The International Forum for Logotherapy, 2008, 31, 121-125.

Recent Publications of Interest to Logotherapists

Stephanie Wood & Tara K. Luchkiw

Arkoff, A. [University of Hawaii at Manoa, Department of Psychology, 2430 Campus Road, Honolulu, HI 96822-2294, USA; arkoff@hawaii.edu], Meredith, G. M., & Dubanoski, J. P. (2004). Gains in well-being achieved through retrospective-proactive life review by independent older women. Journal of Humanistic Psychology, 44, 204-214.

-- A non-clinical sample (N = 36, 18 participants, 18 controls) of older women (aged 55+) enrolled in a study to determine whether a structured workshop would enhance their psychological functioning. Individuals completed the Scales of Psychological Well-Being before and after the program, and those who were enrolled in the workshop completed an anonymous evaluation of various aspects of the program. The program consisted of 14 weekly sessions; each focused on a “life question” regarding the present, past, or future. Analysis revealed no significant differences at pretest between the control and treatment groups on the Scales of Psychological Well-Being. At posttest, there were significant increases on all six scales of this measure for the treatment group, which the authors interpreted as suggestive of the program’s effectiveness in enhancing psychological functioning.

Asagba, R. B. [Department of Psychology, University of Ibadan, Ibadan, Ogo State, Nigeria; rbasagba@yahoo.com] (2004). Importance of logotherapy in clinical practice. Ife Psychologia,12, 133-137.

-- The author discussed the usefulness of meaning as the center of therapy to help individuals maintain mental health, with a special emphasis on logotherapy being applied in developing countries, where much unavoidable suffering is endured because of economic crises. A main thesis of the author is that Psychology should go beyond clinical practice to extend to society at large, especially in developing countries.

Blair, R. G. [Department of Social Work, New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, NM 88003, USA; roblair@nmsu.edu]. (2004). Helping older adolescents search for meaning in depression. Journal of Mental Health Counseling, 26, 333-347.

-- The author reported on his use of logotherapy with adolescent clients experiencing depression. He noted that often adolescents have not formed a coherent or unique identity, and are thus more susceptible to peer pressure and performing actions inconsistent with their beliefs, placing them at risk for depression. The author described steps for helping adolescents work through depression by discovering meaning and purpose, providing examples from his own work. Steps included establishing a therapeutic relationship; helping adolescents increase insight into their own lives and their depression; reframing depression so that it is not seen as the enemy, but rather as a helpful indicator that something is amiss; finding meaning in depression and viewing it as something from which to learn; and pursuing that meaning in terms of goals and values, which would facilitate identity development and result in the amelioration of depressive symptoms.

Breitbart, W. [Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, 1242 Second Ave, Box 421, New York, NY 10021; Breitbaw@mskcc.org], Gibson, C., Poppito, S. R., & Berg, A. (2004). Psychotherapeutic interventions at the end of life: A focus on meaning and spirituality. Canadian Journal of Psychiatry, 49, 366-372.

-- Existential bases of meaning and spirituality were explored in light of terminal illness and palliative care. The author noted that end-of-life care should extend beyond symptom control to address existential and spiritual aspects. Meaning-centered group therapy for cancer patients was reviewed as a manualized intervention. This intervention uses a combination of didactics, discussion, and experiential exercises to help patients with advanced cancer enhance their sense of meaning and purpose in their lives.

Carruthers, C. P., & Hood, C. D. [Department of Recreation and Leisure Studies, Brock University, 500 Glenridge Avenue, St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada L2S 3A1; chood@brocku.ca] (2004). The power of the positive: Leisure and well-being. Therapeutic Recreation Journal, 38, 225-245.

-- The authors discussed a “new paradigm” for health care and human service professionals, moving from a focus on diseases and deficits to the capacities that allow people to thrive. The authors explored individual qualities that contribute to subjective and psychological well-being, and the role of leisure in enhancing those qualities. Some of these qualities include positive affect, optimism, engaging in pleasurable activities, and having meaningful goals. Therapeutic recreation can provide support to clients as they uncover meaning in their lives through focusing attention on positives, reframing habitual thoughts, and seeking opportunities to experience pleasure. The authors advocated a need for therapeutic recreation to focus on all aspects of experiencing leisure, including thoughts, feelings, and behavior.

Deeks, A. A., & McCabe, M. P. [FAPS, School of Psychology, Deakin University, 221 Burwood Highway, Burwood, Victoria 3125, Australia; maritam@deakin.edu.au]. (2004). Well-being and menopause: An investigation of purpose in life, self-acceptance and social role in premenopausal, perimenopausal, and postmenopausal women. Quality of Life Research, 13, 389-398.

-- 304 women were divided into menopausal stages (pre-, peri-, and postmenopausal) and were given several questionnaires to examine the relationship between menopausal stage and purpose in life and self-acceptance. Participants completed the Purpose in Life and Self-acceptance subscales from the Psychological Well-being Inventory three times, as relating to their lives in the past, present, and future. In general, women expected to have more positive ratings of purpose in life and self-acceptance in the future compared to the past. Comparisons between menopausal stages suggested that menopausal (peri- and post-) women significantly expected lower ratings of future purpose in life and self-acceptance than premenopausal women, but this difference was no longer significant when age was accounted for. A second study examined how 203 women felt about purpose in life, self-acceptance, and their social role (such as mother, etc.). Premenopausal women indicated that they felt significantly more positive about their roles than menopausal women; this effect remained significant with age as a covariate. The authors suggested that this may mean that age and feelings about social roles affect purpose in life and self-acceptance more than menopausal stage.

Furrow, J. L. [180 North Oakland Avenue, Fuller Theological Seminary, Pasadena, CA 91101; jfurrow@fuller.edu], King, P. E., & White, K. (2004). Religion and positive youth development: Identity, meaning, and prosocial concerns. Applied Developmental Science, 8, 17-26.

-- A sample of 801 urban high school students responded to questionnaires assessing religious identity, personal meaning, and prosocial concerns. Prototypical descriptors of a highly religious person were used as a measure of religious identity, the Life Regard Index-Revised was used to measure personal meaning, and the Prosocial Concerns Battery was employed to measure prosocial concerns. Ratings of religious self-understanding were positively associated with personal meaning and prosocial concerns, providing support for religion as a developmental resource.

Geiger, J. [Department of Psychology and Human Ecology, Cameron University, 2800 W Gore Blvd., Lawton, OK 73505; johng@cameron.edu], Weinstein, L., & Jones, C. (2004). Differences in meaning in life in students: The effect of nontraditional status and region of country. College Student Journal, 38, 569-572.

-- The 20-item Purpose in Life (PIL) test was completed by 258 traditional and non-traditional age students in the upper Midwestern and Southwestern United States to examine whether purpose in life was affected by age and academic major. Samples from two different regions were used to determine if PIL scores generalize to different areas where differences in economic status, religiosity, or ethnicity might occur. Nontraditional students’ scores were significantly higher than those of traditional students, suggesting that PIL scores may be affected by age. Students in the Southwest had significantly higher PIL scores than those students from the upper Midwest. Although it was hypothesized that academic major would lead to differences in PIL scores, this was not supported by the data.

Greenfield, E. A. [Human Development and Family Studies, University of Wisconsin, 1430 Linden Dr., Madison, WI 53706, USA; eagreenfield@wisc.edu], & Marks, N. F. (2004). Formal volunteering as a protective factor for older adults’ psychological well-being. Journal of Gerontology: Series B: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences, 59B, S258-S264.

-- This study examined whether volunteering serves as a protective factor against the absence of a social role (parent, employee, etc.) on psychological well-being. Adults aged 65-74 (N = 373) were administered two 6-item scales to measure negative and positive affect over the last 30 days and a 3-item version of Ryff’s Purpose in Life Index to measure purpose in life. Data as to the number of role-identities and whether/how long they volunteer each month were also collected. Analysis controlled for factors such as age, sex, and income. Having fewer social roles was significantly correlated with greater negative affect, while more time spent volunteering was significantly correlated with greater positive affect. An interaction of role absences (fewer social roles) and volunteering was found to be significant only for purpose in life, indicating that for those with role absences, volunteering appears to be beneficial to maintaining a feeling of purpose in life.

Heisel, M. J. [Department of Psychiatry, University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry, 300 Crittenden Blvd., Rochester, NY 14642-8409, USA; marnin_heisel@urmc.rochester.edu], & Flett, G. L. (2004). Purpose in life, satisfaction with life, and suicide ideation in a clinical sample. Journal of Psychopathology and Behavioral Assessment, 26, 127-135.

-- This study examined purpose in life as a possible protective factor against suicidal ideation and after accounting for negative psychological variables. Forty-nine patients were administered the suicidal ideation subscale of the Suicide Probability Scale, the Neuroticism subscale of the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire, the Beck Depression Inventory, the Social Hopelessness Questionnaire, the Satisfaction with Life Scale, and the Purpose in Life subscale of a shortened version of a measure of Psychological Well-Being. Suicidal ideation was significantly and positively correlated with neuroticism and hopelessness, and significantly and negatively correlated with purpose in life and life satisfaction. Purpose in life was found to mediate the association between satisfaction with life and suicidal ideation and moderate the relationship between depression and suicidal ideation, suggesting it was more protective against suicidal ideation for participants reporting higher levels of depression than for those reporting lower levels of depression.

Hillmann, M. [Lingener Strasse 61, 49716, Meppen, Germany; Manfred.Hillmann@gmx.de] (2004). Viktor E. Frankl’s existential analysis and logotherapy. In W. Miles Cox & Eric Klinger (Eds.), Handbook of motivational counseling: Concepts, approaches, and assessment (pp. 357-372). West Sussex, England: John Wiley & Sons.

-- A general overview of logotherapy is provided, including a brief history of Viktor Frankl and logotherapy’s birth. Central themes of logotherapy are discussed, such as the importance of the spiritual dimension, the Will to Meaning, noogenic neurosis, and pathways to discovering meaning. Logotherapy methods are delineated, such as Paradoxical Intention, Dereflection, attitudinal adjustment, and sensitization training for meaning, with examples utilized from the writings of Frankl and other logotherapists.

Karus, D. [Center for the Psychosocial Study of Health and Illness, Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia University, 100 Haven Avenue, Suite 6A, New York, NY 10032, USA; dk307@columbia.edu], Raveis, V. H., Marconi, K., Selwyn, P., Alexander, C., Hanna, B., & Higginson, I. J. (2004). Mental health status of clients from three HIV/AIDS palliative care projects. Palliative and Supportive Care, 2, 125-138.

-- Data from 180 participants from three palliative care sites (located in rural Alabama, Baltimore, and New York City) were analyzed to examine the mental health status of HIV/AIDS patients. Participants completed the Palliative Care Assessment Forms for HIV (PCAF-HIV); the Mental Health Inventory (MHI-5) to assess psychological functioning; the Rapid Disability Rating Scale (RDRS-2) to determine physical functioning and disabilities; the Memorial Symptom Assessment Scale (MSAS) to examine physical symptoms present; and the interpersonal relations and transcendence subscales of the Missoula Vitas Quality of Life Index (MVQOLI-15), which the authors used to assess purpose and meaning in life. Analyses related to meaning in life suggested that the majority of clients perceived their interpersonal relationships to have a positive effect on their quality of life (although significantly more so with Alabama respondents as opposed to New York City respondents). Participants at all sites indicated that transcendence had a positive effect on quality of life. Better mental health was positively correlated with more positive perceptions of purpose in life (a significant finding in Baltimore and New York City).

Stephanie Wood [sswood@olemiss.edu] and Tara K. Luchkiw [tkluchki@olemiss.edu] are graduate students in the Clinical Psychology Training Program in the Department of Psychology at The University of Mississippi, University, Mississippi 38677, USA. The authors would like to acknowledge Stefan E. Schulenberg, Ph.D., for editing this article.