The Development and Feasibility of a Novel Group Intervention to Support Helping Professionals in Metabolizing Suffering and Engaging Strengths: The CHRYSALIS Program.

This feasibility study reports on the development and initial evaluation of a novel online intervention for helping professionals (HPs; i.e. mental health professionals, chaplains, clergy) designed to (a) address occupational hazards, such as burnout and vicarious traumatization, and (b) promote well-being and flourishing at work. In contrast with competency and self-care focused models, the CHRYSALIS (Catalyzing Helping Professionals' Resilience, VitalitY, Spirituality, Authentic Living, and Inner Strength) intervention centers the self of the provider, explores cultural and spiritual contexts, and attends to systemic challenges. As part of a larger randomized controlled trial evaluating two program formats, the group format entails eight online sessions exploring strengths that can promote well-being, including processing, relational, vitalizing, orienting, and agentic capacities. To pilot test this framework and establish proof of concept, this study analyzed data from 41 HPs who had been randomly assigned to the group condition and completed surveys at four time points. Quantitative results indicated significant reductions in vicarious traumatization and burnout as well as increased well-being and meaning in work. Qualitative results suggest the intervention fostered relational support, cultivated new perspectives, and increased engagement with strengths, positively impacting participants' work and navigation of caregiving systems. Feedback about cohesion and group dynamic challenges in an online format informed further program development. This study provides initial support for the feasibility and efficacy of the group format of the CHRYSALIS intervention as a creative means to address HPs' risk for occupational hazards and promote holistic formation in a relational context.

Longitudinal processes among humility, social justice activism, transcendence, and well-being.

Introduction: Existing research shows positive associations between humility and well-being, and between civic engagement and well-being. Rarely have humility, civic engagement, and well-being been examined together. We build off of previous cross-sectional findings and a prior longitudinal study that used three waves of data and found significant positive bivariate correlations between humility and the presence of life purpose across time points. Methods: Extending these previous findings, we used six waves of data obtained from graduate students at 18 seminaries across North America (N = 574; Mage = 31.54; 46.7% female; 65.3% White) to explore the dynamic associations among humility and life purpose, along with horizontal transcendence (an indicator of the attitudinal dimension of civic engagement) and social justice activism (an indicator for the behavioral dimension). We explored reciprocal short-run processes and dynamic long-run effects using a general cross-lagged panel model. Results and discussion: We found robust evidence for a reciprocal influence between the presence of life purpose and horizontal transcendence, and long-run effects for initial levels of life purpose to influence later levels of horizontal transcendence. We also found long-run effects for the influence of initial levels of life purpose on later levels of humility, and initial levels of social justice activism on later levels of horizontal transcendence. Implications center on the use of the findings for planning future one-time life purpose and social justice interventions to affect changes in humility and horizontal transcendence.

A practice-based study of relational virtues and alliance correspondence in psychodynamic psychotherapy.

OBJECTIVE: Treatment outcome monitoring typically emphasizes pathology. In contrast, we responded to the need to establish psychodynamic psychotherapy as evidence-based by modeling changes in gratitude and forgiveness. METHOD: We utilized a practice-based research design involving non-manualized outpatient treatment. We employed a longitudinal mixture modeling approach to evaluate treatment effectiveness. We did so by testing the theorized role for relational virtues (i.e., gratitude, forgiveness) as signs of progress in psychodynamic treatment, with relational virtues referring to the application of character strengths to specific situations. We modeled clients' self-reported level on the virtues as a joint process over five time points, and examined the influence of early treatment alliance correspondence on patterns of change using a sample of outpatient clients (N = 185; Mage = 40.12; 60% female; 74.1% White). RESULTS: A 3-class solution best fit the data, with one class exhibiting growth in gratitude and forgiveness, improved symptoms, and a greater likelihood of symptom improvement relative to well-being gains. Alliance correspondence predicted the classes of change patterns, with greater similarity between clinicians' and clients' perceptions about the alliance predicting greater likelihood of belonging to the subgroup showing highest levels of virtues and well-being, lowest symptoms, and improved well-being. CONCLUSION: Clinical implications involve monitoring gratitude and forgiveness as signs of progress and navigating the dialectic between implicit alliance processes and explicit virtue interventions. The former involves nurturing a strong alliance and repairing ruptures, whereas the latter involves direct in-session conversation and/or the practice of virtue interventions in and/or outside of session.

When you are the "other": A scoping review of the experiences of clinicians of color working with White clients.

With an ever-diversifying population and society, intercultural dynamics has been a topic of interest for many years. This is especially true within the mental health profession, as the effects of clinician bias and behaviors on client outcomes have been studied and documented many times over. However, often times these studies focus on the White clinician and client of color dynamic, with focus on the White clinician's way of being or competency and the resulting perceptions of the client of color. The opposite dynamic, that of a clinician of color with a White client, has often been overlooked and ignored. Yet, with more clinicians of color (COCs) entering the field, and with demand of mental health services increasing, this unique dynamic needs to be understood. The experiences of COCs when they are the "other" within the room is unique and not well-documented. A scoping review of the literature is conducted to examine what research has been conducted on COCs working with White clients. A total of four articles were included in the final review, and the types of research being conducted, risks of micro- and macroaggressions, the different strategies utilized, and the unique needs of COCs are analyzed and summarized. This study adds to this budding conversation by examining the extant literature on COC's experiences. Results of the limited literature and hopeful future directions are discussed, including a discussion on cultural humility as a critical factor in individual and systemic change. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

The Cultural Humility Scale for Students: Development and initial validation among adolescents.

Designed for middle and high school students to rate the cultural humility levels among their teachers, this two-study article reports on the development and initial validation of the Cultural Humility Scale for Students (CHS-S), which was adapted from the original Cultural Humility Scale used in psychotherapy. Having cultural humility may facilitate positive teacher-student relationships by preventing or responding to cultural differences when they occur. Study 1 validated the scale's use with a sample of middle school students (N = 1522). Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses supported a two-factor structure (positive factor and negative factor) with 11 total items. Scalar measurement invariance was supported for gender comparisons. Partial scalar models were supported for race/ethnicity and grade comparisons. Compared with boys, girls reported that their teachers displayed significantly higher levels of positive cultural humility (estimate = 0.19, Cohen's d = 0.16, p = .005). Study 2 extended this work to examine high school students (N = 1612) and provided evidence that teacher cultural humility was predictive of teacher-student relationship quality (TSRQ). Results indicated that Black students who rated their teachers as having high cultural humility also reported having significantly more trust in their teachers compared to their White peers (p < .001). In terms of gender, boys who rated their teachers as having lower cultural humility had significantly less trust in their teachers and felt more alienated from their teachers compared to girls (p < .001). Results provide initial evidence that the CHS-S may be a reliable and valid instrument for measuring middle and high school students' perceptions regarding their teachers' cultural humility. Additionally, results suggest that perceived teacher cultural humility is significantly associated with TSRQ (p-values ranged from 0.05 to 0.001 in the areas of Trust, Communication, and Alienation) and could be used to complement evaluations of school climate. Limitations and future directions for research and practice are discussed.

Supporting chaplains on the frontlines of the COVID-19 pandemic: A mixed-method practice-based pilot intervention study.

During the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, chaplains have played a pivotal role in patient, family member, and staff care. However, little empirical attention has been given to (a) the potential toll of frontline spiritual care on chaplains' mental health and occupational functioning as well as (b) the development of interventions that can help ameliorate these risks and promote resilience. Using a mixed-method practice-based design, we conducted a pilot study (n = 77) to evaluate a novel spiritually integrated support group intervention for chaplains across multiple industries, which consisted of five Zoom-based sessions cofacilitated by psychotherapists. Participants completed pre- and postintervention measures of traumatic stress, burnout, spiritual/moral struggles, flourishing, resilience, and overall experience in the group. Qualitative findings elucidated the salience of peer support, therapeutic group processes, and key intervention components that warrant further study. Quantitative results indicated significant (a) decreases in burnout and spiritual/moral struggles from pre- to postintervention as well as (b) increases in sense of resilience and flourishing. Findings of this pilot study offer preliminary evidence for the use of a spiritually integrated group model to decrease isolation, address moral and spiritual distress, and promote resilience among chaplains. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).

Cultural humility: Pilot study testing the social bonds hypothesis in interethnic couples.

The purpose of this study was to explore factors associated with relationship quality in interethnic couples. Specifically, we tested the social bond hypotheses of humility in a sample of 155 individual participants currently in an interethnic relationship. Using a cross-sectional design, participants completed an online survey that included measures of demographics, conflict in their relationship, cultural humility, and relationship quality. We predicted that perceptions of one's partner's cultural humility would mediate the relationship between culturally based ineffective arguing and relationship satisfaction and commitment. Results indicated that cultural humility was positively related to both relationship satisfaction and commitment and negatively related to ineffective arguing. Mediation analyses revealed that approximately 26% of the variance in relationship satisfaction and about 8% of the variance in commitment was explained by the effect of ineffective arguing through cultural humility. Results of this study add to the growing body of evidence for the social bond hypothesis of humility and advance the field of research on interethnic couples by providing quantitative support for themes noted in previous qualitative studies on interethnic couples. (PsycINFO Database Record

The multicultural orientation framework: A narrative review.

After several decades of slow progress, researchers are beginning to make advances in linking constructs based on the multicultural competencies tradition-especially those focused on qualities of the therapist-to therapy outcomes. The multicultural orientation framework was developed in response to several trends within the multicultural competencies tradition, with a particular emphasis on integrating the multicultural competencies tradition into research on psychotherapy process. We provide a narrative review of studies that include one of the three constructs (i.e., cultural humility, cultural opportunities, and cultural comfort) articulated by the multicultural orientation framework. Results indicate initial evidence linking multicultural orientation constructs to therapy outcomes (e.g., perceived improvement, racial/ethnic disparities in termination, and therapy alliance). Results also supported the social bond and social oil hypotheses from theorizing on humility. Implications for future research and therapy practice are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record

The advising alliance for international and domestic graduate students: Measurement invariance and implications for academic stress.

We expanded the focus of a prior study of international graduate student advising relationships (Rice et al., 2009) to examine advising experiences of both international and domestic students. International (n = 434) and domestic (n = 387) students completed the Advisory Working Alliance Inventory (AWAI-S; Schlosser & Gelso, 2001) and measures of advising experiences, perceived academic stress, and desire to change advisor. Measurement invariance analyses suggested that a 23-item AWAI-S showed support for scalar invariance. A bifactor structure showed superior fit to the 3-factor model or a second-order factor model for the AWAI-S. International and domestic graduate students did not differ in ratings of general alliance, academic stress, or desire to change advisors. General alliance was strongly related to less academic stress and less desire to change advisors. International students who felt disrespected by their advisors were more likely to be academically stressed than domestic students. Structured mentoring experiences were associated with lower stress and less desire to change, and this effect was similar in both international and domestic students. Overall, results suggested that the current level of measurement, and possibly theory development, regarding the advisory alliance is good at identifying generic satisfaction but weaker at differentiating components of the alliance.

Thankful for the little things: A meta-analysis of gratitude interventions.

A recent qualitative review by Wood, Froh, and Geraghty (2010) cast doubt on the efficacy of gratitude interventions, suggesting the need to carefully attend to the quality of comparison groups. Accordingly, in a series of meta-analyses, we evaluate the efficacy of gratitude interventions (ks = 4-18; Ns = 395-1,755) relative to a measurement-only control or an alternative-activity condition across 3 outcomes (i.e., gratitude, anxiety, psychological well-being). Gratitude interventions outperformed a measurement-only control on measures of psychological well-being (d = .31, 95% confidence interval [CI = .04, .58]; k = 5) but not gratitude (d = .20; 95% CI [-.04, .44]; k = 4). Gratitude interventions outperformed an alternative-activity condition on measures of gratitude (d = .46, 95% CI [.27, .64]; k = 15) and psychological well-being (d = .17, 95% CI [.09, .24]; k = 20) but not anxiety (d = .11, 95% CI [-.08, .31]; k = 5). More-detailed subdivision was possible on studies with outcomes assessing psychological well-being. Among these, gratitude interventions outperformed an activity-matched comparison (d = .14; 95% CI [.01, .27]; k = 18). Gratitude interventions performed as well as, but not better than, a psychologically active comparison (d = -.03, 95% CI [-.13, .07]; k = 9). On the basis of these findings, we summarize the current state of the literature and make suggestions for future applied research on gratitude. (PsycINFO Database Record

The moral foundations hypothesis does not replicate well in Black samples.

The current study examined the generalizability of the moral foundations hypothesis (Graham, Haidt, & Nosek, 2009), which predicts that conservatism will be positively related to the binding foundations (i.e., virtues of ingroup/loyalty, authority/respect, and purity/sanctity). Religiosity has been consistently linked with the binding foundations in predominately White samples, but Black people in the United States are both more religious and more liberal than White people. In a sample of college students (N = 693; 58.3% Black, 41.7% White), examination of measurement invariance suggested metric, but not scalar invariance. The relationship between conservatism and the binding foundations-specifically, respect/authority and purity/sanctity-was weaker in Black people than in White people. These results were replicated in a second sample (N = 490; 63.5% Black, 36.5% White) using a 4-item measure of conservatism rather than a single item. Once again examination of measurement invariance suggested metric but not scalar invariance, and conservatism was more weakly related to the binding foundations in Black people than it was in White people. Implications for future theory and research are discussed.

Development of the Sources of Spirituality Scale.

Most measures of spirituality privilege religious spirituality, but people may experience spirituality in a variety of ways, including a sense of closeness, oneness, or connection with a theistic being, the transcendent (i.e., something outside space and time), oneself, humanity, or nature. The overall purpose of the present 4 studies was to develop the Sources of Spirituality (SOS) Scale to measure these different elements of spirituality. In Study 1, we created items, had them reviewed by experts, and used data from a sample of undergraduates (N = 218) to evaluate factor structure and inform initial measurement revisions. The factor structure replicated well in another sample of undergraduates (N = 200; Study 2), and in a sample of community adults (N = 140; Study 3). In a sample of undergraduates (N = 200; Study 4), we then evaluated evidence of construct validity by examining associations between SOS Scale scores and religious commitment, positive attitudes toward the Sacred, and dispositional connection with nature. Moreover, based on latent profile analyses results, we found 5 distinct patterns of spirituality based on SOS subscales. We consider implications for therapy and relevance of the findings for models of spirituality and future research.