Examining the Relationships Among Parental Overprotection, Military Life Adjustment, Social Anxiety, and Collective Efficacy

Profile and mental health characterization of childhood overprotection/overcontrol experiences among Chinese university students: a nationwide survey

Introduction

The childhood experiences of being overprotected and overcontrolled by family members have been suggested to be potentially traumatic. However, the possible associated factors of these experiences among young people are still not well studied. This study aimed to partly fill such gaps by a relatively large, nationwide survey of Chinese university students.

Methods

A total of 5,823 university students across nine different provinces in China were included by the convenience sampling method in the data analyses. All participants completed the overprotection/overcontrol (OP/OC) subscale in a recently developed 33-item childhood trauma questionnaire (CTQ- 33). Data were also collected on all participants' socio-demographic profiles and characterization of mental health. Binary logistic regression was conducted to investigate the associated socio-demographic and psychological factors of OP/ OC.

Results

The prevalence of childhood OP/OC was estimated as 15.63% (910/5,823) based on a cutoff OP/OC subscale score of  ≥ 13. Binary logistic regression suggested that being male, being a single child, having depression, having psychotic-like experiences, lower family functioning, and lower psychological resilience were independently associated with childhood OP/OC experiences (all corrected-p < 0.05). The OP/OC was also positively associated with all the other trauma subtypes (abuses and neglects) in the CTQ-33, while there are both shared and unique associated factors between the OP/OC and other trauma subtypes. Post-hoc analyses suggested that OP/OC experiences were associated with depression in only females and associated with anxiety in only males.

Discussion

Our results may provide initial evidence that childhood OP/OC experiences would have negative effects on young people's mental health which merits further investigations, especially in clinical populations.

Contributing Factors to Israeli Soldiers' Adaptation to Military Noncombat Positions

OBJECTIVE

Adjusting to a military environment is a complex process, with unique demands and various stressors placed on conscripts. In this study, we examined the unique and combined contribution of the independent variables that constitute an individual soldier's personal resources-the meaningfulness of the military role and the match between expectations and the job itself; cognitive flexibility; social support; and seeking help from a mental health officer (MHO)-to the adaptation (dependent variable) of noncombat soldiers to military service.

METHOD

The study group comprised 200 Israel Defense Forces noncombat soldiers aged 18-23 years (Meanage = 20.046 years, SD = 0.951). Of them, 107 (53.3%) had consulted a MHO. The remaining soldiers who had not consulted an MHO (n = 93, 46.5%) served as the comparison group. Research tools included the work and meaning questionnaire, the Cognitive Flexibility Scale, the Medical Outcomes Study (social support) questionnaire, and adaptation to the army questionnaire.

RESULTS

Adaptation to service was found to relate positively to the meaningfulness of the military role, cognitive flexibility, and social support. Social support partially mediated the relation between cognitive flexibility and adaptation to service. Additionally, soldiers who had consulted an MHO had lower levels of cognitive flexibility and social support, and they adapted less well to service compared to the comparison group.

CONCLUSIONS

The study indicates that soldiers who seek help have lower resources. Additional personal and environmental variables that contribute to the adjustment of soldiers in noncombat positions were also identified.