Joyce L C Ma
Biographic Data
| ID | 248191 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Joyce L C Ma |
| GIVEN NAMES | Joyce L C |
| FAMILY NAME | Ma |
| SIGNATURE | MA J L C |
| AFFILIATIONS | Social Work Department The Chinese University of Hong Kong New Territory Hong Kong |
| VERIFIED | No |
| TOTAL WORKS | 23 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 18 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 23 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2002 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2024 |
| H-INDEX | 2 |
Factors mediating the intergenerational transmission of depressive symptoms
The family structural and socioeconomic characteristics of the family well‐being of Hong Kong people
This study investigated the family well‐being of Hong Kong people through a randomized telephone survey of 2008 adults, using a standardized six‐domain index developed specifically for this population. Multiple regression analyses were conducted to examine the heterogeneity of family well‐being according to demographic, family structural, and socioeconomic characteristics. The results showed significant gender and age differences in people's perc…
The Feasibility and the Therapeutic Process Factors of Online vs. Face-to-Face Multifamily Therapy for Adults with High-Functioning Autism Spectrum Disorder in Hong Kong
The need to expand knowledge of family-based intervention for people with ASD has been observed. However, there is a lack of study in Chinese context such as Hong Kong exploring the use of multifamily therapy (MFT) for adults with ASD. The primary aim of the present study is to assess the feasibility of a process-oriented MFT in promoting family relationships for young adults with high functioning-ASD (HF-ASD) and their parents. We also sought to…
Treatment efficacy of multiple family therapy in helping Chinese children of depressed parents in Hong Kong, China
This article reports results of a study that assessed the efficacy of multiple family therapy (MFT) for helping children of depressed parent(s), using a quasi‐randomized controlled trial design. In total, 76 children participated in the study, with 51 children were assigned to the experimental group (EG) and 25 to the comparison group (CG). The EG children and their parents completed the three‐month MFT program, while the CG children and their pa…
An interactive process model of knowledge transfer for social work through university–agency collaboration
This article reports on the outcome of an exploratory study on a university–agency collaboration in a Chinese context for transferring social work knowledge from academia to the field and beyond. A six-stage process characterised by interactive contributions from the university and the agency in question was identified from the trainees’ narratives of the content, process and their subjective experiences with the three-year collaboration. The two…
Sitting In
This article explores family therapy trainees’ subjective experiences of working as cotherapists with a supervisory‐level therapist in a Chinese context, regarding their perceptions of and positioning in it and also their opinions on the benefits and/or pitfalls of cotherapy. Individual interviews with a total of six cotherapists revealed three themes: (1) Cotherapy was perceived as an experiential learning journey that evolved from anxiety and e…
Factors influencing parenting stress among Chinese families of children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder
Repairing the Parent–Child Relationship for a Hong Kong Chinese Family of an Adult Daughter with High Functioning Autism (HFA) Through Structural Family Therapy and Multiple Family Therapy
The impact of poverty on children in out-of-home care services in a Chinese context and the application of multiple family group therapy to enrich their family lives
Learning Outcome of a Family Therapy Training Course for Psychiatric Nurses in a Chinese Context
Maltreatment in Parent–Child Relationships of Chinese Families with Children Suffering from Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder in Hong Kong
This paper describes the lived experience of maltreatment in parent–child relationships in relation to Chinese children diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), which emerged from a qualitative study conducted in Hong Kong. Out of a clinical sample of forty-four families, 25 per cent of children reported parental abuse, 21 per cent of parents had suffered from child-to-parent maltreatment and 11 per cent of families had exp…
An exploratory study of the impact of an adolescent's eating disorder on Chinese parents' well-being, marital life and perceived family functioning in Shenzhen, China
In this paper, the author reports the results of an exploratory study conducted in Shenzhen, China on how an eating disorder in an adolescent or adult child in the family would affect the parents' well-being, quality of marital life and the perceived family functioning. Out of 33 patients suffering from eating disorders and referred for family treatment, 18 mothers and 15 fathers participated in this study. The data were gathered using a standard…
Unwrapping the Box
The authors describe the case of a girl suffering from anorexia nervosa who was regarded as a great challenge by her family therapist in Hong Kong. The metaphor of unwrapping a box was adopted to describe the therapeutic strategy of helping the girl express her inner feelings, and of helping the parents listen to their daughter describe her pain and suffering in the presence of the therapist. Health care professionals have to lead the dance, crea…
Eating Disorders, Parent-Child Conflicts, and Family Therapy in Shenzhen, China
In this article, I report the results of a qualitative study conducted in Shenzhen, China, in which I aimed to (a) identify the characteristics of parent-child conflicts between Shenzhen youths suffering from eating disorders and their parents and (b) contextualize these intergenerational conflicts to understand their meanings within the immediate sociocultural context. I have employed multiple-case studies as the research design. Data have been …
Meanings of eating disorders discerned from family treatment and its implications for family education
Contrary to the simplistic myth that eating disorders are the result of a tendency to adopt the Western beauty standard of being slim and thin, the symptoms have been found to symbolize the struggles of adolescents and their development in a rapidly changing society, and in particular, to illuminate the continual conflicts inherent in the afflicted adolescents, their families and the accepted societal values and norms. This paper reports the resu…
Siblings Family Drama
Little is known in the process and outcome of family treatment for families with a member suffering from anorexia nervosa in Chinese contexts. To show the rich narratives of the family's experiences of the course of family treatment with twelve sessions when struggling through anorexia nervosa, the authors present a case from Hong Kong for describing and analyzing the processes of change in both anorectic symptoms and family relationships of the …
Living in poverty
Anorexia nervosa (AN) is no longer a disease of the rich in the West. Hitherto, no study has been carried out in the West or in the Chinese context that documents the experiences of poor people suffering from AN. This qualitative study aims to identify the subjective experiences of seven Chinese emaciated adolescents and young women coming from low‐income families, their family difficulties and needs, and resilience in coping. The results of the …
A Feminist Family Therapy Research Study
In Hong Kong no one has ever explored a female anorectic's experience of family therapy by inviting her to review her family sessions. By using a retrospective approach, this single case study adopted an interpretative paradigm with an open-ended question regarding how the patient experienced the family sessions. The distinct feature of this data collection was that the patient served as a research instrument and was invited to review six family …
Labor Force Participation of Married Women in Hong Kong
The study examined, from a feminist perspective, the labor force participation of married women in Hong Kong at different stages of the family life cycle, as well as the interaction of women's gender role attitudes with human capital variables and resource variables. Findings showed that labor force participation of married women was both an ideological issue and a resource issue. The coexistence of a higher education level and a nontraditional g…
Aetiology of anorexia nervosa in Hong Kong
This paper reports the results of a qualitative inquiry into the aetiology of anorexia nervosa in Hong Kong. These results are part of our main research project about family treatment and families with a daughter suffering from anorexia nervosa. This present qualitative study adopts a multiple case study approach ( n = 8) and employs a multiple‐source data collection method, involving pre‐ and post‐family treatment interviews, clinical observatio…
In search of perfect motherhood for imperfect childhood – experiences of 22 Chinese mothers
Motherhood is subjectively defined and contextually based. This article describes and unfolds the experience of 22 Chinese mothers in Hong Kong in cultivating a sense of perfect motherhood for their children who have mental or behavioural problems that require psychiatric consultation. The mother, the significant others and the general public perceive the latter as a form of imperfection. The mothering experiences were full of frustrations, ambiv…
Family Themes of Food Refusal
A problematic issue in studying anorexia nervosa (AN) has been the absence of a qualitative study that probes the deep meanings of food refusal. We attempt to close this gap by studying the family meanings of food refusal by a single case study of a family in Hong Kong with an AN daughter. Eight videotapes of family therapy sessions, each lasting 90 minutes, were intensively reviewed, transcribed verbatim, and content analyzed. Two family themes …
Parenting distress and parental investment of Hong Kong Chinese parents with a child having an emotional or behavioural problem
This qualitative study aims to understand the parenting distress and parental investment of Hong Kong Chinese parents with a child having an emotional or behavioural problem. The parents of 24 children and adolescents who sought psychiatric consultation within the study period were interviewed using open‐ended questions. The data revealed a vicious reciprocal interaction in which the symptoms affected the parents’ psychosocial well‐being, which i…
Labor Force Participation of Married Women in Hong Kong
The study examined, from a feminist perspective, the labor force participation of married women in Hong Kong at different stages of the family life cycle, as well as the interaction of women's gender role attitudes with human capital variables and resource variables. Findings showed that labor force participation of married women was both an ideological issue and a resource issue. The coexistence of a higher education level and a nontraditional g…
The impact of poverty on children in out-of-home care services in a Chinese context and the application of multiple family group therapy to enrich their family lives
The Feasibility and the Therapeutic Process Factors of Online vs. Face-to-Face Multifamily Therapy for Adults with High-Functioning Autism Spectrum Disorder in Hong Kong
The need to expand knowledge of family-based intervention for people with ASD has been observed. However, there is a lack of study in Chinese context such as Hong Kong exploring the use of multifamily therapy (MFT) for adults with ASD. The primary aim of the present study is to assess the feasibility of a process-oriented MFT in promoting family relationships for young adults with high functioning-ASD (HF-ASD) and their parents. We also sought to…
An exploratory study of the impact of an adolescent's eating disorder on Chinese parents' well-being, marital life and perceived family functioning in Shenzhen, China
In this paper, the author reports the results of an exploratory study conducted in Shenzhen, China on how an eating disorder in an adolescent or adult child in the family would affect the parents' well-being, quality of marital life and the perceived family functioning. Out of 33 patients suffering from eating disorders and referred for family treatment, 18 mothers and 15 fathers participated in this study. The data were gathered using a standard…
An interactive process model of knowledge transfer for social work through university–agency collaboration
This article reports on the outcome of an exploratory study on a university–agency collaboration in a Chinese context for transferring social work knowledge from academia to the field and beyond. A six-stage process characterised by interactive contributions from the university and the agency in question was identified from the trainees’ narratives of the content, process and their subjective experiences with the three-year collaboration. The two…
Factors influencing parenting stress among Chinese families of children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder
Meanings of eating disorders discerned from family treatment and its implications for family education
Contrary to the simplistic myth that eating disorders are the result of a tendency to adopt the Western beauty standard of being slim and thin, the symptoms have been found to symbolize the struggles of adolescents and their development in a rapidly changing society, and in particular, to illuminate the continual conflicts inherent in the afflicted adolescents, their families and the accepted societal values and norms. This paper reports the resu…
In search of perfect motherhood for imperfect childhood – experiences of 22 Chinese mothers
Motherhood is subjectively defined and contextually based. This article describes and unfolds the experience of 22 Chinese mothers in Hong Kong in cultivating a sense of perfect motherhood for their children who have mental or behavioural problems that require psychiatric consultation. The mother, the significant others and the general public perceive the latter as a form of imperfection. The mothering experiences were full of frustrations, ambiv…
Parenting distress and parental investment of Hong Kong Chinese parents with a child having an emotional or behavioural problem
This qualitative study aims to understand the parenting distress and parental investment of Hong Kong Chinese parents with a child having an emotional or behavioural problem. The parents of 24 children and adolescents who sought psychiatric consultation within the study period were interviewed using open‐ended questions. The data revealed a vicious reciprocal interaction in which the symptoms affected the parents’ psychosocial well‐being, which i…
Family Themes of Food Refusal
A problematic issue in studying anorexia nervosa (AN) has been the absence of a qualitative study that probes the deep meanings of food refusal. We attempt to close this gap by studying the family meanings of food refusal by a single case study of a family in Hong Kong with an AN daughter. Eight videotapes of family therapy sessions, each lasting 90 minutes, were intensively reviewed, transcribed verbatim, and content analyzed. Two family themes …
Parenting distress and parental investment of Hong Kong Chinese parents with a child having an emotional or behavioural problem
This qualitative study aims to understand the parenting distress and parental investment of Hong Kong Chinese parents with a child having an emotional or behavioural problem. The parents of 24 children and adolescents who sought psychiatric consultation within the study period were interviewed using open‐ended questions. The data revealed a vicious reciprocal interaction in which the symptoms affected the parents’ psychosocial well‐being, which i…
Aetiology of anorexia nervosa in Hong Kong
This paper reports the results of a qualitative inquiry into the aetiology of anorexia nervosa in Hong Kong. These results are part of our main research project about family treatment and families with a daughter suffering from anorexia nervosa. This present qualitative study adopts a multiple case study approach ( n = 8) and employs a multiple‐source data collection method, involving pre‐ and post‐family treatment interviews, clinical observatio…
In search of perfect motherhood for imperfect childhood – experiences of 22 Chinese mothers
Motherhood is subjectively defined and contextually based. This article describes and unfolds the experience of 22 Chinese mothers in Hong Kong in cultivating a sense of perfect motherhood for their children who have mental or behavioural problems that require psychiatric consultation. The mother, the significant others and the general public perceive the latter as a form of imperfection. The mothering experiences were full of frustrations, ambiv…
Living in poverty
Anorexia nervosa (AN) is no longer a disease of the rich in the West. Hitherto, no study has been carried out in the West or in the Chinese context that documents the experiences of poor people suffering from AN. This qualitative study aims to identify the subjective experiences of seven Chinese emaciated adolescents and young women coming from low‐income families, their family difficulties and needs, and resilience in coping. The results of the …
A Feminist Family Therapy Research Study
In Hong Kong no one has ever explored a female anorectic's experience of family therapy by inviting her to review her family sessions. By using a retrospective approach, this single case study adopted an interpretative paradigm with an open-ended question regarding how the patient experienced the family sessions. The distinct feature of this data collection was that the patient served as a research instrument and was invited to review six family …
Labor Force Participation of Married Women in Hong Kong
The study examined, from a feminist perspective, the labor force participation of married women in Hong Kong at different stages of the family life cycle, as well as the interaction of women's gender role attitudes with human capital variables and resource variables. Findings showed that labor force participation of married women was both an ideological issue and a resource issue. The coexistence of a higher education level and a nontraditional g…
Meanings of eating disorders discerned from family treatment and its implications for family education
Contrary to the simplistic myth that eating disorders are the result of a tendency to adopt the Western beauty standard of being slim and thin, the symptoms have been found to symbolize the struggles of adolescents and their development in a rapidly changing society, and in particular, to illuminate the continual conflicts inherent in the afflicted adolescents, their families and the accepted societal values and norms. This paper reports the resu…
Siblings Family Drama
Little is known in the process and outcome of family treatment for families with a member suffering from anorexia nervosa in Chinese contexts. To show the rich narratives of the family's experiences of the course of family treatment with twelve sessions when struggling through anorexia nervosa, the authors present a case from Hong Kong for describing and analyzing the processes of change in both anorectic symptoms and family relationships of the …
Unwrapping the Box
The authors describe the case of a girl suffering from anorexia nervosa who was regarded as a great challenge by her family therapist in Hong Kong. The metaphor of unwrapping a box was adopted to describe the therapeutic strategy of helping the girl express her inner feelings, and of helping the parents listen to their daughter describe her pain and suffering in the presence of the therapist. Health care professionals have to lead the dance, crea…
Eating Disorders, Parent-Child Conflicts, and Family Therapy in Shenzhen, China
In this article, I report the results of a qualitative study conducted in Shenzhen, China, in which I aimed to (a) identify the characteristics of parent-child conflicts between Shenzhen youths suffering from eating disorders and their parents and (b) contextualize these intergenerational conflicts to understand their meanings within the immediate sociocultural context. I have employed multiple-case studies as the research design. Data have been …
An exploratory study of the impact of an adolescent's eating disorder on Chinese parents' well-being, marital life and perceived family functioning in Shenzhen, China
In this paper, the author reports the results of an exploratory study conducted in Shenzhen, China on how an eating disorder in an adolescent or adult child in the family would affect the parents' well-being, quality of marital life and the perceived family functioning. Out of 33 patients suffering from eating disorders and referred for family treatment, 18 mothers and 15 fathers participated in this study. The data were gathered using a standard…
Maltreatment in Parent–Child Relationships of Chinese Families with Children Suffering from Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder in Hong Kong
This paper describes the lived experience of maltreatment in parent–child relationships in relation to Chinese children diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), which emerged from a qualitative study conducted in Hong Kong. Out of a clinical sample of forty-four families, 25 per cent of children reported parental abuse, 21 per cent of parents had suffered from child-to-parent maltreatment and 11 per cent of families had exp…
Learning Outcome of a Family Therapy Training Course for Psychiatric Nurses in a Chinese Context
Repairing the Parent–Child Relationship for a Hong Kong Chinese Family of an Adult Daughter with High Functioning Autism (HFA) Through Structural Family Therapy and Multiple Family Therapy
The impact of poverty on children in out-of-home care services in a Chinese context and the application of multiple family group therapy to enrich their family lives
Sitting In
This article explores family therapy trainees’ subjective experiences of working as cotherapists with a supervisory‐level therapist in a Chinese context, regarding their perceptions of and positioning in it and also their opinions on the benefits and/or pitfalls of cotherapy. Individual interviews with a total of six cotherapists revealed three themes: (1) Cotherapy was perceived as an experiential learning journey that evolved from anxiety and e…
Factors influencing parenting stress among Chinese families of children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder
Treatment efficacy of multiple family therapy in helping Chinese children of depressed parents in Hong Kong, China
This article reports results of a study that assessed the efficacy of multiple family therapy (MFT) for helping children of depressed parent(s), using a quasi‐randomized controlled trial design. In total, 76 children participated in the study, with 51 children were assigned to the experimental group (EG) and 25 to the comparison group (CG). The EG children and their parents completed the three‐month MFT program, while the CG children and their pa…
An interactive process model of knowledge transfer for social work through university–agency collaboration
This article reports on the outcome of an exploratory study on a university–agency collaboration in a Chinese context for transferring social work knowledge from academia to the field and beyond. A six-stage process characterised by interactive contributions from the university and the agency in question was identified from the trainees’ narratives of the content, process and their subjective experiences with the three-year collaboration. The two…
The family structural and socioeconomic characteristics of the family well‐being of Hong Kong people
This study investigated the family well‐being of Hong Kong people through a randomized telephone survey of 2008 adults, using a standardized six‐domain index developed specifically for this population. Multiple regression analyses were conducted to examine the heterogeneity of family well‐being according to demographic, family structural, and socioeconomic characteristics. The results showed significant gender and age differences in people's perc…
The Feasibility and the Therapeutic Process Factors of Online vs. Face-to-Face Multifamily Therapy for Adults with High-Functioning Autism Spectrum Disorder in Hong Kong
The need to expand knowledge of family-based intervention for people with ASD has been observed. However, there is a lack of study in Chinese context such as Hong Kong exploring the use of multifamily therapy (MFT) for adults with ASD. The primary aim of the present study is to assess the feasibility of a process-oriented MFT in promoting family relationships for young adults with high functioning-ASD (HF-ASD) and their parents. We also sought to…
Factors mediating the intergenerational transmission of depressive symptoms
Psychology (23 works) · Psychiatry (15 works) · Developmental psychology (13 works) · Medicine (11 works) · Psychotherapist (11 works) · Clinical Psychology (10 works) · Family therapy (10 works) · Child and Adolescent Psychosocial and Emotional Development (9 works) · Sociology (9 works) · Social Psychology (8 works)