Recent historical developments in policy and practice have seen a gradual but significant shift towards less segregated provision for people with intellectual disabilities and the concepts of inclusion and citizenship now dominate current policy rhetoric. The recent UK government paper ‘Improving the Life Chances of Disabled People’ (Prime Minister’s Strategy Unit 2005), ambitiously proposes that ‘By 2025, disabled people in Britain should have full opportunities and choices to improve their quality of life and will be respected and included as equal members of society’ (pp.7). However, the conceptualisation and measurement of ‘inclusion’ in the intellectual disability literature has been rather narrow to date; focusing primarily on levels and determinants of participants in community-based activities and social networks. In order to gain a more comprehensive understanding of the inclusion/exclusion of people with intellectual disabilities, it may be useful to draw on models, theories and practices from the wider literature. This research sought to explore the experiences and perceptions of citizenship for a group of young men attending a College of Further Education. Eight young men with mild/moderate intellectual disabilities were interviewed using a semi-structured interview schedule. Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) was used to analyse the data. Research findings indicated that inhibitors of community and civic participation included: neighbourhood deprivation, crime and antisocial behaviour; bullying and victimisation; and distrust of neighbours and public/political institutions. Facilitators of participation comprised: family modelling; social networks: financial and personal incentives; and political efficacy and trustworthiness. However, the young men were largely inhibited from engaging in social and civic participation and their lack of community connectedness was primarily associated with neighbourhood characteristics, as opposed to the impact of having an intellectual disability. Implications for future research, policy and practice are discussed.

The main aims of this thesis were to investigate combined and selective associations between varied sources of occupational stressors (environmental and psychosocial) and a range of health outcomes in public sector employees. Data were obtained from two cross-sectional surveys of public sector employees (n-1090 and 870).  Key sources of potential stress examined were: demands, control, support, efforts, rewards, unfavourable working patterns (long hours, shift work), physical hazards (noise, harmful substances), organisational culture, role stressors (conflict, ambiguity), interpersonal relationships (Leader-Member and Team-Member Exchange) and workplace bullying.  Key health outcomes comprised work-related stress, clinical anxiety and depression, lifetime, 12-month and acute symptom prevalence and use of prescribed medication within the last 12 months and 14 days.  Analyses were carried out using logistic regression. Results indicate that stressors explain more variance in health outcomes when studied in combination.  Cumulative exposure to stressors was measured by a composite additive score derived from traditional job stress models (Demand-Control-Support, Effort-Reward Imbalance) and items assessing working hours/physical hazards, and was associated with an increased likelihood of reporting the majority of key health outcomes.  The addition of novel stressors to the composite score (e.g. role, interpersonal relationships, culture) did not explain additional variance with the exception of workplace bullying.  For some outcomes (work-related stress) associations with stressors were linear; for others (clinical depression), only very high levels of exposure were associated with a negative outcome (i.e. a ‘threshold’ effect).  These different patterns of effect are suggestive of selective, as well as cumulative relationships: certain health outcomes are associated with particular risk factors.

The present project of research consists of four different studies. The first study is a correlational investigation conducted with a sample of 285 students from a secondary school in Rome; the aim of the study was a first attempt to look at different possible risk factors explaining bullying and victimisation. These factors are both related to individual characteristics as well as family and social ones. The second study was developed according to the results of the first study, using the same methodology and design but a different sample. The aim was to overcome some of the limitations from the first study, mainly: sample size, type of school and selection of risk factors (individual characteristics). The second study was conducted with a sample of 679 students. Other personal and social variables were included in the design to better explain bullying and victimisation. Results indicate the correlational effect on bullying of individualistic variables such as impulsiveness and coping strategies. The third and fourth studies, conducted with two different samples of students, focus on the evaluation of the efficacy of an intervention programme for the prevention of school violence. Study 3 looks at the effects of intervention programme on student’s attitudes to violence at home and to bullying. To test significant differences, results from an experimental group that received the programme were compared with those of the control group that did not get the programme. The study presents significant changes in attitudes towards violence. The last study looked at the effects of the intervention programme on bullying behaviour. The study collected data before and after the intervention in an experimental group (that took part in the intervention), and in the control group, matched with the experimental one, that did not receive the intervention in order to draw comparisons. The aim was to check for significant changes in the prevalence of bullying and victimisation, types of bullying, and feelings about bullying. Results indicate a significant effect of the intervention on the reduction of victimisation especially in case of girls and older students.

The initial aims of this research were to assess the extent and nature of normative adolescent appearance-related concerns. Should levels of concern be high, the secondary aim was to explore the possibility that the same psychosocial strategies that are taught to disfigured adolescents (to raise self-esteem about appearance) might be similarly useful. Action research allowed adolescents themselves to construct a questionnaire concerning the extent and nature of concerns (n=50, Study 1), and also to inform the content and delivery of a subsequent intervention study (Studies 4, n=36; Study 5, n=26). Study 2 involved delivery of the questionnaire to pupils throughout one co-educational secondary school (n=304), and Study 3 to Year 9 pupils in various single-sex and co-educational schools (n=339). Studies 6,7,8 and 9 (n=190, 18, 27 and 10 respectively) investigated whether the taught strategies raised confidence in areas previously defined by pupils (in Study 4) as problematic. In addition, Study 6 investigated whether the inclusion of older peers at the 4 intervention sessions improved confidence. All pupils were asked to complete Rosenberg’s Self-esteem Questionnaire for Adolescents. Content analysis of the Study 1 questionnaire elicited that 94% claimed to have appearance-related concerns. 51% specifically cited fear of teasing or bullying about appearance, 31% that lack of confidence in appearance affects academic work. 20% of Year 9 pupils claimed to truant because of perceived poor appearance. Study 4 found enthusiasm amongst pupils for an intervention. In each of Studies 6-9 the taught strategies were shown to significantly raise confidence in areas previously defined as problematic. These were: confidence to speak up in class (p<0.05); confidence to approach those who look very different from self (p<0.001); and confidence to advise friends who are tested or bullied (p<0.01). Perceived levels of bullying decreased by almost two thirds, from 58% to 21%. Appearance concerns are high in a normative population of adolescents and, similar to their disfigured counterparts, these concerns engender social, emotional and behavioural difficulties that are likely to impact on a variety of contexts, including academically. Participants claimed that the strategies offered to alleviate bullying about appearance also transferred successfully to other kinds of confrontation.

‘Occupational stress is a major problem in western societies, where its relationship with various diseases is becoming increasingly obvious’ (Vander Hek & Plomp, 1997). Recognising this has led to ‘increasing interest in the phenomenon of stress and a growing concern to find ways of alleviating it’ (Stuart, 1991). This interest is reflected in an ever increasing body of literature and the development of stress management interventions based on this literature. Using an interpretivist research approach and based on the aforementioned literature, a hypothesis centred on an inability of organisations in the Irish financial services industry to effectively manage stress was developed. This hypothesis would be tested by firstly examining stress levels in the industry by means of a syllogism and secondly by identifying preferred approaches to stress management. The study sought to examine the effectiveness of current stress management interventions by measuring stress levels. This was achieved through conducting a survey based on the HSE’s Psychological Working Conditions in Great Britain (2004) tailored to complement Cooper & Marshall (1976) typology relating to the causes of stress. Survey respondents indicated that stress levels were moderate and as such were not impacting on morale or organisational performance. The principal sources of stress identified were work overload and relationships with colleagues, while the main interventions employed by organisations were flexi-time, casual dress and sports sponsorship. The study also sought to identify preferred approaches to the management of stress, facilitating a comparison between current and optimal interventions. Utilising the 1994 study by Bradley & Sutherland, 16 possible interventions were put to the respondents with flexi-time and keep-fit programmes emerging as the favoured approaches, which would be seen to benefit both the individuals themselves and the organisation as a whole, while counselling and stress recognition training proved unpopular. Ultimately this study proved that organisations in the Irish financial services industry do not specifically manage stress, but the all-encompassing initiatives introduced to protect employee mental health appear to sufficiently control stress levels.

Bullying occurs in most schools to a certain extent. However, this does not mean bully-victim relationships should be considered to be acceptable.  Being the victim of bullying has been associated with a range of maladjustment variables in children, including depression, anxiety, low self-esteem and post-traumatic stress.  Depression is the internalising symptom that has been most strongly associated with victimization (Hawker and Boulton, 2002).  Yet there has been little research into either protective or risk factors for depression in victimized children.  Theories of depression following stressful life events would suggest that social support and cognitive vulnerabilities are two important factors to investigate.  The first paper explores the literature on bullying and theories of depression in children.  The review brings these two areas of research together by examining social support and cognitive vulnerabilities in children. The current study had two aims.  Firstly, to investigate whether social support protected children from depression and secondly, to investigate whether cognitive errors were a risk factor for depression in victimized children.  A cross-sectional design was used to compare victims and non-victims.  Victimization was assessed by peer nomination and depression, cognitive errors and social support were assessed by self-report.  Data were analysed using t-tests, analysis of covariance and correlations.  Results supported the hypothesis that depression is associated with victimization.  When cognitive errors were controlled the difference in depression scores between victims and non-victims was reduced.  Social support had different effects in boys and girls.  Limitations of the study and implications for future research are discussed.