Coping Training Research Articles

Efficacy of cognitive behavioral therapy for menopausal symptoms and quality of life in Korean perimenopausal women: A pilot randomized controlled trial

ObjectivesTherapeutic interventions are crucial for perimenopausal women, given the challenging physical and psychological symptoms they face. This study focused on the development and verification of the efficacy of a cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) protocol designed specifically for Korean perimenopausal women. Study designA CBT protocol for perimenopausal women was newly developed based on theory and evidence. Forty menopausal women were randomly assigned to either the CBT group (n = 19) or treatment-as-usual (TAU) group (n = 21). Participants in the CBT group underwent 60-min weekly sessions for eight weeks. The TAU group received standard care from gynecologists. Main outcome measuresAt baseline and follow-up, participants completed the Menopausal Rating Scale (MRS), World Health Organization Quality of Life Brief Version (WHOQOL-BREF), Patient Health Questionnaire-9, Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7), Patient Health Questionnaire-15 (PHQ-15), Menopause Emotional Symptom Questionnaire (MESQ), and Subjective Memory Complaints Questionnaire. ResultsThe CBT group showed significant changes in their MRS (F = 4.18, p = .048), WHOQOL-BREF (7.60, 0.009), GAD-7 (4.61, 0.038), PHQ-15 (5.49, 0.025), and MESQ scores (7.19, 0.011) compared to the TAU group. In the CBT group, changes in GAD-7 scores were correlated with PHQ-15 (ρ = 0.57, p < .05), MESQ (0.57, < 0.05), and WHOQOL-BREF scores (−0.53, < 0.05). ConclusionCBT prevents the worsening of menopausal and emotional symptoms, anxiety, and quality of life. CBT may have had a therapeutic effect through the following mechanisms: managing anxiety by changing perceptions of menopause through education and training for coping with various menopausal symptoms and improving self-efficacy in symptom management. Clinical trial registration numberKCT0007517.

Acceptance versus distraction as coping strategies for acute pain and pain-induced alcohol urge and approach inclinations.

Experimental research has identified pain as a determinant of alcohol urge mediated via negative affect. This study aimed to test acceptance coping (vs. distraction) as a moderator of this relationship. Using a randomized 2 × 2 between-subjects repeated-measures experimental design, pain-free hazardous drinkers (N = 135) were randomly assigned to receive acceptance or distraction coping training. They were asked to use the strategy while receiving an acutely painful or nonpainful stimulus. It was hypothesized that the effects of pain on negative affect would be weaker among those who received acceptance training, resulting in lower ratings on alcohol urge and approach inclinations. There were no moderating effects of Pain Condition × Coping Condition on negative affect. Given this, the moderator was removed and a simple mediation model was tested. Results showed significant indirect effects for alcohol urge through negative affect. Results suggested no differences between acceptance and distraction coping in ameliorating acute pain effects on negative affect and alcohol-related outcomes. The mediation model was partially replicated. Findings provide information that may accelerate the design of interventions to curtail drinking for pain coping by better understanding the utility of acceptance training and the pain-alcohol relation. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

CONTENT AND FORMS OF SOCIAL WORK WITH THE FAMILIES OF MILITARY SERVANTS

The review article is devoted to highlighting the results of scientific research on finding out the content and forms of social work with the families of military personnel, because it is this category of people today that faces many difficulties and therefore needs special social, psychological and pedagogical support. Social work with the families of military personnel is an important area of social work, as it is aimed at support and assistance in solving problems that arise in the families of military personnel as a result of their service. As a result of the search, it was found out that the main problems and needs of families of military personnel determine the content of social work with this category of clients and include: post-traumatic stress syndrome; economic difficulties; problems in family relationships; medical and psychological assistance; access to education and professional training, etc. The key goal of social work with family members of military personnel is comprehensive support of their well-being, providing access to various services and resources aimed at improving the quality of life. Each family of a military man has its own unique needs, so approaches to the use of various forms of social work should be individual. The main forms of support for the mental and social well-being of family members of military personnel include psychological support (various types of psychological therapy, counseling, training in coping and self-regulation, development of communication skills, psychological work with traumatic experiences) and social support (provision of information and resources, social services , support programs, legal advice, creation of communities for communication). The perspective of further research on the topic of the article is a further theoretical and empirical study of the achievements of domestic and foreign scientists and the substantiation of the scientific foundations of social work with the families of those military servicemen who took part in the armed military conflict.

The problem of loneliness and coping with stress in the context of life situations experienced by war refugees (based on the research conducted in Rivne, Ukraine)

The article presents the findings of a thorough investigation of the problem of loneliness and coping with stress in the context of life situations experienced by war refugees, based on an empirical study of 304 internally displaced persons (IDPs) in the city of Rivne. The study has shown that IDPs are currently the most vulnerable category of the population due to the following factors: these people have suffered a deterioration of their life quality in terms of the financial and social status which they enjoyed before displacement; they are emotionally unstable and psychologically exhausted as a result of the traumatic war-related events they experienced. Stress, anxiety, fear, and uncertainty have become typical reactions characteristic of displaced persons of any age. The psycho-emotional state of war refugees causes a feeling of alienation, severe stress and loneliness — phenomena that are the result of a number of factors associated with war as one of the most serious crisis situations. As part of the Science for Society II program, the Minister of Education and Science of Poland launched the Faces of Stress and Loneliness in the Context of Military Migration project (November 2023 – March 2024), which envisages conducting a comparative study with the participation of groups of refugees currently living in the cities of Legnica and Krakow (Poland), Drohobych and Rivne (Ukraine). The purpose of the study is to gain an insight into the feeling of loneliness experienced by refugees and internally displaced persons and the coping strategies they use, to determine the level of awareness of global loneliness and its three aspects (emotional, social, existential), to determine the characteristic features of coping strategies used by the respondents in various stressful situations, as well as their long-term and far-reaching social consequences for the further psychosocial functioning of a person in various areas of life. The objectives of the project include determining the possibility of coping with stress by refugees in order to adapt to new circumstances and to continue living an active life under the conditions of war and in the period of transition to peace. A theoretical analysis has been conducted of the phenomenon of loneliness and coping strategies as defined and described in the humanities; the methodology of the research has been substantiated, and the characteristic features of the respondents have been analysed. Based on a statistical analysis of possible loneliness factors and responses to stress, the relationship between socio-demographic and socio-economic variables and stress coping styles has been examined; the link between the feeling of loneliness and stress coping styles has been studied; the hypotheses that the existential face will be predominant among the other faces of loneliness and that war refugees are characterized by differentiated stress-coping styles have been verified. It has been proven that the existential loneliness rate is significantly higher than that of social and emotional loneliness, that is, the dominant face of loneliness is the existential one. As regards the positive statistically significant correlation, it has been found primarily between active and productive/semi-productive coping strategies: the intensity of the task-oriented style differs significantly from that of the emotion-focused and the avoidance-oriented styles. The research data show that the task-oriented style prevails among refugees. The obtained findings necessitated the development of a loneliness and stress coping training program, consisting of 10 sessions, and its implementation in working with war refugees in order to teach them constructive strategies and techniques for coping with stress and the feeling of loneliness under the conditions of reintegration.

Vitality and Coping With Rules: A Qualitative Research Study Among Primary School Teachers

This interview-based study investigates how primary school teachers cope with rules to maintain their vitality. It is important to understand how teachers can keep their vitality high as they play an important role in the development of future generations. This study categorized teachers into four groups based on their experience of rules (few or many) and their vitality (high or low): (a) resilient, (b) affected, (c) untroubled, and (d) decoupled. Then the coping strategies these groups used to cope with rules to maintain vitality were studied. It seems that the resilient group of teachers is able to maintain vitality by using different coping styles. Consequently, if teachers became more aware of the coping strategies they could adopt, for example, through coping training, this could help them to maintain their vitality.

Operating room technologists' knowledge, attitude, and preparedness for disaster management of a Zahedan: Implications for nursing disaster education.

During the occurrence of accidents and disasters, the role of hospitals and healthcare centers is very sensitive and they are among the first units that with their quick, optimal, and timely healthcare services provision can reduce mortality and increase the number of survivors. For this purpose, this study was conducted to investigate the knowledge, attitude, and level of preparedness of operating room technologists of educational hospitals of Zahedan University of Medical Sciences in relation to disasters. The present research is a cross-sectional descriptive study that was conducted with the participation of 60 operating room technologists of Zahedan educational hospitals from January 2022 to December 2022. The sampling was performed by the census method. The data collection tool was a demographic characteristic and a researcher-made questionnaire for the assessment of attitude, knowledge, and preparation against the occurrences of accidents and disasters was completed during 2 months by referring the researcher to the hospitals. For the data analysis, descriptive statistics and analytical statistical tests were used. The data were analyzed using IBM SPSS Statistics 26. Corp., Armonk, NY, USA. The significance level was considered P < 0.05. The results showed that the average scores of attitude, preparation, and knowledge are 9.3 ± 6.1, 75.8 ± 9.9, and 5.7 ± 4.1, respectively, and the majority of operating room technologists have a favorable level towards attitude and have relatively favorable level towards preparation and knowledge during the occurrence of disasters. The average score of knowledge and attitude of operating room technologists with work history had a significant difference from each other (P < 0.05). technologists with less work experience have more knowledge and a more positive attitudedisaster. Measuring the level of knowledge, attitude, and preparedness of surgical technologists to deal with disasters as one of the ways of receiving feedback from employee training can be a useful reflection of the success of training programs in creating the necessary capabilities in various fields of disaster preparedness, and it can be a powerful tool for increasing individual and group dynamics and organizing individual learning in coping training. Furthermore, disaster education should be incorporated into the operating room curriculum, which would play a seminal role in preparing them for future disaster management. It is also suggested to investigate the impact of intelligent training on the level of knowledge, attitude, and preparation of operating room personnel regarding disasters and obstacles in this regard in future research.

사회복지종사자의 안전을 위한 보호체계 구축사업의 성과 및 발전방안 연구

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the achievements of the “Establishment of a Protective System for the Safety of Social Welfare Practitioners” project, which has been supported by the Community Chest of Korea from 2019 to 2022, and to propose future development strategies for the project. To do this, a mixed research method was employed. Quantitative research utilized data from 1,235 individuals recorded in the performance management records of the project. Data analysis was conducted using SPSS 29.0, including descriptive statistics and cross-tabulation. Changes in pre-post traumatic growth among social welfare practitioners were analyzed through paired-sample t-tests. Qualitative research involved conducting focus group interviews (FGIs) with 9 project managers to analyze difficulties encountered during project implementation, problem-solving efforts for project execution, project outcomes, and strategies for project sustainability. Data collected through FGIs were analyzed using thematic analysis and N-vivo 9. The results of the quantitative study are as follows: First, among the types of job-related trauma, the proportion of subjects who experienced job-related violence was the highest at 53.2%, followed by 19.8% for other types, 18.5% for vicarious trauma, and 8.6% for loss (death experience). Second, cross-analysis results showed statistically significant differences in gender, age, type of affiliated institution, and type of job-related trauma. Third, as a result of providing various recovery support to social workers who have experienced occupational trauma, positive changes in “post-traumatic growth” were observed when measuring pre- and post-traumatic growth. This change was statistically significant. The qualitative analysis results are as follows : First, there was an improvement in awareness and consciousness among social workers regarding safety and human rights, which had previously not received much attention. There was an increased sense of personal, organizational, and societal responsibility for problem-solving. Second, the framework of protection and safety systems has been established, including the enactment and revision of related regulations and the creation of a safe physical environment in social welfare agencies. Third, the recovery and capacity of social workers have been strengthened. As a development strategy to ensure the sustainability of this project, several tasks have been identified. These include the development of various recovery support services, such as the establishment of safety education and coping training programs, providing continuous education on safety and human rights for social welfare practitioners, fostering relevant professionals, adapting to changes in organizational and community environments, and establishing relevant legal and institutional foundations.

The Impact of Dyadic Coping Intervention on Mental Health Problem and Quality of Life in Female Cancer Patients

Background: The mental health and quality of life in female cancer patients are of paramount importance, as a cancer diagnosis can significantly impact every aspect of a woman’s well-being. The need for interventions like dyadic coping, is crucial to address the complex emotional and psychosocial challenges these women face. Objective: The study investigated the effects of a dyadic coping intervention on the mental health and quality of life of female cancer patients. Methods: A quasi-experimental study was conducted with female cancer patients from a hospital in Riau Province, Indonesia, selected via purposive sampling. The intervention group consisted of 17 patients who underwent five dyadic coping training sessions based on the systemic transactional model, supplemented by follow-up phone calls from the researchers. An equal number of participants were assigned to the control group. The study analysed the data using descriptive statistics and independent t-tests, applying the DASS-21 scale for depression, anxiety, and stress, and the FACT-G scale for quality of life, both of which are validated measures. Results: The findings revealed that the dyadic coping intervention significantly reduced stress (p = 0.013), depression (p = 0.047), and anxiety (p &lt; 0.001), and markedly improved quality of life (p = 0.017). Conclusion: These results suggest that dyadic coping interventions can effectively alleviate mental health issues and enhance the quality of life among female cancer patients, offering a viable alternative to traditional nursing interventions.

Training in Palliative Care and its Relationship to Coping and Attitude to Death

Abstract: The nursing staff is in permanent contact with death throughout their working life. In addition, attention in the process of dying, to family members and to the patient, is considered part of the nursing role. Patient care at the end of life generates in the nursing professionals feelings and an attitude to death, as well as a stage of coping with the fact of losing a patient, that are very different among professionals. Objective: To evaluate how a good training in palliative care and teaching techniques of coping with death to nurses, can help these health professionals to cope better with the death of patients and to have a healthier attitude to the patient dying process. Material and Methods: this bibliographical review was achieved through the search of scientific evidence in the Pubmed, google academic, LILACs and Cochrane Library databases of articles in the last five years and the critical reading of them. Results: The number of articles that relate training in palliative care and coping with death is insufficient to establish scientific evidence. However, articles found that the attitude and feelings to death by nurses are often negative or indifferent.Furthermore, the nurses participating in these studies state that the teaching of coping techniques and training in care palliatives could improve these results. Conclusion: Training in palliative care for nurses during their university period as well as training throughout their professional career should be greater, so that nurses face better the death of patients and have an attitude that favors better care at the end of life.

Factors Affecting Disaster or Emergency Coping Skills in People with Intellectual Disabilities.

This study aimed to investigate the disaster or emergency coping skills of people with intellectual disabilities and the factors that affect these skills. The panel survey on the lives of people with disabilities from the 3rd dataset (2020) of the Korea Development Institute for the Disabled was used for this analysis. Response data from 275 people with intellectual disabilities aged 10 years or older were analyzed. Differences between disaster or emergency coping skill levels and sub-questions of skills, according to the general characteristics of people with intellectual disabilities, were identified, as well as factors affecting the level of disaster or emergency coping skills. The results show that the coping skills level was low; among the sub-questions, the use of fire extinguishers and awareness of the location of fire extinguishers or emergency bells in the event of a disaster or emergency were also low. Factors affecting the level of coping skills were found to be the level of education and experience in comprehensive disaster coping training. The results of this study suggest that training and education on disaster or emergency coping skills for people with intellectual disabilities are necessary and that programs should be developed for this purpose.

Implementation of a Brief Evidence-Based Intraoperative Coping Curriculum

Recent research has called for further resident training in coping with errors and adverse events in the operating room. To the best of our knowledge, there currently exists no evidence-based curriculum or training on this topic. Synthesizing three prior studies on how experienced surgeons react to errors and adverse events, we developed the STOPS framework for handling surgical errors and adverse events (Stop, Talk to your team, Obtain help, Plan, Succeed). This material was presented to residents in two teaching sessions. In this paper, we describe the presentation of, and the uniformly positive resident reaction to, the STOPS framework: an empirically based psychological tool for surgeons who experience operative errors or adverse events.

The effectiveness of grief coping training in a group way in improving the experience of grief caused by covid-19 in women of Yazd city

Introduction: The high prevalence of the Covid-19 disease and its rapid infection, the imposition of restrictions, and the high mortality had many negative effects on the psychological and social aspects of bereaved families. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of group counseling to deal with grief caused by Covid-19 regarding mournful women in Yazd.&#x0D; Methods: This was a quasi-experimental study with a pretest-posttest design and a control group. The statistical population consisted of women with grief experience over losing their husbands due to Covid-19 in 2021. Through available sampling method, 30 participants were selected and randomly divided into experimental and control groups. Data was collected through Grief Experience Questionnaire (GEQ) by Barrett and Scott (1998). Moreover, the package of confrontation with mourning, a lived experience of mourning women in Yazd (Kalantari et al., 2021), was performed on the experimental group for ten 90-minute sessions. Covariance with repeated measurements and SPSS version 26 software were used in data analysis.&#x0D; Results: The research findings showed that the average score of grief experience in the experimental group was significantly lower than control group in posttest droup (p&lt;0.001). Group training and intervention program could improve mourning experience in the experimental group compared to the control group in bereaved women.&#x0D; Conclusion: Educational intervention based on lived experience of mourning women in Yazd can be used as one of the effective methods to improve mourning experience.

Coping and Stress Management Training as an Effort to Improve Stress Adaption Ability

Each interacts with the environment and gives a different response, namely a positive response and even a negative response because he considers that changing conditions is a pressure that causes stress and encourages individuals to respond to coping. The research objective was to determine the effectiveness of coping and stress management training in increasing the perception of stress in health levels before and after the intervention was given. The design used one group pre-post design. The population was 30 health cadres, and the sampling technique used total sampling. Before the activity, the respondents were given a questionnaire to determine stress levels, followed by training. The respondents applied stress management techniques within one month, after which a post-test was carried out. The instrument used the Perceived Stress Scale. The results showed that the mean stress adaptation of respondents before the intervention was 20.73, and the mean stress adaptation after the intervention was 7.83. Further analysis using a paired t-test showed a significant difference in stress adaptation between stress adaptations to health cadres before and after the intervention (p-value=0.001; α

Managing effective labor market entry: proactive coping and self-employment intention among Polish small business owners

PurposeSelf-employment is considered one of the responses to precarious employment, particularly among those who lost jobs during an economic crisis. Although starting a new business is widely available, operating new ventures remains challenging. This article aims to explore the premises of self-employment success, namely self-employment intention and proactive coping as crucial predictors of further performance.Design/methodology/approachThe authors recruited participants among initially unemployed individuals who participated in the entrepreneurial program aimed at creating self-employment. Since entrepreneurs are expected to have specific personal characteristics important for performance, the authors assessed proactive coping as the key factor for self-employment intention.FindingsThe results depicted proactive coping as crucial in performing own ventures in the long run, which suggests that self-employment intention may change over time.Practical implicationsProactive coping is particularly appropriate for self-employed at any stage of the entrepreneurial process because it maintains the intention to perform own business. Thus, the findings underline the need for proactive coping training for entrepreneurs, particularly those previously unemployed.Originality/valueAs the self-employment intention may differ in time, the importance of being proactive in operating small businesses increases.

Everybody Copes: An Interprofessional Workshop on Stress, Coping, and Helping Primary Care Patients Manage Medical Stressors.

The value of psychological principles has become apparent in medical settings, especially with the rise of patient-centered care. We aimed to provide a curriculum informing medical providers about the theoretical basis and clinical utility of the social-cognitive model of stress and coping. This workshop was delivered to an interprofessional team of faculty and trainees. Our initial pedagogical approach was to relate the concepts of cognitive appraisals and coping strategies to participants' own stress responses. We then used didactic presentation and small-group activities to explore ways to promote adaptive coping with patients to improve health outcomes. Learners participated in a mindfulness exercise, conceptualized coping strategies given a hypothetical case scenario, and, in small groups, role-played a patient encounter to construct an effective coping repertoire for the patient. Participants completed a prework self-assessment and workshop evaluation form. The 2.5-hour workshop had 48 participants from five professions (medicine, education, physician assistant, pharmacology, psychology). We received 35 evaluations (73% response rate). Learners reported increased real-world skills (M = 8.0 out of 10) and feeling better prepared for working in interprofessional settings (M = 7.6 out of 10). Qualitative feedback suggested that participants recognized the importance of individual differences in coping with stress and felt they could categorize strategies into emotion- or problem-focused coping. This workshop provided participants with basic knowledge about the social-cognitive model of stress and coping and allowed them to practice newly learned skills in a role-play as an interprofessional medical care team.

Psychological impacts of the COVID-19 on health care providers.

Psychological distress, functional impairment, reduced quality of life, and subjective well-being were the most common negative psychological effects during the COVID-19 outbreak. The present study was to investigate the impact of job stress, hospital resources, and fear of infection on job burnout of medical staff in Iran during the Covid-19 pandemic. In this cross-sectional study, 223 hospital staff from several public and private hospitals in Tehran and Mazandaran provinces, selected through convenience sampling. The questionnaire included the validated "Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI)", "job stress scale (Parker and DeCotiis, 1983)", and the questions about "hospital resources", and "fear of infection" developed by the researcher wereused to collect data. Data were analyzed by correlation and regression methods using SPSS software. The results revealed that there was a significant difference in the scores on the burnout scale, in the dimension of emotional exhaustion, but the differences were not significant in the dimensions of depersonalization and self-accomplishment. Also, job stress and fear of infection significantly correlated with job burnout in the dimensions of emotional exhaustion and personal-accomplishment. However, the correlation between the adequacy of hospital resources and job burnout in these two dimensions was not significant. None of the three variables of the study showed a significant correlation with the dimension of depersonalization. It is essential to consider the package of psychological interventions which, primarily includes finding the sources of stress to resolve them through stress management programs, based on education and training in stress coping and management strategies.

Effect of short-term restricted environment stimulation on perceived stress

stress relief techniques, including the Chamber restricted environment stimulation technique (REST), are becoming increasingly popular in Slovakia. Given this, it is necessary to investigate this method in an experimental setting. According to Urbiš (2012), dark therapy could be a suitable method for people living under constant stress, tension, and difficult living conditions and can also be used as training in coping with stressful situations. The focus of this study was to assess the relationship between a short‑term Chamber REST and perceived stress. Our research sample consisted of 42 participants who participated in a three‑hour stay in the laboratory of REST at Comenius University. Participants were psychology students. The selection of the research sample and length of stay was mainly based on the COVID-19 pandemic virus. The average age of the participants was 25 years (SD = 5.63). In terms of gender, 32 women (76.19%) and 10 men (23.81%) participated in the research. 21 respondents (50%) stated that they had some previous experience (not a one‑time, but repeated) with relaxation techniques. 20 participants (47.62%) had no prior experience. We measured experienced stress using the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS, Cohen et al., 1983) two days before the stay and one week after, and stress and arousal using The Stress Arousal Checklist (SACL, Mackay et al., 1978) before and after stay. The results show that the difference in perceived stress decreased significantly right after short‑term Chamber REST (p = 0.001; W = 556.00) and even one week after the stay (p = 0,016; W=0,932). There were no significant changes in the SDNN parameter before staying in the dark (M = 65.46, SD = 53.79) and after (M = 73.57, SD = 31.14) Wilk’s Lambda = .939, F (1.30) = 1.947, p = .173. No significant changes are also in the rMSSD index before (M = 62.45, SD = 66,42) and after (M = 70.57, SD = 43.80) Wilk’s Lambda = .961, F (1,30) = 1.214, p =.790; neither in HF before (M = 3 307.12, SD = 7 524.92) and after (M = 2 384.77, SD = 2 934.18) Wilk’s Lambda =.995, F (1,30) =.140, p =.711. There was not a significant effect of gender, Wilk’s Lambda =.991, F (1,30) =.283, p =.599 or previous experiences, Wilk’s Lambda = 1.000, F (1,30) =.001, p =.980 on SDNN. We also did not observe a significant effect of gender, Wilk’s Lambda =.996, F (1,30) =.133, p =.717 or previous experiences, Wilk’s Lambda = 1.000, F (1,30) = .014, p = .907 on rMSSD. The same results are in the HF index, with no significant effects of gender, Wilk’s Lambda = 0.985, F (1,30) = .469, p = .499 and previous experiences with relaxation methods Wilk’s Lambda = 1.000, F (1,30) = .000, p = .994. According to our expectations, staying in the dark should reduce the level of stress experienced. The results showed the statistical significance of the difference in the stress using PSS and SACL questionnaires scores before and after dark stay. Participants scored lower after their stay in the dark than before, which is in line with our expectations accord‑ ing to other authors (Malůš et al., 2016; Suedfeld &amp; Borrie, 1999) and highlights the potential of Chamber REST to reduce the level of experienced stress. Based on HRV analysis, we conclude that there was a change in measured HRV indexes, however, the changes were not significant. We observed an increase in heart rate variability (SDNN, RMSSD) indicating an increase in parasympathetic tone, compatible with elevated relaxation. Gender factors and previous experience with relaxation methods have no effect. In conclusion, we found the difference in perceived stress decreased significantly right after short‑term Chamber REST and one week after the stay. An increase in heart rate variability (SDNN, RMSSD) after the stay indicated an increase in parasympathetic tone, however, the changes were not significant. There was no effect of factors of gender and previous experience with relaxation methods.

In the face of change: Which coping strategies predict better psychosocial outcomes in face transplant recipients?

Face transplantation aims to improve patients' quality of life and psychosocial functioning in patients with a disfiguring injury. With 40 cases worldwide, little is known about coping strategies predicting resilient outcomes. Six patients followed in Boston, completed the Brief COPE (Carver, 1997) along with validated measures of depression, self-esteem, and quality of life - every 3 months during the first year post-transplant and every 6 months thereafter, up to 36 months post-transplant. Due to sample size and distribution of the data, nonparametric tests were used to characterize the relation of coping strategies with psychosocial outcomes. As expected, active coping strategies were associated with better mental health pre-transplant, while avoidant coping strategies were associated with poorer mental health. Patients using support-based strategies reported better mental health at baseline. Post-transplant, the pattern reversed such that avoidant strategies appeared protective, when looking at mental health trajectories over 18 months. Importantly, trends identified during the first 18 months matched the trajectories of all patients with existing data up to 36 months post-transplant, for all outcomes measured. Different coping strategies support optimal outcomes in the pre-versus post-transplant phases. Pre-transplant data may better inform interventions supporting mental health of transplant candidates than predict post-transplant behavior. Early post-transplant data seems to provide promising insight in long term psychosocial outcomes. Our data stresses the need for pre-transplant assessment of coping and post-transplant coping training. Research aiming to optimize post-transplant psychosocial outcomes should consider coping as a promising target for intervention.

Relationships between self-efficacy, coping style and quality of work-life among nursing managers in China: A cross-sectional study.

To investigate the quality of work-life among nursing managers in China and analyse the relationships between self-efficacy, coping style and quality of work-life. Self-efficacy, coping-style and quality of work-life play significant roles in the stability of nursing teams, the quality of clinical care and patient safety. Although some factors influencing quality of work-life have been identified, there is no large-scale study of the relationships among self-efficacy, coping style and quality of work-life of nursing managers. Strategies to strengthen the quality of work-life of nursing managers should be developed by exploring the relationships between the three variables. A nationwide cross-sectional study was conducted. A total of 1498 nursing managers from 51 tertiary general hospitals in 20 provinces in China were selected for the study using multistage stratified proportional sampling. Registered full-time nursing managers with more than 1 year of management experience were eligible for the study. The participants completed online questionnaires to assess their self-efficacy, coping style and work-related quality of life. The data were analysed using descriptive analysis, Pearson's correlation, hierarchical multiple linear regression and structural equation modelling to verify the relationships between variables. The quality of work-life score for the nursing managers surveyed was 3.74 ± 0.56 out of a possible 5. Self-efficacy was positively correlated with quality of work-life (β = .484, P < .01) over all demographic variables. Positive coping was also positively associated with quality of work-life (β = .404, P < .01). Self-efficacy and positive coping explained 22.7% and 14.2% of the variance in the quality of work-life, respectively. Structural equation modelling indicated that self-efficacy positively and directly predicted the quality of work-life (β = .395, P < .001), and indirectly affected quality of work-life via positive coping (β = .186, P < .001), but not via negative coping (β = .005, P > .05). The final model could explain 44% of the variance in the quality of work-life. Self-efficacy was positively correlated with quality of work-life among Chinese nursing managers, and positive coping partially mediated this relationship. The results suggest that self-efficacy and positive coping are pivotal facilitators for improving the quality of work-life and need to be taken into account in measures to improve the quality of work-life of nursing managers. Hospital administrators should recognize the importance of nursing managers' work-life quality to promote both the stability of nursing teams and the quality of clinical care and safety provided. They should help nursing managers foster self-efficacy and active coping abilities through incentive measures and provide positive coping training courses to enhance their quality of work-life.

Gamification-based intervention for enhancing team effectiveness and coping flexibility: Randomized controlled trial.

This study aimed to evaluate a newly developed gamification-based intervention of serious play training (SPT). A randomized controlled trial was conducted to assess the efficacy of the new intervention program in comparison with a widely adopted cognitive-behavioral training (CBT) program. Real-life work teams were recruited to enhance the ecological validity of outcome evaluation. The participants comprised 250 Chinese working adults (68% men; median age = 25 years, range: 18–40) who took part voluntarily. They were randomly assigned to the SPT, CBT, and waitlist conditions. For outcome evaluation, team effectiveness was the primary outcome, whereas coping flexibility was the secondary outcome. For explanation of outcome changes, group cohesion and discriminative thinking were tested as the hypothesized learning mechanisms. The results revealed that the SPT group alone reported greater team effectiveness over time, with an increase in group cohesion found to explain the improvement. Both the SPT and CBT groups reported greater coping flexibility over time, with discriminative thinking found to account for the beneficial changes. These findings provide initial evidence indicating the efficacy of utilizing the gamification approach in corporate training for team-building and personal coping.