Mental Health of Students Reporting Food Insecurity during the Transition to University.

Purpose: The present study examined differences in mental health and well-being between students with and without suspected food insecurity during their transition to university.Methods: We drew on existing data from 4 samples of first-year undergraduates enrolled at 3 large universities in 3 provinces (Alberta n = 199, Québec n = 299, and Ontario n = 461 and n = 510). Students completed online surveys assessing a wide range of health-related behaviours and indicators, and students were classified as food secure or insecure based on their responses to screening questions.Results: Mental health (depression, anxiety, low satisfaction with life) was consistently poorer in students classified as food insecure across all samples. The magnitude of mental health deficit was comparable to socioeconomic disadvantage associated with food insecurity.Conclusions: Students experiencing food insecurity are disproportionately launching their university careers with poorer mental health, revealing a critical point of intervention for these socioeconomically higher-risk students.

The Rise and Fall of Depressive Symptoms and Academic Stress in Two Samples of University Students.

Self-reported depressive experiences are common among university students. However, most studies assessing depression in university students are cross-sectional, limiting our understanding of when in the academic year risk for depression is greatest and when interventions may be most needed. We examined within-person change in depressive symptoms from September to April. Study 1 (N = 198; 57% female; 72% white; Mage = 18.4): Depressive symptoms rose from September, peaked in December, and fell across the second semester. The rise in depressive symptoms was associated with higher perceived stress in December. Study 2 (N = 267; 78.7% female; 67.87% white; Mage = 21.25): Depressive symptoms peaked in December and covaried within persons with perceived stress and academic demands. The results have implications for understanding when and for whom there is increased risk for depressive experiences among university students.

A Person-Centered Analysis of Risk Factors that Compromise Wellbeing in Emerging Adulthood.

The transition to adulthood is a major life course transition that can pose risk to wellbeing. Research is needed to identify patterns of risk for compromised wellbeing, in order to best identify supports for individuals during this potentially vulnerable transition. The purpose of this study was to identify profiles of risk in an emerging adulthood sample, and to relate these profiles to mental health and subjective and academic wellbeing. Undergraduate emerging adults (N = 903, 82 % female), aged 18-25 years (M = 21.14, SD = 1.75), completed a series of questionnaires about risk factors, mental health, and academic variables. Results from a latent profile analysis identified four distinct risk profiles: Low Risk (76 %), Low Social Support Risk (4 %), Financial Risk (11 %), and Multiple Risk (8 %). The risk profiles were subsequently related to mental health and subjective and academic wellbeing outcomes, using a pseudo-class draws approach. Analyses indicated that the risk-pattern profiles differed in several ways across outcomes. Implications for targeted interventions are discussed.

Planned and unplanned drinking to get drunk: A registered report examining willingness, drinking motives, and protective behavioral strategies using ecological momentary assessment.

OBJECTIVE: We examined alcohol use and consequences across five categories of same-day drinking intentions and willingness and tested whether same-day motives and protective strategies predicted differences in outcomes across categories of intentions and willingness. METHOD: In a 14-week ecological momentary assessment design, undergraduate student participants (N = 196) reported drinking intentions and behaviors over 13 surveys weekly (four morning surveys [Thursday through Sunday]; three midday, early, and late evening surveys [Thursday through Saturday]). On average, participants were 20.61 years old (SD = 1.50; range 17-25), 63% identified as female (n = 124), 29% as male (n = 57), and 8% identified as neither male nor female (n = 15; i.e., nonbinary; transgender; genderqueer; agender). Participants reported numbers of drinks consumed on the evening (past 2 hr) and morning (previous day) surveys. Multilevel generalized linear models tested effects of drinking intentions/willingness categories, motives, protective strategies, and interactions between key variables on alcohol use and consequences in several models. RESULTS: Rates and quantities of drinking were highest on planned drinking days, and especially high when students planned to get drunk. When enhancement and social motives were elevated, students were more likely to drink and consumed more drinks even on unplanned drinking days, and especially when socializing with others. Effects of coping motives were weaker and sparse. Harm reduction protective strategies were associated with more positive and negative consequences with little variation across planned and unplanned drinking days. CONCLUSION: Jointly considering drinking intentions and willingness narrows the intention-behavior gap in student drinking and suggests potential areas of focus for messaging around responsible drinking. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

First-Year University Students' Mental Health Trajectories Were Disrupted at the Onset of COVID-19, but Disruptions Were Not Linked to Housing and Financial Vulnerabilities: A Registered Report.

This study modeled disruptions in first-year undergraduates' trajectories of mental health associated with the COVID-19 pandemic, testing whether disruptions were worse for students who moved residences, reported low family income, or were food insecure. Participants (n = 510) at a large Canadian university reported depression, anxiety, and stress in September, November, January, and March. In March 2020, in tandem with COVID-related campus closures, students also reported for each mental health measure whether their responses were influenced by personal experiences surrounding the pandemic. As hypothesized, students who reported feeling more COVID-related disruption reported poorer mental health in March. Contrary to hypotheses, mental health disruptions were not more pronounced for students who moved, had low income, or were food insecure. Survey administration at an early stage of COVID-19 combined with supports afforded by moving in with parents and near-universal government income assistance may have mitigated the incremental distress we hypothesized for vulnerable students.

Effects of Goal Appraisals and Goal Motivation on Dimensions of Identity Development: A Longitudinal Mixed Methods Analysis of European American Emerging Adults.

In the present study, we investigated the ways in which the ideographic goal descriptions and goal appraisals of European American high school seniors reflect potentials for intentional self-development during emerging adulthood (EA), a lifespan phase characterized by increasing levels of freedom and decreasing age-graded, socially sanctioned developmental norms. Additionally, we investigated whether variation in participants' goal appraisals and the motivational qualities emergent in their goal descriptions would predict variation in dimensions of identity development, both concurrently at age 18 and prospectively at age 23. Results of an exploratory, mixed method analysis of participants' (N = 129, 56.6% male, M age = 18.24, SD = 0.37) goal data revealed diversity in education and work goals, strong potentials for intentional self-development reflected across goal appraisals, and more nuanced reflections of intentional self-development across the motivational qualities emergent in goal descriptions. Results partially supported the hypothesis that goal appraisals and motivational qualities that reflect potentials for intentional self-development would predict kindred processes of identity development across the first five years of EA. These findings contribute to a nascent empirical literature focused on the interrelationship of goal and identity constructs during EA and suggest new avenues for future research. Supplementary Information: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s10804-021-09386-0.

Global Self-Esteem, Appearance Satisfaction, and Self-Reported Dieting in Early Adolescence.

Global self-esteem, appearance satisfaction, and self-reported dieting are interrelated. In the current study, we examine the temporal ordering of global self-esteem and appearance satisfaction across the early adolescence transition, from age 10 to age 14, as well as the independent associations of self-esteem and appearance satisfaction on self-reported dieting at age 14. Participants were 130 firstborn European American adolescents (40% girls). Adolescents who were less satisfied with their appearance at age 10 reported declines in self-esteem from age 10 to age 14. Adolescents with lower global self-esteem at age 10 did not decline in appearance satisfaction. Girls, adolescents with higher BMI scores at age 10, and adolescents who were less satisfied with their appearance at age 14 all reported more frequent dieting at age 14. Implications for etiological and intervention models of eating problems in adolescence are considered.

Chronic parenting stress and mood reactivity: The role of sleep quality.

Sleep is a basic biological process supporting emotion regulation. The emotion regulation function of sleep may be particularly important in the context of chronic stress. To better understand how chronic stress and sleep interact to predict mood, 66 parents of children with autism completed daily diaries assessing parenting stress, negative mood, and sleep quality for 6 consecutive days. Hierarchical linear modelling revealed that daily negative mood was predicted by between-person differences in parenting stress and between-person differences in sleep efficiency. Further, between-person differences in sleep efficiency and within-person differences in sleep satisfaction moderated the impact of stress on mood. These data suggest that sleep disturbances may exacerbate the association between stress and mood in the context of chronic parenting stress. Further, high parenting stress appears to heighten the impact of transient sleep disturbances on mood.

Dyadic Coping, Respiratory Sinus Arrhythmia, and Depressive Symptoms Among Parents of Preschool Children.

Respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA) is a biomarker of cardiac vagal tone that has been linked to social functioning. Recent studies suggest that RSA moderates the impact of interpersonal processes on psychosocial adjustment. The goal of this study was to assess whether RSA would moderate the association between dyadic coping (DC) and depressive symptoms. Eighty cohabiting couples raising preschool children completed the Dyadic Coping Inventory, the Center for Epidemiological Study-Depression scale and had their RSA assessed during a laboratory session. Couples completed follow-up assessments of depressive symptoms 6 and 12 months later. Data were analyzed using an Actor-Partner Interdependence Model. Results indicated that RSA moderated the actor effect of negative DC on depression in men, such that men with lower RSA had a stronger association between their own ratings of negative DC within the couple relationship and their own depressive symptoms, compared to their counterparts with higher RSA. RSA also moderated the partner effect of delegated DC on depressive symptoms. Among men with higher RSA, there was a significant negative association between their partner's ratings of delegated DC within the couple relationship and the men's depressive symptoms, whereas partner-rated delegated DC was unrelated to depressive symptoms among men with lower RSA. These results suggest that men with higher RSA may possess social skills and abilities that attenuate the association between stressful marital interactions and negative mood.

Depression, self-esteem, and anger in emerging adulthood: seven-year trajectories.

This study used a school-based community sample (N=920) to examine trajectories of depressive symptoms, self-esteem, and expressed anger in the critical years of emerging adulthood (ages 18-25). Using data from 5 waves, the authors discovered that multilevel models indicated that, on average, depressive symptoms and expressed anger declined, whereas self-esteem increased. Between-persons predictors of variability in trajectories included gender (gender gaps in depressive symptoms and self-esteem narrowed), parents' education, and conflict with parents (depressive symptoms and expressed anger improved fastest in participants with highly educated parents and in those with higher conflict). Across time, increases in social support and marriage were associated with increased psychological well-being, whereas longer periods of unemployment were connected with higher depression and lower self-esteem. Emerging adulthood is a time of improving psychological well-being, but individual trajectories depend on specific individual and family characteristics as well as role changes.

Tracking affect and academic success across university: Happy students benefit from bouts of negative mood.

We examined how positive and negative affect covary within individuals over time and how patterns of association between affective traits and states relate to academic success across 4 years of university. Participants were 187 full-time first-year students at a large Canadian university who completed questionnaires about recent affective experiences in 6 waves across 4 years. Grade point average for each year of study was provided by the registrar's office. Our analysis identified an adaptive pattern characterized by the maintenance of high positive affect ("chronic happiness") and the cooccurrence of time-limited bouts of negative affect. Our results are consistent with findings showing productive consequences of experiencing positive and negative affect in tandem and the development of emotion regulation capacity across the transition to adulthood. (PsycINFO Database Record

Dyadic coping and inflammation in the context of chronic stress.

OBJECTIVE: Marital quality impacts inflammatory processes. Dyadic coping, a spousal support process in which members of a couple work together to cope with the stressors that 1 or both partners are facing, is associated with higher marital satisfaction and reduced psychological distress. The goal of the present study was to evaluate whether dyadic coping is also related to systemic inflammation among individuals facing chronic parenting stress. METHOD: Forty-four parents of children with an autism spectrum disorder completed self-report questionnaires on dyadic coping, marital satisfaction, perceived social support, and caregiving burden. They also provided a blood sample for C-reactive protein (CRP) analysis, a marker of systemic inflammation. RESULTS: Higher positive dyadic coping was significantly associated with lower circulating CRP, while negative dyadic coping was unrelated to CRP. After adjusting for individual differences in marital satisfaction, perceived social support, and caregiving burden, positive dyadic coping became marginally associated with CRP. CONCLUSION: Positive dyadic coping is a specific interpersonal process that may modulate systemic inflammation among individuals exposed to chronic stress. (PsycINFO Database Record

Behavioral phenotype of fragile X syndrome in adolescence and adulthood.

The present study explored the behavioral profile of individuals with fragile X syndrome during adolescence and adulthood. Individuals with both fragile X syndrome and autism (n  =  30) were compared with (a) individuals diagnosed with fragile X syndrome (but not autism; n  =  106) and (b) individuals diagnosed with autism (but not fragile X syndrome; n  =  135) on measures of autism symptoms, adaptive functioning, behavior problems, and psychological symptoms. Results indicated that individuals dually diagnosed with fragile X syndrome and autism displayed greater communication and social reciprocity impairments than individuals with fragile X syndrome only. Individuals in the dually diagnosed group also exhibited higher levels of repetitive and challenging behaviors than either comparison group, suggesting a unique profile of vulnerability for those diagnosed with both fragile X syndrome and autism.

Daily stress and cortisol patterns in parents of adult children with a serious mental illness.

OBJECTIVE: The goal of the current study was to examine whether parenting an adult child with a serious mental illness (SMI) has a physiological impact on parents. METHOD: Multiple samples of saliva were collected on 4 days from 61 parents (mean age = 60.07 years, SD = 10.01) of individuals with a SMI (bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, and major depression; mean age = 32.46 years, SD = 10.57) and a comparison group of 321 parents (mean age = 58.09 years, SD = 12.88) of individuals without a SMI (mean age = 32.36; SD = 13.87). Saliva samples were assayed for the hormone cortisol and group differences in diurnal cortisol patterns and their association with daily stress severity were explored. RESULTS: On days after elevated stress, a hypoactivation pattern of diurnal cortisol suggestive of chronic stress was evident for parents of individuals with a SMI. After more stressful days, cortisol levels increased less from waking to 30 min after waking and declined less from 30 min after waking to bedtime for parents of individuals with a SMI. CONCLUSIONS: The results of the current study add to a growing body of evidence that the long-term effects of parenting an adult with a disability has a biological impact on aging parents and support the need for family interventions across adulthood and into old age for parents of individuals with SMI.

Differential sensitivity to life stress in FMR1 premutation carrier mothers of children with fragile X syndrome.

OBJECTIVE: The premutation of the FMR1 gene (defined as between 55 and 200 CGG repeats) is estimated to affect 1 in 149 females and 1 in 643 males, and some people who carry the FMR1 premutation display signs of impairment. METHOD: This study focuses on 82 premutation carrier mothers (M age = 51.4 years; SD = 7.7) of adolescent and adult children with fragile X syndrome (FXS). A Gene × Environment interaction approach examined the ways in which the experience of negative life events interacts with genetic vulnerability to predict depressive symptoms, anxiety, and daily cortisol levels. RESULTS: The associations of life events with all 3 dependent measures were associated with CGG repeat length but in a curvilinear manner. Mothers with midsize CGG repeats who experienced above-average numbers of negative life events in the previous year had more depressive symptoms and anxiety and had a blunted cortisol awakening response, as compared with those with higher or lower repeat lengths. However, mothers with midsize CGG repeats who experienced below-average numbers of negative life events in the previous year had the lowest levels of depressive symptoms and anxiety, and they exhibited the typical cortisol response to awakening, meeting the criteria for differential susceptibility. CONCLUSIONS: This research extends our understanding of the phenotypic effects of the expansion of the FMR1 gene, and it adds to the growing literature on the curvilinear relationship between CGG repeat length and mental and physical health.

Marital satisfaction and life circumstances of grown children with autism across 7 years.

We examined the extent to which marital satisfaction across 7 years in 199 mothers was associated with the characteristics (gender, age, and intellectual disability status) of their adolescent or adult child with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and whether fluctuations in marital satisfaction covaried with the child's autism symptoms, health, behavior problems, and closeness in the parent-child relationship. We also examined the impact of the departure of the adult child out of the family home on mothers' marital satisfaction. The effect of family context variables including the presence of an additional child with a disability, maternal education, and household income on marital satisfaction were also examined. We found that closeness in the mother-child relationship and household income had a significant effect on level of marital satisfaction, and that variability in the slope of mothers' marital satisfaction was significantly predicted by fluctuations in the behavior problems of the adolescent or adult child with an ASD. The grown child's departure out of the family home was not related to change in marital satisfaction. Interventions aimed at managing the behavior problems of adolescents and adults with ASDs may help strengthen parents' marital relationship.

Marital Quality and Families of Children with Developmental Disabilities.

In the current review, we highlight recent research on marital quality in parents of children with developmental disabilities (DD) and discuss the child and family factors that account for why some marriages fare better than others. We will also discuss the need for the field of DD to broaden its perspective on marital quality and to examine the impact of marriages on child well-being and the well-being of parents. The clinical implications of recent research findings on marital quality for improving supports and interventions for families of children with DD are discussed. A theoretical framework and model of marriage and parent and child psychosocial well-being in the context of child disability is proposed and a roadmap for future research is provided.

Trajectories of emotional well-being in mothers of adolescents and adults with autism.

Raising an adolescent or adult child with a developmental disability confers exceptional caregiving challenges on parents. We examined trajectories of 2 indicators of emotional well-being (depressive symptoms and anxiety) in a sample of primarily Caucasian mothers (N = 379; M age = 51.22 years at Time 1) of adolescent and adult children with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD; M age = 21.91 years at Time 1, 73.2% male). We also investigated within-person associations of child context time-varying covariates (autism symptoms, behavior problems, residential status) and maternal context time-varying covariates (social support network size and stressful family events) with the trajectories of emotional well-being. Data were collected on 5 occasions across a 10-year period. Average patterns of stable (depressive symptoms) and improved (anxiety) emotional well-being were evident, and well-being trajectories were sensitive to fluctuations in both child and maternal context variables. On occasions when behavior problems were higher, depressive symptoms and anxiety were higher. On occasions after which the grown child moved out of the family home, anxiety was lower. Anxiety was higher on occasions when social support networks were smaller and when more stressful life events were experienced. These results have implications for midlife and aging families of children with an ASD and those who provide services to these families.

Marital satisfaction and parenting experiences of mothers and fathers of adolescents and adults with autism.

The association of marital satisfaction with parenting burden and quality of the parent?child relationship was examined in 91 married mothers and fathers of co-residing adolescents and adults with autism spectrum disorders. Within-couple differences between mothers and fathers in how child characteristics related to these parenting experiences were also evaluated. Multilevel modeling was used to control for the dependency in couple data. Marital satisfaction was an important predictor of parenting experiences, particularly for fathers. Mothers reported feeling closer to their son or daughter than did fathers. Fathers' parenting experiences were more strongly impacted by child characteristics than were mothers' parenting experiences. Results emphasized the connection between the marital relationship and parenting experiences and overlapping but unique experiences of mothers and fathers.