The mediating effect of hope agency on perceived stress and professional burnout among Polish corporate employees.

Job burnout is considered an outcome of prolonged exposure of employees to stress. Although many studies have focused on the presence of a direct association between stress and burnout, we still know very little about mediators that indirectly play a role in this relationship. Previous analyses have determined that self-efficacy acts as a mechanism that explains the overall relationship between stress and burnout. However, there is no such evidence to support the mediatory function of hope. Therefore, the main aim of the current study was to verify whether self-efficacy, hope pathways, and hope agency are mediators in this relationship. The study included 408 Polish-speaking adults who completed the Perceived Stress Scale, the Maslach Burnout Inventory, the Generalized Self-Efficacy Scale, and the Dispositional Hope Scale. The outcomes indicated a positive correlation of stress with the overall burnout score, as well as all subscales. Moreover, hope agency was a mediator, thus suggesting that there is also an indirect relationship between stress and job burnout. Therefore, it can be assumed that higher stress is associated with lower motivation to generate and sustain the actions needed to reach the goals. Consequently, lower hope agency may lead stressed employees to greater exhaustion and reduced personal accomplishment.

Relationship between World Assumptions and Post-Traumatic Growth among Polish Cancer Patients: Moderating Effect of Rumination.

BACKGROUND: Although post-traumatic growth is believed to be the result of complex interplays between various factors, cognitive variables appear to play a special role in these interactions. Yet, research on this topic is scant. Therefore, the first purpose of this study was to verify whether there is a direct relationship between world assumptions and post-traumatic growth among Polish cancer patients. As the effect of psychological change in post-traumatic growth may be affected by basic beliefs about the world and oneself, the second goal was to assess whether this association is moderated by rumination. METHODS: The study included 215 Polish cancer patients. The Post-traumatic Growth and Depreciation Inventory-Expanded version-(intrusive and deliberate rumination), the World Assumption Scale, and the Event-related Rumination Inventory were applied. RESULTS: Positive, albeit weak, correlations were found between the dimensions of world assumptions and post-traumatic growth. Post-traumatic growth correlated negatively with intrusive rumination and positively with deliberate rumination. The outcomes show that the level of post-traumatic growth resulting from world assumptions is significantly different at various levels of intrusive and deliberate rumination. CONCLUSION: Lower/medium intrusive rumination seems to strengthen the relationship between benevolence of the world/worthiness of the self and post-traumatic growth, and higher deliberate rumination tends to reinforce the relationship between meaningfulness and post-traumatic growth.

Are two children at once better than one? Risk analysis of twin pregnancies and births after assisted reproduction.

OBJECTIVES: Pregnancies and births following assisted reproductive treatment (ART) are related to an increased risk for adverse perinatal outcomes. The aim of this retrospective cohort study at a University Hospital with a tertiary perinatal center was the combined risk analysis of singleton and twin pregnancies after ART in comparison to spontaneously conceived pregnancies. STUDY DESIGN: Maternal and fetal risks were analyzed in subgroups after spontaneous conception (N = 14,233) and ART (N = 785) during the 6-year study period from 2014 to 2019. Odds ratios for perinatal risks between the groups were calculated and adjusted for maternal age and gestational week at birth using a matched control analysis. Subgroups of preterm delivery were compared. RESULTS: The overall maternofetal risks after ART are higher than after spontaneous conception. Maternal risks after ART are mainly related to higher maternal age (p < 0.001). Preterm delivery and neonatal complications are more frequent in twins than in singletons (p < 0.001), but no statistically significant differences were seen in comparison in the subgroup of twins due to conception. Higher maternal age and body mass index did not increase the risk of preterm birth in twin pregnancies. CONCLUSIONS: Maternal risks in pregnancies after ART are mainly influenced by maternal age. The strongest risk factor in ART pregnancies is a multiple pregnancy. Every 5th pregnancy after ART was a twin pregnancy with higher risks for preterm delivery, maternal hospitalization and adverse neonatal outcome (p < 0.001). Advanced maternal age in ART cannot be altered, but twin pregnancies can be actively avoided using the single embryo transfer strategy.

The Role of Self-Esteem in the Relationship Between Loneliness and Life Satisfaction in Late Adulthood: Evidence from Poland.

BACKGROUND: The life satisfaction of elderly persons has been extensively investigated and discussed. However, a literature review shows that relatively few studies have focused on the effect of loneliness on the life satisfaction of older adults. Some researchers have acknowledged that the character of the relationship between loneliness and life satisfaction is still unclear, and this association is much more complex that it appears to be. Therefore, the main purpose of the current study was to understand how loneliness is associated with satisfaction, and whether self-esteem and educational involvement in the University of the Third Age (U3A) courses can affect this relationship among elderly people. METHODS: The research was conducted on a group of 179 elderly adults (65% women). We measured loneliness, satisfaction, and self-esteem. The data were collected via the paper-and-pencil format through convenience sampling, just before the COVID-19 pandemic began. RESULTS: The results obtained show that loneliness correlated negatively with self-esteem and life satisfaction. Self-esteem was associated positively with life satisfaction. Self-esteem acted as a suppressor between loneliness and life satisfaction. The participation of older adults in U3A moderated the strength of the relationship between loneliness and life satisfaction (direct effect) and between loneliness and life satisfaction mediated by self-esteem (indirect effect). CONCLUSION: The mediatory role of self-esteem and the moderating role of educational activities in the relationship between loneliness and life satisfaction in late adulthood have important developmental and social implications. It appears that although feelings of loneliness and social isolation have a negative association on the life satisfaction of older adults, this relationship may be altered by empowering seniors' self-esteem through their involvement in lifelong learning. Such a solution supports the functioning of older people also at the social level.

Influence of electronic cigarettes puffing regimes on amount of vaporized liquid.

E-cigarette (EC) was designed to provide less harmful alternative to conventional cigarettes. Along with growing popularity of ECs around the world, more products have appeared on the market. There are limited safety studies and data relating to potential toxicity of EC use. Therefore, there is strong need to gain thorough information about a composition of generated aerosol from ECs. Due to the fact that ECs settings and puffing regimes influence vapor and toxins generation, we decided to identify parameters that have the greatest impact on the aerosol yield. Material and Methods: We took into account three puffing parameters: puff volume, puff duration and interpuff interval. The study was divided into two stages. In a first stage puffing regimes were achieved in testing volunteers (14 men and 11 women). In a second one found parameters (volume, puffs durations, intervals between puffs) were used to mimic ECs use in laboratory settings to examine influence of different puffing regimes on aerosol yields. Smoking machine was used to generate aerosol (6 times for each set of parameters). Aerosol yield was represented as amount of e-liquid trapped on Cambridge filter. Results: The results of puffing regimes study among ECs users are presented as mean ± SD: puff volume [mL] 65 ± 49, puff duration [s] 2.8 ± 2.7 and intervals between puffs [s] 16 ± 40. Aerosol yields varied depending on the set puffing regimes. Conclusions: Our results indicate that the most important puffing parameters, which determine aerosol yield, are puffs duration and interpuff intervals. Puffs volume (between 41- 76 mL) has no influence on aerosol yield.

Chemoenzymatic approach to optically active 4-hydroxy-5-alkylcyclopent-2-en-1-one derivatives: an application of a combined circular dichroism spectroscopy and DFT calculations to assignment of absolute configuration.

A series of representative optically active derivatives of 4-hydroxy-5-alkylcyclopent-2-en-1-one were prepared from the respective 2-furyl methyl carbinols via the Piancatelli rearrangement followed by the enzymatic kinetic resolution of racemates. Applicability of chiroptical methods (experimental and calculated electronic circular dichroism [ECD] and vibrational circular dichroism [VCD] spectra) to determine the absolute configuration of both stereogenic centers in 4-hydroxy-5-methylcyclopent-2-en-1-one was demonstrated. It was also demonstrated that the concurrent application of ECD and VCD spectroscopy can be used for the determination of the configuration of two stereogenic centers.