Television News Media Consumption and Misperceptions about COVID-19 among US Populations at High Risk for Severe Health Outcomes Early in the Pandemic.

Research indicates that misperceptions that become part of people's initial mental models about an issue tend to persist and influence their attitudes even after the misperception has been corrected. Recent work on evolving mental models suggests that communication efforts about the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and its aftermath may be improved by crafting messages that acknowledge biases and misunderstandings about the virus and other infectious diseases that may remain among members of the target audience. This study was designed to provide insight into such biases by: (1) establishing salient categories of COVID-related misperceptions in the earliest months of the pandemic in the United States among (a) the general population, and (b) demographic sub-populations at high risk of severe health outcomes; (2) identifying demographic predictors of misperceptions; and (3) examining the relationship between consumption of different television news outlets and agreement with misperceptions about COVID-19. A national sample of 1,000 adults in the United States (48.1% male; M age = 47.32, SD = 18.01; 72.9% White/Caucasian, 14.3% Black/African American, 15.9% Hispanic/Latinx) completed a survey between March 19 and March 25, 2020. Results identify prevalent classes of salient early COVID-19 misperceptions. Adjusting for numerous covariates, data indicated individuals over the age of 60 held the fewest COVID-related misperceptions among various demographic sub-populations, misperceptions were most prevalent among Black respondents, and increased consumption of television network news was associated with lower levels of misperception. Consumption of some 24-hour news networks (FOX and MSNBC) were significant positive correlates of misperceptions.

Evidence of the Associations between Individual and Partner Autonomy Support and Physiological Stress in the Context of Conversations about Weight among Couples Who are Overweight or Obese during a 6-Month Intervention.

The aim of the study was to examine the impact of supportive communication on acute physiological stress responses during weight-related conversations taking place throughout a couples' weight loss program. Participants were 47 married or cohabitating couples where each partner had a BMI of 25-40 kg/m2. Couples were randomized as a dyad into a traditional weight loss program or a program that also included training in providing support to one's partner throughout the weight loss process. Structured conversations between partners about weight management were videotaped at baseline and 6 months. Participants provided saliva samples before and after the conversations, which were assayed for cortisol and salivary alpha-amylase (sAA) to determine physiological stress and anxiety responses to conversations about weight. The results indicated that receiving support from one's partner when discussing weight-related issues was associated with greater physiological stress, as indicated by higher cortisol and sAA levels, whereas providing support to one's partner was associated with lower cortisol levels and higher sAA levels. The findings suggest that receiving support is not a universally positive experience, especially for populations facing health issues. The mixed findings for support provision align with previous studies identifying a negative association between affectionate communication and cortisol levels, as well as a positive association between sAA and anxiety and emotional arousal. The findings and their implications for understanding the physiological correlates of couples' conversations about weight are discussed.

Uncertainty Management and Curve Flattening Behaviors in the Wake of COVID-19's First Wave.

The coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak poses a substantial threat to public health. Individual efforts to engage in COVID-19 precautionary behaviors are necessary to flatten the pandemic's curve in the waiting period before a vaccine is developed. This study sought to apply the Theory of Motivated Information Management to investigate the relationships among COVID-19 illness uncertainty, information management, and actual precautionary behaviors, both preparatory and preventative. The results of a national opt-in online panel demonstrate that uncertainty discrepancy, anxiety, and information management strategies are key predictors of the adoption of COVID-19 preparation and prevention behaviors. The results further identify diverging associations across age groups with respect to associations between information management and precautionary behaviors. Implications for theory and practice are discussed.

The Longitudinal Effects of Expressive Writing on Victims of Relational Transgressions.

This study investigated the longitudinal effects of written disclosure on physiological and communicative health outcomes for victims of severe relational transgressions in dating relationships. Participants were assigned to a two-step writing condition, a benefit-finding condition, or a control condition to write once a day for three consecutive days on the same topic. Testosterone and forgiveness communication were assessed twice over the course of one-month. The results demonstrate that conditional forgiveness levels were higher for participants in both experimental conditions than in the control condition, whereas neither of the experimental conditions reduced testosterone levels. Across the writing conditions, testosterone levels were negatively associated with conditional forgiveness and positively associated with direct forgiveness. Finally, the results revealed that linguistic features in the writing predicted levels of testosterone and conditional forgiveness.