Levels Of Psychological Adjustment Research Articles

Does fear of terrorism influence psychological adjustment of academic sojourners in Pakistan? Role of state negative affect and emotional support

This study adopted the psychological and emotional perspective of terrorism and the way it influences the psychological adjustment of international students in Pakistan. We investigated the effect of fear of terrorism, state negative affect, and emotional support on students’ psychological distress. Low psychological distress represented higher levels of psychological adjustment. Data was collected using a self-administered questionnaire from 121 internationals students of 18 different countries enrolled in a public university of Lahore city with a mean age of 21.7 years. A two-stage analysis was conducted by variance-based structural equation modeling technique in SMART PLS 3.2 software. Adequate convergent and discriminant validity of the latent constructs were ensured, and no evidence was found for common method bias. The results of structural model revealed that fear of terrorism is a positive and significant predictor of student’s psychological distress, which is fully mediated by state negative affect. Emotional support was negatively related to psychological distress and moderated the relationship between state negative affect and psychological distress. Conditional process modeling using process macro revealed that emotional support also moderated the indirect effect of fear of terrorism on distress mediated by negative affect. A significant contribution of this research is to investigate fear of terrorism as a stressor in international student’s acculturation research. Negative emotional state plays an intermediary role in relating fear with psychological wellbeing of international students while emotional support can be a potent coping resource. Several implications, limitation and future research recommendations are also discussed.

The Impact of Psychological Adjustment on Private University Students’ Academic Achievement: Case Study

The present study examined the impact of psychological adjustment on private university students’ academic achievement. The sample size consisted of 121 university students (42.1% male, and 57.9% female). The results showed that 34% of the students recorded low levels of psychological adjustment, 51 % of the students recorded average levels of psychological adjustment, 15 % of the students recorded high levels of psychological adjustment. The findings also indicated relationship between psychological adjustment and university academic achievement and that psychological adjustment has a significant positive impact on private university students’ academic achievement. The study concludes with suggesting to apply tests that measure students’ psychological adjustment with the specialization in which they wish to continue their university study in before accepting them in any academic specialization.

The Role of Parents in Emerging Adults' Psychological Well-Being: A Person-Oriented Approach.

The purpose of this study was to gain an overview of Spanish emerging adults' family relationships and their link with psychological well-being and psychological distress. The sample comprised 1502 undergraduate students (903 women and 599 men) aged between 18 and 29 (M=20.32 and SD=2.13), recruited from two universities in Spain. A cluster analysis identified three groups of families based on the centrality of five family variables: parental involvement, parental support for autonomy, parental warmth, behavioral control, and psychological control. The three groups or clusters were labeled high-quality family relationships (HQ), intermediate-quality family relationships (IQ), and low-quality family relationships (LQ). Women were overrepresented in the HQ cluster, whereas men were overrepresented in the IQ cluster. Moreover, emerging adults who perceived better family relationships (high levels of parental involvement, parental support for autonomy and parental warmth, and low levels of behavioral and psychological control) were found to have a higher level of psychological adjustment. Thus, our results indicate that family plays a key role in the psychological well-being of emerging adults. The discussion focuses on the implications of this finding for the parent-child relationship, and explores how it extends our knowledge about family relationships during emerging adulthood.

Effects of Aggression on Psychological Adjustment of College Students in District Faisalabad

Major objective of the current study was to find out the relationship between aggression and psychological adjustment among college students in district Faisalabad. Ten colleges (male=5 and female=5) were randomly selected from the population as sample. One thousand students (male=500 and female=500) were approached conveniently. Data were collected using two instruments: Adults Psychological Adjustment Survey (APAS) and Aggressive Behavior Scale (ABS). Descriptive statistics and pearson r were used to analyze the data. Findings indicated above average level of aggression and below average level of psychological adjustment among college students and a significantly positive relationship between aggression and psychological adjustment. As the level of aggression increases, it weakens the psychological adjustment. All the sub factors of aggression are significantly correlated with sub factors of psychological adjustment. It is recommended that during admission process, students’ aggression and psychological adjustment must be considered in addition to academic qualification.

Relations among adults' remembrances of parental acceptance–rejection in childhood, self-reported psychological adjustment, and adult psychopathology

AimsThe aim of the study was to examine relationships among recollections of maternal and paternal acceptance–rejection in childhood and the level of psychological adjustment among adults diagnosed with schizophrenia, social anxiety, and nonclinical control. The study focused primarily on adults with schizophrenia and social anxiety in comparison to nonclinical adults. MethodsFifty-three adults diagnosed with schizophrenia, 51 adults with self-reported social anxiety, and 147 nonclinical controls between the ages of 18 and 62 participated in the study. Data were collected using adult versions of the Parental Acceptance–Rejection Questionnaire for mothers and for fathers, Personality Assessment Questionnaire, Brief Symptom Inventory, Liebowitz Social Anxiety Scale, and the Demographic Information Form. ResultsFindings of analyses showed that participants in the schizophrenia and social anxiety groups remembered having experienced significantly more maternal rejection in childhood than did the nonclinical group. Patient with schizophrenia also reported more recollections of paternal rejection than the nonclinical group. Both clinical groups self-reported more psychological maladjustment than did the nonclinical group. Regression analysis indicated that even though the overall psychological adjustment of adults diagnosed with schizophrenia was predicted by both maternal and paternal acceptance–rejection, psychological adjustment of adults in the social anxiety group was predicted only by maternal (but not paternal) acceptance–rejection. ConclusionThis study provides evidence about the long-lasting associations between adults' recollections of parental acceptance–rejection in childhood and their psychological adjustment in two mental disorders, in which genetic and environmental factors have a different weight.

Sexual Trajectories of Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Adults in the Netherlands.

Studies on sexual trajectories of lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) people generally focus on the first same-sex attraction and sexual experience, and their relation to self-identification and coming out as LGB. Relational and opposite-sex experiences are generally not taken into account. The aim of this study was to provide a more comprehensive overview of LGBs' sexual trajectories and to distinguish subsamples with different trajectories. A sample of same-sex attracted members of an online research panel (N=3054) completed a sexual health questionnaire, including items about the timing of sexual and relational milestones. Results showed that the majority of gay men and lesbian women had same-sex sexual and relational experiences, whereas most bisexual men and women had had experiences with the opposite sex. Among gay men and lesbian women, two trajectories emerged, differing mainly on whether people had been sexually or romantically involved with opposite-sex partners, and on age of first same-sex attraction. Among those who were not exclusively attracted to the same sex, six patterns emerged, which differed especially with regard to the nature and comprehensiveness of their same-sex experiences. Within the exclusively same-sex attracted group, the trajectory with no heterosexual experiences related to higher levels of psychological adjustment. For non-exclusive sexually attracted people, trajectories including experience of same-sex relationships seem to be most beneficial. In conclusion, both relational and opposite-sex experiences proved to be important elements of LGB men and women's sexual trajectories.

Adolescent love and well-being: the role of dating relationships for psychological adjustment

Love has been identified as one of the most important aspects of interpersonal strength. During adolescence, the main social contexts in relation to love are friendships and dating relationships. The aim of this study was to measure the link between romantic relationship experience and personal adjustment, taking into account effects of age and sex, and to analyse the effect of adolescent dating relationship quality on personal adjustment. A total of 3258 Spanish adolescents were surveyed. The results indicated that dating status does not affect adolescent self-esteem, but has a significant effect on internalizing and externalizing behaviours and sexist beliefs. Regarding relationship quality, those adolescents who had a very good-quality relationship reported higher levels of psychological adjustment in terms of the variables measured. Results are discussed according to their utility for positive social development and its links to dating relationship quality during adolescence.

An Investigation of Psychological Adjustment Differences among Chinese College Students: From the Perspectives of Their Gender, Major and Grade

The goal of the study was to examine levels of psychological adjustment among college students in China; 650 college students took part in Adolescents’ Adaptability Scale (AAS). The results indicated that: 1) there was no significant gender difference in levels of psychological adjustment among college students in China; 2) there were apparent differences in majors. Students who specialized in physical art have the strongest levels of adjustment, while students who majored in arts have the weakest levels of adjustment; 3) significant differences were also existed in Grades, sophomores got the highest levels of adjustment, whereas seniors got the weakest levels of adjustment.

Parent psychological adjustment, donor conception and disclosure: a follow-up over 10 years.

What is the relationship between parent psychological adjustment, type of gamete donation (donor insemination, egg donation) and parents' disclosure of their use of donated gametes to their children. Disclosure of donor origins to the child was not always associated with optimal levels of psychological adjustment, especially for fathers in donor insemination families. Cross-sectional analyses have found mothers and fathers who conceived a child using donated sperm or eggs to be psychologically well-adjusted, with few differences emerging between parents in gamete donation families and parents in families in which parents conceived naturally. The relationship between mothers' and fathers' psychological well-being, type of gamete donation (donor insemination, egg donation) and parents' disclosure decisions has not yet been examined. In this follow-up study, data were obtained from mothers and fathers in donor insemination and egg donation families at 5 time points; when the children in the families were aged 1, 2, 3, 7 and 10. In the first phase of the study, 50 donor insemination families and 51 egg donation families with a 1-year-old child participated. By age 10, the study included 34 families with a child conceived by donor insemination and 30 families with a child conceived by egg donation, representing 68 and 58% of the original sample, respectively. Families were recruited through nine fertility clinics in the UK. Standardized questionnaires assessing depression, stress and anxiety were administered to mothers and fathers in donor insemination and egg donation families. Mothers and fathers in both donor insemination and egg donation families were found to be psychologically well-adjusted; for the vast majority of parents' levels of depression, anxiety and parenting stress were found to be within the normal range at all 5 time points. Disclosure of the child's donor origins to the child was not always associated with optimal levels of parental psychological adjustment. For example, disclosure was associated with lower levels of psychological well-being for certain groups in particular (such as fathers in donor insemination families), at certain times (when children are in middle childhood and have a more sophisticated understanding of their donor origins). Owing to small sample sizes, the value of this study lies not in its generalizability, but in its potential to point future research in new directions. Donor insemination and egg donation families are a heterogeneous group, and future research should endeavour to obtain data from fathers as well as mothers. Support and guidance in terms of disclosure and family functioning might be most beneficial for parents (and especially fathers) in donor insemination families, particularly as the child grows older. The more that is known about the process of disclosure over time, from the perspective of the different members of the family, the better supported parents and their children can be. The project described was supported by grant number RO1HD051621 from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not represent the official views of the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development or the National Institutes of Health. The authors have no conflict of interest to declare.

Gender Discrimination in Disabled Adolescents: An Analysis of Psychological Adjustment in a Cosmopolitan City in Pakistan

The research focuses on gender discrimination in the psychological adjustment of adolescents with disabilities growing up in Pakistan. In the light of the literature review, it was assumed that disabled male adolescents would show greater levels of psychological adjustment as compared to disabled female adolescents. The sample population consisted of a total of 100 disabled adolescents experiencing visual, auditory or physical disabilities. The hypothesis was strongly supported by the results (t(98)=2.576, p<.05(.012)) as disabled male adolescents were found to rank higher on levels of psychological adjustment as compared to disabled female adolescents. Gender discrimination hence emerges as a significant issue for disabled adolescents. The research carries implications for clinicians and educationists alike, as well as policymakers; especially with regard to the development of male and female adolescents in the existing cultural milieu in Pakistan.

The influence of ethnic identity and acculturative stress of 1.5 generation Korean immigrant adolescents on their levels of psychological adjustment

본 연구는 한국인 이민 1.5세대 청소년의 민족정체성과 문화적응 스트레스가 심리적 적응(삶의 만족, 불안, 우울, 위기 및 일탈행동)에 어떠한 영향을 미치는 지 살펴보고자 하였다. 연구대상은 만 5세에서 17세 사이에 캐나다에 부모를 따라 이민 온 한국인 이민 1.5세대 청소년 150명으로 현재 나이 만 15세에서 24세 이하 평균 연령은 19.2세였다. 자료수집 기간은 2012년 11월-2013년 1월까지였고, 연구도구는 Diener 등(1985)의 삶의 만족 척도, Bean 등(2007)의 HSCL-37, Phinney(1992)의 민족정체성 척도, Fuertes와 Westbrooks(1996)의 문화적응 스트레스 척도를 사용하였다. 민족정체성과 문화적응 스트레스가 심리적 적응에 미치는 상대적 영향력의 크기를 순서대로 파악하기 위해 위계적 회귀분석을 실시하였다. 연구 결과 문화적응 스트레스가 심리적 적응의 중요한 예측인자인 것으로 나타났다. 구체적으로 한국인 이민 1.5세대 청소년의 삶의 만족에 영향을 미치는 요인은 가족적 요인의 문화적응 스트레스였다. 불안에 영향을 미치는 요인은 가족적 요인과 태도적 요인의 문화적응 스트레스였다. 그 외 우울, 위기 및 일탈행동, HSCL-37 전체 등에 영향을 미치는 요인도 가족적 요인의 문화적응 스트레스인 것으로 예측되었다. 한편 민족정체성은 심리적 적응의 모든 하위요인에 유의한 영향을 미치지 않는 것으로 분석되었다. 본 연구의 결과를 통해 가족적 요인의 문화적응 스트레스가 한국인 이민 1.5세대 청소년의 심리적 적응에 가장 큰 영향을 미치고 있음을 예측해볼 수 있었다. 이러한 결과에 대한 논의와 함께 본 연구의 제한점과 의의가 검토되었다.

Development and predictors of psychological adjustment during the course of community-based rehabilitation of traumatic brain injury: A preliminary study

The aim of the study was to describe the development and predictors of psychological adjustment during community-based traumatic brain injury (TBI) rehabilitation. Forty-two adolescent and adult individuals with TBI (mean age 32 years, 88% male, median post-traumatic amnesia 11 days) participated in a single-group, longitudinal design study. The main measures used were the Reactions to Impairment and Disability Inventory, Adjustment subscale; Sydney Psychosocial Reintegration Scale; Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale; and Self-awareness of Deficits Interview. At rehabilitation start, individuals differed significantly from each other with respect to their level of psychological adjustment. Individual trajectories of psychological adjustment were highly variable. However, for the sample as a whole, psychological adjustment did not change during the course of rehabilitation (multilevel regression models; p > .05). Good psychological adjustment was related to low levels of emotional distress and a small discrepancy between current and aspired functional status. Poor functional status had a more minor impact on psychological adjustment in individuals with poor self-awareness than in individuals with high levels of self-awareness. The results confirm parts of theoretical models of psychological adjustment to acquired brain injury, especially the importance of goal refinement. However, the results need to be treated cautiously, given the limited sample size.

The influence of ethnic identity and acculturative stress of 1.5 generation Korean immigrant adolescents on their levels of psychological adjustment

The influence of ethnic identity and acculturative stress of 1.5 generation Korean immigrant adolescents on their levels of psychological adjustment

Perfis de vinculação, coparentalidade e ajustamento familiar em pais recém-divorciados: diferenças no ajustamento psicológico

O objectivo deste estudo foi identificar, atraves de uma analise de cluster, perfis de regulacao individual-diadica-sistemica em pais recem-divorciados (N=81) com base na vinculacao, coparentalidade e ajustamento familiar. Tres padroes de regulacao foram identificados: regulado-seguro (RS), desregulado-ansioso (DA) e desregulado-evitante (DE). O grupo RS mostrou niveis mais elevados de seguranca na vinculacao, maior qualidade na coparentalidade e no ajustamento familiar que os grupos DA e DE. A coparentalidade e o funcionamento familiar foram as dimensoes que melhor diferenciaram os clusters. Avaliando o ajustamento psicologico dos pais recem-divorciados em funcao dos perfis encontrados, o grupo RS apresentou maiores niveis de ajustamento psicologico do que os restantes dois grupos. Nao foram encontradas diferencas no ajustamento psicologico entre os grupos DA e DE.

Drogodependientes vs. usuarios de salud mental con trastornos de personalidad: su relación con la calidad de vida, la psicopatología en Eje I, el ajuste psicológico y dinámica familiar

The aim of this study was to analyze some variables of great relevance in the treatment of personality disorders such as quality of life, the severity level of psychological adjustment, the concomitant Axis I psychopathology and perception of family dynamics of these patients. The sample is composed of 68 patients with a personality disorder of which 57.4% are drug addicts undergoing treatment in an outpatient drug addiction center and 42.6% are users of a mental health clinic has not addictive disorders. The results showed no significant differences in life quality or severity of psychological adjustment among patients on the basis of drug addiction. The differences appear to be linked to the concomitance of psychopathology on Axis I, because for those who do not have a quality of life higher and better psychological adjustment. This indicates that the presence of Axis I psychopathology, in patients with personality disorders, increases the difficulty associated with treating these patients. In terms of family dynamics has been shown that while the attachment has a negative impact on quality of life of these patients, family resources the better. It seems that the perceived quality of life in patients with personality disorders, drug or mental health consumers, is determined by the concomitant presence of other psychopathology on Axis I. This concomitant should be targeted for therapeutic intervention.

Chinese college students' general and relationship‐specific representations of adult attachment: Variable‐centred and person‐centred analysis

Formerly, researchers often treated adult attachment as a trait‐like construct with consistency across relationship contexts. However, recent studies have shown that people possess multiple relationship‐specific attachment representations, and inter‐correlations among them are only in a small‐to‐medium range. The aim of this study is to test whether these variable‐centred results could be replicated in China and further supplement them with a person‐centred analysis focusing on identifying prototypical patterns of multiple working models across relationships. We administrated measurements of general and four relationship‐specific (mother/father/best friend/romantic partner) working models and indicators of psychological adjustment upon 302 Chinese college students. Results from variable‐centred analysis demonstrated the cross‐relationship variability in working models. Furthermore, global indicators of psychological adjustment were better predicted by general models, while relationship‐specific indicators were better predicted by corresponding relationship‐specific models. These results largely replicate previous Western studies, supporting the existence of multiple attachment representations in China. In person‐centred analysis, a latent profile analysis identified four typical classes of working model profiles: all‐average, all‐secure, romantic‐insecure and peer‐secure. These classes differed not only in the cross‐relationship variability of their working models, but also in their levels of psychological adjustment. These interesting patterns may have theoretical implications and are worthy of further examination.

Psychological Adjustment in Adolescents with Vision Impairment

The present study compared psychological adjustment of 158 adolescents with vision impairment and 158 sighted adolescents with a matched-pair design using the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire. Adolescent self-reports and teacher reports on emotional problems, peer problems, and total difficulties showed higher scores in students with vision impairment than in sighted students. However, the size of between-group differences was small, and adolescents who are blind and their peers with low vision showed similar levels of psychological adjustment. In addition, older students reported more emotional problems than younger students. Furthermore, differences between self-reported emotional problems of students with and without vision impairment were stronger in older participants. In both groups, girls showed more emotional problems and less conduct problems than boys. We conclude that most students with vision impairment are well adjusted but a minority may benefit from psychological interventions.

Parent–child relations and psychological adjustment among high-achieving Chinese and European American adolescents

Chinese American students are often perceived as problem-free high achievers. Recent research, however, suggests that high-achieving Chinese American students can experience elevated levels of stress, especially comparing to their peers from other ethnic groups. In this paper, we examine how family dynamics may influence psychological adjustment among a group of high-achieving adolescents. Drawing on survey data collected on 295 Chinese American and 192 European American 9th graders attending a highly selective magnet school, our findings show that Chinese American adolescents reported significantly lower levels of psychological adjustment (d = −.31), and significantly less family cohesion (d = −.34) and more conflict (d = .56) than their European American peers. Further, the ethnic differences on adjustment disappeared after controlling for perceptions of family cohesion and conflict, indicating that such perceptions may be a key factor in understanding the high academic achievement/low psychological adjustment paradoxical pattern of development among Chinese American adolescents.

Role of identity integration on the relationship between perceived racial discrimination and psychological adjustment of multiracial people.

This study examined relations between perceived racial discrimination, multiracial identity integration (i.e., racial distance and racial conflict), and psychological adjustment (i.e., distress symptoms, positive affect, and negative affect) of 263 multiracial adults, using an online cross-sectional survey design. As hypothesized, higher levels of perceived racial discrimination was related to lower levels of psychological adjustment (i.e., higher distress symptoms and negative affect). Also, higher levels of multiracial identity integration with low racial conflict was related to higher levels of psychological adjustment (i.e., lower distress symptoms and negative affect), whereas higher levels of multiracial identity integration with low racial distance was related to higher levels of psychological adjustment (i.e., lower negative affect). Finally, multiracial identity integration (i.e., lower racial conflict) moderated the relationship between perceived racial discrimination and psychological adjustment (i.e., negative affect) with results suggesting multiracial identity integration related to low racial conflict buffers the negative effects of perceived racial discrimination on psychological adjustment. Findings from this study are discussed in terms of future research on the psychological well-being of multiracial individuals and implications for clinical practice with multiracial adults.

P-1022 - Psychological adjustment of older adults: measuring the impact on aging

Introduction There has been little attention in the research literature on the relationships between psychological adjustment and aging. Objectives This research aims at examining the relationships between older adults' psychological adjustment, and aging. Methods The measures used to in the study were selected to assess the reliability and validity of one new instrument, Adjustment to Aging Schedule (ATAS). Measures were completed using a variety of culturally appropriate methods, including mail-outs, self-administration and interviews. For the purposes of this study, the Health Survey Questionnaire (SF-6D), one measure of cognitive functioning - the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) and demographics, were included. All variables had fewer than 2% missing values and there complete data were available for 212 older adults (mean age 86.2, SD = 5.4, (range 74–101)) from eight different nationalities. Exploratory factor analyses were run for data reduction and for exploring theoretical structure. Controlling for age, gender and country of origin, we assessed the level of psychological adjustment of elderly people, and its impact on aging. Results Psychological adjustment appears to be a catalyst to attitudinal markers of maturity and internal development which in turn impact aging, across cultures. All estimates were statistically significant (p Conclusions This cross-cultural study illuminates links among psychological adjustment and aging in older age, warranting further study across cultures among frailer populations over time. Recommendations for future research on older adults' psychological adjustment and clinical interventions are also presented.