Rebuilding the workplace to promote young workers' mental health

Purpose Young adults have been particularly adversely affected by COVID-19-related disruptions, especially in relation to industries with an over-representation of young adults. This study, a report, aims to discuss the findings from survey data from young adults who reported poorer mental health comparative to older generations prior to the pandemic. Drawing on the international literature and the research findings, the authors propose recommendations for rebuilding the workplace post-pandemic to support young adult's mental health. Design/methodology/approach Data from 1,999 respondents from 200 organisations in the UK were sought in relation to workplace well-being and mental health through a 15-item multiple choice online survey. Overall, 17% of the sample were senior management, 31% junior management, 37% in non-management roles and a further 15% stated “other”. Exploratory quantitative analyses were undertaken to assess differences in responses to questions between age groups. Findings Participants in the 16–25-year-old age group were more likely than any other age group to report that work adversely affected their mental health, that their mental health challenges influenced their performance at work, that they had witnessed colleagues' employment negatively influenced by mental health challenges and they felt more comfortable citing physical health challenges for absence than mental health difficulties. Originality/value COVID-19-related disruptions meant a large-scale move to remote working for many people. As we return to physical workplaces, we have an exciting opportunity to reform and improve the status quo. The findings, in relation to the mental health of young adults, highlight key risk factors that need to be addressed. Keyword

A qualitative study of stakeholders' perspectives on the social network service environment

Over two billion people are using the Internet at present, assisted by the mediating activities of software agents which deal with the diversity and complexity of information. There are, however, ethical issues due to the monitoring-and-surveillance, data mining and autonomous nature of software agents. Considering the context, this study aims to comprehend stakeholders' perspectives on the social network service environment in order to identify the main considerations for the design of software agents in social network services in the near future. Twenty-one stakeholders, belonging to three key stakeholder groups, were recruited using a purposive sampling strategy for unstandardised semi-structured e-mail interviews. The interview data were analysed using a qualitative content analysis method. It was possible to identify three main considerations for the design of software agents in social network services, which were classified into the following categories: comprehensive understanding of users' perception of privacy, user type recognition algorithms for software agent development and existing software agents enhancement

Distinguishing factors that influence attendance and behaviour change in family‐based treatment of childhood obesity: a qualitative study

ObjectivesFor the effective treatment of childhood obesity, intervention attendance and behaviour change at home are both important. The purpose of this study was to qualitatively explore influences on attendance and behaviour change during a family-based intervention to treat childhood obesity in the North West of England (Getting Our Active Lifestyles Started (GOALS)).DesignFocus groups with children and parents/carers as part of a broader mixed-methods evaluation.MethodsEighteen focus groups were conducted with children (n = 39, 19 boys) and parents/carers (n = 34, 5 male) to explore their experiences of GOALS after 6 weeks of attendance (/18 weeks). Data were analysed thematically to identify influences on attendance and behaviour change.ResultsInitial attendance came about through targeted referral (from health care professionals and letters in school) and was influenced by motivations for a brighter future. Once at GOALS, it was the fun, non-judgemental healthy lifestyle approach that encouraged continued attendance. Factors that facilitated behaviour change included participatory learning as a family, being accountable and gradual realistic goal setting, whilst challenges focussed on fears about the intervention ending and a lack of support from non-attending significant others.ConclusionsFactors that influence attendance and behaviour change are distinct and may be important at different stages of the family’s change process. Practitioners are encouraged to tailor strategies to support both attendance and behaviour change, with a focus on whole family participation within and outside the intervention

Dyadic Relationship as Evolutionary Potential: An Exploratory Study

This thesis is an exploratory study of a new territory in transpersonal psychology, dyadic relationship with one other closest person. It is germane for those committed to investigating evolving human potential to consciously hasten and deepen the natural processes now occurring through our individual biomental beings and capacities. Social interactions have been rapidly changing in the United States. Among other things, there has been an increasing explicit emphasis on personal relationships entailing reciprocal responses and fulfillment

Multiscale Stepping-Stone Detection: Detecting Pairs of Jittered Interactive Streams by Exploiting Maximum Tolerable Delay

Computer attackers frequently relay their attacks through a compromised host at an innocent site, thereby obscuring the true origin of the attack. There is a growing literature on ways to detect that an interactive connection into a site and another outbound from the site give evidence of such a "stepping stone." This has been done based on monitoring the access link connecting the site to the Internet (Eg. [7, 11, 8]). The earliest work was based on connection content comparisons but more recent work has relied on timing information in order to compare encrypted connections

A service evaluation of a 1-year Dialectical Behaviour Therapy programme for women with Borderline Personality Disorder in a low secure unit

Background: Previous studies about the effectiveness of Dialectical Behaviour Therapy for the treatment of Borderline Personality Disorder have had promising results. However, no previous studies have examined its effectiveness when delivered in low secure inpatient services for women. Aims: To evaluate clinical outcomes during and after a 1-year period of admission within a low secure unit for women offering a Dialectical Behaviour Therapy programme. Method: A naturalistic, within subjects study of clinical data collected as part of routine practice was conducted. Participants were18 consecutively admitted women who met the diagnostic criteria for Borderline Personality Disorder and had completed at least 1 year of treatment. Measures covered: risk behaviours; self-reported symptoms of Borderline Personality Disorder, and current mood and symptom experience; staff reports of clinical problems, needs and social functioning. Scores were compared between admission and at 6 months and 1 year. Results: There was a statistically significant improvement on all 13 measures over the year's treatment. Most improvement was demonstrated between admission and 6 months. Conclusions: Engagement in1-year's treatment was associated with significant reduction in risk behaviours and both staff-rated and self-rated outcome measures. Some significant questions remain about which elements of the programme are most effective but the results are encouraging

Employees’ experiences of participating in a workplace supported weight management service : A qualitative inquiry

Purpose: This study explored Public Health employees experiences of participating in a commercial weight management programme funded through their employers over a 12 week period. Design/methodology/approach: Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 28 employees who had participated in the programme (group-based or online). Findings: The main motivators for enquiring about and attending the programme were: the offer to attend the programme free of charge, the opportunity to kick start their weight loss efforts, to take part in an academic research study, and the opportunity for ‘shared experience’s’ with their colleagues. Practical Implications: Employers should facilitate their employees efforts to lead a healthier lifestyle in the long-term creating employer health and safety policies that actively encourage healthy living and weight management. Improving employee health can contribute to increasing productivity, reducing stress and absenteeism. Originality/value: This paper presents a novel approach to facilitating employees weight management. Employees perceived their employer supported participation in a commercial weight management programme outside of their work setting as a positive experience that assisted their weight management efforts suggesting the acceptability and feasibility of this approach to addressing weight in the workplace. Keywords: Weight management, workplace, qualitative inquiry, employee health promotio