ObjectiveInvestigating the mental health status of Chinese resident physicians during the 2019 new coronavirus outbreak.MethodsA cluster sampling method was adopted to collect all China-wide resident physicians during the epidemic period as the research subjects. The Symptom Checklist-90 self-rating scale was used to assess mental health using WeChat electronic questionnaires.ResultsIn total, 511 electronic questionnaires were recovered, all of which were valid. The negative psychological detection rate was 93.9%. Among the symptoms on the self-rating scale, more than half of (...) the Chinese resident physicians had mild to moderate symptoms of mental unhealthiness, and a few had asymptomatic or severe unhealthy mental states. In particular, the detection rate of abnormality was 88.3%, obsessive-compulsive symptoms was 90.4%, the sensitive interpersonal relationship was 90.6%, depression abnormality was 90.8% /511), anxiety abnormality was 88.3%, hostility abnormality was 85.3%, terror abnormality was 84.9%, paranoia abnormality was 86.9%, psychotic abnormalities was 89.0%, and abnormal sleeping and eating status was 90.8%. The scores of various psychological symptoms of pediatric resident physicians were significantly lower than those of non-pediatrics.ConclusionThe new coronavirus epidemic has a greater impact on the mental health of Chinese resident physicians. (shrink)

Objective: Loneliness is the subjective distress of feeling alone and has a strong impact on wellbeing and health. In addition to well-known predictors like isolation and poor health, a better understanding of the psychological determinants of loneliness would offer effective targets for future complementary interventions.Methods: In this cross-sectional observational study, we compared the explanatory power of several important risk factors of loneliness with the affective, motivational, and cognitive aspects of the Meaning in Life construct. Different nested linear models (...) were compared including socio-demographic, lifestyles, social-connectedness, and self-rated health variables, to assess the overlapping and non-overlapping explanatory power of each of them.Results: Health status and MiL were found to be the most important predictors of loneliness, followed by social connectedness and, with a much lower weight, lifestyles, and socio-demographic factors. Within the MiL factor, the most cognitive component, sense of coherence, had a greater explanatory power than the more affective and motivational ones.Conclusion: Reduced MiL, the capacity of an individual to attach “value and significance” to life, is a crucial predictor to the feeling of loneliness. These results suggest that programs aiming to combat loneliness should go well beyond situational interventions and include more cognitive, value-centered interventions that enable individuals to define and pursue a meaningful vital plan. (shrink)

Smell perception plays an important role in eating behavior and might be involved in body weight gain. Since a body of literature implies that olfactory perception and function is hampered in obesity, we here investigate neuroanatomical correlates of this phenomenon. We assessed olfactory bulb volume with magnetic resonance imaging in 67 healthy participants with a body mass index from 18.9 to 45.4 kg/m2. Moreover, we obtained psychophysiological data on olfactory ability and self-report measurements on eating behavior. Additionally, we collected parameters (...) associated with metabolic health in obesity to investigate recently proposed mechanistic explanatory models of why olfaction may be altered in obesity. We showed that OB volume was significantly lower in participants with obesity when compared to those of normal weight. Moreover, we found weak to moderate negative correlations between OB volume and BMI and related measures of metabolic health, especially leptin, body fat percentage, waist-height ratio and insulin resistance. However, neither OB volume nor BMI were related to olfactory function in our young and healthy sample. Nevertheless, our results provide first indications that obesity is associated with brain anatomical changes in the OBs. (shrink)

This study assessed self-reported health-related quality of life and psychological adjustment in 43 adolescents and young adults with congenital melanocytic nevi and examined associations with sociodemographic variables, characteristics of the CMN, perceived social reactions, and cognitive emotion regulation strategies. Outcome measures included the Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory™ 4.0 and the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire. Findings suggest impaired psychosocial health and psychological adjustment in youth with CMN compared to community norms. Impairments were associated with higher age of participants, (...) lower socioeconomic status, visibility of the skin lesion, perceived stigmatization, poorer perceived social support, and maladaptive cognitive emotion regulation strategies, but not with sex of participants, extent of the skin lesion, and surgical removal of the nevus. Implications for clinical practice and future research are discussed. (shrink)

Good sleep is essential for health but there is no consensus on how to define and measure people’s understanding of good sleep. To date, people’s perceptions of a good night’s sleep have been, almost exclusively, conceptualized under the lens of sleep quality, which refers to objective characteristics of good sleep, such as such as ease and time needed to fall asleep, hours of sleep, and physical symptoms during sleep and upon awakening. A related, yet different construct, sleep satisfaction, refers (...) to perceived positive affect about one’s sleep experience and has, to date, received little attention. This research focuses on sleep satisfaction, rather than sleep quality, and aims to develop a self-report measure to assess sleep satisfaction in an English adult population. As the measure will be developed in Suffolk, England, and its primary intended users are Suffolk community members, it is labelled the Suffolk Sleep Index. The SuSI will draw from principles of community-based participatory research, following a seven-phase developmental process comprising literature review, interviews with Suffolk community members, synthesis of literature review and interview findings, pre-testing, pilot-testing, scale evaluation, and refinement. The present research will also investigate indices related to sleep satisfaction, including the community’s general health status, lifestyle factors and socio-economic status. The research will add to the limited, yet emerging body of research on perceived sleep satisfaction and its measurement. To our knowledge, a valid and reliable sleep satisfaction self-report measure has not been developed in the United Kingdom previously. (shrink)

Introduction: Globally, vitamin D deficiency is one of the most common deficiencies, affecting nearly half the world's population. The objective of this survey was to assess and compare the knowledge about vitamin D and the perceived state of health in Emirati and international tourist female students in Dubai, UAE. Methods: This is a cross-sectional study that took place in universities in Dubai, UAE. This survey consisted of 17 multiple choice questions. The first part of the survey assessed levels of (...) supplementation, diet and UV exposure. Another section evaluated the participants’ self-assessed state of health regarding vitamin D testing, symptoms related to vitamin D deficiency and general welbeing. The collected data were statistically analyzed using SPSS statistics for windows version 26.0 (SPSS Inc., Chicago, IL). Statistical significance was set at P<0.05. Results: 105 respondents were Emiratis and 65 were international students. The average age was 21, with an average BMI 23.3. Almost one-third of each group reported using Vitamin D supplements once weekly. The majority of both groups reported rarely getting tanned. Almost all participants reported regular consumption of Vitamin-D rich foods. In both groups, more than half reported consuming milk and cheese regularly and up to one-third reported consuming fish in a regular manner. Although more than half of the students rated their health as good; more than two-thirds reported experiencing muscle pain; only half reported having their blood Vitamin D levels measured once; half reported experiencing problems with concentration and more than three-quarters reported experiencing bad mood in the past month. The prevalence of these symptoms was almost similar across different categories of vitamin D supplementation, tanning habits, dietary intake, or nationality. No statistically significant differences were noted between the 2 groups. Conclusion: more Emirati students were aware of the association between vitamin D and osteoporosis than International tourist students (40% vs. 21.9%, respectively; p<0.05). On the other hand, both groups had lower knowledge about the relationship between vitamin D deficiency and depression, Rheumatoid Arthritis and Hypertension, and the optimal vitamin D level; however, no statistically significant differences were noted regarding this knowledge of Emiratis and international students. (shrink)

The novelty of the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic is that it is occurring in a globalized society enhanced by digital capabilities. Our aim was to analyze the psychological and emotional states of participants in different pandemic-related contexts, with a focus on their digital and physical distancing behaviors. The online survey was applied during the ascending phase of the pandemic in March 2020 in two neighboring EU countries: Italy and Croatia. The study subjects involved four groups, two directly affected by epidemiological (...) measures and two serving as controls— participants from Italy who were in lockdown, participants from Croatia who were not in lockdown but who were in direct contact with an infected person and underwent epidemiological measures, participants from Croatia who were in an analogous situation but not near the same infected person, and participants from Croatia who were not aware of any infected person. The survey consisted of validated scales of psychological and emotional states, and custom-made questionnaires on the digital and physical behavior of the participants. The Italy group in lockdown had higher self-perceived scores for depression, stress, post-traumatic intrusion, and avoidance, as well as the highest digital activity and physical distancing than the not-in-lockdown Croatian groups. The insight into the extent of online activities and off-line isolation allowed for the introduction of Digital Activity and Physical Distancing Scores. Self-perceived post-traumatic avoidance was higher in both the Italy and CRO-contact groups than the control CRO-no contact and CRO-unrelated groups, and higher avoidance correlated with higher Digital Activity and Physical Distancing Scores. Being in direct contact with the infected person, the CRO-contact group had no other alterations than unexpectedly lower post-traumatic hyperarousal when compared with the Italy group. The Italy group in lockdown demonstrated higher self-perceived psychological toll together with higher digital activity and physical distancing than Croatian groups not in lockdown, even when compared with the affected CRO-contact group. The study outcomes suggest that the general emergency measures influenced citizens in lockdown more than exposure to the virus through direct contact with an infected person. (shrink)

As the largest labour flow in human history, the recent rise in migration in China has opened up unprecedented opportunities for millions of Chinese to rearrange their lives. At the same time, this process has also posed great challenges to Chinese migrants, especially female migrants, who not only face a bias against ‘outsiders’ but also have a greater need for reproductive health-related services in their migratory destinations. Based on data collected via multiple sources in Shanghai, China’s largest metropolis, this (...) study profiles the changing characteristics of female migrants, presents data on self-reported symptoms of reproductive health-related problems and knowledge on reproductive health issues, compares maternal and child health measures between migrants and local residents, and examines factors related to reproductive health knowledge and migrants’ access to health care in urban china. Results of this study show a relatively low level of self-reported reproductive health problems among female migrants, coupled with a relatively high level of ignorance in knowledge related to STD. both self-reported health status and knowledge of reproductive health are related to migrants’ educational attainment and length of stay in the urban destination. This study also finds ample evidence that female migrants’ access to urban health care is limited by a number of institutional barriers. (shrink)

It has been observed that some groups in society tend to report their health to be better than would be expected through more objective measures. The available evidence suggests that while variations in self-assessed measures of health may act as good proxies of mortality and morbidity in homogeneous populations, in some groups, such as the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities of Australia, these subjective measures may provide a misleading picture. Useful insights into the formation of health (...) perceptions can be drawn from a range of disciplines, in particular, from social comparison theories, models of illness behaviour, survey literature and linguistics. These theories and models help to provide an understanding of the different ways in which illness may be perceived, evaluated and acted upon by different kinds of people. Such considerations can have very direct implications for those planning and evaluating public health programs as well as those responsible for funding such programs. (shrink)

The primary aim was to assess the role of mental and physical health of COVID-19 and its psychological impact in the general population of Pakistan during the first wave of COVID-19. It was hypothesized that there would be a significant predictive association among socio-demographic variables, psychological impact and mental health status resulting from COVID-19, and poor self-reported physical health would be significantly associated with adverse psychological impact and poor mental health status because of COVID-19. (...) A cross-sectional survey research design was used in which 1,361 respondents were sampled online during lockdown imposed in the country. The Impact of Events Scale-Revised was used to assess the psychological impact of COVID-19, and the Depression Anxiety Stress Scales was used to assess participants’ mental health status. 18% of the respondents reported moderate to severe event-specific distress, 22.6% reported moderate to severely extreme depression, 29% reported moderate to extreme anxiety, and 12.1% reported moderate to extreme stress. Female gender, having graduate-level education, currently studying, and self-reported physical symptoms were significantly associated with higher levels of psychological impact exhibited through higher scores on the IES-R and poorer mental health status exhibited through higher scores on the DASS-21. (shrink)

Studies on the determinants of school results have shown that they depend largely on the context of learning. Concerning the pandemic, teachers have been forced to find online teaching methods, which leads us to the central issue of this study of whether the effectiveness of online education depends on teachers’ digital skills. Therefore, in this study, we analyzed the perceived digital competences of Romanian pre-tertiary cycle teachers about their professional status, school location, gender, age, taught field, and prior participation (...) in training for online teaching. Using data from 3,419 self-completed questionnaires in an online survey of teachers performed at the beginning of the global lockdown in March 2020, we have built two reliable measures of perceived digital skills, namely the Self-Assessed Multimedia and Online Skills Score and the Self-Assessed Digital Office Skills Score, which were the dependent variables in our study. Hierarchical linear regressions were used to test the hypotheses regarding the variations of dependent variables, measuring the two concepts of self-assessed digital skills. These concepts underlined that both decrease with age and are positively affected by prior attendance at training sessions for online teaching skills and by having ICT and informatics as a taught subject field. However, teachers of all specialties are relatively significantly less skilled in this field. The most important results concern the impact of gender and professional status on the teachers’ self-assessed digital competences. In summary, it appears that self-assessed office digital skills are a specialism demonstrated mainly by female teachers, while multimedia and online skills are perceived by teachers to be a “male” domain. Simultaneously, net of the other variables, a higher status within the teaching profession correlates positively with perceived office digital skills. Lastly, implications for future research, as well as for educational interventions and policies, are discussed. (shrink)

Lower subjective socioeconomic status (SSS) and higher personal relative deprivation (PRD) relate to poorer health. Both constructs concern people’s perceived relative social position, but they differ in their emphasis on the reference groups people use to determine their comparative disadvantage (national population vs. similar others) and the importance of resentment that may arise from such adverse comparisons. We investigated the relative utility of SSS and PRD as predictors of self-rated physical and mental health (e.g., self-rated health, (...) stress, health complaints). Across 6 studies, self-rated physical and mental health were on the whole better predicted by measures of PRD than by SSS while controlling for objective socioeconomic status (SES), with SSS rarely contributing unique variance over and above PRD and SES. Studies 4 to 6 discount the possibility that the superiority of PRD over SSS in predicting health is due to psychometric differences (e.g., reliability) or response biases between the measures. (shrink)

ObjectivesAlthough socioeconomic status has been shown to be an important determinant of physical activity in adults, the association in children and adolescents remains less consistent based on evidence from western developed countries. The purpose of this study, therefore, is to investigate associations between SES and PA among Chinese children and adolescents.MethodsA cross-sectional study was conducted with a self-reported questionnaire in China. The multi-stage stratified cluster sampling method was used, and 2,955 children and adolescents were enrolled in this study. SES (...) was assessed by measuring parental education levels, perceived family wealth, and Family Affluence Scale II. PA was assessed by reliable and valid items from the Health Behavior School-aged Children Surveillance questionnaires. Descriptive statistics were used to report sample characteristics, including demographic characteristics, levels of PA, and SES. The Chi-square test was applied to analyze the differences of PA in gender and school period. Binary logistic regression was used to analyze the association between SES and PA among children and adolescents.ResultsOverall, 10.4% of children and adolescents accumulated moderate-to-vigorous physical activity at least 60 min per day. Boys were more physically active than girls. Higher socioeconomic status was positively associated with higher physical activity levels among children and adolescents, especially using FAS and mother education level as SES measures. The association between SES and PA varied by gender and grade group, and the effects of SES are also different on weekdays and weekends.ConclusionThis study found socioeconomic disparities in PA among Chinese children and adolescents, and showed the importance of targeting children and adolescents with low SES intervention priority. Based on these research findings, it is suggested that SES, especially for FAS and mother education level, should be considered when designing and implementing the promotion of regular PA in children and adolescents. Health policymakers may use this information to develop interventions to reduce health inequalities among children and adolescents in the future. (shrink)

BackgroundAdolescents’ engagement in daily physical activity brings multiple benefits, including reduction in obesity, improvement of mental health, and enhancement of cognitive function. While prior studies have examined the link between physical activity and cognitive function, little is known regarding the extent to which this relationship is shaped by health and wellbeing factors. This study examines how subjective wellbeing and general health mediate the relationship between adolescents’ physical activity and cognitive function.MethodsThis study estimates a parallel structural equation model (...) using the Program for International Student Assessment 2018 dataset. Specifically, a total of 63,228 15-year-old subjects in nine countries/economies satisfied the study inclusion criteria, including in Bulgaria, Georgia, Hong Kong, Ireland, Mexico, Panama, Serbia, Spain, and United Arab Emirates. Frequency of moderate physical activity was reported weekly; SWB and GH were assessed using an internationally validated multi-item standardized questionnaire. SWB was measured by students’ self-evaluated satisfaction with their health, life, and schooling. GH was measured by students’ physical health and mental health status. Cognitive function was modeled as a latent function consisting of plausible values derived using item response theory on reading, mathematics, and science achievement tests.ResultsFindings indicated that increase in weekly MPA was positively associated with higher levels of SWB, GH, and CF among the study subjects. Parallel mediation analyses revealed that more frequent weekly MPA had relatively large direct effects on CF, and indirect effects channeling through improvements in SWB and GH were non-trivial. Heterogeneity results showed that boosts to CF, associated with MPA, were larger for mathematics and science than for reading.ConclusionThis study used a large-scale international dataset to show that the positive relationship observed between MPA and CF among adolescents was robust, and that SWB and GH were two critical mediators through which physical activity positively bolster CF. (shrink)

As COVID-19 pandemic continued to propagate, millions of lives are currently at risk especially elderly, people with chronic conditions and pregnant women. Iraq is one of the countries affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Currently, in Iraq, there is a need for a self-assessment tool to be available in hand for people with COVID-19 concerns. Such a tool would guide people, after an automated assessment, to the right decision such as seeking medical advice, self-isolate, or testing for COVID-19. This study proposes (...) an online COVID-19 self-assessment tool supported by the internet of medical things (IoMT) technology as a means to fight this pandemic and mitigate the burden on our nation’s healthcare system. Advances in IoMT technology allow us to connect all medical tools, medical databases, and devices via the internet in one collaborative network, which conveys real-time data integration and analysis. Our IoMT framework-driven COVID-19 self-assessment tool will capture signs and symptoms through multiple probing questions, storing the data to our COVID-19 patient database, then analyze the data to determine whether a person needs to be tested for COVID-19 or other actions may require to be taken. Further to this, collected data can be integrated and analyzed collaboratively for developing a national health policy and help to manage healthcare resources more efficiently. The IoMT framework-driven online COVID-19 self-assessment tool has a big potential to prevent our healthcare system from being overwhelmed using real-time data collection, COVID-19 databases, analysis, and management of people with COVID-19 concerns, plus providing proper guidance and course of action. (shrink)

Background: Multiple studies have shown that people who have experienced a serious health problem such as an injury tend to overrate the quality of health they had before that event. The main objective of this study was to test whether the phenomenon of respondents overrating their past health can also be observed in people from the general population. A second aim was to test whether habitual optimism is indeed focused on events in the future.Method: A representatively selected (...) community sample from Leipzig, Germany was examined. Respondents were asked to assess their current health, their past health, and their expected future health on a 0–100 scale. In addition, the study participants completed several questionnaires on specific aspects of physical and mental health.Results: Respondents of all age groups assessed their health as having been better in the past than it was at present. Moreover, they also assessed their earlier state of health more positively than people 5 years younger did their current state. Habitual optimism was associated with respondents having more positive expectations of how healthy they will be in 5 years time, but the correlation with their assessments of their current health was nearly as high.Conclusion: Highly positive scores of retrospectively assessed health among people who have experienced a health problem cannot totally be accounted for by a response to that health problem. (shrink)

BackgroundChronic airway diseases are prevalent and costly conditions. Interdisciplinary rehabilitation programs that include Acceptance and Commitment-based components could be important to tackle the vicious circle linking progression of the disease, inactivity, and psychopathological symptoms.MethodsA retrospective evaluation of routinely collected data of an interdisciplinary rehabilitation program was performed. The program included group sessions including patient education, breathing exercise, occupational therapy and an ACT-based psychological treatment, and individual sessions of physical therapy. Demographic data, clinical characteristics of the patients and the values of (...) outcome variables before treatment, at discharge, at 3 months, and at 6 months were extracted from medical records. Multiple imputation was employed to address missing data. Linear mixed models were employed to assess changes over time. Multivariable logistic regression was performed to assess predictors of a minimum clinically important change of health status from baseline to the 6-months follow-up.ResultsData from 31 patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and 12 patients with bronchiectasis were extracted. Health status improved from baseline to discharge to the 3 months follow-up, but not to the 6 months follow-up. Anxiety and depression improved across all the time points. Quality of life did not improve over time. Having a worse health status at baseline and fewer depressive symptoms were significantly associated with achieving a minimum clinically important change of health status at 6 months. The effects of the interdisciplinary program were not different for patients with COPD or with bronchiectasis.DiscussionInterdisciplinary programs including ACT-based components are promising treatments for the rehabilitation of patients with chronic airway diseases. (shrink)

Thirty-eight individuals (mean age: 34.8 years old) participating in a 3-month yoga and meditation retreat were assessed before and after the intervention for psychometric measures, brain derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), circadian salivary cortisol levels, and pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines. Participation in the retreat was found to be associated with decreases in self-reported anxiety and depression as well as increases in mindfulness. As hypothesized, increases in the plasma levels of BDNF and increases in the magnitude of the cortisol awakening response (CAR) (...) were also observed. The normalized change in BDNF levels was inversely correlated with BSI-18 anxiety scores at both the pre-retreat (r = 0.40, p < 0.05) and post-retreat (r = 0.52, p < 0.005) such that those with greater anxiety scores tended to exhibit smaller pre- to post-retreat increases in plasma BDNF levels. In line with a hypothesized decrease in inflammatory processes resulting from the yoga and meditation practices, we found that the plasma level of the anti-inflammatory cytokine Interleukin-10 was increased and the pro-inflammatory cytokine Interleukin-12 was reduced after the retreat. Contrary to our initial hypotheses, plasma levels of other pro-inflammatory cytokines, including Interferon Gamma (IFN-γ), Tumor Necrosis Factor (TNF-α), Interleukin-1β (IL-1β), Interleukin-6 (IL-6), and Interleukin-8 (IL-8) were increased after the retreat. Given evidence from previous studies of the positive effects of meditative practices on mental fitness, autonomic homeostasis and inflammatory status, we hypothesize that these findings are related to the meditative practices throughout the retreat; however, some of the observed changes may also be related to other aspects of the retreat such as physical exercise-related components of the yoga practice and diet. We hypothesize that the patterns of change observed here reflect mind-body integration and well-being. The increased BDNF levels observed is a potential mediator between meditative practices and brain health, the increased CAR is likely a reflection of increased dynamic physiological arousal, and the relationship of the dual enhancement of pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokine changes to healthy immunologic functioning is discussed. (shrink)

Welfare science has built its foundations on veterinary medicine and thus measures of health. Since bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) tend to mask symptoms of poor health, management in captivity would benefit from advanced understanding on the links between health and behavioural parameters, and few studies exist on the topic. In this study, four representative behavioural and health measures were chosen: health status (as qualified by veterinarians), percentage of daily food eaten, occurrences of new rake (...) marks (proxy measure of social activity), and willingness to participate (WtP) in Positive Reinforcement Training sessions as qualitatively measured by their caretakers. These data were collected multiple times a day, every day over the course of a year from a multi-facility, large sample size (ndolphins= 51), allowing powerful analyses of the relationships between measures. First, it was found that dolphins with a higher WtP score also had a significantly better health status, ate a higher percentage of their daily food, and a lower occurrence of new rake marks. In addition, the WtP score was significantly lower up to 3 days before the weekly veterinary diagnosis of a decrease in health state; the percentage of daily food eaten and new rake mark measures did not show any significant change before such a diagnosis. These results suggest that WtP in training sessions is a potential behavioural measure of dolphin welfare, and an indicator of early changes in the dolphins’ health state. We therefore suggest measurement of WtP as a more practical and non-invasive tool to support veterinary care and general management. More work needs to be conducted to elucidate the influence of social behaviour on health, and to identify other potential welfare indicators, but this long-term study has shown that qualitative measures can be both practical and valid when assessing dolphin welfare. (shrink)

This study aimed to determine the relationship between acute stress and quality of life and explore their influencing factors on health care workers. A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted, and a sample of 525 health care workers was recruited from 15 hospitals through a convenient sampling method. Participants completed an online self-report questionnaire to assess their acute stress and quality of life. Descriptive and multiple linear regression statistics were used for this analysis. The results regarding acute stress responses (...) varied significantly among the differences in marital status, physical activity, work status, perceived risk of contracting COVID-19, and the expected duration of the pandemic. Moreover, a younger age, lack of physical activity, being a front-line medical staff, and higher acute stress scores indicated a worse quality of life. Healthcare workers’ acute stress was negatively correlated with their quality of life. Therefore, the authorities should pay special attention to health care workers’ mental health and provide them with timely protection during the pandemic. (shrink)

BackgroundPhysical activity and Physical fitness have received tremendous attention in the field of physical and mental health. However, limited attention has been given to the associations of self-reported physical fitness with some health-related outcomes. Given the COVID-19 pandemic is still active in many Chinese regions, assessing health-related physical fitness in adolescents using field-based assessment is unrealistic, therefore, this study was conducted via a self-reported questionnaire.PurposeThe present cross-sectional study was aimed at delving into the relationship between self-reported physical (...) fitness with self-rated health, depression, anxiety, and body satisfaction in adolescents. Three thousand eight hundred and seven study participants from 12 public schools in South-eastern China were recruited and 2,407 of them provided valid data on variables that this study needed for analysis.Materials and methodsStudy participants were asked to self-report their sociodemographic factors, independence, and outcomes. Generalized linear models were used to explore the associations of self-reported physical fitness with depression, anxiety, and body satisfaction. A total of 2,407 children and adolescents with a mean age of 13.82 years were included in the final study analysis.ResultsHigher self-reported levels of general physical fitness and cardiorespiratory fitness were associated with better self-rated health, and body satisfaction but with lower risks of depression and anxiety.ConclusionThe current study offered evidence on the roles of self-reported physical fitness and health-related outcomes. To facilitate health in children and adolescents, advocating fitness education, and promotion could be a feasible approach. (shrink)

IntroductionWith the normalization of COVID-19 prevention and control, a large number of intergenerational audiences with different cognition preferences and value orientations have started to pour into non-acquaintance virtual communities to address their social needs by disclosing their own thoughts, feelings and experiences toward certain topics. To avoid the negative impacts of self-disclosure, this study introduced the concept of social integration into cyber society among non-acquaintance VCs, such as the topic-based VCs. Our theoretical model considers both the psychological antecedents and consequences (...) of VC audiences’ social integration and our findings have implications for public online social life. Moreover, this research could play a guiding role in improving VC audiences’ social integration status in future online learning and telecommuting scenarios.MethodTo assess the theoretical model constructed in this manuscript, we conducted an online survey in two different topic-based VCs among Microblog and yielded 472 useable responses from intergenerational audiences, among which 28.81% were born before 1985, 26.67% were born from 1985 to 1995, and 48.52% were born after 1995. Our sample consisted of 208 individuals from Health Regimen VC and 264 individuals from Star Chasing VC, 200 were men and 272 were women.ResultsOur structural equation model indicated that individuals’ self-disclosure in topic-based VCs might not directly guide them to acquire social integration. However, intimacy and cognitive communion derived from VC audiences’ self-disclosure might not only enhance their social integration, but also improve their psychological well-being. In addition, VC audiences’ social integration mediated the relationship between intimacy and psychological well-being, and the relationship between cognitive communion and psychological well-being. Moreover, VC audiences’ intimacy was found to have a direct influence on their cognitive communion.ConclusionIn the context of topic-based VCs, audiences’ self-disclosure could significantly foster their intimacy and cognitive communion with others, and both intimacy and cognitive communion are conductive to VC audiences’ social integration. Thus, audiences in topic-based VCs who wish to improve their psychological well-being need to disclose themselves and build corresponding psychological foundations to enhance their social integration. Meanwhile, topic-based VCs should pay attention to the cultivation of intimacy and cognitive communion among audiences while encouraging them to reveal themselves. (shrink)

This study investigates the relationship between EI and the state of mental health of unemployed persons. Gender differences were also identified in terms of mental health and its correlation with EI. A sample of 160 Polish unemployed persons aged 35 to 45 years filled in self-descriptive measures of EI and mental health. Significant gender differences were found - unemployed women were characterised by a greater intensity of mental health disorders than unemployed men. EI was negatively correlated (...) with mental health disorders, but the correlations were few and weaker than expected. However, when unemployed persons with a low, average and high EI were compared, it turned out that participants with a low EI were characterised by a significantly worse condition of mental health than participants with a average or high EI. (shrink)

Against the backdrop of an aging global population and the increasing pressure of medical care expenditures for seniors, this paper used a fuzzy regression discontinuity model to explore the effects of retirement on the self-assessed health and objective physical and mental health of older people. Using survey data from the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study, our model addresses some relevant academic controversies. Our sample was comprised of male respondents from government agencies, enterprises, and public institutions. The (...) research explored the impact of retirement on lifestyle habits and included an in-depth analysis of the mechanism through which retirement influences different aspects of health. The results show that: Retirement does not have any significant impact on objective health, including depression and self-care ability, but it does cause a notable decline in subjective health assessment. Retirement shortened the sleep time of respondents, which may account for lower scores on subjective health self-evaluations, but it did not lead to any noticeable improvement in habits which are harmful to health, such as smoking and drinking. Marriage can help alleviate the problems of depression and smoking among older people, and education has a somewhat broader positive effect on their health and lifestyles; however, neither factor helps to improve the sleep problems of older people. Therefore, this paper recommends that efforts should be made to both optimize retirement policies and seek further ways to improve the health of the retired population. (shrink)

Background:Ethical competence in nursing practice helps clinical nurses to think critically, analyse issues, make ethical decisions, solve ethical problems and behave ethically in their daily work. Thus, ethical competence contributes to the promotion of high-quality care. However, studies on ethical competence in Malawi are scanty.Objectives:The aim of this study was to explore ethical competence among clinical nurses in selected hospitals in Malawi.Methodology:A cross-sectional survey was conducted in four selected hospitals in Malawi with a sample of 271 clinical nurses. Data were (...) collected using self-administered questionnaires, which included a Moral Competence Scale for Home Care Nurses. Descriptive statistics and logistic regression were computed for the dataset using STATA version 12.0.Ethical consideration:The study protocol complied with all ethical requirements and was approved by the College of Medicine Research Ethics Committee under the University of Malawi.Results:The clinical nurses in Malawi are ethically competent. However, there is a significantly high number (p 0.05). Three determinants of high ethical competence level (strong will, judgement skills and recognition of discrepancy of intention) were identified through a reduced model after stepwise logistic regression analysis. Furthermore, results show that indicators of ethical competence include caring, confidentiality and observance of nurses dressing code. The study has also confirmed that the Moral Competence Scale for Home Care Nurses is a reliable tool to assess ethical competence in low-resource settings.Conclusion:The majority of nurses who completed the survey had low ethical competence. However, clinical nurses with high ethical competence level are required to competently manage complex ethical challenges in health facilities. Strategies for enhancing ethical competence such as continuing ethics education, establishment of ethics committees and provision of supportive supervision are recommended to enable nurses in Malawi attain a high level of ethical competence. (shrink)

Background: The brief generic Multicultural Quality of Life Index is a culturally informed self-report 10-item questionnaire used to measure health-related quality of life. QoL is an important outcome measure in guiding healthcare and is held as a substantial parameter to evaluate the effectiveness of healthcare. Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder in children might negatively influence the parents’ QoL. Having a validated questionnaire to measure QoL for this population will therefore be a vital first step in guiding healthcare for parents of (...) children with ADHD. We aimed to examine the reliability and validity of the Norwegian version of the MQLI in a sample of parents of children with ADHD.Methods: In a cross-sectional study, 128 parents of children with ADHD were recruited from four outpatient clinics within the Child and Adolescents Mental Health Services in Norway. They completed the MQLI along with an alternative well-being scale, the Five-item World Health Organization Well-being Index, and a form including demographic variables. Reliability and validity of the MQLI were examined. We conducted a factor analysis and calculated internal consistency and the correlation between the MQLI and the WHO-5.Results: Factor analysis of the parents reported MQLI yielded a one-factor solution. For the MQLI, Cronbach’s alpha was 0.73. The correlation between the two measures of MQLI and WHO-5 was high, reflecting convergent validity since the association between the two measures was strong.Conclusion: Results from this study support the reliability and validity of the Norwegian version of the MQLI for assessment of quality of life in parents of children with ADHD with good psychometric properties. Study findings support the use of the questionnaire in CAMHS. (shrink)

The relationship between self- and informant reports of personality using psychometric instruments is constantly the focus of attention for researchers in the field of clinical assessment in psychology. The research shows weak agreement between clinicians and patients’ assessments of personality disorders (PDs). The current study aimed at the convergence of measurement of PDs using the Shedler-Westen Assessment Procedure (SWAP-200), the self-report Character Styles Questionnaire-R (CSQ-R) and Borderline Personality Inventory (BPI). Paper-pencil questionnaires were administered to 102 inpatients (88.2% female, aged 18-64, (...) M = 38.4) in a voivodeship hospital and outpatient health care centre. The SWAP-200 allowed us to gather expert (clinician) personality ratings basing on the intensive contact with patients. Results show that only a few SWAP-200 PD scales showed low positive correlations with corresponding self-reported PD scales from the CSQ-R. With the canonical correlation analysis, we identified two functions (borderline and internalising) that described similarities between the SWAP-200 and CSQ-R. SWAP-200 Obsessive-Compulsive PD correlated negatively with BPI scales. Consistent with previous studies, the self-report and the clinical assessment were only marginally convergent. Furthermore, OCPD stands out from other disorders in that it correlates positively with health indicators and negatively with some of the other personality disorders. The highest agreement was observed in the description of Borderline PD. (shrink)

The knowledge and skills of employees could play a valuable role in organizational success. Organizations seek practices to create a knowledge-sharing culture to take full advantage of individual competencies. However, the knowledge-hiding behavior of individuals is a hurdle in the internal dissemination of knowledge and expertise. It becomes more critical in the case of teaching institutions, where the students are taught and trained. Scholars are now putting their efforts into seeking the antecedents and consequences of knowledge-hiding behavior. This study also (...) attempts to determine the role of interpersonal distrust as an antecedent of knowledge hiding behavior of music education students. Based on the social exchange theory, the present study attempts to check the association of interpersonal distrust with emotional exhaustion and knowledge hiding. For empirical investigation, this study assumes that interpersonal distrust positively enhances knowledge hiding and emotional exhaustion, respectively. Moreover, the present study also attempts to check the association of emotional exhaustion with knowledge hiding. This study also assessed the mediating role of emotional exhaustion in the relationship between interpersonal distrust and knowledge hiding. This current study also aims to check the moderating role of mental health self-efficacy in the relationship between emotional exhaustion and knowledge hiding. For empirical investigation, the present study collected the data from 310 music learning students of various Chinese universities through a structured questionnaire method using a convenient sampling technique. This study applied partial least square structural equation modeling for empirical analyses using Smart PLS software. The findings of this study revealed that interpersonal distrust does not directly influence knowledge hiding; however, interpersonal distrust has a positive association with emotional exhaustion. The findings also acknowledged that emotional exhaustion positively correlates with knowledge hiding. The results also confirmed that emotional exhaustion positively mediates the relationship between interpersonal distrust and knowledge hiding. Further, the outcomes depicted that mental health self-efficacy negatively moderates the relationship between emotional exhaustion and knowledge hiding. In addition, this study’s findings also serve the literature of knowledge hiding by providing important theoretical and practical implications. (shrink)

IntroductionSelf-stigma arising from public stigma is a heavy burden for people suffering from mental health problems. Both public stigma and self-stigma encompass the same three elements: stereotype, prejudice, and discrimination. Public stigma has already been successfully explored by the Stereotype Content Model and the Behaviors from Intergroup Affect and Stereotypes map. However, this is not the case for self-stigma. Therefore, this is the first study that applies SCM and the BIAS map to self-stigma by examining whether the effects of (...) self-stereotypes on self-directed discrimination would be mediated by self-directed prejudices in people with mental health problems.MethodWithin a total sample of N = 823 participants, who took part in an online survey, n = 336 people reported mental health problems. Mental health and self-stereotypes, self-directed prejudice, and self-directed discrimination were assessed.ResultsStructural equation modeling supported the hypothesis that the stereotype dimensions warmth and competence negatively related to prejudice, while stronger prejudice was associated with more discrimination. Prejudice fully mediated the relationship between stereotypes and discrimination. The indirect effects of warmth and competence on active and passive self-harm were moderated by competence and warmth.DiscussionImplications for further research on self-stigma and the usage of SCM and BIAS map are discussed. (shrink)

In order to better assess the mental health status, combining online text data and considering the problems of lexicon sparsity and small lexicon size in feature statistics of word frequency of the traditional linguistic inquiry and word count dictionary, and combining the advantages of constructive neural network convolutional neural network in contextual semantic extraction, a CNN-based mental health assessment method is proposed and evaluated with the measurement indicators in CLPsych2017. The results showed that the results obtained from (...) the mental health assessment by CNN were superior in all indicators, in which F1 = 0.51 and ACC = 0.69. Meanwhile, ACC evaluated by FastText, CNN, and CNN + Word2Vec were 0.66, 0.67, 0.67, and F1 were 0.37, 0.47, and 0.49, respectively, which indicates the use of CNN in mental health assessment has feasibility. (shrink)

Parents play an integral role in the mental health service provision of children and adolescents, and they can have significant effects on the outcomes of youth. A growing body of research has linked parents’ own mental health status to numerous outcomes for their children, and recent guidelines have emerged recommending the assessment of parent psychopathology when treating child patients. However, these recommendations present a range of ethical considerations. Mental health professionals must determine if the assessment of (...) a parent is empirically supported and that an assessment procedure appropriate for parents can be feasibly implemented. They must also respect the autonomy and confidentiality of parents while ensuring that assessment findings can be translated to meaningful benefits for child patients. This article details and discusses each of these concerns within the context of the relevant principles and standards of the 2016 American Psychological Association’s Code of Ethics. Further, it provides guidelines, relevant clinical examples, and an applied model for mental health professionals to consider the ethical implications of assessing parent mental health when serving child patients. (shrink)

ObjectiveThis study aims to investigate the lived experience in patients with obstructive sleep apnea syndrome and comorbid obesity following after continuous positive airway pressure therapy made with the disease the device, and to identify barriers and facilitators to the use of CPAP to improve rehabilitation provision and aid in disease self-management.MethodsQualitative research was conducted using three focus groups with a representative sample of 32 inpatients undergoing a 1-month pulmonary rehabilitation program at the IRCSS Istituto Auxologico Italiano San Giuseppe Hospital, Verbania, (...) Italy. The focus groups were recorded on tape, and contemporaneous notes were made. The tapes were transcribed verbatim, and Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis was used to develop themes.ResultsSix main themes were extracted: Living the diagnosis as a shock; You should not sleep on it: the importance of prevention; The adjustment to CPAP; Barriers and facilitators to the use of CPAP; Three in a bed; and The relationship with the healthcare system.ConclusionResults of this study suggest potential avenues for interventions to increase adherence to CPAP, including the provision of information and continued support. Individual counseling providing strategies aimed at helping the person to cope with the emotional problem and relational difficulties associated with the use of CPAP, and at strengthening self-efficacy and self-management skills are also encouraged for optimal care during the rehabilitation program. (shrink)

Critics of mass culture often identify 1950s-style status competition as one of the central forces driving consumerism. Thomas Frank has challenged this view, arguing that countercultural rebellion now provides the primary source of consumerism in our society, and that ‘cool’ has become its central ideological expression. This paper provides a rearticulation and defense of Frank's thesis, first identifying consumerism as a type of collective action problem, then showing how the ‘hip consumer’ is one who adopts a free-rider strategy in (...) this context. (shrink)

In recent years, the theoretical work of Gilligan in women's psychological development has led to the development of the concept of moral orientation or moral voice in contrast to the concept of moral reasoning or moral judgment developed by Kohlberg. These concepts have been of particular interest in gender studies, especially as applied to adolescence. These concepts of moral orientation and moral reasoning are being increasingly employed in healthcare ethics studies in a wide variety of settings. The recent work has (...) included studies of physicians, nurses, dentists, veterinarians, social workers, teachers of medical ethics, and hospital ethics committees. However, the study of moral development in healthcare providers has been hampered because collecting the necessary data from healthcare workers has been labor intensive and extremely time consuming. More efficient methods are needed. (shrink)

This book proposes an alternative to the consent model which is currently at the heart of patient self-determination and which is shown here to have fundamental flaws that constrain its effectiveness. The proposed model is a property model in which the patient’s bodily integrity is protected from unauthorised invasion, and their legitimate expectation to be provided with the relevant information to make an informed decision is taken to be a proprietary right. This model enables the courts to overcome the requirement (...) to prove causation in consent cases and offers a complementary approach to patient self-determination. (shrink)

The literature describes religious coping as an important predictor of mental well-being. Present study is aimed at extending this knowledge by assessing whether specific religious coping regulates specific cognitive emotional responses to improve well-being during Covid pandemic, an extreme international event with significant impacts on individuals and communities. A sample of young adults responded to self-report measures of negative and positive religious coping, positive reappraisal, self-blaming, and mental well-being. Results revealed that positive religious coping was a positive predictor of mental (...) well-being and positive reappraisal mediated this positive link. Also, gender and physical health status significantly interacted with positive reappraisal to predict mental well-being in these mediational associations. More specifically, indirect effects of positive reappraisal were positive and significant for men and for participants with better physical health compared with women and those with poor physical health. However, negative religious coping was not a significant correlate of mental well-being but a positive correlate of self-blame. Results suggest that positive religious coping facilitates positive regulation of emotions for improved mental well-being in young adults and particularly young men. (shrink)

Background: Alexithymia is a personality trait which is characterized by an inability to identify and describe conscious emotions of oneself and others.Aim: The present study aimed to determine whether various measures of mental health, interoception, psychological flexibility, and self-as-context, predicted through linear associations alexithymia as an outcome. This also included relevant mediators and non-linear predictors identified for particular sub-groups of participants through cluster analyses of an Artificial Neural Network output.Methodology: Two hundred and thirty participants completed an online survey which (...) included the following questionnaires: Toronto alexithymia scale; Acceptance and Action Questionnaire 2 ; Positive and Negative Affect Scale, Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale 21 ; Multidimensional Assessment of Interoceptive Awareness ; and the Self-as-Context scale. A stepwise backwards linear regression and mediation analysis were performed, as well as a cluster analysis of the non-linear ANN upper hidden layer output.Results: Higher levels of alexithymia were associated with increased psychological inflexibility, lower positive affect scores, and lower interoception for the subscales of “not distracting” and “attention regulation.” SAC mediated the relation between emotional regulation and total alexithymia. The ANNs accounted for more of the variance than the linear regressions, and were able to identify complex and varied patterns within the participant subgroupings.Conclusion: The findings were discussed within the context of developing a SAC processed-based therapeutic model for alexithymia, where it is suggested that alexithymia is a complex and multi-faceted condition, which requires a similarly complex, and process-based approach to accurately diagnose and treat this condition. (shrink)

Background The fourth section of the 1967 Abortion Act states that individuals (including health care practitioners) do not have to participate in an abortion if they have a conscientious objection. A conscientious objection is a refusal to participate in abortion on the grounds of conscience. This may be informed by religious, moral, philosophical, ethical, or personal beliefs. Currently, there is very little investigation into the impact of conscientious objection on service users in Britain. The perspectives of service users are (...) imperative in understanding the real-world consequences and potential impact of conscientious objection and should be considered when creating and reviewing policies and guidelines. This research provided a platform for women and those who can become pregnant to share their experiences and opinions at a time when these voices are largely excluded in the great tradition of Western political philosophy and law-making processes. Method Five service users were interviewed using a narrative interview approach to uncover their abortion journeys and experiences of conscientious objection. Findings The findings were presented as found poems and uncovered that doctors are not always: informing service users that they have a conscientious objection to abortion, giving service users enough information to access abortion (indirect referral), treating them non-judgmentally, and providing medically correct information. Service users did not experience burdens such as long waiting times and were still able to access legal abortion. However, service users did experience negative emotional effects, as they were often left feeling scared, angry, and hopeless when they were not referred and/or were mistreated. Conclusions Findings indicate that conscientious objection could work in practice. However, it is currently failing some individuals on an emotional level, as not all doctors are adhering to guidelines. Conscientious objection in Britain needs to be addressed, to ensure service users receive fair, impartial, non-judgmental care. (shrink)

This study explores the relationship between self-compassion and mental health of postgraduates based on the perspective of the dual-factor model of mental health and the mediating role of help-seeking behavior. A total of 605 postgraduates were investigated with a questionnaire. The results showed that the DFM of mental health was better than the one-factor model for the mental health status of postgraduates. Among them, those with complete mental health accounted for the highest proportion, followed (...) by vulnerable, troubled, and symptomatic but content. Self-compassion and non-professional help-seeking behavior had a positive predictive effect on positive mental health factors of the postgraduates, while self-compassion had a negative predictive effect on their psychological symptoms. Non-professional help-seeking behavior played a partial mediating role between self-compassion and positive mental health factors. (shrink)

In contrast to theoretical discussions about potential professional liability of clinical ethicists, this report gives the results of empirical data gathered in a national survey of clinical medical ethicists. The report assesses the types of activities of clinical ethicists, the extent and types of their professional liability coverage, and the influence that concerns about legal liability has on how they function as clinical ethicists. In addition demographic data on age, sex, educational background, etc. are reported. The results show that while (...) nearly one third (28.9%) of the ethicists regularly make recommendations about patient care, only 10.8% of them regularly make entries in the medical record; only approximately half (53.0%) of them are covered by professional liability (malpractice) insurance; and the vast majority (84.3%) of them say that concerns about legal liability do not influence the way they function as clinical ethicists. (shrink)

Should a growing market for genetic self-tests be welcomed or feared? From the point of view of personal autonomy the increasing availability of predictive health information seems promising. Yet it is frequently pointed out that genetic information about future health may cause anxiety, distress and even loss of “life-hopes.” In this article the argument that genetic self-tests undermine personal autonomy is assessed and criticized. I contend that opportunities for autonomous choice are not reduced by genetic information but by (...) misperceptions and misunderstandings of the results of genetic tests. Since the interpretation of genetic information is sometimes distorted by the information provided about the genetic products, more attention should be given to deceitful marketing that overblows the utility of genetic products. Yet personal autonomy is reduced neither by genetic tests nor by genetic information and there is consequently no compelling case for the conclusion that genetic self-tests should be prohibited. (shrink)

BackgroundExercise self-efficacy is a vital determinant of an individual’s active participation in regular exercise, and exercise is a critical component of improving health-related quality of life in dialysis patients. This study aimed to describe the relationship between exercise self-efficacy and HRQOL in dialysis patients.Materials and MethodsA cross-sectional study was conducted in Shanghai, China. Structured questionnaires distributed to the patients collected socio-demographic and disease-related information. Physical activity was assessed by a self-administered questionnaire, and the exercise self-efficacy scale was used to (...) measure exercise self-efficacy. HRQOL was evaluated by the kidney disease quality of life instrument-short form version 1.3. Data were analyzed using a univariate generalized linear model, Spearman correlation, and hierarchical multiple regression.ResultsA positive association was observed between exercise self-efficacy and HRQOL. Physical activity as a predictor variable explained 9.8% of the variance in overall HRQOL. Exercise self-efficacy explained an additional 7.1% of the HRQOL variance. In total, 24.6% of the variation in the HRQOL was explained by the socio-demographic variables, disease-related factors, physical activity, and exercise self-efficacy.ConclusionOverall, only 16.9% of the change in HRQOL was explained by physical activity and exercise self-efficacy. Future research is still needed to further explore the factors influencing the HRQOL in dialysis patients. However, this finding suggests the need to consider the importance of HRQOL and physical activity as well as exercise self-efficacy when developing intervention programs. (shrink)