The meaning-focused coping and patients adaptation to chronic illness : the research report

The Meaning Making Model by Crystal Park and Susan Folkman is supplement of Lazarus’ and Folkman’s the transactional model of stress and coping. The stress after the most disturbing life illness is a cause of the discrepancy between meaning of illness and global meaning. The meaning-focused coping can reduce discrepancies. The growth of human personality can be an effect of coping, it can also reduce stress's causes. Aim. An attempt to use the meaning making model in study of seriously ill patients. The research covered 52 patients, 16 were treated for oncological illness, and 36 were treated for neurological illness. The research is based on the proprietary Ruminations Scale, Acceptance of Illness Scale, and The Posttraumatic Growth Inventory. In the studied group the most of patients were ruminated about meaning-making of illness. Higher rumination was co-morbid with less time between falling ill and a moment of study (less than 10 weeks). The level of acceptance of illness was in accordance with meaning-focused coping, human supports, and personal growth

The worldview contained in declarations of police officers scheduled for psychotherapeutic treatment

Artykuł jest prezentacją wyników badań zrealizowanych przez Autora na grupie 80 policjantów służby czynnej rozpoczynających leczenie psychoterapeutyczne. Zastosowane metody badawcze (Skala Wydarzeń Życiowych, Skala Założeń Wobec Świata, Inwentarz Depresji Becka) posłużyły do sprawdzenia hipotez dotyczących związków pomiędzy okolicznościami towarzyszącymi pracy zawodowej, obrazem świata i tworzącymi go przekonaniami oraz występowaniem objawów zaburzeń depresyjnych.Objectives. Appreciation the average level of assumptions of policemen enrolled to psychotherapy. Explanation of the difference in level of assumptions to take into consideration the work place. Appreciation the connections between the level of assumptions and depression. Method. 80 police officers (M age=40.81; SD=5.54; Mseniority= 18.94; SD= 4.89) at the top of psychotherapeutic treatment were once and individually completed set of the research questionnaires. In the present article, research results obtained with The Life Events Checklist, The World Assumptions Scale and Beck Depression Inventory were presented. Results. The date indicated that a longstanding exposure with existential stressor has representations in the subjective worldview and world assumptions. The worldview of the depressive person is less benevolent. In the group of assumptions about the distribution of outcomes there are weak beliefs in the principle of justice and controllability. The assumptions about oneself as an agent of life events are partially complementary with early and to pertain to character weakness, weak belief in selfcontrollability and in luck. Conclusions. The workplace’s worldview may be generalized and to contain the general life’s attitude. The World Assumptions Scale may to serve as a basis to conversation with patient and to complement the knowledge about the direction of his therapy

The Ruminations Scale : characteristics of the questionnaire and preliminary psychometrics analysis

Radzenie sobie skoncentrowane na tworzeniu znaczeń, odgrywa ważną rolę w procesie adaptacji pacjenta do choroby zagrażającej zdrowiu lub choroby przewlekłej. Pielęgniarka podczas kontaktu z pacjentem może poznać jego myśli, zarówno ułatwiające, jak i utrudniające przebieg leczenia i rehabilitacji. Może również pobudzać u pacjenta procesy myślowe, powodując zmiany o charakterze rozwoju osobowego wbrew przeciwnościom losu. Wstępna charakterystyka psychometryczna narzędzia służącego do poznania procesów myślenia pacjenta, polegających na tworzeniu znaczeń choroby. Grupę badaną stanowiło 89 pacjentów w trakcie leczenia neurologicznego, onkologicznego i chirurgicznego. Do badań wykorzystano Skalę Ruminacji oraz kwestionariusz sensu w życiu MLQ, skalę akceptacji choroby AIS oraz inwentarz wzrostu związanego z kryzysem choroby (PTGI). Wyniki wstępnych badań ukazały wielorakie związki występujące pomiędzy ruminowaniem a akceptacją choroby i deklaracjami wzrostu osobowego oraz posiadaniem sensu w życiu i jego poszukiwaniem. Zaobserwowano, że intensywność ruminowania pozostaje pod wpływem wieku pacjenta oraz upływu czasu, jaki minął od zachorowania. Skala Ruminacji jest narzędziem o zadowalającej rzetelności oraz trafności wewnętrznej. Analiza potwierdziła 6-czynnikową strukturę kwestionariusza. Narzędzie wymaga dalszych badań walidacyjnych.The meaning making focusing coping plays important role during adaptation process of patient to the serious and chronic illness. The nurse under conversation with patient can recognize patient’s thoughts, that make easier and make harder treatment and rehabilitation process. She can stimulate thoughts lead to changes in the kind of personal growth too. Preliminary psychometric characteristic of research tool to recognize patient's thoughts, as meaning-making coping. 89 patients during neurological, oncological and surgery treatment have been surveyed. Research tools were the following: The Ruminations Scale, The Meaning in Life Questionnaire (MLQ), The Acceptance of Illness Scale (AIS) and The Posttraumatic Growth Inventory (PTGI). The results of the preliminary survey showed multiply connections between ruminations, adaptations to illness process, personal growth declarations, having the meaning in life and finding the meaning. The impact of patients age and time after illness on ruminations intensity was showed. The Ruminations Scale is a research tool with satisfactory reliability and internal accuracy. The factor analysis confirmed 6-factor structure of the questionnaire. The research tool need further validation surveys (external accuracy and stability)

Beneficial and negative effects of thinking processes of patients treated for serious somatic illnesses

Cel. Celem pracy była charakterystyka procesów myślowych pacjentów dotkniętych poważną chorobą oraz ocena poziomu adaptacji do ograniczeń wywołanych dolegliwościami i leczeniem z uwzględnieniem treści procesów myślowych. Materiał i metody. Badanie przeprowadzono w grupie 56 pacjentów rehabilitowanych po incydentach neurologicznych (udary krwotoczne i niedokrwienne) oraz 18 pacjentów w trakcie leczenia onkologicznego (białaczka) - łącznie zbadano 74 osoby. W badaniu zastosowano metodę sondażu diagnostycznego, wykorzystując wystandaryzowane narzędzia badawcze: Skalę Akceptacji Choroby (AIS), Inwentarz Potraumatycznego Rozwoju (PTGI) oraz autorski kwestionariusz Skala Ruminacji (SR). Wyniki. Wraz z upływem czasu od chwili zachorowania osoby badane częściej myślały na temat: sensu życia i wniosków płynących z choroby, pozytywnych zdarzeń towarzyszących leczeniu, problemów związanych z chorobą, a także starały się odciągać uwagę od wyłącznie negatywnego myślenia. Wyróżniono trzy postaci adaptacji pacjenta do choroby różniące się pod względem stopnia akceptacji choroby, częstości występowania pięciu kategorii myśli, zrozumienia przyczyn choroby oraz pozytywnych zmian osobowych: negatywna (19 osób), pozytywna (17 osób), rozwojowa (19 osób). Pomiędzy poziomem akceptacji choroby a deklaracjami rozwoju osobowego zaobserwowano negatywny związek. Wnioski. Znajomość treści myślenia uzupełnia obraz pacjenta poważnie chorego i ułatwia zrozumienie jego zachowań.Aim. The characteristics of thinking processes in patients with serious illness and evaluation of the adaptation level with the content of thinking processes consideration. Material and methods. The study included 56 patients rehabilitating after serious neurologic diseases (haemorrhagic and ischemic stroce) and 18 patients during oncological treatment (leukemia) together 74 persons. In the research a diagnostic survey was applied, using the standardized questionnaire: Adaptation of Illness Scale (AIS), Posttraumatic Growth Inventory PTGI (PTGI) and the author’s questionnaire Rumination Scale (RS). Results. During the time elapsed since the fall sick the content of patients’ sic thoughts has changed statistically significantly, especially about: the meaning of live, recognizing the benefit in the treatment and blocking negative thoughts and problems pondering. Tree figures of the patients adaptations to illness have been identified with the triple kind of thoughts: negative (19 person), positive (17 person) and growing (19 person). There were negative correlations between adaptation of illness and personal growth.Conslusion. The familiarity of thoughts complements the picture of a seriously ill patient and facilitates the understanding of his behaviours

Perceived life stress and the burnout syndrome in group of Polish psychiatrists

INTRODUCTION: The aim of the paper was to analyse the prevalence of the occupational burnout syndrome (OBS) amongst physicians specialising in psychiatry and identification of factors which may at one hand facilitate the development of job burnout or at the other,  protect against it. The hypothesis on the coexistence of OBS and overall high level of stress was verified. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The study involved a group of 57 psychiatry specialists: 41 females and 16 males, aged from 27 to 86 years. The study participants were asked to complete three online questionnaires: a proprietary (sociodemographic) questionnaire, Link Burnout Questionnaire, (LBQ) and Experienced Stress Scale (PSS-10). RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS: The average result of the measurement of perceived stress in the examined group was at a high level. Every second medical doctor declared a high degree of occupational burnout in each of the 4 aspects. Significant differences were found between psychiatrists with high and low levels of perceived stress. Psychiatrists experiencing high levels of perceived stress showed higher levels of OBS across all its dimensions. Moreover, physicians with low levels of stress have used their holiday allowance more frequently than those with high levels of stress. Whereas no statistically significant differences were found between perceived stress levels and: age, sex, marital status, number of years in the medical profession, number of years of work at the primary workplace, number of working hours per week, number of hours on duty per  month, having a social media account, having a pet or taking antidepressants. In this paper the authors demonstrate that perceived stress of Polish psychiatrists is a strong factor contributing to the development of the OBS. The level of perceived life stress depends on mental features of a given person which determine resourcefulness and ability to cope with both occupational and life stressors. Thus, prophylaxis should target positive changes in work environment as well as psychological profiles of health care professionals.INTRODUCTION: The aim of the paper was to analyse the prevalence of the occupational burnout syndrome (OBS) amongst physicians specialising in psychiatry and identification of factors which may at one hand facilitate the development of job burnout or at the other,  protect against it. The hypothesis on the coexistence of OBS and overall high level of stress was verified. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The study involved a group of 57 psychiatry specialists: 41 females and 16 males, aged from 27 to 86 years. The study participants were asked to complete three online questionnaires: a proprietary (sociodemographic) questionnaire, Link Burnout Questionnaire, (LBQ) and Experienced Stress Scale (PSS-10). RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS: The average result of the measurement of perceived stress in the examined group was at a high level. Every second medical doctor declared a high degree of occupational burnout in each of the 4 aspects. Significant differences were found between psychiatrists with high and low levels of perceived stress. Psychiatrists experiencing high levels of perceived stress showed higher levels of OBS across all its dimensions. Moreover, physicians with low levels of stress have used their holiday allowance more frequently than those with high levels of stress. Whereas no statistically significant differences were found between perceived stress levels and: age, sex, marital status, number of years in the medical profession, number of years of work at the primary workplace, number of working hours per week, number of hours on duty per  month, having a social media account, having a pet or taking antidepressants. In this paper the authors demonstrate that perceived stress of Polish psychiatrists is a strong factor contributing to the development of the OBS. The level of perceived life stress depends on mental features of a given person which determine resourcefulness and ability to cope with both occupational and life stressors. Thus, prophylaxis should target positive changes in work environment as well as psychological profiles of health care professionals.

Predyspozycje afektywne a obraz choroby przewlekłej.

AbstraktWstęp. Ciągle otwarte pozostaje pytanie o sposoby podtrzymywania motywacji do leczenia u pacjenta chorego przewlekle. Pewnych informacji dostarcza pojęcie obrazu choroby i związków z poczuciem samoskuteczności. Ważnym czynnikiem kształtującym obraz choroby są indywidualne preferencje afektywne pacjenta.Cel. Sprawdzenie powiązań występujących pomiędzy typem preferencji afektywnych pacjenta, indywidualnym obrazem choroby przewlekłej a poczuciem samoskuteczności.Materiał i metody. Badanie dotyczyło 40 pacjentów leczonych z powodu reumatoidalnego zapalenia stawów. Obraz choroby poznano za pomocą autorskiego kwestionariusza powstałego w zgodzie z koncepcją Leventhala. Do zbadania preferencji afektywnych użyto kwestionariusz SUPIN wersja C-30, natomiast poczucie skuteczności sprawdzono za pomocą skali GSES.Wyniki i wnioski. W badanej grupie przeważały osoby ze skłonnością do afektywności negatywnej o wysokim nasileniu oraz afektywności pozytywnej o niskim nasileniu. Zaobserwowano różnice w sposobach spostrzegania choroby przez pacjentów o odmiennych predyspozycjach afektywnych. Poczucie samoskuteczności różni się ze względu na obecny u pacjenta rodzaj afektywności pozytywnej.Słowa klucze. Obraz choroby, zaburzenia afektywne, skuteczność własna, reumatoidalne zapalenie stawów Â

3DMADMAC|AUTOMATED: synergistic hardware and software solution for automated 3D digitization of cultural heritage objects

In this article a fully automated 3D shape measurement system and data processing algorithms are presented. Main purpose of this system is to automatically (without any user intervention) and rapidly (at least ten times faster than manual measurement) digitize whole object’s surface with some limitations to its properties: maximum measurement volume is described as a cylinder with 2,8m height and 0,6m radius, maximum object's weight is 2 tons.  Measurement head is automatically calibrated by the system for chosen working volume (from 120mm x 80mm x 60mm and ends up to 1,2m x 0,8m x 0,6m). Positioning of measurement head in relation to measured object is realized by computer-controlled manipulator. The system is equipped with two independent collision detection modules to prevent damaging measured object with moving sensor’s head. Measurement process is divided into three steps. First step is used for locating any part of object’s surface in assumed measurement volume. Second step is related to calculation of "next best view" position of measurement head on the base of existing 3D scans. Finally small holes in measured 3D surface are detected and measured. All 3D data processing (filtering, ICP based fitting and final views integration) is performed automatically. Final 3D model is created on the base of user specified parameters like accuracy of surface representation and/or density of surface sampling. In the last section of the paper, exemplary measurement result of two objects: biscuit (from the collection of Museum Palace at Wilanów) and Roman votive altar (Lower Moesia, II-III AD) are presented

Polish adaptation and validation of the World Assumptions Scale

Praca badawcza przedstawia podstawy teoretyczne oraz właściwości psychometryczne Skali Założeń Wobec Świata (SZWS), będącej polską adaptacją World Assumptions Scale (WAS), autorstwa Ronnie Janoff-Bulman opartej na założeniu, iż indywidualne doświadczenie człowieka zorganizowane jest w postaci schematów poznawczych. Autorzy w oparciu o badania własne dokonują analizy możliwości zastosowania narzędzia w różnych celach od diagnozy wpływu zdarzenia traumatycznego do oceny postępów w leczeniu reakcji na ciężki stres i związanych z tym zaburzeń.Aim. The aim of this article is to present a theoretical background and psychometric features of the Polish adaptation of the World Assumptions Scale by Janoff-Bulman (1989). The original scale was constructed to identify assumptions of people, about the world and to recognise their changes after a traumatic event. Method. The study involved 357 participants, aged 21-52 (M= 37.77). 18.5% were male, 81.5% - female. Results. α-Cronbach coefficient for the scale was 0.816, internal stability (test-retest) - 0.54. Our study suggested a 7-factor structure of the scale, with two scales of benevolence combined together. Conclusions. The Polish adaptation has satisfactory psychometric properties. It may be a valuable instrument in the evaluation of impact of trauma and assessment the progress in the treatment of ASD, PTSD or borderline personality disorder