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PurposeWar journalists confront many dangers, leaving them at risk for mental health problems. They are, however, able to take breaks from the hazards of frontline work by periodically leaving conflict zones for the safety of home. This respite is not afforded local journalists who cover conflict situations. An example of this may be found in Mexico where journalists reporting on the drug cartels may under threat. This inability to seek temporary respite from grave danger may theoretically increase levels of psychological distress. The purpose of this paper is to examine this possibility.Design/methodology/approachThe study sample comprised 104 Mexican journalists and a control group of 104 war journalists (non‐Mexican, demographically matched). Outcome measures included indices of posttraumatic stress disorder (Impact of Event Scale‐Revised)(IES‐R), depression (Beck Depression Inventory‐Revised (BDI‐II) and psychological distress (General Health Questionnaire‐28 (GHQ‐28).FindingsMexican journalists had higher scores on the avoidance (p=0.01), arousal (p=0.0001), but not intrusion (p=0.29) scales of the IES‐R. They had higher scores on the BDI‐II (p=0.0001) and anxiety (p=0.0001), somatic (p=0.0001) and social dysfunction (p=0.01) subscales of the GHQ‐28.Practical implicationsMexican journalists targeted by drug cartels have more psychopathology than journalists who cover war. News organisations that employ journalists in this line of work therefore need to be aware of this and have a mechanism in place to provide treatment, when needed.Originality/valueThis is the first study to directly explore the psychological effects of violence on local journalists who do not cover war, but nevertheless live and work in areas of grave danger.

Purpose
– More journalists died in Syria during 2013 than in any other country experiencing conflict. This statistic raises concerns about the psychological wellbeing of journalists covering the internecine violence. The paper aims to discuss this issue.


Design/methodology/approach
– The study sample was made up of 59 western journalists currently covering the Syrian conflict. To place these results in the broader context of war journalism previously collected data from a group of 84 journalists who had reported the war in Iraq were used as a control sample. Outcome measures included indices of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) (Impact of Event Scale-revised) and psychological distress (General Health Questionnaire-28 item version (GHQ-28)).


Findings
– Compared to journalists who covered the Iraq war, the journalists working in Syria were more likely to be female (p=0.007), single (p=0.018), freelance (p=0.0001) and had worked fewer years as a journalist (p=0.012). They were more depressed according to the GHQ-28 (p=0.001) and endorsed more individual symptoms of depression including worthlessness (p=0.012), helplessness (p=0.02) and suicidal intent (p=0.003). A linear regression analysis revealed that the group differences in depression data could not be accounted for by demographic factors.


Research limitations/implications
– An absence of structured interviews. Results not applicable to local Syrian journalists.


Practical implications
– Western journalists covering Syrian appear to be particularly vulnerable to the development of depression. Journalists and the news organizations that employ them need to be cognizant of data such as these. Given that depression is treatable, there needs to be a mechanism in place to detect and treat those in need.


Originality/value
– This is the first study that highlights the emotional toll on western journalists covering the Syrian conflict.

Purpose - More journalists died in Syria during 2013 than in any other country experiencing conflict. This statistic raises concerns about the psychological wellbeing of journalists covering the internecine violence. The paper aims to discuss this issue. Design/methodology/approach - The study sample was made up of 59 western journalists currently covering the Syrian conflict. To place these results in the broader context of war journalism previously collected data from a group of 84 journalists who had reported the war in Iraq were used as a control sample. Outcome measures included indices of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) (Impact of Event Scale-revised) and psychological distress (General Health Questionnaire-28 item version (GHQ-28)). Findings - Compared to journalists who covered the Iraq war, the journalists working in Syria were more likely to be female ( p =0.007), single ( p =0.018), freelance ( p =0.0001) and had worked fewer years as a journalist ( p =0.012). They were more depressed according to the GHQ-28 ( p =0.001) and endorsed more individual symptoms of depression including worthlessness ( p =0.012), helplessness ( p =0.02) and suicidal intent ( p =0.003). A linear regression analysis revealed that the group differences in depression data could not be accounted for by demographic factors. Research limitations/implications - An absence of structured interviews. Results not applicable to local Syrian journalists. Practical implications - Western journalists covering Syrian appear to be particularly vulnerable to the development of depression. Journalists and the news organizations that employ them need to be cognizant of data such as these. Given that depression is treatable, there needs to be a mechanism in place to detect and treat those in need. Originality/value - This is the first study that highlights the emotional toll on western journalists covering the Syrian conflict. Adapted from the source document.

Objective: This paper presents a descriptive study, undertaken in 1993, of a Psychiatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) serving a deprived inner-city area, investigating the role of ethnicity as a risk factor for admission to the unit. Methods: Clinical and demographic data were collected on consecutive admission to a PICU. Global Assessment of Function Scale scores were rated on admission and at discharge from the unit. Results: The majority of patients were male (63%) and the commonest DSM-IV diagnoses were schizophrenia (42%) and bipolar affective disorder (24%). Average length of stay was 13 days with patients making significant improvement in functioning during their stay. Fifty-five percent of PICU admissions came from ethnic minorities (compared with 25.6% of total hospital admissions and 20.9% of the local catchment area population aged between 16 and 65 years). There was no evidence that ethnic minority patients were being inappropriately admitted to the PICU. Conclusions: It is likely that a variety of factors contributed to the high rate of PICU admission amongst ethnic minority patients, including an increased prevalence of major mental illness and more frequent cannabis abuse.

PurposeAfghanistan is one of the world's most dangerous places for journalists. There are, however, no data on the mental health of Afghan journalists covering conflict in their country. The study aims to determine the degree to which Afghan journalists are exposed to traumatic events, their perceptions of organizational support, their rates of symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and depression, their utilization of mental health services and the effectiveness of the treatment received.Design/methodology/approachThe entire study was undertaken in Dari (Farsi). Five major Afghan news organizations representing 104 journalists took part of whom 71 (68%) completed a simple eleven-point analog scale rating perceptions of organizational support. Symptoms of PTSD and depression were recorded with the Impact of Event Scale – Revised (IES-R) and the Centre for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CES-D), respectively. Behavioral comparisons were undertaken between those journalists who had and had not received mental health therapy.FindingsThe majority of journalists exceeded cutoff scores for PTSD and major depression and reported high rates for exposure to traumatic events. There were no significant differences in IES-R and CES-D scores between journalists who had and had not received mental health therapy. Most journalists did not view their employers as supportive.Originality/valueTo the best of authors' knowledge, this is the first study to collect empirical data on the mental health of Afghan journalists. The results highlight the extreme stressors confronted by them, their correspondingly high levels of psychopathology and the relative ineffectiveness of mental health therapy given to a minority of those in distress. The implications of these findings are discussed.

This article presents a mapping review of the available literature on the emotional well-being of journalists exposed to traumatic events. The review consists of three parts: (a) a summary of the results of trauma-related literature; (b) identification of the limitations of studies to date; and (c) suggestions for future research. The overview of the reviewed studies is provided as a table.

Objectives: To develop a Setswana version of the 28-item General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-28) for use in Botswana. Methods: A sample of 126 subjects attending primary healthcare clinics completed the GHQ-28, which contains four subscales of seven questions each for the following domains: somatic concerns, anxiety, social function and depression. All subjects were also interviewed with the Clinical Interview Schedule (CIS). Psychiatric casesness was ascertained by CIS scores greater than 20 and an overall severity of symptoms rating (OSR) of ≥2 on a 0—4 point scale. A receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis was undertaken to assess which GHQ cut-off score gave the best casesness yield as defined by the combined CIS and OSR assessments. Results: Of the 126 subjects enrolled, 122 completed the study, with 18 (14.5%) meeting criteria for caseness. There were no gender differences with respect to GHQ or CIS scores. The ROC analysis revealed that the GHQ threshold of 7/8 gave the best sensitivity (88%) and specificity (67%) results. The internal consistency of the translated GHQ was maintained with Cronbach α scores ranging from 0.76 to 0.91 for the subscales. Conclusions: The Setswana GHQ-28 represents a valid instrument of screening for psychological distress in a primary healthcare setting in Botswana.

LAY SUMMARY Little is known about the mental health of Veterans as they get older. How does the mental health and aging process of Veterans compare to people who have not served in the military? The Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging (CLSA) is a long-term national study of the aging adult population in Canada. A total of 51,338 participants across Canada aged 45 to 85 years were recruited at the study baseline between 2011 and 2015. Of the CLSA participants, about 4,500 self-identified as Veterans, with military service dating back as early as 1941. The goal of this study was to describe the mental health, in particular posttraumatic stress disorder, of Veterans in the CLSA at the study baseline and examine differences across Veteran sub-groups and compared to non-Veterans.

AbstractDNA methylation differences between identical twins could account for phenotypic twin discordance of behavioral traits and diseases. High throughput epigenomic microarray profiling can be a strategy of choice for identification of epigenetic differences in phenotypically different monozygotic (MZ) twins. Epigenomic profiling of a pair of MZ twins with quantified measures of psychometric discordance identified several DNA methylation differences, some of which may have developmental and behavioral implications and are consistent with the contrasting psychometric profiles of the twins. In particular, differential methylation of CpG islands proximal to the homeobox DLX1 gene could modulate stress responses and risk taking behavior, and deserve further attention as a potential marker of aversion to danger. The epigenetic difference detected at DLX1 of ∼1.2 fold change was used to evaluate experimental design issues such as the required numbers of technical replicates. It also enabled us to estimate the power this technique would have to detect a functionally relevant epigenetic difference given a range of 1 to 50 twin pairs. We found that use of epigenomic microarray profiling in a relatively small number (15–25) of phenotypically discordant twin pairs has sufficient power to detect 1.2 fold epigenetic changes.