To save content items to your account,
please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies.
If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account.
Find out more about saving content to .
To save content items to your Kindle, first ensure no-reply@cambridge.org
is added to your Approved Personal Document E-mail List under your Personal Document Settings
on the Manage Your Content and Devices page of your Amazon account. Then enter the ‘name’ part
of your Kindle email address below.
Find out more about saving to your Kindle.
Note you can select to save to either the @free.kindle.com or @kindle.com variations.
‘@free.kindle.com’ emails are free but can only be saved to your device when it is connected to wi-fi.
‘@kindle.com’ emails can be delivered even when you are not connected to wi-fi, but note that service fees apply.
Chapter 5 assesses harms that people with mental illness experience that are related to how their self is constituted. These include harms of de-individuation and mis-identification, but also, as this chapter focuses on, harms of social exclusion and dehumanization that result from status loss and moral distancing. Dehumanization occurs through both being reduced to a stereotyped trait and being viewed as lesser compared to others. Having a sense of belonging and being accepted as an equal member of a moral/epistemic/social community are important parts of being viewed as and viewing oneself as a full human being; these are also critical for developing and exercising autonomous agency as well as for well-being and flourishing. People with mental illness are often excluded from these communities as a result of public stigma, diminishing their autonomy and well-being. This chapter shows how dehumanization, social exclusion, and belonging uncertainty threaten belongingness and autonomy.
This chapter documents how cultural variation in emotion is not arbitrary, but follows a “cultural logic.” It examines how cultural models of independence and interdependence – along with their associated interpersonal goals and focus – co-occur with the emotions people both value (their ideal affect) and actually experience. For example, people in independent cultures (e.g., the United States) tend to value high arousal positive states like excitement more, and report socially disengaging emotions like anger more than people in interdependent cultures (e.g., East Asia), who tend to place greater value on low arousal positive states like calm and more frequently report socially engaging emotions like shame. These differences emerge across every level of the cultural cycle: in individual behaviors, social interactions, institutional practices, and broader cultural ideas. The chapter highlights how these cultural logics shape various aspects of life, including social judgments, resource sharing, and well-being. and concludes by outlining a roadmap for future research.
In this chapter, we review emerging evidence on cultural differences in emotion regulation by featuring three key aspects. First, cultural contexts influence what people want to feel (i.e., emotion goals). Second, cultural contexts shape the means with which people try to change their emotions (i.e., emotion regulation strategies). Third, cultural contexts guide the extent to which people attend to emotions. Furthermore, cultural contexts influence the association between emotion regulation and well-being. Engaging in emotion regulation valued within one’s cultural contexts tends to be associated with better well-being and health, whereas engaging in devalued emotion regulation tends to be associated with poorer well-being and health. These findings on cultural differences in emotion regulation and their consequences for well-being and health provide insight into how cultural meaning systems shape individuals’ emotional experiences.
This chapter builds on the premise that emotions are relational acts: they reveal partners’ intentions and are geared toward relationship goals. Given that these goals differ across cultures, the emotions that arise and unfold during couples’ interactions – particularly during conflict – also differ. For example, in cultures that emphasize autonomy in relationships, annoyance is commonly experienced, whereas in cultures that prioritize harmony, empathy and validation are prevalent. This chapter explores how cultural ideals for “good” relationships shape not only which emotions are felt and expressed, but also how partners respond to each other’s and regulate their own emotions in ways that support those ideals. Finally, the chapter highlights evidence suggesting that couples are most satisfied with their relationships when their emotions align with culturally valued relationship goals. It concludes by discussing gaps in the literature and offering recommendations for future research.
When people move to another culture, their emotions may not “fit” because these were socialized to align with values and goals central to their culture of origin. However, with increasing cultural engagement, immigrant minorities’ emotions may change and, eventually, come to fit the normative emotions in the new/other culture. This chapter reviews the emerging research on emotional acculturation and argues that emotional fit with culture may be an important (understudied) condition for the inclusion of immigrant minorities. Specifically, it presents evidence showing that (1) minorities’ emotions change over time given frequent intercultural contact and friendships; (2) these changes occur independently of acculturation attitudes; (3) emotional fit with the majority culture does not jeopardize fit with the heritage culture; and that (4) emotional acculturation may benefit minorities’ well-being and inclusion in the majority culture. In closing, the chapter outlines directions for future research to advance understanding of emotional acculturation.
We investigated the dual relationship between information and communication technology (ICT) use at work and employee well-being through the framework of the job demands-resources theory. Data were collected from the seventh European Working Conditions Survey (Eurofound), which involved 37 countries and a representative sample of 7,900 workers. The findings revealed that ICT plays a dual role. On one hand, ICT enhances job autonomy, which positively influences work engagement and, subsequently, improves well-being. On the other hand, ICT use increases workload, leading to greater job exhaustion and reduced well-being. Additionally, autonomy was found to be negatively related to exhaustion, offering a secondary positive pathway to well-being. The study also examined the moderator role of employee age. Results showed that age amplifies the negative relationships between ICT use, workload, and well-being. Overall, the study highlights the complex interplay between ICT use at work and employee well-being.
This chapter explores ecopsychology’s potential to examine the psychological roots of environmental destruction and promote sustainable alternatives. Tracing connections between ecopsychology, positive psychology and economics, it critiques mainstream psychology’s individualistic focus and its neglect of sociopolitical and ecological contexts. Through concepts like the ‘empty self’ and ‘revolt of nature’, the chapter foregrounds systemic dysfunction in capitalist societies, arguing that well-being and reconnection with nature must replace growth imperatives. Key alternatives include degrowth strategies, well-being-oriented policy frameworks and transcultural initiatives such as Joanna Macy’s ‘Work That Reconnects’ and Aboriginal-led equine-assisted learning. The chapter concludes that genuine environmental and social transformation requires interdisciplinary ecological paradigms that disrupt resourcification, technosalvationism and nationalist tribalism – while fostering empathetic relationships between humans and non-human life.
This Element investigates whether artificial intelligence (AI) systems could ever be welfare subjects. Some people argue that AIs could plausibly have or soon have features such as consciousness, agency and the capacity for social relationships, which could provide a basis for AI welfare. These arguments have massive significance for the societal conversation on AI, raising profound ethical and political questions about what if anything we owe to these new technologies. The authors here provide the philosophical groundwork for a scientific, philosophical and ultimately democratic inquiry into the potential for AI welfare, addressing key questions that cut across different arguments: what welfare is, how to interpret behavioural evidence of AI welfare, what kinds of entities might qualify as candidate AI welfare subjects, the potential grounds for welfare in AI and the practical ethical challenges that arise from our uncertainty. This title is also available as open access on Cambridge Core.
More than 17 million people volunteer and work in the Red Cross Red Crescent (RCRC) Movement.1 With more than 130 active armed conflicts in at least fifty countries, it can be estimated that at least 4 million RCRC volunteers and staff live and work in armed conflict settings;2 most volunteers and staff work in their own countries, delivering essential humanitarian assistance to their communities. In 2025, twenty-seven RCRC volunteers and staff lost their lives in the line of duty, with additional fatalities occurring off-duty.3 Extreme working conditions and constant exposure to suffering often cause long-term psychological consequences, and the mental health and psychosocial impacts occur in a wider context that can lead staff and volunteers to question their fundamental moral values.
This qualitative study seeks to explore the mental health and psychosocial4 experiences of national volunteers and staff by amplifying their voices and acknowledging the hardships that they go through. Through a lens of moral injury and trauma-informed approaches, the findings of the study shed light on the lived experiences of national staff and volunteers working and living in armed conflict contexts. Key themes that emerged from the study include a strong commitment to the RCRC Movement, exposure to harm, mental health impacts, and the need for support systems for staff and volunteers. These insights underscore the urgency of embedding trauma-informed approaches in Movement-wide policies and support systems to strengthen protection and well-being for staff and volunteers.
This Element outlines the foundational concepts and key applications of humanistic management and leadership. It focuses on the key concepts of protecting dignity and promoting well-being. It provides a humanistically grounded, scientifically backed paradigm for better organizing at the level of individual, relation, team, organization, society and nature. It provides real world examples of organizations and companies that practice humanistic management and leadership and create outstanding value for all stakeholders.
Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is increasingly recognised as a social identity as well as a medical diagnosis. Social identity theory suggests that group identification can benefit self-esteem, well-being and mental health, but little is known about ADHD social identification or preferred terminology in English.
Aims
We aimed to measure ADHD social identification and preferred terminology in a sample of adults with ADHD in the UK and to understand whether ADHD social identification is related to improved self-esteem, well-being and mental health.
Method
Three hundred and nineteen adults with ADHD in the UK participated. They were aged between 18 and 73 years and 59% were female. Participants completed self-report measures of ADHD social identification, self-esteem, well-being, anxiety, depression, terminology preferences, medication use and sources of learning about ADHD. Descriptive statistics were used to identify the percentage of participants who preferred ADHD-first versus person-first terminology. Pre-registered serial mediation models tested hypothesised pathways from ADHD identification to mental health via self-esteem and well-being. Further analyses examined associations between terminology preferences, medication use and sources of learning about ADHD.
Results
ADHD identification was not significantly correlated with self-esteem, anxiety or depression. Most participants (77%) preferred person-first terminology (‘person with ADHD’). Higher ADHD identification was associated with identity-first language preference and medication use. Social media was the only source of learning about ADHD related to higher ADHD identification. In mediation models, ADHD identification was not associated with self-esteem or well-being; however, a subcomponent of ADHD social identification – satisfaction – was indirectly related to better mental health via self-esteem and well-being.
Conclusions
These cross-sectional findings indicated that ADHD identification did not show the hypothesised protective associations with mental health. Preferences for person-first terminology suggest ADHD is not always central to identity. Longitudinal and qualitative studies are needed to clarify causal relationships and clinical implications.
Mental health promotion in schools has gained greater salience in high-income countries, especially since the COVID-19 pandemic. However, less is known about its conceptualisation and implementation in less developed countries such as Indonesia. This research aimed to describe what school communities in Surabaya, Indonesia, understand about their role and actions in promoting mental health. This exploratory study employed Focus Group Discussions with diverse members of junior high school communities, including students. Using the Health Policy Triangle as the theoretical framework, transcripts were thematically analysed using a deductive approach. Forty-six participants took part, from national to municipality levels. Three themes were found. First, participants considered that socialisation difficulties contributed to poor student mental health and engagement in learning. Second, while schools reported familiarity with a range of actions, from promotion to preventive and curative interventions, their primary focus was around ensuring access to services for students with mental health problems. Third, contextual barriers and enablers were identified impacting schools’ mental healthpromoting actions. The inter-related aspects of context, content, process, and actors were found to shape implementation. These findings highlight the multi-component expertise and resources of school communities, which, if better embraced, could enhance their capabilities to promote mental health in schools.
This paper develops and defends a non-utilitarian interpretation of John Harsanyi’s social aggregation theorem and sum of vNM utilities approach. On this interpretation, vNM utilities transform an independently available cardinal measure of fully comparable individual well-being. The resulting proposal for ranking well-being distributions – the Risk-Priority View – is not welfare-anonymous and can favour a smaller increase in well-being for one individual rather than a larger increase in well-being for another, equally well-off individual. I argue here that such counterintuitive implications can be defended, and that impartiality can still be secured through the imposition of an alternative, interprofile anonymity axiom.
This study provides evidence supporting the validity of the Psychologically Rich Life Questionnaire (PRLQ) in a large Spanish sample, comparing its 17-item and 12-item versions and various measures of well-being and distress. Both versions show high internal consistency and adequate fit, although some elements could be interpreted as favoring the 12-item version. Analyses revealed significant associations between PRLQ scores and sociodemographic factors, with higher scores observed among older individuals, those with higher levels of education, and those with higher incomes, although effect sizes were small. We found a consistent pattern of positive correlations with well-being variables (e.g., resilience and meaning in life) and negative correlations with distress measures (e.g., depression, anxiety, and loneliness). This study, for the first time in Spanish, presents information on a questionnaire that addresses a novel concept complementary to traditional views of hedonic and eudaimonic well-being. Limitations, including digital literacy disparities and potential cultural or age-related biases, are discussed. Future research should explore the cross-cultural equivalence of the PRLQ and its utility in longitudinal and predictive contexts.
South Asia has a unique geographical profile, with the mighty Himalayas in the north and a long coastline in the south along its eastern and western borders. In the past few decades, with human population growth, and increasing urbanisation and industrialisation, the climate has been a casualty, with an adverse impact on physical health and well-being and on mental health. There have been certain initiatives on the part of local governments in the form of action plans on climate change, but the effects of these initiatives are yet to be seen. Research from South Asia on the impact of climate change on mental health is still at preliminary level.
There is compelling evidence that humanitarian staff and volunteers face an increased risk of adverse mental health conditions due to their work, including anxiety, depression, post-traumatic stress disorder, and burn-out. This article first outlines the mental health consequences associated with working in the humanitarian sector, linking these outcomes to contextual, operational and organizational psychosocial risk factors. Building on both the evidence available and the theoretical models in mental health at the workplace, and going beyond solely offering psychosocial support interventions, we propose an evidence-based framework to guide protective actions at the individual, group, leader, organizational and overarching contextual levels (the IGLOO model), tailored to the specific challenges of humanitarian contexts. Based on our experience with the International Committee of the Red Cross, we present two examples of utilizing this framework within two interventions: (1) training managers to strengthen practices that promote and protect well-being, address psychosocial risk factors, identify individuals showing signs of distress and facilitate safe access to psychological support, and (2) applying a psychosocial response framework to support staff following critical incidents. Finally, we discuss the advantages and challenges of adopting an integrated psychosocial approach to staff care, drawing implications for policy and practice from our interventions and broader experience within the sector. We conclude that humanitarian organizations should adopt an integrated approach to duty of care, prioritizing not only treatment but also the prevention and mitigation of psychological harm among staff and volunteers operating in conflict zones, extending beyond immediate crisis support to ensure sustainable protection of mental health.
Edited by
Liz McDonald, East London NHS Foundation Trust,Roch Cantwell, Perinatal Mental Health Service and West of Scotland Mother & Baby Unit,Ian Jones, Cardiff University
The transition to parenthood brings much joy but also challenges and strains to all families. Where mothers are experiencing perinatal mental health disorders, this is an additional challenge which impacts the wider family system. Partners and other family members may have to take on additional responsibilities, manage worries about the mother’s mental health, and potentially deal with their own mental health difficulties. Indeed, partners – including fathers, co-mothers and step-parents – may be particularly vulnerable to poor mental health at this time.
The partners’ mental health is a crucial aspect of family functioning in the perinatal period that can impact on the whole family. Paternal depression and anxiety disorders have implications for family relationships, including the couple relationship, the co-parenting relationship and the relationship with the baby – with potential adverse consequences for child and family outcomes.
Practitioners have a role in supporting prevention of paternal mental health disorders and working to reduce barriers to help-seeking and uptake of support where needed. These practices not only serve to improve the well-being of fathers and partners; well-supported family members who feel included and have their own mental health needs met will also have a significant positive impact on maternal recovery and well-being.
Edited by
Liz McDonald, East London NHS Foundation Trust,Roch Cantwell, Perinatal Mental Health Service and West of Scotland Mother & Baby Unit,Ian Jones, Cardiff University
Postpartum psychosis is a condition of great clinical and public health importance. Severe episodes of mental illness in the perinatal period can result in significant distress, may disrupt the developing relationship between mother and child, and have long-term implications for the well-being of the woman, her baby, family and wider society.
In this chapter we will discuss what we know about this condition and its relationship to bipolar disorder, how it might best be defined, what we still need to find out, and consider how it should be managed.
This systematic review examines the relationship between psychological contract breach (PCB)/fulfilment (PCF) and employee well-being, with a specific focus on mediating and moderating mechanisms. A systematic search in four databases yielded 59 empirical studies published between 1990 and 2024. The findings indicate that PCB hinders employee well-being, whereas PCF supports a range of well-being outcomes, and there is no consensus on whether PCB or PCF has a greater impact on employee well-being. Evidence also suggests that PCB and PCF are related but distinct constructs. Synthesising mediators and moderators, the review advances a contingent and process-based understanding of how psychological contract evaluations shape employee well-being. The evidence further indicates that the relative impact of PCB or PCF on employee well-being is conditional rather than universal. These findings extend conservation of resources and social exchange theories, and highlight the need for more theoretically rigorous and causally robust future research.
Compulsive buying behaviour (CBB) is a growing concern with detrimental impacts on mental health. Females’ mental health, compared with males, is reported to be increasingly affected by CBB. Despite existing research on CBB, the mental health factors influencing it remain understudied, especially among this demographic in urban settings.
Aims
To explore differences in mental health between females with high and low CBB; to evaluate the effects of stress, anxiety and depression on CBB in female urban office workers, and whether mental well-being mediates these relationships.
Method
A cross-sectional study was conducted with 369 female office workers, aged 20–50 years, living and working in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. Data were collected using online surveys distributed via social media platforms. The study used the Compulsive-Buying Index (CBI), the Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale (DASS-21) and the World Health Organization-Five Well-being Index (WHO-5). Data were analysed using SPSS 25.0 and SmartPLS 4 to assess the relationships among variables and the mediating effect of well-being.
Results
Stress and anxiety were significantly higher among those with higher CBB. Additionally, significant findings revealed that stress and well-being both positively predicted CBB (β = 0.43, p < 0.001 and β = 0.15, p = 0.010 respectively). Well-being was found to mediate the indirect relationship between depression and CBB (β = −0.08, p = 0.018), whereas anxiety had no significant effect. Stress and well-being explained 23.3% and 12.9% of the variance in well-being and CBB respectively.
Conclusions
The study shows that both stress and well-being directly influence CBB, whereas depression has an indirect effect via well-being, highlighting multifaceted relationships between mental health and CBB.