The women's mental health research agenda: Violence against women.

The focus of this article is violence against women: scope, impact, community response, clinical treatment, and prevention. Conclusions include the following: (a) Nationally representative data on the scope of violence are lacking. (b) The mental health implications of violence are not currently addressed by the practices of mental health professionals. (c) Discontinuity exists between clinical understanding of the impact of violence and empirical treatment research. (d) Victim services are proceeding in program development without direction from empirical data. (e) Prevention efforts have been isolated from the social context in which violence against women occurs. Nine directions for future research are highlighted that intersect with the stated priorities of the National Institute of Mental Health. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Poverty and women's mental health.

The positive association between poverty and mental health problems is one of the most well established in all of psychiatric epidemiology. Research has documented consistently that low income and low socioeconomic status are associated with high rates of mental disorder. With the prevalence of poverty itself now on the rise in our country, particularly among women, children and those from minority groups, increased attention must be paid to the mental health risks that accompany poverty. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Family roles and women's mental health.

Discontinuities between conventional expectations about women's roles and current definitions of marriage are seen to be stressful factors for women—as are the burdens of divorce. The isolation/purposelessness experienced by home- and children-oriented women and the feelings of overload or guilt experienced by employed mothers are also discussed. It is concluded that therapists must be sensitive to the negative aspects of wife and mother roles in order to promote clients' growth and satisfaction. (38 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Employment and women's health: Effects of paid employment on women's mental and physical health.

This article reviews empirical evidence concerning the effects of paid employment on women's mental and physical health, with special attention to variations in the effects of employment depending on the characteristics of women and their jobs. We highlight methodological issues and focus primarily on studies with longitudinal data for representative samples of women. We conclude that women's employment does not have a negative effect on their health, on the average. Indeed, employment appears to improve the health of unmarried women and married women who have positive attitudes toward employment. Possible mediators linking employment to health outcomes are discussed. Current evidence suggests that increased social support from co-workers and supervisors may be one important mediator of the beneficial health effects of employment. Given the paucity of available longitudinal studies, we encourage additional prospective research examining the mental and physical health consequences of employment according to job characteristics, personal characteristics, and disease outcome. We also recommend research on several promising mediators of employment–health relationships. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Provision of mental health services in women's health centers

Women's health centers are often associated with a comprehensive model of health care that treats the "whole woman." Using data from a nationwide study of 467 women's health centers, we explored how the ideal of comprehensive care was implemented with respect to mental health services. Specifically, we examined the rates of screening and treatment for a subset of mental health and behavioral and social problems in women's health centers and the structural, staffing, philosophical, and patient factors associated with the provision of services. Across 12 services, the overall rates of provision ranged from 7.7% for screening for dementing disorders to 27.6% for smoking cessation counseling and treatment. In a series of logistic regressions, center type (primary care) and having a mental health staff person were consistently associated with service provision; other important variables were having a high percentage of women using the center as their usual source of care and having a belief in women-centered care. Findings indicate that the majority of women using women's health centers do not receive services in a comprehensive care environment that includes key mental health services.     

Women's mental health: some directions for research

Some key issues regarding gender differences in the prevalence of mental disorders, the course of mental illness, and the use of services are reviewed, along with their diagnosis and psychopharmacologic treatment. Implications for clinical practice are examined, as are directions for future research that will ensure the presence of women's mental health as a major element in the national agenda on women's health.     

Basic behavioral science research for mental health: A national investment.

Presents the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) Behavioral Science Task Force Report (BSTFR). The BSTFR is a result of the collective efforts of the National Advisory Mental Health Council, the Staff of the Division of the Neuroscience and Behavioral Science at NIMH, and a panel of 52 behavioral scientists in the field. The BSTFR is expected to provide guidance for the NIMH's basic research programs concerning behavioral and social factors that promote mental health or contribute to mental disorders. Research topics are highlighted, such as the use of animals in basic behavioral science research, comparisons across species and across cultures, and the bidirectionality of causation. Recommendations include strengthening basic behavioral science research, increasing support for investigator-initiated research, and preserving expert review of basic behavioral science. (0 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Basic behavioral science research for mental health: Vulnerability and resilience.

Presents factors in basic behavioral science research on the nature of and variations in personality as sources of the differences in the vulnerability and resilience to stress. Individual genetic predispositions, expressed as temperament, personality, and intelligence, social skills and self-esteem are viewed as factors which, in turn, are shaped by a variety of environmental influences. The advances made in behavioral science research and key findings revealing the sources of vulnerability and strength in several areas of investigation are described. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Basic behavioral science research for mental health: Thought and communication.

The key to human intelligent behavior lies in the capacity for thinking, reasoning, and problem solving and an inability to communicate through language. These abilities are often seriously impaired in people with mental disorders, and their language may reveal delusions and scattered, incoherent thoughts as well as "word" salad and idiosyncratic words. Depressed and anxious individuals often reveal self defeating thoughts and inappropriate reasoning, such as regarding minor slip-ups as catastrophes and dwellling on the negative aspects of experiences that are generally positive. Cognitive research seeks to understand how thinking, reasoning, and using language develop and function nomally, how they are represented in the brain, and how they can break down in aging, brain injury, and various mental disorders. Aspects of this research inform the work of therapists as they challenge irrational beliefs and dysfunctional reasoning, encourage clients to re-evaluate their problems, and aid people in overcoming the aftereffects of brain injury and disease. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Comparison of university mental health needs priorities identified by professionals and students.

A random and representative sample of 457 undergraduate and graduate students completed the Needs Assessment Questionnaire that required each respondent to rate on a 5-point scale the seriousness of 24 mental health problems among university students and their families. A similar questionnaire was completed by 30 university-employed mental health professionals. A comparison of the ratings given to specific mental health problems by student and professional groups revealed extensive between-groups differences. The students rated problems of substance abuse as most serious, whereas the professionals rated problems of an academic and neurotic nature as most serious. The results have important implications for the validity and utility of needs assessment strategies. (3 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Basic behavioral science research for mental health: Sociocultural and environmental processes.

Provides a selective overview of sociocultural research investigating the role of culture in the course of mental illness and suggests promising directions for future research. Sociocultural variation in basic psychological processes and experiences including identity, self-esteem, attribution, and motivation are discussed. The role of race, ethnicity, SES, changing work roles, and communities in mental health across the life span are also explored. Possible directions for future research include cross-cultural research on universal vs culturally specific aspects of behavior, the expression and effects of ethnic discrimination, and factors mediating the effects of SES on the mental health of children and adults (0 ref). (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Conclusions: the future of research on black women's health

The preponderance of studies on Black women's health cited in the eight articles of this special issue were published in medical and public health journals, rather than in health psychology journals. Health psychology stands conspicuously apart from other health disciplines in this neglect and exclusion of Blacks and Black women. On the other hand, although there are many studies of Black women's health published in medical and public health journals, these studies have neglected a variety of important cultural and social-contextual variables, and often are methodologically inadequate. Hence, we conclude that studies on Black women's health that examine neglected variables and employ rigorous methods are needed in health psychology, behavioral medicine, and the other health disciplines as well. Specific variables and hypotheses that might be addressed in such future research are highlighted.     

Critical issues in mental health service delivery: what are the priorities?

The director, one other professional, and one para-professional in 515 community mental health centers and 193 state hospitals throughout the United States were asked to rate 57 critical issues in mental health services as to their importance now and five years from now. Issues judged most important now are services for children and for adolescents; five years from now children's services still top the list. Answers to two other questions revealed that respondents placed research on prevention at the top of a list of needed research areas, and that the most useful NIMH service to agencies was person-to-person assistance such as consultation and workshops.     

Cost-effectiveness analysis in mental health policy research.

Comments on C. A. Kiesler's (see record 1981-30977-001) argument for cost benefit (CB) and cost-effectiveness (CE) studies in mental health program evaluations. The present author maintains that Kiesler failed to mention the work of several psychologists who investigated the application of CB and CE analyses to mental health. Several misconceptions of CB and CE analyses that were not mentioned by Kiesler are reviewed. These include: (1) the confusion that CB and CE are somewhat interchangeable, (2) the misconception that direct or budgetary costs are the only relevant costs in these analyses, (3) the oversimplification that CB and CE involve only quantitative ratios, and (4) the tendency for these techniques to be seen as objective and nonjudgmental. (2 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Introduction: Methodological issues in school-based mental health services research.

New research directions on the effectiveness of mental health services for children and adolescents offer the opportunity for school psychology to apply its knowledge base to the systemic juncture between mental health and school systems. Models of service delivery to children, adolescents, and their families that integrate school, mental health, and other service sectors are being actively studied to answer questions about the outcomes of these services for children with mental health problems. The papers in this journal were first presented at the 6th Annual Research Conference of the Florida Mental Health Institute on "A System of Care for Children's Mental Health: Expanding the Research Base." The papers describe state-of-the art studies of school-based mental health interventions for children, adolescents, and their families. In each of the papers, particular attention is paid to the salient methodological issues researchers face in conducting these studies within school settings. It is hoped that these articles will foreground the healthy and creative tensions that exist between different research paradigms and multiple service communities, especially mental health and school systems, by encouraging new research on important and as yet unanswered questions about the effectiveness of school-based service delivery to children and adolescents with mental health needs. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Basic behavioral science research for mental health: Social influence and social cognition.

Discusses the issues of social influence, social cognition, stereotyping and prejudice, and social and personal identity in basic behavioral science research for mental health. The significance of social influence for mental and physical health is illustrated by 3 lines of research: impact of persuasive messages, self-persuasion, and resisting pressure to change or conform. Three aspects of social cognition, including accessibility of social beliefs, causal attribution, and standards of self-evaluation, are given, and the prevalence of stereotyping is discussed. The significance of both social and personal identity in mental health is addressed, as well as the issue of coping with challenges to the identity. Directions for future research on social influence and social cognition are outlined. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Basic behavioral science research for mental health: Family processes and social networks.

Examines research on the most fundamental contexts for social contact, the family and networks of social support. The article focuses on the processes and dynamics within these systems of relationships that are vitally important to normal and abnormal mental and emotional development. Specific issues addressed include the family and mental health (care givers and children, caregiving, reciprocity), marriage and intimacy, family structure (single parents, stepparents, siblings), cultural diversity, and social support and mental health. Understanding the norms, values, and processes that are shared across, as well as unique to, families who differ culturally, contextually, and structurally is a major need for the mental health field. Accurately identifying and describing these similarities and differences and their effects on mental health are primary objectives for future family research. Specific research directions are also discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Conducting research through a community mental health center: A research team's experiences.

Shares the professional and personal experiences of a diverse research team in conducting research over a 5-yr period. The team consisted of center staff, university professors, and graduate students. In addition to meeting the research and evaluation requirements of the center, the team successfully conducted projects that resulted in a continuing series of publications, convention presentation, and several dissertations and theses. The problems and rewards of this endeavor are discussed from the perspectives of the team members. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)