Zoe Walter

Social isolation schema responds to positive social experiences: Longitudinal evidence from vulnerable populations

OBJECTIVES Maladaptive schemas are stable cognitive working models of the world, learnt early in life, that interfere with effective functioning and underlie chronic mental illness. A major challenge for cognitive therapy has been how to modify schemas when they are so enduring and stable. We propose that because maladaptive schemas are formed through social experiences (typically abusive or neglectful ones), they might best be corrected through positive social experiences that directly challenge the schema. DESIGN Two longitudinal studies were conducted, one with patients undergoing group cognitive-behavioural therapy (N = 92) and one with homeless individuals residing in temporary accommodation (N = 76). METHOD In each study, social isolation schema was measured at Time 1 and again at Time 2 following a group-based social experience (group psychotherapy or temporary residence at a community organization). A positive experience of group life was operationalized as social identification with the therapy group in Study 1 or the community organization in Study 2. RESULTS In both studies, social identification led to a significant reduction in social isolation schema. Study 2 indicated that these effects were fully mediated by the formation of ties to new social groups, such that social identification scaffolded the development of new group memberships, which in turn decreased the endorsement of maladaptive schema. CONCLUSIONS Social identification facilitates the correction of socially situated schema such as social isolation. PRACTITIONER POINTS Maladaptive schemas are modifiable in short-term therapy or even in community settings. The experience of being accepted and belonging to a social group can challenge a persons deep-seated belief that they are socially isolated. Positive social experiences may act as scaffolding to help socially isolated individuals build new social group memberships. Less positively, social isolation schema can also act as a feedback loop, preventing people from identifying with groups, resulting in a negative social experience that may further embed the schema. Further research is needed to determine how clinicians might facilitate social identification.

Breaking the cycle of homelessness: Housing stability and social support as predictors of long-term well-being

Abstract It is increasingly acknowledged that homelessness involves more than just being without a house. Indeed, more recent definitions of what constitutes a home highlight the role of social connections and support (including, for example, access to space to engage in social relations). This study examined the role of secure housing and social support as predictors of psychological well-being of individuals following a period of homelessness. Using linear mixed models for longitudinal data, we investigated how changes in social support predicted changes in individuals’ self-reported personal well-being, life satisfaction and mood following a period of homelessness (n = 119), controlling for housing status, alcohol use and employment status. The results showed that remaining homeless predicted poorer personal well-being, life satisfaction and mood. In addition, changes in social support predicted well-being over and above housing stability. Implications of findings for policy and practice in the homeless sector are discussed.

Correction: Having a Lot of a Good Thing: Multiple Important Group Memberships as a Source of Self-Esteem.

This is the final version of the article. Available from Public Library of Science via the DOI in this record.

Discrimination and well-being amongst the homeless: the role of multiple group membership

The homeless are a vulnerable population in many respects. Those experiencing homelessness not only experience personal and economic hardship they also frequently face discrimination and exclusion because of their housing status. Although past research has shown that identifying with multiple groups can buffer against the negative consequences of discrimination on well-being, it remains to be seen whether such strategies protect well-being of people who are homeless. We investigate this issue in a longitudinal study of 119 individuals who were homeless. The results showed that perceived group-based discrimination at T1 was associated with fewer group memberships, and lower subsequent well-being at T2. There was no relationship between personal discrimination at T1 on multiple group memberships at T2. The findings suggest that the experience of group-based discrimination may hinder connecting with groups in the broader social world — groups that could potentially protect the individual against the negative impact of homelessness and discrimination.

The Florence Nightingale Effect: Organizational Identification Explains the Peculiar Link Between Others’ Suffering and Workplace Functioning in the Homelessness Sector

Frontline employees in the helping professions often perform their duties against a difficult backdrop, including a complex client base and ongoing themes of crisis, suffering, and distress. These factors combine to create an environment in which workers are vulnerable to workplace stress and burnout. The present study tested two models to understand how frontline workers in the homelessness sector deal with the suffering of their clients. First, we examined whether relationships between suffering and workplace functioning (job satisfaction and burnout) would be mediated by organizational identification. Second, we examined whether emotional distance from clients (i.e., infrahumanization, measured as reduced attribution of secondary emotions) would predict improved workplace functioning (less burnout and greater job satisfaction), particularly when client contact is high. The study involved a mixed-methods design comprising interview (N = 26) and cross-sectional survey data (N = 60) with a sample of frontline staff working in the homelessness sector. Participants were asked to rate the level of client suffering and attribute emotions in a hypothetical client task, and to complete questionnaire measures of burnout, job satisfaction, and organizational identification. We found no relationships between secondary emotion attribution and burnout or satisfaction. Instead, we found that perceiving higher client suffering was linked with higher job satisfaction and lower burnout. Mediation analyses revealed a mediating role for identification, such that recognizing suffering predicted greater identification with the organization, which fully mediated the relationship between suffering and job satisfaction, and also between suffering and burnout. Qualitative analysis of interview data also resonated with this conceptualization. We introduce this novel finding as the ‘Florence Nightingale effect’. With this sample drawn from the homelessness sector, we provide preliminary evidence for the proposition that recognizing others’ suffering may serve to increase job satisfaction and reduce burnout – by galvanizing organizational identification.