Mental health during ecological crisis: translating and validating the Hogg Eco-anxiety Scale for Argentinian and Spanish populations.

BACKGROUND: Eco-anxiety is increasingly recognized as a shared experience by many people internationally, encompassing fear of environmental catastrophe and anxiety about ecological crises. Despite its importance in the context of the changing climate, measures for this construct are still being developed in languages other than English. METHODS: To contribute to global eco-anxiety research, we translated the Hogg Eco-Anxiety Scale (HEAS) into Spanish, creating the HEAS-SP. We validated this measure in samples from both Argentina (n = 990) and Spain (n = 548), performing measurement invariance and confirmatory factor analyses. Internal consistency of the scale and score stability over time were investigated through reliability analyses. Differences in eco-anxiety across sociodemographic variables were explored through Student's t-tests and Pearson's r tests. RESULTS: The four-factor model of the HEAS-SP comprising affective and behavioural symptoms, rumination, and anxiety about personal impact demonstrated excellent model fit. We found good internal consistency for each subscale, and established measurement invariance between Spanish and Argentine samples, as well as across genders and participants' age. Spanish participants reported higher scores on the affective symptoms and personal impact anxiety factors compared to the Argentinian sample. Also, men reported lower levels than women on the subscales of affective symptoms, rumination, and personal impact anxiety. It was found that the relationship between both age and personal impact anxiety and age and affective symptoms varies significantly depending on the gender of the individuals. Younger participants tended to report higher scores on most dimensions of eco-anxiety. CONCLUSIONS: These findings enhance the global initiative to investigate, explore and therefore comprehend eco-anxiety by introducing the first valid and reliable Spanish-language version of this psychometric instrument for its use within Spanish and Argentinian populations. This study augments the body of evidence supporting the robust psychometric properties of the HEAS, as demonstrated in prior validations for Australian, Turkish, Portuguese, German, French, and Italian populations.

Sleep Quality between Nurses and the General Population during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Portugal: What Are the Differences?

Although several studies have described the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly on sleep quality, there are few studies that, in the same time period and using the same assessment tools, compare sleep quality and mental health status between nurses and the general population. Thus, the aim of this study was to (a) examine whether there were differences between nurses and the general population regarding sleep quality and mental health status during the COVID-19 pandemic and (b) identify which factors may explain sleep quality during the COVID-19 pandemic. To do that, we carried out a cross-sectional study in Portugal. Data were collected using an online survey platform during the first COVID-19 wave, from April to August 2020. Nurses presented poorer sleep quality than the general population, as well as higher anxiety levels. Irritability and worries about the future were two of the factors that might explain those differences. Thus, we can conclude that irritability and worries about the future are dimensions of anxiety that were associated with poor sleep quality during the COVID-19 pandemic. Thus, it would be important to adopt regular anxiety and sleep assessments, particularly for nurses, and to implement strategies to reduce this problem.

The Quality of Life of Older Individuals Following the World Health Organization Assessment Criteria.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the psychometric qualities of the WHOQOL-BREF(PT) (the questionnaire developed by the World Health Organization Quality of Life Grpup for quality of life assessment), when applied to Portuguese elderly people residing in a community setting. The psychometric qualities were assessed by confirmatory factor analysis. A hierarchical second-order model and a third model were performed, and all three models presented similar and reasonable adjustment indexes. The data analysis showed that the construct failed only regarding discriminant validity because the correlations between the first-order factors were higher, associated with lower values of average variance extracted. The psychometric qualities found in the original translation/validation of the WHOQOL-BREF(PT) were compared with those found in this study; this study found higher correlations between domains but a similar level of factor reliability. The findings of this study lead to three recommendations: (i) to compute each factor score for each participant using the factor score weights obtained from confirmatory analysis models instead of adopting a unitary weight for each item, as proposed by the authors of the original translation/validation of the WHOQOL-BREF(PT); (ii) to compute a QOL score, which is not included in the original translation/validation; and (iii) to analyze differences between individual scores for each participants, which should be done by a group of health experts.

Quality of life in schizophrenic patients: the influence of sociodemographic and clinical characteristics and satisfaction with social support / Qualidade de vida nas pessoas com esquizofrenia: a influência das características sociodemográficas e clínicas e da satisfação com o suporte social

Abstract Objective To evaluate the relationship of sociodemographic and clinical characteristics and satisfaction with social support with the quality of life of schizophrenic patients. Methodology This study included a sample of 268 participants. An interview was conducted to obtain sociodemographic and clinical data, supplemented with two assessment tools used to evaluate quality of life (World Health Organization Quality of Life instrument-Abbreviated version - WHOQOL-Bref) and satisfaction with social support (Social Support Satisfaction Scale - SSSS). Descriptive and inferential analyses were performed. Results Most individuals were male (63.4%), with a mean age of 45.4 years, single (85.4%), living with their family (62.3%) and unemployed (90.3%). As for clinical characteristics, most had the disease for less than 20 years (50.7%), and 55.6% had at least one hospitalization within the last 5 years. Being employed and having had no hospitalization within the last 5 years were positively correlated with one or more WHOQOL-Bref domains. The results of the variables intimacy (p<0.001) and satisfaction with friends (p<0.001) were independently related to the total WHOQOL-Bref score. Conclusion Having a job, having had no hospitalization within the last 5 years and having greater satisfaction with social support are factors that positively influence quality of life among schizophrenics. It is therefore crucial that the psychosocial rehabilitation of patients with schizophrenia take these factors into account, increasing the support network, preventing relapses and promoting occupational activities.

Resumo Objetivo Avaliar a relação entre as características sociodemográficas e clínicas e a satisfação com o suporte social com a qualidade de vida dos doentes com esquizofrenia. Métodos A amostra do estudo é de 268 participantes. Foi realizada uma entrevista para obter os dados sociodemográficos e clínicos e aplicados dois questionários para avaliar a qualidade de vida (World Health Organization Quality of Life instrument-Abbreviated version - WHOQOL-Bref) e a satisfação com o suporte social (Escala de Satisfação com o Suporte Social - ESSS). Foram efetuadas análises descritivas e inferenciais. Resultados A maioria dos indivíduos era do gênero masculino (63,4%), com uma média de idade de 45,4 anos, solteiros (85,4%), vivendo com a família (62,3%) e desempregados (90,3%). Relativamente às características clínicas, 50,7% tinham a doença há menos de 20 anos, e 55,6% estiveram internados pelo menos uma vez nos últimos 5 anos. Os resultados demonstraram que estar empregado e não ter sido internado nos últimos 5 anos estão positivamente relacionados com um ou mais domínios da WHOQOL-Bref. A satisfação com a intimidade (p<0,001) e a satisfação com os amigos (p<0,001) foram independentemente associados ao escore total da WHOQOL-Bref. Conclusão Ter emprego, não ter hospitalizações nos últimos 5 anos e estar satisfeito com o suporte social são fatores que influenciam positivamente a qualidade de vida dos doentes com esquizofrenia. Por conseguinte, é crucial que esses fatores sejam levados em conta nos programas de reabilitação com o suporte social, aumentando a rede de suporte, evitando recaídas e promovendo atividades ocupacionais.

Quality of life in schizophrenic patients: the influence of sociodemographic and clinical characteristics and satisfaction with social support.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the relationship of sociodemographic and clinical characteristics and satisfaction with social support with the quality of life of schizophrenic patients. METHODOLOGY: This study included a sample of 268 participants. An interview was conducted to obtain sociodemographic and clinical data, supplemented with two assessment tools used to evaluate quality of life (World Health Organization Quality of Life instrument-Abbreviated version - WHOQOL-Bref) and satisfaction with social support (Social Support Satisfaction Scale - SSSS). Descriptive and inferential analyses were performed. RESULTS: Most individuals were male (63.4%), with a mean age of 45.4 years, single (85.4%), living with their family (62.3%) and unemployed (90.3%). As for clinical characteristics, most had the disease for less than 20 years (50.7%), and 55.6% had at least one hospitalization within the last 5 years. Being employed and having had no hospitalization within the last 5 years were positively correlated with one or more WHOQOL-Bref domains. The results of the variables intimacy (p<0.001) and satisfaction with friends (p<0.001) were independently related to the total WHOQOL-Bref score. CONCLUSION: Having a job, having had no hospitalization within the last 5 years and having greater satisfaction with social support are factors that positively influence quality of life among schizophrenics. It is therefore crucial that the psychosocial rehabilitation of patients with schizophrenia take these factors into account, increasing the support network, preventing relapses and promoting occupational activities.