Psychology of the Facelift Patient

This paper presents an extensive literature review of the psychology of facelift patients as it has evolved over the past 50 years. Earlier studies revealed significant levels of pre and perioperative depression. Facelift patients generally exhibit emotional and social concerns about facial appearance that are higher than the general population. Many are undergoing midlife situational stresses and may lack the positive characteristics to deal with them. The most common diagnoses seen include depression, impulsivity, unstable personality, and passive dependence, albeit not necessarily serious. Improvement in body image is the major driver for surgery. Characteristics of female patients as defined by their age are described. These include the younger emotionally dependent group, the worker group of middle age, and the older grief group. Male patients are seen to have a higher level of psychological dysfunction, but a higher improvement in postoperative quality of life. Motivations for surgery include increasing self-esteem, making new friends, improving relationships, and getting better jobs. Overall patient satisfaction is more than 95%, with improvement seen in positive changes in their life, increased self-confidence and self-esteem, decreased self-consciousness about their appearance, and overall improvement in quality of life. Postoperative psychological reactions are seen in about half the patients, these primarily being anxiety and depression of varying degrees. Predictors of patient satisfaction include the desire for self-image improvement in contradistinction to a change in life situation. Negative predictors include male sex, young age, unrealistic expectations, relationship disturbances, and preexisting psychological pathology. The importance of good patient selection in achieving a satisfied patient is outlined and emphasized.

Emotional Sequelae of Elective Abortion: The Role of Guilt and Shame

Although estimates vary, many women experience long-term emotional, spiritual, psychological and interpersonal difficulties following abortion, including complicated grief, depression, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and relationship disturbances. Developmental, drive, object-relations and narcissism models for perinatal loss also illuminate the dynamics of post-abortion syndromes. Guilt and shame play important roles in generating and concealing post-abortion sequelae. Pastoral care and healthcare providers can increase their awareness of post-abortion sequelae and provide effective care for women experiencing these syndromes.

Preventive intervention as means of clarifying direction of effects in socialization: Anxious-withdrawn preschoolers case

An indicated preventive intervention research program integrating attachment, attributional, and behaviorist perspectives was conducted to test the hypothesis that parent–child relationship disturbances directly effect the child's adjustment to the preschool. Anxious-withdrawn preschool children and their mothers were divided equally into treatment and control groups, and assessed on maternal self-report of parenting stress, behavioral ratings of mother–child interaction, and teacher ratings of the children in the preschool classroom. Results showed significant changes in the treatment group: mothers in the treatment group moderated their level of control to a more appropriate, less intrusive level, while children in the treatment group showed an increase in cooperation and enthusiasm during a problem solving task with mother. Teacher-rated social competence and anxious-withdrawn behavior indicated improvement, although only the former was significant. The demonstration of effects of this home intervention for the mother on the child's behavior in the preschool confirm the transactional model underlying this study and demonstrate the utility of a parent–child interaction training component for the prevention of behavioral–emotional problems in young children.

Adjustment and Behaviour of Finnish Immigrant Children in Stockholm

The object of the investigation was to study the behaviour and adjustment of Finnish children following their immigration to Sweden, and to see whether there was any connection between the families' acclimatization and the children's adjustment at the time of the investigation, three years after their migration from Finland. The material consisted of 40 children from 27 families. The parents were interviewed by a Finnish psychologist. The results were co-ordinated with those of an investigation of the same children at school. To judge from the parents' statements, behavioural disorders were to be found in the children more often after immigration than prior to it or three years after. The disturbances most often mentioned as appearing after migration were shyness, poor self-esteem, nail-biting and psychomotor unrest. Children from homes where the parents reported the existence of relationship disturbances, problems with alcohol or depression were more often maladjusted and had greater difficulty in being accepted at school. Even if the adjustment of immigrant children to shcool can be improved by educational measures, this should also be considered in the context of the families' and parents' situation in society.