New Psychometric Evidence of the Grief Impairment Scale (GIS) in People Who Have Experienced the Death of a Loved One From a Network Psychometric Approach in Two Latin American Countries.

This study aimed to evaluate the psychometric properties of the Grief Impairment Scale (GIS) using a network psychometric model. A total of 1048 individuals from Peru and El Salvador participated. A network psychometric model was used to determine internal structure, reliability, and cross-country invariance. The results indicate that the GIS items were grouped into a single network structure through Exploratory Graph Analysis. Reliability was estimated by structural consistency, and it was found that when replicating the network structure within an empirical dimension, a single network structure was consistently obtained, and all items remained stable. Furthermore, the network structure was invariant, thus functioning similarly across the different country groups. In conclusion, the GIS presented solid psychometric evidence of validity based on its internal structure, reliability, and cross-country invariance. Therefore, the GIS is a psychometrically sound measure of functional impairment symptoms due to grief for Peruvian and Salvadoran individuals.

Examining the relationship between intimate partner violence and child development program attendance in young children: A cross-sectional study.

The aim of the present study was to determine the association between different types of intimate partner violence against women and nonattendance at the Growth and Development Control Program (CRED or well-child visits) of their children under 5 years of age. This was an analytical cross-sectional study that comprised a secondary analysis of data from the Demographic and Family Health Survey (ENDES in Spanish) of Peru, 2019. Data from 19,647 mothers (aged 15-49 years) and their children under 5 years were analyzed. The independent variables were the types of intimate partner violence = emotional, physical, and sexual. The outcome variable was nonattendance at CRED in the last 6 months. The mean maternal age was 30.47 ±â€…6.66 years; 66.1% of children were between 25 and 60 months of age; the prevalence of nonattendance at CRED was 29.9%. A relationship was found between partner violence against the mother and nonattendance at CRED. Specifically, there was a higher probability of nonattendance in the children of women who experienced partner violence (sexual = aPR = 1.25 [95% CI = 1.07-1.44]; physical = aPR = 1.17 [95% CI = 1.08-1.26]; emotional = aPR = 1.12 [95% CI = 1.03-1.21]). This study showed an association indicating that children born to mothers experiencing intimate partner violence exhibit an elevated likelihood of nonattendance at CRED when compared to children of mothers not subjected to such violence. Therefore, emphasizing the promotion and monitoring of child development, especially for those with a history of maternal violence, should be a primary priority, particularly in primary care.

Pandemic Grief and Suicidal Ideation in Latin American Countries: A Network Analysis.

This study aimed to characterize the network structure of pandemic grief symptoms and suicidal ideation in 2174 people from eight Latin American countries. Pandemic grief and suicidal ideation were measured using the Pandemic Grief Scale and a single item, respectively. Network analysis provides an in-depth characterization of symptom-symptom interactions within mental disorders. The results indicated that, "desire to die," "apathy" and "absence of sense of life" are the most central symptoms in a pandemic grief symptom network; therefore, these symptoms could be focal elements for preventive and treatment efforts. Suicidal ideation, the wish to die, and the absence of meaning in life had the strongest relationship. In general, the network structure did not differ among the participating countries. It identifies specific symptoms within the network that may increase the likelihood of their co-occurrence and is useful at the therapeutic level.

Experiential Avoidance and Hyperreflexivity as Variables Associated with Depression: A Process-Based Approach

La depresión es un problema importante de salud pública que afecta a una proporción significativa de adultos jóvenes, como los estudiantes universitarios. Para su estudio se ha propuesto un enfoque basado en procesos, que busca identificar variables psicológicas transdiagnósticas que puedan ser objeto de cambio en las intervenciones psicoterapéuticas. El propósito de este trabajo fue analizar la interrelación entre un conjunto de variables de proceso (fusión cognitiva, rumia y evitación experiencial), así como examinar la relación entre cada una de estas variables y la depresión en 368 estudiantes universitarios de entre 18 y 29 años (M = 21.35, DE = 2.36, 77.7 % mujeres). Se halló que la fusión cognitiva y la rumia conformaban una variable global denominada hiperreflexividad, mientras que la evitación experiencial constituía un constructo diferente. Al analizar un modelo de ecuaciones estructurales, se encontró que solo la hiperreflexividad predecía significativamente la depresión. Se discuten estos resultados y sus posibles implicaciones para la práctica clínica. Se recomienda seguir estudiando la hiperreflexividad como una variable supraordinada de relevancia para la psicopatologia.

Depression is a major public health problem that affects a significant proportion of young adults, such as college students. A process-based approach has been proposed for its study, which seeks to identify transdiagnostic psychological variables that can be the target of change in psychotherapeutic interventions. The purpose of this paper was to analyze the interrelation between a set of process variables (cognitive fusion, rumination, and experiential avoidance), as well as to examine the relationship between each of these variables and depression in 368 college students aged 18-29 years (M = 21.35, SD = 2.36, 77.7% female). Cognitive fusion and rumination were found to comprise an overarching variable termed hyperreflexivity, while experiential avoidance constituted a different construct. By analyzing a structural equation model, it was found that only hyperreflexivity predicted depression significantly. These findings and their possible implications for clinical practice are discussed. Further study of hyperreflexivity as a superordinate variable of relevance to psychopathology is recommended.

Intention to receive the monkeypox vaccine and its psychological and sociodemographic predictors: a cross-sectional survey in the general population of Peru.

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to identify predictors of intention to be vaccinated against Monkeypox (Mpox) in a sample of Peruvian citizens.  METHODS: A set of sociodemographic and psychological predictors were used, such as sex, sexual orientation, educational level, previous diagnosis of COVID-19, marital status, complete vaccination against COVID-19, employment status, living with vulnerable people, presence of chronic disease, area of residence, perceived usefulness of COVID-19 vaccines, fear of Mpox, conspiracy beliefs about Mpox, among others. A total of 472 Peruvian adults participated, selected by non-probabilistic snowball convenience sampling. A sociodemographic survey, the Mpox Fear Scale, was used. Conspiracy Beliefs about Mpox was assessed using three questions created specifically for this study. For inferential purposes, simple ordinal regressions ("crude models") were performed between each factor and the outcome.  RESULTS: Regarding their intention to be vaccinated against Mpox, more than 60% expressed clear approval. Being non-heterosexual, having greater emotional fear of Mpox, and perceiving some potential for this disease to become the next pandemic were related to greater intention to vaccinate. On the other hand, being older, having low perceived usefulness of COVID-19 vaccines, and having higher conspiracy beliefs about Mpox were associated with lower intention to vaccinate.  CONCLUSION: The study provides initial information for future research seeking to better analyze Mpox vaccination intention. In addition, cross-sectional data are provided that can be used to develop public health policies that target subgroups with low prevalence of intention to vaccinate against Mpox.

Cross-cultural invariance of the Spanish version of the COVID-19 Assessment Scorecard to measure the perception of government actions against COVID-19 in Latin America.

OBJECTIVES: The present study aimed to evaluate the measurement invariance of a general measure of the perception of governmental responses to COVID-|19 (COVID-SCORE-10) in the general population of 13 Latin American countries. METHODS: A total of 5780 individuals from 13 Latin American and Caribbean countries selected by non-probabilistic snowball sampling participated. A confirmatory factor analysis was performed and the alignment method was used to evaluate invariance. Additionally, a graded response model was used for the assessment of item characteristics. RESULTS: The results indicate that there is approximate measurement invariance of the COVID-SCORE-10 among the participating countries. Furthermore, IRT results suggest that the COVID-SCORE-10 measures with good psychometric ability a broad spectrum of the construct assessed, especially around average levels. Comparison of COVID-SCORE-10 scores indicated that participants from Cuba, Uruguay and El Salvador had the most positive perceptions of government actions to address the pandemic. Thus, the underlying construct of perception of government actions was equivalent in all countries. CONCLUSION: The results show the importance of initially establishing the fundamental measurement properties and MI before inferring the cross-cultural universality of the construct to be measured.

Assessment of Obsessive Thoughts About COVID-19 in 7 Latin American Countries: Structure and Measurement Invariance of the Obsession With COVID-19 Scale.

The present study aimed to evaluate the measurement invariance of the Obsession with COVID-19 Scale (OCS) among seven Latin American countries: Bolivia, Brazil, Cuba, El Salvador, Guatemala, Paraguay, and Uruguay. Although the OCS has been used in several countries and languages, there is a need for approaches that better integrate the cross-cultural equivalence of the scale. A total of 3185 people participated in the study. The results indicated the presence of a unidimensional structure and good reliability indices for the OCS in each country. The alignment method indicated that the OCS is an invariant measure of COVID-19 obsession among the populations of seven Latin American countries. The findings based on IRT analysis indicated that all OCS items had adequate discrimination and difficulty parameters. The findings contribute to the understanding of the internal structure of the scale in different countries at the same time, something that has been pending evaluation.

Online transdiagnostic intervention for emotional, trauma- and stressor-related disorders in the Mexican population: A randomized pilot and feasibility trial.

•Mexican individuals received via telehealth the unified protocol for anxiety, depression, and trauma related disorders.•Online unified protocol reduced depression, anxiety, emotional issues, uncertainty intolerance, and psychological distress.•The transdiagnostic unified protocol is well-suited to train therapists for emotional, trauma, and stressor-related disorders.

Relationship Between Fear of COVID-19, Conspiracy Beliefs About Vaccines and Intention to Vaccinate Against COVID-19: A Cross-National Indirect Effect Model in 13 Latin American Countries.

The present study explored the predictive capacity of fear of COVID-19 on the intention to be vaccinated against COVID-19 and the influence in this relationship of conspiracy beliefs as a possible mediating psychological variable, in 13 Latin American countries. A total of 5779 people recruited through non-probabilistic convenience sampling participated. To collect information, we used the Fear of COVID-19 Scale, Vaccine conspiracy beliefs Scale-COVID-19 and a single item of intention to vaccinate. A full a priori Structural Equation Model was used; whereas, cross-country invariance was performed from increasingly restricted structural models. The results indicated that, fear of COVID-19 positively predicts intention to vaccinate and the presence of conspiracy beliefs about COVID-19 vaccines. The latter negatively predicted intention to vaccinate against COVID-19. Besides, conspiracy beliefs about COVID-19 vaccines had an indirect effect on the relationship between fear of COVID-19 and intention to vaccinate against COVID-19 in the 13 countries assessed. Finally, the cross-national similarities of the mediational model among the 13 participating countries are strongly supported. The study is the first to test a cross-national mediational model across variables in a large number of Latin American countries. However, further studies with other countries in other regions of the world are needed.

Is the meaning of subjective well-being similar in Latin American countries? A cross-cultural measurement invariance study of the WHO-5 well-being index during the COVID-19 pandemic.

BACKGROUND: There is an urgent need to assess changes in well-being on a multinational scale during the COVID-19 pandemic, thus culturally valid scales must be available. METHODS: With this in mind, this study examined the invariance of the WHO well-being index (WHO-5) among a sample of 5183 people from 12 Latin Americans countries (Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Cuba, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Mexico, Paraguay, Peru, and Uruguay). RESULTS: The results of the present study indicate that the WHO-5 is strictly invariant across samples from different Latin American countries. Furthermore, the results of the IRT analysis indicate that all items of the WHO-5 were highly discriminative and that the difficulty required to respond to each of the five items is ascending. Additionally, the results indicated the presence of moderate and small size differences in subjective well-being among most countries. CONCLUSION: The WHO-5 is useful for assessing subjective well-being in 12 Latin American countries during the COVID-19 pandemic, since the differences between scores can be attributed to differences in well-being and not in other characteristics of the scale.

Pandemic grief in El Salvador: factors that predict dysfunctional grief due to a COVID-19 death among Salvadoran adults.

Thousands of people have died of COVID-19 in El Salvador. However, little is known about the mental health of those who are mourning the loss of a loved one to COVID-19. Therefore, the objective of this study was to examine the dysfunctional grief associated with COVID-19 death among Salvadoran adults. A sample of 435 Salvadorans (M = 29 years; SD = 8.75) who lost a family member or loved one to COVID-19 completed a digital survey using the Google Forms platform, during April 2 and 28, 2022. The results revealed that 35.1% reported clinically elevated symptoms of dysfunctional grief and among those mourners, and 25.1% also exhibited clinical levels of coronavirus anxiety. A binary logistic regression revealed that predictor variables such as COVID-19 anxiety (p = .003), depression (p = .021), and COVID-19 obsession (p = .032) were significant (χ2 = 84.31; Nagelkerke R2 = .242) and predict a 24.2% chance of dysfunctional bereavement.

COVID-19 Bereavement in Ten Latin American Countries: Measurement Invariance of the Pandemic Grief Scale and Its Relation to Suicidal Ideation.

The present study aimed to evaluate the cross-cultural measurement invariance of the Pandemic Grief Scale (PGS) in ten Latin American countries. A total of 2,321 people who had lost a family member or other loved one due to COVID-19 participated, with a mean age of 34.22 years old (SD = 11.99). In addition to the PGS, a single item of suicidal ideation was applied. The unidimensional model of the PGS had adequate fit in most countries and good reliability estimates. There was evidence of measurement invariance by country and gender. Also, a one-point increase in the PGS was associated with an almost twofold increase in the odds of suicidal ideation. Scores greater than or equal to 4 on the PGS are proposed as a cut off to identify individuals with suicidal ideation. Strong evidence of the cross-cultural validity of the PGS is provided.

Sociodemographic Factors Associated with Social Tolerance for Intimate Partner Violence in Peru: Evidence from the National Survey of Social Relations, 2019.

Our objective was to determine the factors associated with social tolerance for intimate partner violence (IPV) in the Peruvian population. A population-based cross-sectional study was conducted. Data from the 2019 National Survey of Social Relations (ENARES) of Peru were used. This survey collected data from a total of 1,026 Peruvians aged 18 years and older. Multilevel linear regression models were performed to evaluate the factors associated with a standardized index of social tolerance for IPV. Likewise, a stratified analysis was performed according to sex. Being older (ß = .01; 95% confidence interval [CI]: .01-.01) and living outside the capital (ß = 0.24; 95% CI: .07-0.41) were associated with greater social tolerance for IPV. On the other hand, being female (ß = -0.26; 95% CI: -0.36 to -0.17) and having a higher educational level were associated with lower tolerance. In the stratified analysis by sex, in both men and women, being older and having a higher level of education were associated with higher and lower tolerance for IPV, respectively. On the other hand, living outside the capital was associated with greater tolerance only in men. In Peru, older people and those living outside the capital showed greater acceptance of IPV, while women and those with higher levels of education expressed rejection of IPV.

Factors associated with alcohol abuse in the Peruvian population: analysis of a national health survey 2019.

AIM: To evaluate the factors associated with alcohol abuse in the Peruvian population. METHODS: A secondary analysis was performed using data from the Demographic and Family Health Survey of Peru, 2019. We included 24 264 Peruvians between 18 and 59 years. For the analysis of association, the Poisson regression model with robust standard errors was used. Adjusted Prevalence Ratios (aPR) with their respective 95% confidence intervals (95% CI) were calculated. RESULTS: The prevalence of alcohol abuse was 5.2%. Having higher education (aPR:1.61; 95%CI:1.04-2.48), being widowed, separated or divorced (aPR:1.73; 95%CI:1.18-2.54), belonging to the third (aPR:1.70; 95%CI:1.12-2.60), fourth (aPR:2.08; 95%CI:1.33-3.23) or fifth socioeconomic quintile (aPR:2.16; 95%CI:1.33-3.50), being from the Sierra (aPR:1.45; 95%CI:1.12-1.87) or Selva (aPR:1.48; 95%CI:1.13-1.94), not having health insurance (aPR:1.25; 95%CI:1.04-1.50), being a current smoker (aPR:2.43; 95%CI:2.02-2.93) and having major depression (aPR:1.77; 95%CI:1.32-2.36) were associated with a higher prevalence of alcohol abuse. On the other hand being a middle-aged adult (aPR:0.73; 95%CI:0.60-0.88), female (aPR:0.16; 95%CI:0.12-0.22) and having started drinking alcohol after the age of 18 years (aPR:0.57; 95%CI:0.47-0.69) were associated with a lower prevalence. CONCLUSIONS: One in 20 Peruvians between 18 and 59 years had alcohol abuse. Age, gender, education level, marital status, socioeconomic level, region, age of first drink, smoking and depression were associated with alcohol abuse.

Pandemic grief in El Salvador: factors that predict dysfunctional grief due to a COVID-19 death among Salvadoran adults

Abstract Thousands of people have died of COVID-19 in El Salvador. However, little is known about the mental health of those who are mourning the loss of a loved one to COVID-19. Therefore, the objective of this study was to examine the dysfunctional grief associated with COVID-19 death among Salvadoran adults. A sample of 435 Salvadorans ( M = 29 years; SD = 8.75) who lost a family member or loved one to COVID-19 completed a digital survey using the Google Forms platform, during April 2 and 28, 2022. The results revealed that 35.1% reported clinically elevated symptoms of dysfunctional grief and among those mourners, and 25.1% also exhibited clinical levels of coronavirus anxiety. A binary logistic regression revealed that predictor variables such as COVID-19 anxiety ( p = .003), depression ( p = .021), and COVID-19 obsession ( p = .032) were significant ( χ 2 = 84.31; Nagelkerke R 2 = .242) and predict a 24.2% chance of dysfunctional bereavement.

Cross-cultural invariance of the Spanish version of the COVID-19 Assessment Scorecard to measure the perception of government actions against COVID-19 in Latin America

Abstract Objectives The present study aimed to evaluate the measurement invariance of a general measure of the perception of governmental responses to COVID--19 (COVID-SCORE-10) in the general population of 13 Latin American countries. Methods A total of 5780 individuals from 13 Latin American and Caribbean countries selected by non-probabilistic snowball sampling participated. A confirmatory factor analysis was performed and the alignment method was used to evaluate invariance. Additionally, a graded response model was used for the assessment of item characteristics. Results The results indicate that there is approximate measurement invariance of the COVID-SCORE-10 among the participating countries. Furthermore, IRT results suggest that the COVID-SCORE-10 measures with good psychometric ability a broad spectrum of the construct assessed, especially around average levels. Comparison of COVID-SCORE-10 scores indicated that participants from Cuba, Uruguay and El Salvador had the most positive perceptions of government actions to address the pandemic. Thus, the underlying construct of perception of government actions was equivalent in all countries. Conclusion The results show the importance of initially establishing the fundamental measurement properties and MI before inferring the cross-cultural universality of the construct to be measured.

Network analysis of the relationships between conspiracy beliefs towards COVID-19 vaccine and symptoms of fear of COVID-19 in a sample of latin american countries.

The present study examined how conspiracy beliefs about COVID-19 vaccines specifically relate to symptoms of fear of COVID-19 in a sample of four South American countries. A total of 1785 people from Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru participated, responding to a sociodemographic survey, the Fear of COVID-19 scale (FCV-19 S) and the Vaccine Conspiracy Beliefs Scale-COVID-19 (VCBS-COVID-19). Network analysis identified the most important symptoms of fear and conspiracy beliefs about COVID-19 vaccines (nodes) and the associations between them (edges). In addition, the robustness of the network of these indicators of centrality and the possible differences in the structure and connectivity of the networks between the four countries were evaluated. The results suggest that the nodes with the highest centrality were items 2 and 5 of the FCV-19 S and item 2 of the VCBS-COVID-19. Likewise, item 6 is the belief that most predicts conspiracy beliefs about vaccines against COVID-19; while item 6 was the symptom that most predicts fear of COVID-19. The findings strongly support cross-cultural similarities in the networks across the four countries rather than differences. Although it was expected that a higher presence of symptoms of fear of COVID-19 may lead people to compensate for their fear by believing in conspiratorial ideas about vaccines and, consequently, rejecting the COVID-19 vaccine, the results do not clearly show this relationship. This could lead other researchers to generate evidence to explain the differences between Latin American countries and countries in other contexts in terms of vaccination rates. This evidence could be useful to develop policies favoring vaccination against COVID-19 that are more contextualized to the Latin American region, characterized by social instability and economic recession during the pandemic.

¿Es incorrecta la prevalencia de síntomas depresivos presentada en el informe de la Ensanut 2018-19?

No disponible.

Factors associated with depressive symptomatology during the COVID-19 pandemic in Mexico: A 2021 national survey.

BACKGROUND: Previous studies have identified a set of variables associated with depression during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the existing antecedents in Mexico, in addition to being limited to the beginning of the health emergency, made use of small and unrepresentative samples. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to identify the prevalence and factors associated with clinically significant depressive symptomatology (CSDS) in a representative Mexican sample of 2021. METHODS: A secondary cross-sectional analysis of the Encuesta Nacional de Bienestar Autorreportado (ENBIARE) was conducted. For the present study, the effective sample was 30,901. Univariate and bivariate anaylses were followed by a multiple Poisson regression, which served to obtain adjusted prevalence ratios of each variable under study. RESULTS: The prevalence of CSDS in the year 2021 was 15.3 %. In the multivariable analysis, the factors associated with CSDS were the number of recent stressful events, having a major functional limitation, not having social support from family or friends, being female, having suffered recent discrimination, alcohol or other drug use (by oneself or someone at home), not being married or cohabiting, living in a rural area, having had a diagnosis of COVID-19, having lost a job, living with a chronic patient, not doing physical exercise, and having a low educational level. LIMITATIONS: The main limitations were the cross-sectional nature of the data, the use of self-report measures, as well as the fact that this was a secondary analysis that did not allow consideration of additional variables. CONCLUSIONS: A set of personal and contextual variables were identified that can help focus prevention and intervention efforts on the phenomenon of depression.

Efficacy of a transdiagnostic guided internet-delivered intervention for emotional, trauma and stress-related disorders in Mexican population: study protocol for a randomized controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: Emotional and stress-related disorders show high incidence, prevalence, morbidity, and comorbidity rates in Mexico. In recent decades, research findings indicate that cognitive behavioral interventions, from a disorder-specific perspective, are the effective front-line treatment for anxiety and depression care. However, these treatments are not often used. Reasons include limited access and low availability to effective interventions and comorbidity between mental disorders. Emotional deregulation of negative affectivity has been found to be a mediating factor in addressing emotional disorders from a transdiagnostic perspective, aimed at two or more specific disorders. In addition, technological advancement has created alternatives for psychological assistance, highlighting the possibilities offered by technologies since Internet-supported intervention programs have been empirically tested for effectiveness, efficiency and efficacy and can be key to ensuring access to those who are inaccessible. The aim of the study is to evaluate the efficacy, moderators of clinical change and acceptability of a transdiagnostic guided Internet-delivered intervention versus a transdiagnostic self-guided Internet-delivered intervention for emotional, trauma and stress-related disorders, and waiting list in community sample. METHODS: A three-armed, parallel group, superiority randomized controlled clinical trial with repeated measurements at four times: pretest, posttest, follow-up at 3, 6 and 12 months. Outcomes assessor, participant, care provider and investigator will be blinded. Participants aged 18 to 70 years will be randomly allocated 1:1:1 to one of three study arms: a) Transdiagnostic guided internet-delivered intervention with synchronous assistance, b) Transdiagnostic self-guided internet-delivered intervention, c) Waiting list group. Based on sample size estimation, a minimum of 207 participants (69 in each intervention group) will be included. DISCUSSION: The study could contribute to improving the efficacy of transdiagnostic internet-delivered interventions to promote the dissemination of evidence-based treatments and eventually, to decrease the high prevalence of emotional and trauma-related disorders in the Mexican population. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrial.gov: NCT05225701 . Registered February 4, 2022.