As we face a future of rising global temperatures, and associated extreme weather events, distressing emotional responses are understandable. Climate scientists comprise a unique group, in that they must regularly confront the reality, and consequences, of climate change. In this paper, we explore how the principles of compassion-focused therapy (CFT) might be applied to comprehend the responses of climate scientists to climate change; by doing so, we aim to gain a deeper understanding of these responses in order to consider fruitful avenues for providing support and investigating this area further. We consider how flows of compassion, and blocks to compassion, might play a role in climate scientists’ experiences. Additionally, we conceptualise a role for compassion towards the wider world and humanity more broadly. Finally, by applying the CFT Three Systems model to current understanding of climate scientists’ emotional experiences, we seek to proffer a potential conceptualisation of them.

1. (1) To formulate the emotional experiences of climate scientists from a compassion-focused therapy perspective.

2. (2) To explore how blocks to flows of compassions serve to negatively impact and/or maintain difficult emotional experiences of climate scientists.

3. (3) To consider ways in which the field of psychological therapy can support climate scientists through a difficult emotional journey, and how future research might explore this further.

Despite advances in treatment and outcomes for paediatric heart failure, both physical and psychosocial comorbidities remain notable among this patient population. We aimed to qualitatively describe the psychosocial experiences of adolescent and young adults with heart failure and their caregivers’ perceptions, with specific focus on personal challenges, worries, coping skills, and resilience.

Structured, in-depth interviews were performed with 16 adolescent and young adults with heart failure and 14 of their caregivers. Interviews were recorded and transcribed. Content analysis was performed, and themes were generated. Transcripts were coded by independent reviewers.

Ten (63%) adolescent and young adults with heart failure identified as male and six (37.5%) patients self-identified with a racial or ethnic minority group. Adolescent and young adults with heart failure generally perceived their overall illness experience more positively and less burdensome than their caregivers. Some adolescent and young adults noted specific worries related to surgeries, admissions, major complications, death, and prognostic/treatment uncertainty, while caregivers perceived their adolescent and young adult’s greatest worries to be around major complications and death. Adolescent and young adults and their caregivers were able to define and reflect on adolescent and young adult experiences of resilience, with many adolescent and young adults expressing a sense of optimism and gratitude as it relates to their medical journey.

This study is the first of its kind to qualitatively describe the psychosocial experiences of a racially and socioeconomically diverse sample of adolescent and young adults with heart failure, as well as their caregivers’ perceptions of patient experiences. Findings underscore the importance of identifying distress and fostering resilient processes and outcomes in young people with advanced heart disease.

Coping with a patient’s death is one of the most challenging events faced by healthcare professionals in clinical practice. A broad understanding of the coping strategies used by healthcare professionals is fundamental to the development of effective interventions and the provision of good bereavement care. This review aims to systematically synthesize the coping experience of healthcare professionals in the course of their work when they are confronted with patient deaths.

PubMed, Embase, ScienceDirect, CINAHL, PsycINFO, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, Scopus, and Wiley online library were searched in April 2023 with no restriction on publication date. A 3-stage thematic synthesis method was applied for data integration and analysis.

Thirty studies involving 545 participants met the inclusion criteria and scored a high level on quality assessment ranging from 9.0 to 10.0. Six themes were identified: emotional coping, cognitive coping, behavioral coping, relational coping, spiritual coping, and occupational coping.

Overall, the coping strategies used by healthcare professionals in response to bereavement were found to be unique and multidimensional. Understanding how healthcare practitioners use emotional, cognitive, behavioral, relational, spiritual, and professional strategies to cope with bereavement will prove extremely beneficial in helping them to manage their grief, and can furthermore promote their professional growth and ensure the provision of excellent bereavement care for patients.

This study aimed to explore relationships between parental stress, coping, and outcomes for parents of infants with CHD, via observational approach reflecting domains of the Parental Stress and Resilience in CHD (PSRCHD) model.

Fifty-five parents of 45 infants with CHD completed questionnaires with measures of parental stress, Problem-Focused Coping (PFC), Emotion-Focused Coping (EFC), Avoidant Coping (AC), mental health (symptoms of anxiety and symptoms of depression), post-traumatic growth (PTG) and quality of life (QoL). Demographic and infant clinical data were obtained.

Parental stress showed significant small to medium positive correlations with MH and PTG, but no significant correlations with QoL. EFC and AC showed significant small to medium positive correlations with MH, and medium negative correlations with parental QoL. EFC and PFC had significant small to medium correlations with PTG. PFC and AC had significant small to medium correlations with infant QoL. Hierarchical multiple regression analyses indicated that parental symptoms of anxiety, PTG, parental QoL, infant QoL were significantly predicted by models comprising of parental stress, coping styles, and clinical controls (adjusted R2 = 13.0–47.9%, p range < 0.001–.048), with results for parental symptoms of depression falling marginally above significance (adjusted R2 = 12.3%, p = .056).

Parental stress, coping styles, and length of hospital stay are related to psychological outcomes in parents of infants with CHD. Future research may use the PSRCHD framework to assess mechanisms underlying CHD parents’ stress and coping experiences and investigate longitudinal relationships between parental factors and parent and child outcomes.

Research on suicide rarely focuses on protective factors. The goal of this systematic review was to assess the evidence of the associations between protective factors and reduced suicidality among older adults.

First, a scoping review was conducted to identify pertinent terms that refer to various protective factors against suicidality. A systematic review, following the PRISMA guidelines, was then conducted on a selection of 15 protective factors (e.g., perceived control, well-being and quality of life, life satisfaction, purpose-in-life, resilience, coping, religiosity, hope, self-regulation, sense of belonging, mattering, positive relationship, social support, social connectedness, and social participation), with separate searches performed on each factor in five databases. Empirical studies were eligible if participants were adults aged 60 years and over, and if the studies reported predictive statistical analysis.

A total of 70 studies were retained for the review. Suicidal ideation was the main outcome measure (91%). Significant associations were consistently observed between all protective factors and reduced suicidal ideations or behaviors, particularly for purpose-in-life, resilience, and positive relationships, indicating that these are solid components for suicide prevention. Using scales, instead of a single item, to measure protective factors (e.g. life satisfaction) was more efficient to capture the associations. On the other hand, results were similar whether studies used subjective (e.g., sense of belonging) or objective (e.g., social connectedness) measures.

Protective factors were inversely associated with suicidal ideation. Improving protective factors is essential for the development of late-life suicide prevention and interventions, instead of merely focusing on risk factors.

Coping strategies, competence, and locus of control (LOC) beliefs are important predictors of mental health (MH). However, research into their complex interactions has produced mixed results. Our study investigated them further in the previously unexplored context of clinical high-risk (CHR) of psychosis.

We tested six alternative structural equation models in a community sample (N = 523), hypothesizing a mediating role of coping and treating CHR symptoms as (i) an additional mediator or (ii) a specific outcome. Our measurement model included two latent factors of MH: (1) psychopathology (PP), consisting of presence of mental disorders, global and psychosocial functioning, and (2) self-rated health (SRH) status.

In the model with the best Akaike Information Criterion and the latent factors as outcome variables, maladaptive coping completely mediated the impact of maladaptive LOC on PP and SRH. Additionally, CHR symptoms partially mediated the effect of maladaptive coping on PP and SRH in the community sample, as long as sex was not entered into the model. In the clinical sample (N = 371), the model did not support a mediation by CHR symptoms, despite significant pathways with both coping and MH outcomes; further, competence beliefs directly impacted SRH.

Coping strategies are an important intervention target for MH promotion, especially in the community. In clinical populations, interventions focusing on coping strategies may improve CHR symptoms, thus potentially supporting better MH, especially SRH. Additionally, due to their mostly cascading effects on MH, improving competence and LOC beliefs may also promote psychological well-being.

The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic produced swift, extensive changes in daily life, including for first-episode psychosis (FEP) clients. This study examined pandemic-related psychosocial impacts to clients while engaged in Coordinated Specialty Care (CSC). We also examined FEP client vaccination rates, as vaccinations can reduce hospitalizations/deaths, and related worries.

Thirty-one clients (45% female; ages 13-39; 26% black, 61% white) from Pennsylvania (PA) CSC outpatient programs completed an online survey evaluating exposure to COVID-19, associated worries, coping, and safety strategies. Descriptive statistics characterized responses and demographic group differences. Additional program evaluation data informed vaccination rates for PA FEP clients.

Participants reported substantial pandemic-related impacts to daily life. Many clients reported improved safety measures to protect themselves/others from COVID-19. Clients largely denied substantial worries about infection for themselves, reporting greater concern for loved ones. Multiple coping strategies were endorsed, which, with few exceptions, did not differ among demographic groups. FEP clients had a low reported rate of vaccination (28.6%) as of September 2021.

Observed prolonged pandemic effects may alter FEP client progress in CSC. Stakeholders should be prepared to adjust FEP treatment accordingly in the event of a similar disaster. Concentrated vaccination efforts may be necessary for this population.