| 1. |
- Aglen, B., et al.
(författare)
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Self-help and self-help groups for people with long-lasting health problems or mental health difficulties in a Nordic context : A review
- 2011
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Ingår i: Scandinavian Journal of Public Health. - : SAGE Publications. - 1403-4948 .- 1651-1905. ; 39:8, s. 813-822
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Forskningsöversikt (refereegranskat)abstract
- Aim: The aim of this review is to provide systematic knowledge of research from Nordic countries about the meaning of self-help and self-help groups when these are used as a concept or method addressing issues related to long-lasting health problems or mental health difficulties. Methods: Included were studies conducted in the Nordic countries that were published between January 1999 and September 2009. These studies investigated self-help and self-help groups addressing issues related to long-lasting health problems. Results: A total of 83 publications met the inclusion criteria. Four major characteristics of self-help were found to be present in the publications: self-help as an intrapsychological process, self-help as an interpsychological or group process, self-help as a coping, individual learning or empowerment process, and self-help as an alternative or complement to medical treatment. Of the 83 studies, 72 publications used a professional treatment perspective for studying self-help and 11 publications used a perspective derived from alternative or complementary therapies. Conclusions: The review shows that most of the research on self-help and self-help groups for people with long-lasting health problems or disability is conducted with an interest to improve the professional healthcare system. That is, the health-promotion strategy is mainly considered in the framework of treatment or care settings. This means that self-help in this context does not challenge the dominant biomedical health model. © 2011 the Nordic Societies of Public Health.
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| 2. |
- Eriksson, Ulrika, et al.
(författare)
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School demands and subjective health complaints among Swedish schoolchildren: A multilevel study
- 2010
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Ingår i: Scandinavian Journal of Public Health. - : SAGE Publications. - 1403-4948 .- 1651-1905. ; 38:4, s. 344-350
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Objectives: As children spend a great deal of their time in school, the climate in the classroom can constitute a resource, but also a risk factor in the development of the pupils' health. The aim of the present study was to determine the extent to which demands in the classroom are associated with subjective health complaints in Swedish schoolchildren. Methods: Data from the 2001/2002 and 2005/2006 Swedish cross-national Health Behaviour in School-aged Children (HBSC) survey were analysed using a multilevel logistic regression technique. Results: The study demonstrated a substantial variation between school classes in pupils' subjective health complaints. In school classes with high demands, the odds of having subjective health complaints was about 50% higher than in school classes with low demands. Further, the results indicated that these effects were mediated by sex so as to girls being more affected by high levels of demands in the school class. Conclusions: The findings are important since they point at the crucial role that teachers play in creating a favourable school climate. Therefore interventions aiming at supporting teachers to set realistic demands and expectations are one way to improve the school climate. Such interventions should also make clear the need to take into consideration the fact that the school class effect was mediated by sex, i.e. girls being more vulnerable to high level of school class demands.
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| 3. |
- Fors, Stefan, et al.
(författare)
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Live long and prosper? Childhood living conditions, marital status, social class in adulthood and mortality during mid-life : A cohort study
- 2011
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Ingår i: Scandinavian Journal of Public Health. - : SAGE Publications. - 1403-4948 .- 1651-1905. ; 39:2, s. 179-186
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Aims: The aim of the present study was to investigate the impact of childhood living conditions, marital status, and social class in adulthood on the risk of mortality during mid-life. Two questions were addressed: Is there an effect of childhood living conditions on mortality risk during mid-life and if so, is the effect mediated or modified by social class and/or marital status in adulthood? Methods: A nationally representative, Swedish, level of living survey from 1968 was used as baseline. The study included those aged 25—69 at baseline (n = 4082). Social conditions in childhood and adulthood were assessed using self-reports. These individuals were then followed for 39 years using registry data on mortality. Results: The results showed associations between childhood living conditions, marital status, social class in adulthood and mortality during mid life. Social class and familial conditions during childhood as well as marital status and social class in adulthood all contributed to the risk of mortality during mid-life. Individuals whose father’s were manual workers, who grew up in broken homes, who were unmarried, and/or were manual workers in adulthood had an increased risk of mortality during mid life. The effects of childhood conditions were, in part, both mediated and modified by social class in adulthood. Conclusions: The findings of this study suggest that there are structural, social conditions experienced at different stages of the life course that affect the risk of mortality during mid-life.
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| 4. |
- Landstedt, Evelina, 1978-, et al.
(författare)
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Deliberate self-harm and associated factors in 17-year-old Swedish students
- 2011
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Ingår i: Scandinavian Journal of Public Health. - : SAGE Publications. - 1403-4948 .- 1651-1905. ; 39:1, s. 17-25
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background: Deliberate self-harm (DSH) in young people is an important public health issue. To prevent DSH, more knowledge is needed about its prevalence and associated contextual factors in community samples of adolescents. Aims: To determine the prevalence of deliberate self-harm in 17-year-old Swedish students and to explore the association of demographic variables, psychological distress, experiences of violence, and school-related factors with DSH. Methods: Data were derived from a cross-sectional study in which 17-year-old students completed questionnaires during school hours (n=1,663; 78.3%). The variables used in this analysis are as follows: deliberate self-harm, demographic variables, psychological distress, experiences of violence, and school-related factors. Data were analysed using chi-squared statistics and logistic regression. Results: The lifetime prevalence of DSH was 17%, and it was more common among girls (23.3%) than boys (10.5%). There were considerable socioeconomic differences in reports of DSH. Psychological distress was strongly associated with DSH in both boys and girls, as were experiences of bullying, sexual harassment, physical violence and sexual assault. Social support, safety and academic factors in school were related to reports of DSH in both girls and boys. There were some gender differences with respect to which factors were associated with DSH. Conclusions: Deliberate self-harm is common and more frequently reported by girls than boys. Psychological distress, experiences of different types of violence, and school-related factors (academic, social and safety-related), should be considered risk factors for DSH in young people. Findings can be applied to health-promotion policy and interventions in various contexts, for example schools.
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| 5. |
- Stickley, Andrew, et al.
(författare)
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Factors Associated with Non-Lethal Violent Victimization in Sweden in 2004-2007
- 2010
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Ingår i: Scandinavian Journal of Public Health. - : SAGE Publications. - 1403-4948 .- 1651-1905. ; 38:4, s. 404-410
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Aims: To examine which factors were associated with non-lethal violent victimization in Sweden in the period 2004 to 2007. Methods: Data come from the Swedish National Public Health Surveys, undertaken annually between 2004 and 2007. A total of 29,923 randomly selected respondents aged 16 to 84 from across Sweden responded to a mailed questionnaire. Logistic regression analyses were used to examine which independent variables were associated with having experienced violence in the previous 12 months. Results: Male and female respondents who were younger, single, lacking in social capital and who engaged in harmful alcohol consumption were significantly more likely to have been subject to violence. Furthermore, men who were in the lower income groups or who were Nordic, and women who were of a non-European origin, were also significantly more likely to have been victimized. Conclusions: The risk of non-lethal violent victimization is not spread equally throughout Swedish society. Specifically, those who are socially and/or economically disadvantaged are much more likely to experience violence. This highlights the importance of working to reverse the growing inequality that has occurred in Sweden in recent years that continues to be linked to the risk of being a victim of non-lethal violence.
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| 6. |
- Vadla, Drazenka, et al.
(författare)
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Differences in healthcare service utilisation in elderly, registered in eight districts of five European countries
- 2011
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Ingår i: Scandinavian Journal of Public Health. - : SAGE Publications. - 1403-4948 .- 1651-1905. ; 39:3, s. 272-279
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Aims: The aim of the study was to compare and analyse the differences in self-reported frequencies of visits paid to physicians and hospitalisation rates, as well as their association with socio-demographic factors and health status self-rated by elderly. Methods: A cross-sectional study was performed in eight districts of five European countries (Finland, Sweden, Ireland, Croatia, and Greece). A total of 3540 persons aged 70 or more were interviewed by trained interviewers. Healthcare service utilisation and its association with demographic characteristics and self-rated health were analysed using descriptive statistical methods, chi-square test, and logistic regression. Results: Almost 90% of elderly visited a physician in the past year; 50% visited a specialist, while 24% were hospitalised. A visit to a specialist was paid by 70% of the Greek, 50% to 60% of the Croatian, and around 40% of the Irish, the Finnish, and the Swedish elderly. The highest proportion of hospitalisations (32%) was encountered in Greece and the lowest one (20%) in Sweden. Self-rated poor health appears to be the only common denominator associated with increased healthcare utilisation. Younger age stood out as a statistically significant predictor of the likelihood of specialist consults, while older age, male gender, and the synergy of male gender and current single life were disclosed as the predictors of hospitalisation frequency. Conclusions: Healthcare service utilisation exercised by the elderly across European districts was found to be highly variable and showed a clear distinction between north-western and south-eastern Europe; this is in line with differences in self-rated health.
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