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Biomedical subjects

P S Penfold

Publications and source records attributed to P S Penfold.

9 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1996

The repressed memory controversy: is there middle ground?

To familiarize readers with the main issues in the debate over the veracity of long-hidden memories of childhood sexual abuse, information, arguments and hypotheses from the medical and social-science literature are examined. The author reviews the challenge presented by those who propose that all or most memories of past sexual abuse recovered during therapy are false, the response of those who contend that these memories are valid and could not be manufactured by therapists, and the views of those with a more balanced approach who carefully examine all of the evidence and look for the middle ground. Although research in this area is in its infancy, available information suggests that both recovered and fabricated memories exist. Until further research helps to identify the difference between the two, physicians need to keep an open mind and offer support and understanding to both alleged victims and accused parents. Research is needed on (1) the extent of corroboration of recovered memories of sexual abuse; (2) the identification of memory mechanisms, specific situations and personality factors involved in forgetting and remembering traumatic events; and (3) the factors affecting traumatized patients during therapy, including memory performance and suggestibility.

Child↗
PubMed1995

Mendacious moms or devious dads? Some perplexing issues in child custody/sexual abuse allegation disputes.

OBJECTIVE: To explore relevant literature about sexual abuse allegations arising in child custody disputes. METHOD: A literature review of false allegations is given and the contribution of gender bias to this issue is discussed. The role a child psychiatrist may play in such cases is outlined. RESULTS: Contrary to much popular and professional opinion, sexual abuse allegations are found in only 2% of child custody disputes, and, of these, 8% to 16.5% are false. While false allegations arise for a variety of reasons, the word "false" can imply both erroneous and deceitful activities. This ambiguity, along with gender bias, may lead to disbelief of, and blame towards, parents who report sexual abuse in the context of a dispute about custody or access. CONCLUSION: The child psychiatrist who testifies in such custody disputes should have caution, humility, and an open mind both in the courtroom and in dealing with other professionals working in this area.

Child↗
PubMed1989

Family therapy: critique from a feminist perspective.

Family therapy is a powerful modality which, all too often, is used without awareness of its possible constricting, or even crippling, effects. Textbooks and articles about family therapy focus soley or mainly on the family system alone, thus obscuring the influence of school, workplace, neighborhood, peer group, class, race and sex. Theorists, who are predominantly male, have developed rigid and mechanical concepts which encourage formulations encompassing the family system alone. Power inequalities between men and women are ignored and socially programmed sex roles are reflected and reinforced by theory and practice. Thus family therapy may function to locate and contain, within the family, difficulties and distress derived from stresses outside the family. The negative effects of traditional sex roles on emotional growth, sexuality and the development of mutually gratifying male-female relationships are never dealt with. As a result, family therapy may contribute to men's straitjacketing and women's oppression. To fulfill its promise, family therapy research and teaching must move beyond shortsighted and narrowly conceptualized theories which could damage, rather than heal, families who are suffering.

Adult↗
PubMed1987

Women in academic psychiatry in Canada.

A comparison of numbers of women psychiatrists with faculty appointments and women residents in Departments of Psychiatry in Canada in 1975 and 1985 showed that the average percentage of women faculty has increased from 11.4% to 14.3% and of women residents from 23.5% to 43.4%. Some departments appeared to be oblivious to the special educational role of women faculty and had not discussed the discrepancy between the numbers of faculty and residents. Only two departments were actively recruiting women faculty. The study also demonstrated a continued concentration of women in the lower ranks. Barriers to recruiting women faculty include lack of academic role models, job advertising not specifically designed to attract women candidates, rigid requirements for appointments, women's lack of access to male corridors of power, pervasive underlying doubts about women's abilities and competence based on cultural stereotypes, female socialization which does not lend itself readily to roles of authority, assertiveness and leadership, and the role strain that ensues when women psychiatrists try to combine career, marriage and motherhood. If women psychiatrists are to fill some of the positions in Departments of Psychiatry, which will fall vacant over the next decade, much more attention must be paid to eliminating or diminishing the multiple obstacles for women who chose a career in academic psychiatry.

Canada↗
PubMed1987

Open reporting in child psychiatry.

Although medical reports are usually viewed as special confidential communications between health care professionals, the author has found that there are many advantages to open communication with parents; having them present in conferences about their child and giving them copies of psychiatric reports. Personal experience, a survey done by the Child Development Program of BC Children's Hospital and the small amount of literature available suggest that "open reporting" increases parental understanding and taking of responsibility for constructive change.

Child↗
PubMed1985

Parent's perceived responsibility for children's problems.

Beliefs about parents' influence on their children's behaviour have developed over the last 300 years. During this century multiple socio-economic, ideological and technological changes have combined to leave expert and lay person alike in a sea of confusion and ambiguity about optimal parent-child relationships. While fashions in child rearing change, the mother is usually accorded responsibility for the child's behaviour and social skills. In this study parents attending a multidisciplinary pediatric clinic were asked their opinion of the source of their child's emotional or behavioural problem. Describing confusion and conflicting advice, most parents had concluded that the problem had multiple roots. Between male and female parents, however, a marked difference was evident in the attribution of responsibility to themselves or their spouses and in their formulation of the nature of parental deficiencies.

Attitude↗