This study aimed to take an alternative view on the concept of self-esteem by applying Laozi's philosophy of nature and implications for the counseling approach. The existing concept of self-esteem can be classified as ego-based, western-view self-esteem. This ego-based self-esteem tends to be engrossed in the self and is prone to change depending on the external conditions. On the other hand, self-esteem based on the philosophy of nature mean reducing obsession and greed, satisfying ourselves as part of nature, and maintaining peace of mind. This type of self-esteem is far from artificial values, and the higher the self-esteem, the more natural the 'Tao' activated, which leads to a more mature and happy life. Self-esteem based on the philosophy of nature can be promoted through mindfulness, learning in nature, imagination of a baby's body and mind, and improvement in inner vitality and spontaneity. In this study, we also explored the ways to apply the attitude of naturalism to counseling. Counselors with this type of attitude can help their clients to take good care of his or her body and stay true to their role. It can also improve empathy and improve the effectiveness of counseling. Lastly, theoretical and practical implications of this study were discussed.
The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of suicide prevention group programs for Korean adults by using a meta-analysis. For this purpose, adults over the age of 19 years were selected as major research subjects and the effect sizes according to the approach and type of programs were analyzed by the age subgroups. Adults were classified into their representative groups according to the life cycle: Middle aged, soldiers, college students, and the elderly group. The overall effect of the programs and their effects on dependent variables were calculated for suicide ideation and depression as the main indicators of suicide prevention programs. The moderating effects were analyzed with moderator variables, including sex, degree of suicide risk, clinical group diagnosed with psychiatric disorders, program approach, program type, number of sessions, period of the operation, minutes per session, times per week, and number of group members. A total of 26 studies published in Korea from 2000 to 2020 were selected, and 60 effect sizes were calculated using the random-effects model. The results were as follows: First, the overall effect size was 0.858, indicating a large effect size, and the effect size of suicide ideation was medium (g=0.741), and the effect size of depression was large (g=0.987). Secondly, based on the effect sizes according to the other moderator variables, the programs developed for the same sex group, high risk suicidal group, and the clinical group diagnosed with psychiatric disorders were the most effective. With respect to the parameters of the group operation, 11∼20 sessions and a duration of 5∼8 weeks were the most effective. Thirdly, according to the participant type, the effect size was in the following order: middle aged, soldiers, college students, and the elderly group. The effect sizes for the middle aged and soldiers were large, whereas the effect sizes for college students and the elderly were medium; the difference between these groups was statistically significant. In the analysis by subgroups, the effect sizes of a network approach, interpersonal psychotherapy, and integrative therapy were large in the elderly group. Also, cognitive behavioral therapy was most effective in the middle aged, soldiers, and college student groups. The effect size of art therapy was also large in the soldiers group. Based on these findings, implications and suggestions for future research were discussed.
In this article, we aimed to determine the effect size of social exclusion by sampling 32 experimental studies conducted in Korea until July 2020. The effect size was analyzed on dependent variables categorized with affect (positive and negative affect), fundamental needs (relational and efficient needs), and social behavior (prosocial and antisocial behavior). The moderating effect was evaluated with moderators including the type of social exclusion (rejection and ignorance/ostracism) and paradigm of social exclusion (real experience, cyberball, and remembering the past and anticipating the future). As a result, social exclusion moderately diminished the positive affect (d=.488) and increased the negative affect (d=.488). Both relational (d=–.897) and efficient (d=–1.887) needs were highly intimidated by social exclusion, which raised the antisocial behavior (d=.876), but the effect of social exclusion on prosocial behavior was not significant. The type and paradigm of social exclusion significantly moderated the effect of social exclusion on affect and fundamental needs. The implications of these results and future directions for research were discussed.
The aim of the present study was to investigate the effect of mindful self-compassion on a negative body image of female university students. For this purpose, 24 female university students, who suffered from a negative body image, were recruited and randomly assigned to either the intervention group(n=13) or the control group(n=11). Then, students in each group were asked to assess body surveillance, body shame, and sociocultural attitude towards appearance, including internalization and awareness, self-esteem at pre-test and post-test. This study found that the intervention group reported significantly larger decreases in body surveillance, body shame and sociocultural attitude toward appearance, including internalization and awareness, as well as a greater increase in self-esteem compared to the control group. These results suggested that mindful self-compassion could be useful for improving a negative body image. Finally, limitation of the present study and suggestions for further studies were discussed.
The purpose of our study is to reduce the distress and improve the quality of life of breast cancer patients and caregivers. A short-term psychological counseling program was developed to evaluate the effectiveness and practicability through a pilot study. In response, a three-session psychological counseling program(‘Better Together’) was developed and a pilot study was conducted in breast cancer patients and caregivers under treatment. Pre, post, and 1month follow-up assessments were measured to evaluate the changes in the level of depression, distress, quality of life, marital intimacy of the patients and care givers, the care burden of the caregiver, and the patient social support. The satisfaction assessment and subjective reports of the program validated the usefulness of the program. During the recruitment period, the participation rate of the program was 8.7% and four couples who completed the program were analyzed. As a result, depression levels were significantly decreased and quality of life was increased in patients with a large level of effect size(d=-1.23–3.45). Both the patient and caregiver reported an increase in marital intimacy. While the caregivers’ care for patients was increased, depression and distress did not show any increase. Based on these results, we discussed the usability of the ‘Better Together’ program in clinical settings and its implications for further research.
The purpose of this study is to empirically identify the influence of character strengths on depression and satisfaction with life among undergraduates during the COVID-19 pandemic and to examine the mediating effect of posttraumatic growth on the relationship between character strengths and depression and satisfaction with life. Data of 584 undergraduates who reported perceived stress related to the COVID-19 pandemic were analyzed. In this study, gratitude, kindness, prudence, integrity, and citizenship were ranked as the top 5 strengths. Compared to the top 5 strengths (love, kindness, optimism, gratitude, and integrity) before the COVID-19 pandemic, the ranking of prudence and citizenship had risen. The strength that most significantly explained depression was optimism, and the relationship between optimism and depression was partially mediated by posttraumatic growth. The strength that most significantly explained satisfaction with life was vitality, and the relationship between vitality and satisfaction with life was partially mediated by posttraumatic growth. These findings suggested that optimism and vitality had a direct effect on depression and satisfaction with life, but also an indirect effect on them through posttraumatic growth. Finally, the study limitations and suggestions for further research were discussed.
The purpose of this study was to examine the mechanisms by which anxiety malleability beliefs may predict social anxiety with a focus on the role of emotion regulation strategies. Specifically, we hypothesized that the relationship between anxiety malleability beliefs and social anxiety would be mediated by both the frequency and self-efficacy of cognitive appraisal or emotion suppression. Participants were 276 undergraduate students(124 males and 152 females) who completed a series of self-report questionnaires assessing anxiety malleability beliefs, the frequency and self-efficacy of cognitive appraisal and emotion suppression, social anxiety, emotion malleability beliefs, and depression. The results indicated that the relationship between anxiety malleability beliefs and social anxiety was mediated by different aspects of emotion regulation strategies. Interestingly, the self-efficacy of cognitive appraisal and the frequency of emotion suppression individually significantly mediated the effect of anxiety malleability beliefs on social anxiety. Specifically, low levels of anxiety malleability beliefs predicted lower levels of self-efficacy of cognitive appraisal and more frequent use of emotion suppression, which in turn led to higher levels of social anxiety. Based on these results, the theoretical and clinical implications as well as the limitations of the study were discussed.
The purpose of this study is to examine the effects of mindfulness on problematic drinking and the mediating roles of emotion regulation, impulsivity, and alcohol abstinence efficacy. Structural equation modeling was conducted by involving 208 undergraduate students from an online survey. The results suggests that mindfulness contributed to problematic drinking not directly but indirectly via its impacts on emotion regulation, impulsivity, and alcohol abstinence efficacy. This suggests that even if mindfulness might not improve problematic drinking directly, it might indirectly improve problematic drinking via mediating variables. At the same time, emotion regulation, the primary mediating variable, was also shown to have a negative path in the direct effect on problematic drinking. This suggests that it might be necessary to consider other mediating variables in the relationship between emotion regulation and problematic drinking. At the end, the limitations and implications of this study were discussed.
Passive sensing, which collects behavioral, physiological, social, and environmental indices with smart devices in an objective and automatic manner, is recently being explored as a tool for evaluating mental disorders. Among them, studies on depressive disorder are the most commonly performed. Although the expression patterns of depressive disorder may differ according to the symptoms and levels, studies that take this point into account while examining the relationship with sensor data are very limited. The purpose of this study was to identify sensor data that is highly related to depression symptoms, and to determine whether there is a difference in sensor data according to the level of depression. A total of 64 college students and graduate students were classified into three groups (normal, mildly depressed, and severely depressed) according to the level of depression. For a total of 30 days, self-reported data on 9 symptoms of depressive disorder were repeatedly collected 4 times a day. At the same time, a total of 8 sensor data were collected throughout the day using a smartphone and a smartwatch, and a total of 14 features were extracted as 4 values per day. According to the results of this study, different features were found to have a significant relationship with each symptom. Some symptoms were found to be related with all features, some symptoms were related with only partial features, and some symptoms were not related with any features. In addition, it was found that there were significant differences in all features according to the level of depression, and detailed patterns were different for each feature. Implications and limitations of the current study and directions for future research were further discussed.