The British journal of medical psychology
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The study was designed to examine the impact of a patient's death on other patients in a hospice. Following pilot work, 11 patients who had shared a room with a patient who had died were compared with nine who had been in the hospice for a similar amount of time, but had not witnessed the death of another patient. ⋯ They also rated the death of another patient as significantly more comforting than distressing. Thus the results point to the benefits rather than disadvantages for patients of witnessing the death of another patient in the hospice.
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Most psychological research on the martial arts has been conducted from a positivist stance, and Fuller's (1988) review of research reflected a positivist tone while suggesting that therapeutic influences may be achieved from martial arts training methods abstracted from their traditional setting. This addendum cites two important contextual problems influencing martial arts research. ⋯ Second, the cultural and psychological values and meanings of the Oriental martial arts may change when situated in a Western context, thus changing their method, content, and therapeutic influence. We suggest that a non-positivist and context-sensitive approach such as phenomenology might clarify the contextual intricacy of the martial arts and thereby facilitate improved theoretical foundations and empirical research of martial arts participation as a psychological phenomenon.
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Review Case Reports
A semiotic perspective on chronic pain: implications for the interaction between patient and physician.
A semiotic conceptualization of pain in the chronic pain syndrome is proposed. It is suggested that among chronic pain patients pain ceases to be an icon or an index and acquires a symbolic structure: this transformation interferes with the usual patient-physician relationship. The semiotic perspective on the structure of meaning in the chronic pain syndrome underlines the need to include a psychotherapeutic approach in the patient-physician relationship; specific aspects of the approach to chronic pain as a symbolic communication are discussed.
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Biological and psychological research into the antecedents of altruism has considerable significance for those involved in the teaching or practice of medicine. The evidence available indicates that altruistic behaviour is a universal phenomenon influenced by intra-individual, interpersonal, situational and sociocultural factors. ⋯ The factors which may facilitate or inhibit altruism in medical students and doctors are discussed. Some ways of ensuring that medical training does not seriously distort altruism are suggested.