Gill Brown

Chronic pelvic pain affects 38 per 1,000 women yearly (Daniels & Khan, 2010; Zondervan et al., 1999), accompanied by various psycho-logical sequelae. Positive psychology may offer new approaches to pelvic pain that complement existing interventions; these include post-traumatic growth (PTG), optimism, resilience, and models of recovery. In a sample of 132 females (aged 16 to 45), cross- sectional research revealed that participants with pelvic pain of unknown cause had the highest levels of post-traumatic stress dis-order (PTSD) symptoms. A regression analysis revealed that intrusive rumination, avoidant coping, and resilience were significant predictors of PTSD symptoms, and resilience and social support were predictors of PTG. Understanding the elements of positive psychology could help create positive psychology interventions focusing on chronic pelvic pain?s impact on mental health.

We assessed levels of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and post-traumatic growth (PTG) during the COVID-19 pandemic in the UK using an online questionnaire, in May and June 2020, during “lockdown.” Some 440 participants took part and 91.8% of the sample was female. Large numbers of participants had high levels of PTSD, with some 50.2% with “probable PTSD”. Yet 49.5% of participants also demonstrated high levels of PTG. Regression analysis revealed rumination to be key predictors for PTSD and PTG.

This chapter aims to:
• Assist students with understanding psychology as a science and inform them about the British Psychological Society, which is the representative body for students, graduates and chartered members.
• Prepare students for the type of content they should expect to receive across their degree course and how this links in with the core requirements of the British Psychological Society.
• Encourage thought and reflection around the study skills required at each level of study and the gradual shift to autonomous learning as students progress through their psychology degree

This chapter aims to:
• Demystify the university environment by exploring more about how universities work and what they can offer to students.
• Alleviate concerns which students may have about their transition to university and provide advice as to how best to prepare for academic life, both prior to starting their course and throughout the duration of their studies.
• Set expectations for students to enhance their approach to and responsibility for studying and to grasp opportunities that university life affords them.
• Encourage reflection on the skills students currently possess and those which can be developed throughout their student life to enhance successful transition into further study or their chosen career.

Purpose: The SMILE study (Social Media as Informal support for people with mental illness: an Exploratory study) aimed to explore how people with mental health issues use and value social media as a support mechanism.
Methodology: A systematic search of Facebook and Twitter identified groups and pages relating to mental health issues. 203 users over the age of 18 were recruited via Facebook and Twitter. Any user who considered themselves to experience mental health problems could opt to participate and no exclusion criteria were applied. A mixed-methods online survey retrieved demographic and qualitative data by asking users to describe their personal experiences when using social media for mental health support.
Findings: Users perceive Facebook and Twitter as useful online resources to gain informational and emotional support and to share experiences. The benefits were; ease of access, anonymity and personal control over engagement levels. Users had subjective experiences of engagement, however, overall these were deemed positive. Using Facebook and Twitter for mental health provided users with a sense of connectedness and reduced feelings of isolation.
Originality: The qualitative methodology allowed participants to share their experiences and views, with positive implications for services. Social media was discussed as a prospective tool for raising awareness and reducing stigma. The study highlights scope for mental health service providers to tap into the social media consumer market and provide quality online support provision.

Substance misuse commonly coexists with psychological disorder (dual diagnosis) making the problems more complex and the symptoms augmented with far-reaching negative consequences. Despite the wide range of support that treats both problems, clients often relapse. This study was the first empirical attempt to investigate how positive psychology can facilitate recovery by not focusing merely on the disorders but exploring and enhancing the positive aspects of clients’ lives moving them toward optimal human functioning. A mixed methods approach was applied to test a 12-week positive group intervention in two groups of service users (n=10) with coexisting disorders at an outpatient addiction service to explore the feasibility and acceptability of a positive approach in their recovery. Participants seemed to have benefitted from the programme, all positive concepts were found relevant, and the intervention was found feasible and acceptable by service users. It was concluded that a strengths-based positive approach has the potential to serve as a useful adjunct to the treatment of coexisting problems. Implications for treatment are discussed in terms of how positive psychology may be helpful in long-term recovery by providing alternative strategies to cope with mental illness and a substitute for the love, nurturing, and belonging that substances appear to offer to individuals.

Objective: This research aimed to gain further understanding of how open Facebook groups are used for online peer to peer support and identify any similarities and/or differences between UK and US groups.
Method: A systematic search of mental health related open Facebook groups was conducted using relevant key words. The posts from 14 UK and 11 US groups were acquired over a three month period and content thematically analysed using Nvivo.
Results: Findings support previous research which evidences that online peer to peer support is beneficial for users seeking mental health information. Said support can increase feelings of connectedness, reduce feelings of isolation, and provide a platform for comparison of perspectives relating to personal experiences. Group membership may offer hope and increase feelings of empowerment in those using Facebook groups as a support mechanism. There was similar discourse seen throughout both UK and US posts in regards to gender inequality, lack of awareness and stigmatisation.
Conclusions: The study highlights the positive impact of shared personal experiences, and offers a greater understanding of the benefits of online peer to peer support for mental health and wellbeing. There is evidence that, whilst mental health is becoming a more widely discussed topic, in both the UK and US, it remains negatively perceived. Questions are posed for group administrators and health professionals relating to their utilisation and moderation of such online peer to peer support networks.

Background: In traditional dual diagnosis treatment, the primary aim is to attend the substance use problem and tackle the mental health issues with little attention to the positive aspects of clients’ lives. This deficit-based approach, however, may bring about an ignorance of clients’ potentials. The present study primarily aimed at investigating practitioners’ views of their clients; acquiring information on how to improve a previously designed positive psychology intervention for dual diagnosis, and finding ways of integrating positive psychology with current approaches.
Methods: A positive psychology intervention developed for dual diagnosis individuals was delivered to two groups of psychosocial intervention workers (n = 17) at a drug and alcohol service. The study employed a mixed methods approach with a quantitative and a qualitative element (focus group).
Results: Participants reported a number of personal and professional benefits gained from the intervention, but also discussed the structure of the intervention, practitioner qualities, and difficulties of incorporation into existing treatment as challenges that may arise in terms of feasibility with this client group.
Conclusions: Through a strengths-based positive approach, a more balanced treatment would enable the recognition and appreciation of both the vulnerabilities and the emerging potential of clients. This would lead to better outcomes with clients achieved by a healthier workforce.

Purpose - Positive psychology interventions have been suggested to be beneficial in the treatment of dual diagnosis. This exploratory study investigated the perspective of psychosocial intervention workers to explore the potential of a positive strengthsbased approach in dual diagnosis recovery.
Design/methodology/approach - A qualitative approach was employed with psychosocial intervention workers who attended and observed a positive intervention delivered to dual diagnosis clients. A focus group explored what these practitioners are already doing that resembles positive psychology and their opinion regarding the utility of such interventions in recovery.
Findings - Findings revealed that practitioners were already engaging in positive practice, however, randomly and infrequently with limited impact. Although this new approach was found valuable, potential challenges were identified and a possible discrepancy between staff views of clients and clients’ views of themselves in terms of their potential was detected.
Research limitations – The study involved a small and homogeneous sample. Further research is necessary to investigate staff views and ways of integrating positive psychology with traditional treatment.
Practical implications - Rather than merely attending to the psychological problems and dealing with symptoms, it is also necessary to directly target well-being to enable people to flourish with consideration of their readiness to change.
Originality/value - Addressing a gap in the literature, the present study explored positive themes in current practice and forms part of the evaluation of a newly developed strengths-based approach for individuals with coexisting problems.

Background: People from ethnic minorities are reported to have higher rates of physical illness (diabetes and ischemic heart disease) and mental disorders. Disparities relate not just to diagnosis, but also to care pathways and treatment outcomes. Despite this, they are underrepresented in clinical research. This reduces the generalisability of research findings across multi ethnic populations and hinders the development of accessible services.
Researchers often face difficulties in recruiting ethnic minority participants to clinical research due to low levels of cultural competence and limited resources. There are few published trials focusing on ethnic minorities in the UK and we need to understand what recruitment strategies have already been implemented and recommended when recruiting ethnic participants. This will help researchers in applying these lessons to future clinical trials.
Method: To identify strategies for recruiting ethnic minorities to clinical trials in the UK a systematic review of published randomised controlled trials (RCT) exclusively targeting ethnic minorities was conducted. Multiple databases were searched by combining the terms “ethnic minorities”, “randomised controlled trials” and “United Kingdom”. Data was extracted on recruitment strategies described by each RCT and then themes were created.
Results: Twenty-one included RCT’s identified various strategies to recruit ethnic communities to clinical trials. These have been described under three overarching themes; adaptation of screening and outcome measures, culturally specific recruitment training and recruitment processes.
Conclusion: The review highlighted that researchers employed limited strategies to enhance the recruitment level. The full extent of the use of strategies was not described well in the publications. There is a need for wider training and support for the trialist to enhance and build up recruitment skills to facilitate the recruitment of ethnic minorities to clinical trials.