Michael Rennoldson

Predicting parenting stress in caregivers of children with brain tumours

The purpose of the study was to identify factors that contribute to parenting stress in caregivers of children diagnosed with brain tumours.

Parental bonding and eating disorders: A systematic review

This article systematically reviewed studies of parental bonding in people with eating disorders. MEDLINE, PsychINFO, EMBASE and CINAHL were searched to identify studies that compared parental bonding in people diagnosed with an eating disorder relative to non-clinical controls. Twenty-four studies were identified. Women with eating disorders typically reported lower parental care and higher parental protection compared to non-clinical, but not psychiatric, controls. Interestingly, a modest number of studies found that these relationships were mediated by avoidant problem solving style and several schemas from the Young Schema Questionnaire (YSQ; Schmidt, Joiner, Young, & Telch, 1995). While there are methodological limitations associated with the reviewed studies, they do offer some support for the proposal that difficulties in parent-child relationships predispose women to eating disorders and other psychiatric diagnoses.

Psychological interventions for distress in adults undergoing haematopoietic stem cell transplantation: a systematic review with meta-analysis.

To investigate the characteristics, methodology, quality, and efficacy of psychological interventions for distress in adult patients undergoing haematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT).

Qualitative systematic literature review: the experience of being in seclusion for adults with mental health difficulties

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to conduct a systematic search of the peer-reviewed qualitative literature investigating the lived experience of seclusion for adults with mental health difficulties, to appraise the quality of the existing literature and synthesise findings. Background: seclusion is a controversial intervention for the short-term management of unsafe behaviours in inpatient mental health services. There has been some sporadic interest in service users’ experiences of this. Design/methodology/approach Systematic literature review and meta-synthesis: data sources – databases MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL and PSYCINFO were searched in July 2015; review methods – the Joanna Briggs Institute’s Qualitative Assessment and Review Instrument tools for critical appraisal and data extraction were used to review papers and synthesise findings. Findings A small number of papers were found, which were of mixed quality. Originality/value The existing research is limited in both quantity and quality. Although most participants from the existing research described seclusion as mostly negative with the potential for causing iatrogenic harm, some described more positive experiences, often in the context of compassionate interactions with staff.

“From the same mad planet”: a grounded theory of service users’ accounts of the relationship within professional peer support

Purpose Peer support (PS) workers are being employed despite uncertain evidence for clinical and cost-effectiveness. Psychological theories have been proposed to explain the mechanisms of PS but these lack empirical validation and specificity to professional PS. The purpose of this paper is to develop a substantive interpretive grounded theory of service-users’ experience of professional PS work. Design/methodology/approach Constructivist grounded theory was used throughout. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with ten service-users who had engaged with a professional PS worker. Findings Three overarching themes were constructed. “The process of disclosure” describes how disclosure of mental health difficulties, experiences as a service-user and wider disclosure about life experiences, interests and values facilitate the development of a shared identity with the PS worker. “The product of disclosure” highlights the sense of being understood as a result of the disclosure and marks a deepening of the relationship. “Dual roles” describes the tenuous position of holding both a professional relationship and friendship. Research limitations/implications Future research should seek to refine the theory developed and compare the effects of therapist self-disclosure with that found within PS. There were limitations within the study, including limited diversity within the sample as well as difficulties with recruitment. Originality/value This study connects service-users’ accounts of receiving PS with existing psychological theory to move towards an understanding of the relationship between receivers and providers of professional PS.

A discursive psychology analysis of emotional support for men with colorectal cancer

Recent research into both masculinity and health, and the provision of social support for people with cancer has focused upon the variations that may underlie broad assumptions about masculine health behaviour. The research reported here pursues this interest in variation by addressing the discursive properties of talk about emotional support, by men with colorectal cancer – an understudied group in the social support and cancer literature. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with eight men with colorectal cancer, and the transcripts were analysed using an intensive discursive psychology approach. From this analysis, two contrasting approaches to this group of men’s framing of emotional support in the context of cancer are described. First, talk about cancer was positioned as incompatible with preferred masculine identities. Second, social contact that affirms personal relationships was given value, subject to constraints arising from discourses concerning appropriate emotional expression. These results are discussed with reference to both the extant research literature on masculinity and health, and their clinical implications, particularly the advice on social support given to older male cancer patients, their families and friends.