Exploring the connection between ego-resiliency and health behaviors: a cross-sectional study of Polish health sciences students.

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to examine the relationship between ego-resiliency and the intensity of health behaviors among Polish health sciences students. METHODS: The study involved 483 students from health-related faculties in southern Poland, consisting of 314 women (63.7%) and 179 men (36.3%). The average age of the participants was 21.7 ± 2.5 years. To assess resiliency (ER), the Ego-Resiliency Scale (ER89-R12) by Block and Kremen was used in its Polish adaptation. The intensity of health behaviors was examined using the Health Behavior Inventory (HBI) developed by Z. Juczynski. RESULTS: The results revealed a positive correlation between the intensity of health behaviors and ER (r = 0.43, p < 0.001), both for the general factor and its categories (positive mental attitude, proper eating habits, preventive actions, and prohealth activities). Students with a high level of health behaviors exhibited significantly higher ER (M = 38.95, SD = 5.15) compared to those with average (M = 35.93, SD = 5.03) and low (M = 32.97, SD = 5.12) HBI levels. Among the HBI categories, Positive Mental Attitude showed the strongest correlation with both general ER and its factors: optimal regulation (OR) and openness to life experiences (OL). Furthermore, the correlation was found to be stronger with the OR and weaker with OL. CONCLUSION: Higher ER in students is correlated with a greater frequency of health behaviors. Nurturing the development of ER may contribute to the maintenance of prohealth practices despite life difficulties and temporary loss of motivation. This, in turn, promotes the regularity of health behaviors, which is crucial for their positive impact on overall health.

The effects of life experiences and polygenic risk for depression on the development of positive and negative cognitive biases across adolescence: The CogBIAS hypothesis.

The Cognitive Bias (CogBIAS) hypothesis proposes that cognitive biases develop as a function of environmental influences (which determine the valence of biases) and the genetic susceptibility to those influences (which determines the potency of biases). The current study employed a longitudinal, polygenic-by-environment approach to examine the CogBIAS hypothesis. To this end, measures of life experiences and polygenic scores for depression were used to assess the development of memory and interpretation biases in a three-wave sample of adolescents (12-16 years) (N = 337). Using mixed effects modeling, three patterns were revealed. First, positive life experiences (PLEs) were found to diminish negative and enhance positive forms of memory and social interpretation biases. Second, and against expectation, negative life experiences and depression polygenic scores were not associated with any cognitive outcomes, upon adjusting for psychopathology. Finally, and most importantly, the interaction between high polygenic risk and greater PLEs was associated with a stronger positive interpretation bias for social situations. These results provide the first line of polygenic evidence in support of the CogBIAS hypothesis, but also extend this hypothesis by highlighting positive genetic and nuanced environmental influences on the development of cognitive biases across adolescence.

Stressful life events and prenatal representations of the child.

Caregivers' mental representations of their children can be assessed prenatally and are prospectively associated with later caregiving quality and caregiver-child attachment. Compared to balanced, distorted or disengaged representations are linked to insecure caregiver-child attachments. The present study explored factors (i.e. stressful life experiences and positive experiences) that may be linked to risk for distorted and disengaged representations. We used a brief version of the Prenatal Working Model of the Child Interview in a sample of 298 pregnant people (ages 19 to 45 years; M = 30.83, SD = 5.00) between gestational age 11-38 weeks (M = 23.49, SD = 5.70). A greater number of stressful events across three developmental periods (i.e., lifespan, childhood, and pregnancy) were related to increased odds of distorted, compared to balanced classification. Pregnancy stress had the largest association. Positive experiences from childhood did not buffer the association between stress and representations. Findings highlight the importance of stress on prenatal representations of one's child.

Associations Between Distinct Trauma Classes and Mental Health Care Utilization in Norwegian Adolescents: A National Registry Study.

Adolescents who experience potentially traumatic experiences (PTEs) have an increased risk of psychopathology. PTEs often co-occur and may form interrelated patterns of exposure. This study investigated underlying classes of PTE exposure among Norwegian adolescent participants in the youth@hordaland study, and whether such classes were associated with contact with child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS) and psychiatric diagnoses. The data stem from the population-based youth@hordaland study conducted in 2012 which was linked to the Norwegian Patient Registry (NPR, n = 8845). Exposure to PTEs was assessed by adolescent self-report whereas psychiatric disorders (Axis 1) were derived from the NPR. Latent Class Analysis was used to identify distinct classes of PTE exposure-patterns in the data. Logistic regression analyses were performed to investigate associations between classes of PTEs and contact with CAMHS and psychiatric diagnoses. Three classes of PTE exposure were identified based on model fit indices and theoretical considerations. Compared with participants in the low trauma class (88% of participants), those in the Situational-(6%) and Interpersonal trauma class (6%) had higher odds-ratios (ORs) for contact with CAMHS (OR = 2.27 (95% CI [1.78, 2.87])) and (OR = 3.26 (95% CI [2.61, 4.04])) respectively, and for being diagnosed with a psychiatric disorder in CAMHS (ORs ranged from 2.19 - 10.4) after adjusting for sex and parental education. There were more participants diagnosed with ADHD within the Interpersonal trauma class compared to the Situational trauma class when adjusting for sex and parental education (OR = 2.22 (95% CI [1.17, 4.40])). Three relatively homogeneous PTE classes, consisting of distinct patterns of trauma exposure were associated with a higher odds of contact with CAMHS and of being diagnosed with a psychiatric disorder in CAMHS. The study highlights the co-occurrence of PTEs and their impact across the diagnostic spectrum.

Music@Home-Retrospective: A new measure to retrospectively assess childhood home musical environments.

Early home musical environments can significantly impact sensory, cognitive, and socioemotional development. While longitudinal studies may be resource-intensive, retrospective reports are a relatively quick and inexpensive way to examine associations between early home musical environments and adult outcomes. We present the Music@Home-Retrospective scale, derived partly from the Music@Home-Preschool scale (Politimou et al., 2018), to retrospectively assess the childhood home musical environment. In two studies (total n = 578), we conducted an exploratory factor analysis (Study 1) and confirmatory factor analysis (Study 2) on items, including many adapted from the Music@Home-Preschool scale. This revealed a 20-item solution with five subscales. Items retained for three subscales (Caregiver Beliefs, Caregiver Initiation of Singing, Child Engagement with Music) load identically to three in the Music@Home--Preschool Scale. We also identified two additional dimensions of the childhood home musical environment. The Attitude Toward Childhood Home Musical Environment subscale captures participants' current adult attitudes toward their childhood home musical environment, and the Social Listening Contexts subscale indexes the degree to which participants listened to music at home with others (i.e., friends, siblings, and caregivers). Music@Home-Retrospective scores were related to adult self-reports of musicality, performance on a melodic perception task, and self-reports of well-being, demonstrating utility in measuring the early home music environment as captured through this scale. The Music@Home-Retrospective scale is freely available to enable future investigations exploring how the early home musical environment relates to adult cognition, affect, and behavior.

Psychotic-like experiences and adverse life events in young people. Does gender matter?

BACKGROUND: Psychotic-like experiences (PLEs) and adverse life events (ALEs) are highly prevalent in sub-Saharan Africa where gendered practices are also common. There is, however, a paucity of data on how the relationship between PLEs and life adversities is influenced by gender. The current study addressed this gap. METHOD: Data were collected from 1886 school-based young people (1174 females) in Ghana, West Africa using a cross-sectional survey methodology and analyzed using Chi-square, independent t-test, Pearson correlation, and multivariate regression. RESULTS: The results showed that victimization experiences, school stress and having a family member with mental illness were significantly associated with PLEs in both males and females. In contrast, substance misuse and experiences of head trauma correlated significantly with PLEs in females only. CONCLUSION: Life adversities constitute major risk factors for PLEs among school-based young people in Ghana, who could benefit from gender neutral and gender-sensitive intervention programming to remediate the effects of life adversities on PLEs.

Diversity and Access to Palliative Care and Medical Assistance in Dying in an Urban Setting.

This article focuses on the end-of-life experiences of migrants and non-migrants from young to old, who died in a Canadian cosmopolitan city in the years preceding the COVID-19 pandemic. Based on interviews with over one hundred relatives of as many deceased, the authors discuss end of life issues, namely access to palliative care and medical assistance in dying. The data indicate unequal access to care at the intersection of several factors, including type of disease, patient's age, uncertainty of their prognosis, and migrant/non-migrant status. While being young and having cancer were undeniably associated with the provision of care (curative and palliative), those who did not benefit from palliative care tended to be social minorities in the local society and suffered from diseases with ambiguous prognosis. The right to "Die with dignity" is fundamental, with or without palliative care and regardless of where the end of life takes place.

Perinatal and early-life factors associated with stable and unstable trajectories of psychopathic traits across childhood.

BACKGROUND: This study aimed to identify perinatal and early-life factors associated with trajectories of psychopathic traits across childhood. METHODS: Participants were 1631 children (51.5% girls) from the Quebec Longitudinal Study of Child Development. A wide range of perinatal and early-life factors were assessed from pregnancy to age 2.5 years using medical files and mothers' reports. Psychopathic traits were assessed via teachers' reports at ages 6, 7, 8, 10, and 12 years. Latent class growth analyses and multinomial logistic regressions controlling for child sex were conducted. Two-way interaction effects between perinatal/early-life factors and child sex were explored. RESULTS: Four trajectories of psychopathic traits were identified: High-stable (4.48%), Increasing (8.77%), Decreasing (11.46%), and Low-stable (75.29%). A few perinatal factors and most child-level and family-level early-life factors significantly increased the odds of following the High-stable v. the Low-stable trajectory. Higher levels of psychotropic exposures during pregnancy, socioeconomic adversity, child's physical aggression, child's opposition, mother's depressive symptoms, and hostile parenting increased the likelihood of following the Increasing instead of the Low-stable trajectory. Higher socioeconomic adversity, mother's depressive symptoms, and inconsistent parenting were associated with membership to the High-stable instead of the Decreasing trajectory. Most associations were not moderated by child sex. CONCLUSIONS: These results shed light on the perinatal and early-life factors that are associated with specific pathways of psychopathic traits during childhood and suggest that different factors could be targeted to prevent the exacerbation (v. low and stable levels) or the stability at high levels (v. attenuation) of these traits.

Despite popular intuition, positive world beliefs poorly reflect several objective indicators of privilege, including wealth, health, sex, and neighborhood safety.

OBJECTIVES: We tested whether generalized beliefs that the world is safe, abundant, pleasurable, and progressing (termed "primal world beliefs") are associated with several objective measures of privilege. METHODS: Three studies (N = 16,547) tested multiple relationships between indicators of privilege-including socioeconomic status, health, sex, and neighborhood safety-and relevant world beliefs, as well as researchers and laypeople's expectations of these relationships. Samples were mostly from the USA and included general population samples (Study 2) as well as focused samples of academic researchers (Study 1) and people who had experienced serious illness or trauma (Study 3). RESULTS: Studies 1-2 found mostly negligible relationships between world beliefs and indicators of privilege, which were invariably lower than researcher predictions (e.g., instead of the expected r = 0.33, neighborhood affluence correlated with Abundant world belief at r = 0.01). Study 3 found that people who had experienced serious illness (cancer, cystic fibrosis) only showed modest differences in beliefs from controls. CONCLUSIONS: While results do not preclude that some individuals' beliefs were meaningfully affected by life events, they imply that such changes are smaller or less uniform than widely believed and that knowing a person's demographic background may tell us relatively little about their beliefs (and vice versa).

Fear response of rat pups to a non-aversive social stimulus: Evidence for the involvement of memory processes.

Learning processes in rats during early development are importantly mediated by the mother, which represents the primary source of environmental information. This study aimed to determine whether aversive early experiences can induce the expression of pups' fear responses toward a non-aversive stimulus as a consequence of a memory process. First, we determined pups' fear responses toward an anesthetized female after being exposed to this stimulus or an empty cage together with their mothers from Postnatal Day (PNDs) 1 to 4. Second, we evaluated if the administration of the protein synthesis inhibitor cycloheximide (CHX; 0.2 mg/kg, subcutaneously (sc).) disrupted the reconsolidation processes and abolished the fear response on PND 9. Only female pups previously exposed to the female intruder expressed fear responses toward an anesthetized female on PND 8. CHX administration to female pups immediately after exposure to an anesthetized female on PND 8 suppressed fear responses on PND 9, indicating that the fear expression was the result of a memory process, probably mediated by the mother. These findings demonstrated that early experiences can shape responses to social stimuli in a sex-dependent manner and emphasize the critical role of the mother in influencing fear learning in a social context.

Resilience practices among a broad spectrum of individuals with physical disabilities during the COVID-19 pandemic: A qualitative photo elicitation study.

This community-based study explored resilience practices among people living with physical disabilities (i.e., stroke, spinal cord injury, and other physical disabilities) during the COVID-19 pandemic. In this photo elicitation study, during 1:1 interviews, participants shared and described photos that reflected their pandemic-related experiences. Data were analyzed thematically to identify resilience-related practices. Our analysis revealed three themes: (1) reflecting on the importance of family, friends, and community (e.g., recalling past memories and strengthening existing connections); (2) engaging in social and recreational activities (e.g., experiencing the outdoors and gardening); and (3) reframing personal contexts and social environment (e.g., adjusting to new social norms and overcoming physical barriers to navigating safely during the pandemic). The resilience that participants identified encompassed not only individual strategies but also family and community supports. Resilience can be fostered through community initiatives that support more equitable responses to health emergencies for people with disabilities.

Matrilateral bias of grandparental investment in grandchildren persists despite the grandchildren's adverse early life experiences.

Evolutionary theory predicts a downward flow of investment from older to younger generations, representing individual efforts to maximize inclusive fitness. Maternal grandparents and maternal grandmothers (MGMs) in particular consistently show the highest levels of investment (e.g. time, care and resources) in their grandchildren. Grandparental investment overall may depend on social and environmental conditions that affect the development of children and modify the benefits and costs of investment. Currently, the responses of grandparents to adverse early life experiences (AELEs) in their grandchildren are assessed from a perspective of increased investment to meet increased need. Here, we formulate an alternative prediction that AELEs may be associated with reduced grandparental investment, as they can reduce the reproductive value of the grandchildren. Moreover, we predicted that paternal grandparents react more strongly to AELEs compared to maternal grandparents because maternal kin should expend extra effort to invest in their descendants. Using population-based survey data for English and Welsh adolescents, we found evidence that the investment of maternal grandparents (MGMs in particular) in their grandchildren was unrelated to the grandchildren's AELEs, while paternal grandparents invested less in grandchildren who had experienced more AELEs. These findings seemed robust to measurement errors in AELEs and confounding due to omitted shared causes.

Gender differences in risk factors and psychosocial functioning in children with psychogenic nonepileptic seizures.

OBJECTIVE: Female predominance is evident in childhood-onset psychogenic nonepileptic seizures (PNES). Understanding gender-specific vulnerability to PNES may provide a unique insight into its cause and management. We aimed to investigate gender differences in demographic characteristics, triggering factors and psychosocial functioning in children and youth with PNES. METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed patients who were evaluated in the PNES clinic at Children's Healthcare of Atlanta from July 2019 to March 2020 and completed questionnaires to assess adverse life events, psychosocial function (Pediatric Symptom Checklist-17 [PSC-17]), and somatic symptoms (Children's Somatic Symptom Inventory-8, [CSSI-8]). RESULTS: Forty-nine consecutive patients (38 girls, 11 boys) with a median age of 15.0 (9-19) years were included in the study. We performed univariate analysis and evaluated significant variables related to PNES according to sex. Majority of both genders experienced daily to weekly PNES, came from dysfunctional families, scored high on PSC-17, were treated for neuropsychiatric illnesses, and experienced bothersome somatic symptoms. The variables significantly different between genders were suicidal thoughts, history of trauma, and learning disability. Suicidal thoughts and trauma, particularly sexual abuse, were significantly more prevalent in girls (p = 0.03) whereas learning disability was more common in boys (p = 0.03). CONCLUSION: Females predominated in our PNES clinic (F:M = 3.5:1). Gender differences in predisposing factors were sexual abuse in females and learning disability in males. Our data highlight the gender-specific risk factors and vulnerability to PNES. The awareness of gender difference may guide more targeted intervention for children and youth with PNES.

Post-discharge experiences of patients with extracorporeal membrane oxygenation support: A qualitative study.

PURPOSE: To explore the life experiences of patients who have been discharged after undergoing extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) support. DESIGN: A qualitative descriptive approach was used. METHODS: Patients who have undergone ECMO support and have been discharged were recruited. Thirteen participants were involved in this study. The data were collected through a semi-structured interview and analyzed using the Colaizzi method. FINDINGS: Four major themes in life experiences were reported by the participants: changes in physical function, changes in psychological state, active adaptation to daily life, and substantial rehabilitation needs. CONCLUSION: Different, continuous, and convenient post-discharge physical and mental interventions, social support, spiritual support, and rehabilitation services should be provided according to the patient's circumstances. We also call on the government to increase the patient reimbursement rate for ECMO treatment. These measures may help to improve the quality of life of patients.

Exploring life and help-seeking experiences regarding suicidal ideations among nursing home residents.

Globally, older adults, especially nursing home residents, are at a higher risk of suicide. This study examined the life of nursing home residents with suicidal ideations and their help-seeking experiences. A qualitative analysis of 19 semi-structured interviews was conducted. Results indicate that suicidal ideations among nursing home residents correlates with their negative life experiences, both personally and institutionally. In terms of their life experiences, themes included the desire for death, emotional loneliness, a state of discomfort arising from incapacity, feeling like a burden on children, and dealing with the low-quality service. Older adults' negative attitudes toward seeking assistance as well as limited resort resources and ineffective help-seeking hinder them from finding more support or treatment. This study adds to a growing body of research on late-life suicide in institutional settings, and relevant findings can serve as references in improving nursing home residents' life quality and developing suicide-prevention strategies.

End-of-life dreams and visions as perceived by palliative care professionals: A qualitative study.

OBJECTIVE: End-of-life dreams and visions (ELDVs) have been suggested to be prevalent psychic phenomena near death that can provide meaning and comfort for the dying. There is a lack of studies from the secular Nordic countries. The aim of this study was to determine whether palliative care professionals in a Nordic country have experience of patients expressing dreams, visions, and/or inner experiences and, if so, how they are perceived. METHOD: Focus-group interviews with 18 professionals in end-of-life palliative care were subjected to qualitative content analysis. RESULTS: Most (15/18) professionals had experience of patients with ELDVs. A dominant content was deceased loved ones. According to most professionals, many patients perceived their ELDVs as real and could report them with clarity. The experience could result in peacefulness for patients, as well as loved ones, and reduce fear of death. Some professionals themselves perceived ELDVs to be real and a normal part of dying while a few found them scary. Most professionals, however, found ELDVs hard to grasp. Many tried to explain the phenomena as the result of medical circumstances and confusion, although reporting that they considered most patients to be normal and of sound mind in connection with their reports on ELDVs. Most patients wanted to talk about their ELDVs, but some could be reluctant due to fear of being considered crazy. The professionals were open-minded and reported having no problem talking about it with the patients and tried to normalize the experience thereby calming the patient and loved ones. SIGNIFICANCE OF RESULTS: The results strengthen the suggestion that ELDVs are common phenomena near death, worldwide. Although most professionals in palliative care recognized ELDVs as beneficial to patients, many found the phenomena hard to grasp and sometimes difficult to distinguish from confusion, indicating a continuous need for exploration and education.

Self-constitution and "Infrastructural" Change: An Interdisciplinary Account of Psychoanalytic Action.

Beyond revealing unconscious pathological identifications and traits-including their past usefulness but current toxicity-what techniques in our psychoanalytic practice can lead to change? Radically different from mainstream philosophical views advocating that such undesirable self-aspects should not be endorsed as Self, psychoanalysts hold that these negative traits must instead be understood as part of one's Self. But then what? Investigating concepts from classical conditioning, neuroscience, the philosophy of mind and action, and psychoanalytic practice itself, this article will suggest a preliminary account of the mechanism of action of psychoanalytic work after insight.

The Spectrum of End-of-Life Experiences: A Tool for Advancing Death Education.

Studies on end-of-life experiences (ELEs) suggest that caregivers and loved ones of dying patients also have ELEs, though these are rarely explored. This article introduces the Spectrum of End-of-Life Experiences (SELE) as a descriptive list of types of ELEs reported by all members of the care unit, including dying patients, their caregivers, and their loved ones. We applied SELE towards identifying ELEs reported by 143 caregivers and loved ones and successfully identified every experience. Interviews revealed that participants viewed their ELEs as profound communicative events, yet a substantial minority also reported struggling to name and process these experiences. We propose that SELE be included in death education to raise awareness about ELEs that can occur within the care unit, and we suggest that SELE has additional applications, including use as a prognostic aid in end-of-life care and as a therapeutic aid for bereavement support.

The Effects of Retirement on Sense of Purpose in Life: Crisis or Opportunity?

Does retirement lead to an existential crisis or present an opportunity to experience a renewed sense of purpose in life? Prior research has documented a negative association between retirement and sense of purpose in life, suggesting that retirement could lead people to feel aimless and lost. We revisited these findings using a quasiexperimental approach and identified the causal impact of retirement on purpose in life. In a nationally representative panel of American adults (N = 8,113), we applied an instrumental-variable analysis to assess how Social Security retirement incentives in the United States drove differences in the likelihood of retirement. Results showed a sizable increase in purpose in life as an outcome of retirement. These improvements were driven by individuals with lower socioeconomic status who retired from dissatisfying jobs. The findings suggest that retirement may provide an opportunity to experience a renewed sense of purpose, especially among socioeconomically disadvantaged populations.

Social reinforcement learning as a predictor of real-life experiences in individuals with high and low depressive symptomatology.

BACKGROUND: Several studies have reported diminished learning from non-social outcomes in depressed individuals. However, it is not clear how depression impacts learning from social feedback. Notably, mood disorders are commonly associated with deficits in social functioning, which raises the possibility that potential impairments in social learning may negatively affect real-life social experiences in depressed subjects. METHODS: Ninety-two participants with high (HD; N = 40) and low (LD; N = 52) depression scores were recruited. Subjects performed a learning task, during which they received monetary outcomes or social feedback which they were told came from other people. Additionally, participants answered questions about their everyday social experiences. Computational models were fit to the data and model parameters were related to social experience measures. RESULTS: HD subjects reported a reduced quality and quantity of social experiences compared to LD controls, including an increase in the amount of time spent in negative social situations. Moreover, HD participants showed lower learning rates than LD subjects in the social condition of the task. Interestingly, across all participants, reduced social learning rates predicted higher amounts of time spent in negative social situations, even when depression scores were controlled for. CONCLUSION: These findings indicate that deficits in social learning may affect the quality of everyday social experiences. Specifically, the impaired ability to use social feedback to appropriately update future actions, which was observed in HD subjects, may lead to suboptimal interpersonal behavior in real life. This, in turn, may evoke negative feedback from others, thus bringing about more unpleasant social encounters.