abstracts / zusammenfassungen - European Journal of Mental Health

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European Journal of Mental Health
Individual, Family, Community and Society
VOLUME 9, NUMBER 1, JUNE 2014
Editors-in-Chief / Leitende Herausgeber
Prof. Norbert Mette, Universität Dortmund (Germany)
Prof. Teodóra Tomcsányi, Semmelweis Egyetem, Budapest (Hungary)
Editorial Board / Beratende Herausgeber
Prof. Jerzy Aleksandrowicz, Uniwersytetu Jagiellońskiego w Krakowie (Poland)
Prof. Jacob A. Belzen, Universiteit van Amsterdam (Netherlands)
Prof. Jozef Corveleyn, Katholieke Universiteit Leuven (Belgium)
Dr. habil. Beáta Dávid, Semmelweis Egyetem, Budapest (Hungary)
Prof. Valerie DeMarinis, Uppsala universitet (Sweden)
Dr. Rita Fóris-Ferenczi, Universitatea Babeş-Bolyai, Cluj-Napoca (Rumania)
Prof. Skaidrīte Gūtmane, Latvijas Kristīgā akadēmija, Jūrmala (Latvia)
Prof. Katalin Horváth-Szabó, Semmelweis Egyetem, Budapest (Hungary)
Dr. Gábor Ittzés, Semmelweis Egyetem, Budapest (Hungary)
Dr. habil. Pavlína Janošová, Akademie věd ČR, Praha (Czech Republic)
Prof. Martin Jäggle, Universität Wien (Austria)
Prof. Paavo Kettunen, Joensuun yliopisto (Finland)
Dir. Em. Michael Manderscheid, Fortbildungs-Akademie des DCV, Freiburg i.Br. (Germany)
Dr. habil. Ilona Pataky, Pázmány Péter Katolikus Egyetem, Piliscsaba (Hungary)
Dr. Regina Polak, Universität Wien (Austria)
Dr. habil. Igor Škodáček, Univerzita Komenského v Bratislave (Slovakia)
Prof. László Tamás Szabó, Debreceni Egyetem (Hungary)
Dr. habil. Péter Török, Semmelweis Egyetem, Budapest (Hungary)
Prof. András Vargha, Károli Gáspár Református Egyetem, Budapest (Hungary)
Prof. Andreas Wittrahm, Caritasverband für das Bistum Aachen (Germany)
Prof. Siniša Zrinščak, Sveučilište u Zagrebu (Croatia)
INSTITUTE OF MENTAL HEALTH
Faculty of Health and Public Services
Semmelweis University, Budapest
Advisory Board / Wissenschaftlicher Beirat
Prof. István Bitter, Semmelweis Egyetem, Budapest (Hungary)
Dr. Artur Filipiak, Uniwersytet im. Adama Mickiewicza w Poznaniu (Poland)
Dr. Ede Frecska, Debreceni Egyetem (Hungary)
Dr. Gergely Rosta, Westfälische Wilhelms-Universität, Münster (Germany)
Dr. Gyöngyvér Salavecz, Semmelweis Egyetem, Budapest (Hungary)
Árpád Sebestyén, BM OKF Krízisintervenciós Csoport, Budapest (Hungary)
Prof. Stjepan Staničić, Sveučilište u Rijeci, Rijeka (Croatia)
Judith Teszáry, Stockholm (Sweden)
Dr. Michael Utsch, Evangelische Zentralstelle für Weltanschauungsfragen, Berlin (Germany)
Manuscript preparation and logistics
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Phone: (+ 36 20) 770 0252
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Printing and binding
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Phone: (+36 52) 452 099
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E-mail: [email protected]
Frontcover: The view of Delphoi (sanctuary, theater, and stadium)
Titelblatt: Sicht auf Delphoi (Tempel, Theater und Stadion)
CONTENTS / INHALT
STUDIES / STUDIEN
Research Papers / Wissenschaftliche Arbeiten
Hessel J. Zondag & Marinus H.F. van Uden: ‘My Special Prayer’:
On Self, God, and Prayer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Ferenc Köteles & Péter Simor: Modern Health Worries, Somatosensory Amplification,
Health Anxiety and Well-Being: A Cross-Sectional Study . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .20
Bence Takács & Zoltán Kmetty: Sport as a ‘Tool’ of Socialisation:
Correlations between Civil Organisation Activity and Sporting Activity
in the 15–18 Age Cohort. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Helene Ybrandt: Ten-Year Trends in Self-Reported Family and Psychological Problems
among Swedish Adolescents. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
Siamak Khodarahimi, Haydar Deghani & Mohammadhadi Nikpourian:
Mental Health and Coping Styles of Rural Residents Affected by Drinking Water Shortage
in Fars Province: An Ecopsychological Perspective. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68
Short Communication / Kurzmitteilung
Željko Burcar: The Role of the Principal in Croatian Education:
Manager, Leader or Administrator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87
BOOK REVIEWS / REZENSIONEN
Robert J. Biel: Zwischen Woher und Wohin der heutigen Pastoral
(J. Först & H.-G. Schöttler, Hrsg. (2012)
Einführung in die Theologie der Pastoral). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99
Wieslaw Przygoda: Wer befreit mich von meiner Schuld?
(K.E. Müller (2012) Schuld und Sühne) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
ABSTRACTS / ZUSAMMENFASSUNGEN
(Croatian, Czech, English, German, Hungarian, Polish,
Rumanian, Russian, and Slovakian Abstracts /
Kroatische, Tschechische, Englische, Deutsche, Ungarische, Polnische,
Rumänische, Russische und Slowakische Zusammenfassungen)
Apstrakti (109), Abstrakty (112), Abstracts (115), Zusammenfassungen (118), Összefoglalók
(121), Abstrakty (124), Abstracte (127), Резюме (130), Abstrakty (134)
Contributors to This Issue / Autoren dieses Heftes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137
STUDIES / STUDIEN
European Journal of Mental Health 9 (2014) 3–19
DOI: 10.5708/EJMH.9.2014.1.1
Hessel J. Zondag* & Marinus H.F. van Uden
‘MY SPECIAL PRAYER’
On Self, God, and Prayer
(Received: 3 October 2012; accepted: 24 April 2013)
In this contribution we will demonstrate the impact of narcissism – an important personality trait in individualistic societies – on religious behaviour. Present-day Western culture is generally characterised
as being expressive individualistic. A dominant trait in this pattern is the tendency of people to ascribe
divine (godlike) characteristics to themselves. Psychologically speaking, we are dealing with narcissism. The various varieties in the spectrum of narcissism show that these attempts to attribute divine
characteristics to the self do not always succeed. These individuals fantasise about becoming godlike,
but their self-image is too fragile to enable these attempts to be successful. The success of this narcissistic aspiration has effects on religious activities, like praying. Based on earlier empirical research and
a case study we show how self-deification, narcissism and prayer are related. Those who succeed in
becoming godlike pray in a different manner than those who fail in this effort. The former address their
prayers to themselves or an anonymous higher power, the latter address their prayers to a personal God.
Keywords: individualisation, self, overt and covert narcissism, prayer, narcissism
„My Special Prayer“: Über das Selbst, Gott und das Gebet: In der Studie wird dargelegt, wie sich
Narzissmus, eines der wichtigen Persönlichkeitsmerkmale in individualistischen Gesellschaften, auf
das religiöse Verhalten auswirkt. Die heutige westliche Kultur gilt gemeinhin als von expressivem
Individualismus geprägt. Dieser zeichnet sich vor allem dadurch aus, dass die Menschen dazu neigen,
sich selbst göttliche Charaktereigenschaften zuzuschreiben. In der Psychologie wird dies als Narzissmus bezeichnet. Die Vielfalt von Varianten innerhalb des Spektrums des Narzissmus zeigt, dass die
Versuche, dem Ich göttliche Charaktereigenschaften zuzuschreiben, nicht immer erfolgreich sind. Die
Betroffenen träumen davon, Gott gleich zu werden, ihr Selbstbild ist aber viel zu fragil, als dass diese
Versuche auch zum Erfolg führen könnten. Der Erfolg oder Misserfolg der narzisstischen Bestrebungen hat auch Auswirkungen auf religiöse Aktivitäten wie z.B. das Beten. Auf der Grundlage früherer
empirischer Forschungsarbeiten und einer Fallstudie zeigen wir, welche Zusammenhänge zwischen
Selbstvergötterung, Narzissmus und Beten bestehen. Diejenigen, die sich erfolgreich selbst vergöttlichen, beten anders als die, die daran scheitern. Erstere richten ihr Gebet an sich selbst oder an eine
namenlose höhere Macht, Letztere richten ihr Gebet an einen persönlichen Gott.
Schlüsselbegriffe: Individualisierung, Selbst, offener oder verschleierter Narzissmus, Beten,
Narzissmus
*
orresponding author: Hessel J. Zondag, Faculty of Humanities, Tilburg University, P.O. Box 90153, 5000
C
LE Tilburg, Netherlands; [email protected]
ISSN 1788-4934 © 2014 Semmelweis University Institute of Mental Health, Budapest
4
H.J. ZONDAG & M.H.F. VAN UDEN
1. Individualisation
Present-day Western culture is generally characterised as being strongly individualistic (Bellah et al. 1985). Individualism is the belief in the intrinsic dignity of man. It
entails that anything that stands in the way of people’s right to think, judge and decide
for themselves is morally condemned and sometimes even experienced as sacrilege
(Bellah et al. 1985). In practice, this basic idea works out in many ways. Four of
these variants are important, and they are known as biblical, republican, utilitarian
and expressive individualism. In biblical individualism, the central element is the immediate bond between God and man. Republican individualism is about people taking
care of their own public government and the public interest. Utilitarian individualism
is about looking after one’s own material interests. Finally, expressive individualism
stresses the existence of a unique feeling core, the self, which has to be expressed if
one is to realise oneself and lead a meaningful life. It is this latter form of individualism that dominates our Western world today and that determines the climate surrounding the religious and the sacred (Bellah et al. 1985; Dijn 2006; Taylor 2002).
This is why it is this form that we would like to work out in more detail.
The view of the individual as a person possessing a self that needs to be developed and expressed is the result of a gradual development. For the greater part of the
Middle Ages, the self did not really matter. The central element in existence was the
Christian hereafter and any emphasis on the self was frowned upon. This self was associated with selfishness, weakness and sin, all of which were far removed from the
‘true’ divine principles of Christian morality. In this period, the self was minimised.
Even as late as 1680, it is referred to in the Oxford English Dictionary as an ‘antiChrist’ and an ‘anti-God’ (Baumeister 1991). And yet, in the same 17th century we
can already observe a changing attitude toward the self. ‘Suddenly’, the language
turned out to be enriched with words like ‘self-love’, ‘self-knowledge’ and ‘self-confidence’. These words are evidence to the fact that the self has gained in importance
and that inner stirrings and the self are no longer looked upon with suspicion. With
the Romantic Age we enter the next phase: it is here that creativity, passions and feelings, everything that the self experiences, take centre stage. Typical examples can be
found in poetry, as in that of the American poet Walt Whitman (1819–1892). The first
edition of his 1855 collection Leaves of Grass starts with the poem ‘Song of Myself’,
the first sentence of which is: ‘I celebrate myself’ (Whitman 1982). Not that far removed from this are the Dutch poet Willem Kloos’s lines, written in 1894: ‘I am a
god in my innermost thoughts, sitting on a throne in my innermost soul’ (p.5).1 In art,
Kloos was looking for what he called the supremely individualistic expression of the
supremely individualistic emotion. The emotional aspects of life demand expression
and it is increasingly in this expression that the meaning of life is experienced. This
turns the here-and-now into the place where ‘real’ life is taking place.
1
ur translation. In the Dutch original: ‘Ik ben een God in het diepst van mijn gedachten, en zit in ’t binnenst
O
van mijn ziel ten troon.’
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
‘MY SPECIAL PRAYER’: ON SELF, GOD, AND PRAYER
5
At the start of the 21st century, the self has become the cornerstone of society.
That which at the end of the 19th century was still restricted to a literary elite has now
become a lifestyle. A nice illustration of this can be found in a survey carried out by
the Synovate Interviews NSS research bureau, commissioned by the Dutch quality
newspaper Trouw (Velde 2008). One of the questions the 2276 Dutch people taking
part in the survey were asked was if they suspected there was ‘a god deep inside of
you’, a question that would seem to be directly inspired by Kloos’s famous lines.
Almost 20% of them, mostly highly educated respondents, answered with an unreserved ‘yes’, and 40% answered they sometimes felt that. In short, some 60% of the
Dutch participants agreed to a greater or lesser extent.
Today, the central question of our existence is: ‘Who am I?’ (Baumeister
1991) The first and foremost thing to do is to find oneself, to find out who one is and
who one wants to be. The meaning of other things in life depends on the answers formulated with regard to oneself. In expressive individualism, people face the task of
building a life for themselves, without having recourse to previously defined views
on what makes life worthwhile. Everyone is expected to sail by their own compass
and to construct such views themselves. Important values in this form of individualism are: 1. autonomy, 2. being unique and different from others, 3. developing oneself, and 4. expressing one’s emotions (Zondag 2009a). It is this last value that this
form of individualism derives its name from: expressive individualism.
This concentration on the self is accompanied by a strong suspicion of trad
itional religion, education, marriage, fixed role patterns, family, school, politics, etc.
In short, it is characterised by a strong mistrust of institutions (Aupers 2004). These
institutions are looked upon as obstructing the development and the expression of
the self. It is only in the self, existing in a kind of social and cultural vacuum, that
fulfilment in life can be found.
Now the way of the self and concentration on the inner man is an ancient and
tested way of getting to God, also in traditional Christianity. Augustine already
pointed out that people can get to know God through self-awareness. Knowledge of
God and knowledge of oneself go hand in hand (Armstrong 1993).
ut once the human individual is considered sacred in itself, the journey ‘inward’ is no longer
B
a journey ‘upward’. There is no more ‘up there’! God, the divine, higher things, or whatever
else one might like to call it, can now only be found ‘inside’ and no longer ‘out there’.
(Aupers 2004, 23)
The emphasis on and deification of the self has been expressed in a wide variety
of terms by observers of our culture. Aupers (2004) refers to it as the ‘sacralisation
of the self’, Elchardus and Lauwers (2000) call it ‘self-religion’, Dekker (2004)
calls it ‘ego-religion’ and Van Saane, in an interview, uses the term ‘self-spirituality’
(Velde 2008). The common element in all these authors’ references is man attributing to himself characteristics that in other times and other places were restricted to
the gods. The self is deified. Deifying oneself means one is out to maximise oneself,
while traditional religions, by contrast, stress the minimalisation of the self.
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
6
2. Narcissism and the self
The last few centuries have thus witnessed the emergence of an ever stronger concentration on the self. Psychologically, this concentration on the self is referred to
as narcissism. The broadest and most concise description of narcissism is: a strong
psychological interest in oneself (Westen 1990). This is an interest that sets little
store by the desires of others; is characterised by a strong need for admiration and
recognition; harbours fantasies about itself as being strong and almighty (American
Psychiatric Association 2000). The narcissistic project is about a boundless involvement with the self, the objective being to arrive at a strong, not to say an excessive
appreciation of the self. Increasing and maintaining self-appreciation is the most
important task a narcissist sets himself. Whether or not this is always successful is a
different matter, which is something we will get to shortly.
When these traits are abundant, narcissists are not pleasant people to be around.
However, narcissism is not necessarily pathological. What we are discussing here is
what might be called ‘everyday’ narcissism. Pathological narcissism is a personality
disorder, whereby narcissistic behaviour is accompanied by manipulative and antisocial behaviour. In ‘everyday’ narcissism, these latter characteristics are absent.
This contribution focuses solely on the commonplace variant.
In the past few decades, narcissism has become an increasingly important personal characteristic. A telling statistic in this respect is that in 1950 twelve percent
of American teenagers felt they were important, while at the end of the eighties
this percentage had risen to 80 percent. The scores on the Narcissistic Personality
Inventory (NPI), the most important instrument for measuring narcissism in the
English-language area, between 1979 – the year the NPI was first introduced – and
2006 went up significantly by as much as 30% (Twenge 2006). Those close to posing a narcissistic danger in 1979 now took up an inconspicuous position somewhere
in the middle of the scale. Trends like these can be spotted not only in the United
States but also in the Netherlands (Brink 2001; Derksen 2007).
Narcissism is a multi-dimensional phenomenon. An important distinction is
that between ‘overt’ and ‘covert’ narcissism (Wink 1991). The way those in whom
overt narcissism is dominant experience themselves is determined by the effect they
have on others. They demand a lot of attention and want to be known and appreciated by others. They look upon themselves as being influential, leading personal
ities, big and important, and flaunt these qualities, whether true or imagined, openly,
unhindered by modesty. To others they may seem interested and concerned, even if
they do not really care, which is often the case. They hide any feelings of vulnerability and smallness, from themselves as well as from others. Overt narcissists generally feel good. They are optimistic and self-confident, they are hardly prey to depressive moods and experience life as meaningful (Hickman et al. 1996; Rathvon &
Holstrom 1996; Rose 2002; Wink 1991; Zondag 2005).
Those in whom covert narcissism is dominant experience themselves through
the acts of others; they feel subjected to them. They experience themselves as in
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
7
ferior, uncertain, inhibited and shy, sensitive to the least bit of criticism or anything
remotely resembling it and are quick to think that random remarks of others are
about them. They are often so taken up by this that they fail to pay attention to what
others are feeling. At the same time, they long for admiration, power and esteem.
They hide these feelings carefully and secretly cherish them. Those in whom covert
narcissism is dominant tend to feel anxious and depressed; they are pessimistic, have
little self-esteem, and often suffer from feelings of meaninglessness (Hickman et al.
1996; Rathvon & Holstrom 1996; Rose 2002; Wink 1991; Zondag 2005).
These differences between overt and covert narcissism should not conceal,
however, that in both cases there is a dependence of the self on others. In covert narcissism, this is obvious: those characterised by it feel immediately subjected to the
judgment of others. However, those characterised by overt narcissism also depend
on others to position themselves and be somebody. Yet the two forms of dependence
are not the same. The difference between overt and covert dependence is probably
best described as one of different asymmetry. In overt dependence, the self rules
over the other; in covert dependence the other rules over the self. In addition, both
forms of narcissism share the characteristic that one’s personal needs dominate those
of others and that fantasies about one’s own grandeur play a dominant role. Wink
formulates this quite succinctly: ‘Narcissistic fantasies of power and grandeur can
equally well lurk behind a bombastic and exhibitionistic facade as one of shyness,
vulnerability and depletion’ (Wink 1996, 166).
In all cases, one’s personal needs prevail over those of others. In both cases
also, the person in question faces a mental dilemma. For the covert narcissist, the
dilemma is that he fantasises about grandeur and fails to realise this (whether it be in
reality or in his imagination). He dreams of being God and fails at it. For the overt
narcissist, the mental dilemma is that he deems himself great while at the same time
being dependent on the admiration of others. If one is as great or divine as the overt
narcissist considers himself to be, one should have no need of others. One should be
enough unto oneself.
At this point it may be useful to return briefly to the relationship between expressive individualism and narcissism. What is the connection beetween the two?
Expressive individualism relates to the views regarding oneself and society. It can
be described as a system of norms and values. Narcissism is a psychological condition closely connected with this (Capps 1993). Narcissism could be termed the
psychological correlate of expressive individualism. Expressive individualism is
characterised by a strongly normative momentum. One has to be autonomous and
unique, develop oneself and express one’s emotions (Sunier 2004). In both variants
of narcissism, this ideal is shared and one judges oneself on the extent to which this
has been achieved. In both cases, the ideal of expressive individualism is one strived
for and it is normative for the way one experiences the self. Somebody with a decisively overt attitude manages – for himself at least – to realise this ideal. His or her
life is characterised by involvement, fullness and success; that of the covert narcissist by failure, emptiness and listlessness. Overt narcissists experience lust for life,
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
8
covert narcissists lose the will to live. In overt narcissism the project of deification
succeeds; in the case of covert narcissism it fails (Zondag 2009b).
3. Self and religion
As we mentioned earlier, expressive individualism and, by the same token, narcissism is often supposed to be accompanied by indifference towards institutions, trad
itions and religion (Aupers 2004; Elchardus & Heyvaert 1991). Narcissists are
assumed not to believe in God, to have an aversion to any kind of church affiliation,
and not to make use of religion to cope with the problems encountered in life. In
short, a negative relation is supposed to exist between religion and narcissism. Those
who deify themselves or entertain fantasies about it have no need of other gods.
However, this line of reasoning may not be entirely tenable.
As it happens, narcissism and religiosity turn out not to be mutually exclusive
at all. A variety of researchers have concluded that people with a strongly narcissistic
attitude may very well take a positive attitude to religion. The investigations we are
referring to here are concerned with extrinsic religiosity. This is a form of religiosity
whereby the functionality and the use of religion are the most important elements
for the persons concerned (Watson et al. 1987; Watson et al. 1990). (One should
note that the range of these investigations is limited, since narcissism being indicated
using the NPI and this instrument only measures overt narcissism.) This means that
on the basis of these investigations, nothing can be said about the relation between
covert narcissism and religion. Religion first and foremost serves to make their lives
better: to provide support in times of trouble, to provide security by providing a place
in the universe, a place in the community through affiliation with a particular church,
etc. (Allport 1960). People with a strongly narcissistic attitude use religion to make
their lives more comfortable.
Another clue that religion and narcissism are not mutually exclusive was provided by some of our own research (Zondag & Uden 2010). (In this investigation,
the Dutch measuring instrument ‘Nederlandse Narcisme Schaal’ was used. This allows the user to map both overt and covert narcissism.) It showed that both people
with a strongly overt and a strongly covert narcissistic attitude employ ‘religious
coping’ strategies to solve their problems. Like all coping strategies, religious coping strategies are meant to regain self-esteem and the feeling of being in control of
one’s life (Pargament 1990). These are goals that every person finds important, but
particularly those who are characterised by a strongly narcissistic attitude (Morf &
Rhodewalt 2001). It turns out that people with a covert narcissistic attitude used a
variety of forms of religious coping. They put their trust in a personal, actively intervening God who takes responsibility for solving their problems. But in addition to
this, they would also trust in an impersonal, almost abstract and non-acting (divine)
providence. We characterised this attitude as receptive (Uden et al. 2004). One way
or another, things would mysteriously work out all right. Those with a decidedly
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
9
overt narcissistic attitude trusted only this providence, opening themselves up to any
solutions. God did not play a role in this.
We are not talking about a large number of investigations here, but we do see a
pattern emerging. People with a narcissistic attitude do not so much reject religion as
they adapt it to their own needs. Research showing that people with few or no narcissistic traits are more intrinsically religiously oriented also points in this direction
(Watson et al. 1984, 1989). In an intrinsic orientation, one is oriented toward God,
and belief as the ultimate goal, and the objective is not to make one’s life more comfortable, as is the case with extrinsic orientation (Allport 1960). Those who do not
have a strongly narcissistic attitude are less likely to use religion for their own good.
Although one can also reason in the reverse direction: intrinsic religiosity curbing a
possibly strongly narcissistic attitude. Narcissism or the deification of the self provides a clue as to how one deals with the sacred and the divine outside oneself.
Expressive individualism and narcissism, and religion are not mutually exclusive, as
a number of researchers that we have referred to before had suggested. Religion and
the sacred are ultimately imagined and experienced in a form compatible with one’s
own life project.
4. Prayer
It is this particular thought that we would like to explore further. We would like to do
this focusing on the theme of prayer. The reason we have chosen this theme is that
praying is the most common religious act. The meaning of prayer in people’s personal lives can hardly be overestimated (Hood et al. 2009). There is an infinite variety
of events that prompt people to pray, and prayer is not restricted to any time or place.
Even in a culture dominated by expressive individualism and narcissism people still
pray on a massive scale. No fewer than 63 percent of the Dutch population say they
pray occasionally. Of these, 80 percent pray for solutions to problems and to become
aware of themselves (Bernts et al. 2007). Some 30 percent of the people who pray
do so a number of times a day; 25 percent pray once a day; 19 percent once a week;
10 percent once a month, and 16 percent pray a few times a year. There are hardly
any differences in this respect between older and younger Dutch people. The young
still pray; some 61 percent say they pray occasionally (Campiche 1997). One of the
explanations for this is that it is a ritual that can easily be carried out, its execution
not being dependent on time or place. Praying is a religious act that links up well
with the preference for doing things one’s own way. People can pray anywhere they
like (at the dining table, in a church, on the beach, in bed); whenever they like (in the
morning, in the afternoon, in the evening, at night); in any form they like (formulaic
prayer, personally composed prayer); and whichever way they like (kneeling down,
standing up, walking slowly, lying down). Many young people pray at night, at home
in their beds (Janssen et al. 2000).
Before we go into the ways people with different kinds of narcissistic attitudes
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
10
pray, we will first discuss the question what prayer is. In this, we will also go into the
various forms of prayer. Research on prayer should not merely be concerned with
the question whether or how often people pray. It should also investigate the ways
people pray. After all, there are a number of different styles of praying that can be
distinguished (Ladd & McIntosh 2008).
Praying is a ritual act consisting of a situation or event that induced it, or a
motive for engaging in it (a problem, for instance), an act that comprises the actual
prayer, a direction (God, for instance, a higher power, oneself) and a desired effect
linked directly to that which induced the person to pray (for instance, the solution to
a problem) (Bänziger 2007; Bänziger et al. 2008). These elements are common
to all varieties of prayer, and may be emphasised to a greater or lesser extent in concrete prayers. It is on the basis of this emphasis that we can distinguish four forms of
prayer: petitionary prayers, religious prayers, meditative prayers and psychological
prayers (Janssen et al. 2000; Bänziger 2007).
In petitionary prayers, it is the effect that is central. A concrete and material
problem prompts the person praying to direct their prayer to a personal God, asking
Him for a solution to that problem. This problem may concern the person themselves
(if they are sick, for instance) or someone else (if someone else is sick, for instance).
The desired effect links up directly with the question (either themselves or the other
person getting well again) – the desired effect and the question thus mirror each
other. This variety of prayer is a form of primary control. It is a form of control aimed
at a concrete and material change in one’s living conditions.
The most important element of a religious prayer is its direction. It is directed
to God. In religious prayer, people seek to make contact with a personal God, for
instance to thank Him or to ask Him for forgiveness. The core element of this prayer
is to confirm the belief in this God (Finney & Malony 1985). The objective is to
deepen one’s faith and to strengthen one’s bond with God. More so than the other
forms of prayer, religious prayer takes place in a church or other religious environment. Besides this, it is often accompanied by the bodily posture so closely associated with prayer, i.e. kneeling down.
The characterising element of meditative prayer is the act, which is cognitive
in nature. This form of prayer is predominantly about reflection, contemplation,
meditation, focusing one’s full attention on one’s own life and one’s existence
as a human being. The person withdraws into himself and thus hopes to become
a better man. He longs for self-awareness, insight and inner peace. In meditative
prayer, he directs himself to a higher power, often also to himself, rather than to a
concrete personal God. Of all forms of prayer, meditative prayer is least bound to
a particular place or time.
In psychological prayer, finally, the central element is that which prompts one
to pray in the first place. These are often problems that life presents: needs, griefs and
sorrows. Engrossed by these problems, the person praying directs himself to a higher
power, looking first and foremost for support and for someone to pour out one’s heart
to. Psychological prayer is not so much aimed at getting an immediate solution to the
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
11
problem; rather it is searching for a way to deal with life’s problems and to manage
to get through life as best one can. This is an important difference between psychological prayers and petitionary prayers, the latter being aimed at a concrete solution
to the problem, to be offered by a personal God. Psychological prayer is a form of
secondary control. This is a form of control where the problem remains, but the
person changes. He is hoping the prayer will enable him to cope with the problem.
Psychological prayer often takes place in bed at night (Janssen et al. 2000).
5. Self, God and prayer
In their research on the relation between prayer and human acting Siôn and Francis
(2009) distinguish three trends. In the first trend the subjective effects of prayer are
central. Research on the relation between prayer and happiness in life is an example
(Robbins et al. 2010). The second trend deals with the objective effects of prayer.
The classic research of Galton (1872) into the relation of prayer and the duration
of life of members from the English Royal House is an example. Do they live longer
when people pray for their health? (Which proved not to be the case by the way.)
The third trend in research finally deals with the insights that we can gain into the
religion, spirituality and life of ordinary people from studying their prayer contents.
As a typical example Siôn and Francis (2009) point at the research of Janssen and
colleagues (2000) into various types of prayer. The research reported in this contribution is in line with Janssen and colleagues (2000) and as such situated in this third
trend in the research on prayer.
So far, we have distinguished a number of ways in which people can pray and
we have subdivided narcissism into two variants. How exactly are these related? Do
covert narcissists pray more often than overt narcissists, and do they prefer different
types of prayer? Or is it overt narcissists that pray more often? Or does it not make
a difference, perhaps?
We answer these questions in two ways: we first provide answers on the basis
of the outcomes of an investigation that was carried out, and subsequently we
produce answers on the basis of a case study. The investigation took place among
99 students of the Radboud University in Nijmegen (for extensive information on
this investigation, we refer to Zondag & Uden 2011). The case was taken from
an investigation into the role of religion in the mourning process after the death of
a spouse (Uden 1988).
5.1. Research
We will first discuss the results of an investigation held among students of the
Nijmegen Radboud University to see if there is a relation between narcissism and
the frequency of prayer. It turns out that no such relation can be established: overtly
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
12
narcissistic persons pray just as often, or if you like, just as little as covert narcissists.
Thus, being successful or failing at self-deification bears no relation to the frequency
with which narcissistic people pray. In other words, the narcissist theme does not
cause one to either pray more or less. The next question is whether narcissism, in
either its overt or its covert form, might cause one to pray differently. In other words,
is there a relation between overt and covert narcissism on the one hand and the four
types of prayer that we have distinguished on the other? Does one’s narcissistic attitude predispose one to an affinity with the petitionary prayer, the religious prayer,
the meditative prayer or the psychological prayer? We will discuss this on the basis
of Figure 1 given below, which presents a summary of the answer to this question.
Overt narcissism
Covert narcissism
Strong self
Weak self
Meditative prayer/Psychological prayer
Religious prayer/Petitionary prayer
God absent from prayer
God present in prayer
Figure 1
The relation between overt and covert narcissism and the four types of prayer
Figure 1 is based on two dimensions. The first dimension is whether one’s
sense of self, i.e. the value one attaches to oneself, is strong or weak. A strong sense
of self is typical of overt narcissism, a weak sense of self is typical of covert narcissism (Wink 1991). The second dimension concerns the role of God in the prayer.
Is there a personal God at the centre of the prayer, or is there a personal God taking
a more marginal place? In religious and petitionary prayers, the person praying is
focused most strongly on a personal God: this God is at the centre of it. In meditative
and psychological prayer, God takes up a marginal place: in this type of prayer the
persons praying are concentrated on themselves (meditative prayer) or on something
higher (psychological prayer).
On the basis of these two dimensions, the results of the investigation can be
summarised as follows: the stronger a person’s sense of self is, the less their prayer
will be directed to a personal God and the more it will be directed to the person themselves or to a higher power. Conversely, the weaker a person’s sense of self is, the
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
13
more their prayer will be directed to a personal God. In other words: overt narcissists
tend toward meditative and psychological prayer, covert narcissists toward petitionary and religious prayer.
5.2. A case
To get a more concrete picture of how the religious dimension manifests itself in a
life where the narcissistic theme is evident, we take a closer look at the story of Jan
Peters. Jan Peters can be considered a narcissist with predominantly covert characteristics. He shows himself to be a person with a weak self and calls upon God
through religious and petitionary prayer, almost demanding that God help him.
Jan Peters is 48 years old. A year and a half ago he lost his wife, who was 41 at
the time. She died of cancer, having been sick for about six months. They had been
married for 22 years and had three kids. About ten years before, Jan Peters had become permanently disabled, after a number of nervous breakdowns.
Jan Peters: ‘No, my childhood years were not very pleasant. By the time I got to
be a real boy, I was very introverted. I got anxious easily, had little self-confidence,
I was withdrawn, alone a lot. On Sundays, I’d go to the movies two, three times a
day. I wasn’t very happy. At elementary school, the strong boys were everybody’s favourites; all the kids crowding around them. I withdrew. I’m a fearful person. When I
went to work this changed. There you’re forced to sit next to other people, and you all
observe good manners. I got along especially well with the girls, I really understood
them. I’d only been at the shoe factory for six weeks, when the boss called me into
his office, and I got a pat on the back. Something that took others years to achieve,
I’d managed in six weeks. I was esteemed and respected in the shoe factory. I knew
my job, I was really good at it. God, I worked so hard there. I’d take soles home
with me after work, could work really fast, I was indestructible. I rose to the highest
rank in the factory: stitching master. Till I got disabled, that is. I didn’t know when to
stop. Once, some of the soles caught fire. I took them right off the hot glowing plate
and threw them out. But that didn’t stop me from trying to pull the scissors over my
fingers anyway and continue my work. I was inexhaustible. I’m a fast worker. Also
in the automobile business that I got into later, where I was highly appreciated as
well, but the work turned out to be too heavy for me. And then I collapsed; I had a
total nervous breakdown. They concluded that I was hyper-nervous. I got courses of
mental treatment, relaxation therapies, all to no avail. That was it then, nothing left
that could be done, I flipped my lid, lost it completely.’
Interviewer: ‘And your wife’s death kind of put a stop to that process?’
J.P.: ‘That’s the way I see it, yes. Grief turns people around. When I drink, I’m
alive. Up to a point, that is. I’m a man of character and feeling. I’ve been through
a lot, worked hard, had to take quite a few blows. I got very little help, had to do it
all myself. But I’d say I’m a fighter, in spite of everything. Through thick and thin.
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
14
If it wasn’t for that I might have kicked the bucket long ago. I tend to get along with
people quite well. But all I want to be occupied with now is myself. I really need help.
How, I don’t know. That’s for the big shots to decide. My case deserves serious study.
It shouldn’t just be looked at by one man. It’s got to be looked at by a lot of people,
lots of different opinions, and then get to the core of that. Not just one man, but more
people, specialists in their field. But I don’t think anyone can help me. They try, but
they can’t help me. Every time I come here, I go home empty-handed. I walk out just
as miserable as I came in. All it’s gotten me is you. You’ve been very kind to me and
I appreciate that. But apart from that, I got nothing of it.’
I.: ‘What did you appreciate most about your wife?’
J.P.: ‘That would be her neatness and her chastity. First and foremost. In fact,
I can’t think of anything negative about her, nothing at all. Well, if I had to mention
something, I suppose it would be that she was a little cold. She wasn’t a very sexy
person. It all had to be done very quietly, nothing out of the ordinary. Just plain and
simple, down-to-earth. Lights out too, preferably. She’d lock the door when she was
taking a shower. I like that. Fine woman. These days, they’ll leave the door ajar.
Hoping you’ll come in. Well, she didn’t. I appreciate that in her. And yet, people’s impression was that she was a bit furtive, being so calm and all. She wasn’t furtive, you
know, she really was calm and sweet. That’s the way she died too, without a word, no
tears, without saying goodbye. That’s the worst thing. If only she’d said something,
something . . . My wife loved me very, very much and that clearly proves she was
good to me, to the family. She never cheated on me with another man or anything.
That says enough, I’d say. No need to go into that any further. I miss her, period, in
every possible way. She was a tidy little woman. Didn’t need to do anything myself.
Rather like a worker bee, and she was sweet, had a good character, a really rare
character. It’s as far as my thoughts take me. She had this nice little pendant. I had
cut diamonds inserted in it, with an inscription: brilliant woman. The wedding ring?
I’m never going to take that off. Nobody’s going to make me take that off, not even the
prettiest woman in the world. She made no mistakes. She never went out with other
men, never looked at other men. Yeah, everything, everything. All the good qualities
a woman can have, sweet character. Me, I did make that mistake, I did, I admit it. My
wife never did. She never complained, a very sweet woman. Just let things happen
to her, good-natured. There’s no other woman that compares, there really isn’t, there
can’t be. There’s this one woman, she’ll do anything for me, but it doesn’t make a
difference. The girl really tries . . . loves me, takes care of me. When I drink she tries
to save me. She knows my problems. But she can’t help me. Nobody can.’
I.: ‘How would you describe your relation to the religious side of life?’
J.P.: ‘I’m a Catholic in that I was raised a Catholic, I was baptised. My folks
weren’t observant. We did have to go to church. Until we were old and wise enough
and told our parents: You’re not going to church, so we’re not going anymore either.
All those years, I never went to church. Except for funerals and weddings. No, I never
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
15
went to church much, not during my marriage either. It wasn’t really important to me,
nor to my wife either apparently, or else we would have gone. We did get married in
church. Being a Roman Catholic, that was what everybody in the family did, right?
And why not? There’s nothing wrong with that. Nothing, absolutely nothing. But lately,
I’ve been going to church again to pray for a very special reason. Why now all of a
sudden, I wonder. I’m trying to get something out of it. It doesn’t get me anywhere, but
it’s more about coming to terms with things for myself, sort of. I’m trying to get some
answers that I can be satisfied with somehow. I’m not doing anything wrong now,
going to church now, I can think of her, I can thank the good Lord and ask him, maybe
it was all meant to be this way. Maybe it spared her a lot of vexation, you never know.
And you don’t know all the things you’re thinking. Maybe the good Lord wanted it
this way. And it’s all these things that I want to go to church for. I kneel down. I want
to impose that kind of support on me, want to get somewhere somehow. If I manage
to come out of it somehow, I’ll say to myself: Now that didn’t hurt you, did it? If there
is something out there, then I did the right thing. That’s the way I see it. No, I’m just
giving it a try. Who can comfort me? Who? Nobody. No matter how much you want
to help me, you’re not helping me, you can’t. I go to church. I’m not hurting anybody,
doing that. I don’t know . . . If you see that priest standing there, three masses in a row,
you sometimes think, you look at that man and you’re thinking: If there was nothing
out there, you wouldn’t be standing there, would you? You don’t know what to think of
it all, it’s all so mysterious, the church is. I find churches mysterious. Death, life. Life
I don’t find mysterious, but death I do find mysterious. Somebody you’ve known very
well, somebody you held and then suddenly they don’t talk to you anymore and they just
lie there like a block of ice. That’s very different, that is, something very mysterious. But
like I say: You’re not harming anyone, they’re not harming anyone. The priest doesn’t
harm you. What could happen? Nothing. So you go there! I’ve got nothing against the
church. Absolutely nothing. In church, nobody can do any harm. I appreciate what
those people are doing; they’re not harming anyone. They’re doing a good thing, trying to keep things together. Sitting and praying in that church for an hour on Sundays
I’m not harming anyone. I’m not causing anyone any grief. So what have I got to lose?
Nothing. But suppose there is a God, then he’s got to appreciate my being there in that
church. I always say: If there’s a higher power, I didn’t do it for nothing. And if there’s
no such thing, and I did it all for nothing, what have I lost? Nothing, have I?! I won’t
have lost anything.’
5.3. Some remarks to this case
Jan Peters takes a grand view of himself, even in his misery. But his grandness can
be looked upon as presenting a tormented soul in turmoil to conceal his essentially
weak self. A weak self that goes back a long way: ‘I was very introverted. I got
anxious easily, had little self-confidence, I was withdrawn, alone a lot. I wasn’t very
happy. I withdrew. I’m a fearful person.’
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
16
It is not until after his wife’s death that the theme of religion becomes explicitly
important to Jan Peters. His weak self cannot cope with the crisis of his wife’s death:
‘All I want to be occupied with now is myself. I really need help. How, I don’t know.
But I don’t think anyone can help me.’ Here again, he is grand in his helplessness.
It takes big shots to help him. No wonder the only one that could probably help him
would be the good Lord himself.
For Jan Peters, religion has a magical function: it helps to keep his fear and
his guilt at bay. By going to church and in prayer, Jan finds a form and a place that
allows him to let go of his fear and his unrest for a while. Religion, prayer and the
church are offering refuge, they are havens of rest, where he is not being forced to
do anything, that do not do any harm, where Jan cannot do any harm either. This is
where his ‘prayer for a very special reason’, as he calls it, takes place, ‘My Special
Prayer’.2 Losing something is unacceptable. In the religious domain we thus find the
same fundamental patterns that we also find in his self: strong–weak, winning–losing, and good–bad. In his efforts in the religious domain, Jan is trying to get support
from God through his prayers.
His is clearly a petitionary prayer. The central element of the prayer lies in its
effect, the cause that prompts him to pray is concrete, and his prayer is directed to a
personal God who is asked for a solution. But the characteristics of religious prayer
are also there. The most important element of religious prayer, as we saw earlier, is
its direction. It is directed to God. In religious prayer, the person praying seeks contact with a personal God. It is about strengthening one’s ties with God. We also find
Jan Peters engaged in this religious prayer, particularly in church, kneeling down.
The weak, losing and bad self is to be transformed, preferably miraculously, into a
strong, winning and good self.
It is clear how the narcissistic theme colours the sacred field and at the same
time offers something to hold on to. Religiosity is, in a sense, moulded into the individual’s personality structure. In prayer, the same thing happens: the self in prayer
gets embedded in the self.
6. Conclusion
What conclusions can be drawn about the relation between narcissism and prayer after
the presentation of the research and the discussion of the case? Covert narcissists ask
a lot from God, and turn to him a lot. Covert narcissism is characterised by a strongly
idealising aspect (Kohut 1971). Idealising in the sense that in one’s life one needs
an almighty other, God in this case. One experiences oneself as weak, but this weakness is compensated by a relationship with a strong other who offers protection. The
basic principle underlying the covert narcissist’s idealisation is: ‘You are great and
My Special Prayer’ is the title of a song by soul singer Percy Sledge (1941, Leighton, Alabama) from
1969. He is also famous for the classic ‘When a Man Loves a Woman’. See http://www.youtube.com/
watch?v=JnQekVULGBQ, retrieved 5 March 2014.
2 ‘
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
17
perfect and I belong with you.’ Covert narcissists connect to God as an almighty other.
Prompted by their own lack of power, they want to connect to the almighty other and
thus acquire social security and support. They experience themselves as weak, but the
psychological balance is redressed through a connection with a powerful other. It is in
religious prayer and petitionary prayer that this connection is achieved and maintained.
For more overt narcissists, it is the grandiose moment that dominates (Kohut
1971). In other words, experiencing oneself as grand. The basic principle under
lying the grandiose experience of the overt narcissist is: ‘I am great and perfect.’
One takes pride in the talents (real or imagined) that one considers oneself to have,
and one does not need others, except to be admired by them. In any case, one has
no need of an almighty God to turn to as in petitionary and religious prayer. This
does not mean to say that all prayer is discarded. Rather, there is more of a tendency
toward meditative and psychological prayer. These are forms of prayer directed to
the self – meditative prayer – or to an anonymous power – psychological prayer. An
anonymous power is acceptable because its abstract and impersonal character does
not compete with the grandeur one ascribes to oneself. There would be competition
in the case of the petitionary or the religious prayer, directed as these are to a God
with strongly personal traits. This way, there is no competition between the gods, the
god one considers oneself to be and the God outside of oneself.
Overt and covert narcissism are closely linked to ‘god images’. God images are
the emotionally strong coloured mental images that are the foundations of an individual’s relation to Divine Attachment Figures (DAF) such as God (and other major
religious figures like Buddha, Allah, Jesus or Krishna). Overt and covert narcissism
demonstrates the relations between an individual’s self-image and a DAF. This can
go in two directions: by making himself subsidiary to the DAF (as is the case of the
covert type), or by claiming divine characteristics (as in the case of overt narcissism). In this last variant the DAF and the self coincide.3
In line with the third trend of research distinguished by Siôn and Francis
(2009), our research showed how an investigation into the contents of prayer gives
insights into the lives of ordinary people.
As was said before, we did not find a relation between overt and covert narcissism and the frequency of prayer. We did, however, find a relation between the two
narcissistic dimensions and the various forms of prayer. This shows that the narcissistic theme in itself is no reason to pray more or less, but that it can be a driving
force behind the way one prays. Overt narcissism motivates one to address oneself to
an anonymous power or to turn inward in prayer; covert narcissism motivates one to
address oneself to God in prayer. Those who succeed in the project of deifying themselves – overt narcissists – do not allow another God beside them; they are enough
for themselves. Those who would wish to deify themselves but fail to do so – covert
narcissists – connect to a God outside themselves, looking for refuge and support.
3
trong comment was given on this coinciding of self and Divine Attachment Figures by Vitz (1994), among
S
others. It deals with the criticism on the functional way of gaining narcissistic profit from religion or prayer.
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
18
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Coping’, Archive for the Psychology of Religion 32, 69–85.
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EJMH 9:1, June 2014
DOI: 10.5708/EJMH.9.2014.1.2
Ferenc Köteles* & Péter Simor
MODERN HEALTH WORRIES, SOMATOSENSORY
AMPLIFICATION, HEALTH ANXIETY, AND WELL-BEING
A Cross-Sectional Study**
(Received: 5 October 2012; accepted: 20 February 2013)
The study aims to investigate the relationship among modern health worries (MHWs), somatosens
ory amplification (SSA), health anxiety, and well-being. Questionnaires (Modern Health Worries
Scale, Somatosensory Amplification Scale, Short Health Anxiety Inventory, Positive and Negative Affect Schedule, and WHO-Five Well-being Scale) were completed by 180 patients (mean
age = 48.2 ± 15.76 yrs) visiting their general practitioners and by 344 undergraduate students
(21.5 ± 2.09 yrs) in a cross-sectional study. According to the results, SSA and health anxiety were
independently related to MHWs. Health anxiety was negatively related to indicators of general
well-being. MHWs were not associated with well-being and were weakly positively connected to
positive affect in the correlation analysis, while positive associations with both constructs were
found after controlling for socio-economic variables, negative affect, and health anxiety in the
regression analysis. MHWs are usually treated as maladaptive cognitive structures, but in the light
of the present results this viewpoint might need reconsideration.
Keywords: somatosensory amplification, health anxiety, well-being, perceived control
Krankheitsangst der Moderne, somatosensorische Amplifikation, Krankheitsphobie und
Wohlbefinden: Eine Querschnittsuntersuchung: Die Zielsetzung unserer Studie bestand darin, Zusammenhänge zwischen der Krankheitsangst der Moderne, der somatosensorischen Amplifikation, Krankheitsphobien und psychischem Wohlbefinden zu untersuchen. Für die Querschnittsstudie wurden von 180 Hausarztpatienten (Durchschnittsalter = 48.2 ± 15.76 Jahre) und
344 Studenten in den ersten Studienjahren (Durchschnittsalter = 21.5 ± 2.09 Jahre) mehrere Fragebögen ausgefüllt (Modern Health Worries Scale, Somatosensory Amplification Scale, Short
*
**
orresponding author: Ferenc Köteles, Institute for Health Promotion and Sport Sciences, Eötvös Loránd
C
University, Bogdánfy Ödön u. 10., H-1117 Budapest, Hungary; [email protected].
This research was supported by the Hungarian National Scientific Research Fund (OTKA K 76880, K 109549)
and by the János Bolyai Research Scholarship of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences (for F. Köteles).
MODERN HEALTH WORRIES
21
Health Anxiety Inventory, Positive and Negative Affect Schedule und der WHO-5-Fragebogen).
Wie die Ergebnisse zeigen, stehen somatosensorische Amplifikation und Krankheitsphobie auch
unabhängig voneinander im Zusammenhang mit der Krankheitsangst der Moderne. Zwischen
Krankheitsphobie und Wohlbefinden ergab sich ein negativer Zusammenhang. Den Ergebnissen
der Korrelationsanalyse zufolge korreliert die Krankheitsangst der Moderne nicht mit dem Wohlbefinden; sie steht in einem schwach positiven Zusammenhang mit positiver Affektivität, in der
Regressionsanalyse ergab sich jedoch nach Kontrolle der sozioökonomischen Variablen, der negativen Affektivität und der Krankheitsphobie ein positiver Zusammenhang mit beiden Variablen.
Die Krankheitsangst der Moderne gilt gemeinhin als maladaptive kognitive Struktur, es ist aber
möglich, dass dies aufgrund o.g. Ergebnisse überdacht werden muss.
Schlüsselbegriffe: somatosensorische Amplifikation, Krankheitsangst, Wohlbefinden, wahrgenommene Kontrolle
1. Introduction
Clinical hypochondriasis has been conceptualised recently as a pathological extremity of health anxiety, the fear of having an illness (Warwick & Salkovskis 1990;
Hiller et al. 2002; Braddock & Abramowitz 2006; Martin & Jacobi 2006;
Asmundson et al. 2010). According to this approach, health anxiety is a dimensional
entity, ranging from mild concern to severe anxiety, therefore there are considerable individual differences in its intensity even among healthy (i.e. non-hypochondriac) people (Warwick & Salkovskis 1990; Noyes et al. 1999; Bleichhardt
& Hiller 2007). Higher levels of health anxiety have a significant negative impact
on well-being, on everyday functioning, and on health care utilisation (Conroy et
al. 1999; Martin & Jacobi 2006; Bleichhardt & Hiller 2007; Ferguson 2008;
Asmundson et al. 2010). The cognitive model on the development of hypochondriasis describes a self-enhancing process: when individuals are exposed to ambiguous
body symptoms or health-related information (perceived threat), they focus on bodily
processes (increased body vigilance) which facilitates the perception of internal stimuli. These stimuli are evaluated as symptoms of a feared and serious illness (somato
sensory amplification and catastrophisation). Illness-related cognitions increase anxiety and uncertainty, and initialise safety-seeking behaviours that prevent the acquisition of disconfirmatory evidence and reduce tolerance of uncertainty which in turn
reinforces perceived threat (Abramowitz et al. 2007; Marcus et al. 2007).
Basically, the same vicious circle was described in a novel category of
somatoform disorders: idiopathic environmental intolerance (IEI, formerly multiple
chemical sensitivity, MCS) (Witthöft et al. 2006, 2008). IEI was defined as ‘an
acquired disorder with multiple recurrent symptoms, associated with diverse envir
onmental factors tolerated by the majority of people, not explained by any known
medical, psychiatric or psychological disorder’ (Staudenmayer et al. 2003a, 235),
and its etiology and pathogenesis is still under debate (Staudenmayer et al. 2003a,
2003b; Witthöft et al. 2006; Bailer et al. 2008a). Despite the similar mechanism
of development, the relationship between IEI and severe health anxiety is yet to
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
22
F. KÖTELES & P. SIMOR
be clarified. Both problems are characterised by enhanced body vigilance and by
misinterpretation of visceral stimuli, but IEI as opposed to health anxiety is always
associated with some sort of threatening environmental factor which increases body
vigilance and trigger anxiety.
A further common characteristic of health anxiety and IEI is elevated risk perception: any factor that is supposed to pose a threat to the individual’s health and
thus increases feelings of personal vulnerability can enhance the vicious circle. In
the case of IEI, worries about the possibly harmful nature of features of modern life
(called Modern Health Worries, MHWs) (Petrie et al. 2001) can serve as such factors (Bailer et al. 2008b). MHWs, enhanced and maintained by stories published in
popular magazines and on the Internet (Petrie et al. 2001; Petrie & Wessely 2002,
2004) have been associated with more body symptoms, with worse self-evaluated
health status, and with increased health care utilisation among healthy (i.e. non-IEI)
people in several studies (Petrie et al. 2001; Kaptein et al. 2005; Filipkowski et
al. 2010; Rief et al. 2012).
Another important component of the hypochondriac circle, somatosensory ampli
fication (SSA; the tendency to experience a somatic sensation as noxious and disturbing)
was found to be related not only to health anxiety (Speckens et al. 1996; Ferguson et
al. 2000) and to IEI (Bailer et al. 2008b) but also to MHWs (Köteles & Simor 2013;
Köteles et al. 2011b; Köteles et al. 2012). Interestingly, although the construct of
MHWs appears to be conceptually close to health anxiety, no empirical results on this
relationship are known. They might be connected through SSA but a direct overlapping
is also feasible. The first goal of the present study was to clarify the relationship among
these constructs.
As it was mentioned earlier, both health anxiety and MHWs are characterised
by more somatic symptoms, by worse health-related quality of life and by increased
health care utilisation. According to these results, a substantial impact on general
well-being can be hypothesised. The investigation of this negative effect was the
second aim of the study.
More specifically, the hypotheses of the current study are divided into groups:
1. there is a positive relationship among SSA, MHWs, and health anxiety; 2. MHWs
and health anxiety are negatively related to psychological well-being.
2. Method
2.1. Participants and procedure
To improve generalisability of results, two independent groups were included in the
study. The first sample consisted of 180 patients (mean age = 48.2 ± 15.76 years;
42.2% male) visiting their general practitioners (GPs) for whatever reason (i.e. no
exclusion criteria were applied). The second group included 344 volunteer undergraduate university students from two universities of Budapest, Hungary (mean age
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
23
= 21.5 ± 2.09 years; 49.1% male). Patients were asked to participate in the waiting
rooms of their GP and they received assistance in completing the questionnaires on
request. Students completed the questionnaires in groups in their classrooms. Participants filled out the questionnaires anonymously and they did not receive any reward
for their contribution. The study procedure was approved by the Ethical Committee
of the Eötvös Loránd University, Budapest, Hungary.
2.2. Questionnaires
The Somatosensory Amplification Scale (SSAS) (Barsky et al. 1988, 1990) assesses
the tendency to experience a somatic sensation as intense, noxious, and disturbing. It
consists of 10 self-rated statements that are estimated on a 5-point scale. Its internal
reliability was 0.70 and 0.60 for the patient and the student group respectively, which
is in accordance with previous results (Köteles et al. 2009, 2012).
The Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS) (Watson et al. 1988) consists of two independent scales assessing positive and negative affects on a 5-point
Likert scale. The 10-item negative affect (NA) scale measures the general dimension of subjective distress and unpleasurable engagement that subsumes a variety
of aversive mood states (e.g. guilt, fear, nervousness), while the 10-item positive
affect (PA) scale assesses the extent to which a person feels enthusiastic, active, and
alert. The Hungarian version of both scales had excellent internal consistency in a
previous study (Rózsa et al. 2008) as well as in the present study (Cronbach’s alpha
coefficients were above 0.8 for both scales in both groups).
Modern Health Worries (MHW) (Petrie et al. 2001) is a 25-item scale that
measures people’s concerns of modernity (e.g. amalgam dental fillings, overuse of
antibiotics or electromagnetic radiation) affecting their health. Items are to be rated
on a 5-point Likert scale. The Hungarian version’s factor structure and psychometric
properties were similar to the original (Köteles et al. 2011b). In the present study,
the internal consistency of the Hungarian version was quite high, 0.96 and 0.92 for
the patient and the student samples respectively.
The Short Health Anxiety Inventory (SHAI) (Salkovskis et al. 2002) contains
18 items that assess health anxiety independently of actual physical health status on a
5-point scale. The SHAI has two subscales (Illness Likelihood and Illness Severity)
(Wheaton et al. 2010) which were replicated in the Hungarian version (Köteles et
al. 2011a). Only the total score (sum of the scores of the subscales) was used in the
present study. Cronbach’s alpha coefficients were 0.87 and 0.84 for the two samples.
The WHO-Five Well-being Index (WHO-5) (Bech et al. 1996) is a widely used
questionnaire that measures general psychological well-being (positive mood, relaxation, activity, sleep quality) on a 4-point Likert scale. The Hungarian version had
good internal consistency (Cronbach’s alpha = 0.85) (Susánszky et al. 2006). In the
present study, Cronbach’s alpha coefficients were 0.83 (patients) and 0.77 (students).
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
24
3. Data analysis
The data were analysed using the SPSS version 20.0 software. Questionnaire total
scores were calculated as sums of item scores. Participants’ gender and group affili
ation were coded into binary variables (0 = male, 1 = female and 1 = patients, 2 = students, respectively). As no serious deviations from normal distribution were found,
associations among variables were examined by Pearson correlations. To investigate the individual effects of the variables on the MHW scale, step-wise multiple
linear regression analysis was applied with the MHW score as dependent variable.
The regression analysis consisted of two steps: in Step 1, control variables (group
affiliation, participants’ age, gender and NA score to control for general worrying
tendency), then (Step 2) SSAS and SHAI scores (the ENTER method was used in
each step) were entered. Variables’ independent contributions to well-being and to
positive affect were examined using two multiple linear regression analyses with
WHO-5 and PA scores as dependent variables, respectively. In these analyses, Step 1
was the same as in the previous analysis, the MHW score was entered in Step 2, and
the SHAI score was entered in Step 3.
4. Results
Descriptive statistics of the questionnaires are presented in Table 1.
Table 1
Descriptive statistics (means and SDs) of variables
Patients (M ± SD)
Students (M ± SD)
NA
18.88 ± 6.327
20.61 ± 6.254
SSAS
27.61 ± 6.073
29.71 ± 5.327
MHW
68.07 ± 22.518
60.16 ± 16.679
SHAI
34.16 ± 7.579
33.34 ± 6.722
WHO-5
12.89 ± 2.908
14.50 ± 3.042
PA
32.29 ± 6.543
34.86 ± 6.337
Abbr.: NA: PANAS Negative Affect Scale; SSAS: Somatosensory Amplification Scale; MHW: Modern Health
Worries; SHAI: Short Health Anxiety Inventory; WHO-5: WHO-Five Well-being Index; PA: PANAS Positive
Affect Scale.
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
25
4.1. Relationship among MHWs, SSA, and health anxiety
According to the results of the correlation analyses, MHWs showed significant but
weak associations with health anxiety in both samples (r = 0.24, p < 0.01 for patients
and r = 0.28, p < 0.001 for students) while the connection between SSA and health
anxiety was stronger (r = 0.40 and r = 0.43 respectively) (for details, see Table 2).
Table 2
Pearson correlations among recorded variables
SSAS
MHW
SHAI
WHO-5
PA
SSAS
1
0.39***
0.40***
–0.15*
0.05
MHW
0.24***
1
0.24**
0.01
0.13+
SHAI
0.43***
0.28***
1
–0.43***
–0.33***
WHO-5
–0.05
–0.05
–0.27***
1
0.57***
PA
–0.03
0.11*
–0.24***
0.56***
1
Upper triangle (marked in italics): patients (N = 180), lower triangle: students (N = 344).
Abbr.: SSAS: Somatosensory Amplification Scale; MHW: Modern Health Worries; SHAI: Short Health Anxiety
Inventory; WHO-5: WHO-Five Well-being Index; PA: PANAS Positive Affect Scale.
+
p < 0.1; * p < 0.05; ** p < 0.01; *** p < 0.001.
In the regression analysis, MHWs remained significantly associated with both
somatosensory amplification and health anxiety after controlling for group affili
ation, gender, age and negative affect in the regression equation (Table 3). Nevertheless, the final equation explained only 17.9% of the total variance of the MHW score.
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
26
Table 3
Results of multiple linear regression analysis
B ± S.E.
Standardised β
Step 1, R2 = 0.114;
p < 0.001
Group
Age
Gender
NA
1.341 ± 2.826
0.358 ± 0.085
5.887 ± 1.608
0.406 ± 0.0128
0.033
0.293***
0.153***
0.134**
Step 2, ΔR2 = 0.066;
p < 0.001
Group
Age
Gender
NA
SSAS
SHAI
–0.937 ± 2.750
0.298 ± 0.083
3.468 ± 1.607
–0.023 ± 0.140
0.749 ± 0.164
0.382 ± 0.126
–0.023
0.244***
0.090*
–0.008
0.221***
0.140**
ENTER method; dependent variable: Modern Health Worries.
Abbr.: NA: PANAS Negative Affect Scale; SSAS: Somatosensory Amplification Scale; SHAI:
Short Health Anxiety Inventory.
*
p < 0.1; ** p < 0.01; *** p < 0.001.
4.2. Relationship among MHWs, health anxiety, and indicators of well-being
In both groups, MHWs showed no significant correlations with well-being as assessed by the WHO-5 scale, and very weak positive connections to positive affect.
In the case of health anxiety, low to medium negative correlations were found (for
details, see Table 2).
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
27
Table 4
B ± S.E.
Standardised β
0.720 ± 0.432
–0.045 ± 0.013
0.289 ± 0.246
–0.170 ± 0.020
0.111+
–0.230**
0.047
–0.349***
0.710 ± 0.432
–0.048 ± 0.013
0.246 ± 0.249
–0.173 ± 0.020
0.007 ± 0.007
0.109
–0.244***
0.323
–0.355***
–0.045
0.839 ± 0.422
–0.039 ± 0.013
0.309 ± 0.243
–0.133 ± 0.021
0.014 ± 0.007
–0.099 ± 0.019
0.129*
–0.201**
0.050
–0.272***
0.087*
–0.225***
Step 1, R2 = 0.197;
p < 0.001
Group
Age
Gender
NA
Step 2, ΔR2 = 0.002;
p = 0.278
Group
Age
Gender
NA
MHW
Step 3, ΔR2 = 0.040;
p < 0.001
Group
Age
Gender
NA
MHW
SHAI
ENTER method; dependent variable: WHO-Five Well-being Index.
Abbr.: NA: PANAS Negative Affect Scale; MHW: Modern Health Worries; SHAI:
+ p < 0.1; * p < 0.05; ** p < 0.01; *** p < 0.001.
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
28
In the final equation of the regression analysis using the WHO-5 score as the
dependent variable, a negative connection (β = –0.225, p < 0.001) to health anxiety
and a weak positive connection to MHWs (β = 0.087, p < 0.05) was found (Table 4).
Regardless of group affiliation, participants’ age and negative affect were negatively
related to their well-being. The equation explained 23.9% of the total variance.
Table 5
B ± S.E.
Standardised β
Step 1, R2 = 0.084;
p < 0.001
Group
Age
Gender
NA
–0.172 ± 0.973
–0.114 ± 0.029
0.602 ± 0.554
–0.155 ± 0.044
–0.013
–0.276***
0.046
–0.150***
–0.251 ± 0.960
–0.135 ± 0.029
0.252 ± 0.553
–0.179 ± 0.044
0.059 ± 0.015
–0.018
–0.328***
0.019
–0.174***
0.175***
0.088 ± 0.928
–0.113 ± 0.028
0.419 ± 0.534
–0.072 ± 0.046
0.077 ± 0.015
–0.261 ± 0.042
0.006
–0.274***
0.032
–0.070
0.227***
–0.282***
Step 2, ΔR2 = 0.027;
p < 0.001
Group
Age
Gender
NA
MHW
Step 3, ΔR2 = 0.062;
p < 0.001
Group
Age
Gender
NA
MHW
SHAI
ENTER method; dependent variable: PANAS Positive Affect Scale.
Abbr.: NA: PANAS Negative Affect Scale; MHW: Modern Health Worries; SHAI:
***
p < 0.001.
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
29
Results of the second regression analysis were similar to the first: positive affect was negatively related to health anxiety (β = –0.282, p < 0.001) and to participants’ age (β = –0.274, p < 0.001) and positively related to MHWs (β = 0.227,
p < 0.001) (Table 5). It is worth mentioning however that in this case the β-coefficient
of MHWs was of the same magnitude as those of the other two variables.
5. Discussion
According to cross-sectional data obtained from a patient and a student sample,
somatosensory amplification tendency and health anxiety were independently related to MHWs. Health anxiety was negatively related to indicators of general wellbeing. MHWs were not associated with general well-being and were only weakly
associated with positive affect in the correlation analysis, while positive associations
were found after controlling for socio-demographic variables, negative affect, and
health anxiety in the regression analysis.
The first group of hypotheses of the present study was supported by the empirical data: a positive relationship among MHWs, health anxiety, and SSA was
found in the correlation analysis (Table 2). These findings are in accordance with
previous results concerning the association between SSA and various indicators of
health anxiety (Speckens et al. 1996; Ferguson et al. 2000) and between SSA and
MHWs (Köteles et al. 2011b, 2012). More important is the newly described relationship between health anxiety and MHWs: beyond NA and SSA, health anxiety is
the third health-related variable known to be connected to MHWs. The relationship
between MHWs and health anxiety remained significant after controlling for SSA
which clearly indicates that health anxiety is an independent component of MHWs.
Keeping also in mind that the SHAI assesses health anxiety independently from
actual physical status, this relationship appears to be essential in the understanding
of MHWs: health anxiety reflects heightened risk perception and increased feelings
of personal vulnerability that were mentioned as consequences of MHWs (Petrie
et al. 2001).
As for the second group of hypotheses, the negative relationship between health
anxiety and indicators of psychological well-being is in accordance with our expect
ations: any form of anxiety is supposed to decrease the quality of life.
More surprising is the absence of the expected negative relationship between
MHWs and indicators of well-being. In addition, both positive affect and general
well-being were positively related to MHWs in the regression analyses. As similar
findings were reported in a German study (Muthny & Schulze Willbrenning
2010) (MHWs were positively related to life satisfaction, hedonistic orientation and
psychosocial health status in women but not in men), this connection does not seem
casual. MHWs are usually treated as maladaptive cognitive structures, but in the
light of the present results this viewpoint might need reconsideration. As many components are partialled out from the original variables, it is not easy to conceptualise
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
30
what ‘MHWs without NA and health anxiety’ (i.e. MHWs without negative emotional components) mean and how they can contribute to psychological well-being.
First, mild health anxiety can be regarded as an adaptive signal that helps promote survival-related behaviours (Lovas & Barsky 2010), and the same might hold
true for MHWs. Environmental factors enumerated among MHWs (e.g. additives
in food or contaminated drinking water) do or at least may pose threat to human
health (Petrie et al. 2001), what is unknown is only the actual magnitude of this
threat. In such an uncertain situation, overestimating the risk can be an adaptive
strategy as it can help minimise harmful influences. Empirical findings supporting
this conception are known: MHWs were found to be associated with avoidance behaviour during an environmental pesticide spraying (Petrie et al. 2005). In addition,
positive health-related effects of MHWs were also reported in a study conducted in
New Zealand: individuals with more MHWs had a greater acceptance of functional
foods designed to reduce the likelihood of disease compared to participants with less
MHWs (Devcich et al. 2007).
Second, MHWs may also help seek and find causes of subjective somatic symptoms (i.e. attribution or labelling process) (Schachter & Singer 1962; Mechanic
1972; Cioffi 1991; Gijsbers van Wijk & Kolk 1996) which increases perceived
control over health. Higher levels of hypochondriac worries were found to be associated with increased perceived control which, in part, was achieved by a process of
identifying ways in which stressful events could be avoided in the future (i.e. looking
for aspects of a situation that are controllable) (Ferguson et al. 2000).
Third, worry (i.e. the cognitive component of anxiety) is also considered to attenuate stress-response and fear-related imagery through verbally structured thought
processes (Borkovec et al. 1998). Since verbal information processing suppresses
negative emotional responses (Holmes & Mathews 2010), the conceptualisation of
possible environmental threats in more abstract terms – such as MHWs – may reduce
negative emotional reactions to some extent. Obviously, in case of excessive rumin
ation such thought processes would be highly maladaptive (Brosschot et al. 2006).
Therefore, MHWs, if they do not reach the pathological range, may indeed facilitate
cognitive coping against perceived threats. Of course, the reasoning described above
has many speculative elements, as avoidance behaviour and perceived control were
not assessed in the study. Moreover, cross-sectional data used in this study are not
appropriate to explain hypothesised causal relationships. Although the conclusions
were drawn from data of two independent samples, replication of the findings (extended with measures of behaviour change, perceived control, and health-related
behaviour) on more (and preferably representative) samples would be necessary in
order to judge the generalisability of the results.
As for the practical implications of these findings, rational educational programs and more realistic media reports on environmental threats might be beneficial in order to reduce irrational beliefs about and negative emotional reactions to
environmental threats. These interventions may result in improved psychological
well-being. Depending on the individual belief system, however, MHWs’ possible
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
31
positive role in coping with non-specific anxiety should also be taken into consider
ation, particularly in therapeutic contexts.
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EJMH 9:1, June 2014
DOI: 10.5708/EJMH.9.2014.1.3
Bence Takács* & Zoltán Kmetty
SPORT AS A ‘TOOL’ OF SOCIALISATION
Correlations between Civil Organisation Activity and Sporting
Activity in the 15 to 18 Age Cohort
(Received: 17 September 2012; accepted: 20 December 2012)
Several studies pointed out the positive effects of social capital in the last 10 to 20 years. Nevertheless, only minor emphasis was put on the formation of social capital. Most authors implicitly
presume an effect of socialisation in the background of the formation of social capital. This is
also confirmed by studies, using data of panel research, which have demonstrated significant
connections between the civil activity of young people and adults and their general level of trust.
In our study we examine how membership in civil organisations – which we consider an import
ant indicator of social capital – is influenced by sporting activity in the age range of 15–18. The
two surweys examined (Ifjúságkutatás 2000, 2008) show that young people practising sports are
more likely to participate in the work of civil organisations, moreover, sport proved to be a more
important background variable in our models than the access to economic and cultural resources.
Although this is also due to structural reasons, we are convinced that the most important factors
for social capital are the participation in a community and the social net deriving from it. And
juvenile sporting activity can serve as a good basis for this.
Keywords: social capital, leisure time, 15–18 age range, sporting activity, civil organisation
membership
Sport als „Mittel” der Sozialisation: Korrelation zwischen Mitarbeit in zivilgesellschaftlichen Organisationen und Sport bei 15- bis 18-jährigen Jugendlichen: In den vergangenen
zehn bis zwanzig Jahren wurde in zahlreichen Studien auf die positive Wirkung von sozialem
Kapital hingewiesen, jedoch wurde weniger thematisiert, wie dieses entsteht. Die meisten Autoren
vermuten, dass sich soziales Kapital auf der Grundlage einer impliziten Wirkung der Sozialisation
bildet. Dies wird auch durch Studien bestätigt, in denen auf der Basis von Daten aus Panelforschungen ein deutlicher Zusammenhang zwischen bürgerschaftlichem Engagement im Jugendund jungen Erwachsenenalter und allgemeinem Vertrauen nachgewiesen konnte. Wir untersuchen
*
orresponding author: Bence Takács, Department of Social Sciences, Faculty of Physical Education and Sport
C
Sciences, Semmelweis University; H-1123 Budapest, Alkotás u. 44., Hungary; [email protected].
35
in der Studie, inwieweit das Engagement in zivilgesellschaftlichen Organisationen – ein wichtiger Indikator für soziales Kapital – durch Sport beeinflusst wird. Zwei Datenerhebungen zufolge
(Ifjúságkutatás 2000, 2008) engagieren sich Jugendliche, die Sport treiben, mit einer größeren
Wahrscheinlichkeit in zivilgesellschaftlichen Organisationen. In unseren Modellen erwies sich
Sport sogar als wichtigere Hintergrundvariable als der Zugang zu wirtschaftlichen oder kulturellen Ressourcen. Zum Teil ist dies zwar auf strukturelle Gründe zurückzuführen, wir vertreten
aber dennoch die Ansicht, dass der wesentliche Faktor im Hinblick auf das soziale Kapital die
Aktivitäten in der Gemeinschaft bzw. das sich dadurch herausbildende soziale Netzwerk ist. Sport
im Jugendalter kann hierfür eine gute Grundlage sein.
Schlüsselbegriffe: soziales Kapital, Freizeit, Altersgruppe zwischen 15 und 18 Jahren, Sport,
Mitgliedschaft in zivilgesellschaftlichen Organisationen
1. Introduction
In the last decade social capital has become one of the (political) sociological expressions referred to most often in international scientific literature. Although the
history of social capital as a technical term reaches far back in time, its real success
story started during the last twenty years, mainly due to the works of Coleman
(1990) and even more to those of Putnam (1993, 2000; see also Füzér et al. 2005).
Putnam considered civil commitment, social networks, general trust and common
norms (factors of social capital) as the basic patterns of good governance and effect
ive decision-making. Accordingly, social capital is positively linked to economic
development on a community and social level (Woolcock & Radin 2008), but on
an individual level it offers good protection against many negative effects as well
(Furstenberg & Hughes 1995), although, of course, certain negative implications
cannot be excluded (Coleman 1988, 1990; Portes 1998). In the background of the
formation of social capital most authors presume an implicit effect of socialisation
(Stolle & Hooghe 2004), but these mechanisms are not completely unraveled. As
we will present it in more detail in the theoretical part of our study, civil participation of youth, or the general trust of youth, is highly correlated with the level of civil
activity and general trust in later years. Several research results imply that sport has
a variety of positive effects on physical/mental health (Bar-Or & Baranowski
1994; Hamar et al. 2009). In our study we try to answer the question whether sporting activity has a connection to civil participation, an important indicator of social
capital. In the theoretical part, we briefly summarise the scientific results related to
the aspects of socialisation of social capital theories, or rather the other cornerstone
of our research, the results regarding the willingness of young Hungarians to engage
in physical activity. In our analysis we undertake to reveal the connections between
these two pillars on the grounds of two cross-sectional studies about adolescents (15
to 18 age range).
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
36
B. TAKÁCS & Z. KMETTY
2. Theoretical basis
2.1. The socialisation aspect of social capital
We shall start this chapter by a conceptual clarification. Social capital has various
theoretical approaches.1 To put it more simply, there are two main schools in this
aspect. One is the macro approach (with the abovementioned Putnam or Fukuyama),
the other is the micro approach (Lin, Erickson, Flap, van der Gaag etc.). Furthermore,
there are many authors who are not unequivocally classifiable in these categories (for
example Coleman or Bourdieu) – see more in Tardos (1996); Lin (1999); Orbán &
Szántó (2005); Angelusz (2010); Kmetty (2012). In our study we use Putnam’s
macro approach which, in contrast with the micro approach, means that instead of
analysing the network resources and the question of how easily they can be mobil
ised, we put more emphasis on the civil and normative elements of social capital.
This distinction also affects the selection of indicators. Putnam’s theory measures
the potency of social capital using variables like organisational membership, general
trust and the extent of reciprocity. In our study we will concentrate on membership
in civil organisations.2
Research about youth socialisation pointed out that fundamental values and
identities evolve already at a young age, and they hardly change later (Sapiro 2004).
The different activities practised by young people simultaneously give a socialisation framework for their future social participation. There are many possible ways
of development of which we will highlight two at this time. On the one hand, youth
activity (e.g. sport, participation in civil movements) can enlarge the wider social
network, which can also create a kind of link to ‘more distant’ groups of society.
These typically weak ties (Granovetter 1973) may reduce prejudices and may
lead to the rise of general trust; furthermore, they presume the acquisition of different social norms (Hansen et al. 2003). On the other hand, important relationships
might also form within the organisation, which can later function as social network3
capital (for example, they might be helpful in a job search). Naturally, we also have
to count with possible negative consequences, but they are less significant. Examining an American sample (young people of 16 to 18 years of age), Hansen and his
1
2
3
he next part is based on Tardos (1996) and Kmetty (2012).
T
We only have indicators for this element of social capital.
As we have mentioned above, in our study we use the notion of social capital. However, in certain cases, the
notion of relationship capital or network capital seems to be more adequate for the phenomena analysed. A
typical example for this is when we analyse the chances of a person to get a job by means of their relationships,
thus when it is the resource character of social capital that matters. Sik (2012) analyses the correlation between
relationship capital and social capital in detail and suggests the use of relationship capital instead of social capital
which he considers much too fragmented and of a diffuse meaning. Angelusz (2010) comes to almost the same
conclusion in his posthumous publication on social capital. We agree both with Sík and Angelusz on the anom
alies perceived in connection with the conceptualisation of social capital. In cases where the resource character of
social capital prevails, we apply the notion couple social/relationship capital as well. If, however, the normative
element is important, we still have recourse to the use of the expression social capital.
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
37
colleagues (2003) observed that doing sporting activity in different organisational
frames augmented self-recognition, mental security, but it also had negative effects
as participants had to carry out activities that they were reluctant to, or leaders encouraged them to perform actions they considered morally wrong. The relationship
between sporting activity, civil organisational membership and general trust has not
yet been in the focus of research. Nevertheless, researchers have dealt with the relationship between civil participation in youth and later civil activity. Claiborn and
Martin (2000), after the analysis of American panel data, concluded that participation in civil movements during school years has no effect on the level of general trust
and membership in civil organisations in adulthood. Smith (1999) demonstrated that
the access of youth to some components of social capital raises the likelihood of later
political and civil activity. The author also stresses that in order to stop the impairment of social capital it would be necessary to strengthen the institutions/organisations (religious and civil organisations) which have a positive impact on the social
isation of youth from the aspect of social capital (the author makes reference here to
the American situation). Smith’s results were affirmed by the researches of Stolle
and Hooghe (2004) who also examined the question using American panel data.
According to their results, there is a strong link between civil activity at an early and
at a later age. They also pointed out that these effects will most probably intensify as
time goes by (sleeper effect). The link between the general level of trust measured
in youth and at the age of 34 was even more intense than the relationship observed
in connection with civil activity. They concluded that in order to understand the distribution of adult social capital it is worth returning to the youth and examining this
question within their group.
Studies analysing the Hungarian context have also raised awareness to the socialisation aspect of civil engagement. Dávid and her co-authors (2008) examined
the family patterns of civil participation in a smaller Hungarian settlement. Their results revealed that parents’ participation in civil organisations significantly increases
the probability that their children will also take part in the work of a civil organisation. Nevertheless, the authors themselves remark that the direction of correlation is
not evident. It is also possible that it is the children’s civil engagement that exerts an
effect on the parents’ involvement. The results, however, show unequivocally that
civil participation is deeply embedded on a family level.
2.2. The effects of sport on youth
67% of adolescents aged 12 to 18 in Hungary do insufficient physical activity (Aszmann 2000). That means they live an inactive life. This is also shown in a study
on physical activity in the Hungarian society (Mészáros et al. 2002; Tatár 2004)
which emphasises that sport consumption is not a regular part of the family need-
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
38
fulfilment process (Hoffmann 2000), but it remains the most important medium of
the socialisation of young people (Bauer 2002).4
Engaging in physical activity and doing sports, while being indispensable for
the developing body, is extremely useful for several other reasons. On the one hand,
it shapes young people’s personality (Bar-Or & Baranowski 1994); on the other
hand, regular physical activity and training, commenced at a young age, especially
in adolescence (Hamar et al. 2009) improves self-respect and makes the individual
more self-confident than their inactive peers. As Aszmann’s (2000) large sample
investigation points out, physically active young people consider inner values more
important than their inactive peers, they form relationships more quickly, are less
stressed and speak about problems and difficulties more easily. Hungarian research
(Pluhár et al. 2003, 2004; Aszmann 2000; Kiss 2003) supports the view that physically active young people are more health-conscious, perform better and are healthier. Also, regular physical activity commenced at an early age becomes a lifestyle
(Istvánfi 2004; Vanreusel et al. 1997; Perkins et al. 2004) which has a positive
effect in adulthood as well.
3. Hypotheses and methodology
The present study is based on the secondary analysis of two large sample surveys
(Ifjúság 2000 and Ifjúság 2008) conducted in 2000 (Laki et al. 2001) and 2008 (Sza
bó & Bauer 2009). The survey series, commenced in 2000, aims to examine the
situation and problems of Hungarian youth in depth. The youth survey, based on a
large sample, examined habits of spending free time, political preferences, media
consumption and behaviour towards deviance amongst other things. From the three
waves of the survey (2000, 2004, 2008) we use the data from 2000 and 2008. As the
methodology of the 2000 youth survey corresponded to that of the 2008 survey, the
results could be placed in a temporal dimension as well, aligned to the variables that
were asked in both cases. Alongside the identical questionnaire parts, there were also
thematic blocks in the surveys – in the 2008 survey the relationship to doing sports
formed a separate block. Besides the demographic variables, we selected the questions
referring to civil activity. We also used some of the questions of the detailed sporting
block from the 2008 survey. The analysis focuses on the subsample of the Ifjúság
2000 and 2008 surveys of 15- to 18-year-olds. The 15- to 18-year-old subsample of
the 2008 survey involved 2,018 people, while the survey in 2000 involved 1,780.
The relationship of the examined variables in our analysis was first tested using
cross-tables. As a second step, in order to obtain more reliable results, we applied
logistic regression models on the civil activity dependent variables. As the operationalisation of the variables was not plausible in all cases, we will touch upon the exact
4
Acknowledgement: We would like to thank project leader Béla Bauer and his colleagues for granting us access to the data.
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
39
process of it in our analysis. We proceed from the hypothesis that, among young
people, sports and leisure time civil activities are the most common. We expect a
positive relationship between doing sports and participation in youth civil activity.
Sharpening this hypothesis, we also expect that sport will be the most decisive motive
in civil activity, stronger than the role of access to cultural and material resources. The
examination of the relationship using two surveys makes the results more reliable,
or rather provides an opportunity for a dynamic comparison. Our paper is based on
the secondary analysis of the data of these two surveys. We focused on aspects at the
level of target groups and cross-relationships previously not examined by researchers
dealing with this topic.5
4. Results
4.1. Youth 2000
In the research Ifjúság 2000 (Laki et al. 2001) the incidence of sporting activity of
the subsample of 15- to 18-year-olds was measured using the following question:
Do you practice sports regularly, do you do sports beside the obligatory PE lessons?
43% of the sample responded that they practised sport. Among those students 40%
practised sports regularly, the rest of them did physical activity only occasionally.
The probability of doing sports was larger among young men who lived in better
financial circumstances and children whose parents had a higher level of education.
Other earlier studies led to the same results (Perényi 2010).
In our study, social capital was examined measuring the incidence of different
organisational membership types. 18% of young people had some kind of an organ
isational relationship. This percentage is higher than the proportion of voluntarism
in Hungarian society – but researches studying civil membership also show that
the involvement of young people is above the average (Bartal 2010). Researches
focusing on the organisations and the membership both characterise the Hungarian
civil sector being sport- and leisure time-centered (Bartal 2005).
Membership in leisure time and sports organisations was 6.6%, but the strongest affiliation was to religious organisations (the difference between the two proportions is not significant). Accordingly, the ‘mobilising’ ability of religious organisations was relatively high in 2000 – this is especially interesting since the religionbased motivation in voluntarism, as regards the whole society, was relatively low
(Bartal & Kmetty 2011a, 2011b). As for the nexus between civil membership and
sporting activity, see Table 2.
5
erényi (2010) wrote a PhD dissertation on sports in the 2008 youth survey. She examined the relationship
P
between doing sports and values in the whole sample.
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
40
Table 1
Membership in different organisations – percentage (2000)
Multiple answer (N = 1,770)
Type of organisation
Yes (%)
Religious community
7.8
Leisure time, sports organisation
6.6
Student organisation
4.3
Scout organisation
0.9
Non-political youth organisation
0.6
Other civil organisation
0.6
Environmental organisation
0.2
Trade union
0.1
Political party
0.1
Pioneer organisation
0.1
Local advocacy organisation
0.1
Political youth organisation
0.0
Table 2
Sporting activity – civil membership6 – 2000 (raw percentage)
Not involved
in any sporting activity
(N = 1,013)
Practices sport
(N = 757)
6
Member in at least one organisation.
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
Not a member in any
civil organisation
Member in a
civil organisation
88.90
11.10
74.60
25.40
41
11% of those who are not involved in some sort of sporting activity are members
in some organisation, but among those who do sports, this proportion is 25%. The correlation is significant (p < 0.000), nevertheless, the strength of the correlation based on
the Cramer V index is weak (CV = 0.188). This result is modest on its own as there are
similar background variables behind both the sporting activity and the civil membership. The results are partly tautological since adolescents who do sports are in many
cases obliged to enter the sports organisation they train in. If we separate sporting and
leisure time activities from civil organisation membership, 13.1% of the analysed population are members in some organisation. However, young people who do sports are
overrepresented even in this narrowed participation dimension; 15.3% are members in
a civil organisation which is not related to sports and leisure time (p < 0.02, CV = 0.06).
In the second part of our analysis we test the relationship with a multi-variable
statistical model. Since our dependent variable (membership in a civil organisation)
is a binomial dummy variable, we used a logistic regression model. In our analysis
we applied a hierarchical approach. As a first step, we measured the background impact of demographic variables, then as a second step, we included the variable sport
as well. As a third step, we used a narrowed sense of civil participation as a dependent
variable where sporting and leisure time participations did not figure (see Table 3).
Although we were primarily concentrating on the effects of sport in our study, it
is also worth to take a brief look at our basic model. The higher proportion of female
participation is somewhat surprising since a slight majority of men in civil activity
can be observed in the adult population (Bartal 2010), but the effect is not strong,
the ‘p’ value is 0.038. Higher education level of the parents also indicates stronger
civil commitment. Cultural patterns picked up at home certainly have great impact
on whether a person volunteers in a civil organisation or not (see also Dávid et al.
2008). Better subjective living standards have the same consequences as the higher
educational level of parents; the better someone feels about their family’s financial
status, the more likely one is to participate in a civil activity. The influence of the
type of settlement someone lives in is not strong, only small towns show a different
effect on the general level of civil engagement. The odds ratio of the residents of
small towns is only half of that of those living in villages.
We have kept religiosity for the end. The impact of this variable is the strongest on civil activity (this variable accounts for 40% of the explanatory power). The
stronger one’s religious engagement is, the more likely one is to become a member
of a civil organisation. This effect is not surprising at all if we recall our table above
which shows that young people linked to civil organisations by means of religious organisations are in the majority. The model explains 10.6% of the total variance. In the
second phase we included our sports variable. The impact of the other variables did not
change notably, solely the ‘gender’ effect disappeared from our model. Sporting activity appeared with an odds ratio above two, thus – excluding the influence of the other
variables – the chance of a physically active person to become a member of a civil
organisation is more than double of their peers’ who are not involved in sports. The
model’s explanatory power has also increased significantly, almost to 15%. Although
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
0.000
0.038
0.001
0.000
0.000
23.872
4.301
12.088
14.365
52.243
�
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��
0.40
0.20
0.18
0.09
51.735
10.517
7.427
36.946
0.786
0.000
0.001
0.006
0.000
0.375
–471
–417
10.6%
1.651
38.479
0.34
0.14
0.11
0.00
81.24
6.33
6.39
54.86
0.98
0.00
0.01
0.01
0.00
0.32
2.73
0.80
1.24
0.02
1.17
0.29
4.37
0.04
1.40
–390
–323
16.2%
1.651
0.670
0.11
0.66
0.864
0.11
0.69
0.11
12.6
0.573
0.00
0.51
1.001.00
2.052
0.771
1.236
0.070
0.884
0.000 2.359
–471
–397
14.9%
1.651
0.705
0.078
0.899
0.463
0.13
11.435
0.583
0.001
1.00
2.023
0.741
1.300
0.133
0.757
0.09
0.18
0.50
0.12
0.12
0.00
7
We did not use the classical logistic regression model but a ‘Generalised Linear Model’ with a logistic estimative function. We used a robust estimative method to estimate the
covariance matrix in order to diminish the chance of distortion originating from the multicollinearity of the variables.
n: the number of variables in the model; wald: Wald statistics to the variables; df: the degree of freedom of the variable; D0: The Log-likelihood quotient multiplied by –2 in the empty
model. The formula is based on Székelyi & Barna (2008).
**
1 was the best, 5 was the worst value (for living standards). Chance quotient below 1 means that the relatively better financial status increases the chance of civil participation.
***
1: Not religious, 2: In his own way, 3: According to the instruction of the Church.
*
Practices sport
LL – intercept model
LL – full model
R2LA
N
Type of settlement
Budapest
0.114
Regional capital
0.582
11.092
Other town
0.001
Village
(Intercept)
Gender
Parents’ highest
level of education
Subjective financial
status**
Religiosity***
Dependent variable
Civil activity demographic variables
Civil activity including variable sport
Civil activity without sports
and leisure membership
*
Wald Sig. Exp(B)Importance Wald Sig. Exp(B)Importance Wald Sig. Exp(B)Importance
Chi-square
Chi-square
Chi-square
Table 3
Logistic regression model based on civil membership7 (hierarchical approach) – 2000
42
43
regarding its influence, sporting activity is not the strongest indicator, it is second only
to religiosity. This is in line with the fact that following affiliation to Church, sports
and leisure time civil activity are the second most popular forms of civil participation.
In the third executing we omitted sports and leisure time membership from the
dependent variable. Even in this case, sports figured in our model with an odds ratio
over 1, which means that the over representation of young people who do sports in
civil participation is not only due to sporting organisations but a mechanism of action
can be observed even beyond that. However, the explanatory power within the model
of the variable defining the fact of sporting fell back to a level of approximately 10%.
4.2. Youth 2008
According to the youth research Ifjúság 2008 (Szabó & Bauer 2009), sporting activity has increased slightly during the time period between the two surveys: 48% of the
children of the 15 to 18 age range were involved in some physical activity beside PE
lessons. The background variables of sporting activity were on the whole similar to
those of 2000; maybe it is worth highlighting that the proportion of active children in
Budapest has diminished significantly while it has greatly increased in other regions.
We do not intend to deal with the reasons behind this in the current paper, nevertheless, it is an important trend in sports psychology. Since a longer sport-related question block was used in one of the sub-samples of the 2008 youth research, we have
the chance to understand the background motivations behind sporting activity. The
following table presents the background motivations for sporting activity (Table 4).
Table 4
Reasons behind the regularity of doing sports – 2008
(based on multiple answers) in % (N = 727)
Reasons
Health
Fitness
Happiness
Feeling good
Appearance
Good company
Losing weight
Parental constraint
Other
%
63.00
57.60
46.80
38.60
26.30
25.80
9.30
8.10
2.80
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
44
Motivators are mainly health, fitness, happiness and feeling good. In respect
of social capital, social factor (good company) is the most substantial; 25% of the
sample considered that factor important. We will come back to that later during the
analysis of the results connected to civil membership.
Compared to 2000, civil membership was analysed in a brand new conceptual
framework. Twenty organisational types were listed in the survey, and there were
4 different answer options to all of them: formal member, participant in the work,
visitor of events, not linked in any way to any such organisation. We summarised the
results of civil engagement in the following table (Table 5).
Table 5
Civil organisational engagement – 2008 (N = 2018)
Results of engagement
Not linked
Visitor of events
%
63.2
7.1
Participant in the work
18.4
Formal member
11.3
Total
100.0
11% of the respondents answered that they were formal members of at least
one organisation, 18% participated in the work of the organisations (without being a
formal member), and another 7.1% were not strongly engaged but sometimes visited
the events of the organisations.
According to the 2008 survey, young people principally participated in sports
and leisure time organisations and different student organisations. Compared to
2000, religion-related organisational membership has decreased significantly, less
than 1% were linked to organisations of the Church or other religious communities
(Table 6).
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
45
Table 6
Civil organisational engagement – 2008 (raw percentage)
Formal
membership
Participates
in its work
Sometimes
visits
its events
Is not
linked
Sports club or sports association
5.8
10.7
4.6
78.9
Student organisation
4.3
5.9
4.7
85.1
Leisure time organisation/group
2.2
5.5
4.2
88.1
Cultural, folklore
or art group/organisation
0.9
3.4
3.7
92.0
Environmental, nature
or animal protection organisation
0.8
1.5
2.4
95.4
Organisation of the Church,
religious community
0.8
2.1
1.0
96.2
Other youth organisation
0.7
0.9
1.0
97.4
Other organisation
0.6
0.7
0.0
98.6
Political youth organisation
0.4
0.6
0.6
98.4
Organisation dealing with mental,
social problems
0.4
0.8
0.5
98.3
Professional association
0.3
0.2
0.3
99.2
Charity organisation
0.3
1.2
1.4
97.1
Civil guards
0.3
0.5
0.2
99.1
Peace movement
0.2
0.0
0.7
99.0
Other advocacy organisation
0.2
0.2
0.3
99.3
Organisation of or for Hungarians
living abroad
0.2
0.1
0.3
99.3
Political party
0.2
0.0
0.1
99.7
Civil circle
0.2
0.1
0.3
99.5
Human rights movement
or organisation
0.2
0.2
0.6
99.1
Trade union
0.2
0.1
0.4
99.4
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
46
The difference regarding the attachment to religious organisations is so great
that it must have some methodological explications (of course, we cannot exclude
the possibility that there was indeed some decrease in the past period).8 As this paper
does not focus on methodological matters, we do not examine this problem. This undoubtedly makes it more complicated to compare the two databases reliably. Validity
also diminishes due to the fact that participation in civil organisations was divided
into formal and informal participation. In 2000, membership was subject to exam
ination; presumably, adolescents without formal relation to the organisation defined
themselves as members as well. Regarding social capital, it is less important to be
a formal member, as primarily it is the time spent in the organisation that counts,
hence we have integrated formal members and the ones participating in the work of
the organisations into one category. It is worth re-examining the relationship of civil
activity and involvement in sports with a simple cross-table (Table 7).
Table 7
Sporting activity – civil activity – 2008 (raw percentage)
Not member or participant
in a civil organisation
Member or participant
in a civil organisation
Not involved
in sporting activity
(N = 1039)
85.2
14.9
Practices sports
(N = 964)
54
45.9
The relationship to the 2008 data is even stronger; 46% of the adolescents who
practice sports is a member of some civil organisation or participates in the work of
such an organisation, while the percentage for those not engaging in any sporting
activity is only 15% (p > 0.000). There is a medium correlation between the two
variables (CV = 0.36). If we do not take sports organisations into account in relation
to civil organisation membership and participation, 20% of the examined population
can be regarded as active from a civil aspect. Young people doing sports are overrepresented on this platform as well: 28% of them are active (p = 0.000).
As a next step we apply a logistic regression model to the 2008 civil activity
8
This is supported by the fact that the proportion of non-religious people increased from 42% to 53% in the
time period between 2000 and 2008 in the two samples. See also Rosta who claims that in Hungary, like in
Poland, ‘the nominal level of religious practices has decreased, but the number of those endorsing religious
beliefs has increased’ (2012, 100).
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
47
variable (as mentioned above, we have converted the variable into a binary one). The
results are represented in Table 8. The structure of Table 8 squares with Table 3. In
the first executing we did not include the sporting variable. In the first and the second
executing the dependent variable is activity in a civil organisation, while in the third
it is a limited civil activity without participation in sports organisations.
The level of education of the parents and the subjective financial status, similarly to the data of the 2000 survey, influenced civil participation in 2008 as well; the
access to both cultural and economic resources has positive effects on this form of
participation. The settlement type variable was not available for the 2008 data, so we
substituted it with settlement size. If we compare the people living in villages or in
the regional capital, the civil activity of the second group is higher; this is in contrast
with our earlier results, but it should be stressed that the conceptual framework for
civil activity is also different. As regards the affiliation to different civil organisations, we have already pointed out the significantly smaller proportion of religious
organisations which predicted a diminution of the role of religion in our model. The
importance of the religion indicator has sunk back to 0.23 as we had expected, and
the setback is even more striking if we consider that the explanatory power of the
model also decreased to 7%. However, the sports variable included in the second
phase appeared in our model with a stronger impact than expected. The odds ratio
of the sports variable has ascended to above four, which is almost the double of the
result measured in 2000. With the inclusion of sport, the explanatory power of the
model increased to over 20%. Among the indicators we have used, sport had the
strongest correlation to civil activity. In our model analysing civil activity without
sports organisations the odds ratio of sporting fell back to 2.5, but it still proved to be
the strongest indicator in our model. That is, sporting raised the probability even of
civil activity examined without sports organisations in both time periods.
As already mentioned, it is quite difficult to compare the two time periods due
to the different conceptual elaboration of civil participation. In our last model we
attempted to limit the selection of different types of civil activity in a way that the
two databases may become comparable. Six organisation types that were included
in both surveys could be identified: political party, political youth organisation, trade
union, non-political youth organisation, environmental organisation, student organ
isation. Although religions or Church-related organisations were included in both
surveys, we omitted them from the subsequent analyses due to the aforementioned
methodical problems. The affiliation to sporting or leisure time organisations was
not included in our restricted civil activity variable either. With this restriction, in the
case of the 2000 data civil membership was 5.4%, and 12.5% in 2008.9 We omitted
the settlement variable from our earlier models as well because of the difference in
the query methods. Table 9 shows the results.
9
There still remains a possibility of distortion deriving from the different query methods, but unfortunately we
could not remedy this.
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
2.220
27.495
10.761
10.747
Gender
Parents’ highest
level of education
Subjective financial
status
Religiosity
0.001
0.001
0.000
0.038
0.000
1.295
0.801
1.400
0.23
0.23
0.39
0.757
0.223
7.043
3.618
15.909
0.243
46.797
7.0%
1.928
N
2
R LA
–610
LL – full model
–660
Practices sport
158.967
Type of settlement
Budapest
12.290
0.341
0.827
0.16
12.500
Regional capital
0.020
1.470
Township with more
0.883
0.978
than 5000 inhabitants
Township with 2000 to 4999
0.432
1.144
inhabitants
Township with less
–
1.00
than 2000 inhabitants 17.323
(Intercept)
4.308
1.928
20.3%
–522
–660
0.000
1.00
0.54
52.340
1.136
0.471
–
1.001
5.776
2.789
16.338
21.076
72.866
0.996
0.10
0.06
0.16
1.009
0.16
5.455
1.407
1.241
0.875
1.313
1.056
0.072
0.966
0.050
0.008
0.057
0.000
0.622
0.000
2.527
1.00
1.303
1.182
1.143
1.338
1.243
0.875
1.345
1.748
0.024
1.928
11.8%
–473
–541
0.000
–
0.173
0.328
0.556
0.130
0.016
0.095
0.000
0.000
0.000
0.41
0.11
0.22
0.25
Dependent variable
Civil activity demographic variables
Civil activity including variable sport
Civil activity without sports
and leisure membership
Wald
Sig. Exp(B) Importance
Wald Sig. Exp(B)Importance Wald Sig. Exp(B)Importance
Chi-square
Chi-square
Chi-square
Table 8
Logistic regression model based on civil membership (hierarchical approach) – 2008
48
1.895
9.619
Religiosity
Practices sport
0.002
0.169
0.293
6.1%
1.662
N
2.045
1.225
0.877
1.172
2.028
0.009
Exp(B)
R2LA
–134
1.107
Subjective financial status
0.163
LL – full model
1.943
Parents’ highest level of education
0.002
–147
9.418
Gender
0.000
Sig.
2000
42.339
Wald
Chi-square
(Intercept)
0.50
0.50
Importance
37.705
0.006
0.406
13.092
22.835
65.604
Wald
Chi-square
0.000
0.940
0.524
0.000
0.000
0.000
Sig.
Table 9
Logistic regression model applied to a limited civil activity in the two periods
2.628
1.009
0.939
1.359
2.038
0.013
Exp(B)
1.928
15.9%
–203
–246
2008
0.43
0.24
0.33
Importance
49
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
50
Religious organisations, communities and different charity organisations were
not included in the simplified civil organisation activity variable. Consequently, religiosity was not related to this civil activity dimension. Sporting activity, however,
appeared in both models and proved to be the strongest factor. In the explanatory
model of the last model’s civil activity the gender effect seemed to be very strong.
This is not surprising if we analyse the civil organisation forms that set up our narrower civil activity variable – several organisation types of a strong political orientation appear in it which attract men more even at a later age. The sports variable
figured in our model in both years with an odds ratio over 2 which underpinned our
hypothesis that sport, besides sporting organisation membership, encourages young
people to join other civil organisations as well.
5. Summary
In our study we proceeded from the concept of social capital. Although not all of its
types are favourable, social capital has a positive relationship with both democratic development and economic effectiveness. Therefore we consider it important to
highlight the socialisation aspects of social capital formation. As we have mentioned
in our references to other authors, civil membership and general trust at a young age
determine the strength of the different social capital indicators in adulthood. On this
basis, in our study we examined the background social variables that might influence juvenile civil activity. Unfortunately, the analysis framework did not allow us
to include social capital indicators other than civil activity; we still believe that the
results are relevant. Positive effects of sporting activity at a young age such as better
self-esteem or a healthier lifestyle have already been manifested by many scientists.
In our analysis we intended to complement these results by the presentation of their
correlation to civil activity. The analysis of the 2000 and 2008 youth research subsamples of the 15 to 18 age cohort supported our preliminary hypothesis. Moreover,
the relationships proved to be stronger than expected. In both the two-dimensional
and the multi-dimensional analyses, sport was significantly related to civil activity.
This statement remained true even as we filtered civil work for sports organisations
from civil activity. With the inclusion of sporting activity, the explanatory power of
our models increased significantly in all dimensions, and this sports variable turned
out to be the strongest in most cases. This strength of impact is even more interesting considering that our models had been controlled beforehand based on the available indicators of cultural and economic resources. The models have also revealed
why sports and leisure time civil organisations are the most popular in the adult
cohorts – the first encounter with this type of organisation occurs at an early age,
which presumably implies some kind of socialisation effect as well. An absolutely
reliable comparison of the two time periods is not possible due to the different conceptual frameworks. This is not necessarily a handicap; it can also be an advantage
as sports seemed to be an important background factor in both conceptual frameEJMH 9:1, June 2014
51
works. The exact measurement of the effect strength is not possible; in any case, our
aim was above all to reveal the correlations.
Although the main strand of our study did not focus on religion, it might be
worth including some observations on that subject as well. Besides the sports factor,
in the background of a certain kind of voluntary work, the connection to religious
communities also seems to be important. On the basis of our study it cannot be determined to what extent religion has an impact on civil engagement at a young age,
but it is obvious that in certain segments it can have an important motivating power.
It is no coincidence that Coleman (1990) has included religiosity in the list of social
capital indicators. The radical decrease in the proportion of religious people during
the 8 years between the two queries will probably exert a negative influence on the
strength of social capital in the forthcoming generations. There is no full consensus
between social researchers in the question regarding which forms of civil organ
isation favour economic development and the consolidation of democratic norms.
Bekkers and his colleagues (2008) underlined the ‘merit’ of civil organisations inspiring instrumental activity against expressive organisations. Doing sports primarily increases the participation in expressive organisations. The presented research
was based on cross-sectional samples so we need to be careful when interpreting
the results. In Hungary, the admission of young people in sports organisations can
in many cases be seen as a ‘constraint’ – clubs oblige young people to join (as a
legal guarantee for the collection of membership fees, for example). Consequently,
a strong structural link can be detected between sporting activity and civil organisation membership within the young generation. But the influence of sports on civil
activity can be judged strong even if we neglect sports organisations. In accordance
with Putnam, we believe that it is not the nature of the task performed within the civil
organisation that is the most substantial from the point of view of social capital but
the participation in a community and the social network deriving from it. And for
this, youth sporting activity is – possibly – a good basis.
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EJMH 9:1, June 2014
DOI: 10.5708/EJMH.9.2014.1.4
Helene Ybrandt*
TEN-YEAR TRENDS IN SELF-REPORTED FAMILY
AND PSYCHOLOGICAL PROBLEMS AMONG
SWEDISH ADOLESCENTS
(Received: 14 July 2012; accepted: 5 December 2012)
The aim of the study was to compare problem severity among Swedish adolescents, using self-reported and interviewer-rated data from 2000 and 2010, gathered with the Adolescent Drug Abuse
Diagnosis (ADAD) interview. Data relating to family relationships, psychological status and
problems were collected in two samples randomly selected from the adolescent population aged
15–17 years (121 adolescents in the year 2000 and 485 adolescents in the year 2010). The results
show that the self-rated and interviewer-rated problem severity of adolescents in 2000 and in 2010
seems to be unchanged, with no increased polarisation for sex and socio-economic groups. There
was a difference, however, was of girls reporting more severe problems in family relationships
compared to boys. In 2010, compared to 2000, adolescents reported on fewer psychological problems (e.g. experiences of serious anxiety and tension, comprehension and concentration disorder,
memory loss and, in addition, problems with relationships in and outside the family sphere – e.g.
problems with getting along with siblings, and with trusting other people). In order to promote
the mental health of adolescents, it is essential, during the next decade to reveal relationship problems, such as problems of insecurity with people outside the family.
Keywords: Adolescent Drug Abuse Diagnosis (ADAD), adolescence, mental health, family, relationship problems
Zehn-Jahres-Trends bei familiären und psychischen Problemen in Selbstberichten von
schwedischen Heranwachsenden: Ziel der Studie war es festzustellen, wie gravierend die Probleme von schwedischen Jugendlichen sind. Hierfür wurden Daten aus Selbstberichten und aus
Interviews verwendet, die in den Jahren 2000 und 2010 mit Hilfe der Adolescent Drug Abuse
Diagnosis (ADAD, Drogenmissbrauch-Diagnose bei Heranwachsenden) erhoben worden waren.
In zwei Zufallsstichproben aus der Altersgruppe von 15 bis 17 Jahren (121 Personen im Jahr 2000,
485 Personen in 2010) wurden Daten zu familiären Beziehungen sowie zu psychischem Status
und psychischen Problemen erhoben. Beim Vergleich zwischen den in Interviews erhaltenen und
*
elene Ybrandt, Department of Psychology, Umeå University, Mediagränd 14, D-114, SE-90187 Umeå,
H
Sweden; [email protected].
TEN-YEAR TRENDS
55
den durch Selbstberichte gewonnenen Ergebnissen von 2000 und 2010 konnte hinsichtlich der
Schwere der Probleme der Heranwachsenden keine Veränderung festgestellt werden; die Divergenz zwischen den Geschlechtern bzw. zwischen verschiedenen sozioökonomischen Gruppen ist
nicht angestiegen. Allerdings betrachten die Mädchen Probleme in ihren familiären Beziehungen als schwerwiegender als die Jungen. Im Vergleich zu 2000 berichteten die Heranwachsenden
2010 über weniger psychische Probleme (z.B. Angstzustände, Spannungen, Probleme mit dem
Verstehen, der Konzentration oder dem Gedächtnis sowie Probleme mit Beziehungen innerhalb
und außerhalb der Familie – wie Probleme im Kontakt mit den Geschwistern oder fehlendes
Vertrauen gegenüber anderen). Eine wichtige Aufgabe für das kommende Jahrzehnt wird es sein,
Beziehungsprobleme wie z.B. Unsicherheit gegenüber Personen außerhalb der Familie genauer
zu untersuchen, um die mentale Gesundheit von Heranwachsenden zu fördern.
Schlüsselbegriffe: Drogenmissbrauch-Diagnose bei Heranwachsenden (ADAD), Adoleszenz,
Mentalhygiene, Familie, Beziehungsprobleme
1. Introduction
Adolescents’ self-rated mental health and well-being over the last decades has been
generally at a high level in Sweden, and as a whole, Swedish adolescents seem to be
experiencing vital mental health. Adolescents are pleased with their families, their
school and social activities, and peer relations (Beckman & Hagquist 2010; Petersen et al. 2010; Statens Folkhälsoinstitut 2011; Statens Offentliga Utredningar
2006). At the same time there is an ongoing discussion about a gradual increase in
the severity of adolescents’ problems. The media and official reports pronounce that
adolescents’ mental health has deteriorated, especially that of girls (of 16 years of
age) and of adolescents and young adults between 16 and 24 years of age (Beckman
& Hagquist 2010). Symptoms of worry, depression and sleeping problems have
worsened together with psychosomatic symptoms such as stress.
The official reports, media, and the research descriptions of the trends mostly
show congruency; in that researches also indicate that there has been an increase in the
amount of self-reported psychological and psychosomatic symptoms among adolescents during the last two decades (Berntsson & Köhler 2001; Cederquist 2006;
Danielsson 2006). However, research also shows that the actual adolescent mental health status could be best understood as a U-shaped curve, with the proportion
of those in good and bad condition increased. This makes the mental health spectra
polarised due to potential variables such as age, sex, socioeconomic status and geographic region. A general trend found in several studies is girls reporting more in
ternalised problems such as depression and anxiety than boys (Petersen et al. 2010)
and boys reporting more problems with delinquent behaviour than girls (Beckman
& Hagquist 2010; Broberg et al. 2001). However, in the last ten years other trend
findings have shown a lower rate in externalising problems such as aggression and rule
breaking behaviour for both boys and girls. There are also studies showing that the
prevalence of some mental health problems, for example self-destructive behaviour
and neuropsychiatric problems like ADHD has not changed (Petersen et al. 2010).
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
56
H. YBRANDT
Population-based and health care statistics-based studies on international trends
of adolescents’ mental health, particularly in the USA and Europe, also show divergent results (Petersen et al. 2010). For example Achenbach and colleagues
(2003) found a decrease in total problem severity at the end of 1990 compared to
1989 and in internalised problems, especially of girls. Tick and colleagues (2008)
had contrary findings for the years between 1993 and 2003: an increase in internalising problems, suicidal ideation and self-harm with adolescent girls. Their results
show that younger adolescent girls experienced the most increased overall problem
severity. Maughan, Iervolino and Collishaw (2005), in their summary of the
international trends for adolescents’ mental health during the last fifty years in Western countries, also found a higher frequency in girls’ self-hurting behaviour together
with a similar frequency of anorexia nervosa. When it comes to externalised problems, the results show a trend of lower frequency of aggressive and rule-breaking
behavioural problems with boys in the Netherlands and a simultaneous increase of
externalised problems with girls (Tick et al. 2008).
Accordingly, the data on time trends are incomplete and to the present day there
has been a scarcity of solid epidemiological studies based on which we might draw
rigorous conclusions about adolescent mental health trends, and there is not enough
evidence for making clear statements about the development of specific symptoms
over time on both international and national levels. The studies have diverging time
perspectives, informants, age groups, and rating methods which make comparisons
between studies difficult. There is also a need for updated epidemiological studies
on adolescent mental health, and the aim of this study is to contribute to the subject
elucidating time trends in self-reported family and mental health problems among
Swedish adolescents between 2000 and 2010. Another aim is to present possible
variations effected by the age, sex, and socioeconomic status of the parents and to
detect possible polarisations related to the sex, age, or the socioeconomic status of
the parents.
It is well-known that adolescent mental health is linked to different social and
family variables, for example, parental socioeconomic status and family health.
Adolescents with a foreign background are found to be a risk group when accom
panied by a low socioeconomic status of the parents (Beckman & Hagquist 2010)
and this is also the case with adolescents living with a single parent of low income
(Hagquist 2010; Jerden et al. 2011; Ringback Weitoft et al. 2008). Parental
abuse and adolescent lack of support and trust in family relationships are risk factors
for negative mental health (Ybrandt 2010; Ybrandt & Armelius 2010). In a recent study, Swedish adolescents reported that they consider the family to be the most
important determinant for their mental health (Johansson et al. 2007).
The focus of this study is the ‘high adolescent’ age group of 15–17. This age
group has been found to report more internalising and externalising problems than
younger and older adolescents (Broberg et al. 2001). The data for this study were
gathered in 2000 and 2010, with the same instrument, a multi-dimensional assessment tool called Adolescent Drug Abuse Diagnosis (ADAD) (Friedman & Utada
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
TEN-YEAR TRENDS
57
1989). As for two of ADAD’s nine problem areas, specifically family relationships
and psychological status and problems, the results were based both on adolescents’
self-ratings of problem severity and of importance of need for help, and on the inter
viewer’s ratings of problem severity and of the need for extra help and treatment in
the life areas.
The ADAD instrument assesses the negative aspects of the mental health concept (Johansson et al. 2007) and is constructed to facilitate assessment of changes
both at individual and at group levels. The ADAD is used in Sweden on a regular
basis in special youth homes for adolescents detained under the Swedish Care of
Young Persons Act and in social services to assess problem severity changes and
treatment outcome (Söderholm Carpelan & Hermodsson 2004). Besides this
extensive use of the ADAD in groups of adolescents with antisocial problems, the
results of a recent normative study of the Swedish ADAD (Ybrandt 2013) support
that ADAD has the potential to serve as an instrument for assessing individual adolescents’ self-reported problems in normal groups. Results of the normative study
show that the effects of age, sex, and geographic region were small but significant,
with older adolescents, girls, and adolescents in cities scoring higher for problem
severity.
2. Method
2.1. Subjects
The ADAD in 2000 was completed by 121 adolescents (60 boys and 61 girls) and
the ADAD in 2010 was completed by 485 adolescents (217 boys and 268 girls) aged
15–17 years (both samples were the total sample of interviewed adolescents). For
demographics and other characteristics for the two adolescent groups see Table 1.
The representation of adolescents with a foreign background (i.e. either the adolescent or both parents were born in countries other than Sweden) and parents outside of employment was somewhat lower in both samples than those in the overall
Swedish population (Statistisk årsbok för Sverige 2011). In 2010, 36% of the adolescents came from the regions of Stockholm, Gothenburg and Malmö, and the remaining 64% of the adolescents came from other parts of the country, compared to the
year 2000 when all of the adolescents came from a small town and its neighbouring
region. There was a small effect (partial η² = 0.031) of the geographic region (town
versus other parts of the country) in the sample of 2010. 36% of adolescents from the
three largest towns show more self-rated and interviewer-rated problems than adolescents from the regions outside these towns. There was also a significant difference (F
= 10.22, p = 0.001) between the socioeconomic statuses (SES) of the fathers in the
two samples; their SES was higher in 2000 than in 2010. Age, sex, background, and
living arrangement were comparable between the two adolescent groups.
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
58
H. YBRANDT
Table 1
Demographics and other characteristics for the two adolescent groups; 2000 and 2010
2000
N = 121
2010
N = 485
Background (%)
Born in Sweden
Foreign background
Adopted
94
6
5
94
6
2
Adolescents
Mean age
Girls
Boys
16
16
16
16
16
16
Sex (%)
Girls
Boys
51
49
54
46
Living arrangement (%)
(Recently lived with)
Both parents
Single parent
Single/other custodian
68
17
15
66
15
19
Parents Work status, all (%)
Employed
Unemployed
Students
Other
90
2
2
6
84
5
2
9
Socioeconomic status (%)
Mother
Group 1
Group 2
Group 3
16
48
36
43
28
29
Father
Group 1
Group 2
Group 3
29
27
44
48
21
31
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
TEN-YEAR TRENDS
59
2.2. Procedure
The adolescents in the sample in 2000 were randomly selected from a register of all
adolescents in a small town in the north of Sweden and its vicinity. The selection
process went on until an equal number of boys and girls were obtained in the three
different age groups (15, 16 and 17 years of age). As soon as an adolescent declined
to participate in the study, a new adolescent was chosen at random. The total loss was
43% and the greatest loss was found among 17-year-old boys (76%).
The sample in 2010 was recruited from a Swedish population register from
which a randomised sample in the three age groups was chosen. Dropout rate for the
total sample in 2010 was 44% (boys 49% and girls 39%). Reasons for declining to
participate were disabilities such as autism, moving within Sweden with no new address given or moving abroad, or a decision of parents and their adolescent children
not to participate. The participants (2000 and 2010) were contacted by letter. The
interviews in 2000 were made at the Department of Psychology at the University
of Umeå and in 2010 the interviewer phoned the interviewees. The interviewers,
both in 2000 and 2010, were five women, between the ages of 18 and 50, graduating
psychology students, experienced clinical psychologists, and doctoral students of
psychology. All interviewers received a two-day training course to get an understanding of how to administer and perform an ADAD interview. The course was
given by a psychologist with extensive experience of ADAD interviews, and before
the interviews started each interviewer had to do two approved test interviews.
2.3. Instruments
The Adolescent Drug Abuse Diagnosis (ADAD) is a 150-item semi-structured interview
with mostly fixed reply alternatives and checklists (Friedman & Utada 1989). Information is gathered in nine separate problem areas categorised as medical status, school
history and status, employment, social activities and peer relations, family background
and relationships, psychological status and problems, legal involvement, alcohol use,
and drug use, and adolescents are mostly asked about problem severity for the last 30
days. Two of these nine problem areas are used in this study. Family background and
relationships deals with the quality of the adolescent’s family relations and problems and
includes information about family conflicts; psychological, sexual and emotional abuse;
positive and negative roles and the adolescent’s behaviour at home; and negative par
ental reactions to the adolescent’s behaviour. Adolescents answer on a four-grade scale
(0 = none/not at all, 1 = a little, 2 = a fair amount, 3 = a lot). Psychological status and
problems includes a checklist of common adolescent symptoms and psychological and
emotional reactions, as well as an assessment of both current and lifetime psychiatric status in terms of the most common diagnostic categories. Fifty items from checklists were
used and the adolescents had to answer whether the items fitted their mental health situ
ation with yes or no. The separate items in the two problem areas are presented in Table 2.
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
60
H. YBRANDT
Table 2
List of the separate questions in the family relationships and psychological health problem area
Area
Family
Psychological
health
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
Questions
How much conflict is there in your family? How much would you say your
parents argue or fight? How much conflict is there in your family over money
and finances? How much would you say your family suffered financial hardships in the past year? How much fun or how pleasant is your family to live
with? How well do you get along with the members of your family? Mother?
Father? Sister? Brother? Other family members or relatives? How satisfied are
you with how well you get along with your family? How difficult do you find
it to talk to your mother about things that bother you? How difficult do you
find it to talk to your father about things that bother you? How close do you
feel to your mother? How close do you feel to your father? How much do you
feel you can rely on what your mother tells you? How much do you feel you
can rely on what your father tells you?
Here are some feelings and reactions that young people sometimes experience. Tell me if any of them apply to you. Lack of confidence in yourself. Feel
lack of problem-solving or decision-making skills. Feel you are too shy. Feel
you don’t belong or fit in. Feel lonely. Feel easily discouraged. Feel you are
not as smart as others. Daydream a lot. Feel blue or depressed. Feel anxious
or worried a lot. Feel you have no interest in things. Feel bored. Get into
arguments/fights easily. Can’t go to sleep without drugs. Have nightmares.
Feel people cannot be trusted. Feel you are watched by or talked about by
others. Have difficulties expressing your feelings. Do angry things you can’t
control. Feel like injuring/hurting yourself. Feel afraid you will hurt someone
physically. Are always telling lies. Feel like you’d be better off dead. Feel like
your head is going to burst. Get crazy ideas in your head. Feel that something
inside you makes you do things you don’t want to do. Feel lonely even when
you are with people. Feel others are against you or out to get you. Feel that
you should be punished for your sins. Feel that something is wrong with your
mind. Feel afraid of losing control of your behaviour or actions. Feel that
things are not real. React by slamming doors. Have thoughts of ending your
life. Feel hopeless about the future. Your feelings are easily hurt. Feel people
are unfriendly/dislike you. Feel inferior to others. Have feelings of worthlessness. Feel very self-conscious (uneasy about yourself when with others). Feel
like killing someone. Experienced serious depression. Experienced serious
anxiety or tension. Experienced trouble understanding, concentrating, or remembering. Experienced trouble controlling violent behaviour. Experienced
serious thoughts of suicide. Experienced hallucination (saw or heard things
that may not be there). Taken prescribed meds for psychological or emotional
problems. Had anorexia or bulimia. Deliberate hurting yourself.
TEN-YEAR TRENDS
61
In addition to responding to items relating to the specific problem areas, both
the interviewer and the adolescent independently rate how much help is needed for
each problem area (Interviewer Severity Rating – ISR and Adolescent Rating – AR).
The questions to the adolescents are ‘How troubled or bothered have you been by
these . . . problems in the past 30 days?’ and ‘How important to you is the treatment
for these . . . problems?’ The question to the interviewer is ‘How would you rate the
client’s need for . . . treatment?’ The interviewer’s rating is done on a ten-point scale
(0–9) with scoring 0–1 representing no real problems and no need for further help
and 8–9 representing extreme problems where treatment is absolutely necessary. The
interviewer severity ratings consider the overall problem severity in the area with
focus on critical questions and the adolescent’s rating for need of help. The adolescent’s rating for level of concern about each problem area (ARC) and need of help
(ARH) is done on a four-point scale (0–3) with 0 = not at all, 1 = a little, 2 = a fair
amount and 3 = a lot.
The six-grade scale of the socioeconomic index (Statistiska centralbyrån 1983)
in ADAD distinguishes unskilled and semiskilled workers (1), skilled workers (2),
assistant non-manual employees (3), intermediate non-manual employees (4), employed and self-employed professionals, higher civil servants, and executives (5)
and self-employed other than professionals (6). The scale was divided into three
groups; group 1 represents SES grades 1 and 2, group 2 represents SES grades 3 and
4, while group 3 represents SES 5 and 6.
Good inter-rater reliability was shown for the ISR for the Family and Psychological status and problem areas (Pearson’s r 0.70 and 75, Cohen’s kappa 0.57
and 0.61) in the 2000 study (for details see Börjesson et al. 2007). The Swedish
ADAD psychological status and problem area show an overall good concurrent validity (0.80 Youth Self Report total score, 0.77 Youth Self Report Internalised problems, 0.55 Youth Self Report Externalised problems and 0.70 Becks Depression
Inventory), and low to moderate predictive validity (for details see B
örjesson &
Ybrandt 2012).
2.4. Statistical analysis
Main and interaction effects of year, age, sex and socioeconomic status were analysed by means of the MANOVA design using sex (boys and girls) and age (15,
16, and 17 years of age) and SES divided into three groups and separately for
mother’s and father’s SES. When the MANOVA showed at least one significant
difference, univariate ANOVAs were performed on each dependent variable. Bonferroni corrections were generally applied to adjust the many comparisons. The
comparisons on item levels and frequency comparisons were conducted with univariate ANOVAs and with a Mann-Whitney U test for independent samples. The
significance level was p = 0.05.
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
62
H. YBRANDT
3. Results
3.1. Interviewer (ISR) and adolescent (ARC and ARH)
severity ratings 2000 and 2010
No main effect was found for adolescent concerns about problems, or for adolescent ratings of need for help, or interviewer ratings of need for extra help and treatment in the family, and psychological health problem areas related to the given
years. However, there was evidence for main effects for sex (F = 2.89, p = 0.001).
It was a trend that compared to boys, girls reported more concerns about problems
in the family area (F = 9.10, p = 0.003) and the importance of getting help with
family problems (F = 7.19, p = 0.008). The interviewer also rated girls more in
need of extra help and treatment in the family problem area (F = 5.91, p = 0.015).
There was no interaction effect found for sex, for age or for father’s and mothers’
socioeconomic status and year.
As for the adolescents’ self-ratings, the results of the analyses showed that the
adolescents were ‘not at all’ worried and it was ‘not at all’ important for them to get
help, and according to the interviewers’ ratings the adolescents had ‘no real problems and no need for further help’.
In addition, the results show no significant difference between 2000 and 2010
in the frequency of adolescents being worried or needing help in ranges 3 (‘a fair
amount’) and 4 (‘a lot’) or in the proportion of those who were rated to have moderate to extreme problems indicating need for help or being absolutely in need for
treatment. The results neither showed significant difference between 2000 and 2010
in the frequency of the following self-ratings: ‘not at all’ troubled and ‘not at all’
important to get help or in the frequency of the interviewers’ ratings of adolescents
having ‘no real problems’. Thus there were no conspicuous trends of adolescents
having an either increasingly worsening or improving state of mind in 2010 compared to 2000 in the family or psychological problem area. Furthermore, there was
no significant difference between the frequency of adolescent girls or boys having
more problems or adolescent girls or boys reporting having no problems in 2010
compared to 2000. Thus there was no increased polarisation in sex found in 2010.
This was also true for the mother’s and father’s SES with no increased or decreased
problem levels for the lowest and highest SESs in 2010 compared to 2000.
The mean and standard deviation for the problem areas for sex and age are
presented in Table 3.
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
63
TEN-YEAR TRENDS
Table 3
Mean and standard deviation for interviewer severity ratings (ISR) and adolescent ratings
(ARC and ARH) for boys and girls of 15 to 17 years in 2000 and 2010
15
16
Boys
Area
Girls
17
Boys
Girls
Boys
Girls
M
SD
M
SD
M
SD
M
SD
M
SD
M
SD
ISR2000
0.38
0.59
0.32
0.95
0.47
0.84
1.10
1.84
0.95
1.81
0.52
0.87
ISR2010
0.44
1.01
1.18
1.72
0.49
1.22
0.78
1.52
0.33
1.11
1.25
1.97
ARC2000
0.19
0.40
0.21
0.42
0.42
0.61
0.71
0.96
0.21
0.71
0.29
0.56
ARC2010
0.13
0.53
0.31
0.63
0.12
0.44
0.30
0.56
0.13
0.41
0.44
0.77
ARH2000
0.29
0.64
0.16
0.50
0.11
0.32
0.43
0.81
0.16
0.50
0.19
0.40
ARH2010
0.11
0.46
0.42
0.86
0.12
0.44
0.32
0.70
0.13
0.53
0.48
0.90
ISR2000
0.57
0.87
0.89
1.60
0.26
0.56
1.48
1.89
0.89
1.56
1.10
1.41
ISR2010
0.62
1.61
1.40
2.76
0.56
1.33
1.22
1.99
0.58
1.41
1.80
2.25
ARC2000
0.19
0.40
0.42
0.61
0.11
0.32
0.71
0.78
0.42
0.61
0.62
0.74
ARC2010
0.25
0.63
0.49
0.76
0.19
0.49
0.56
0.79
0.15
0.40
0.63
0.85
ARH2000
0.14
0.36
0.21
0.42
0.05
0.23
0.43
0.68
0.11
0.32
0.29
0.56
ARH2010
0.10
0.48
0.31
0.70
0.14
0.42
0.35
0.70
0.07
0.39
0.49
0.88
Family
Psychol
for boys (2000) = 60, n = 21 boys (15 years), n = 20 boys (16 years), n = 19 boys (17 years). N for girls (2000)
N
= 61, n = 19 girls (15 years), n = 21 girls (16 years), n = 21 girls (17 years). N for boys (2010) = 217, n = 72 boys
(15 years), n = 73 boys (16 years), n = 72 boys (17 years). N for girls (2010) = 268, n = 90 girls (15 years), n = 81
girls (16 years), n = 97 girls (17 years).
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
64
H. YBRANDT
3.2. Separate ADAD items in 2000 and 2010
Additional results on item levels in the problem areas show differences between the
years in the family and psychological areas. The relations in the family show variation between 2000 and 2010; for example, family conflicts (F = 8.54, p = 0.004)
and conflicts related to money (F = 7.52, p = 0.006) are rated by the adolescents as
less frequent in 2010. Furthermore, adolescents report that they are closer to their
mother (F = 4.63, p = 0.032) in 2010 compared to 2000 (no differences in terms of
the father). They get along with her better (F = 7.62, p = 0.006) and they think that
it is easier to talk to her about what bothers them (F = 9.14, p = 0.003). On the other
hand, they do not get along better with other family members, for example sisters
(F = 26.33, p = 0.000) and brothers (F = 10.89, p = 0.001) in 2010 compared to
2000. Adolescents both in 2000 and in 2010 found it equally pleasant to live in their
families. Results of the survey on psychological health show that adolescents in
2010 have more feelings of insecurity, they feel more frequently that people cannot
be trusted (p = 0.003) and they are more afraid of losing control over their behaviour
and actions (p = 0.001) than adolescents in 2000. On the other hand, they have less
experience of serious anxiety and tension (p = 0.000) and less experience of troubles
with understanding, concentrating or remembering (p = 0.000) in the last 30 days.
Adolescents in 2000 and in 2010 report a similar amount of examples of lack of confidence in themselves, depression and anxiety, serious thought of suicide, anorexia
and deliberate self-harm.
4. Discussion
The aim of the study was to explore trends of problem severity in 2000 and in 2010 for
adolescents between 15 to 17 years of age and present possible variations effected by
age, sex, and the socioeconomic status of the parents. The results show that self-rated
and interviewer-rated problem severity did not change between the years 2000 and
2010 in the family and psychological area. The problem level seemed to be unchanged
for both adolescent boys and girls and for the whole age group. It seems also true that
adolescents’ problem severity in a specific socioeconomic group or sex did not have
a tendency to change during the ten years. Thus, a polarisation in the well-being of
adolescents according to sex or the socioeconomic status of parents was not found in
this study. An unchanged trend, however, could be seen with girls experiencing more
intense problem severity in the family relationships area compared to boys. The girls’
report on problem level was confirmed by the interviewers who also rated girls more
in need of help with family matters. A recent Swedish total population study shows
a higher frequency of boys reporting well-being at home compared to girls (Statens
Folkhälsoinstitut 2011). There are several possible explanations for the higher frequency of girls self-reporting feelings of problems in different life areas compared to
boys, such as that girls are more concerned about their well-being, or girls have higher
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
TEN-YEAR TRENDS
65
expectations of positive health than boys, or girls in general are more inclined to report
health problems than boys, or that biologically, girls have more problems in adolescence than boys (Johansson et al. 2007; T
orsheim et al. 2006). Surprisingly, the
results showed similar experiences of psychological problems in the groups of boys
and those of the girls, which are not in line with the results of other epidemiological
studies (e.g. Hagquist 2010; Petersen et al. 2010) where girls reported more mental
health problems than boys. However, it is difficult to make comparisons with results
gained with other instruments and more studies with the ADAD are needed to confirm
the results of this study.
The results showed an altogether positive state of mental health and positive
family relationships among the adolescents, and problems in these areas were on the
same low level in 2010 as in 2000. In the case of some psychological symptoms such
as serious anxiety, distress and concentration problems, an improvement was detectable on item level. The Statens Folkhälsoinstitut (2009) suggests that the negative
trend of mental health and that of the psychosomatic symptoms has ceased since the
mid-2000s as could be seen in this study. Hopefully, the reduction of the symptoms
has been a result of the focus on the area of stress during the last decade (Statens
Offentliga Utredningar 2006). Terms and expressions used in this study may have
reflected other values and terms in 2010 compared to 2000, and another potential
explanation to the lower frequency of examples of serious anxiety may be explained
by the fact that the concept has changed its connotation for adolescents by 2010. The
adolescents also reported feelings of being better supported by their mothers. This
positive development could be fortified by a negative time variation for the adolescents reported experiencing more problems and a lack of trust in relationships other
than with their mothers. This negative time trend could be a threat against the adolescents’ mental health when the family members and other people outside the family
become less trustable in the eyes of the adolescents. One possible explanation for
adolescents experiencing more problems with getting along with other people could
be that the adolescents of 2010 compared to the ones of 2000 were probably exposed
to handling added relationships both in and outside of the family.
Shortcomings of this study are the small adolescent group of the year 2000
and the high dropout rate, especially for boys. Another shortcoming is the difference in the selection of the samples, the first being taken from a small northern town
and the second from a heterogeneous population. The sample of 2010 included a
third of the adolescents with higher rates of problems (from the three largest towns).
Consequently, the results may have underestimated problem severity, as well as the
need for help and treatment, both self-rated and interviewer-rated, and the effect of
the time variation in 2000 and 2010. However, the effect of region was small, and
concerning the dropout rate, only very high scores for all dropouts would have substantially changed the results. There were also different data collection methods in
2000 and 2010; face-to-face interviews and telephone interviews which could have
affected the results.
Much the same adolescent problems seemed to be in focus that need the attenEJMH 9:1, June 2014
66
H. YBRANDT
tion of parents, school and public health work in 2010 as in 2000. However, it is important to highlight the problems the adolescents seem to have in relationships and
the diminished trust they report having in other people, making sure these problems
do not counteract the possibilities of a continued health development for adolescents
in Sweden. More epidemiological research is needed as a premise for more extensive
public health actions exploring the well-being and trends both for the positive functioning and for the problem severity in adolescence.
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EJMH 9:1, June 2014
DOI: 10.5708/EJMH.9.2014.1.5
Siamak Khodarahimi*,
Haydar Deghani & Mohammadhadi Nikpourian
MENTAL HEALTH AND COPING STYLES
OF RURAL RESIDENTS AFFECTED
BY DRINKING WATER SHORTAGE IN FARS PROVINCE
An Ecopsychological Perspective**
(Received: 20 September 2012; accepted: 2 January 2013)
The purpose of this study was to examine, in an Iranian sample, the effect of drinking water shortage on the rural residents’ mental health and their coping styles, and to investigate the influences
of gender, location of residence, marital status, job and the level of education on these constructs.
Participants included 1198 rural residents around the Iranian cities of Darab and Eghlid. A demographic questionnaire, the General Health Questionnaire 28 (GHQ-28), and the Coping Styles
with Drinking Water Crisis Scale (CSDWS) were used in this study. The CSDWS is a multi
dimensional construct with four factors including: (1) optimising water consumption methods, (2)
water-free technologies and social changes in life, (3) usage of high-quality technologies in water
saving, and (4) emotion-focused avoidant coping styles. Rural residents who had suffered no
drinking water shortage had a significantly higher performance of rational coping styles and had
a lower psychopathology indicator and a lower performance of emotion focused avoidant coping
styles than rural residents who had experienced drinking water shortage. The effect of location
of residence, marital status, level of education and occupation on coping styles and mental health
was affirmed in this sample.
Keywords: drinking water shortage, coping styles, mental health, demographics
Mentalhygiene und Bewältigungsstrategien bei von Trinkwassermangel betroffener Landbevölkerung in der Provinz Fars: Die Ökopsychologische Perspektive: Die Rolle der lokalen Ressourcenwirtschaft: Eines der Ziele der Untersuchung bestand darin, an einer Stichprobe
aus dem Iran die Auswirkungen von Trinkwassermangel auf die Mentalhygiene der ländlichen
Bevölkerung und auf ihre Bewältigungsstrategien zu untersuchen und im Weiteren zu klären,
*
**
orresponding author: Siamak Khodarahimi, Faculty Member, Eghlid Branch, Islamic Azad University,
C
Eghlid, Iran; [email protected].
T
his research was supported by the Rural Water and Sewage Corporation of Fars Province (RWSCFP).
69
inwieweit diese von Geschlecht, Wohnort, Familienstand, Arbeitsplatz und Bildungsstand beeinflusst werden. In der Untersuchung wurden 1198 Bewohner der ländlichen Umgebung der Städte
Darab und Eghlid im Iran erfasst. Hierfür wurden ein demografischer Fragebogen, der Fragebogen zum allgemeinen Gesundheitszustand (General Health Questionnaire 28, GHQ-28) und die
Skala Bewältigungsmethoden bei Trinkwassermangel (Coping Styles with Drinking Water Crisis,
CSDWS) verwendet. Die CSDW-Skala umfasst die folgenden vier Faktoren: 1. Methoden zur Optimierung des Wasserverbrauchs, 2. wasserfreie Technologien und gesellschaftliche Veränderungen, 3. Einsatz von Spitzentechnologien bei Wassersparmaßnahmen und 4. emotionsorientiertes
Coping und Vermeidung. Diejenigen auf dem Land lebenden Personen, die nicht unter Wassermangel litten, waren signifikant erfolgreicher in der Nutzung rationaler Bewältigungsmethoden,
wiesen niedrigere psychopathologische Werte auf und neigten weniger zu emotionsorientiertem
Coping und Vermeidung als solche, die unter Trinkwassermangel litten. Anhand der Stichprobe
konnten die Auswirkungen von Wohnort, Familienstand, Bildungsstand und Arbeitsplatz auf die
Bewältigungsmethoden und auf die Mentalhygiene nachgewiesen werden.
Schlüsselbegriffe: Trinkwassermangel, Bewältigungsmethoden, Mentalhygiene, demografische
Daten
1. Introduction
There are natural disasters like floods, famine, fire, drought, earthquakes, tornadoes
and hurricanes that afflict humans with untimely death and violent suffering (Diamond
1996). Overall, the combination of atmosphere change and population growth is anticipated to reduce the available water resources as a major crisis in the world. According
to the current rates of urban and rural population growth it is suggested that half of
the world’s population will be living under severe water shortage in the near future.
Drought is a natural disaster and a recurring feature of environment change and it is the
most harmful and costly hazard because of its negative impacts on human resources,
sustainable development, and the physical environment (Pereira et al. 2009). In terms
of water shortage, the Middle East is the largest contiguous afflicted region in the
world (Beaumont 2000; Roudi-Fahimi et al. 2002).
Iran is a particularly arid country with water surpluses to be found in only small
portions of the northern and western parts (Beaumont 1974). Water scarcity in the
country is combined with an unequal distribution of water. The country receives only
a small amount of rainfall, and the overuse of many water sources has transformed it
into a dry and drought-prone region, linking up with the arid/semi-arid zone of Asia
(Karbalaee 2010). Authorities reported that the country has been experiencing the
worst aridity for the past three decades. They have been notified that 12 million
people in both urban and rural areas throughout the country might experience drinking water shortage (Deutsche Presse Agentur 2001). Officials have confirmed that
the southwestern part of Fars province is facing a shortage of drinking water due
to an extraordinary aridity that has dried up rivers and underground water in Darab
which is a major threat for residents of the rural areas in the region. Authorities stated
that all the villages in this region are experiencing a severe lack of drinkable water,
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
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S. KHODARAHIMI, H. DEGHANI & M. NIKPOURIAN
and all the inhabitants are critically threatened by the drought conditions (Deghani
2011). Winter rainfall in this part of the country is fairly condensed and water dearth
has taken a turn for the worst in past three years. Furthermore, the earth was still incapable of acting as a reliable source for drinking water in this region during recent
years. It is particularly the setting-in of the summer months that brings along a major
water shortage in the region (Deghani 2011). This study speculates that drinking
water scarcity is a disaster in this area, it is a possible source of psychopathology in
the case of rural residents, and it can affect their coping styles in crises. Therefore,
the purpose of the present study is to investigate the effects of drinking water shortage on the rural residents’ mental health and on their coping styles in all villages
around Darab in the southern part of Fars province.
In the field of mental health, many clinical investigations have shown that certain climatic parameters such as daily ambient temperature, relative moisture, atmospheric strain, rainfall periods, and hours of sunshine have significant contribution
to the rate of admission of in-patients with affective disorders (Mawson & Smith
1981; Salib & Sharp 2002). This phenomenon is called a seasonal mental disorder hypothesis, and it indicates the possible roles of natural and climatic factors on
mental health. A number of studies are investigating the effects of natural disasters
like drought on the human mental functioning. For example, Coêlho, Adair and
Mocellin (2004) revealed that residents in the drought region of northeastern Brazil had significantly higher levels of anxiety and emotional distress than residents
in the non-drought area. They noted that women in the drought area had higher
levels of anxiety than females in the non-drought area, and men in the drought area
had significantly higher levels of emotional distress than both genders in the nondrought area. Sartore and his colleagues (2007) indicated that the residents of local
communities were experiencing higher distress in periods of drought. Chand and
Murthy (2008) suggested that the drought affects rural people because of financial
problems, and it can produce severe mental distress among them in the long run. The
lack of income and economic insecurity affect the residents of the drought-affected
areas, limiting their abilities to obtain sufficient social support. Chand and Murthy
pointed out that drought influences family relationships, perceived stress, worry, depression, and the rate of suicide in the case of rural residents. Edwards and his colleagues (2009) indicated that around twelve percent of residents in drought-affected
areas have mental health problems, particularly psychological distress and depression. Similarly, the World Health Organization reported that one in three Somalis
is affected by several kinds of mental disorders because of severe drought, and the
prevalence of mental disorders in Somalia is thus higher than in other war-torn and
low-income countries (Horn of Africa News Agency 2011). Altogether, research has
revealed an established relationship between the drought and mental health problems
with residents of regions with drinking water scarcity.
Alternatively, the most encouraging strategy of people, social groups and cultures against the natural and ecological stressors may vary according to the function of physical, economic, and socio-emotional characteristics in a specific milieu
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
71
(Crawford & Anderson 1989). Nelson and Demas (2004) suggested that seasonal and annual adaptive patterns among people towards natural disasters are determined by the accessibility of food and water. They noted that people need to be
forewarned of the onset of natural and climate changes well in advance in order for
them to be able to initiate and practice suitable ways of adaptation to the decrease
of resources. Baron (1997) conceptualised that the main reason of people’s char
itable help in natural crises like water scarcity is an altruistic behaviour in general,
and only this altruistic behaviour can motivate people with long-term self-interest
toward fighting against natural disasters. From the evolutionary and cognitive points
of view, it seems that the human working memory plays a significant role in how
people stumble upon and cope with the water crisis as a survival threat (Klein et
al. 2002). Therefore, when people are experiencing natural disasters their memory
systems are prepared to retain and follow those pieces of information which are related to fitness and survival (Kang et al. 2008; Nairne et al. 2009). Studies, thereby,
showed that the human memory as a product of natural selection had been influential
in the capacity of humans to cope with environmental disasters because it enhanced
the humans’ fitness and adaptability in specific environments (Tooby & Cosmides
1992). However, there is some evidence that men surpass women in coping styles
entailing skills relevant to navigation and map-reading, whereas women outdo men
in coping styles requiring skills relevant to congregation, gathering or remembering
the location of food and water resources within an inhibited environment (Tooby
& Cosmides 2007). All in all, this study speculates that self-interest, altruism and
memory are three intra-personal factors that can help people’s psychological adaptation and self-management in times of drinking water shortage. These factors help
individuals in how to approach the water supply, in how they can take the management of the accessible water resources into their own hands, as well as in how they
can utilise the appropriate coping styles in times of drinking water scarcity. This
approach may help people to assess the water crisis in an objective manner and to
reach the logical conclusions about rigid requirements and regulations which must
be applied in drinking water management in a time of crisis.
Theoretically, the present study views the drought as a natural, slow and prolonged stress and disaster which influences the human mental health and coping style.
Here, stress is defined as a physical or perceived imbalance between the ecological
and natural demands involved in people’s survival and the individual’s capacity to
adapt to these situations. This imbalance can affect the person’s mental health and
coping styles (Lazarus & Folkman 1984). This model regards stress as the part of
a sequential process in which the objective natural circumstance (i.e. water scarcity)
appraised by the individual as either having no adaptive significance or as a stressful situation (i.e. water scarcity presents a potential threat and a challenge to one’s
well-being or survival). When the water shortage is perceived by the individual as a
stressful situation this appraisal may produce a series of stress-response mechanisms
which contain all the physiological, behavioural, and psychological efforts to adapt
to this natural threat (Lazarus 1999).
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
72
According to the psychological stress and cognitive appraisal theory, stress is
assumed as a reciprocal process; the environment produces stressors, and the individual looks for ways to deal with these. The cognitive appraisal is a mental process
by which people review the aforementioned factors: whether a demand threatens
their well-being, or consider that they have the resources to meet the demand of the
stressor (Lazarus 1999). Therefore, appraisal and coping conceptualisations are
fundamental to the psychological stress and cognitive appraisal theory.
The appraisal shows the individuals’ judgments of the significance of what is
happening for their well-being. Coping describes the individuals’ efforts in thought
and action to handle the specific demands (Lazarus 1993). In this theory, events
are stressful but this stressfulness depends on two personal and situational types of
factors (Cohen & Lazarus 1983). Additionally, Lazarus (1991) conceptualised
that stress is a relational concept, since stress is reflected as a relationship between
individuals and their environment. This definition points to two processes as the
main mediators within the person-environment transaction. There are cognitive appraisal and coping styles. The concept of appraisal is a key issue for understanding
the stress-relevant transactions. These appraisals are determined by a number of personal and situational factors. However, the most significant factors on the personal
level are motivational dispositions, goals, values, and generalised expectancies. The
most significant relevant situational criteria are the predictability, controllability, and
imminence of a potentially stressful event (Lazarus 1993).
However, Lazarus (1966) differentiates between two basic forms of appraisal
which he calls primary and secondary appraisal. Primary appraisal is concerned with
whether something of relevance to the individual’s well-being occurs, whereas secondary appraisal is related to the coping options. However, the specific patterns of
primary and secondary appraisals might lead to various kinds of stress. These three
types of stress are: harm, threat, and challenge (Lazarus & Folkman 1984). However, Lazarus (1991) suggested that coping is closely allied to the concept of cognitive appraisal, and to the stress relevant and person-environment transactions. They
can alter the person-environment realities behind the stress (i.e. problem-focused
coping). They can also relate to internal elements and modify the appraisal of the
challenging situation (i.e. emotion-focused coping). In sum, the stress and coping
theory suggests that the effects of stress on human mental functioning and the coping pattern for adaptive functioning depends on the type of the stressor, the type of
intra-personal capabilities being stressed, and the outcome modality being studied
(Lazarus 1966, 1991, 1993, 1999).
Secondly, based on the resource management theory, this study considers water
scarcity as a challenge for both the population and the administrators. Vugt (2009)
proposed the four key elements of strategies for successful resource management in
water crises: information, identity, institutions, and incentives. Vugt noted that these
four components correspond to four central motives of decision-making in social dilemmas: understanding, belonging, trusting, and self-enhancing. Similarly, Randall
(2009) recognised that rural-based mental health programs in drought-affected regions
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
73
are influential in persuading both activists and the government to adopt techniques
from social networks, to interrogate their image and communication style and to match
their message to the concerns and aspirations of their audiences. Sheldon and his colleagues (2011) suggested that one primary cause of ecological damage is the highconsumption lifestyle to which citizens of the economically developed world have grown
accustomed. They recommended that communicators and educators might do well to
attempt to activate the aspects of the national character allied with intrinsic values in
their attempts to promote acceptance of policies that support environmental sustainability. Research has disclosed that stress-related psychological reactions commonly
connected with individual loss, traumatic injury, or physical assault also apply to nat
ural disasters that affect entire communities (Coêlho et al. 2004).
Third, the Conservation of Resources Theory (COR) offers an integrative
stress theory that ponders both environmental and internal processes. COR asserts that people actively seek to obtain, retain, and protect the things which they
perceive as value resources. These resources are subdivided into objects, personal
characteristics, conditions or energies. According to COR, psychological stress
occurs when individuals are threatened with resource loss, actually lose resources
or fail to gain desired resources following resource investment. Hobfoll noted that
the threat of resource loss can have just as acute consequences as actual resource
loss. Previous COR studies attended only to the impact of resource loss and resource gain (Hobfoll 1989, 1998, 2001; Hobfoll & Shirom 2000; Westman et
al. 2005). Hence, very little is actually known about the impact of the threat of resource loss on individuals. Given that people who lose resources experience actual
stress and distress it can be stated that when individuals’ resources are threatened
they will experience anticipatory stress. Anticipatory stress might develop when
individuals face a critical event that is going to come about in the future (Peacock
& Wong 1996). The forthcoming event is marked by uncertainty as to the eventual
outcome and includes a risk that may cause resource loss later. The COR regards
resource gain as an important facet of stress (Hobfoll 1989, 2001). During stressful circumstances, individuals attempt to make light of the loss of their resources
by trying to gain new resources.
The present study is grounded on stress and coping, resource management,
and resource conservation theories (Hobfoll 1989, 1998, 2002; Lazarus 1991,
1993, 1999; Lazarus & Folkman 1984; Vugt 2009). From an ecopsychological
perspective, this investigation was intended to examine rural people’s attitudes and
their coping styles in a situation of shortage in an Iranian sample, to explore the
roles of gender, marital status, level of education, and location of residence in the
mental health and coping styles of rural residents. As research showed a few types in
coping styles in different situations, this study suggested that coping with drinking
water shortage is a multi-dimensional construct. Perhaps some specific dimensions
of coping with drinking water shortage would relate to mental health factors of rural
residents. The first hypothesis of the present study is that coping with drinking water
shortage will have a multi-dimensional nature with rural residents. The second hyEJMH 9:1, June 2014
74
pothesis is that drinking water shortage will influence the mental health and coping
styles of rural residents. The third hypothesis is that gender, marital status, level of
education, and region of residence will have significant effects on mental health and
coping styles.
2. Method
2.1. Participants
The participants were 1,198 rural residents from two regions with and without drinking water shortage, from the cities of Darab and Eghlid, Fars province, Iran. Participants in the group suffering drinking water shortage were 1,038 rural residents from
36 villages around Darab, the southern part of Fars province. Participants in the
group suffering no drinking water shortage were 160 rural residents from Dejkord
district around Eghlid and Sarhad-e-Chahar Dange, the northern part of Fars province. The mean age (and standard deviations) for males and females were 41.20 (SD
= 7.69) and 43.81 (SD = 7.89) respectively. The participants were selected from all
villages in two groups by random sampling method; they were given a psychological
consultation about adaptation during water shortage and some technological information about the drinking water equipment as an incentive for their participation
in the present study. This sample was recruited from all villages with more than 10
families in the vicinity of the aforementioned cities. After informed consent was
acquired, participants completed a questionnaire containing a few sections on background information, mental health, and coping styles.
2.2. Instruments
The demographic questionnaire included items on age, gender, marital status, ethnicity, level of education, occupation, number of family members, monthly income,
monthly drinking water usage, monthly water price, and the city or village of residence. The two inventories used were: 1. the General Health Questionnaire-28
(GHQ-28), and 2. the Coping Styles in Drinking Water Crisis (CSDWS).
The General Health Questionnaire-28 (Goldberg & Hillier 1979) is a 28item self-administered screening test which measures four factors: somatic symptoms, anxiety and insomnia, social dysfunction, and severe depression. The GHQ-28
was invented to identify short-term alterations in mental health. It is a good status
measure and it responds to how a subject has felt over the past few weeks. The
GHQ focuses on the client’s ability to carry out ‘normal’ functions and the appearance of any new disturbing phenomena. The GHQ-28 scores range from 0 to 28
using the Likert scoring. Higher scores show a greater probability of psychological
distress. Total scores that exceed 4 out of 28 suggest probable distress (Chung et
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
75
al. 2006). The GHQ-28 has been widely applied and validated in different settings
and different cultures (Goldberg & Hillier 1979; Makowska et al. 2002; Rush
et al. 2008). Research has affirmed that the four factors which are the basics in this
questionnaire have a high internal consistency in Iranian culture (Ebrahimi et al.
2007). Reliability of the GHQ-28, somatisation, anxiety/insomnia, social dysfunction and depression subscales using Cronbach’s alpha internal consistency in the
present study was 0.90, 0.86, 0.78, 0.92, and 0.90 respectively.
The Coping Styles in Drinking Water Crisis was created by the authors of this
paper to assess rural residents’ coping styles when encountering drinking water shortage in recent years. However, initial items pool the items included in the CSDWS
inventory based on stress and coping, resource management, and resource conservation theories (Hobfoll 1989, 1998, 2002; Lazarus 1991, 1993, 1999; Lazarus
& Folkman 1984; Vugt 2009). Additionally, for the selection of initial items in
the CSDWS authors gathered all formal water usage procedures from the Rural
Water and Sewage Corporation of Fars Province (RWSCFP). The initial version of
CSDWS included 60 items and after a pilot study the final version was reduced to 52
items. All item-scorings are based on a Likert scale from 0 (fully agree) to 4 (fully
disagree). After the construct validity of the CSDWS had been affirmed by a few
staff members of the psychology and water management departments at two universities, it was applied in this study. After data collection, the factorial structure of
the CSDWS was examined in the present study and it will be set forth in the Results
section of this paper.
3. Results
Initial analysis of the data in the first hypothesis included an exploratory factor
analysis which was conducted to identify the potential factors in the CSDWS. A
principal factor analysis with varimax rotation was used to determine the construct
validity, considering eigenvalues higher than 1. Factor analysis specification was
satisfactory, KMO = 0.84, Bartlett’s test of sphericity = 974, df = 506, p = 0.0001,
rotation sums of squared loadings = 74.26. Table 1 shows the significant rotated
correlation higher than 0.30 for 52 items in 15 iterations. Factor analysis indicated
that CSDWS consisted of four factors and eigenvalues for nine factors ranged from
1 to 5.49. These four factors explained 74.68% of variance. These factors included:
1. optimising water consumption methods, 2. water-free technologies and social
changes in life, 3. use of high-quality technologies for water saving, and 4. emotional-avoidant styles (Table 2). Criterion validity was established based on correlation
between CSDWS and the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (Watson et al.
1988) which was r = 0.36 and demonstrated its discriminate construct validity. The
internal reliability using Cronbach’s alpha was over 0.92 for all factors. There were
gender differences in the optimising of water consumption methods and the application of high-quality technologies for water saving factors. Females had significantly
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
76
higher scores for the optimising of water consumption methods than males, and
males had significantly higher scores for the application of high-quality technologies for water saving factors than females.
Table 1
Rotated component matrix of the CSDWS
Items
1
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
0.729
Factors
2
3
4
0.763
0.768
0.773
0.768
0.748
0.674
0.648
0.575
0.474
0.548
0.475
0.345
0.763
0.754
0.642
0.588
0.692
0.674
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
0.648
0.475
0.557
0.681
0.428
0.578
0.709
Items
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
1
2
Factors
3
4
0.631
0.573
0.703
0.679
0.618
0.515
0.615
0.348
0.427
0.510
0.369
0.477
0.630
0.438
0.522
0.540
0.588
0.688
0.487
0.568
0.557
0.608
0.621
0.637
0.538
0.547
77
Table 2
The CSDWS factors and items
Factors
Items
Cumulative %
1. Optimising water consumption
methods
1, 3, 4, 12, 13, 18, 19, 31, 34, 35,
36, 37, 38, 42, 44, 46, 47, 48, 49
13.258
2. Introduction of water-free
technologies in life
2, 5, 6,10, 11, 16, 28, 32, 52
24.081
3. Use of high-quality
technologies for water saving
7, 8, 9, 39, 40, 41, 43, 51
37.341
4. Emotional-avoidant coping
14,15, 17, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25,
26, 27, 29, 30, 33, 45
74.680
To examine the second hypothesis nine ANOVAs were conducted to evaluate
differences between the group of rural residents who had suffered drinking water
shortage, the one of rural residents who had not experienced drinking water shortage and the total sample in terms of their coping with water shortage, and of mental
health. Findings also showed significant differences between these groups in terms
of their coping styles with water shortage. Findings also showed significant differences between these groups in terms of their mental health factors (Table 3).
The third hypothesis of this study is that gender, marital status, level of education,
occupation, and location of residence will have great significance regarding coping
styles during water shortage and mental health in this sample. This sample included
599 individuals in male and female groups. This sample included 1,165 married and 33
single persons. The level of education of this sample included the following illiterate (N
= 394), elementary (N = 565), guidance (N = 86), high school (N = 105), undergraduate
(N = 28) and postgraduate (N = 18). The job classification in this sample included the
following categories: housewife (N = 534), university student (N = 25), unemployed
(N = 92), farmer (N = 448), shopkeeper (N = 27) and governmental employee (N = 72).
To investigate the possible differences in independent variables, a multi-variate analysis of variance (MANOVA) was conducted in terms of gender, marital status, level of
education, location of residence and their interactions as independent variables and in
terms of coping styles and mental health as dependent variables. An overall multi-variate effect found for location of residence (Wilks’ k = 0.095; F (8,1) = 1.49; p < 0.0001;
Eta = 0.90), gender (Wilks’ k = 0.989; F (8,1) = 1.59; p < 0.12), marital status (Wilks’
k = 0.954; F (16,2) = 3.34; p < 0.02), level of education (Wilks’ k = 0.735; F (56,6)
= 6.34; p < 0.0001; Eta = 0.04) and occupation (Wilks’ k = 0.884; F (32,4) = 4.41;
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
78
p < 0.0001; Eta = 0.03) variables. Also, this analysis rejected the interactive effects for
all independent and dependent variables (Tables 4–5).
Subsequently, following the test for marital status, level of education and occupation, the Duncan test indicated significant group differences in mental health
and coping styles.
Table 3
The effects of drinking water shortage on mental health and coping styles in water crises
Groups
Dependents
Mental
health
Coping
styles
Factors
Affected by
drought
Not affected
by drought
Total
F
p
3.68
242.46
0.0001
10.58
5.18
296.76
0.0001
3.88
12.41
4.23
440.76
0.0001
2.30
0.81
9.32
4.98
409.23
0.0001
3.13
31.00
1.67
44.47
13.34
223.39
0.0001
15.28
7.47
29.50
3.27
15.84
7.20
49.35
0.0001
Water-free
technologies
and social
changes in
life
13.18
4.75
15.60
2.11
13.50
4.57
39.90
0.0001
Use of
high-quality
technologies
for water
saving
11.50
3.19
17.50
1.43
12.31
3.65
544.77
0.0001
Emotionalavoidant
coping
26.07
7.59
10.20
1.78
23.94
8.92
691.38
0.0001
M
SD
M
SD
M
SD
Somatic
symptoms
12.74
3.58
8.30
1.00
12.15
Anxiety/
insomnia
11.49
4.95
4.70
1.49
Social
dysfunction
18.00
1.00
11.54
Depression
10.76
3.62
GHQ-28
46.55
Optimising
water
consumption
methods
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
79
Table 4
Tests of between-subjects effects of demographic differences in mental health
Independents
Location of
residence
Dependents
Marital status
Level of
education
Occupation
p
Eta
Somatic symptoms
134.80
0.0001
0.10
Anxiety/insomnia
112.77
0.0001
0.09
Social dysfunction
239.06
0.0001
0.17
Depression
647.43
0.0001
0.36
94.02
0.000
0.07
Somatic symptoms
0.03
0.84
Anxiety/insomnia
0.20
0.65
Social dysfunction
0.34
0.55
Depression
0.26
0.60
GHQ-28
0.30
0.57
Somatic symptoms
1.46
0.23
Anxiety/insomnia
5.26
0.005
0.009
Social dysfunction
5.55
0.004
0.01
Depression
4.80
0.008
0.008
GHQ-28
5.86
0.003
0.01
Somatic symptoms
3.20
0.002
0.02
Anxiety/insomnia
1.31
0.23
0.008
Social dysfunction
2.22
0.03
0.01
Depression
3.94
0.0001
0.02
GHQ-28
2.07
0.04
0.01
Somatic symptoms
4.68
0.001
0.01
Anxiety/insomnia
2.18
0.05
0.008
Social dysfunction
2.32
0.06
0.008
Depression
3.44
0.008
0.01
GHQ-28
2.57
0.03
0.009
GHQ-28
Gender
F
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
80
Table 5
Tests of between-subjects effects of demographic differences in coping styles with water shortage
Independents
Location of
residence
Dependents
Optimising water consumption
methods
Water-free technologies and
social changes in life
Use of high-quality technologies
for water saving
Emotional-avoidant coping
Gender
methods
for water saving
Marital status
methods
for water saving
Level of
education
methods
for water saving
Job
methods
for water saving
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
F
p
Eta
35.23
0.0001
0.03
42.62
0.0001
0.03
351.25
0.0001
0.23
261.66
0.0001
0.18
1.30
0.26
1.59
0.19
1.33
0.24
1.37
0.24
2.39
0.09
0.12
0.88
3.30
0.03
0.51
0.60
6.39
0.0001
0.03
5.85
0.0001
0.03
5.92
0.0001
0.03
7.62
0.0001
0.04
1.53
0.18
1.55
0.18
2.44
0.04
0.009
2.84
0.02
0.01
0.006
81
4. Discussion
The results of this study regarding the first hypothesis demonstrated that Coping
Styles in Drinking Water Crisis (CSDWS) is a multi-dimensional construct with four
factors including: 1. optimising water consumption methods, 2. water-free technol
ogies and social changes in life, 3. use of high-quality technologies for water saving,
and 4. emotional-avoidant styles.
The first coping style includes all the procedures which individuals can follow
at personal, family and village community levels for the optimum use of drinking
water. The first style contains methods such as reducing water usage, not using water
for the purpose of car, yard, and carpet washing, decreasing the frequency of bathing,
using mineral water, instructing family members on an optimal water usage, consult
ation with friends and authorities for finding suitable solutions for the problem of
water shortage, learning the optimal methods for water usage, overruling the trad
itions and actions of excessive water usage, off quota for water usage, pride in those
who use less water, and warning people of the need to reduce water consumption.
The second style is related to the introduction of water-free technologies and
social changes in rural life. This factor includes ideas like garden watering with
bathroom and dishwasher waste, use of electrical air-condition and dishwasher for
cooling and dishwashing, cutting trees in the garden and prohibiting the growing of
vegetables around the house, and thinking about water-free technologies and social
change for a healthier life in rural regions.
The third style is related to the application of high-quality technologies for
water saving. This style includes the use of modern water technologies in rural areas.
These technologies involve using a tap water meter before the meter, checking the
operation of water meters, piping and valves, reductions in square tap water before
the water meter, and using a water reservoir and high-quality valves.
The fourth style is related to irrational, superstitious, and emotional reactions
to water shortage in the rural regions. This style includes all emotional and avoidant
reactions to water shortage such as taking refuge in one’s hobbies to forget the problem, avowing to fix the problem, anguish, illusionary hope, pessimism, mental distress, physical symptoms, dysfunction in work and life, anger and irritability, guilt,
and being overwhelmed by negative emotions.
Although there had been no previous evidence due to the CSDWS’s multi-fa
ceted nature, the present findings were in line with the predictions of the psychologic
al stress and cognitive appraisal theory (Cohen & Lazarus 1983; Lazarus 1993,
1999; Lazarus & Folkman 1984). According to this appraisal theory, the three optimising methods of water consumption: the introduction of water-free technologies
and social changes in rural life, and the application of high quality technologies for
water saving styles altogether show the problem-solving and rational style in case
of a drinking water shortage. However, the emotional-avoidant style is a type of
emotion-focused coping with the drought resulting in more distress and maladaptive
behaviours with rural residents. The multi-faceted nature of the CSDWS shows the
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
82
rural residents’ appraisals of multiple aspects of drinking water scarcity and its influence on their lives, and how they would cope with this natural disaster. These four
coping styles inherent in the CSDWS focus mainly on different practical actions in
drinking water management and the optimum usage by rural residents at personal,
familial, and village community levels, and on how they would enhance their resili
ence and coping in contrast with the water shortage shocks. Additionally, the multifaceted structure of the CSDWS is congruent with previous studies in terms of the
roles of psychological adaptation, consumption lifestyles, self-interest, emotional
reaction, information, social belonging and identity, and institutional factors of efficient coping with tragedies like drought and water shortage (Baron 1997; Coêlho
et al. 2004; Hobfoll 2002; Sheldon et al. 2011; Vugt 2009).
The results of this study regarding the second hypothesis demonstrated that
rural residents facing no a drinking water shortage have a significantly higher performance in rational coping styles – 1. optimising water consumption methods, 2.
water-free technologies and social changes in life, and 3. use of high-quality technologies for water saving – than rural residents affected by drinking water shortage. However, rural residents affected by drinking water shortage have a significantly higher performance in emotional-avoidant coping than rural residents who
do not encounter drinking water shortage. Findings showed significant differences
between these groups in their mental health factors, and rural residents experiencing
drinking water shortage had significantly higher disturbance in somatic symptoms,
anxiety/insomnia, social dysfunction, depression and the GHQ-28 than rural residents who were not affected by drinking water shortage. The findings of the present
study about coping styles in cases of drinking water shortage are in line with previous literature about the human adaptation and coping with drought and predictions
from the psychological stress and cognitive appraisal theory about disasters (Baron
1997; Coêlho et al. 2004; Cohen & Lazarus 1983; Hobfoll 2002; Lazarus
1993, 1999; Lazarus & Folkman 1984; Vugt 2009). However, findings concerning mental health in the current study are similar to the findings of earlier investigations which supported the adverse effects of climate changes and drought as
the natural threats and disasters on human mental functioning (Chand & Murthy
2008; Coêlho et al. 2004; Edwards et al. 2009; Mawson 1981; Klein et al. 2002;
Nelson & Demas 2004; Randall 2009; Salib & Sharp 2002; Sartore et al.
2007; Tooby & Cosmides 1992, 2007; Horn of Africa News Agency 2011).
The results of this study regarding the third hypothesis demonstrated the effects of location of residence, marital status, level of education, and occupation on
coping styles and mental health in this sample. This study indicated that married
individuals have significantly higher anxiety/insomnia, social dysfunction, depression and GHQ-28 scores than singles but they do not have significant differences
in somatic symptoms. Also, married individuals have a significantly higher tendency to use high-quality technologies for water saving than singles but they do
not have significant differences in optimising water consumption methods, using
water-free technologies, making social changes in life, and in emotional-avoidant
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
83
styles. The present finding about the negative effects of marriage on mental health
is in contradiction with prior investigations (Simon 2002). Perhaps married people
have more intense worries about the survival of their children and relatives when
they experience water shortage. The present finding about the positive roles of marriage on coping with stress is congruent with the previous literature (Chaturvedi &
Purushothaman 2009).
Moreover, individuals with an undergraduate or higher level of education have
significantly fewer somatic symptoms and lower levels of anxiety/insomnia, social
dysfunction, depression and lower GHQ-28 scores than individuals with high school
or lower education. Also, individuals with an undergraduate or higher level of education showed significantly higher performance in optimising water consumption
methods, in the introduction of water-free technologies and social changes in life,
and in the use of high-quality technologies for water saving than individuals with a
high school diploma and lower. Individuals with a high school or lower education
showed significantly higher emotional-avoidance styles than individuals with undergraduate or higher level of education. The present finding about the positive roles
of education on mental health and coping with stress is congruent with the previous
literature (Chevalier & Feinstein 2006; Rodriguez-Oreggia et al. 2010).
Additionally, individuals with governmental occupations have significantly
fewer somatic symptoms, lower levels of anxiety/insomnia, social dysfunction,
depression, and lower GHQ-28 scores than individuals who are workers, farmers,
housewives, shopkeepers or unemployed. Finally, people with government jobs have
a significantly higher interest in using high-quality technologies for water saving and
they have lesser emotional-avoidant styles than individuals who are workers, farmers, housewives, shopkeepers or unemployed. Occupation is one of the key factors
that affect the human mental health and coping style (Law et al. 1998; Llena-Nozal
et al. 2004; Tooren et al. 2011).
In sum, findings of the present study offer suggestions on how to build the
Rural Water Users Association (RUA) and break the vicious cycle of inefficient
water use procedures, and how to promote water savings. The present study suggests an alternative management policy for water consumption in the rural areas with
water crises. For example, this policy includes the use of electrical air conditioners,
the installation of electrical washing machines and dishwashers that consume less
water, the reduction of electricity prices in rural areas with water crises, the raising
of drinking water prices, mandatory regulations of the use of modern water equipment which is able to prevent water waste, and teaching children and families about
standard and optimal methods of water usage through incentives, interactive role
play and modelling.
In conclusion, the present study adds to the ecopsychology and the psychology
of natural disasters through the exploration of coping styles in cases of drinking
water shortage, through the recognition of water shortage effects on coping style and
mental health, and through the understanding of the roles of gender, occupation and
the level of education in the aforementioned constructs in an Iranian sample. HowEJMH 9:1, June 2014
84
ever, the present study is limited because of its dependence on the survey method
and self-rating measures. Prospective investigations may provide longitudinal and
cross-cultural designs for this objective.
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EJMH 9:1, June 2014
DOI: 10.5708/EJMH.9.2014.1.6
Željko Burcar*
THE ROLE OF THE PRINCIPAL IN CROATIAN EDUCATION
Manager, Leader, or Administrator
(Received: 20 December 2012; accepted: 20 February 2013)
The purpose of this study is to examine problems in the fields of educational management and
instructional leadership in Croatia that could serve as possible starting points for future studies or
research. This study examines the role of the school principal within the context of modern-day
schooling in turbulent surroundings, growing responsibility and overloaded schedule. According to findings we can explain eight different roles principals perform in Croatian education: a)
information collector and disseminator, b) communicator, c) strategist and planner, d) executive
manager, administrator and organiser, e) educational leader and educator, f) evaluator, g) student
and h) community liaison. The principal’s roles are oriented toward: a) people, b) tasks/goals, c)
school as organisation, and d) processes inside the school. Tasks generated from such orientation
belong to an ideal administrative process: planning, decision-making, organising, coordination,
communication, influence and evaluation effective in five tasks of school management: school
program, pupils, staff, and relations with community, physical preconditions, and management.
Keywords: school, management, education, leadership, instruction, principal’s responsibilities
Rollen von Schulleitern in Kroatien: Bildungsmanager, Geschäftsführer oder Büroangestellter: Die Studie untersucht Fragen in den Bereichen Bildungsmanagement und Leitung von
Bildungsinstitutionen in Kroatien, die als Ausgangspunkt für weitere Forschungen und Untersuchungen dienen können. Die Studie analysiert die Rolle des Schulleiters unter heutigen schulischen Rahmenbedingungen, zu denen ein turbulentes Umfeld, wachsende Verantwortung und ein
übervoller Terminkalender gehören. Den erhobenen Daten zufolge müssen sich Schulleiter in Kroatien in acht unterschiedlichen Rollenbereichen behaupten: a) Sammlung und Weiterleitung von
Informationen, b) Kommunikation, c) Strategie und Planung, d) Leitung der Organisation, administrative Aufgaben und Organisation, e) Leitung der Bildungsinstitution und Unterricht, f) Evaluation, g) Lernen und h) Kontakte zum Gemeinwesen. Die Rollenbereiche des Schulleiters richten
sich an: a) Menschen, b) Aufgaben/Ziele, c) Schule als Organisation und d) Prozesse innerhalb der
*
eljko Burcar, ES F.K. Frankopana, Zagreb (Croatia), Ivanićgradska 24., HR-10000, Zagreb; zeljko.burcar@
Ž
zg.t-com.hr.
88
Ž. BURCAR
Schule. Von den Rollenbereichen lassen sich folgende Aufgaben für den idealen administrativen
Prozess ableiten: Planung, Entscheidungsfindung, Organisation, Koordination, Kommunikation,
Beeinflussung und Evaluation, und zwar in fünf Teilbereichen der Schulleitung: Schulprogramm,
Schüler, Personal, Kontakte zum Gemeinwesen, physische Voraussetzungen und Management.
Schlüsselbegriffe: Schule, Management, Bildung, Leitung, Bildungsmanagement, Aufgaben des
Schulleiters
1. Introduction
During the last twenty years, there have been several studies and articles both in the
profit and the non-profit sectors dealing with the roles of managers and leaders as
well as those of the principals in the educational system. This study deals with the
answer to the following question: ‘What do principals really do and what is their role
in the Croatian educational system?’ The purpose of this study is to examine problems in the fields of educational management and leadership in Croatia that could
serve as possible starting points for future studies or research, explained by Bird and
Little, cited in Glickman (1990, 19). They explain the difference between educational and instructional leadership, and suggest that educational leadership describes
the initiatives that would like to preserve or produce the acceptable educational ethos
(the morality), while instructional leadership belongs to a specific field of educational leadership, and is directed to curriculum and teaching.
The idea of this study is based on the premise that the role is realised through
acting. This study examines the role of the school principal within the context of
modern-day schooling in turbulent surroundings, growing responsibility and overloaded schedule. The theoretical explanation of the principal’s role in the Croatian
educational system was analysed through the available literature based on management, administration and leadership, and through the analysis of documentation.
2. Definition of the term ‘role’
Many doubts arise in this field based on terminology and taxonomies. The first problem we faced during this work came from the definition of role. The term ‘role’ is ambiguously defined in Croatian literature. The meaning of ‘uloga’ includes both role and
function according to the English–Croatian dictionary (Filipović 1970, 846). ‘The
term “role” usually refers to the function performed by someone’ (Zvonarević 1978,
276, our trans.).1 ‘ “Role” means specific expectations from other people of the person
who carries a particular function’ (Bahtijarević-Šiber & Sikavica 2001, 616, our
trans.).2 We may conclude that the term ‘role’ in the Croatian language is synonymous
with function. Furthermore, the term ‘function’, to which we adhere, is explained by
1
2
Original text: ‘Pod ulogom se obično misli na funkciju koju netko vrši.’
Original text: ‘Uloga je je označena očekivanjima koja druga osoba ima od osobe koja nosi određene funkcije.’
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
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Antič as follows: ‘The principal as “the first person in the school” is entrusted with
the function of the “main commander” whose work in school can be understood as
the state representative governed by their delegated functions’ (2000, 297, our trans.).3
According to the explained definition the assigned functions include: a) planning and
programming, b) managing, c) keeping, d) organising, e) routing, f) monitoring, g)
controlling, h) evaluating and i) a range of administrative and financial activities called
the administrative jobs. We have agreed that the term ‘role’ could be defined as the
behaviour expected of a person possessing a certain position in a group (Pennington,
2001, 279). The principal’s role is realised in the organisation we call school. On the
other hand, organisation is also a group in which social power and responsibility exist
in unequal distribution, as Zvonarević (1981, 323) extracted.
3. Explanation of management and leadership roles
The term ‘role’ is explained within two fields: economy and education. Throughout
history theoreticians and pragmatists have tried to define the role of chairpersons primarily in the profit and non-profit sectors. This study does likewise, but in the wider
context of the roles of managers and leaders belonging to the field of economics.
Bahtijarević-Šiber (1999) lists eight different roles that successful managers must
perform, namely: a) leader, b) producer, c) coordinator, ‘monitor’, d) mentor, e) promoter, f) innovator, g) middleman, h) coach. Krech and colleagues (1962, 428) point
out the key roles of leaders: a) executive, b) planner, c) policy-maker, d) expert, e) external group representative, f) supervisor of internal affairs, g) implementer of reward
and punishment, h) arbitrator and mediator, i) example, j) group symbol, k) a person
who replaces individual responsibility, l) ideologue – one who serves as a source of
beliefs, values and standards or behaviour for each member of the group, m) father/
parent, n) sufferer for others – serves as a target for external aggression, accepting
blame for the school’s results. We believe that an acceptable explanation of the managers’ role in the non-profit sector, to which education belongs, was expressed very
early by Mintzberg (1975, 12): a) formal role, b) interpersonal role, c) informer, d)
decision-maker. We can conclude that the manager’s role is that of an agent who uses
many different competences. Zaleznik (1977, 61) suggests two main roles of principals: acting with the purpose of realising other people’s requests, and initiating acting
that covers strategic and operational planning and leading as well as other kinds of acting with the purpose of achieving plans. It seems that Zaleznik points out two different
kinds of action on the part of principals: managerial action and leading action. The
principals provide the conditions for finding teaching resources: material, financial
and human, and model them through managing and leading, by manifesting various
forms of behaviour towards their environment (Leithwood & Jantzi 1999, 451).
3
riginal text: ‘Ravnatelju kao “prvom čovjeku u školi” povjerena funkcija “glavnog upravljača”, čiji posao
O
u školi možemo shvatiti kao posao izaslanika države koji školom upravlja u okviru povjerenih funkcija.’
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4. Managing role in the school
The managerial role of principals derives from exercising governance in schools –
‘management is realised in four specific groups of activities: planning, organising,
leading and evaluating’ (Staničić et al. 2002, 149, our trans.)4 –, but also from the
fact that principals perform certain parts of the administrative processes and the processes prescribed by legislation, one of them being reporting. According to Staničić
(2006, 143) it is obvious that principals exercise a managerial role. The role of a
principal may be compared with the role of a captain in a storm, where quick and
independent decisions are required and there is no time for planning (Rosenblatt
& Somech 1998, 505). Erätuuli and Nylèn (1995, 13) explain both managerial
and leading actions more accurately and include the term ‘administration’ when explaining a principal’s role. With Staničić and his colleagues (2002, 149) this aspect
is expressed when dealing with administrative processes. Principals, according to
Erätuuli and Nylèn (1995), accomplish their roles through the following parts of
an ideal administrative process (Figure 1): planning, decision-making, organising,
coordination, communication, influence and evaluation that affect five elements of
school management: school programs, pupils, staff and relations with the commu
nity, physical preconditions and management. We can conclude that principals perform managerial, leading and administrative jobs when accomplishing their roles.
5. Leading role in the school
Most authors who describe a principal’s managerial role point out the role of the leader
as being an additional part of the managerial job. Staničić and his colleagues (2002,
149), for example, refer to leading as a specific group of activities, and Erätuuli
and Nylèn (1995, 13) mention communication and influence as components of the
action of leading. It seems that both leadership and management constitute parts of
the principal’s role, but where the difference is between the two remains undecided.
Kotter (1990, 38) explains that management and leadership are two distinctive and
complementary terms. Both are necessary for today’s success, the author concludes,
and adds that most American firms are over-managed and under-led. Explanations
are close to the conclusion given by Zaleznik (1977, 61), namely that managers
and leaders are two different types of persons and, furthermore, the managers’ tasks
arise from necessity rather than from a desire. Zepeda (1999, 130) concludes that the
main role of a principal is working with teachers for the development of a school as
a learning community, which, keeping the core purpose of schools in mind, seems a
logical conclusion. Principals motivate and empower their staff (Sergiovanni 1999,
10). Wiggins and McTighe (2006, 27) describe the role of a principal as the role
4
riginal text: ‘menadžment proizlazi iz ostvarivanja četiri skupine aktivnosti: planiranje, organiziranje,
O
vođenje i vrednovanje’.
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
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of a main leader, leading by their behaviour, which is an important part of influence
spreading. Blase and Blase (2002, 256) highlight the communicational role of the
principal. Sergiovanni (2001, 343) suggests that the role of the leader in an educational system consists of three dimensions: heart, head and hands, which correspond
to values, knowledge and action. Leadership in this case has to be described as a
specific skill expressed through communication, motivation, empowering, behaving,
influence, competence and acting.
6. Historical continuum of the principal’s roles
From the analysis of the historical continuum one may conclude that the principal
is no longer a manager and his role is no longer of the dominant organiser, rather it
transforms into the role of an instructional leader (Bovalino 2007, 16). This conclusion is quoted in Ainscow (1999), in Hipp and Huffman (2000) and in Sarason
(1990). Nevertheless, some authors, for example Grace, Ball, Gerwitz and Ball,
Harold, Smyth and Blackmore advocate a different opinion and explain that the role
of principals in recent years has increasingly transformed from educational leaders
to business managers, quotes McInerney (2003, 22). Burcar (2010) expresses
doubt about the direction of the transformation of the principal’s role but concludes
that some authors advocate a different opinion and argues that it is apparent that
the role of principals in recent years has increasingly transformed from educational
leaders to business managers and administrators on account of the many new administrative tasks.
7. The Croatian situation
Theoretical analyses of the Croatian situation show that principals realise their roles
in schools – that are organisations with their own specific organisational structure – in
which the educational and administrative processes take place. All stated definitions
of the term ‘organisation’ suggest the conclusion that a school is an organisation in
which many people have common goals and cooperate in common and mutually
coordinated actions. The objectives of a school are incorporated into tasks realised
through the implementation of numerous programs in specific material, physical
and financial conditions, through the engagement of many professionals with different specialities, through the interaction of different subjects, of specific climate and
culture, and of numerous processes and procedures. A school is an organisation of
planned and rationally organised education (Silov 1993, 85). From the results obtained through theoretical analyses it can be concluded that in schools as educational
institutions two types of processes are conducted: a) business processes and b) the
specific processes that are related to education. Principals are involved in the following processes: planning, decision-making, organising, coordinating, communicating,
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impact and evaluation (Figure 1). These conclusions point to our analysis of management and leadership in schools as organisations. School is an organisation that
has its structure, and principals have their roles as managers and leaders, achieving
these roles through the activities related to the organisational structure and through
the harmonisation and coordination throughout the organisation conditionally called
departments.
Planning
Evaluation
Decision-making
Processes
Impact
Communicating
Organising
Coordinating
Figure 1
Processes principals are involved in. Modified by Burcar
from Erätuuli and Nylèn (1995, 5).
Similarly, Staničić and his colleagues (2002, 149) identify four specific groups
of the principals’ activities: planning, organising, evaluating (bold/italic in Figure 1)
and leading. According to this taxonomy, compared to Erätuuli and Nylèn (1995,
5), arising leading processes are: communicating, coordinating, decision-making
and impact (influence).
Management and leadership as concepts and their theoretical explanation found
their place in the Croatian educational system, and it can be concluded that principals
realise their roles more through administrative, managerial and financial work, and
somehow less through educational activities. Results from many different researches
about the principals’ roles guide us to the conclusion that in the educational system
the role of managers and that of leaders are complex, layered and multi-dimensional.
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The principals’ roles covered four areas (Figure 2): status, organising, leading
and decision-making. It can be concluded that the principals’ roles are manifested
through the following guidelines: (1) concern for students’ achievement and teaching quality, (2) decision-making, (3) creating a vision, (4) creating a positive climate,
(5) concern for the resources (including IT), (6) actions in the field of leadership,
(7) actions in the field of management, (8) actions in the field of administrative and
legislative tasks.
Covered areas
Status
Organising
Leading
Decisionmaking
Figure 2
Areas covered within principals’ roles
Through synthesising theoretical knowledge, a theoretical construct based on
the jobs principals perform has arisen with which tasks are realised and through
which goals are achieved. The realisation of the principals’ roles are based on the
principals’ actions. This theoretical construct indicates thirteen groups of jobs principals perform: 1. informing (11 jobs), 2. reporting (7 jobs), 3. communicating (15
jobs), 4. planning (17 jobs), 5. organising (16 jobs), 6. teaching (11 jobs), 7. administrating (24 jobs), 8. leading (5 jobs), 9. managing (10 jobs), 10. pedagogical
leading (12 jobs), 11. evaluating (39 jobs), 12. learning and developing (16 jobs),
13. empowering local communities (9 jobs). Altogether 192 jobs of the theoretical
construct were included in the empirical research of Burcar (2010), providing data
on N = 119 Croatian principals. The results of this research confirm that principals
perform not only duties that are required by law but much more. On the other hand,
the role of the principal in the Croatian educational system does not differ from the
theoretical role of the principal described in recent literature and relevant legislation.
Furthermore, the author indicates an extracted model of the principal’s role in the
Croatian educational system (Figure 3).
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ORIENTATION
TOWARD PEOPLE
Communicator
Information
collector
and disseminator
ORIENTATION TOWARD
GOALS & TASKS
Strategist and
planner
Executive
manager,
administrator
and organiser
General
synthesised role
Community
liaison
Educational
leader
and educator
Student
Evaluator
ORIENTATION TOWARD
SCHOOL AS ORGANISATION
ORIENTATION TOWARD
CONDUCTED PROCESSES
Figure 3
Extracted model of the principal’s role (Burcar 2010).
We can conclude that there are too many different taxonomies and definitions
of the principal’s role for the economic and educational sciences have developed a
chaotic or multi-modelling theoretical explanation of the principal’s role. However,
conclusions can be made based on these studies. According to the findings provided
by Burcar (2010) we can explain eight different roles principals perform in the
Croatian educational system: a) information collector and disseminator through various media; b) communicator with the staff, pupils, parents, superiors and local comEJMH 9:1, June 2014
95
munities, directly or by using technology; c) strategist and planner in relation to
human resources, teaching and other resources, and pupils; d) executive manager,
administrator and organiser the way chairpersons, responsible persons, and skillful
persons are; e) educational leader and educator by building relations, motivating,
educating, and supporting highly educated staff to facilitate strong students perform
ance; f) evaluator through analysing, monitoring and evaluating processes and results; g) student through continuous investment in their own knowledge, skills and
behaviour; and h) community liaison through various protocol activities.
Principals’ roles are oriented toward: a) people, b) tasks/goals, c) school as organisation, and d) processes inside the school. Tasks generated from such orientation
belong to the ideal administrative process explained by Erätuuli and Nylèn (1995,
13): planning, decision-making, organising, coordination, communication, influence
and evaluation that affect five tasks of school management: school programs, pupils,
staff and relations with the community, physical preconditions and management.
Consequently, the principals’ competences have to cover interpersonal skills, stra
tegic management, project management, professional teaching competences and administrative competences (legislation, finance).
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DOI: 10.5708/EJMH.9.2014.1.Rev.1
Robert Biel
ZWISCHEN WOHER UND
WOHIN DER HEUTIGEN PASTORAL
Först, J. & H.G. Schöttler, Hrsg. (2012) Einführung in die Theologie der
Pastoral: Ein Lehrbuch für Studierende, Lehrer und kirchliche Mitarbeiter (Berlin: LIT) 23,5 cm, 328 S., ISBN 978-3-643-11435-8, € 29,80.
Auf den ersten Blick erweckt der Buchtitel Einführung in die Theologie der Pastoral
das Gefühl eines Déjà-vu. Weder „Einführung“ noch „Theologie“ oder „Pastoral“
sind neue, unbekannte Wörter. Da es schon so viele Einführungen in die Theologie
gibt, stellt man sich unweigerlich die Frage, weshalb es abermals eine neue Einführung braucht. Das ruft eine Rezension aus dem 19. Jahrhundert in Erinnerung: „An
diesem Buch ist vieles neu und gut. Aber das Neue ist nicht gut und das Gute ist nicht
neu“. Es gibt so viele Theologen, die „den früheren Generationen unentwegt sagen:
Was ihr damals gemacht hat, das war falsch, und wir sind die ersten, [die] die Wahrheit mit pastoralen Löffeln gegessen haben“ (Zulehner 1994, 86). Doch wie so oft
im Leben kann auch im Buchwesen der Schein trügen und eine weitere Einführung
in die Theologie der Pastoral etwas Neues und Gutes bringen.
Die pastorale Praxis der Kirche vollzieht sich nicht im luftleeren Raum, sondern im Bedingungsfeld des „Hier“ und „Heute“. Es kann keine Pastoral perennis,
keine ewig gültige Pastoral geben, weil diese permanenten gesellschaftlichen und
geschichtlichen Wandlungen unterworfen ist. Dem hier besprochenen Buch liegt
gerade diese Frage zugrunde: Welche Beziehung besteht zwischen dem, was man
heutzutage Werte- oder Gesellschaftswandel nennt, und dem, was als pastorale Praxis bezeichnet wird? Weil die Kirche nicht untätig bleiben kann, muss sie ständig
Wechselbeziehungen mit der Welt und der Geschichte pflegen. Dadurch wandeln
sich die Grundbedingungen für die Pastoral stetig, was wiederum auch eine Pastoral im Wandel erfordert. Gesellschaftlicher Wandel und religiös-kirchlicher Wandel
stehen mithin in Wechselwirkung, und der gesellschaftliche Wertewandel beeinflusst
die Pastoral.
Menschen sind nämlich – wie es J. Müller treffend festhält – „Kinder ihrer
Zeit“, sie summen jeweils die „Zeitmelodie“ mit (Müller 1993, 87). Deshalb ist
sowohl die Kirche als auch deren Pastoral ständig einer „Melodie der Zeit“ unterworfen. So gesehen ist diese Einführung in die Theologie der Pastoral als Partitur
für Studierende, Religionslehrer und kirchliche Mitarbeiter zu betrachten. In diesem
Sinne ist es den Herausgebern J. Först und H.G. Schöttler im vorliegenden Sammelband gelungen, alle Vorgaben vorzüglich umzusetzen und den Religionslehrern und
Studierenden „einen Leitfaden mit pastoraltheologischem Grund- und Vertiefungswissen an die Hand zu geben“ (S. 1). Es ist ein vieldimensionales und lesenswertes
Buch entstanden, das sich mit der wichtigen pastoraltheologischen Triade, bestehend
100
aus der Reflexion über die Grunddimensionen der kirchlichen Existenz (Grundlegendes), über die Orte der pastoralen Landschaft (pastorale Orte) und die Verwirklichungsperspektive der Pastoral (Realisierungen), beschäftigt. Die gesammelten Beiträge sind sehr unterschiedlich: Sind die einen sprachlich selbst dichterisch inspiriert
(Schmetterlinge in der pastoralen Landschaft), so sind andere wissenschaftlich oder
praktisch orientiert. Dies trägt dazu bei, dass das Lesen der theologischen Texte ästhetisch wie inhaltlich anregend wirkt.
Es ist unmöglich, in einer kurzen Rezension alle Beiträge zu charakterisieren,
deren AutorInnen sich zu einem illustren Feld versammelt haben, wobei insbesondere I. Baumgartner und S. Knobloch zu erwähnen sind. Es wäre also nicht überraschend, wenn sich nicht wenige andere katholische TheologInnen zu diesem Werk
hingezogen fühlen und sich von den kreativen und interessanten Beiträgen herausfordern lassen, die thematisch gesehen ein breites Spektrum kirchlicher und religiöser Praxis zu geben versuchen.
Wie es dem grundlegenden Charakter dieses Buches entspricht, werden im ersten Teil die Diakonia, Leiturgia, Martyria, Koinonia: Grunddimensionen christlicher und kirchlicher Existenz als Ausdruck der Kirche als universales Sakrament des
Heils dargestellt (R.A. Siebenrock). Andere Artikel nehmen das Thema der praktisch-theologischen Hermeneutik (R. Feiter), der Wirklichkeitsrezeption, auf, die als
Bedingung pastoraler Praxis verstanden wird (J. Först), und versuchen, das heutige
Verhältnis zwischen Kirche und Welt darzustellen.
Im Kontext der heutigen gesellschaftlichen Lage der Kirche geht es um ein
wertschätzendes, positives Aufgreifen der pastoralen Impulse, um eine angstfreie
Aufnahme der neuen Herausforderungen der kirchlichen Pastoral. Dazu regen die
in diesem Buch gesammelten Beiträge an. In den einzelnen Beiträgen stehen grundsätzliche Probleme der heutigen Pastoral mit den entsprechenden Fragestellungen
im Vordergrund, auch wenn sie nicht immer ausdrücklich angesprochen werden. Zu
nennen sind in diesem Zusammenhang Themen wie Volksfrömmigkeit und populäre
Religiosität (W. Gebhardt), Krise der Gemeinde (H. Haslinger), Neue Gestalt der
Kirche (B. Spielberg), Schulpastoral (A. Kaupp) und Pastoral der Armen und Bedrängten (I. Baumgartner). Ohne Anspruch auf Vollständigkeit zu erheben, wird in
der Einführung in die Theologie der Pastoral versucht, eine Auswahl theologischer
Paradigmen für die heutige Pastoral der Kirche vorzustellen (13).
Eine auf die Praxis der Kirche und der einzelnen Christen bezogene Theologie
der Pastoral steht vor der Aufgabe, die bestehende Praxis wahrzunehmen und kritisch zu analysieren, um Handlungstheorien für die zukünftige Praxis zu entwerfen.
Angesichts der veränderten gesellschaftlichen Lage ist auch die Kirche durch die
neue Situation zu einem neuen Stil seelsorgerischen Arbeitens herausgefordert. Dies
verlangt nach einer Umstrukturierung der Kirche und ihrer Pastoral. Aber im Blick
auf die schwierige Wirklichkeit des gesellschaftlichen und kirchlichen Lebens verbieten sich alle einfachen Alternativen und pastoralen Lösungen. Und auch wenn
in diesem Buch keine rezeptartigen Anleitungen für die Pastoral zu erwarten sind,
so werden doch in Kirchenkrise, Kirchenferne und Säkularisierung (J. Först) und
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
101
in Interkulturalität – Interreligiosität – Interkonfessionalität (S. Knobloch) einige
Handlungskonzepte am Beispiel exemplarisch ausgewählter Zusammenhänge der
heutigen Pastoral dargestellt. Wenn sich die Pastoral der Kirche und deren Seelsorge
auf die Lebenssituation der heutigen Christen einlässt, muss sie bereit sein, sich eine
erfahrungs- und praxisbezogene Theologie und Seelsorge anzueignen (K.G. Eich
und G. Köhl) und das seelsorgerische und pastorale Gespräch mit der Welt und den
Menschen zu führen (R. Fuchs, H. Scharler, M. Wild).
Die Aufgabe der situationsgerechten Pastoral kann aber nicht darin bestehen,
dass ein Rigorismus irgendeiner Art gepflegt wird, sondern sie soll den Boden für
die Botschaft Christi fruchtbar machen. Die Kirche ist aufgerufen, mutig und „kritisch, u. U. im Widerstand zur Gesellschaft und den hier dominierenden Trends,
Stellung zu nehmen – ohne sich zu verschließen oder sich auf sich selbst zurückzuziehen“ (Deutsche Bischofskonferenz 1993, 14). Sie kann ihrem Auftrag nur gerecht werden, wenn sie von beiden ihr Wesen bestimmenden Quellen gespeist wird,
nämlich von der überlieferten Botschaft des Evangeliums und von den Nöten und
Antrieben, Ideen und Vorstellungen, Herausforderungen, Fragestellungen und Bedürfnissen der jetzigen Zeit. Nur so können die lebensrelevanten pastoralen Prozesse
ihre Wurzelgründe in der Botschaft des Evangeliums und in der Zeitsituation haben
(Fürst 1993, 124–25). Denn nur aus einer umfassenden, gesamtgesellschaftlichen
Perspektive ist es möglich, „Pastora“ und Wandel in der Gesellschaft so aufeinander
zu beziehen, dass das menschliche Ringen um das Glauben-Können theologisch und
existenziell verstanden wird und gelingen kann. Dieser durch den gesellschaftlichen
Modernisierungsprozess mehr oder weniger erzwungene Wandel führt dazu, dass
immer wieder existentiell- wie theologisch-reflektierte Überlegungen angestellt werden, wie man das menschliche Leben mit der Pastoral und der Seelsorge der Kirche
in Einklang bringen kann.
Die Einführung in die Theologie der Pastoral ist aufgrund ihres Inhalts kein
einfaches Buch für pastoraltheologische Anfänger. Das Buch ist anspruchsvoll, weil
es nicht nur darum geht, wie viel Theologie es in der Pastoral(theologie) geben soll.
Es lohnt sich aber, dieses Buch in die Hand zu nehmen, weil jeder etwas aus ihm
lernen kann. Zum einen lernt man etwas über die Herkunft der Pastoral, zum anderen
kann man etwas über pastoraltheologische Perspektiven erfahren. Wie eine Spinne
ihr Netz webt, der Biber einen Damm baut und die Menschen ihre Sprache und Tradition pflegen, so sind auch die Herausgeber dieses Buches bemüht, theologische
Grundpfeiler der Pastoral aufzuzeigen. In diesem Sinne hilft das Buch, das Woher
der Pastoral zu entdecken und ihr Wohin zu finden. Es motiviert Pastoraltheologen,
sich weiter mit diesem Thema zu beschäftigen.
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
102
Referenzen
Deutsche Bischofskonferenz, Hrsg. (1993) Sakramentenpastoral im Wandel: Überlegungen zur
gegenwärtigen Praxis der Feier der Sakramente – am Beispiel von Taufe, Erstkommunion
und Firmung (Bonn: Sekretariat der Deutschen Bischofskonferenz).
Fürst, W. (1993) ‘Plädoyer für formschöpferische Initiativen und einen Tutorismus des Wagnisses im pastoralen Handeln der Kirche’ in H.J. Beckers & A. Wittrahm, Hrsg., Wertewandel: Wandel der Lebensformen und Pastoral (Mönchengladbach: Kühlen) 123–38.
Müller, J. (1993) Pastoraltheologie: Ein Handbuch für Studium und Seelsorge (Graz etc.: Styria).
Zulehner, P.M. (1994) ‘Wie eine christliche Gemeinde wirken sollte’ in G. Koch & J. Pretscher, Hrsg., Wozu Kirche? Wozu Gemeinde? Kirchenvisionen (Würzburg: Echter) 63–88.
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
DOI: 10.5708/EJMH.9.2014.1.Rev.2
Wieslaw Przygoda
WER BEFREIT MICH VON MEINER SCHULD?
Müller, K.E. (2012) Schuld und Sühne: Die Vorgeschichte des Erlösungsglaubens (Münster: LIT) 23,5 cm, 208 S., ISBN 978-3-643-11753-3, € 29,90.
Es gibt einen einzigartigen Lehrsatz des hl. Paulus. In diesem geht es um sein
Schuldgefühl oder, anders gesagt, um sein Schuldbewusstsein. Der Völkerapostel
sagt: „Ich aber bin Fleisch, das heißt: verkauft an die Sünde. Denn ich begreife mein
Handeln nicht: ich tue nicht das, was ich will, sondern das, was ich hasse. . . . Dann
aber bin nicht mehr ich es, der so handelt, sondern die in mir wohnende Sünde“
(Röm 7:14–15.17).
Wie kann man diese Erfahrung des Paulus verstehen? Geht es um eine persönliche spirituelle Schizophrenie des Apostels? Erscheint hier eine existenzielle
Empfindung des Apostels, oder ist das vielleicht eine Spur, ein Zeichen des universalen Dramas, das Menschen in allen Zeiten durchlebt haben? Wie sehr eine solche
Erfahrung belasten kann, macht eine von Paulus formulierte Frage deutlich: „Ich
unglücklicher Mensch! Wer wird mich aus diesem dem Tod verfallenen Leib erretten?“ (Röm 7:24).
Das neu erschienene Buch von Müller zeigt zweifellos, dass die menschliche
Natur Schuldbewusstsein von Anfang an gekannt hat und die Menschen genau wie
der hl. Paulus seit Urzeiten immer wieder solche Fragen stellen. Der Autor, der
durchgängig auf religionsethnologischem und kulturhistorischem Grund bleibt, beschreibt auf hochinteressante Weise die geschichtlichen Prozesse der Entwicklung
des Erlösungsglaubens und der Vergebungsrituale in verschiedenen Kulturen, er beginnt bei den prähistorischen Jägerkulturen, kommt dann zu den agrarischen Kulturen und endet bei Jesus von Nazareth. Müller bestätigt, dass die Menschen schon
seit Jahrtausenden das Bedürfnis verspüren, den Gott oder verschiedene Gottheiten
beziehungsweise Gottes Kinder oder Heroen um Vergebung zu bitten. Aus diesem
Grund gibt es auf der ganzen Welt verschiedene Sühne- und Erlösungs-Rituale.
Die Struktur des Buches ist klar und logisch. Zuerst analysiert der Autor die Bedingungen des Schuldbewusstseins bei Menschen in verschiedenen Epochen, dann
beschreibt er sehr anschaulich die Vorbereitung und Durchführung von Vergebungsritualen und zuletzt auch den Neubeginn des Lebens nach einer groß angelegten
gemeinschaftlichen Feier. Das letzte Kapitel des Buches bezieht sich auf die Struktur
der Heiligen Messe in der römisch-katholischen Kirche. Das mag überraschen, immerhin ist der Autor Ethnologe und sein Buch ohne Zweifel eine ethnologische Abhandlung. Es ist jedoch gerechtfertigt, weil der Autor in der Struktur des Hochamtes
nach Spuren uralter Versöhnungsrituale gesucht und gefunden hat.
Ein großer Vorzug des Buches von Müller ist, dass es dem Leser ein reiches
Kompendium des Wissens über einen sehr wichtigen Bereich der menschlichen
104
Kultur näherbringt. Die uralten Rituale der Versöhnung lassen uns nicht nur die
religiöse Kommunikation zwischen Menschen und Gott (bzw. Gottheiten) besser
verstehen, sondern auch die damals herrschenden zwischenmenschlichen Beziehungen. Es ist hervorzuheben, dass der Autor umfängliche weltliche Literatur, besonders aus dem 18. und 19. Jh., durchgesehen hat, um dem Leser ein deutlicheres
Bild des uralten Versöhnungsrituals vor Augen zu führen. Außerdem ist es bemerkenswert, dass frühere Gesellschaftssysteme eigene Vergebungsrituale erarbeitet
haben und dass diese Rituale bis in die heutige Zeit eine ganz ähnliche Struktur
bewahrt haben. Zu beachten ist auch, wie schwer, langfristig und sehr oft tragisch (vgl. das Kapitel Martyrium des Menschen) es war, den kulturellen Prozess
des Gotteswillens zu entdecken und angemessene Formen der Schuldbefreiung
zu finden. Daraus kann geschlossen werden, dass dieser Prozess ohne historische
Gottesoffenbarung (im Alten und besonders im Neuen Testament) bis heute sehr
wahrscheinlich unwirksam geblieben wäre.
Wodurch entsteht Schuldbewusstsein? Der Ethnologe Müller gibt auf diese
Frage folgende Antwort: Den in antiken Kulturen herrschenden Machtverhältnissen
entsprechend wurde der eine Gott als übermächtiger „Gebieter“ begriffen, dem seine
„Untertanen“ zu absolutem Gehorsam und zu Gefolgschaftstreue verpflichtet waren.
Die Menschen waren von Anfang an schwach und unvollkommen, immer kamen sie
vom richtigen Weg ab – „und machten sich schuldig. Der himmlische ‘König’ suchte sie für ihre ‘Sünden’ mit entsprechenden Strafen – Krankheiten, Ernteeinbußen,
Misserfolgen, Verarmung und dergleichen – heim“ (Vorwort, III). Außerdem gab es
in jeder alten Kultur noch eine spezielle Ursache für Schuldbewusstsein. „Auch in
den Jägerkulturen litten die Menschen darunter, dass sie, um überleben zu können,
ihre – nach mythischer Überlieferung – ‘Vettern in Tiergestalt’ töten mussten“ (Vorwort, IV). In den Bauernkulturen dann
galten die Nahrungsfrüchte, von denen man zur Hauptsache lebte . . ., als Verkörperung
des ‘Göttlichen Kindes’, das alljährlich von seinen Eltern, dem Himmelsgott und der
Erdgöttin, aufs neu erzeugt, von der Erde geboren und zuletzt, herangereift, von den Menschen getötet wurde. (Vorwort, IV)
Das waren die Hauptgründe des Schuldbewusstseins von Menschen in den alten Kulturen, die diese Menschen zu verschiedenen Vergebungs- und Versöhnungsritualen geführt haben. Dabei ging es immer um ein Sühneopfer, das die beschuldigten Menschen aus ihrer ewigen Schuldverstrickung befreien konnte. Die Sühneopfer
brauchten eine Opfergabe – Tiere oder auch Menschen, die ab der hellenistischen
Zeit als Heiler (pharmakos) bezeichnet wurde. Von da an führte der Heiler die „sündigen“ Menschen zur Schuldbefreiung, zum Heil.1
1
Was bedeutet das Wort „Heil“ in der Religionswissenschaft? Das Heil erscheint den Menschen aus ihrer defizitären, unheilvollen Lage heraus als das Erstrebenswerte, wobei sowohl die Religionen als auch die unterschiedlichsten Glaubens-, Aktions- und Vergesellschaftungssysteme, welche an die verschiedenartigsten Umweltbedingungen, historischen Entwicklungen und Selbstverständnisse gebunden sind, die unterschiedlichsten Antworten
bereithalten. Man kann gerade in Bezug auf das Heil eine einheitliche Zielgerichtetheit der Religionen feststellen. Wenn wir auch davon ausgehen, dass das Heil das Zentrum und das Ziel von Religionen ist, so können
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
105
Zwar gibt es viele Ähnlichkeiten zwischen der rituellen Folterung von Tieren
und der Passion Christi, doch das Ereignis Jesu Christi ist einmalig und nicht wiederholbar (Vgl. Rusecki 2010, 50–75). Müller hat recht, wenn er schreibt, dass die
alten Legenden, die Erzählungen und der Mythos von der Auferstehung geopferter
(getöteter) Tiere oder Menschen eine langfristige Vorbereitung für die wahre und
einzigartige Auferstehung Christi waren. Jedoch ist kein Bär, kein Stier, kein Ziegenbock und kein Narrenkönig wirklich auferstanden, sondern nur Jesus – er allein.
Auch in dem Buch von Müller findet sich die Überzeugung, dass Jesus von Nazareth
durch seinen Opfertod, ganz wie es dem alt überlieferten Glauben entsprach, die
Sünder mit ihrem erzürnten Gott versöhnt und Frieden gestiftet hat. Der Sensibilität
der Christen kommt besonders folgende Aussage Müllers entgegen:
I n ihm (Jesus) vollendete sich der Erlösungsglaube. Er befreite die Menschen nicht, wie
Bären, Stiere, Sündenböcke, Pharmakoi und Korngötter, die Himmelssöhne vor ihm, Jahr
für Jahr immer wieder aufs neue; er trug ihre Schuld, sofern sie jedenfalls guten Glaubens
waren, sozusagen ein für allemal ab, das heißt er verlieh der Erlösungsgewißheit überzeitliche Geltung; er verewigte sie.
(2012, 168)
Die Gesamtbewertung des Buches von Müller fällt sehr positiv aus. Wir haben es hier mit einem Werk zu tun, welches eine tiefere Analyse enthält und sehr
interessant geschrieben ist. Obwohl der wissenschaftliche Beitrag von Müller auf
rein ethnologischen Studien beruht, enthält es eine wichtige Botschaft der Hoffnung
für alle Menschen. Wir bleiben nicht allein mit unserem Schuldgefühl, mit unseren
Ängsten und Belastungen, mit unseren Fragen nach dem Sinn und der Vollendung
des Lebens. Dies kommt auch in dem von Müller zitierten Satz des hl. Paulus zum
Ausdruck: „Einer ist Gott, Einer auch Mittler zwischen Gott und den Menschen: der
Mensch Christus Jesus, der sich als Lösegeld hingegeben hat für alle“ (1Tim 2:5–6,
zit. in Müller 2012, 168).
Referenzen
Flasche, R. (1993) ‘Heil’ in H. Cancik, B. Gladigow, K.-H. Kohl, Hrsg., Handbuch
religionswissenschaftlicher Grundbegriffe, 5 Bde (Stuttgart: Kohlhammer) 3:73.
Rusecki, M. (2010) Traktat o wiarygodności chrześcijaństwa (Lublin: TNKUL).
wir doch nicht sagen, dass alle Religionen Erlösungsreligionen sind. Denn zur Vorstellung der Erlösung gehört
unmittelbar ein Erlöser, der nicht nur den Heilsweg zeigt, sondern selbst der Heilsweg ist. Aus diesem Grund
muss man sagen, dass Bären-, Stiere- oder Sündenböcke-Rituale keine wirklichen Heilswege waren, obwohl
sie das Schuldgefühl und die Unheilserfahrung des Menschen überwinden konnten. Vgl. Flasche (1993) 73.
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
ABSTRACTS / ZUSAMMENFASSUNGEN
(Croatian, Czech, English, German, Hungarian, Polish,
Rumanian, Russian, and Slovakian Abstracts /
Kroatische, Tschechische, Englische, Deutsche, Ungarische, Polnische,
Rumänische, Russische und Slowakische Zusammenfassungen)
DOI: 10.5708/EJMH.9.2014.1.Abs.HRO
CROATIAN ABSTRACTS
KROATISCHE ZUSAMMENFASSUNGEN
APSTRAKTI
Hessel J. Zondag & Marinus H.F. van Uden (str. 3)
„My Special Prayer“: Self, bog i molitva: Članak prikazuje kako na vjersko ponašanje djeluje
samoljublje, jedno važno obilježlje osobnosti u egocentričnim društvima. Zapadnu kulturu naših dana obično smatraju ekspresivno individualističkom, koja teži ka samoostvarenju. Za nju je
najkarakterističnije kako su ljudi skloni da sebi pripišu božje osobine. U psihologiji se to naziva
narcizmom. Široki spektar narcizma pokazuje kako pokušaji da se egu pripišu božje osobine nisu
uvijek uspješne. Takve osobe sanjare o tome da mogu postati ravni bogovima, ali im je istovremeno slika o samome sebi prekrhka da bi ovi pokušaji postali uspješni. Uspjeh toga narcističkog
nastojanja ima učinak na vjersku djelatnost, naprimjer na molitvu. Gradeći na ranija empirijska
istraživanja i na jednu studiju prikazat ćemo kako su povezani samoobožavanje, narcizam i molitva. Oni koji se uspješno samoobožavaju, drukčije se mole nego oni koji su u tome neuspješni.
Prvi svoje molitve upućuju sebi ili nekoj anonimnoj višoj vlasti, potonji jednom osobnom Bogu.
Ključne riječi: egocentričnost, self, otvoreno ili skriveno samoljublje, molitva, narcizam
Ferenc Köteles & Péter Simor (str. 20)
Bojazan modernog doba za zdravlje, somatosenzorna amplifikacija, strah za zdravlje i
dobrobit: Presječno ispitivanje: Cilj istraživanja je ispitivanje povezanosti između bojazni za
zdravlje modernog doba, somatsko-senzorne amplifikacije, straha za zdravlje i psihološkog blagostanja. U presječnom ispitivanju pomoću upitnika sudjelovalo je 180 bolesnika koji posjećuju
svoga kućnog liječnika (prosječna dob=48.2 ± 15,76 godina) i 344 studenta (prosječna dob=21.5
± 2.09 godina), popunivši skalu bojazni za zdravlje modernog doba, skalu somatosenzorne amplifikacije, skraćenu varijantu skale straha za zdravlje, upitnik pozitivnog i negativnog afektiviteta, kao i upitnik WHO-5. Prema rezultatima, somatosenzorna amplifikacija i strah za zdravlje
neviosno jedno od drugog povezani su s bojazni za zdravlje modernog doba. Između straha za
zdravlje i dobrobiti nadaje se veza obrnutog smjera. Prema rezultatima korelacijske analize strah
za zdravlje modernog doba nije korelirao s dobrobiti i stajao je u slaboj pozitivnoj vezi s pozitivnim afektom, a u regresivnom ispitivanju pak pozitivno se vezivao s oba, nakon kontrole socioekonomičnih čimbenika, negativnog afektiviteta i straha za zdravlje. Strah za zdravlje modernog
doba obično se smatra maladaptivnom kognitivnom strukturom, ali po sadašnjim rezultatima ovo
stajalište se može promisliti.
Ključne riječi: somatosenzorska amplifikacija, strah za zdravljem, dobrobit, opažajna kontrola
110
CROATIAN ABSTRACTS / KROATISCHE ZUSAMMENFASSUNGEN
Bence Takács & Zoltán Kmetty (str. 34)
Šport kao socijalizacijsko „sredstvo”: Korelacija između sudjelovanja u radu civilnih udruga i bavljenja športom u krugu mladih 15–18 godina: Na pozitivno djelovanje društvenog
kapitala ukazao je velik broj studija u proteklih 10–20 godina, ali s manjm naglaskom na nastajanje društvenog kapitala. Najviše autora iza stvaranja društvenog kapitala na inplicitan način
pretpostavlja socijalizacijsko djelovanje. To potvrđuju i one studije koje su, koristeći se podacima
panel istraživanja, pokazale značajnu povezanost između civilne aktivnosti u mlado i rano odraslo
doba i između razine općeg povjerenja. U našoj studiji ispitujemo na koji način utječe bavljenje
športom u krugu mladih (15–18 godina) na jedan od važnih indikatora društvenog kapitala, na
članstvo civilne udruge. Prema dvama uzorcima podataka (Istraživanje mladeži 2000, 2008.) mladi koji se bave športom s većom vjerojatnošću sudjeluju u radu civilne udruge. Štoviše u našim
modelima šport se pokazao važnijim pozadinskim čimbenikom od dostupnosti gospodarskih ili
kulturnih resursa. Iako to djelomično ima i strukturalne razloge, mišljenja smo kako je u pogledu
društvenog kapitala važan čimbenik prije svega sudjelovanje u zajednici, odnosno mreža veza
koja iz toga nastaje. Tome pak dobar temelj može biti bavljenje športom u mlado doba.
Ključne riječi: društveni kapital, slobodno vrijeme, dobna skupina 15–18 godina, bavljenje športom, članstvo u civilnoj udruzi
Helene Ybrandt (str. 54)
Trend obiteljskih i psihičkih problema u krugu švedskih pubertetlija u proteklih 10 godina mjeren samoopažanjem: Istraživanje je željelo otkriti težinu problema švedskih pubertetlija, posluživši se podacima koje su 2000., odnosno 2010. prikupili ispitivači pomoću intervjua
Adolescent Drug Abuse Diagnosis (ADAD, dijagnoza uporabe droge u pubertetu), odnosno na
osnovu samopriznanja. Podatke koji se odnose na obiteljske odnose, psihičko stanje i probleme
u krugu pubertetlija 15–17 godina prikupili su na dva slučajno odabrana uzorka (2000. godine
12 osoba, 2010. godine 485 osoba). Usporedivši rezultate ispitivanja obavljenih 2000., odnosno
2010. godine koje su vrednovali ispitivači, odnosno koja se temelje na samopriznanju, nema
promjena u vezi s težinom problema-nije se povećala razlika između spolova, odnosno između
grupa s različitim društvenim i gopodarskim zaleđem. Istovremeno su djevojke ocijenile težim
probleme unutar obiteljskih veza, nego mladići. Pubertetlije su u odnosu na 2000. godinu 2010.
godine podnijeli izvješće o manje psihičkih problema (primjerice teški strah, napetost, smetnja u
razumijevanju, smetnja u pažnji, smetnja u pamćenju, nadalje problemi unutar ili izvan obitelji,
odnosno nepovjerenje prema drugima). U interesu unapređivanja mentalnog zdravlja pubertetlija,
narednih desetljeća istaknuta je zadaća otkriti probleme u vezi, primjerice pitanja neizvjesnosti u
vezi s osobama izvan obitelji.
Ključne riječi: dijagnoza uporabe droge u pubertetu (ADAD), pubertet, mentalna higijena, obitelj, problemi u vezi
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
CROATIAN ABSTRACTS / KROATISCHE ZUSAMMENFASSUNGEN
111
Khodarahimi Siamak, Haydar Deghani & Mohammadhadi Nikpourian (str. 68)
Mentalna higijena i nacini soladavanja oskudice pitke vode u provinciji Fars: Ekopsiholoski pogled: Jedan od ciljeva istraživanja bio je da na jednom iranskom uzorku ispita djelovanje
oskudice pitke vode na mentalnu higijenu i način svladavanja problema stanovništva u provinciji,
nadalje da razjasni da li spol, mjesto prebivališta, obiteljsko stanje, radno mjesto i studije utječu
na to. Istraživanje je obuhvatilo 1198 stanovnika provincije u okolini iranskih gradova Darab i
Eghlid. Pri ispitivanju su se koristili demografskim upitnikom, upitnikom općeg zdravlja (General
Health Questionnaire 28, GHQ-28) i skalom metoda svladavanja problema nedostatka pitke vode
(Coping Styles with Drinking Water Crisis, CSDWS). CSDW skala se proteže na sljedeća četiri
čimbenika: (1) metode koje imaju za cilj optimaliziranje potrošnje vode, (2) technologije bez vode
i društvene promjene, (3) uporaba vrhunskih technologija u ekonomičnoj potrošnji vode, odnosno (4) načini svladavanja problema temeljeni na osjećajnom fokusu. Oni stanovnici provincije,
koji nisu pogođeni oskudicom pitke vode, primjenili su puno racionalnije načine svladavanja
problema na višoj razini, bio im je niži psihopatološki pokazatelj, manje su bili skloni načinima
svladavanja problema temeljenih na osjećajnom fokusu, nego oni stanovnici provincije koji su
pogođeni oskudicom pitke vode. Uzorak je potvrdio djelovanje mjesta prebivališta, obiteljskog
stanja, studija i radnog mjesta na načine svladavanja problema i mentalnu higijenu.
Ključne riječi: oskudica vode, načini svladavanja problema, mentalna higijena, demografski podaci
Željko Burcar (str. 87)
Uloga ravnatelja u hrvatskom obrazovnom sustavu: Menadžer, lider ili administrator: Temeljna je svrha ovog rada istražiti startnu poziciju za buduće studije i istraživanja u području
obrazovnog menadžmenta i liderstva u Republici Hrvatskoj, a isto tako i u području instrukcijskog
liderstva. Ovaj rad istražuje ulogu školskog ravnatelja u kontekstu suvremenog i turbulentnog
obrazovnog okruženja, rastućim ravnateljevim odgovornostima i pretrpanog rasporeda rada. Sukladno rezultatima možemo objasniti osam različitih uloga koje ravnatelji izvode u hrvatskom
obrazovnom sustavu: a) uloga sakupljača i djelitelja informacija, b) uloga komunikatora, c) uloga
strateškog planera, d) uloga izvršnog menadžera, e) uloga obrazovnog lidera i edukatora, f) uloga
evaluatora, g) uloga studenta i h) uloga povezivača sa zajednicom. Uloge ravnatelja orijentirane
su prema: a) ljudima, b) zadaćama/ciljevima, c) školi kao organizaciji i d) procesima koji se odvijaju unutar škole. Poslovi koji se naslanjanju na ovu orijentaciju pripadaju idealnom administrativnom procesu: planiranje, donošenje odluka, organiziranje, koordinacija, komuniciranje, utjecaj
i vrednovanje što je efikasno u pet zadaća školskog menadžmenta: školski programi, učenici,
zaposleni, odnosi sa zajednicom, fizički preduvjeti i menadžment.
Ključne riječi: Školski menadžment, obrazovno liderstvo, instrukcijsko liderstvo, obrazovni menadžment, suvremeno školstvo, odgovornosti ravnatelja
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
DOI: 10.5708/EJMH.9.2014.1.Abs.CZ
CZECH ABSTRACTS
TSCHECHISCHE ZUSAMMENFASSUNGEN
ABSTRAKTY
Hessel J. Zondag & Marinus H.F. van Uden (s. 3)
„Má speciální modlitba”: Self, Bůh a modlitba: V příspěvku popisujeme dopad narcismu na
náboženské chování v individualistických společnostech. Narcismus je důležitá osobnostní charakteristika. Současná západní kultura obecně spočívá na expresivním individualismu. Pro tento
vzorek je typické, že lidé mají sklon udělovat si božské vlastnosti. V psychologii se tomu říká
narcismus. Různorodé projevy v spektru narcismu prokazují, že tyto pokusy o udělování si božských vlastností nekončí vždy úspěchem. Narcistické osoby sní o tom, že se dostanou na úroveň
bohů, jejich vlastní sebaobraz je ale příliš křehký k tomu, aby mohly být tyto pokusy úspěšné.
Úspěch tohoto narcistického úsilí ovlivňuje i náboženskou aktivitu, například modlitbu. Opíraje
se o předchozí empirické výzkumy a jednu případovou studii představujeme souvislosti zbožštění
sebe samého, narcismu a modlitby. Ti, kteří jsou úspěšní v zbožštění sebe samého, se modlí jinak,
než ti, jímž se to nepodaří. Modlitby první skupiny jsou adresovány samy sobě či nejmenované
vyšší moci, modlitby druhé skupiny zase k osobitému Bohu.
Klíčová výrazy: individualismus, self, zjevný nebo skrytý narcismus, modlitba, narcizmus
Ferenc Köteles & Péter Simor (s. 20)
Strach o zdraví v moderní době: Somatosenzorické amplifikace, úzkost o zdraví a pohoda:
Průřezová studie: Cílem průzkumu byla analýza spojitostí strachu o zdraví v moderní době,
somatosenzorické amplifikace, úzkosti o zdraví a psychologické pohody. Dotazníky (Skálu strach
o zdraví v moderní době, Skálu somatosenzorické amplifikace, zkrácenou verzi Dotazníku úzkost
o zdraví, Dotazník o pozitivní a negativní afektivitě a Dotazník WHO) vyplnilo 5 180 pacientů u
praktického lékaře (průměrný věk = 48.2 ± 15.76 let) a 344 vysokoškoláků (průměrný věk = 21.5
± 2.09 let). Výsledky ukazují, že somatosenzorické amplifikace a úzkost o zdraví jsou nezávisle
od sebe spojené se strachem o zdraví v moderní době. Mezi úzkostí o zdraví a pohodou se prokázal inverzní vztah. Výsledky korelační analýzy ukázaly, že strach o zdraví v moderní době nekoreluje s pohodou a má slabý pozitivní vztah k pozitivní afektivitě, v regresním výzkumu však kladně
navazoval na obě proměnné po kontrole socioekonomických proměnných, negativní afektivity a
úzkosti o zdraví. Strach o zdraví v moderní době se obvykle považuje za maladaptivní kognitivní
strukturu, ale na základě těchto výsledků bychom mohli tento postoj zvážit.
Klíčová výrazy: somatosenzorická amplifikace, úzkost o zdraví, pohoda, vnímaná kontrola
CZECH ABSTRACTS / TSCHECHISCHE ZUSAMMENFASSUNGEN
113
Bence Takács & Zoltán Kmetty (s. 34)
Sport jako „nástroj“ socializace: Korelace mezi sportem a účastí v práci v občanských sdruženích ve věkové kategorii 15 až 18 ročních: Na pozitivní vliv sociálního kapitálu poukázala v
posledních 10–20 letech řada studií, na jeho vývin byl ale kladen menší důraz. Většina autorů za
vznikem sociálního kapitálu předpokládá implicitně socializační vliv. To potvrzují i studie, které
využitím panelových výzkumů poukázaly na výrazné spojitosti mezi občanskou aktivitou mládeže a mladých dospělých a obecnou úrovní jejich důvěry. V naší studii zkoumáme, jak ovlivňuje
sportovní aktivita (15–18 letých) mladých lidí jedno z nejdůležitějších indikátorů sociálního kapitálu – členství v občanských sdruženích. Podle dvou sběrů dat (Ifjúságkutatás 2000, 2008) mladí
sportovci se s větší pravděpodobností podílejí na práci občanských sdružení. V našich modelech
se sport ukázal důležitější proměnnou v pozadí, než přístup k ekonomickým nebo kulturním zdrojům. Ačkoli částečně to má i strukturální příčiny, jsme toho názoru, že z hlediska sociálního kapitálu důležitým činitelem je především zapojení se v komunitě, resp. v důsledku toho se formující
síti vztahů. Dobrým základem pro to může být sportování v mladém věku.
Klíčová výrazy: sociální kapitál, volný čas, věková skupina 15–18 let, sportování, členství v občanském sdružení
Helene Ybrandt (s. 54)
Trendy rodinných a psychických problémů vnímané švédskými adolescenty v posledních
deseti letech: S cílem odhalit závažnost problémů švédských adolescentů byly využity údaje ze
sebehodnocení a z Adolescent Drug Abuse Diagnosis (ADAD, diagnóza užívání narkotik u adolescentů) sesbírané a vyhodnocené v letech 2000 a 2010. Údaje o rodinných vztazích, psychickém
stavu a problémech 15–17 ročních adolescentů byly nasbírané ze dvou náhodně vybraných vzorků
(121 osob v roce 2000, 485 osob v roce 2010). Výsledky průzkumů z let 2000 a 2010 se z hlediska
závažnosti problémů adolescentů nelišili – nepozorovali jsme nárůst rozdílů mezi pohlavími, ani
skupinami s rozdílným sociálním a hospodářským zázemím. Nýbrž dívky hodnotili vážnější své
problémy v rodinných vztazích, než kluci. Adolescenti v roce 2010 jmenovali méně psychických
problémů (např. těžká úzkost a napětí, problémy s porozuměním, s pozorností či pamětí, problémy ve vztazích rodiny i mimo ni - např. problémy sourozenců, nedůvěra vůči jiným) ve srovnání
s rokem 2000. Prioritou příštích deseti let bude odhalení problémů ve vztazích, například otázek
nejistoty spojené s osobami mimo rodiny – a to pro podporu duševního zdraví adolescentů.
Klíčová výrazy: diagnóza užívání narkotik u adolescentů (ADAD), adolescence, duševní zdraví,
rodina, problémy ve vztazích
Khodarahimi Siamak, Haydar Deghani & Mohammadhadi Nikpourian (s. 68)
Mentální hygiena a mechanismy zvládání obyvatelstva trpícího nedostatkem pitné vody v
pásmu Fars: Ekopsychologický výhled: Cílem studie bylo prozkoumat vliv nedostatku pitné
vody na duševní zdraví a copingové strategie venkovského obyvatelstva v Iránu, a prozkoumat
vliv pohlaví, bydliště, rodinného stavu, zaměstnání, úrovně vzdělání apod. Výzkum sledoval 1198
venkovských obyvatel v blízkosti íránských měst Darab a Eghlid. K výzkumu se využil demografický dotazník, Všeobecný zdravotní dotazník (General Health Questionnaire 28, GHQ-2) a
škála vztahující se na způsoby překonávání nedostatku pitné vody (Coping Styles with Drinking
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
114
CZECH ABSTRACTS / TSCHECHISCHE ZUSAMMENFASSUNGEN
Water Crisis, CSDWS). Multidimenzionální škála CSDW se vztahuje na následující čtyři faktory:
(1) metody pro optimalizaci spotřeby vody, (2) bezvodé technologie a sociální změny v životě,
(3) využití špičkové technologie v úspoře vody, a (4) vyhýbavé zvládání zaměřené na emoce.
Ti venkovští obyvatelé, kteří netrpěli nedostatkem pitné vody, využívali mnohem vyšší úroveň
racionálních mechanismů zvládání, jejich psychopatologické ukazatele byly nižší a byly méně
náchylní na vyhýbavé zvládání zaměřené na emoce, než venkovští obyvatelé trpící nedostatkem
pitné vody. Ve vzorce se potvrdil vliv místa bydliště, rodinného stavu, úrovně vzdělání a zaměstnání na copingové strategie a duševní zdraví.
Klíčová výrazy: nedostatek pitné vody, copingové strategie, duševní zdraví, demografické údaje
Željko Burcar (s. 87)
Role ředitele školy v Chorvatsku: Manažer vzdělávání, lídr nebo správce: Studie zkoumá ty
otázky vztahující se k řízení vzdělávání a školských institucí v Chorvatsku, které mohou sloužit
jako východisko dalších výzkumů a bádání. Studie analyzuje roli ředitele školy v bouřlivém prostředí současného vzdělávání při vzrůstající odpovědnosti a přetíženém pracovním rozvrhu.
Podle získaných údajů ředitelé škol v Chorvatsku se prokazují v osmi různých rolích: a) sběratel a
zprostředkovatel informací, b) komunikátor, c) stratég a plánovač, d) vedoucí, správce a plánovač
organizace, e) vedoucí vzdělávání a vyučující, f) hodnotící, g) student a h) spojka s kolektivem.
Zaměřenost rolí ředitele: a) lidé, b) úkoly/cíle, c) škola jako organizace d) procesy v rámci školy.
Úkoly vyplývající z tohoto zaměření jsou součástí ideálního administrativního procesu: plánování, rozhodování, organizace, koordinace, komunikace, ovlivňování a hodnocení na pěti úsecích
řízení školy: studijní program, studenti, zaměstnanci, vztahy s komunitou, fyzické podmínky a
vedení.
Klíčová výrazy: škola, manažment, vzdělávání, vedení, úkoly ředitele
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
DOI: 10.5708/EJMH.9.2014.1.Abs.GB
ENGLISH ABSTRACTS
ENGLISCHE ZUSAMMENFASSUNGEN
ABSTRACTS
Hessel. J. Zondag & Marinus H.F van Uden (p. 3)
‘My Special Prayer’: On Self, God and Prayer: In this contribution we will demonstrate the
impact of narcissism – an important personality trait in individualistic societies – on religious
behaviour. Present-day Western culture is generally characterised as being expressive individualistic. A dominant trait in this pattern is the tendency of people to ascribe divine (godlike) characteristics to themselves. Psychologically speaking, we are dealing with narcissism. The various
varieties in the spectrum of narcissism show that these attempts to attribute divine characteristics
to the self do not always succeed. These individuals fantasise about becoming godlike, but their
self-image is too fragile to enable these attempts to be successful. The success of this narcissistic
aspiration has effects on religious activities, like praying. Based on earlier empirical research and
a case study we show how self-deification, narcissism and prayer are related. Those who succeed
in becoming godlike pray in a different manner than those who fail in this effort. The former address their prayers to themselves or an anonymous higher power, the latter address their prayers
to a personal God.
Keywords: individualisation, self, overt and covert narcissism, prayer, narcissism
Ferenc Köteles & Péter Simor (p. 20)
Modern Health Worries: Somatosensory Amplification, Health Anxiety and Well-being: a
Cross-Sectional Study: The study aims to investigate the relationship among modern health worries (MHWs), somatosensory amplification (SSA), health anxiety, and well-being. Questionnaires
(Modern Health Worries Scale, Somatosensory Amplification Scale, Short Health Anxiety Inventory, Positive and Negative Affect Schedule, and WHO-Five Well-being Scale) were completed
by 180 patients (mean age = 48.2 ± 15.76 yrs) visiting their general practitioners and by 344
undergraduate students (21.5 ± 2.09 yrs) in a cross-sectional study. According to the results, SSA
and health anxiety were independently related to MHWs. Health anxiety was negatively related
to indicators of general well-being. MHWs were not associated with well-being and were weakly
positively connected to positive affect in the correlation analysis, while positive associations with
both constructs were found after controlling for socio-economic variables, negative affect, and
health anxiety in the regression analysis. MHWs are usually treated as maladaptive cognitive
structures, but in the light of the present results this viewpoint might need reconsideration.
Keywords: somatosensory amplification, health anxiety, well-being, perceived control
116
ENGLISH ABSTRACTS / ENGLISCHE ZUSAMMENFASSUNGEN
Bence Takács & Zoltán Kmetty (p. 34)
Sport as a ‘Tool’ of Socialisation: Correlations between Civil Organisation Activity and
Sporting Activity in the 15–18 Age Cohort: Several studies pointed out the positive effects of
social capital in the last 10 to 20 years. Nevertheless, only minor emphasis was put on the formation of social capital. Most authors implicitly presume an effect of socialisation in the background
of the formation of social capital. This is also confirmed by studies, using data of panel research,
which have demonstrated significant connections between the civil activity of young people and
adults and their general level of trust. In our study we examine how membership in civil organ
isations – which we consider an important indicator of social capital – is influenced by sporting
activity in the age range of 15–18. The two surveys examined (Ifjúságkutatás 2000, 2008) show
that young people practising sports are more likely to participate in the work of civil organisations, moreover, sport proved to be a more important background variable in our models than the
access to economic and cultural resources. Although this is also due to structural reasons, we are
convinced that the most important factors for social capital are the participation in a community
and the social net deriving from it. And juvenile sporting activity can serve as a good basis for this.
Keywords: social capital, leisure time, 15–18 age range, sporting activity, civil organisation
membership
Helene Ybrandt (p. 54)
Ten-year Trends in Self-reported Family and Psychological Problems Among Swedish Adolescents: The aim of the study was to compare problem severity among Swedish adolescents,
using self-reported and interviewer-rated data from 2000 and 2010, gathered with the Adolescent
Drug Abuse Diagnosis (ADAD) interview. Data relating to family relationships, psychological
status and problems were collected in two samples randomly selected from the adolescent population aged 15–17 years (121 adolescents in the year 2000 and 485 adolescents in the year 2010).
The results show that the self-rated and interviewer-rated problem severity of adolescents in 2000
and in 2010 seems to be unchanged, with no increased polarisation for sex and socio-economic
groups. There was a difference, however, was of girls reporting more severe problems in family relationships compared to boys. In 2010, compared to 2000, adolescents reported on fewer
psychological problems (e.g. experiences of serious anxiety and tension, comprehension and concentration disorder, memory loss and, in addition, with relationships in and outside the family
sphere – e.g. problems with getting along with siblings, and with trusting other people). In order
to promote the mental health of adolescents it is essential during the next decade to reveal relationship problems, such as problems of insecurity with people outside the family.
Keywords: Adolescent Drug Abuse Diagnosis (ADAD), adolescence, mental health, family, relationship problems
Khodarahimi Siamak, Haydar Deghani & Mohammadhadi Nikpourian (p. 68)
Mental Health and Coping Styles of Rural Residents Affected by Drinking Water Shortage
in Fars Province: An Ecopsychological Perspective: The purpose of this study was to examine,
in an Iranian sample, the effect of drinking water shortage on the rural residents’ mental health and
their coping styles, and to investigate the influences of gender, location of residence, marital status, job and the level of education on these constructs. Participants included 1198 rural residents
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
ENGLISH ABSTRACTS / ENGLISCHE ZUSAMMENFASSUNGEN
117
around the Iranian cities of Darab and Eghlid. A demographic questionnaire, the General Health
Questionnaire 28 (GHQ-28), and the Coping Styles with Drinking Water Crisis Scale (CSDWS)
were used in this study. The CSDWS is a multidimensional construct with four factors including:
(1) optimising water consumption methods, (2) water-free technologies and social changes in life,
(3) usage of high-quality technologies in water saving, and (4) emotion-focused avoidant coping
styles. Rural residents who had suffered no drinking water shortage had a significantly higher
performance of rational coping styles and had a lower psychopathology indicator and a lower
performance of emotion-focused avoidant coping styles than rural residents who had experienced
drinking water shortage. The effect of location of residence, marital status, level of education and
occupation on coping styles and mental health was affirmed in this sample.
Keywords: drinking water shortage, coping styles, mental health, demographics
Željko Burcar (p. 87)
The Role of the Principal in Croatian Education: Manager, Leader or Administrator: The
purpose of this study is to examine problems in the fields of educational management and instructional leadership in Croatia that could serve as possible starting points for future studies or
research. This study examines the role of the school principal within the context of modern-day
schooling in turbulent surroundings, growing responsibility and overloaded schedule.
According to findings we can explain eight different roles principals perform in Croatian education: a) information collector and disseminator, b) communicator, c) strategist and planner, d)
executive manager, administrator and organiser, e) educational leader and educator, f) evaluator,
g) student and h) community liaison.
The principal’s roles are oriented toward: a) people, b) tasks/goals, c) school as organisation, and
d) processes inside the school. Tasks generated from such orientation belong to an ideal administrative process: planning, decision-making, organising, coordination, communication, influence
and evaluation effective in five tasks of school management: school program, pupils, staff, and
relations with community, physical preconditions, and management.
Keywords: school, management, education, leadership, instruction, principal’s responsibilities
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
DOI: 10.5708/EJMH.9.2014.1.Abs.D
GERMAN ABSTRACTS
DEUTSCHE ZUSAMMENFASSUNGEN
ZUSAMMENFASSUNGEN
Hessel J. Zondag & Marinus H.F. van Uden (S. 3)
„My Special Prayer“: Über das Selbst, Gott und das Gebet: In der Studie wird dargelegt, wie sich
Narzissmus, eines der wichtigen Persönlichkeitsmerkmale in individualistischen Gesellschaften, auf
das religiöse Verhalten auswirkt. Die heutige westliche Kultur gilt gemeinhin als von expressivem
Individualismus geprägt. Dieser zeichnet sich vor allem dadurch aus, dass die Menschen dazu neigen, sich selbst göttliche Charaktereigenschaften zuzuschreiben. In der Psychologie wird dies als
Narzissmus bezeichnet. Die Vielfalt von Varianten innerhalb des Spektrums des Narzissmus zeigt,
dass die Versuche, dem Ich göttliche Charaktereigenschaften zuzuschreiben, nicht immer erfolgreich
sind. Die Betroffenen träumen davon, Gott gleich zu werden, ihr Selbstbild ist aber viel zu fragil, als
dass diese Versuche auch zum Erfolg führen könnten. Der Erfolg oder Misserfolg der narzisstischen
Bestrebungen hat auch Auswirkungen auf religiöse Aktivitäten wie z.B. das Beten. Auf der Grundlage früherer empirischer Forschungsarbeiten und einer Fallstudie zeigen wir, welche Zusammenhänge zwischen Selbstvergötterung, Narzissmus und Beten bestehen. Diejenigen, die sich erfolgreich
selbst vergöttlichen, beten anders als die, die daran scheitern. Erstere richten ihr Gebet an sich selbst
oder an eine namenlose höhere Macht, Letztere richten ihr Gebet an einen persönlichen Gott.
Schlüsselbegriffe: Individualisierung, Selbst, offener oder verschleierter Narzissmus, Beten,
Narzissmus
Ferenc Köteles & Péter Simor (S. 20)
Krankheitsangst der Moderne, somatosensorische Amplifikation, Krankheitsphobie und Wohlbefinden: Eine Querschnittsuntersuchung: Die Zielsetzung unserer Studie bestand darin, Zusammenhänge zwischen der Krankheitsangst der Moderne, der somatosensorischen Amplifikation,
Krankheitsphobien und psychischem Wohlbefinden zu untersuchen. Für die Querschnittsstudie wurden von 180 Hausarztpatienten (Durchschnittsalter = 48.2 ± 15.76 Jahre) und 344 Studenten in den
ersten Studienjahren (Durchschnittsalter = 21.5 ± 2.09 Jahre) mehrere Fragebögen ausgefüllt (Modern
Health Worries Scale, Somatosensory Amplification Scale, Short Health Anxiety Inventory, Positive and Negative Affect Schedule und der WHO-5-Fragebogen). Wie die Ergebnisse zeigen, stehen
somatosensorische Amplifikation und Krankheitsphobie auch unabhängig voneinander im Zusammenhang mit der Krankheitsangst der Moderne. Zwischen Krankheitsphobie und Wohlbefinden ergab
sich ein negativer Zusammenhang. Den Ergebnissen der Korrelationsanalyse zufolge korreliert die
Krankheitsangst der Moderne nicht mit dem Wohlbefinden; sie steht in einem schwach positiven Zusammenhang mit positiver Affektivität, in der Regressionsanalyse ergab sich jedoch nach Kontrolle
der sozioökonomischen Variablen, der negativen Affektivität und der Krankheitsphobie ein positiver
Zusammenhang mit beiden Variablen. Die Krankheitsangst der Moderne gilt gemeinhin als maladaptive kognitive Struktur, es ist aber möglich, dass dies aufgrund o.g. Ergebnisse überdacht werden muss.
Schlüsselbegriffe: somatosensorische Amplifikation, Krankheitsangst, Wohlbefinden, wahrgenommene Kontrolle
GERMAN ABSTRACTS / DEUTSCHE ZUSAMMENFASSUNGEN
119
Bence Takács & Zoltán Kmetty (S. 34)
Sport als „Mittel” der Sozialisation: Korrelation zwischen Mitarbeit in zivilgesellschaftlichen Organisationen und Sport bei 15- bis 18-jährigen Jugendlichen: In den vergangenen
zehn bis zwanzig Jahren wurde in zahlreichen Studien auf die positive Wirkung von sozialem
Kapital hingewiesen, jedoch wurde weniger thematisiert, wie dieses entsteht. Die meisten Autoren
vermuten, dass sich soziales Kapital auf der Grundlage einer impliziten Wirkung der Sozialisation
bildet. Dies wird auch durch Studien bestätigt, in denen auf der Basis von Daten aus Panelforschungen ein deutlicher Zusammenhang zwischen bürgerschaftlichem Engagement im Jugendund jungen Erwachsenenalter und allgemeinem Vertrauen nachgewiesen konnte. Wir untersuchen
in der Studie, inwieweit das Engagement in zivilgesellschaftlichen Organisationen – ein wichtiger Indikator für soziales Kapital – durch Sport beeinflusst wird. Zwei Datenerhebungen zufolge
(Ifjúságkutatás 2000, 2008) engagieren sich Jugendliche, die Sport treiben, mit einer größeren
Wahrscheinlichkeit in zivilgesellschaftlichen Organisationen. In unseren Modellen erwies sich
Sport sogar als wichtigere Hintergrundvariable als der Zugang zu wirtschaftlichen oder kulturellen Ressourcen. Zum Teil ist dies zwar auf strukturelle Gründe zurückzuführen, wir vertreten
aber dennoch die Ansicht, dass der wesentliche Faktor im Hinblick auf das soziale Kapital die
Aktivitäten in der Gemeinschaft bzw. das sich dadurch herausbildende soziale Netzwerk ist. Sport
im Jugendalter kann hierfür eine gute Grundlage sein.
Schlüsselbegriffe: soziales Kapital, Freizeit, Altersgruppe zwischen 15 und 18 Jahren, Sport,
Mitgliedschaft in zivilgesellschaftlichen Organisationen
Helene Ybrandt (S. 54)
Zehn-Jahres-Trends bei familiären und psychischen Problemen in Selbstberichten von
schwedischen Heranwachsenden: Ziel der Studie war es festzustellen, wie gravierend die Probleme von schwedischen Jugendlichen sind. Hierfür wurden Daten aus Selbstberichten und aus
Interviews verwendet, die in den Jahren 2000 und 2010 mit Hilfe der Adolescent Drug Abuse
Diagnosis (ADAD, Drogenmissbrauch-Diagnose bei Heranwachsenden) erhoben worden waren.
In zwei Zufallsstichproben aus der Altersgruppe von 15 bis 17 Jahren (121 Personen im Jahr 2000,
485 Personen in 2010) wurden Daten zu familiären Beziehungen sowie zu psychischem Status
und psychischen Problemen erhoben. Beim Vergleich zwischen den in Interviews erhaltenen und
den durch Selbstberichte gewonnenen Ergebnissen von 2000 und 2010 konnte hinsichtlich der
Schwere der Probleme der Heranwachsenden keine Veränderung festgestellt werden; die Divergenz zwischen den Geschlechtern bzw. zwischen verschiedenen sozioökonomischen Gruppen ist
nicht angestiegen. Allerdings betrachten die Mädchen Probleme in ihren familiären Beziehungen als schwerwiegender als die Jungen. Im Vergleich zu 2000 berichteten die Heranwachsenden
2010 über weniger psychische Probleme (z.B. Angstzustände, Spannungen, Probleme mit dem
Verstehen, der Konzentration oder dem Gedächtnis sowie Probleme mit Beziehungen innerhalb
und außerhalb der Familie – wie Probleme im Kontakt mit den Geschwistern oder fehlendes
Vertrauen gegenüber anderen). Eine wichtige Aufgabe für das kommende Jahrzehnt wird es sein,
Beziehungsprobleme wie z.B. Unsicherheit gegenüber Personen außerhalb der Familie genauer
zu untersuchen, um die mentale Gesundheit von Heranwachsenden zu fördern.
Schlüsselbegriffe: Drogenmissbrauch-Diagnose bei Heranwachsenden (ADAD), Adoleszenz,
Mentalhygiene, Familie, Beziehungsprobleme
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GERMAN ABSTRACTS / DEUTSCHE ZUSAMMENFASSUNGEN
Khodarahimi Siamak, Haydar Deghani & Mohammadhadi Nikpourian (S. 68)
Mentalhygiene und Bewältigungsstrategien bei von Trinkwassermangel betroffener Landbevölkerung in der Provinz Fars: Die Ökopsychologische Perspektive: Die Rolle der lokalen Ressourcenwirtschaft: Eines der Ziele der Untersuchung bestand darin, an einer Stichprobe
aus dem Iran die Auswirkungen von Trinkwassermangel auf die Mentalhygiene der ländlichen
Bevölkerung und auf ihre Bewältigungsstrategien zu untersuchen und im Weiteren zu klären,
inwieweit diese von Geschlecht, Wohnort, Familienstand, Arbeitsplatz und Bildungsstand beeinflusst werden. In der Untersuchung wurden 1198 Bewohner der ländlichen Umgebung der Städte
Darab und Eghlid im Iran erfasst. Hierfür wurden ein demografischer Fragebogen, der Fragebogen zum allgemeinen Gesundheitszustand (General Health Questionnaire 28, GHQ-28) und die
Skala Bewältigungsmethoden bei Trinkwassermangel (Coping Styles with Drinking Water Crisis,
CSDWS) verwendet. Die CSDW-Skala umfasst die folgenden vier Faktoren: 1. Methoden zur Optimierung des Wasserverbrauchs, 2. wasserfreie Technologien und gesellschaftliche Veränderungen, 3. Einsatz von Spitzentechnologien bei Wassersparmaßnahmen und 4. emotionsorientiertes
Coping und Vermeidung. Diejenigen auf dem Land lebenden Personen, die nicht unter Wassermangel litten, waren signifikant erfolgreicher in der Nutzung rationaler Bewältigungsmethoden,
wiesen niedrigere psychopathologische Werte auf und neigten weniger zu emotionsorientiertem
Coping und Vermeidung als solche, die unter Trinkwassermangel litten. Anhand der Stichprobe
konnten die Auswirkungen von Wohnort, Familienstand, Bildungsstand und Arbeitsplatz auf die
Bewältigungsmethoden und auf die Mentalhygiene nachgewiesen werden.
Schlüsselbegriffe: Trinkwassermangel, Bewältigungsmethoden, Mentalhygiene, demografische
Daten
Željko Burcar (S. 87)
Rollen von Schulleitern in Kroatien: Bildungsmanager, Geschäftsführer oder Büroangestellter: Die Studie untersucht Fragen in den Bereichen Bildungsmanagement und Leitung von
Bildungsinstitutionen in Kroatien, die als Ausgangspunkt für weitere Forschungen und Untersuchungen dienen können. Die Studie analysiert die Rolle des Schulleiters unter heutigen schulischen Rahmenbedingungen, zu denen ein turbulentes Umfeld, wachsende Verantwortung und
ein übervoller Terminkalender gehören. Den erhobenen Daten zufolge müssen sich Schulleiter in
Kroatien in acht unterschiedlichen Rollenbereichen behaupten: a) Sammlung und Weiterleitung
von Informationen, b) Kommunikation, c) Strategie und Planung, d) Leitung der Organisation,
administrative Aufgaben und Organisation, e) Leitung der Bildungsinstitution und Unterricht,
f) Evaluation, g) Lernen und h) Kontakte zum Gemeinwesen. Die Rollenbereiche des Schulleiters richten sich an: a) Menschen, b) Aufgaben/Ziele, c) Schule als Organisation und d) Prozesse
innerhalb der Schule. Von den Rollenbereichen lassen sich folgende Aufgaben für den idealen
administrativen Prozess ableiten: Planung, Entscheidungsfindung, Organisation, Koordination,
Kommunikation, Beeinflussung und Evaluation, und zwar in fünf Teilbereichen der Schulleitung:
Schulprogramm, Schüler, Personal, Kontakte zum Gemeinwesen, physische Voraussetzungen und
Management.
Schlüsselbegriffe: Schule, Management, Bildung, Leitung, Bildungsmanagement, Aufgaben des
Schulleiters
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
DOI: 10.5708/EJMH.9.2014.1.Abs.H
HUNGARIAN ABSTRACTS
UNGARISCHE ZUSAMMENFASSUNGEN
ÖSSZEFOGLALÓK
Hessel J. Zondag & Marinus H.F. van Uden (3. o.)
„My Special Prayer”: A self, az isten és az imádság: A cikk bemutatja, milyen hatást gyakorol
a vallásos viselkedésre az önimádat, az énközpontú társadalmak egyik fontos személyiségjegye.
Napjaink nyugati kultúráját általában önmegvalósításra törekvő, expresszív individualistának
tartják. Erre a mintára az a legjellemzőbb, hogy az emberek hajlamosak arra, hogy önmagukat
isteni jellemzőkkel ruházzák fel. A pszichológiában ezt nárcizmusnak hívják. A nárcizmus széles
spektruma azt mutatja, hogy az én isteni jellemzőkkel való felruházására törekvő próbálkozások
nem mindig járnak sikerrel. Az ilyen személyek arról álmodoznak, hogy az istenekkel egy szintre
kerülhetnek, énképük ugyanakkor túl törékeny ahhoz, hogy ezek a próbálkozások sikerrel járjanak. Ennek a nárcisztikus törekvésnek a sikeressége kihat a vallásos tevékenységekre, például
imádkozásra is. Korábbi empirikus kutatásokra és egy esettanulmányra építve bemutatjuk, hogyan függ össze egymással az önbálványozás, a nárcizmus és az imádkozás. Azok, akik sikerrel
istenítik magukat, másként imádkoznak, mint azok, akik ebben sikertelenek. Előbbiek imáikat
önmagukhoz vagy egy névtelen felsőbb hatalomhoz intézik, utóbbiak egy személyes Istenhez.
Kulcsszavak: énközpontúság, self, nyílt vagy burkolt önimádat, imádkozás, nárcizmus
Köteles Ferenc & Simor Péter (20. o.)
Modernkori egészségféltés, szomatoszenzoros amplifikáció, egészségszorongás és jóllét:
Keresztmetszeti vizsgálat: A kutatás célja a modernkori egészségféltés, a szomatoszenzoros
amplifikáció, az egészségszorongás és a pszichológiai jóllét közötti kapcsolat vizsgálata volt. A
keresztmetszeti kérdőíves vizsgálatban 180 háziorvosát látogató beteg (átlag életkor = 48.2 ±
15.76 év) és 344 alsóéves egyetemista (átlag életkor = 21.5 ± 2.09 év) töltötte ki a Modernkori
Egészségféltés Skálát, a Szomatoszenzoros Amplifikációs Skálát, az Egészségszorongás Kérdőív
rövidített változatát, a Pozitív és Negatív Affektivitás Kérdőívet, valamint a WHO-5 kérdőívet.
Az eredmények alapján a szomatoszenzoros amplifikáció és az egészségszorongás egymástól
függetlenül is kapcsolódnak a modernkori egészségféltéshez. Az egészségszorongás és a jóllét
között fordított irányú kapcsolat adódott. A korrelációs elemzés eredményei szerint a modernkori
egészségféltés nem korrelált a jólléttel és gyenge pozitív kapcsolatban állt a pozitív affektussal,
a regressziós vizsgálatban viszont pozitívan kapcsolódott mindkét változóhoz a szocioökonómiai
változók, a negatív affektivitás és az egészségszorongás kontrollálása után. A modernkori egészségféltést rendszerint maladaptív kognitív struktúrának tartják, ám jelen eredmények alapján ez
az álláspont átgondolandó lehet.
Kulcsszavak: szomatoszenzoros amplifikáció, egészségszorongás, jóllét, észlelt kontroll
122
HUNGARIAN ABSTRACTS / UNGARISCHE ZUSAMMENFASSUNGEN
Bence Takács & Zoltán Kmetty (34. o.)
Sport mint szocializációs „eszköz”: Civil szervezetek munkájában való részvétel és a sportolás közötti korreláció 15–18 évesek körében: A társadalmi tőke pozitív hatására számos tanulmány rámutatott az elmúlt 10–20 évben, azonban a társadalmi tőke keletkezésére kevesebb
hangsúlyt fektettek. A legtöbb szerző a társadalmi tőke kialakulása mögött implicit módon szocializációs hatást feltételez. Ezt megerősítik azok a tanulmányok is, amelyek panel kutatások adatait
felhasználva jelentős összefüggést mutattak ki a fiatal- és kora felnőttkori civil aktivitás és az
általános bizalmi szint között. Tanulmányunkban azt vizsgáljuk, hogy a társadalmi tőke egyik
fontos indikátorát, a civil szervezeti tagságot, milyen módon befolyásolja a fiatalok (15–18 évesek) körében a sportolás. Két adatfelvétel alapján (Ifjúságkutatás 2000, 2008) a sportoló fiatalok
nagyobb valószínűséggel vesznek részt a civil szervezeti munkában. Sőt modelljeinkben a sport
fontosabb háttérváltozónak bizonyult, mint a gazdasági vagy a kulturális erőforrásokhoz való
hozzáférés. Bár ennek részben strukturális okai is vannak, azon a véleményen vagyunk, hogy a
társadalmi tőke szempontjából elsősorban a közösségben való részvétel, illetve az ebből kialakuló
kapcsolati háló a fontos tényező. Ennek pedig a fiatalkori sportolás jó alapja lehet.
Kulcsszavak: társadalmi tőke, szabadidő, 15–18 éves korosztály, sportolás, civil szervezeti tagság
Helene Ybrandt (54. o.)
Az önbevallással mért családi és pszichés problémák trendje a svéd kamaszok körében az elmúlt 10 évben: A kutatás a svéd kamaszok problémáinak súlyosságát kívánta feltárni, melyhez az
Adolescent Drug Abuse Diagnosis (ADAD, kamaszkori kábítószer-használati diagnózis) interjú
segítségével 2000-ben, illetve 2010-ben kérdezőbiztos által gyűjtött, illetve önbevalláson alapuló
adatokat használt fel. A családi viszonyokra, pszichés állapotra és problémákra vonatkozó adatokat a 15–17 éves kamaszok körében, két véletlenszerűen kiválasztott mintán (2000-ben 121 fő,
2010-ben 485 fő) gyűjtötték. A 2000-ben, illetve 2010-ben végzett, kérdezőbiztos által minősített,
illetve önbevalláson alapuló vizsgálat eredményeit összehasonlítva nem tapasztalható változás a
kamaszok problémáinak súlyosságát illetően – nem nőtt az eltérés a nemek, illetve az eltérő társadalmi és gazdasági hátterű csoportok között. A lányok ugyanakkor súlyosabbnak ítélték a családi
kapcsolataikon belüli problémákat, mint a fiúk. A kamaszok 2010-ben 2000-hez képest kevesebb
pszichés problémáról (pl. súlyos szorongás, feszültség, megértési zavar, figyelemzavar, emlékezetzavar, továbbá a családon belüli vagy kívüli kapcsolati problémák ‑ pl. a testvérek közötti problémák, illetve a mások iránti bizalmatlanság) számoltak be. A kamaszok mentális egészségének
előmozdítása érdekében a következő évtizedben kiemelt feladat feltárni a kapcsolati problémákat,
például a családon kívüli személyekkel kapcsolatos bizonytalanság kérdéseit.
Kulcsszavak: kamaszkori kábítószer-használati diagnózis (ADAD), kamaszkor, mentálhigiéné,
család, kapcsolati problémák
Khodarahimi Siamak, Haydar Deghani & Mohammadhadi Nikpourian (68. o.)
Mentálhigiéné és megküzdési módok Fars tartomány ivóvízhiánytól sújtott lakosságának
körében: Ökopszichológiai kitekintés: A kutatás egyik célja az volt, hogy egy iráni mintán megvizsgálja az ivóvíz hiányának hatását a vidéki lakosság mentálhigiénéjére és megküzdési módjaira,
továbbá hogy tisztázza, vajon a nem, lakóhely, családi állapot, munkahely és tanulmányok befo-
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
HUNGARIAN ABSTRACTS / UNGARISCHE ZUSAMMENFASSUNGEN
123
lyásolják-e ezeket. A kutatás az iráni Darab és Eghlid városok környékén élő 1198 vidéki lakosra
terjedt ki. A vizsgálat során egy demográfiai kérdőívet, az Általános Egészségi Kérdőívet (General
Health Questionnaire 28, GHQ-28) és az ivóvíz hiányával való megküzdés módszereinek (Coping
Styles with Drinking Water Crisis, CSDWS) skáláját használták. A CSDW-skála az alábbi négy
tényezőre terjed ki: (1) a vízfogyasztás optimalizálását célzó módszerek, (2) vízmentes technológiák és társadalmi változások, (3) csúcstechnológiák használata a víztakarékosságban, illetve (4)
érzelemfókuszú-elkerülő megküzdési módok. Azok a vidéki lakosok, akik nem szenvedtek hiányt
ivóvízben, sokkal magasabb szintű racionális megküzdési módokat alkalmaztak, alacsonyabb volt
a pszichopatológiai mutatójuk, és kevésbé voltak hajlamosak érzelemfókuszú-elkerülő megküzdési módokra, mint az ivóvíz hiányától szenvedő vidéki lakosok. A mintán igazolódott a lakóhely,
családi állapot, tanulmányok és munkahely hatása a megküzdési módokra és mentálhigiénére.
Kulcsszavak: ivóvízhiány, megküzdési módok, mentálhigiéné, demográfiai adatok
Željko Burcar (87. o.)
Az iskolaigazgató szerepe Horvátországban: Oktatási menedzser, vezető vagy adminisztrátor: A tanulmány azokat az oktatásirányításra, illetve az oktatási intézmények vezetésére vonatkozó kérdéseket vizsgálja Horvátországban, amelyek további kutatások és vizsgálatok kiinduló
pontjául szolgálhatnak. A tanulmány az iskolaigazgató szerepét elemzi napjaink oktatásában, viharos környezetben, növekvő felelősség és túlterhelt időbeosztás mellett. A kapott adatok szerint
Horvátországban az iskolaigazgatóknak nyolc különféle szerepkörben kell helytállniuk: a) információgyűjtő és -terjesztő, b) kommunikátor, c) stratéga és tervező, d) szervezeti vezető, adminisztrátor és szervező, e) oktatási vezető és oktató, f) értékelő, g) diák és h) összekötő a közösség
felé. Az igazgatói szerepkörök irányultsága: a) emberek, b) feladatok/célok, c) az iskola, mint
szervezet és d) az iskolán belüli folyamatok. Az ebből az irányultságból következő feladatok az
ideális adminisztratív folyamat részei: tervezés, döntéshozás, szervezés, koordinálás, kommunikálás, befolyásolás és értékelés, az iskolavezetés öt területén: képzési program, diákok, dolgozók,
közösségi kapcsolatok, fizikai feltételek és vezetés.
Kulcsszavak: iskola, menedzsment, oktatásügy, vezetés, oktatásirányítás, igazgatói feladatok
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
DOI: 10.5708/EJMH.9.2014.1.Abs.PL
POLISH ABSTRACTS
POLNISCHE ZUSAMMENFASSUNGEN
ABSTRAKTY
Hessel J. Zondag & Marinus H.F. van Uden (s. 3)
„My Special Prayer”: Self, Bóg i modlitwa: Artykuł opisuje wpływ samouwielbienia, jednej
z cech osobowości typowej dla społeczeństw egocentrycznych, na formę religijnych zachowań.
Dzisiejsza kultura zachodnia uznawana jest na ogół za mobilizującą do samorealizacji i ekspresywnie indywidualistyczną. Najbardziej charakterystyczną normą zachowania w tym wzorcu jest
skłonność ludzi do przypisywania sobie cech boskich. W psychologii nazywa się to narcyzmem.
Szerokie spektrum narcyzmu ukazuje, że próby przypisywania sobie cech boskich nie zawsze
zwieńczone są sukcesem. Osoby narcystyczne wybrażają sobie, że mogłyby się znaleźć na jednej
płaszczyźnie z bogami, jedocześnie ich samoocena jest zbyt labilna, by te starania mogły dać
efekt. Sukces dążeń narcystycznych ma wpływ na praktyki religijne, na przykład na modlitwę.
Na podstawie przeprowadzonych wcześniej badań empirycznych oraz studium przypadku przedstawiamy współzależność między samouwielbieniem, narcyzmem i modlitwą. Ci, którzy doszli
do stanu samouwielbienia, modlą się inaczej od tych, którzy go nie osiągnęli. Pierwsza grupa
kieruje swoje modlitwy do samych siebie lub do bezimiennej siły wyższej, druga grupa do Boga
osobowego.
Słowa kluczowe: egocentryzm, self, jawne lub skrywane samouwielbienie, modlitwa, narcyzm
Ferenc Köteles & Péter Simor (s. 20)
Obawa o zdrowie, amplifikacja sensorów somatycznych, lęk o stan zdrowia, a stan dobrobytu w życiu współczesnym: Badanie przekrojowe: Celem badania było rozpoznanie związku
pomiędzy obawą o zdrowie, amplifikacją sensorów somatycznych, lękiem o stan zdrowia , a stanem dobrobytu w życiu współczesnym. Przekrojowe badanie ankietowe objęło 180 pacjentów
pozostających pod opieką lekarza (przeciętna wieku: 48.2 ± 15.76 lat) i 344 studentów z niższych
roczników (przeciętna wieku: 21.5 ± 2.09 lat), którzy wypełnili ankiety Skali Obaw o Stan Zdrowia, Skalę Amplifikacji Sensorów Somatycznych, skróconą wersję Kwestionariusza Stanu Lęku
o Zdrowie, Kwestionariusz Emocji Pozytywnych i Negatywnych oraz Kwestionariusz WHO-5.
Badanie wykazało, że amplifikacja sensorów somatycznych i lęk o stan zdrowia są powiązane
ze współczesnymi obawami o zdrowie niezależnie od siebie. Pomiędzy lękiem o stan zdrowia a
dobrym samopoczuciem psychicznym istnieje stosunek odwrotnie proporcjonalny. Według wyników analizy korelacyjnej odwieczna obawa o zdrowie nie korelowała z dobrym samopoczuciem i
pozostawała w słabej więzi dodatniej z pozytywnym afektem, w badaniu regresyjnym natomiast,
po skontrolowaniu z obiema zmiennymi, pozytywnie łączyły się zmienne socjalno-ekonomiczne,
afekt negatywny i lęk o stan zdrowia. Odwieczną obawę o zdrowie uważa się z reguły za źle zaadaptowaną (maladaptywną) strukturę kognitywną, ale w świetle obecnych wyników być może
należy przemyśleć to stanowisko.
Słowa kluczowe: amplifikacja sensorów somatycznych, lęk o stan zdrowia, stan dobrobytu, obserwacja kontrolna
POLISH ABSTRACTS / POLNISCHE ZUSAMMENFASSUNGEN
125
Bence Takács & Zoltán Kmetty (s. 34)
Sport jako „narzędzie” socjalizacji: Korelacja pomiędzy aktywnością w działaniach organizacji cywilnych, a uprawianiem sportu u młodzieży w grupie wiekowej 15-18 lat: W ciągu
minionych 10–20 lat wykazano w wielu opracowaniach, jak ważny jest kapitał społeczny, lecz
mniej uwagi poświęcono sposobom jego powstawania. Większość autorów w sposób implicytny
uznaje wpływ socjalizacji za tło kształtowania się kapitału społecznego. Poświadczają to prace,
które w oparciu o dane badań panelowych wykazują istotną więź pomiędzy cywilną aktywnością
młodzieży i wcześnie dorosłych, a ogólnym poziomem zaufania społecznego. W naszym studium
badamy, w jaki sposób uprawianie sportu przez młodzież (15–18 lat) wzmacnia jeden z ważniejszych wskaźników kapitału społecznego, czyli członkostwo w organizacjach. Na podstawie
danych pochodzących z dwóch badań (Badania młodzieży 2000, 2008) twierdzimy, że młodzież
uprawiająca sport z większym prawdopodobieństwem udziela się aktywnie w organizacjach cywilnych. Co więcej, w naszych modelach sport okazał się ważniejszą zmienną, niż dostępu do zasobów gospodaczych lub kulturowych. Choć ten stan ma w pewnym stopniu również przyczyny
strukturalne, jesteśmy zdania, że z punktu widzenia kapitału społecznego najważniejszym czynnikiem jest aktywność we wspólnotach oraz mocna więź sieci kontaktów, która skutkiem tej aktywności powstaje. A uprawiany w młodym wieku sport może stworzyć do tego dobrą podstawę.
Słowa kluczowe: kapitał społeczny, czas wolny, grupa wiekowa 15–18, uprawianie sportu, członkostwo w organizacjach cywilnych
Helene Ybrandt (s. 54)
Tendencje problemów rodzinnych i psychicznych określone na podstawie samooceny wśród
szwedzkiej młodzieży w minionych 10 latach: Badanie miało na celu rozpoznanie stopnia nasilenia problemów wśród szwedzkiej młodzieży; do badania wykorzystano dane uzyskane w 2000
oraz 2010 roku za pomocą wywiadu Adolescent Drug Abuse Diagnosis (ADAD, diagnostyka
zażywania narkotyków przez młodzież), jak również dane pochodzące z własnych relacji uczestników. Dane dotyczące relacji w rodzinie, stanu psychicznego i problemów psychicznych zostały
zebrane w kręgu nastolatków w wieku 15–17 lat, w dwóch losowo wybranych grupach (w 2000
roku było to 121 osób, w 2010 – 485 osób). Porównując wyniki badań wykonanych w 2000 i
2010 roku, ocenionych przez ankietera i zawartych w relacjach własnych, można ustalić, że nie
stwierdza się zmian odnośnie stopnia nasilenia problemów nastolatków – nie powiększyły się
różnice wynikające z przynależności do danej płci lub do grupy o różnym zapleczu społecznym i
materialnym. Problemy wynikające z rodzinnych relacji dziewczęta określiły bardziej trudnymi,
niż chłopcy. W 2010 roku porównaniu do danych z roku 2000 nastolatki sygnalizowały mniej
problemów psychicznych (np. silny stan niepokoju, napięcie, zaburzenie funcji poznawczych,
zaburzenie koncentracji, utrata pamięci, poza tym problemy w relacjach rodzinnych lub spoza
rodziny – na przykład konflikt między rodzeństwem lub nieufność wobec obcych). W celu promowania zdrowia psychicznego młodzieży, priorytetem zadań w najbliższej dekadzie będzie zbadanie problemów w relacjach międzyludzkich, na przykład zagadnienie nieufności wobec osób
spoza rodziny.
Słowa kluczowe: diagnoza zażywania narkotyków przez młodzież (ADAD), okres dorastania,
higiena zdrowia psychicznego, rodzina, problemy w relacjach
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
126
POLISH ABSTRACTS / POLNISCHE ZUSAMMENFASSUNGEN
Khodarhaimi Siamak, Haydar Deghani & Mohammadhadi Nikpourian (s. 68)
Zdrowie psychiczne i metody radzenia sobie wśród mieszkańców prowincji Fars dotkniętych brakiem wody pitnej: Perspektywa ekopsychologiczna: Jednym z celów badania było
ustalenie, w oparciu o próbę dobieraną w Iranie, jaki wpływ wywiera niedobór wody na stan
higieny mentalnej mieszkańców prowincji i na metody zwalczania tych trudności, oraz rozpoznanie, czy płeć, miejsce zamieszkania, stan cywilny, miejsce pracy i wykształcenie mają na to
jakikolwiek wpływ. Badania zostały przeprowadzone na grupie liczącej 1198 osób, zamieszkałej
w irańskich wioskach w pobliżu miast Darab i Eghlid. Badania odbyły się z wykorzystaniem
ankiety demograficznej oraz w oparciu o Ogólny Kwestionariusz Stanu Zdrowia (General Health
Questionnaire 28, GHQ-28) i skalę metod zwalczania niedoboru wody pitnej (Coping Styles with
Drinking Water Crisis CSDWS). Skala CSDW obejmuje cztery czynniki: (1) metody optymalizacji zużycia wody, (2) bezwodne technologie i zmiany społeczne, (3) wykorzystanie najnowszych
technologii w oszczędzaniu wody oraz (4) emocjonalno-unikowe metody radzenia sobie z problemem. Mieszkańcy wsi, którzy nigdy nie odczuli dotkliwie niedostatku wody pitnej, stosowali
znacznie bardziej racjonalne metody radzenia sobie z tym problemem, wykazywali niższy wskaźnik psychopatologii i mniejszą skłonność do uciekania się do metod emocjonalno-unikowych, niż
mieszkańcy wsi cierpiący na niedobór wody pitnej. Badania na tej grupie ludności potwierdziły
wpłw miejsca zamieszkania, stanu cywilnego, wykształcenia i miejsca pracy na metody zwalczania problemu i stan higieny mentalnej.
Słowa kluczowe: niedobór wody pitnej, metody zwalczania, higiena mentalna, dane demograficzne
Željko Burcar (s. 87)
Rola dyrektora szkoły w Chorwacji: Menadżer oświaty, kierownik czy administrator: Praca
poświęcona jest zagadnieniom dotyczącym zarządzania edukacją i placówkami oświaty w Chorwacji, które mogą służyć za punkt wyjściowy do dalszych badań i analiz. Praca analizuje role
dyrektora szkoły w dzisiejszych warunkach edukacji, w burzliwym środowisku, przy rosnącej odpowiedzialności i napiętym harmonogramie zajęć. Według udostępnionych danych w Chorwacji
dyrektor szkoły musi występować w ośmiu różnych rolach, jako: a) zbierający dane i przekazujący informacje, b) komunikujący, c) strateg i twórca projektów, d) zarządzający organizacją, administrator i organizator, e) kierujący edukacją i nauczający, f) oceniający, g) pogłębiający wiedzę,
h) łącznik ze społecznością. Kierunki działania dyrektora w poszczególnych rolach: a) ludzie, b)
zadania/cele, c) szkoła jako organizacja, d) procesy zachodzące w szkole. Zadania wynikające z
tego kierunku są częściami modelowego procesu administracyjnego: planowanie, podejmowanie
decyzji, organizacja, koordynacja, komunikacja, wpływ i ocena. Zarządzanie szkołą obejmuje
pięć płaszczyzn: program kształcenia, uczniowie, pracownicy, więzi społeczne, warunki fizyczne
i kierowanie.
Słowa kluczowe: szkoła, menedżment, oświata, zarządzanie, zarządzanie oświatą, zadania dyrektora
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
DOI: 10.5708/EJMH.9.2014.1.Abs.R
RUMANIAN ABSTRACTS
RUMÄNISCHE ZUSAMMENFASSUNGEN
ABSTRACTE
Hessel J. Zondag & Marinus H.F. van Uden (pag. 3)
„My Special Prayer”: Self-ul, Dumnezeul și rugăciunea: Articolul prezintă ce efect produce narcisismul – una dintre importantele trăsături personale ale societății egocentrice – asupra
comportamentului religios. În prezent, cultura occidentală în general este considerată expresiv
individualistă, care tinde spre autorealizare. Acest model se caracterizează prin tendința omului
de a se crede cu puteri divine. În psihologie acest fenomen se numește narcisism. Spectrul larg al
narcisismului arată că, încercările înzestrării eului cu trăsături divine nu sunt întotdeauna benefice. Aceste persoane visează că, pot fi la același nivel cu zeii, însă conceptul de sine este totodată
atât de fragil, încât aceste încercări sunt sortite eșecului. Succesul acestei tendinţe narcisiste are
efect și asupra activității religioase, ca de exemplu, asupra rugăciunii. Bazându-ne pe cercetările
empirice și pe un studiu de caz anterior, prezentăm legătura dintre idolizarea eului, narcisism și
rugăciune. Cei care se idolizează cu succes, se roagă în mod diferit față de cei care suferă eșecuri
în idolizarea eului. Primii își adresează rugăciunea propriei lor persoane sau unei puteri superioare, iar cei din urmă unui Dumnezeu personal.
Cuvinte cheie: egocentrism, self, idolizarea eului exteriorizat sau interiorizat, rugăciune, narcisism
Köteles Ferenc & Simor Péter (pag. 20)
Grija sănătății în epoca modernă, amplificație somato-senzorială, anxietate privind sănătatea și bunăstare: Cercetare transversală: Scopul cercetării este examinarea legăturii dintre
grija sănătății din epoca modernă, amplificația somato-senzorială, anxietatea privind sănătatea,
și bunăstarea psihologică. În cercetarea transversală efectuată pe bază de chestionare, 180 de
persoane care își frecventează medicul de familie (vârstă medie = 48.2 ± 15.76) și 344 de studenți
din anii inferiori (vârsta medie = 21.5 ± 2.09) au completat Scala de Grija Sănătății din Epoca
Modernă, Scala de Amplificație Somato-senzorială, varianta prescurtată a Scalei de Anxietate
privind Sănătatea, Chestionarul Afectivității Pozitive și Negative, respectiv chestionarul WHO-5.
În urma rezultatelor s-a ajuns la concluzia că amplificația somato-senzorială și anxietatea privind
sănătatea se leagă de grija sănătăţii în epoca modernă, independent una de cealaltă. Între anxietatea privind sănătatea și bunăstarea psihică există o legătură inversă. Potrivit rezultatelor analizei
de corelaţie, grija de sănătate din epoca modernă nu este în corelație cu bunăstarea psihică, cu
afecţiunea pozitivă are o legătură ușor pozitivă, în cercetarea regresivă însă a prezentat o legătură
pozitivă cu ambele variabile, după controlul variabililor socioeconomice, afectivităţii negative şi
anxietății privind sănătatea. Grija de sănătate al epocii moderne de regulă este considerată structură maladaptiv-cognitivă, dar în baza rezultatelor actuale, poate fi nevoie de regândirea acestui
punct de vedere.
Cuvinte cheie: amplificație somato-senzorială, anxietate privind sănătatea, bunăstare, control
perceput
128
RUMANIAN ABSTRACTS / RUMÄNISCHE ZUSAMMENFASSUNGEN
Bence Takács & Zoltán Kmetty (pag. 34)
Sportul, ca „mijloc” de socializare: Corelația dintre participarea tinerilor de 15–18 ani în
activitatea organizațiilor civile și sport: În ultimii 10–20 de ani nenumărate studii au fost scrise
despre beneficiile capitalului social, însă s-a pus accent mai mic pe producerea acestuia. Cei mai
mulți autori presupun că în spatele formării capitalului social în mod implicit se află influența socială. Această ipoteză confirmă și studiile, care, utilizând datele unor cercetări panel, au arătat că
există o corelație însemnată între activitățile civile ale tinerilor şi adulţilor tineri și nivelul general
de încredere.
În acest studiu cercetăm, în ce mod influenţează sportul în cadrul adolescenților de vârstă cuprinsă
între 15–18 ani, unul dintre indicatorii principali importanţi ai capitalului social, apartenența unei
organizații civile. În baza a două înregistrări de date (Anchetă în cazul tineretului, 2000, 2008)
tinerii care practică sport, participă mai degrabă în activitățile organizațiilor civile. Chiar în cazul
modelelor noastre, sportul joacă un rol mai important decât accesarea fondurilor economice sau
culturale. Deși acest fenomen are și cauze structurale, după părerea noastră, din punctul de vedere
al capitalului social, cel mai important factor constituie participarea în activități comunitare, respectiv reţeaua relaţională formată din aceasta. Baza acestui factor poate fi chiar sportul practicat
în timpul tinereţii.
Cuvinte cheie: capital social, timp liber, generația de 15–18 ani, practicarea unui sport, apartenenţă într-o organizație civilă
Helene Ybrandt (pag. 54)
Trendul problemelor familiare şi psihice măsurate prin autodeclarare, în cazul adolescenților
suedezi în ultimii 10 ani: Cercetarea a încercat să prezinte gravitatea problemelor adolescenților
din Suedia, pentru care s-au folosit date colectate în anul 2000 respectiv 2010 de organizatorul
procesului de colectare a datelor respectiv bazate pe autodeclarări, cu ajutorul chestionarelor Adolescent Drug Abuse Diagnosis (ADAD, diagnosticul de consum de droguri în adolescență). Datele
referitoare la situații familiare, stări psihice și probleme în cazul adolescenților de 15–17 ani s-au
colectat pe două eșantioane alese întâmplător (în 2000 pe 121 de persoane, în 2010 pe 485 de
persoane). Comparând chestionarele și autodeclarările făcute în 2000 respectiv în 2010, evaluate
de către organizatorul procesului de colectare a datelor, nu s-au constatat schimbări în privinţa
gravităţii problemelor adolescenților – nu a crescut diferenţa între genuri, respectiv între grupurile
cu poziții sociale și economice diferite. Din punctul de vedere al fetelor problemele familiare au
gravitate mai intensă, decât al băieților. Adolescenții din 2010 au vorbit de mai puține probleme
psihice (de ex. anxietate gravă, tensiune, tulburări de înțelegere, tulburări de atenţie, tulburări
de memorie, precum şi problemele interne sau externe ale familiei – de ex. probleme dintre frați,
respectiv neîncredere faţă de alţii), decât cei din 2000. În vederea îmbunătățirii sănătății mentale
a adolescenţilor, în următorul deceniu este necesară exploatarea problemei legăturilor interumane,
de exemplu a problemei nesiguranţei față de persoanele din afara familiei.
Cuvinte cheie: diagnosticul de consum de droguri în adolescență (ADAD), adolescență, sănătate
mentală, familie, probleme relaţionale
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
RUMANIAN ABSTRACTS / RUMÄNISCHE ZUSAMMENFASSUNGEN
129
Khodarahimi Siamak, Haydar Deghani & Mohammadhadi Nikpourian (pag. 68)
Sănătate mentală şi moduri de a supravieţuire a locuitorilor din zonele rurale afectate de
lipsa apei potabile din provincia Fars: O perspectivă eco-psihologică: Unul dintre scopurile
studiului a fost să examineze pe un eșantion din Iran, efectul lipsei apei potabile asupra sănătății
mentale şi modurilor de supravieţuire a populaţiei din mediul rural, respectiv să clarifice dacă
genul, domiciliul, starea civilă, locul de muncă și studiile au vreo influenţă asupra acestora. Cercetarea s-a extins asupra celor 1198 de locuitori din mediu rural din împrejurările orașelor iraniene
Darab și Eghlid. În timpul anchetei s-a folosit un chestionar demografic, Chestionarul de Sănătate
General (General Health Questionnaire 28, GHQ-28) și scala Metodelor de supraviețuire în cazul
lipsei de apă potabilă (Coping Styles with Drinking Water Crisis, CSDWS). Scala CSDW se extinde asupra următorilor patru factori: (1) metode de optimizare a consumului de apă, (2) tehnologii care nu necesită apă și schimbări sociale, (3) folosirea tehnologiilor de vârf în economisirea
apei, respectiv (4) moduri de supraviețuire fără implicări sentimentale. Locuitorii din mediul rural
care nu au suferit din cauza lipsei de apă potabilă, au aplicat metode mai raționale de nivel mult
mai înalt, indicatorul lor psihopatologic a fost mai mic, aveau inclinații mai minimalizate înspre
metode de supraviețuire focusate pe sentimente, decât persoanele din mediul rural care au suferit
din cauza lipsei de apă potabilă. Pe eșantion s-a dovedit efectul domiciliului, stării civile, studiilor
și locului de muncă asupra modalităţilor de supravieţuire și sănătății mentale.
Cuvinte cheie: lipsa de apă potabilă, moduri de supraviețuire, sănătate mentală, date demografice
Željko Burcar (pag. 87)
Rolul directorului unei școli în Croația: Manager de învățământ, conducător sau administrator: Studiul cercetează problemele în legătură cu coordonarea învăţământului, respectiv cu
conducerea unei instituții de învățământ din Croația, în vederea folosirii acestor date ca şi punct de
pornire în alte cercetări ulterioare. Studiul analizează rolul directorului unei școli în învățământul
contemporan, în mediu tulburent, cu responsabilităţi tot mai mari şi program supraîncărcat. Pe
baza datelor furnizate, în Croaţia directorii de şcoală trebuie să facă față în opt categorii de sarcini:
a) culegere și distribuire de informații, b) comunicare, c) strategie și planificare, d) conducător
organizațional, administrator și organizator, e) conducător în învățământ și instructor, f) evaluator,
g) persoana de legătură între elevi și h) comunitate. Orientarea activității directoriale: a) oamenii,
b) sarcini/scopuri, c) școala, ca organizație, d) activități intrașcolare. Sarcinile care urmează din
această orientare sunt parte din procesul administrativ ideal: planificare, luare de decizii, organizare, coordonare, comunicare, influență și evaluare în cadrul celor cinci domenii ale conducerii
unei şcoli: program de educație, elevi, angajați, legături comunitare, condiții fizice și conducere.
Cuvinte cheie: școală, management, învățământ, conducere, coordonarea învățământului, sarcini
directoriale
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
DOI: 10.5708/EJMH.9.2014.1.Abs.RU
RUSSIAN ABSTRACTS
RUSSISCHE ZUSAMMENFASSUNGEN
РЕЗЮМЕ
Hessel J. Zondag & Marinus H.F. van Uden (стр. 3.)
«My Special Prayer»: Селф, бог и молитва: В статье рассматривается, какое влияние оказывает самовлюблённость, являющаяся одной из важных черт личности в эгоцентричных
обществах, на религиозное поведение. Западная культура в наши дни считается стремящейся к самоосуществлению, экспрессивной индивидуалистической. Самым характерным для
этого паттерна является то, что люди склонны приписывать себе божественные качества. В
психологии это называется нарциссизмом. Широкий спектр нарциссизма доказывает, что
попытки приписывания себе божественных качеств не всегда оказываются успешными.
Личности такого типа мечтают о том, что они могут подняться на уровень богов, однако их Я-концепция чересчур хрупка для того, чтобы эти попытки закончились успехом.
Успешность этого нарциссического стремления отзывается и на религиозной деятельности, например на молитве. Основываясь на прежних эмпирических исследованиях и на ситуативном анализе, нами демонстрируется, каким образом взаимосвязаны самообожание,
нарциссизм и молитва. Те, кто успешно обожают самого себя, молятся иначе, чем те, кто в
этом безуспешны. Первые обращают свою молитву к самому себе, или же к одной безымянной верховной власти, последние – к одному личному богу.
Ключевые слова: эгоцентричность, селф, открытая или скрытая самовлюблённость, молитва, нарциссизм
Ferenc Köteles & Péter Simor (стр. 20.)
Опасение за здоровье в наши дни, соматосенсорная амплификация, тревога в отношении здоровья и благополучие: Поперечный анализ: Целью исследования является
анализ взаимоотношения между опасением за здоровье, соматосенсорной амплификацией,
тревогой в отношении здоровья и психологическим благосостоянием. В анкетном опросе
180 пациентов, посещающих своего врача (средний возраст = 48.2 ± 15.76 лет), и 344 студента младших курсов (средний возраст = 21.5 ± 2.09 лет) заполнили «Шкалу опасения
за здоровье» (Modern Health Worries Scale), «Шкалу соматосенсорной амплификации»,
сокращённую версию «Методики тревоги в отношении здоровья», «Шкалу позитивных и
негативных переживаний» а также опросник «WHO-5». Согласно результатам, соматосенсорная амплификация и тревога в отношении здоровья и независимо друг от друга связаны
с опасением за здоровье. Между тревогой в отношении здоровья и благосостоянием наблюдается обратная связь. По результатам коррелятивного анализа опасение за здоровье
не имеет коррелятивной связи с благосостоянием и имеет слабую положительную связь с
позитивными переживаниями, а при регрессионном анализе оно положительно относилось
к обеим переменным после контроля социально-экономических переменных, негативных
переживаний и тревоги в отношении здоровье. Опасение за здоровье обычно считается
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маладаптивной когнитивной структурой, однако на основе настоящих данных этот взгляд
подлежит продумыванию.
Ключевые слова: соматосенсорная амплификация, опасение за здоровье, благосостояние,
обнаруженный контроль
Bence Takács & Zoltán Kmetty (стр. 34.)
Спорт, как «средство» социализации: Корреляция между участием в работе гражданских организаций и спортивной деятельностью среди 15–18-летних: На положительный эффект общественного капитала указывалось во множестве научных статей в
последние 10–20 лет, однако меньше внимания уделялось возникновению общественного
капитала. Большинство авторов причиной возникновения общественного капитала считает
имплицитное влияние социализации. Это подтверждается и исследованиями, обнаружившими значительное взаимоотношение между гражданской активностью людей молодого и
раннего взрослого возраста и общим уровнем доверия с помощью использования данных
панельных исследований. В настоящей статье нами исследуется влияние спортивной деятельности в кругу молодых (15–18-летних) на один из важных индикаторов общественного
капитала – членство в общественных организациях. Согласно двум опросам (Исследование
молодёжи 2000, 2008), молодые люди, занимающиеся спортом, по большей вероятности
участвуют в работе гражданских организаций. Более того, в наших моделях занятие спортом оказалось более значительным фоновым переменным, чем доступ к экономическим
или культурным ресурсам. Хотя это частично имеет и структурные причины, мы придерживаемся мнения, что с точки зрения общественного капитала в первую очередь участие в
работе коллектива и построение сети контактов в ходе этого является очень важным фактором. Занятие спортом в молодом возрасте может заложить хорошие основы для этого.
Ключевые слова: общественный капитал, свободное время, 15–18-летний возраст, занятие
спортом, членство в гражданских организациях
Helene Ybrandt (стр. 54.)
Тренд семейных и психических проблем, измеряемых с помощью самооценки в кругу
шведских подростков за последние 10 лет: В исследовании сделана попытка вскрыть
серьёзность проблем шведских подростков, для этого использованы данные, собранные в
2000 году с помощью методики Adolescent Drug Abuse Diagnosis (ADAD, «Диагноз употребления психоактивных веществ у подростков») и в 2010 году, собранные интерьвюерами и основанные на самооценке. Данные, касающиеся семейных обстоятельств, психического состояния и психических проблем подростков 15–17 лет, были собраны двумя
отборами проб по случайной выборке (121 человек в 2000 году, 485 человек в 2010 году).
Сопоставляя результаты исследований, проведённых в 2000 и в 2010 годах, проанализованных интервьюерами и основанных на самооценке, не наблюдается изменений относительно серьёзности проблем подростков – не увеличилась разница между полами или между
группами людей с различным семейным и экономическим положением. Однако, проблемы
внутри семьи девушками оценивались более серьёзно, чем юношами. В 2010 году по сравнению с 2000 годом подростками было вскрыто меньше психических проблем (например,
серьёзная тревога, напряжённость, нарушение понимания, нарушение концентрации вни-
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
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мания, нарушение памяти, а также проблемы в семье или вне семьи – например, проблемы
между братьями или сёстрами, недоверие к людям). Для того, чтобы способствовать развитию психического здоровья подростков, особенно важной задачей следующего десятилетия
является выявление проблем в личных отношениях, например, вопросов неопределённости
в отношении вне семьи.
Ключевые слова: Диагноз употребления психоактивных веществ у подростков (ADAD),
подростковый возраст, психическое здоровье, семья, проблемы в личных отношениях
Khodarahimi Siamak, Haydar Deghani & Mohammadhadi Nikpourian (стр. 68.)
Психическое здоровье и методы преодоления стресса сельского населения, испытывающего нехватку питьевой воды в провинции Фарс: Экопсихологоческая перспектива: Одна из целей исследования – анализ влияния нехватки питьевой воды на психическое
здоровье провинциального населения и на его методы преодоления стресса на иранской
выборке, а также выяснить, модифицируются ли они полом, местом жительства, семейным
положением, местом работы и образованием. Было исследовано 1198 провинциальных жителей, живущих в Иране в окрестностях городов Дараба и Эглида. В ходе исследования
были использованы демографическая анкета, «Опросник общего состояния здроровья»
(General Health Questionnaire 28, GHQ-28) и «Шкала методов преодоления стресса кризиса
питьевой воды» (Coping Styles with Drinking Water Crisis, CSDWS). Шкала CSDWS распространяется на следующие четыре стратегии: (1) методы оптимализации потребления воды,
(2) технологии без воды и изменения в обществе, (3) использование высокой технологии в
экономии воды, а также (4) способы копинга «фокус на эмоциях, отстранение». Провинциальные жители, не испытывающие нехватку питьевой воды, использовали рациональные
способы копинга намного более высокого уровня, показатель психопатологических нарушений у них был более низким, и они оказались менее склонными к способам копинга
«фокус на эмоциях, отстранение», чем провинциальные жители, испытывающие нехватку
питьевой воды. На выборке подтвердилось влияние места жительства, семейного положения, образования и места работы на способы копинга и на психическое здоровье.
Ключевые слова: нехватка питьевой воды, способы копинга, психическое здоровье, демографические данные
Željko Burcar (стр. 87.)
Роль директора школы в Хорватии: Менеджер по обучению, руководитель или администратор: В статье рассматриваются вопросы управления обучением и руководства учебными заведениями в Хорватии, которые могут служить исходной точкой для дальнейших
исследований и анализов. В статье проанализирована роль директора школы в рамках современного образования, при бурных обстоятельствах, при повышающемся уровне ответственности и перегруженном графике рабочего времени. Согласно полученным данным, директорам школ в Хорватии приходится успешно держаться в восьми различных друг от друга ролях: а) собиратель и распространитель информации, б) коммуникатор, в) стратегист и
планировщик, г) начальник организации, администратор и организатор, д) руководитель
отдела обучения и преподаватель, е) оценивающий эксперт, е) ученик, з) посредник в отношении коллектива. Направленность ролей директора: а) люди, б) задачи/цели, в) школа как
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
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организация, г) процессы в школе. Задачи, вытекающие из этой направленности, являются стадиями идеального административного процесса: планирование, принятие решений,
организация, координация, общение, воздействие и оценка в пяти областях управления
школой: программа обучения, ученики, сотрудники, связи с общественностью, физические
условия и управление.
Ключевые слова: школа, менеджмент, образование, управление, управление обучением,
задачи директора
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
DOI: 10.5708/EJMH.9.2014.1.Abs.SK
SLOVAKIAN ABSTRACTS
SLOWAKISCHE ZUSAMMENFASSUNGEN
ABSTRAKTY
Hessel J. Zondag & Marinus H.F. van Uden (str. 3)
„Moja zvláštna modlitba“: Self, Boh a modlitba: V príspevku popisujeme vplyv narcizmu na
náboženské správanie v individualistických spoločnostiach. Narcizmus je významná osobnostná
charakteristika. Súčasná západná kultúra je vo všeobecnosti expresívne individualistická. Pre túto
vzorku je typické, že ľudia majú sklon si udeľovať božské vlastnosti. V psychológii sa tomu
hovorí narcizmus. Rôznorodé prejavy spektra narcizmu ukazujú, že tieto pokusy o udeľovanie si
božských vlastností neskončia vždy úspechom. Narcistické osoby snívajú o tom, že sa dostanú
na úroveň bohov, ich vlastný sebaobraz je však príliš krehký na to, aby mohli byť tieto pokusy
úspešné. Úspech tohto narcistického úsilia ovplyvňuje aj náboženskú aktivitu, napríklad aj modlitbu. Opierajúc sa o predchádzajúce empirické výskumy a jednu prípadovú štúdiu predstavíme
súvislosti zbožšťovania seba samého, narcizmu a modlitby. Tí, ktorí sú úspešní pri zbožšťovaní
seba samého, sa modlia inak, ako tí, ktorým sa to nepodarí. Modlitby prvej skupiny sú adresované
samy sebe či nemenovanej vyššej moci, modlitby druhej skupiny zase k osobitému Bohu.
Kľúčové pojmy: individualizmus, self, zjavný alebo skrytý narcizmus, modlitba, narcizmus
Ferenc Köteles & Péter Simor (str. 20)
Strach o zdravie v modernej dobe: Somatosenzorická amplifikácia, úzkosť o zdravie a pohoda: Prierezová štúdia: Cieľom prieskumu bola analýza spojitostí strachu o zdravie v modernej dobe, somatosenzorickej amplifikácie, úzkosti o zdravie a psychologickej pohody. Dotazníky
(Škálu strachu o zdravie v modernej dobe, Somatosenzorickú amplifikačnú škálu, skrátenú verziu
dotazníka Úzkosti o zdravie, Dotazník o pozitívnej a negatívnej afektivite a Dotazník WHO)
vyplnilo 5 180 pacientov u praktického lekára (priemerný vek = 48.2 ± 15.76 rokov) a 344 vysokoškolákov (priemerný vek = 21.5 ± 2.09 rokov). Výsledky ukazujú, že somatosenzorická amplifikácia a úzkosť o zdravie sú nezávisle od seba spojené so strachom o zdravie v modernej dobe.
Medzi úzkosťou o zdravie a pohodou sa preukázal inverzný vzťah. Výsledky korelačnej analýzy
ukázali, že strach o zdravie v modernej dobe nekoreluje s pohodou a má slabý pozitívny vzťah k
pozitívnej afektivite, v regresnom výskume však kladne nadväzoval na obe premenné po kontrole
socioekonomických premenných, negatívnej afektivity a úzkosti o zdravie. Strach o zdravie v
modernej dobe sa zvyčajne považuje za maladaptívnu kognitívnu štruktúru, ale na základe týchto
výsledkov by sme mohli tento postoj zvážiť.
Kľúčové pojmy: somatosenzorická amplifikácia, úzkosť o zdravie, pohoda, vnímaná kontrola
SLOVAKIAN ABSTRACTS / SLOWAKISCHE ZUSAMMENFASSUNGEN
135
Bence Takács & Zoltán Kmetty (str. 34)
Šport ako „nástroj“ socializácie: Korelácia medzi športom a aktivitou v občianskych združeniach vo vekovej kategórii 15 až 18 ročných: Na pozitívny vplyv sociálneho kapitálu poukázalo v posledných 10–20 rokoch množstvo štúdií, na vývin sociálneho kapitálu bol ale kladený
menší dôraz. Väčšina autorov za vznikom spoločenského kapitálu predpokladá implicitne socializačný vplyv. To potvrdzujú aj štúdie, ktoré využitím panelových výskumov poukázali na výrazné
spojitosti medzi občianskou aktivitou mládeže a mladých dospelých a všeobecnou úrovňou ich
dôvery. V našej štúdii skúmame, ako vplýva športová aktivita (15–18 ročných) mladých ľudí na
jeden z najdôležitejších indikátorov sociálneho kapitálu – členstvo v občianskych združeniach.
Podľa dvoch zberov údajov (Ifjúságkutatás 2000, 2008) mladí športovci sa s väčšou pravdepodobnosťou podieľajú na práci občianskych združení. Dokonca v našich modeloch sa šport ukázal
dôležitejšou premennou v pozadí, než prístup k ekonomickým alebo kultúrnym zdrojom. Hoci
čiastočne to má aj štrukturálne príčiny, sme toho názoru, že z hľadiska sociálneho kapitálu dôležitým činiteľom je predovšetkým zapojenie sa v komunite, resp. v dôsledku toho sa formujúcej sieti
vzťahov. Dobrým základom pre to môže byť športovanie v mladom veku.
Kľúčové pojmy: sociálny kapitál, voľný čas, veková skupina 15–18 rokov, športovanie, členstvo v občianskom združení
Helene Ybrandt (str. 54)
Trendy rodinných a psychických problémov vnímané švédskymi adolescentmi v posledných
desiatich rokoch: S cieľom odhaliť závažnosť problémov švédskych adolescentov boli zozbierané a vyhodnotené údaje z rokov 2000 a 2010 zahŕňajúce sebahodnotenie respondentov a Adolescent Drug Abuse Diagnosis Interview (ADAD, zamerané na diagnostiku užívania narkotík u
dospievajúcich). Údaje o rodinných vzťahoch, psychickom stave a problémoch 15–17 ročných
adolescentov boli zozbierané z dvoch náhodne vybraných vzoriek (121 osôb v roku 2000, 485
osôb v roku 2010). Výsledky prieskumov z rokov 2000 a 2010 sa v závažnosti problémov dospievajúcich nelíšili – nespozorovali sme nárast rozdielu medzi pohlaviami ani medzi skupinami s
rozdielnym sociálnym a hospodárskym zázemím. Avšak dievčatá hodnotili vážnejšie svoje problémy v rodinných vzťahoch, ako chlapci. Adolescenti v roku 2010 popisovali menej psychických
problémov (napr. ťažká úzkosť a napätie, problémy s porozumením, koncentráciou, pamäťou,
problémy vo vzťahoch rodiny i mimo nej – napr. problémy súrodencov, nedôvera voči iným) v
porovnaní s rokom 2000. Prioritou nasledujúcich desiatich rokov bude odhalenie problémov vo
vzťahoch, napríklad otázok neistoty spojenej s osobami mimo rodiny – a to pre podporu duševného zdravia adolescentov.
Kľúčové pojmy: diagnóza užívania narkotík u adolescentov (ADAD), adolescencia, duševné
zdravie, rodina, problémy vo vzťahoch
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
136
SLOVAKIAN ABSTRACTS / SLOWAKISCHE ZUSAMMENFASSUNGEN
Khodarahimi Siamak, Haydar Deghani & Mohammadhadi Nikpourian (str. 68)
Mentálna hygiena a mechanizmy zvládania obyvateľstva trpiaceho nedostatkom pitnej
vody v pásme Fars: Ekopsychologický pohľad: Cieľom štúdie bolo preskúmať vplyv nedostatku pitnej vody na duševné zdravie a copingové stratégie u vidieckeho obyvateľstva v Iráne,
a preskúmať vplyv pohlavia, bydliska, rodinného stavu, zamestnania, úrovne vzdelania a pod.
Výskumu sa zúčastnilo 1198 vidieckych obyvateľov žijúcich v blízkosti iránskych miest Darab
a Eghlid. V štúdii boli využité: demografický dotazník, Všeobecný zdravotný dotazník (General
Health Questionnaire 28, GHQ-28) a škála vzťahujúca sa na spôsoby zvládania nedostatku pitnej
vody (Coping Styles with Drinking Water Crisis, CSDWS). Multidimenzionálna škála CSDW
sleduje štyri faktory: (1) metódy pre optimalizáciu spotreby vody, (2) bezvodé technológie a sociálne zmeny v živote, (3) využitie špičkovej technológie v úspore vody, a (4) vyhýbavé zvládanie
zamerané na emócie. Tí vidiecki obyvatelia, ktorí netrpeli nedostatkom pitnej vody, využívali
omnoho vyššiu úroveň racionálnych zvládacích mechanizmov, ich psychopatologické ukazovatele boli nižšie a boli menej náchylní na vyhýbavé zvládanie zamerané na emócie, než vidiecki
obyvatelia trpiaci nedostatkom pitnej vody. Výskum potvrdil vplyv miesta bydliska, rodinného
stavu, úrovne vzdelania a zamestnania na copingové stratégie a duševné zdravie.
Kľúčové pojmy: nedostatok pitnej vody, copingové stratégie, duševné zdravie, demografické
údaje
Željko Burcar (str. 87)
Rola riaditeľa školy v Chorvátsku: Manažér vzdelávania, líder alebo správca: Štúdia skúma
tie otázky vzťahujúce sa na vedenie a manažment vzdelávania a školských inštitúcií v Chorvátsku,
ktoré môžu slúžiť ako východisko ďalších výskumov a bádaní. Štúdia analyzuje rolu riaditeľa
školy v turbulentnom prostredí súčasného vzdelávania pri vzrastajúcej zodpovednosti a preplnenom pracovnom rozvrhu. Podľa získaných údajov sa riaditelia škôl v Chorvátsku musia osvedčovať v ôsmych rôznych roliach: a) zberateľ a sprostredkovateľ informácií, b) komunikátor, c)
stratég a plánovač, d) vedúci, správca a plánovač organizácie, e) vedúci vzdelávania a vyučujúci,
f) hodnotiaci, g) študent a h) spojka s kolektívom. Roly riaditeľa sú zamerané na: a) ľudí, b) úlohy/
ciele, c) školu ako organizáciu d) procesy v rámci školy. Úlohy vyplývajúce z tohto zamerania
sú súčasťou ideálneho administratívneho procesu: plánovanie, rozhodovanie, organizácia, koordinácia, komunikácia, ovplyvňovanie a hodnotenie na piatich úsekoch riadenia školy: študijný
program, študenti, zamestnanci, vzťahy s komunitou, fyzické podmienky a vedenie.
Kľúčové pojmy: škola, manažment, vzdelávanie, vedenie, úlohy riaditeľa
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
CONTRIBUTORS TO THIS ISSUE /
AUTOREN DIESES HEFTES
Dr. habil. Robert J. Biel
Papieska Akademia Teologiczna w
Krakowie
Wydział Teologiczny Sekcja w Tarnowie
Urszulańska 9/6
PL-33-100 Tarnow
Poland/Polen
[email protected]
Dr. Željko Burcar
ES F.K. Frankopana, Zagreb
Ivanićgradska 24.
HR-10000, Zagreb
Croatia/Kroatien
[email protected]
Haydar Deghani
Rural Water and Sewage
Corporation of Fars Province
Jomhori Blv.
Shiraz
Iran/Iran
[email protected]
Dr. Siamak Khodarahimi
Eghlid Branch, Islamic Azad University
Eghlid, Fars Province
Iran/ Iran
[email protected]
Dr. Kmetty Zoltán
Károli Gáspár Református Egyetem
Bölcsészettudományi Kar
Társadalom- és Kommunikációtudományi
Intézet
H-1088 Budapest
Reviczky utca 4.
Hungary/Ungarn
[email protected]
Dr. Köteles Ferenc
Eötvös Loránd Tudományegyetem
Pedagógiai és Pszichológiai Kar
Egészségfejlesztési és Sporttudományi
Intézet
H-1117 Budapest
Bogdánfy Ödön u. 10.
Hungary/Ungarn
[email protected]
Mohammadhadi Nikpourian
Corvinus Egyetem
Gazdálkodástudományi Kar
H-1093 Budapest
Fővám tér 8.
Hungary/Ungarn
[email protected]
138
CONTRIBUTORS TO THIS ISSUE / AUTOREN DIESES HEFTES
Prof. Wieslaw Przygoda
Katolicki Uniwersytet Lubelski
Jana Pawła II.
Wydział Teologii
Instytut Teologii Pastoralnej i Katechetyki
ul. Radziszewskiego 7
Pl-20-039 Lublin
Poland/Polen
[email protected]
Simor Péter
Budapesti Műszaki és Gazdaságtudományi
Egyetem
Kognitív Tudományi Tanszék
H-1111 Budapest
Műegyetem rkp. 3-9.
Hungary/Ungarn
[email protected]
Takács Bence
Semmelweis Egyetem
Testnevelési és Sporttudományi Kar
Társadalomtudományi Tanszék
H-1123 Budapest
Alkotás u. 44.
Hungary/Ungarn [email protected]
EJMH 9:1, June 2014
Prof. Marinus H. van Uden
Tilburg University, School of Humanities
Department of Culture Studies
Warandelaan 2
NL-5037 AB Tilburg
Netherlands/Holland
[email protected]
Dr. Helene Ybrandt
Umeå Universitet
Institutionen för psykologi
SE-90187 Umeå
Mediagränd 14, D-114
Sweden/Schweden
[email protected]
Dr. Hessel J. Zondag
Tilburg University, School of Humanities
Department of Culture Studies
Warandelaan 2
NL- 5037 AB Tilburg
Netherlands/Holland
[email protected]
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PSYCHIATRY
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Polish Psychiatric Association quarterly international journal in English
– The socioeconomic status and family context of eating attitudes and dietary behaviours
offers broad spectrum of research reports – from biological psychiatry to social
of children in Polish primary schools
psychiatry and psychotherapy
Maciej Wojciech Pilecki, Małgorzata Kowal, Agnieszka Woronkowicz, Łukasz Kryst,
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In the
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Maria-Vittoria
Squillante
study on and
metaphors
usedcardiovascular
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omparison of metabolic parameters
Framingham
risk scorespatients
before
Hossein
Kaviani,
Robabeh
Hamedi
and after in-hospital treatment with antipsychotics
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impact
of anxiety
disorders on
the Kłoszewska
quality of compliance among patients
Adam
Wysokiński,
Jakub Kaźmierski,
Iwona
co-morbid
psychiatric
or medical
conditions:
there are
but
– with
Assessment
of body
composition
using bioelectrical
impedance
in many
patientsquestions
with
where
can we –find
the answers?
schizophrenia
preliminary
report
AdamJaeschke,
Wysokiński,Marcin
Iwona Kłoszewska
Rafał
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–– Davanloo’s
Psychometric
propertiesShort-term
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version ofPsychotherapy.
the Body AttitudeApplication
Test
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and unAnna Brytek-Matera,
Michel Probst
derstanding
the theroretical
and technical principles of this method in treatment
– ofPsychometric
properties of the Polish version of the Cognitive Triad Inventory (CTI) –
resistant patients.
preliminary
study
Mirosław Bilski-Piotrowski
Andrzej Sliwerski
– Neuropsychological
characteristic of post-traumatic Klüver-Bucy Syndrome
– Stanisław
Developing
an instrumentAnna
for assessing
fidelity
to the
intervention in the Critical Time
Kwiatkowski,
Starowicz,
Olga
Milczarek
Intervention – Task Shifting (CTI-TS) – preliminary report
Tatiana Fernandes Carpinteiro da Silva, Giovanni Marcos Lovisi, Sarah Conover
–
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abstracts / zusammenfassungen - European Journal of Mental Health

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