scholarly journals Daily Financial Thoughts and Indices of Mental and Physical Health: The Importance of Socioeconomic Status

2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. 391-392
Author(s):  
Jonathan Rush ◽  
Eric Cerino ◽  
Jacqueline Mogle ◽  
Robert Stawski ◽  
Susan Charles ◽  
...  

Abstract The current study examined the associations between daily financial thoughts, socioeconomic status (SES), and indices of emotional (positive and negative affect (PA/NA)) and physical health (physical symptoms and cortisol). Participants (N = 782) from the National Study of Daily Experiences, a subsample of the Midlife in the United States Refresher survey, completed daily diary interviews and provided saliva samples, from which cortisol was assayed. Participants who, on average, reported more daily financial thoughts also reported more NA, less PA, more physical symptoms, and had higher cortisol AUCg (all p’s < .05). These effects were more pronounced among people reporting lower SES. Daily fluctuations in financial thoughts also predicted daily fluctuations in NA, PA, and physical symptoms (all p’s <. 01). Again, these associations were more pronounced among people reporting lower SES. Results indicate that intrusive, daily financial thoughts may be one pathway explaining the link between SES and health outcomes.

Author(s):  
Mehrete Girmay ◽  
Gopal K. Singh

Background: Loneliness and social isolation have the ability to affect an individual's mental and physical health. With research linking both to morbidity and premature mortality, their effects must be viewed as important public health problems. Loneliness and social isolation can be especially pronounced in the international student community, particularly at the university level, as this population encounters challenges assimilating to their host university, surrounding community, and host country. This study explores the risks and sociocultural factors associated with loneliness, social isolation, and psychological distress with regards to the overall adjustment of international students. Methods: In this qualitative, narrative case study, 10 international graduate students at a university in the United States participated in two focus group sessions followed by individual interviews. Thematic areas and topics were identified using Barrer's three models of social support. Study was completed between December 2016 and September 2017. Results: All of the participants shared that they had experienced loneliness and social isolation at some point during their acculturative process resulting in perceived xenophobia and a sense of insincerity on behalf of domestic students when attempting to forge connections. For some, these experiences elicited feelings of depression, a disinterest in building connections with domestic students, and in attending social events held on campus and within the community, further exacerbating feelings of loneliness and social isolation. Conclusions and Implications for Translation: Results shed light on the impact that poor acculturation can have on the student's mental and physical health and how bridges between the international and non-international communities can be built and more importantly, sustained. There is a critical need for more effort to be focused on attending to both the mental and physical health needs of migrant students during their stay at the host university. Key words: • Acculturation • Social Isolation • Loneliness • Mental Health • International •  Student   Copyright © 2019 Girmay and Singh. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Com- mons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.


Author(s):  
Joyce P. Lee ◽  
Richard M. Lee ◽  
Alisia G. T. T. Tran

This chapter investigates the phenomenon of foreigner objectification, or the labeling (implicit or otherwise) of members of racial/ethnic minority groups as foreigners regardless of citizenship, migration status, or length of residence. As the majority of research on foreigner objectification has emerged out of the United States, the chapter focuses on the foreigner objectification experiences of two rapidly growing US racial/ethnic groups: Latinos/as and Asian Americans. It first contextualizes foreigner objectification within the larger literature on attitudes toward racial/ethnic minority groups. It then discusses how foreigner objectification has been measured in psychological research and examines the limited but growing literature on the association between foreigner objectification and mental and physical health.


2021 ◽  
Vol 17 ◽  
pp. 174550652110106
Author(s):  
Chelsea L Kracht ◽  
Peter T Katzmarzyk ◽  
Amanda E Staiano

Objectives: Household chaos, including disorder, noise, and crowding within the home, is a risk factor for poor mental and physical health. Household chaos may act upon maternal behaviors of physical activity and sleep, potentially via higher stress. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the relationships among household chaos, maternal stress, and maternal physical activity and sleep, and identify barriers to home organization during the COVID-19 outbreak. Methods: A cross-sectional study using an online survey of 1721 mothers of preschoolers (ages = 3.0–5.9 years) in the United States was conducted in May 2020 during COVID-19 stay-at-home orders and early reopening. Mothers reported demographic characteristics, household chaos, stress, physical activity and sleep, and barriers to home organization during the outbreak. Mediation models were conducted among household chaos, stress, and physical activity and sleep with adjustment for covariates. Results: About half of mothers were middle income (48.2%), employed full-time prior to the outbreak (59.1%), and met the physical activity (47.7%), and sleep guideline (49.7%, 7–9 h/day). Household chaos and stress were both negatively related to physical activity and sleep. For every 1 unit increase in mother’s current stress, mothers were 11% (95% confidence interval = 6% to 16%) less likely to meet the physical activity guideline and 19% (95% confidence interval = 14% to 23%) less likely to meet the sleep guideline. Household chaos was positively related to stress. Stress partially mediated the relationship between household chaos and physical activity and sleep. Virus concerns, occupational changes (i.e. teleworking), and lack of childcare were barriers to home organization. Conclusion: During the COVID-19 outbreak, many mothers had poor sleep and physical activity, which was associated with household chaos and stress. Opportunities to promote order at the individual, household, and community level may result in beneficial mental and physical health in mothers of young children during the COVID-19 outbreak and beyond.


2018 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 296-315 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robin W. Simon ◽  
Jennifer Caputo

Although research finds that parents report greater depression than nonparents, we do not know whether the costs and benefits of parenthood for mental and physical health vary across parenting stages. Using the first wave of data from National Survey of Midlife Development in the United States (MIDUS; N = 2,730), we examine disparities in eight measures of mental and physical health between nonparents and parents whose youngest child is: (1) under 13, (2) 13 to 17, (3) 18 to 29, and (4) 30 years and older. Drawing on insights about stress, the life course, and the changing nature of the parental role, we hypothesize that the associations between parenthood and well-being are contingent on the parenting stage. Our analyses reveal some advantages associated with parenthood; we also find that parents whose children are 30 years and older report better mental and physical health than parents at all other stages. These results suggest that the costs and benefits of parenthood in the U.S. depend on the parenting stage.


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