Suicidal Ideation During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Investigating Mental Health, COVID-19 Health Beliefs, and News Media Consumption in the United States Population in the Year 2020

This study examines the role of general news media consumption during COVID-19 in aggravating mental health and suicide risk in the US population. In a sample of U.S. adults ( N = 5,010), we investigated how mental health, COVID-19 health beliefs, and general news consumption influenced the odds of suicidal ideation using hierarchical logistic regression models. Both worsening mental health overall and specifically in regard to COVID-19 increased suicidal ideation. Perceived susceptibility to COVID-19 infection did not increase suicidal ideation, yet higher levels of COVID-19 self-efficacy reduced suicidal ideation. Overall news consumption did not affect suicidal ideation, but media-specific post-hoc analyses revealed that TV news watching decreased suicidal ideation as much as high levels of COVID-19 self-efficacy decreased suicidal ideation. Furthermore, online news consumption increased suicidal ideation as much as worsening mental health overall increased suicidal ideation. Further implications are discussed.

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Training Preservice Mental Health Counselors for Suicide Assessment: A Multiple Baseline Study

10.31234/osf.io/dpj97 ◽

2019 ◽

Author(s):

Teal Bohrer ◽

Cass Dykeman

Keyword(s):

Mental Health ◽

Suicidal Ideation ◽

Self Efficacy ◽

The United States ◽

Multiple Baseline ◽

Future Research ◽

Probe Design ◽

Mental Health Clinicians ◽

Suicide Assessment ◽

The Impact

Rates of death by suicide continue to increase across the United States. Mental health clinicians often have contact with individuals expressing suicidal ideation, but research suggests clinicians may not be appropriately prepared to assess a client’s suicide risk. Numerous models and theories explain and assess suicidal ideation. In 2009, Thomas Joiner and his colleagues proposed the interpersonal-psychological theory of suicide (IPT), which focused on three main factors strongly supported by research over the preceding decade. The present study utilized a nonconcurrent, multiple-baseline, multiple-probe design as well as a one-group pretest–posttest design to examine the impact of an IPT-based training model. Participants were preservice mental health clinicians currently enrolled in Master’s degree programs. Participants completed assessments on IPT knowledge and suicide-assessment self-efficacy, and results from this study indicated a significant increase in knowledge after completion of the training, as well as a slight decrease in self-efficacy. This study suggests that suicide-assessment training, even when done remotely, can increase suicide-assessment knowledge. Future research should explore preservice mental health clinicians’ self-efficacy as well as those factors influencing the confidence these professionals feel in their assessments of risk.

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Spanish-Language News Consumption and Latino Reactions to COVID-19

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health ◽

10.3390/ijerph18189629 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 18 (18) ◽

pp. 9629

Author(s):

Barbara Gomez-Aguinaga ◽

Ana L. Oaxaca ◽

Matt A. Barreto ◽

Gabriel R. Sanchez

Keyword(s):

Public Health ◽

News Media ◽

Source Credibility ◽

The United States ◽

Spanish Language ◽

Media Consumption ◽

Health Crisis ◽

News Consumption ◽

State And Local ◽

The Impact

While the literature on infectious disease outbreaks has examined the extent to which communication inequalities during public health emergencies exacerbate negative outcomes among disadvantaged individuals, the implications of ethnic media consumption among minority groups during these crises are underexplored. Making use of the first nationally representative survey of US Latinos (N = 1200) on the impact and reactions to COVID-19, this study examines the implications of Spanish-language news media consumption on source credibility and attitude formation during the COVID-19 pandemic among Latinos and immigrants from Latin America. Through a series of statistical analyses, this study finds that ethnic news consumption is strongly associated with trust in Spanish-language journalists, whereas mainstream media consumption is not associated with trust in English-language journalists. More importantly, this study finds that source credibility, particularly in Spanish-language journalists, matters for Latinos as it is associated with more positive assessments of state and local officials providing adequate information about COVID-19. This study illuminates the importance of non-traditional media among racial minorities, who account for almost 40% of the US population, and highlights the importance of shared backgrounds in source credibility among linguistically diverse groups in the United States during a public health crisis.

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Mental health recovery and its correlates: Perspectives from 2 countries (Preprint)

10.2196/preprints.23639 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Huiting Xie

Keyword(s):

Mental Health ◽

United States ◽

Self Efficacy ◽

The United States ◽

Mental Illnesses ◽

Health Conditions ◽

Mental Health Recovery ◽

Mental Health Conditions ◽

Serious Mental Illnesses ◽

Promote Mental Health

BACKGROUND Many people are affected by mental health conditions, yet its prevalence in certain populations are not well documented. OBJECTIVE The aim of this study is to describe the attributes of people with mental health conditions in U.S and SG in terms of: perception of mental health recovery and its correlates such as strengths self-efficacy, resourcefulness and stigma experience. With the findings, not only could the knowledge base for mental health recovery in both countries be enhanced but interventions and policies relating to self-efficacy, resourcefulness and de-stigmatization for mental health recovery could be informed. METHODS A A cross-sectional, descriptive study with convenience sample of 200 community dwelling adults were selected, 100 pax from the United States (U.S) and 100 pax from Singapore (SG). Adults with serious mental illnesses without substance abuse impacting on their recovery were recruited. Participants completed self-administered questionaires measuring their mental health recovery, strengths self-efficacy, resourcefulness and stigma experience. RESULTS This study offered the unique opportunity to examine mental health recovery as well as its correlates such as strengths self-efficacy, resourcefulness and stigma experience from both the United States and Singapore. While the perception of mental health recovery and positive attributes like strengths self-efficacy and resourcefulness remained strong in participants with serious mental illnesses across both countries, people with serious mental illnesses in both countries still experienced negative perception like stigma. The findings would not only inform strategies to promote mental health recovery but also enhance the focus on correlates such as strengths self-efficacy and resourcefulness across both countries. CONCLUSIONS The findings would not only inform strategies to promote mental health recovery but also enhance the focus on correlates such as strengths self-efficacy and resourcefulness across both countries.

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Een typologie van jonge nieuwsgebruikers in een multimediaal landschap

Tijdschrift voor Communicatiewetenschappen ◽

10.5117/2011.039.001.064 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 39 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Anna Van Cauwenberge ◽

Hans Beentjes ◽

Leen d’Haenens

Keyword(s):

Cluster Analysis ◽

News Media ◽

Television News ◽

Online News ◽

Low Countries ◽

Low Level ◽

News Consumption ◽

Combined Use ◽

Different Types ◽

Online News Sites

A typology of young news users in the Low Countries A typology of young news users in the Low Countries This article investigates different types of young news users (15-34 years) in the Low Countries. Therefore a survey among 1200 Flemish and Dutch youngsters and adolescents was conducted, analyzing the combined use of media platforms for news consumption and time spent with these news carriers. The cluster analysis identified five types of news users: the sound and vision group, characterized by the use of mainly audiovisual news platforms, combined with online news sites; the e-news users, who give most prominence to online news sites but also rely on traditional news platforms, the all rounders, depending on a range of off- and online news channels; the traditionalists, who spent most time with offline news media; and the dabblers, a group with an overall low level of news consumption. Our results indicate that Flemish and Dutch youngsters combine online and traditional news platforms for their news gathering, giving most prominence to traditional news media, especially television news.

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Older Adults in the United States and COVID-19: A Qualitative Study of Perceptions, Finances, Coping, and Emotions

Frontiers in Public Health ◽

10.3389/fpubh.2021.660536 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 9 ◽

Author(s):

R. Turner Goins ◽

Elizabeth Anderson ◽

Hannah Minick ◽

Heather Daniels

Keyword(s):

Mental Health ◽

United States ◽

Older Adults ◽

News Media ◽

Emotional Health ◽

The United States ◽

Stress Appraisal ◽

Risk Of Death ◽

Increased Risk ◽

Precautionary Measures

Introduction: Older adults have the poorest coronavirus (COVID-19) prognosis with the highest risk of death due to complications, making their COVID-19 experiences particularly important. Guided by the stress-appraisal-coping theoretical model, we sought to understand COVID-related perceptions and behaviors of older adults residing in the United States.Materials and Methods: We used convenience sampling to recruit persons with the following inclusion criteria: Aged ≥ 65 years, English fluency, and U.S. residency. Semi structured in-depth interviews were conducted remotely and audio recorded between April 25, 2020 and May 7, 2020. Interviews were professionally transcribed with a final study sample of 43. A low-inference qualitative descriptive design was used to provide a situated understanding of participants' life experiences using their naturalistic expressions.Results: The mean age of participants was 72.4 ± 6.7. Slightly over half were female (55.8%), 90.6% were White, and 18.6% lived alone. The largest percentages of participants resided in a rural area (27.9%) or small city (25.6%). We identified four themes, including (1) risk perception, (2) financial impact, (3) coping, and (4) emotions. Most participants were aware of their greater risk for poor COVID-19 outcomes but many did not believe in their increased risk. Financial circumstances because of the pandemic varied with largely no financial impacts, while others reported negative impacts and a few reported positive impacts. Coping was problem- and emotion-focused. Problem-focused coping included precautionary efforts and emotion-focused coping included creating daily structure, pursuing new and/or creative activities, connecting with others in new ways, and minimizing news media exposure. Overall, emotional health was negatively affected by the pandemic although some participants reported positive emotional experiences.Conclusions: Perceiving themselves as high risk for COVID-19 complications, older adults used precautionary measures to protect themselves from contracting the virus. The precautionary measures included social isolation, which can negatively affect mental health. Older adults will need to be resourceful and draw on existing resources to cope, such as engaging in creative activities and new strategies to connect with others. Our findings underscore the importance of the preservation of mental health during extended periods of isolation by taking advantage of low-to-no-cost existing resources.

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Asthma and Suicidal Ideation Among Youth in the Community

Crisis ◽

10.1027/0227-5910.25.3.99 ◽

2004 ◽

Vol 25 (3) ◽

pp. 99-102 ◽

Cited By ~ 22

Author(s):

Renee D. Goodwin ◽

Andrej Marušič

Keyword(s):

Mental Health ◽

United States ◽

Suicidal Ideation ◽

Mental Disorders ◽

The United States ◽

Sociodemographic Characteristics ◽

Multiple Logistic Regression ◽

Regression Analyses ◽

Community Based ◽

Comorbid Mental Disorders

Summary: Objective: To determine the association between asthma and suicidal ideation among youth in the community. Method: Data were drawn from the MECA (n = 1285), a community-based study of youth aged 9-17 in the United States. Multiple logistic regression analyses were used to determine the association between asthma and suicidal ideation, adjusting for differences in sociodemographic characteristics and mental disorders. Results: Asthma was associated with a significantly increased likelihood of suicidal ideation (OR = 3.25 ‘1.04, 10.1’), compared to youth without asthma. Conclusions: These data suggest that youth who are hospitalized for asthma may have higher than expected levels of suicidal ideation, compared with youth without asthma in the community. This association appears to persist after controlling for the effects of comorbid mental disorders. These findings are consistent with previous clinical reports of an association between physical illness and suicidal ideation, as well as with links between asthma and suicidal ideation among adults. More in-depth evaluation of the mental health of youth hospitalized for asthma may be indicated if these results are replicated.

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Mental Health, Substance Use, and Suicidal Ideation Among Unpaid Caregivers in the United States During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Relationships to Age, Race/Ethnicity, Employment, and Caregiver Intensity

10.1101/2021.02.02.21251042 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Mark É Czeisler ◽

Alexandra Drane ◽

Sarah S Winnay ◽

Emily R Capodilupo ◽

Charles A Czeisler ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Mental Health ◽

Older Adults ◽

Health Care ◽

Substance Use ◽

Suicidal Ideation ◽

The United States ◽

Mental Health Symptoms ◽

Health Symptoms ◽

Race Ethnicity ◽

Hispanic White

AbstractObjectivesTo estimate the prevalence of unpaid caregiving during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, and to identify factors associated with adverse mental health symptoms, substance use, and suicidal ideation in this population, which provides critical support in health care systems by providing care to older adults and those with chronic conditions.MethodsIn June 2020, Internet-based surveys with questions about demographics, caregiving responsibilities, and mental health were administered to US adults aged ≥18 years. Demographic quota sampling and survey weighting to improve cross-sectional sample representativeness of age, gender, and race/ethnicity. Prevalence ratios for adverse mental health symptoms were estimated using multivariable Poisson regressions.ResultsOf 9,896 eligible invited adults, 5,412 (54.7%) completed surveys; 5,011 (92.6%) respondents met screening criteria and were analysed, including 1,362 (27.2%) caregivers. Caregivers had higher prevalences of adverse mental health symptoms than non-caregivers, including anxiety or depressive disorder symptoms (57.6% vs 21.5%, respectively, p<0.0001) having recently seriously considered suicide (33.4% vs 3.7%, p<0.0001). Symptoms were more common among caregivers who were young vs older adults (e.g., aged 18–24 vs ≥65 years, aPR 2.75, 95% CI 1.95–3.88, p<0.0001), Hispanic or Latino vs non-Hispanic White (1.14, 1.04–1.25, p=0.0044), living with vs without disabilities (1.18, 1.10–1.26, p<0.0001), and with moderate and high vs low Caregiver Intensity Index scores (2.31, 1.65–3.23; 2.81, 2.00–3.94; both p<0.0001). Suicidal ideation was more prevalent among non-Hispanic Black vs non-Hispanic White caregivers (1.48, 1.15–1.90, p=0.0022).ConclusionsCaregivers, who accounted for one in four US adult respondents in this nationally representative sample, more commonly reported adverse mental health symptoms than non-caregivers. Increased visibility of and access to mental health care resources are urgently needed to address mental health challenges of caregiving.

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From the Deeming Rule to JUUL—US News Coverage of Electronic Cigarettes, 2015–2018

Nicotine & Tobacco Research ◽

10.1093/ntr/ntaa025 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 22 (10) ◽

pp. 1816-1822 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Olivia A Wackowski ◽

Jennah M Sontag ◽

Binu Singh ◽

Jessica King ◽

M Jane Lewis ◽

...

Keyword(s):

News Media ◽

Electronic Cigarettes ◽

News Coverage ◽

High Volume ◽

The United States ◽

Online News ◽

Future Research ◽

The Public ◽

News Sources ◽

Over Time

Abstract Introduction News media may influence public perceptions and attitudes about electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes), which may influence product use and attitudes about their regulation. The purpose of this study is to describe trends in US news coverage of e-cigarettes during a period of evolving regulation, science, and trends in the use of e-cigarettes. Methods We conducted a content analysis of e-cigarette topics and themes covered in US news articles from 2015 to 2018. Online news databases (Access World News, Factiva) were used to obtain US news articles from the top 34 circulating newspapers, four national wire services, and five leading online news sources. Results The number of articles increased by 75.4% between 2015 and 2018 (n = 1609). Most articles focused on policy/regulation (43.5%) as a main topic, followed by health effects (22.3%) and prevalence/trends (17.9%). Discussion about flavor bans quadrupled (6.1% to 24.6%) and discussion of youth e-cigarette use was most prevalent (58.4%) in 2018, coinciding with an increase in coverage about JUUL. JUUL was mentioned in 50.8% of 2018 articles. Across years, articles more frequently mentioned e-cigarette risks (70%) than potential benefits (37.3%). Conclusions E-cigarettes continue to be a newsworthy topic, with coverage both reflecting numerous changes and events over time, and providing repeated opportunities for informing the public and policymakers about these novel products. Future research should continue to track how discourse changes over time and assess its potential influence on e-cigarette perceptions and policy changes. Implications E-cigarette news coverage in the United States increased between 2015 and 2018 and predominantly focused on policy and regulation. Notable spikes in volume were associated with some but not all major e-cigarette events, including the FDA’s deeming rule, Surgeon General’s report, and release of the National Youth Tobacco Survey data in 2018. Coverage of the 2018 National Academy of Medicine, Engineering, and Sciences report on the Public Health Consequences of E-cigarettes received minimal news coverage. The high volume in 2018 was driven in large part by coverage of the e-cigarette brand JUUL; over half of news articles in 2018 referenced JUUL specifically.

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