The author develops her account of Claudia Card's ethical work as nonideal ethical theory (NET). She clarifies Card's role in ethical theorizing of the recent past, partly in order to brief the unfamiliar reader on Card's ethics and nonideal theory, and partly to enter Card's contributions into the story of nonideal theory's emergence in philosophy. She then recommends, to other NET philosophers, the prioritization of (i) Card's rejection of the "administrative point of view", and (ii) Card's focus on "intolerable harms" (...) as critical to excellent ethical theorizing. She ends with the observation that NET may helpfully point toward reasons to take a pessimistic stance toward moral progress as elaborated in some classic texts in political philosophy; her appreciation of Card's insights yields a variety of pessimism that Card herself did not share. (shrink)

The current COVID-19 crisis may have an impact on the mental health of professionals working on the frontline, especially healthcare workers due to the increase of occupational psychosocial risks, such as emotional exhaustion and secondary traumatic stress. This study explored job demands and resources during the COVID-19 crisis in predicting emotional exhaustion and STS among health professionals. The present study is a descriptive and correlational cross-sectional design, conducted in different hospitals and health centers in Spain. The sample consisted of (...) 221 health professionals with direct involvement in treating COVID-19. An online survey was created and distributed nationwide from March 20 to April 15 which assessed: sociodemographic and occupational data, fear of contagion, contact with death/suffering, lack of material and human protection resources, challenge, emotional exhaustion, and STS. Descriptive findings show high levels of workload, contact with death/suffering, lack of MHPR and challenge, and are moderately high for fear of contagion, emotional exhaustion, and STS. We found an indirect significant effect of lack of MHPR on predicting emotional exhaustion through the workload and on STS through fear of contagion, contact with death/suffering, and workload. To conclude, this study examines the immediate consequences of the crisis on health professionals' well-being in Spain, emphasizing the job demands related to COVID-19 that health professionals are facing, and the resources available in these health contexts. These findings may boost follow-up of this crisis among health professionals to prevent them from long-term consequences. (shrink)

The COVID-19 pandemic threatened our physical health, alongside our mental and social wellbeing. Social distancing requirements, which are necessary to mitigate the spread of COVID-19, increased social isolation by limiting social interactions that are an essential part of human wellbeing. In this study, we examined the stress caused by COVID-19 early on in the pandemic through the lens of sociability among a large sample of preservice educators. We found that individuals who have higher sociability experienced greater COVID-19 stress. (...) This study also contributed to prior literature which has sought to relate pandemic-related stress to demographic group differences. We found no significant relationship between demographic membership and COVID-19 stress. This study is among the first, however, to demonstrate that vulnerability to pandemic stress varies as a function of sociability. Implications of these findings and ways people can better cope with pandemic isolation are discussed. (shrink)

The recent global outspread of the COVID-19 pandemic has influenced the lives of people across multiple countries including athletes, coaches, and supporting staff. Along with everybody else, coaches found themselves constrained to an at-home self-isolation, which limited their ability to normally engage with their profession and to interact with their athletes. This situation may also have impacted their own psychological well-being. With this study, we explored coaches’ perceptions of stress in relation to their emotion regulation strategies depending upon their (...) gender and competitive level. A sample of 2272 Italian coaches were surveyed during the period of lockdown. Mean values for perceived stress and emotion regulation strategies were compared to normative data of the two instruments as reported in the original studies. Furthermore, two Multivariate analyses of variance were completed to observe the potential differences in the coaches’ emotion regulation strategies and perception of stress. Finally, a blockwise regression analysis was run to assess how coaches’ emotion regulation strategies impacted upon their perception of stress. Both women and men reported higher levels of perceived stress than those reported in the normative data. Similarly, average scores for emotion regulation strategies were significantly different from those reported for normative data, in particular, coaches reported slightly higher use of emotion regulation strategies than participants in the original study. Significant gender-based differences emerged in terms of emotional regulations, with men adopting more suppression than women. No differences by competitive level were found. In terms of perceived stress, male coaches and elite coaches showed to be more in control of the situation than female coaches and non-elite coaches, respectively, while women experienced more negative stress than men. The blockwise regression evidenced how reappraisal resulted to be predictive in helping coaches to reduce their perception of stress, while suppression predicted higher stress perceptions. (shrink)

This study examined the mediating role of meaning in life in the effect of calling on posttraumatic stress disorder and posttraumatic growth among navy soldiers of the Republic of Korea deployed to the Gulf of Aden, Somalia. Participants responded to the questionnaire survey three times at 4-month intervals. From the first, second, and third surveys, data were collected for 223, 195, and 103 respondents, respectively. Results showed that calling had a negative effect on PTSD, fully mediated by meaning in (...) life, whereas calling had a positive effect on PTG, partially mediated by meaning in life. Our findings suggest that calling acts as a positive psychological resource for maintaining the meaning in life throughout stressful events experienced during deployment, thereby reducing posttraumatic stress symptoms and promoting post-deployment psychological growth. Finally, theoretical and practical implications and the need for follow-up studies are discussed. (shrink)

The aim of this research is focused on analyzing the alteration of the psychophysiological and cognitive response to an objective computerized stress test, when the behavioral response is controlled. The sample used was sports science students, with a mean age of 22.82 A quasi-experimental design was used in which the response of each participant to the DT test was evaluated. The variable “number of hours of physical activity per week” and the variable “level of behavioral response to stress” (...) were controlled. Before and after this test, the following parameters were measured: activation and central fatigue, and perceived exertion. Significant differences were found in all of the measures indicated. The usefulness of this protocol and the measures used to analyze the stress response capacity of the study subjects are discussed. (shrink)

In spring 2020, COVID-19 and the ensuing social distancing and stay-at-home orders instigated abrupt changes to employment and educational infrastructure, leading to uncertainty, concern, and stress among United States college students. The media consumption patterns of this and other social groups across the globe were affected, with early evidence suggesting viewers were seeking both pandemic-themed media and reassuring, familiar content. A general increase in media consumption, and increased consumption of specific types of content, may have been due to media (...) use for coping strategies. This paper examines the relationship between the stress and anxiety of university students and their strategic use of media for coping during initial social distancing periods in March-April 2020 using data from a cross-sectional survey. We examine links between specific types of media use with psychological well-being concepts, and examine the moderating roles of traits as buffers against negative relationships between stress and anxiety and psychological well-being. Our findings indicate that stress was linked to more hedonic and less eudaimonic media use, as well as more avoidant and escapist media-based coping. Anxiety, on the other hand, was linked to more media use in general, specifically more eudaimonic media use and a full range of media-based coping strategies. In turn, escapist media was linked to negative affect, while reframing media and eudaimonic media were linked to positive affect. Avoidant coping was tied to poorer mental health, and humor coping was tied to better mental health. Hedonic and need-satisfying media use were linked to more flourishing. Hope, optimism, and resilience were all predictive of media use, with the latter two traits moderating responses to stress and anxiety. The findings give a nuanced portrait of college students’ media use during a pandemic-induced shutdown, showing that media use is closely intertwined with well-being in both adaptive and maladaptive patterns. (shrink)

Although not identical, this article suggests that complex posttraumatic stress disorder, depersonalization and schizophrenia share at least one feature: in all these cases, the body becomes a defective tool, an IT. In turn, those suffering from them can no longer be-in-the-world through the living body but rather experience their body as an object; they manage their lives on the level of body image.The next section outlines some cognitive and phenomenological concepts such as body schema, body image, body-as-subject and body-as-object. (...) Thereafter, the article explores the phenomenology of C-PTSD, depersonalization, and schizophrenia, finally suggesting that in each of these cases the body... (shrink)

ObjectivesThe study aims to investigate the state anxiety of parents of special needs children during the 2019 coronavirus disease epidemic and the influence of parental stress, social support, and other related variables on the anxiety of parents.MethodsBespoke questionnaires of children’s and parent’s mental and behavioral problems during the epidemic were used in the study. We also used the State Anxiety Inventory, the Parenting Stress Index—Short Form-15, the NEO Five-Factor Inventory, and the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support. The (...) data used in the study were pooled from an online survey of parents of special needs children and analyzed by one-way analysis of variance and multiple linear regression.ResultsOverall, 1,451 individuals were included, of which 402 were fathers and 1,049 were mothers. ANOVA results showed that educational background, family monthly income, and type of their child’s disability made parents’ state anxiety significantly different. The results of multiple linear regression showed that during the epidemic, social support negatively predicted parents’ state anxiety, whereas parenting stress and parental mental and behavioral problems positively predicted parents’ state anxiety.ConclusionsDuring the outbreak of COVID-19, parents of special needs children suffered mental and behavioral problems, together with parenting stress and social support, which influenced their state anxiety. These findings can be used to develop relevant psychological interventions to improve the mental health of vulnerable groups during a pandemic like COVID-19. (shrink)

Because of the impact of close partner's touch on psychological and physical well-being by alleviating stress, it is important to explore the influence factors that underlie the stress-alleviating effect of close partner's touch. Previous studies suggested that the stress-alleviating effect was different when individuals were touched by different persons. Specifically, the stress was reduced significantly when the individual was touched by the close partner compared with the acquaintance and the stranger. However, whether the stress-alleviating effect (...) of touch was modulated by the close relationship quality is unknown. To examine this question, the participants performed a 3 × 2 within-subjects experiment. The results revealed that the stress of the participants alleviated significantly while close partners present with touch compared with without touch during facing a threat. We also found that the relationship quality of couple-members modulated touch-induced stress alleviation. Participants perceiving the low quality of alternatives and the high partners' commitment level showed stronger touch-induced stress-alleviating effect than participants perceiving the high quality of alternatives and the low partners' commitment level. The explained variance was around 16.8% jointly for actor and partner effects. These findings provide evidence for explaining the reasons for touch-induced alleviating stress and have important implications for predicting the future effect of interactive behaviors. (shrink)

ObjectiveThe impact of the mindfulness-based stress reduction program on psychological outcomes and quality of life in lung cancer patients remains unclear. This meta-analysis aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of the MBSR program on psychological states and QoL in lung cancer patients.MethodsEligible studies published before November 2021 were systematically searched from PubMed, EMBASE, Cochrane Library, PsycINFO, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, and Wanfang databases. The risk of bias in eligible studies was assessed using the Cochrane tool. Psychological variables and QoL were (...) evaluated as outcomes. We used the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation system to grade the levels of evidence. Statistical analysis was conducted using RevMan 5.4 and STATA 14.0.ResultsA total of 17 studies involving 1,680 patients were included for meta-analysis eventually. MBSR program significantly relieved cancer-related fatigue and negative psychological states, enhanced positive psychological states, and improved quality of sleep. Evidence on MBSR programs' overall treatment effect for QoL revealed a trend toward statistical significance.ConclusionBased on our findings, the MBSR program shows positive effects on psychological states in lung cancer patients. This approach should be recommended as a part of the rehabilitation program for lung cancer patients.Systematic Review Registrationhttps://archive.org/details/osf-registrations-mwvbq-v1, identifier: 10.17605/OSF.IO/MWVBQ. (shrink)

Test anxiety is a widespread and primarily detrimental emotion in learning and achievement settings. This research aimed to explore the autonomic nervous system response patterns of test-anxious individuals in response to evaluative stress. By presenting a standard interview task, an evaluative scenario was effectively induced. Heart rate variability, a biomarker that can accurately reflect the ANS activity, was used to reflect the physiological responses of 48 high test-anxious subjects and 49 low test-anxious subjects. Results indicate that: both groups show (...) a significantly increased emotional arousal in the evaluative scenario; high test-anxious individuals show a significantly decreased emotional pleasantness in the evaluative scenario, whereas low test-anxious individuals show no significant changes; both groups show a significantly increased low-frequency HRV; high test-anxious individuals show a significantly decreased high-frequency HRV and root mean square of successive heartbeat interval differences, whereas low test-anxious individuals remain stable. These findings suggest that high test-anxious individuals display an increased sympathetic nervous system activity and a decreased parasympathetic nervous system activity in response to evaluative stress, while low-anxious individuals display an increased SNS activity and a stable PNS activity in response to evaluative stress. (shrink)

This study explored the relationship between teacher job stress and job burnout using a sample of 558 primary and secondary school teachers, who were administered with a teacher job stress scale, teacher job burnout scale, work–family conflict questionnaire, and general self-efficacy scale. The results showed that: job stress had a significant predictive effect on work–family conflict and job burnout; work–family conflict played a mediating role in the relationship between job stress and job burnout; self-efficacy was found (...) to play a moderating role in work–family conflict and job burnout. However, this indirect effect was stronger for teachers with high self-efficacy, which means that the protective effects of self-efficacy were limited. These findings add to research on the relationship between teacher job stress and job burnout, and provide ideas for teachers to balance work–family relationships and reduce job burnout. (shrink)

AimThe current study attempted to assess the effect of positive emotion on post-graduate students’ psychological capital as well as on their academic engagement behavior. Also, the direct relationship between PsyCap and academic engagement behavior was assessed alongside the presence of Stress as a moderating variable between PsyCap and academic engagement behavior amongst post-graduate students in Malaysia.Materials and MethodsA self-administered questionnaire was used for data collection from 373 post-graduate Ph.D. students registered in various universities throughout Malaysia with a non-probabilistic sampling (...) technique. Research respondents belonged to management, humanities, engineering, computer science, and health sciences domains, and they responded through a questionnaire copy. Statistically, structural equation modeling was applied to evaluate confirmatory factor analysis, reliability analysis, validity analysis, measurement model, structural model, and path analysis. Furthermore, the bootstrapping approach was utilized to test the final model.ResultsFor the hypothesized model, our results confirmed that positive emotions had a positive and significant effect on students’ psychological capita as well as on their academic engagement behavior. Further, PsyCap also had a positive and significant effect on academic engagement behavior. Our results also reported that stress as a moderating variable has a negative and deteriorating effect on the relationship between PsyCap and the academic engagement of students.ConclusionThe study’s findings support the theoretical assumption that positive emotions help individuals generate cognitive resources, which in turn help them manage their engagement behavioral requirements. However, the stress caused by their study needs may deplete their psychological resources, consequently influencing their academic engagement behavior. Interventions like personal coaching/counseling, appropriate follow-up, and flexible goal settings with other measures may help post-graduate students in achieving their daunting tasks. (shrink)

Peu d’études se sont concentrées sur la prononciation des voyelles sous accent secondaire en anglais. Dans le cadre de l’approche introduite par Guierre, cet article propose une étude empirique large de ces voyelles et se concentre sur trois catégories clés de mots : les mots non-dérivés, les constructions contenant un préfixe sémantiquement transparent et les dérivés suffixaux. Dans leur ensemble, les analyses précédentes fondées sur le rang, les domaines phonologiques et l’isomorphisme dérivationnel sont confirmées mais certains phénomènes mis à jour (...) par cette étude rendent nécessaires quelques révisions des modèles existants. Plusieurs possibilités de formalisations sont proposées pour ces révisions, dont la plus prometteuse semble être l’analyse ayant recours aux pieds car celle-ci permettrait d’élargir considérablement la couverture empirique de la théorie. (shrink)

This study examined the structural validity and reliability of the DASS-21 in a large sample of secondary school students from North Macedonia. Based on theoretical and empirical considerations, five structural models were compared using confirmatory factor analysis. The original three-factor model provided good fit to the data; however, high interfactor correlations indicated that the depression, anxiety, and stress factors were indistinguishable. The bifactor solution yielded superior fit relative to other tested models. Factor loading patterns revealed a strong general factor (...) and some specificity of the depression and anxiety factors, whereas the stress items were primarily markers of general distress. Model-based reliability and ancillary bifactor indices revealed that the DASS-21 is essentially unidimensional. Thus, only the total score could be used as a reliable measure of general emotional distress, while subscale scores should be avoided. Overall, the findings provide further support for the cross-cultural validity of the DASS-21 and confirm that it is suitable for use among older adolescents in North Macedonia. (shrink)

The preschool education profession often faces many challenges and preschool teachers, as important members of the preschool education profession must respond to a variety of emergencies with young children, which also leads to high levels of job stress and can have a negative impact on their ongoing well-being. Past research has pointed out that a healthy lifestyle is one of the key factors in enhancing sustainable well-being in high-stress work situations and many studies have found that good leisure (...) activity engagement as a healthy lifestyle is associated with higher levels of well-being. However, the relationship between preschool teachers’ leisure engagement and sustainable well-being has been less explored. Therefore, this study proposed seven research hypotheses based on the engagement theory proposed by Fredricks et al. and developed a research model to explore the relationship between three types of leisure engagement, including behavioral, affective and cognitive, and preschool teachers’ job stress and sustainable well-being, using age as a control variable. This study used a cross-sectional web-based questionnaire with a convenience sample of 500 preschool teachers in China. The collected data were analyzed for reliability and validity, model fit testing and structural equation modeling for model validation after removing invalid data and incomplete responses. The results of the study showed that behavioral engagement was not related with either the job stress or sustainable well-being of preschool teachers; Emotional and cognitive engagement were negatively related to job stress but positively related to the sustainable well-being of preschool teachers; and Job stress was negatively related to the sustainable well-being of preschool teachers; Age is an effective control variable. From the above results, it is clear that not all three types of leisure engagement are effective in terms of reducing the work stress of preschool teachers. As well as being related to the sustainable well-being of preschool teachers emotional and cognitive engagement contributed more to sustainable well-being acquisition. (shrink)

Career planning and career decision are important tasks for college students. The process may be affected by career stress, career exploration, and future work self, with some students facing career indecision. Combining both construction career and proactive motivation model, this study investigated the relationships between career stress, career exploration, future work self, career planning and career indecision among 1,012 Chinese college students using the Structure equation model to test the proposed mediation model. Results show that career stress (...) negatively predicts career planning, while career exploration positively predicts career planning. The mediating role of future work self has on career stress and career exploration's effects on both career planning and career indecision was verified. Moreover, the study also found future work self's positive effects on both career planning and career indecision in Chinese college students. Finally, the study's theoretical and practical significance and implications are discussed. (shrink)

Orphans and vulnerable children fall under the category of children who are at risk of exposure to more stressful circumstances and receive less social assistance compared to other children. This study aims to investigate the impact of group counseling based on social intervention and psychological therapy on social support and the perceived stress growth of orphans and vulnerable children. In one special educational needs school in Nanning, China, the SSGPC was developed and implemented. Using the social support and post- (...) class='Hi'>stress growth scales, the researchers investigated the effects of SSGPC on orphans and vulnerable children. Twenty-seven orphans and vulnerable children between the ages of nine and 12 were arbitrarily assigned to the experimental and control groups. A pre-test post-test method of quasi-experimental design was applied, with 13 participants in the experimental group and 14 in the control group. The results revealed that the intervention group had significantly higher scores for social support and post-stress growth than the control group. The SSGPC had significantly improved the levels of social support for orphans. The findings indicated that the SSGPC provided an effective way to improve social support and post-stress growth of orphans and vulnerable children. (shrink)

Many formerly incarcerated people have civil legal needs that can imperil their successful re-entry to society and, consequently, their health. We categorize these needs and assess their association with cardiovascular disease risk factors in a sample of recently released people. We find that having legal needs related to debt, public benefits, housing, or healthcare access is associated with psychosocial stress, but not uncontrolled high blood pressure or high cholesterol, in the first three months after release.

We are currently facing global healthcare crisis that has placed unprecedented stress on healthcare workers as a result of the coronavirus disease 2019. It is imperative that we develop novel tools to assist healthcare workers in dealing with the significant additional stress and trauma that has arisen as a result of the pandemic. Based in research on the effects of immersive environments on mood, a neuroscience research laboratory was rapidly repurposed using commercially available technologies and materials to create (...) a nature-inspired relaxation space. Frontline healthcare workers were invited to book 15-min experiences in the Recharge Room before, during or after their shifts, where they were exposed to the immersive, multisensory experience 496 Recharge Room users completed a short survey about their experience during an unselected, consecutive 14-day period. Average self-reported stress levels prior to entering the Recharge Room were 4.58/6. After a single 15-min experience in the Recharge Room, the average user-reported stress level was significantly reduced 1.85/6. Net Promoter Score for the experience was 99.3%. Recharge Rooms such as those described here produce significant short-term reductions in perceived stress, and users find them highly enjoyable. These rooms may be of general utility in high-stress healthcare environments. (shrink)

BackgroundStress is a major risk factor for the impairment of psychological well-being. The present study aimed to evaluate the empirical evidence of the Transactional Stress Model proposed by Lazarus and Folkman in patients with psychosomatic health conditions.MethodsA structural equation model was applied in two separate subsamples of inpatients from the Department of Psychosomatic Medicine for consecutive model building and confirmatory analyses using self-reported health status information about perceived stress, personal resources, coping mechanisms, stress response, and psychological well-being.ResultsThe (...) initial model was created to reflect the theoretical assumptions by Lazarus and Folkman about their transactional stress concept. This model was modified until a sufficient model fit was reached. The modified model was confirmed in a second sample. Perceived external stressors and personal resources explained 91% of the variance of the stress response, which was closely related to symptoms of depression. The attenuating effect of resources on stress response was higher than the impact of perceived stressors on stress response.ConclusionThe empirical data largely confirmed the theoretical assumption of the Transactional Stress Model, which was first presented by Lazarus and Folkman, in patients with a wide range of psychosomatic conditions. However, data analyses were solely based on self-reported health status. Thus, proposed inner psychological mechanisms such as the appraisal process could not be included in this empirical validation. The operationalization and understanding of coping processes should be further improved. (shrink)

Selective attention depends on goal-directed and stimulus-driven modulatory factors, each relayed by different brain rhythms. Under certain circumstances, stress-related states can change the balance between goal-directed and stimulus-driven factors. However, the neuronal mechanisms underlying these changes remain unclear. In this study, we explored how psychosocial stress can modulate brain rhythms during an attentional task and a task-free period. We recorded the EEG and ECG activity of 42 healthy participants subjected to either the Trier Social Stress Test, a (...) controlled procedure to induce stress, or a comparable control protocol, flanked by an attentional task, a 90 s of task-free period and a state of anxiety questionnaire. We observed that psychosocial stress induced an increase in heart rate, self-reported anxiety, and alpha power synchronization. Also, psychosocial stress evoked a relative beta power increase during correct trials of the attentional task, which correlates positively with anxiety and heart rate increase, and inversely with attentional accuracy. These results suggest that psychosocial stress affects performance by redirecting attentional resources toward internal threat-related thoughts. An increment of endogenous top-down modulation reflected an increased beta-band activity that may serve as a compensatory mechanism to redirect attentional resources toward the ongoing task. The data obtained here may contribute to designing new ways of clinical management of the human stress response in the future and could help to minimize the damaging effects of persistent stressful experiences. (shrink)

It has been shown that various types of stress initiate different physiological and neuroendocrine disorders. Oxytocin is mainly produced in the supraoptic nucleus and paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus. Hypothalamic OT has antistress effects and attenuates the hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal axis. One mechanism behind the antistress effects of OT is mediated through the inhibition from GABAA receptors on corticotropin-releasing factor expression at the PVN. Various manual therapies such as acupuncture, transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation, and massage initiate the stimulation of somatosensory neurons (...) of the body. It is well-known that TENS simulates OT expression, while it inhibits CRF expression at the PVN following chronic stress loading in rodents. Upregulation of OT expression at the hypothalamus is activated by the somatosensory stimulation, which is mediated via the spinothalamic pathway. Thus, somatosensory stimulation is beneficial in treating stress-associated symptoms. Hypothalamic OT is associated with the social behaviors, including maternal care and affiliation. Childhood neglect and/or child abuse are severely responsible for deleterious long-term effects on the cognitive/social activity and behavioral development. At parturition, a profound amount of OT is released into the systemic circulation in response to vaginal and cervical stimulation caused by the body of fetus, which induces the onset of maternal behavior. Peridural anesthesia effectively impairs the sensitivity to vaginal and cervical stimulation at parturition. OT levels in cerebrospinal fluid is significantly reduced following peridural anesthesia. The vaginal delivery mothers had significantly more OT pulses than the caesarian section mothers. Due to low levels of endogenous OT, maternal behavior could be interrupted by epidural anesthesia and CS at parturition because of the reduction of the usual sensory input from the genitalia. (shrink)

Recent studies have indicated that trait procrastination as a personality factor could lead to mobile phone addiction, however little is known about the mediating and moderating mechanisms underlying this process. The current study investigated the mediating role of stress in the relationship between trait procrastination and mobile phone addiction, and whether the mediating effect was moderated by gender. A sample including 1,004 Chinese college students completed measurements of trait procrastination, stress, mobile phone addiction, and demographic information. The results (...) showed that trait procrastination was positively related to college students’ mobile phone addiction. Mediation analyses revealed that this relationship was partially mediated by stress. Moderated mediation further indicated that the path between trait procrastination and stress was stronger for male students compared with female students. These findings broadened our knowledge of the underlying mechanisms between trait procrastination and mobile phone addiction, the implications and limitations of this study were discussed. (shrink)

Research has shown a direct relationship between infertility-related stress and anxiety in infertile patients. The present study goes into this relationship in depth, testing the moderating role of coping strategies in the associations between specific infertility-related stress dimensions and State-Anxiety among male and female partners of infertile couples. Gender differences were also explored. Both members of 254 infertile couples completed a questionnaire consisting of Socio-demographics, Fertility Problem Inventory–Short Form, Coping Orientation to Problem Experienced–New Italian Version, and State-Trait Anxiety (...) Inventory-Y. The results revealed that Social Concern and Couple’s Relationship Concern, in both partners, and Need for Parenthood, in female partners, had positive correlations with State-Anxiety. Seeking Social Support and Avoidant coping were related to increasing levels of State-Anxiety in both partners, whereas Positive Attitude coping strategies were related to lower levels of State-Anxiety in female partners. Problem-Solving and Avoidant coping played moderating roles between specific infertility-related stress dimensions and State-Anxiety in unexpected directions. Problem-Solving exacerbated the negative effects of Social Concern, whereas Avoidant coping buffered the negative effects of several infertility-related stress dimensions in both partners. Interventions to improve stress management and psychological health in infertile couples should consider that the adequacy of coping strategies is inherently situation specific. It therefore follows that patient-centered clinical interventions should consider the potential inadequacy of promoting Problem-Solving strategies, and that even Avoidance can be an efficient strategy for dealing with specific infertility-related stress dimensions. (shrink)

The paper explores the impact of the corona virus disease-19 pandemic on the Saudi higher education system. The research focuses on the relationship between digital learning in COVID-19 time, life satisfaction, and stress among female students. The study discusses measures, practices, defense mechanisms, and coping strategies to face challenges. Using an online survey based on psychological effects and its role in defense mechanisms and coping strategies, findings show that digital learning provides flexibility in terms of time and offers resources (...) at a lower cost compared to traditional learning. In addition, results show that the coping strategy perception is higher in obtaining a good score and succeeding than to get over the pandemic and recovering from the illness itself. Finally, results confirm that a positive attitude influences positively life satisfaction. (shrink)

This study aims to investigate the spillover impact of work-family/family–work conflict and stress on five major industrial sectors, during the first wave of Covid-19. The purpose of this cross-sectional study is twofold; firstly, to test a hypothesized model where work-family/family-work conflicts are related to stress and where stress could exert a mediating role in such relationships. Secondly, we seek to explore the presence of these conflicts and stress in each of the five major industrial sectors and (...) evaluate if there are significant differences between them, identifying the sociodemographic characteristics associated. Two questionnaires were applied to 748 employees from the selected industries. According to our results, stress predicts both types of conflict and also exerts a mediator role. It was primarily found that the five sectors are significantly different regarding the work-family/family-work conflicts and stress. Findings and implications are discussed. (shrink)

We propose an approach to designing smart wearables that act as partners to help people cope with stress in daily life. Our approach contributes to the developing field of smart wearables by addressing how technological capabilities can be designed to establish partnerships that consider the person, the situation, and the appropriate type of support. As such, this study also contributes to healthcare by opening up novel technology-supported routes to stress treatment and care. We present the results of a (...) phenomenological study conducted with three war veterans who suffer from chronic posttraumatic stress disorder. We describe how their experiences of dealing with their stress informed our design approach, and discuss the implications of these results on smart wearables and stress management in general. We conclude by reflecting on the limitations of this study and directions for future work. (shrink)

In this paper, the model is constructed by measuring the psychological stress condition of employees; the psychological stress condition measurement model analyzes and tests the reasons for reducing human resource turnover in enterprises. In this paper, through the research related to the problem of talent loss in enterprises, we found that enterprises of other ownership often use the talent loss early warning model, to measure the possibility of talent loss in enterprises and issue an early warning, which enables (...) enterprises to solve the talent loss crisis in time and minimize the negative impact of talent loss on enterprises. In this paper, we analyze the causes of human resource attrition risk from a theoretical point of view, construct a system of human resource attrition risk indicators for enterprises, and explain the content of each technical indicator and its measurement method. The PLS structural equation of the HR attrition risk evaluation model is established based on the constructed risk index system. In addition, the analysis of the causes of human resources turnover risk in the company also proposes strategies to avoid and prevent the threat. The PLS structural equation evaluation model of HR turnover risk is applied to various situations of human resource management to analyze the case of the comprehensive evaluation of HR turnover risk to guide the practical application of the model. Therefore, the research results of this paper have significant reference value for enterprises to solve similar human resource attrition problems. At the same time, it will provide a reference for enterprises to improve their human resource diagnostic capability and promote the development of human resource management. (shrink)

Competitive sports involve physiological, technical and psychological skills, which influence directly on individuals’ performance. This study aims to investigate the levels of perceived stress and Heart Rate Variability before and after matches with victory and defeat in professional eSports athletes. Our hypothesis was that the winners would have better autonomic and stress responses after match, thus corroborating the literature on neurocardiac connections. Fifty male eSport players were selected players from 10 different Brazilian teams. The experiment was carried out (...) in 2 sessions. Firstly, after signing the informed consent form, 24 h before the game, anthropometric, physical activity levels and time of expertise data were recorded only for sample characterization and the players were familiarized with the perceived stress scale—10 and the HRV measurements. Secondly, players performed the PSS-10 and HRV recording at rest by 10 min 60 and 30 min before the game and 10 min after the end of the game. Overall, concerning PSS-10 our findings show that VG had significant reduced scores in post-game time compared to baseline and pre-game times, while DG had significant increased scores in post-game time compared to BL and pre-game times. Regarding HRV, our results demonstrate that VG had significant increase in RR, SDNN, rMSSD, pNN50 and HF, and significant decrease in LF and LF/HF, while DG had a significant decrease in RR, SDNN, rMSSD and HF, and significant increase in LF and LF/HF. It was observed that VG had better HRV responses as well as lower levels of perceived stress, while DG had worst HRV responses and higher levels of perceived stress. (shrink)

Social distancing during the COVID-19 pandemic has presented millions of people with extraordinary challenges that are associated with significant amounts of stress. Emotion regulation is crucial during this crisis as people seek to mitigate the stress and uncertainty of the present moment. In this study, we surveyed a nationally representative sample of 297 adults from the United States on their levels of perceived stress related to the COVID-19 pandemic as well as their level of engagement of different (...) emotion regulation strategies during the pandemic. We performed multiple linear regression analyses to assess which regulation strategies were associated with individual differences in perceived stress. Among all emotion regulation strategies, psychological distancing, which involves thinking about stressful circumstances in an objective, impartial way, was uniquely associated with reductions in perceived stress due to COVID-19 across individuals. This effect was not moderated by age, gender, socioeconomic status, race/ethnicity, or trait-related difficulty in regulating emotion. Conversely, situation modification was associated with significantly greater perceived stress overall. These results suggest the broad applicability and utility of psychological distancing during pandemic-related social distancing as part of an adaptive emotion regulation toolkit and motivate the investigation of interventions involving psychological distancing in this context. (shrink)

BackgroundThe present study examined the efficacy of the Michigan Model of Infant Mental Health-Home Visiting infant mental health treatment to promote the socioemotional wellbeing of infants and young children. Science illuminates the role of parental “co-regulation” of infant emotion as a pathway to young children’s capacity for self-regulation. The synchrony of parent–infant interaction begins to shape the infant’s own nascent regulatory capacities. Parents with a history of childhood adversity, such as maltreatment or witnessing family violence, and who struggle with symptoms (...) of post-traumatic stress may have greater challenges in co-regulating their infant, thus increasing the risk of their children exhibiting social and emotional problems such as anxiety, aggression, and depression. Early intervention that targets the infant–parent relationship may help buffer the effect of parental risk on child outcomes.MethodsParticipants were 58 mother–infant/toddler dyads enrolled in a longitudinal randomized control trial testing the efficacy of the relationship-based IMH-HV treatment model. Families were eligible based on child age and endorsement of at least two of four socio-demographic factors commonly endorsed in community mental health settings: elevated depression symptoms, three or more Adverse Childhood Experiences parenting stress, and/or child behavior or development concerns. This study included dyads whose children were born at the time of study enrollment and completed 12-month post-baseline follow-up visits. Parents reported on their own history of ACEs and current posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms, as well as their toddler’s socioemotional development.ResultsMaternal ACEs predicted more toddler emotional problems through their effect on maternal PTSD symptoms. Parents who received IMH-HV treatment reported more positive toddler socioemotional wellbeing at follow-up relative to the control condition. The most positive socioemotional outcomes were for toddlers of mothers with low to moderate PTSD symptoms who received IMH-HV treatment.ConclusionResults indicate the efficacy of IMH-HV services in promoting more optimal child socioemotional wellbeing even when mothers reported mild to moderate PTSD symptoms. Results also highlight the need to assess parental trauma when infants and young children present with socioemotional difficulties. (shrink)

BackgroundAthletes will increase their state anxiety under stress situations, which will lead to the decline of sports performance. The improvement of anxiety by probiotics has been reported, but there is a lack of research in the athlete population. The purpose of the current study is to explore the effectiveness of probiotics in improving athletes’ state anxiety and sports performance under stress situations.MethodsWe conducted this single-arm study in Chongqing Institute of Sports Technology. In the 8-week study, 21 Chongqing young (...) divers were given probiotic Bifidobacterium animalis subsp. lactis BB-12 daily. The state anxiety and sports performance of athletes were measured before, during, and after the intervention, and the gut microbiota of athletes was measured before and after the intervention.ResultsThe intervention results showed that cognitive state anxiety, somatic state anxiety, and anxiety emotion were improved. In terms of gut microbiota, the intervention did not change the gut microbial composition but increased the abundance of Bifidobacteriaceae. At the 8th week, the performance of athletes under stress was significantly improved.LimitationsFirst of all, due to the restriction of the number of subjects in this study, there was no control group. Secondly, although the athletes’ diet was recorded in this study, the influence of this factor on gut microbiota was not eliminated. Finally, the anxiety level of the athletes in this study was obtained through a self-report, lacking physiological data in state anxiety.ConclusionThe results show that probiotics intervention can improve the state anxiety of athletes under stress situation and improve the performance of athletes under stress situation. (shrink)

This study aims to evaluate the effects of an innovative mind-body practice named the brain wave modulation technique on stress, anxiety, global distress, and affect. The technique was administered online through a web-based video conferencing platform. The intervention started on week four of the first quarantine in Italy, for a duration of 4 weeks and ended before lockdown measures were loosened. 310 people participated in the study, mean age 28.73 years old, 77.8% women. Of these, about half were randomly (...) assigned to the experimental group and the other half served as controls. Participants completed online psychological tests before and after the intervention. 266 people completed the post-intervention tests. Consistent with our hypothesis, the study’s findings indicate a reduction in the levels of stress, anxiety, global distress, and negative affect in the experimental group, compared to the control group. Moreover, the experimental group also showed higher levels of positive affect, compared to controls after the intervention. The present findings add to the current literature in suggesting that the BWM-T reduced stress not only when administered face-to face but also when administered online during the COVID-19 pandemic. Moreover, we also noted that the BWM-T has an effect on anxiety, global distress, and affect, which we had not investigated in previous studies. (shrink)

Objectives: To explore the effect of social support and ability perception on stress coping strategies for competitive stress, and to reveal the mediating effects of primary and secondary evaluation, so as to further improve the theoretical model of stress coping in soccer players.Methods: A total of 331 male athletes from 22 teams in the Chengdu Middle School Campus Football League were taken as survey samples, and surveys were conducted on their stress experience, social support, ability perception, (...) cognitive assessment, and coping strategies for competition stress. SPSS 21.0 and AMOS 21.0 statistical analysis software were used. Descriptive statistics, correlation analysis, exploratory factor analysis, and confirmatory factor analysis were used to process the obtained data.Results: Positive primary assessment acted as a full mediator in the relationship between social support and secondary assessments, and negative primary assessment acted as a partial mediator in the relationship between competence perception and secondary assessments; Secondary assessment played a partial mediating role between positive primary assessment and positive coping strategies, and a full mediating role between negative primary assessment and positive coping strategies; Secondary assessments played the mediator neither between social support and a coping strategy for stress nor competence perception and a coping strategy for stress; Positive primary assessment, positive negative assessment, and secondary assessment all had significant positive benefits for positive coping. Still, the impact of positive primary assessment on positive coping was significantly better than negative primary assessment and secondary assessment.Conclusion: The coping strategy for the competitive stress model proposed by this study has a very good fit for the causal model. It can be used to explain the observed data from soccer players in middle schools. The primary and secondary assessments play different roles in the model. The combination of problem focuses and emotional focus on the positive stress coping strategy is suitable in the field of competitive sports. Still, the relevant research results need to be further explored and verified in the future. (shrink)

Entrepreneurs’ wellbeing is of unprecedented importance given their crucial role in national economies in terms of job creation and innovation. In this research, we used a mixed methods approach to investigate the direct and indirect mechanisms by which entrepreneurs’ wellbeing mediates the effects of stress on perceived entrepreneurial success. We theorize that entrepreneurs experience work-related stress and that the level of perceived wellbeing mediates the relationship between the entrepreneurs’ stress and perceived success. We also hypothesize moderation effects (...) by dispositional positive affect. We find that stress has direct negative effects on entrepreneurs’ wellbeing and perceived success. However, an experience of positive affect significantly weakens the negative effects of stress by broadening and building entrepreneurs’ cognitions. Drawing from our theoretical and empirical findings, we discuss implications for theory and practice in the domain of entrepreneurs’ wellbeing. (shrink)