results demonstrate that the SSRI fluoxetine can induce marked day-to-day changes in activity levels of mice in the familiar environment, and that the dematuration of the hippocampal granule cells is closely associated with the expression of this destabilized behavior. Based on these results, we propose that the granule cell dematuration can be a potential cellular basis underlying switching-like changes in the behavioral state associated with SSRI treatments.</p

Clostridium botulinum Type E Toxins Bind to Caco-2 Cells by a Different Mechanism from That of Type A Toxins

Cultured Clostridium botulinum strains produce progenitor toxins designated as 12S, 16S, and 19S toxins. The 12S toxin consists of a neurotoxin (NTX, 7S) and a non-toxic non-hemagglutinin (NTNH). The 16S and 19S toxins are formed by conjugation of the 12S toxin with hemagglutinin (HA), and the 19S toxin is a dimer of the 16S toxin. Type A cultures produce all 3 of these progenitor toxins, while type E produces only the 12S toxin. The 7S toxin is cleaved into heavy (H) and light (L) chains by a protease(s) in some strains, and the H chain has 2 domains, the N-terminus (Hn) and C-terminus (Hc). It has been reported that type A toxins bind to the intestinal cells or cultured cells via either HA or Hc. In this study, we investigated the binding of type A and E toxins to Caco-2 cells using Western blot analysis. Both the type E 7S and 12S toxins bound to the cells, with the 7S toxin binding more strongly, whereas, in the type A strain, only the 16S/19S toxins showed obvious binding. Pre-incubation of the type E 7S toxin with IgG against recombinant type E Hc significantly inhibited the 7S toxin binding, indicating that Hc might be a main binding domain of the type E toxin

Mineral, Fatty Acid and Dietary Fiber Compositions in Several Indonesian Seaweeds

Tujuan penelitian ini adalah untuk mengetahui distribusi dan profil kandungan nutrient dan non-nutrien (mineral, asam lemak dan serat) pada sembilan jenis rumput laut dan beberapa kelas (alga hijau, coklat dan merah). Kandungan mineral didominasi oleh kalsium, potassium, dan sodium. Asam palmitic adalah asam lemak utama yang ditemukan pada semua contoh rumput laut, diikuti oleh asam stearic, asamoleic, dan asam linolenic. Konsentrasi asam eicosapentaenoic tertinggi ditemukan pada jenis alga merah Kappaphycus alvarezii (8,09%), sedangkan alga merah Sargassum polycystum mengandung asam arachidonic tertinggi (14,43%). Kisaran kandungan serat total, serat terlarut dan serat tidak terlarut pada contoh alga yang dianalisa berturut-turut adalah 14.7 - 69.3, 14.3 - 64.1 dan 0.4 - 10.7 (g/100 g berat kering). Alga merah jenis K. alvarezii memiliki kandungan serat total dan serat terlarut tertinggi, sedangkan alga yang mengandung serat tidak terlarut tertinggi adalah jenis alga hijau Ulva reticulate

Development of the Morality Lessons foucused on Life Respect Values

The purpose of this paper was to propose a method on morality education through the development of the morality lessons that were foucused on life respect values. In this research, we made three materials that were concerned on life respect values and conducted three morality lessons. The results were follows. Firstly, the life respect values had three aspects, self, social and natural aspects. Secondary, these three aspects were influenced each other and developed through four steps. From these results, we proposed methods on morality education, called SURIBACHI methods. The generalization of these methods was our future issue.本研究は，JSPS科研費JP16K04766 の助成を受けたものです

Development of the Moral Lesson Methods of Teachers for deepening the Value of the Respect for Life

This thesis investigates the lesson methods of teachers for deepening the value of the respect for life. We analyzed the questions from the teachers and the children's responses in a morality lesson for fifth grade elementary school students, clarifying a method for deepening the children's thoughts. As a result, the following three points were clarified. The first was to have the students find questions during the class. It was shown that, instead of having the teacher prepare questions in advance, having the students find questions and try to solve them on their own gave the students the attitude to think on their own. The second was to give the students a method for thinking. It was shown that by giving the students a method for comparing the changes in thoughts and a method for finding the differences between the main character and the people around them, they can learn autonomous thinking. The third was to deepen the teacher's outlook on human life. Deepening the understanding of human life wherein one both shows human vulnerability yet tries to live proudly gives depth to the research of teaching materials and lesson composition. It was shown that this kind of teacher stance deepens the children's thoughts.本研究はJSPS科研費16K04766の助成を受けたものです

Improving School Management through Morality Education: From the Perspective of Curriculum Management

As many people are aware, the official curriculum guidelines announced in 2017 strongly pushed the concept of curriculum management. The result thereof will be seen in the competency-based curriculum. This is an issue that should be considered not with regard to the ability of each individual teacher, but rather as an issue of school management. However, we do not see many perspectives in actual schools for organically linking the improvements to classes by individual teachers with school management. This thesis explores curriculum management from the perspective of school management, as well as the result of linking the improvements to classes by individual teachers with school management and what is necessary to do that. Furthermore, we use the example of school management through morality education to consider the effects of curriculum management

Intraprostatic Botulinum Neurotoxin Type A Injection for Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia:Preliminary Results with a Newly Purified Neurotoxin

Several studies have demonstrated the efficacy of intraprostatic injection of botulinum neurotoxin type A (BoNT/A) against symptomatic benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH). The most commonly used BoNT/A product, Botox®, forms large complexes and composed of neurotoxin (NTX) as well as non-toxic components. We purified NTX lacking non-toxic components. We investigated the efficacy of this newly purified NTX for men with BPH. Ten male patients (mean age, 70.0 years) with BPH received 100 units (prostate volume [PV] ＜30ml) or 200 units (PV ｧ30ml) of NTX injected into the prostate via a minimally invasive outpatient technique. Evaluation included uroflowmetry, postvoid residual urine volume (PVR), PV, and International Prostate Symptom Score (IPSS) measured at baseline and 1, 3, 6, and 12 months post-treatment. The status of 7 of the 10 patients examined was found to have improved within 1 month of treatment. The mean IPSS decreased from 23.8±7.0 to 16.3±10.3 (p＝0.0093) at 1 month, to 14.9±8.2 (p＝0.0074) at 3 months, and to 16.9±7.3 (p＝0.018) at 12 months. The mean PV decreased from 47.8±21.2 to 39.2±19.5ml (p＝0.0076) at 3 months. The PVR improved at 3 and 6 months post-treatment. Intraprostatic NTX injection induces prostate shrinkage and is effective in men with BPH