Loneliness is experienced by nearly everyone, although its frequency and intensity vary widely. Existential loneliness may derive from the universal experience of separation from the mother in leaving the womb; it is an intrinsic and organic reality of each life. The other kind of loneliness comes from self-rejection and self-alienation from…

Argues that kids do not go wrong or fall into despair for no good reason. Maintains that people are inculturated to certain areas of social blindness and denial, and that the function of all good literature is to break through that to unmask and show inner realities. (SR)

In family counseling, the therapist must take into account the developmental level and contextual framework of the family. Within the family, anger can occur over both intrapersonal and interpersonal issues. The therapist must determine the cause for the anger, how it is manifest, and what it represents. Some possible causes for anger within the…

Information from a workshop on how to help preschool teachers discuss death with young children is presented. Limitations of young children's preoperational thought processes are noted, including children's confusion about the irreversibility of death and the loss of a sense of trust in their environment. Children have different ways of dealing…

It has been estimated that as many as 75% of individuals treated for substance abuse relapse within 90 days after completion of treatment. Studies of relapse have typically defined the problem as a return to the specific substance for which the individual was originally treated. Because multiple substance appears to be common, this study examined…

Research has shown that siblings can experience either negative or positive mental health outcomes as a result of having a brother or sister with disabilities. When maladjustment occurs, it is frequently attributed to the stress of excessive helping. This research-based paper proposes that siblings of children with disabilities, perceiving…

The paper examines the effects of stress on children and considers ways in which teachers can help them cope. Three major sources of stress are identified: (1) normal developmental stress, such as pressure for academic success; (2) endemic social stress, resulting from such social trends as rising divorce rates and the general erosion of the…

Religious minorities, as well as ethnic and racial minorities, present specific clinical and treatment concerns. Counselors of Hasidic and Orthodox Jews should be aware of the special characteristics of these populations which separate them from other subcultures and subgroups, and which may play an important part in the psychotherapeutic process.…

Much of the research on bereavement and its consequences fails to account for social network factors. A sample of widows participated in a comprehensive national study to determine factors that enhanced or lessened their psychological well-being shortly after the death of their husbands, and over time. Two groups responded, those in the Crisis…

People exposed to stressful experiences should be less negatively affected if they receive higher rather than lower levels of social support. This proposition was tested by investigating the "stress buffering" role of social support in a way that allowed comparison between conceptually different measures related to the construct of…

This study was undertaken to determine the effects of different ways of coping on caregivers' physical health and symptoms of depression and anxiety. Sixty persons living with and caring for a spouse with Alzheimer's disease (n=58) or multi-infarct dementia (n=2) were interviewed and evaluated by a series of instruments. Independent variables…

The paper reviews the interaction between a young child and the school environment in the development of emotional and behavior problems. Research on empathy development, the impact of the teacher-child relationship, and effects on self concept of social relationships with peers are considered. The origin and achievements of the Child and Family…

High teacher attrition in rural Alaska is abetted by stress induced by the culturally and environmentally differing milieus of the arctic and sub-arctic. Severe climatic conditions curtail traditional activities, and confined isolated settings place strain on personal relationships and heighten irritability, anxiety, and anger, often leading to…

This study examined the effects of divorce and custody arrangements on Taiwanese children's emotional adjustment and gender role development 2 years post-divorce. The sample consisted of 90 children, 30 in father custody, 30 in mother custody, and 30 in intact families. Teachers, blind to study purposes and well-acquainted with the children, rated…