Shinrin-yoku, immersing oneself in nature using one's senses, has been receiving increased attention internationally. While most of the existing studies have focused on physical health, this systematic review and meta-analysis examined the mental health impacts of shinrin-yoku, using the PRISMA guidelines (PROSPERO registry: BLINDED). Of 497 articles retrieved on databases including PubMed/MEDLINE, PsycINFO, Science Direct and Google Scholar, twenty met the inclusion criteria. All studies were conducted in Asia and Europe, and used a variety of different bathing approaches (e.g. breathing, walking, yoga). While noting a need for more rigorous research and extensive follow-up assessments, the findings indicate that shinrin-yoku can be effective in reducing mental health symptoms in the short term, particularly anxiety. More careful examination of shinrin-yoku practices is needed; longer followup with participants from a range of countries along with greater examination of potential mechanisms is needed for shinrin-yoku to be accepted into mainstream interventions. Keywords Shinrin-yoku. Forest bathing. Nature therapy. Mental health. Meta-analysis Shinrin-yoku (forest bathing) is a healing practice in Japan, where people immerse themselves in nature, while mindfully paying attention to their senses. Often involving a walk in a forest, it aims to integrate and harmonise humans with a forest (Miyazaki 2018). Contents of shinrinyoku programmes include breathing yoga, meditation, walking and other recreational activities (e.g. cooking) that are often aimed at producing relaxation effects (Forest Therapy Society 2005). The word 'shinrin-yoku ("森林浴")' was coined in 1982, for 'yoku (bathing)' implies
Police work is a high-risk profession that can cause mental health conditions. With increasing sickness levels and falling police numbers, it is essential prompt mental health treatment be implemented. The study aims to explore institutional negativity and stigma in the police force towards mental ill health. Semi-structured interviews attended by five police officers with thematic analysis captured (i) police culture, (ii) the stigma of mental illness, (iii) disclosure of mental illness and (iv) breaking down barriers. Findings indicate police culture and attitudes to mental health may contribute to the causes of psychological illness, rather than the nature of the job itself. Increased education and awareness surrounding mental health have been shown to be fundamental in how an officer reacts to stress, but change is needed at a managerial level. Future research needs to explore the effects of mental health stigma on ethnicity and gender in the police force.
Digitalization of knowledge work is essential for today’s organizations, responding to diversified employee needs. Many organizations are already implementing some form of flexibility to help workers perform work and non-work duties, while maintaining high productivity. While these changes in workplaces, “New Ways of Working (NWW)”, have been discussed in the literature, a systematic appraisal of evidence of NWW has not been conducted. Relating to poor work-related mental health worldwide, this systematic review analyzed the psychological impacts of NWW, and the quality and quantity of NWW research. Following the preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analysis (PRISMA) guidelines, NWW studies targeting psychological outcomes were evaluated. Initial literature search on ProQuest, PsycINFO, Science Direct, and Google Scholar retrieved 308 titles, from which seven articles fulfilled all inclusion criteria. Our appraisal revealed that NWW research evaluated diverse psychological outcomes. While NWW can help workers’ engagement, work-related flow, and connectivity among staff, NWW can also increase blurred work-home boundary, fatigue, and mental demands. The quality of NWW research was overall medium, needing more rigorous studies. Our findings can inform decision-makers in the workplace to effectively implement NWW, and researchers to improve the quality and the usefulness of future NWW studies.
Although many social work students suffer from mental health symptoms, the majority of them do not seek help, because of shame. Accordingly, the purposes of this study were to evaluate social work students' attitudes for mental health problems, and explore relationships among shame, mental health symptoms, self-criticism, self-compassion, and role identity. Firstly, 84 UK female undergraduate social work students completed a measure of attitudes toward mental health problems, and were compared with 94 UK female undergraduate students in other subjects. UK female undergraduate social work students had a higher level of negative perception in their community's attitudes toward mental health problems. Secondly, 87 UK social work students, completed the attitudes, mental health, self-criticism, self-compassion, and role identity measures. Self-criticism, self-compassion, and role identity were significantly related to mental health symptoms, and identified as significant, independent predictors of mental health symptoms. This study confirmed that social work students consider that their community perceives mental health problems negatively, and that their self-criticism, selfcompassion, and role identity relate to their poor mental health. The findings may help social work students, educators, and researchers deepen the understanding of their mental health symptoms and identify better solutions.
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