The association between neighborhood-level social fragmentation and distressing psychotic-like experiences in early adolescence: the moderating role of close friends.

BACKGROUND: Early exposure to neighborhood social fragmentation has been shown to be associated with schizophrenia. The impact of social fragmentation and friendships on distressing psychotic-like experiences (PLE) remains unknown. We investigate the relationships between neighborhood social fragmentation, number of friends, and distressing PLE among early adolescents. METHODS: Data were collected from the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development Study. Generalized linear mixed models tested associations between social fragmentation and distressing PLE, as well as the moderating role of the number of total and close friends. RESULTS: Participants included 11 133 adolescents aged 9 to 10, with 52.3% being males. Greater neighborhood social fragmentation was associated with higher levels of distressing PLE (adjusted ß = 0.05; 95% CI: 0.01-0.09). The number of close but not total friends significantly interacted with social fragmentation to predict distressing PLE (adjusted ß = -0.02; 95% CI: -0.04 to <-0.01). Among those with fewer close friends, the association between neighborhood social fragmentation and distressing PLE was significant (adjusted ß = 0.07; 95% CI: 0.03-0.11). However, among those with more close friends, the association was non-significant (adjusted ß = 0.03; 95% CI: -0.01 to 0.07). CONCLUSIONS: Greater neighborhood social fragmentation is associated with higher levels of distressing PLE, particularly among those with fewer close friends. Further research is needed to disentangle aspects of the interaction between neighborhood characteristics and the quality of social interactions that may contribute to psychosis, which would have implications for developing effective interventions at the individual and community levels.

Maternal disapproval of friends in response to child conduct problems damages the peer status of pre- and early adolescents.

BACKGROUND: Herein, we consider the hypothesis that mothers harm peer relations when they respond to child conduct problems by expressing disapproval of friends, which exacerbates the behavior problems they were presumably attempting to deter. METHODS: A community sample of Lithuanian adolescents (292 boys and 270 girls, aged 9-14 years) completed surveys three times during an academic year. Classmate nominations indexed peer status (acceptance and rejection), self-reports described perceived maternal disapproval of friends, and peer nominations and self-reports separately gauged conduct problems. RESULTS: Over the course of a school year: (a) conduct problems were associated with subsequent increases in perceived maternal friend disapproval; (b) perceived maternal friend disapproval was associated with subsequent decreases in peer status; and (c) low peer status was associated with subsequent increases in conduct problems. Full longitudinal, random-intercept cross-lagged panel mediation models confirmed that mothers who disapproved of friends were sources of peer difficulties that culminated in conduct problems and intermediaries whose response to child conduct problems damaged peer relations. Findings were stronger for peer rejection than for peer acceptance, suggesting that peers actively dislike those with mothers who intervene in peer relationships. CONCLUSIONS: Maternal disapproval of friends in response to child conduct problems damages the child's standing among peers, which then exacerbates behavior problems. This consequential cascade underscores the need for parent education about the potential deleterious consequences of well-intentioned interference in peer relations. Practitioners should be prepared to offer constructive, alternative solutions when youth present behavior problems.

Coinfections and antimicrobial treatment in a cohort of falciparum malaria in a non-endemic country: a 10-year experience.

INTRODUCTION: Falciparum malaria remains one of the deadliest infectious diseases worldwide. In Germany, it is mainly an imported infection among travellers. Rates of coinfection are often unknown, and a clinical rationale for the beneficial use of calculated antibiotic therapy in patients with malaria and suspected coinfection is lacking. METHODS: We conducted an analysis of all in-patients treated with falciparum malaria at a German infectious diseases centre in vicinity to one of Europe's major airports for 2010-2019. Logistic regression and time-to-event analysis were used to evaluate predictors for bacterial coinfection, the use of antibacterial substances, as well as their influence on clinical course. RESULTS: In total, 264 patients were included. Of those, 64% received an additional antibacterial therapy (n = 169). Twenty-nine patients (11.0%) were found to have suffered from a relevant bacterial coinfection, while only a small fraction had relevant bacteremia (n = 3, 1.4%). However, patients with severe malaria did not suffer from coinfections more frequently (p = 0.283). CRP levels were not a reliable predictor for a bacterial coinfection (OR 0.99, 95% CI 0.94-1.06, p = 0.850), while another clinical focus of infection was positively associated (OR 3.86, 95% CI 1.45-11.55, p = 0.010). CONCLUSION: Although bacterial coinfections were rare in patients with malaria at our centre, the risk does not seem negligible. These data point rather towards individual risk assessment in respective patients than to general empiric antibiotic use.

The social contexts of behaviors and relationships: The relation of classroom and cyber victimization to number of classroom and cyber friends.

Behaviors and relationships exist within a variety of social contexts. More specifically for the current research, victimization and friendships occur in classrooms and, increasingly, in online virtual contexts. The current research examined how the number of classroom friends and number of cyber friends related to the extent of classroom victimization and extent of cyber victimization. Research has demonstrated the importance of face-to-face friendships in relation to being a victim; much less is known about the role of cyber friends in relation to being a cyber victim or how these relationships may play a role in cross-context victimization. Participants were 350 children from Grades 3 through 5 (188 girls and 162 boys). Children indicated classroom friends on a classroom roster, reported the number of their cyber friends, and indicated the extent of their cyber victimization. Peers nominated classmates for classroom victimization behaviors. A path analysis revealed that number of classroom friends was negatively associated with both extent of classroom victimization and extent of cyber victimization. Number of cyber friends was positively associated with extent of cyber victimization and was negatively related to extent of classroom victimization. Discussion of results includes the construction, use, and adaptation of social skills within and between social contexts.

Dementia Friendly communities (DFCs) to improve quality of life for people with dementia: a realist review.

BACKGROUND: Currently, there are more than 55 million people living with dementia worldwide. Supporting people with dementia to live as independently as possible in their communities is a global public health objective. There is limited research exploring the implementation of such interventions in the community context. The aim of the review was to create and refine programme theory - in the form of context mechanism-outcome configurations - on how the characteristics of dementia-friendly communities (DFCs) as geographical locations interact with their social and organisational contexts to understand what works for whom and why. METHODS: This realist review sourced literature from 5 electronic databases: Cochrane Library, CINAHL, Medline, Scopus, PsychINFO and Google Scholar, as well as relevant websites such as Alzheimer's Society to identify grey literature. Methodological rigour was assessed using the Joanna Briggs Institute critical appraisal tool. RESULTS: Seven papers were included in this realist review that focused on DFCs in a geographical context The implementation of DFC interventions emerged as a process characterised by two pivotal implementation phases, intricately linked with sub-interventions. The first intervention, termed Hierarchy Commitment (I1a/b), involves the formalisation of agreements by businesses and organizations, along with the implementation of dementia-friendly action plans. Additionally, Educational Resources (I1c) play a significant role in this phase, engaging individuals with dementia and their caregivers in educational initiatives. The second phase, Geographical/Environmental Requirements (I2), encompasses the establishment of effective dementia-friendly signage, accessible meeting places, and community support. CONCLUSIONS: This realist review highlighted a theoretical framework that might guide the development of dementia-friendly communities to enhance the experiences of individuals with dementia and their caregivers within DFCs. Emphasising the need for a theoretical framework in developing geographical DFCs, the review outlines contextual elements, mechanisms, and outcomes, providing a foundation for future studies. The ultimate goal is to establish a robust body of evidence for the sustainable implementation of dementia-friendly communities, thereby improving the quality of life for those with dementia. STUDY REGISTRATION: This study is registered as PROSPERO 2022 CRD42022317784.

Perceiving the outlier in the crowd: The influence of facial identity.

The accurate perception of groups with outliers can help us identify potential risks. However, it is unclear how outliers affect the perception of group emotion. To address this question, we conducted a study on group emotion perception in the context of facial identity. We presented 74 participants with pictures of crowds, and asked them to evaluate the valence ratios and intensity of the crowd by means of the Emotional Aperture Measure. The results revealed that outlier emotions were often overestimated within crowds. Moreover, we found that the emotional expression of a close friend modulated the perception of outliers. Specifically, when a close friend expressed the group emotion, participants overestimated the outlier less than when a close friend expressed the outlier emotion. These results suggest that people can detect outliers within groups, and that their perception of group emotion is influenced by close friends. Thus, we provide evidence that facial identity affects group emotion perception.

Adolescents' perceptions of privacy violations by parents, siblings, and friends.

Adolescence is a life stage beset by a growing desire for privacy. This study evaluated adolescents' experiences across four types of potentially privacy-invasive behaviors (PPIVBs) and within four different types of relationships. 158 adolescents (Mage = 16.9 years, SD = 1.0; 53.5% female) reported on the frequency of the PPIVBs, perceived control over the behaviors, secret/private information threatened by the behaviors, and feelings of privacy invasion produced by the behaviors. Privacy experiences were more similar across relationships than across types of behavior. Stronger feelings of privacy invasion were reported for PPIVBs involving electronics and information, for behaviors by family members, when behaviors occurred infrequently, when adolescents perceived greater control over whether the behaviors occurred, and when behaviors threated secret/private information.

The significance of feeling needed and useful to family and friends for psychological well-being during adolescence.

INTRODUCTION: Social relationships offer the opportunity to provide support and resources to others. Feeling needed and useful to others has been understudied during adolescence, despite being shown to predict health and well-being during adulthood. The current study examined this underappreciated way in which family and peer relationships may shape psychological well-being during adolescence. METHOD: A cross-sectional sample of high school students across the United States completed an on-line questionnaire during school hours in the fall of 2020. The sample consisted of 1301 adolescents averaging 15.94 (SD = 1.24) years in age in the ninth through twelfth grades, with 48.4% identifying as female, 47.3% as male, and 3.2% reporting either other gender identities or preferring not to answer (1%). Participants identified as Hispanic or Latino (40.2%), European American (19.8%), African American (14.7%), Multiethnic (9.2%), Asian American (7%), Other Ethnicities (7.8%), and 1.3% did not report their ethnicity. RESULTS: Feeling needed and useful was predicted by both helping and receiving support from others, strongly predicted better psychological well-being, and mediated associations of helping and receiving support with well-being. Males reported feeling more needed by their family as compared to females, and both reported higher levels of being useful to their family than those with other gender identifications. CONCLUSIONS: Like adults, adolescents have a need to contribute and feel needed in their social worlds. Studies of close relationships should incorporate the ways in which youth provide resources and support to others in their lives as well as the sense of feeling needed and useful derived from those activities.

Identifying Social Network Characteristics Associated With Youth Physical Activity Skill Competency at a Summer Care Program.

While literature suggests that youth physical activity (PA) behaviors are affected by network influences, less is known about network influences on perceived skill competency, a component of physical literacy and self-efficacy. This study aims to provide an understanding of potential network characteristics which are associated with youth PA skill competency. Youth (n = 158) between the ages of 8 and 12 years recruited from two summer care programs (i.e., Boys & Girls Clubs) participated in researcher-administered surveys. Youth self-reported their age, sex, involvement in team sports, weekly PA, and skill competency assessed using a version of the PLAYself measure. Youth were also asked to report up to five people in the summer program and five out of the program with whom they interacted the most. Linear regression was used to evaluate associations between skill competency and demographics, PA, and social network characteristics. Skill competency was significantly associated (R2 = .17) with age (ß = -.06, p = .01), sex (ß = -.06, p = .01), sports team involvement (ß = .16, p < .001), and weekly PA (ß = -.20, p < .001). Skill competency was also significantly associated with the number of connections with whom the youth played frequently (ß = .09, p < .001), the number of connections that helped the youth to be active (ß = .18, p < .001), and the heterogeneity of the type of relationships within the youth's network (ß = .11, p < .001). Skill competency scores were significantly associated with both individual variables and social network composition. In addition, youth with networks comprising several types of relationships (heterogeneity) reported a significantly high skill competency. PA interventions can be most effective when considering the reinforcing aspects of networks and skill competency.

Peer Influences on (Dis)Engagement in Early Adolescence: the Role of Friendship, Social Status, and Academic Status.

Academic engagement in adolescence is shaped by influences from the peer environment, yet the types of peers impacting engagement remain unclear. This study explores the roles of friends, popular students, and intelligent students in shaping peers' behavioral and emotional (dis)engagement. Data were analyzed from 3409 Flemish eighth-grade students (Mage = 13.48 years, SD = 0.46, 50.09% female), utilizing self-reports and peer nominations to measure (dis)engagement and map friendship, popularity, and intelligence networks in the fall and spring. Longitudinal network analysis revealed that, while accounting for selection and network structure, friends influenced all dimensions of engagement. Popular students influenced emotional disengagement, and intelligent students impacted emotional engagement. These findings underscore the intricate nature of peer dynamics, highlighting the need for a multidimensional approach to studying peer influences on engagement.