This qualitative study explored how expatriates living in Hong Kong experienced transnational caregiving for their older parents during a parental health crisis and focused on individual and couple experiences. Twenty participants (10 married couples) participated in interviews, and the data were analysed using reflexive thematic analysis to identify patterns and themes. Three themes emerged: "Navigating two countries and families," which described tensions in managing distant family demands; "Containment - coping 'here'," which highlighted strategies such as withdrawal and compartmentalization; and "Weathering the storm together," which captured how caregiving impacted couple functioning. Findings indicated that transnational caregiving involved unique distance-related stressors, including negotiation of care from afar and challenges in maintaining family cohesion. The study highlighted individual and dyadic coping processes and implications for culturally attuned psychological support.
This study examined the reliability and validity of the Chinese version of the multidimensional Barriers to Seeking Mental Health Counselling scale (C-BMHC). An initial sample of 288 college students completed the original 27-item scale. Following item analysis and exploratory factor analysis, the scale was reduced to 22 items and administered to a second sample of 300 students, with a four-week retest. Confirmatory factor analysis supported a six-factor model reflecting Negative Perceived Value, Discomfort with Emotions, Ingroup Stigma, Lack of Knowledge, Lack of Access, and Cultural Barriers. Evidence supported criterion-related validity, internal reliability, and temporal stability. Higher barrier scores were associated with greater stigma and lower perceived behavioural control, help-seeking attitudes, and help-seeking intention. Clinical implications and study limitations are discussed.
Persons with disabilities face numerous barriers that affect their well-being, yet no validated Bangla tool exists to assess subjective well-being in this population. This study validated the Bangla WHO-5 Well-being Index among 518 adults with disabilities from rural and urban areas of Bangladesh. Reliability and validity were examined using Classical Test Theory and Rasch analysis. The scale demonstrated a unidimensional structure with good model fit (CFI = 0.98, TLI = 0.96, RMSEA = 0.06). Internal consistency was acceptable (alpha = 0.63), and test-retest reliability was excellent (ICC = 0.87). Convergent and divergent validity were supported. Rasch analysis showed acceptable item fit and strong item and person separation reliability. Findings suggest that the Bangla WHO-5 is a valid and reliable measure of subjective well-being among persons with disabilities.
This investigation explored linkages between career choices and childhood or adolescent adversity among young Indian therapists. We sought to understand participants' perceptions of their challenges, how they attempted to overcome them, and the paths through which adversity contributed to their decision to become psychotherapists. Data was collected through interviews with 10 psychotherapists and analysed using the interpretative phenomenological lens. Findings indicated that participants' experiences of early adversity were characterized by the absence of spaces to articulate feelings and a sense of being unheard. As adults, being in therapy ameliorated the experience of being marginalized. Living through early challenges enabled empathy, while receiving therapy contributed to participants being more effective practitioners. Supervision and self-awareness helped in coping with exhaustion and distress.
This study examined the mediating role of resilience in the association of positive childhood experiences with anxiety and loneliness. Participants included 407 young Turkish adults (67.8% females) ranging in age between 18 and 24 years (mean age = 22.32 +/- 1.60) and completed measures of positive childhood experiences, resilience, anxiety, and loneliness. The results showed that positive childhood experiences had a significant predictive effect on resilience and loneliness. Resilience had a significant predictive effect on anxiety and loneliness. Most importantly, resilience mediated the impact of positive childhood experiences on anxiety and loneliness. These findings highlight resilience as a key factor linking positive childhood experiences with anxiety and loneliness, presenting valuable guidance for interventions that enhance their positive impact on mental health.
This randomized controlled pre-test-post-test study investigated the effect of a Positive Psychotherapy (PPT)-based psychoeducation programme on adolescents' achievement motivation. Fifty-eight third-year high school students were randomly assigned to experimental (n=29) and control (n=29) groups. The experimental group received ten sessions of "Success Skill Development Psychoeducation," while the control group received no intervention during the study period; the programme was later offered to the control group for ethical reasons. Following the intervention, the experimental group showed significant improvements in total Motivation for Achievement scores and in the "Expectation and Value" and "Belief towards Success" subdimensions (p<0.05). The findings suggest that PPT-based psychoeducation can enhance adolescents' achievement motivation and support interdisciplinary collaboration among psychiatric nurses, school nurses, teachers, and guidance specialists. The study was registered at ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT05316441).
Family stability is integral to individual well-being and social cohesion. Rising divorce rates globally and in Iran highlight the need to examine factors affecting marital health. This study explored the mediating role of emotional empathy in the relationship between marital functioning, adaptability, and alexithymia among 150 incompatible couples referred to divorce centers in Yazd, Iran, in 2023. Results showed significant correlations among marital functioning, empathy, adaptability, and alexithymia. Emotional empathy mediated the link between marital functioning and both adaptability and alexithymia, indicating its protective role against relational discord. These findings emphasize empathy's importance in promoting marital resilience and suggest that targeted interventions enhancing empathy and marital functioning may reduce conflict intensity in high-risk relationships..
Supervision is a compulsory activity where therapists develop through evaluation and support from a senior member of the profession. Supervision has progressed from learning through osmosis to full recognition with requirements for training; however, training focusses on in-person supervision and does not routinely consider telehealth. This qualitative research explored the experiences of 12 supervisors in three disciplines; psychology, counselling and social work using three supervision modalities; in-person, videoconference and telephonic. Three themes emerged about the use of different modes: (1) supervisors' experience of trust in the supervision process (2) supervisors' experience of applying adaptive actions and (3) supervisors' experience of competence and challenges using different modes, with an interconnecting discovery that supervisors exhibit distracted behaviours when using telehealth.
Psychotherapy is understood as a Western healing method, meaning, individuals seem to most benefit from psychotherapy when they have values, beliefs, and morals driven by Westernized principles. In the current research, we undertake the objective of assessing Western components of psychotherapy to assess their relationship with attitudes towards psychotherapy. Western components of psychotherapy were measured as Asian values, collective self-esteem, cultural mistrust, ethnic identity, and European-American values were investigated. Data were collected from 144 university students in India. We find that cultural mistrust revealed a statistically significant negative prediction for positive attitudes for professional help-seeking. Our research is a preliminary study to investigate a variables that encapsulate the Western elements of psychotherapy to inform psychotherapy practices in non-Western contexts.
Little is known about the wellbeing of school counsellors in the Global South. To address this gap, we conducted (1) a quantitative study examining the relationship between counsellors' roles and their wellbeing and (2) a qualitative study investigating counsellors' perceptions of how their roles influence their wellbeing. There was a significant correlation between participants' non counselling roles and their wellbeing. The counsellors saw themselves as having a stronger professional identity and greater work satisfaction when they had influence, leadership roles, and were engaged in advocacy. Professional identity and job satisfaction were diminished by taking on roles that were incongruent with their counselling role. The study has implications for counsellors' wellbeing and the development of school counselling.
This study examined whether counseling expectations moderate the link between relationship insecurity and working alliance. Data from 238 university counseling clients showed that expectations, particularly about counselor directiveness, did moderate this negative association. Managing clients' expectations about counselor expertise can therefore help foster a strong working alliance, even for those with relationship insecurities that typically hinder therapeutic engagement.
Adolescents face multiple risk factors that increase vulnerability to negative outcomes, yet protective factors such as mindfulness, emotion regulation, and resilience help mitigate these challenges. This study examined the relationships among mindful attention awareness, emotion regulation (cognitive reappraisal and expressive suppression), and resilience in 584 Turkish adolescents (50.9% female; Mage = 15.35, SD = 1.16) using a cross-sectional online survey. Results indicated that both cognitive reappraisal and expressive suppression significantly mediated the association between mindfulness and resilience. Findings highlight the importance of awareness and emotional regulation skills in fostering resilience and mental well-being, offering implications for targeted interventions to support adolescent mental health.
This study examined changes in mindfulness and social anxiety among university students diagnosed with social anxiety disorder, as well as the persistence and underlying mechanisms of these changes following Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT). Using an exploratory sequential mixed-methods design, quantitative results were complemented with qualitative insights. From 511 screened students, 30 eligible participants were randomly assigned to experimental and control groups. The experimental group completed an eight-session MBCT programme, including formal and informal mindfulness practices and cognitive therapy components. Quantitative analyses showed significant and sustained improvements in mindfulness and social anxiety. Focus-group findings further highlighted participants' satisfaction with session content, perceived gains, and process-related experiences, demonstrating the programme's overall effectiveness.
Trauma profoundly impacts functioning, shaped by personal and socio-cultural factors. KC, a 24-year-old woman in Delhi, sought therapy for academic stress, interpersonal disturbances, and sexual trauma. Her presenting issues included intense rumination linked to a desire for family financial contribution and difficulty maintaining relationships due to past betrayals and abuse.The therapist used an eclectic, virtual approach integrating Trauma-Informed Practice, Sensorimotor Psychotherapy, Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), and Interpersonal Psychotherapy (IPT). Interventions included somatic techniques for trauma regulation, CBT for stress management and boundary setting, and IPT to enhance relational patterns. This multifaceted, tailored approach addressed KC's biological, emotional, cognitive, and interpersonal needs. KC achieved significant progress, including improved emotional regulation, self-confidence, and healthier interpersonal patterns. This case underscores the potential of personalized, eclectic virtual therapy for complex trauma and resilience-building.
The study aimed to shed light on mental health help-seeking barriers during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic. 1129 Singapore residents were interviewed between March 2020-July 2021. Sociodemographic, help-seeking, depression, and anxiety data were analysed. 17.2% were unwilling to seek help from professionals (i.e., traditional help). 'Can manage by myself' and 'Seek help from friends and family first' were most frequently endorsed reasons. Among them, 43.8% and 16.5% were willing to consider online help and mental health hotlines respectively. Those who were unwilling to seek traditional help were less likely to be aged 50-64 (vs >= 65 years), more likely to have anxiety and were more unwilling to seek hotlines. The study identified target areas for future mental health initiatives.
Traumatic experiences often lead to post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), though not always directly. This study examines a moderated mediation model which hypothesizes resilience to buffer the effect of trauma exposure on PTSD symptoms through maladaptive cognitive emotion regulation (MCER) and anger. Data were collected from 354 university students from South Korea through Life Events Checklist - Korean Version, the Korean version of Impact of Event Scale-R, Cognitive Emotion Regulation Questionnaire, State Anger subscale of the Anger Expression Inventory, and the Korean version of the Connor - Davidson Resilience Scale. The results confirmed MCER and anger as mediators of the trauma - PTSD relationship and resilience as a moderator of only the trauma - anger relationship, offering useful implications for university-based PTSD interventions.
