Psychedelics use predicts more positive emotional reactivity and greater self-awareness: the mediating role of ego dissolution and mystical experiences

Background: Psychedelics are able to acutely alter emotional reactivity and self-consciousness. However, whether regular, naturalistic use of psychedelics can be linked to more persistent, trait-level changes in these domains remains an open question.Aim: To test three hypotheses: i) psychedelics use is related to higher positive and lower negative emotional reactivity; ii) psychedelics use is related to enhanced inward-focused self-consciousness and diminished outward-focused self-consciousness; iii) these relations are mediated by the intensity of past ego-dissolution and mystical experiences.Methods: Data from 2,516 participants (1,661 psychedelics users) were collected via an online survey. The survey included questions about the history of psychoactive substance use, questionnaires measuring trait-levels of emotional reactivity and self-consciousness, and questionnaires for retrospective assessment of ego-dissolution and mystical experiences. Data were analyzed using robust linear regression and mediation analysis.Results: First, a higher number of lifetime psychedelic experiences predicted greater positive and lower negative emotional reactivity. Second, in the domain of self, it predicted greater reflection and internal self-awareness, and reduced rumination tendency and public self-consciousness. Finally, intensity of past mystical and ego-dissolution experiences mediated almost all observed relationships between the lifetime psychedelics use and psychological variables. Conclusions: Lifetime psychedelics use predicts an adaptive pattern of trait-level emotional reactivity and self-consciousness. The past ego-dissolution and mystical experiences are essential in understanding the long-lasting psychological effects of psychedelics use. Our findings might potentially explain previous observations of increased well-being in psychedelics users.

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Exploring the Frequency, Intensity, and Duration of Loneliness: A Latent Class Analysis of Data from the BBC Loneliness Experiment

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health ◽

10.3390/ijerph182212027 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 18 (22) ◽

pp. 12027

Author(s):

Pamela Qualter ◽

Kimberly Petersen ◽

Manuela Barreto ◽

Christina Victor ◽

Claudia Hammond ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Latent Class ◽

Group Membership ◽

Well Being ◽

Psychological Variables ◽

Research And Practice ◽

Using Data ◽

The Uk ◽

Almost All ◽

Mental And Physical Health ◽

Health And Well Being

Almost all measures of loneliness have been developed without discussing how to best conceptualize and assess the severity of loneliness. In the current study, we adapted the four-item UCLA, so that it continued to measure frequency of loneliness, but also assessed intensity and duration, providing a measure of other aspects of loneliness severity. Using data from participants resident in the UK who completed the BBC Loneliness Experiment (N = 36,767; F = 69.6%) and Latent Class Profile Analyses, we identified four groups of people who scored high on loneliness on at least one of the three severity measures. Duration of loneliness often over months or years seemed to be particularly important in distinguishing groups. Further, group membership was predicted by important demographic and psychological variables. We discuss the findings in terms of implications for research and practice. We highlight the need to explore these profiles longitudinally to investigate how membership predicts later mental and physical health, and well-being.

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The Influence of COVID-19 Stress on Psychological Well-Being Among Vietnamese Adults: The Role of Self-Compassion and Gratitude

10.31219/osf.io/mbg6z ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Helpe Pape

Keyword(s):

Mental Health ◽

Online Survey ◽

Human Life ◽

Well Being ◽

World Health ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Psychological Well Being ◽

Mediating Role ◽

Self Compassion

COVID-19 has become an epidemic affecting all aspects of human life. Vietnam is now encountering the COVID-19 second wave, which puts the mental health of Vietnamese people at risk. Due to the adverse psychological effects of the COVID-19 global pandemic on human psychological well-being in these challenging times, the aims of this study are to examine the relationship between self-compassion and psychological well-being and the role of gratitude and COVID-19 stress as a multimediators model in a cross-sectional study. Participants include 509 Vietnamese adults (Mage = 31.71; SD = 7.28 years) recruited through an online survey. A 26-item Self-Compassion Scale was used to measure self-compassion, gratitude was measured by the 6-item Gratitude in the COVID-19, psychological well-being was measured by the World Health Organization Well-Being Index, and the COVID-19 Stress Scale was used to measure stress and fears symptoms caused by the pandemic. The results support 3 main findings: (a) self-compassion has a direct influence on the psychological well-being (effect = 0.50, p < .001, 95% confidence interval [CI; 0.43, 0.57]), (b) the mediating role of gratitude in this model was significant (effect = 0.07, 95% CI [0.04, 0.10]), and (c) the mediating role of COVID-19 stress and fears in this model was also significant (effect = 0.02, 95% CI [0.01, 0.04]). The study’s results also show that increasing self-compassion and gratitude could help to improve psychological well-being and reduce the influence of COVID-19 stress and fears on the individuals’ mental health.

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Spiritual Well-Being, Social Support, and Financial Distress in Determining Depression: The Mediating Role of Impact of Event During COVID-19 Pandemic in Iran

Frontiers in Psychiatry ◽

10.3389/fpsyt.2021.754831 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 12 ◽

Author(s):

Hamid Sharif Nia ◽

Ozkan Gorgulu ◽

Navaz Naghavi ◽

María Auxiliadora Robles-Bello ◽

David Sánchez-Teruel ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Social Support ◽

Depressive Symptoms ◽

Financial Distress ◽

Online Survey ◽

Well Being ◽

Mediating Role ◽

Spiritual Well Being ◽

The Impact ◽

The Relationship

This study investigates the relationship between spiritual well-being, social support, and financial distress with depressive symptoms due to the COVID-19 pandemic. A path analysis was used to analyze data collected from 1,156 Iranian participants via an online survey. The results showed that spiritual well-being and social support were negatively related to depressive symptoms and financial distress. The impact of COVID-19 events showed negative associations with depressive symptoms. In addition, the link between spiritual well-being and financial distress with depressive symptoms was partially mediated by the impact of events.

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Evolution of genetic networks for human creativity

Molecular Psychiatry ◽

10.1038/s41380-021-01097-y ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

I. Zwir ◽

C. Del-Val ◽

M. Hintsanen ◽

K. M. Cloninger ◽

R. Romero-Zaliz ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Prosocial Behavior ◽

Emotional Reactivity ◽

Well Being ◽

Self Control ◽

Self Awareness ◽

Modern Humans ◽

High Coverage ◽

Protein Coding ◽

Protein Coding Genes ◽

Healthy Longevity

AbstractThe genetic basis for the emergence of creativity in modern humans remains a mystery despite sequencing the genomes of chimpanzees and Neanderthals, our closest hominid relatives. Data-driven methods allowed us to uncover networks of genes distinguishing the three major systems of modern human personality and adaptability: emotional reactivity, self-control, and self-awareness. Now we have identified which of these genes are present in chimpanzees and Neanderthals. We replicated our findings in separate analyses of three high-coverage genomes of Neanderthals. We found that Neanderthals had nearly the same genes for emotional reactivity as chimpanzees, and they were intermediate between modern humans and chimpanzees in their numbers of genes for both self-control and self-awareness. 95% of the 267 genes we found only in modern humans were not protein-coding, including many long-non-coding RNAs in the self-awareness network. These genes may have arisen by positive selection for the characteristics of human well-being and behavioral modernity, including creativity, prosocial behavior, and healthy longevity. The genes that cluster in association with those found only in modern humans are over-expressed in brain regions involved in human self-awareness and creativity, including late-myelinating and phylogenetically recent regions of neocortex for autobiographical memory in frontal, parietal, and temporal regions, as well as related components of cortico-thalamo-ponto-cerebellar-cortical and cortico-striato-cortical loops. We conclude that modern humans have more than 200 unique non-protein-coding genes regulating co-expression of many more protein-coding genes in coordinated networks that underlie their capacities for self-awareness, creativity, prosocial behavior, and healthy longevity, which are not found in chimpanzees or Neanderthals.

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Examining Emotional Labor in COVID-19 through the Lens of Self-Efficacy

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su132413674 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 13 (24) ◽

pp. 13674

Author(s):

Lixia Yao ◽

Jie Gao

Keyword(s):

Job Satisfaction ◽

Life Satisfaction ◽

Emotional Labor ◽

Self Efficacy ◽

Online Survey ◽

Positive Impact ◽

Well Being ◽

Working Environment ◽

Deep Acting ◽

Mediating Role

The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has dealt a significant blow to the restaurant industry, with many restaurants suspending operations or closing altogether. This study was aimed to investigate the effects of emotional labor on employees’ well-being and the mediating role of self-efficacy in the context of chain restaurants. Data were collected in 2020 through an online survey in China, and results revealed that emotional labor had a significant impact on well-being that was measured in life and job satisfaction. Self-efficacy not only had a significant positive impact on employees’ job- and life-related well-being but also played a fully mediating role between deep acting and life satisfaction, with a partial mediating role between deep acting and job satisfaction. Job-related well-being also played a fully mediating role between deep acting and life satisfaction, with a partial mediating role between deep acting and job satisfaction. It is important for restaurant employees to develop deep acting skills and improve self-efficacy and job satisfaction Restaurant managers must establish a healthy working environment by providing better job support and creating a more relaxed working atmosphere.

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Excessive use of social networking sites and financial well-being among young adults: the mediating role of online compulsive buying

Young Consumers Insight and Ideas for Responsible Marketers ◽

10.1108/yc-11-2020-1252 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽

Author(s):

Long She ◽

Ratneswary Rasiah ◽

Hassam Waheed ◽

Saeed Pahlevan Sharif

Keyword(s):

Young Adults ◽

Social Networking ◽

Social Networking Sites ◽

Online Survey ◽

Compulsive Buying ◽

Well Being ◽

Content Type ◽

Mediating Role ◽

Financial Anxiety

Purpose This study aims to examine the mediating role of online compulsive buying in the association between excessive use of social networking sites (SNS) and financial well-being among Chinese young adults. Design/methodology/approach A sample of 539 SNS users and active online shoppers (M age = 20.32 years, SD age = 2.11) completed an online survey questionnaire measure of excessive use of SNS, online compulsive buying and financial well-being. Covariance based-structural equation modelling was used to assess the measurement model and the proposed mediation model. Findings Results indicated that excessive use of SNS was positively related to online compulsive buying behaviour and financial anxiety. Also, the results showed that online compulsive buying mediated the positive relationship between excessive use of SNS and financial anxiety. Practical implications Several implications were suggested and discussed to enhance the levels of financial well-being among youths by tackling their problematic behaviour such as excessive SNS usage and online compulsive buying. Originality/value The findings of this study contribute to the limited body of knowledge in the area of financial well-being and further improves our understanding of the effect of the excessive use of SNS on financial well-being and the mechanism behind it.

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Person-centered osteopathic practice: patients’ personality (body, mind, and soul) and health (Ill-being and well-being)

PeerJ ◽

10.7717/peerj.1349 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 3 ◽

pp. e1349 ◽

Cited By ~ 17

Author(s):

Elin Fahlgren ◽

Ali A. Nima ◽

Trevor Archer ◽

Danilo Garcia

Keyword(s):

Structural Equation ◽

Positive Emotions ◽

Online Survey ◽

Structural Equation Models ◽

Well Being ◽

Control Group ◽

Self Awareness ◽

Patient Centered ◽

Self Transcendence ◽

And Gender

Background.Osteopathic philosophy and practice are congruent with the biopsychosocial model, a patient-centered approach when treating disease, and the view of the person as a unity (i.e., body, mind, and soul). Nevertheless, a unity of being should involve a systematic person-centered understanding of the patient’s personality as a biopsychosociospiritual construct that influences health (i.e., well-being and ill-being). We suggest Cloninger’s personality model, comprising temperament (i.e., body) and character (i.e., mind and soul), as a genuine paradigm for implementation in osteopathic practice. As a first step, we investigated (1) the relationships between personality and health among osteopathic patients, (2) differences in personality between patients and a control group, and (3) differences in health within patients depending on the presenting problem and gender.Method.524 osteopathic patients in Sweden (age mean = 46.17,SD= 12.54, 388 females and 136 males) responded to an online survey comprising the Temperament and Character Inventory and measures of health (well-being: life satisfaction, positive affect, harmony in life, energy, and resilience; ill-being: negative affect, anxiety, depression, stress, and dysfunction and suffering associated to the presenting problem). We conducted two structural equation models to investigate the association personality-health; graphically compared the patients’ personalityT-scoresto those of the control group and compared the mean raw scores usingt-tests; and conducted two multivariate analyses of variance, using age as covariate, to compare patients’ health in relation to their presenting problem and gender.Results.The patients’ personality explained the variance of all of the well-being (R2between .19 and .54) and four of the ill-being (R2between .05 and .43) measures. Importantly, self-transcendence, the spiritual aspect of personality, was associated to high levels of positive emotions and resilience. Osteopathic patients, compared to controls, scored higher in six of the seven personality dimensions. These differences were, however, not considerably large (divergences inT-scoreswere <1SD,Cohen’s dbetween 0.12 and 0.40). Presenting problem and gender did not have an effect on any of the health measures.Conclusion.The patient’s personality as a ternary construct (i.e., body, mind, and soul), which is in line with osteopathy, is associated to both well-being and ill-being. The lack of substantial differences in personality between patients and controls implies that the patients had not any personality disorders. Hence, osteopaths might, with proper education, be able to coach their patients to self-awareness. The lack of differences in health variables between osteopathic patients with different presenting problems suggests that practitioners should focus on the person’s health regardless of the type of presenting problem.

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Influence of religiosity on ethical consumption: the mediating role of materialism and guilt

Journal of Islamic Marketing ◽

10.1108/jima-01-2020-0035 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽

Author(s):

Mohd Adil

Keyword(s):

Online Survey ◽

Well Being ◽

Ethical Consumption ◽

Mediating Effect ◽

Content Type ◽

Mediating Role ◽

Consumption Decisions ◽

Cultural Foundations ◽

Indian Consumers ◽

Promotional Messages

Purpose The purpose of this study is to examine the influence of religiosity on ethical consumption of consumers. It also aims to measure the mediating effect of materialism and guilt. Design/methodology/approach The study collected data from 360 Indian consumers through an online survey. Findings Religiosity was found to have a strong and significant influence on consumers’ ethical consumption behaviour. It was also found that materialism and guilt mediate the relationship between religiosity and ethical consumption. Findings reveal that a higher level of religiosity in consumers guides them to avoid unwanted behaviour such as unethical consumption. Research limitations/implications The study provides an insight into the significance of values in ethical consumption decisions. It examines the mediational effect of materialism and guilt between religiosity and ethical consumption. Practical implications Marketers can formulate more successful communication strategies by taking into account the level of religiosity of Indian consumers and underlying cultural foundations within the society. Marketers can also use taglines or promotional messages to promote sacrifice for the well-being of the environment. Originality/value This research is a guiding step towards studying the influence of religiosity on ethical consumption through guilt and materialism of consumers in an emerging nation.

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The role of ego integrity and despair in older adults’ well-being during the COVID-19 crisis: the mediating role of need-based experiences

European Journal of Ageing ◽

10.1007/s10433-021-00610-0 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Jolene van der Kaap-Deeder ◽

Branko Vermote ◽

Joachim Waterschoot ◽

Bart Soenens ◽

Sofie Morbée ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Older Adults ◽

Structural Equation ◽

Well Being ◽

Sociodemographic Factors ◽

Need Satisfaction ◽

Equation Modeling ◽

Ego Integrity ◽

Psychological Variables ◽

Mediating Role

AbstractThe COVID-19 pandemic has affected people across the world, with important heterogeneity among older adults in how they respond to the challenges associated with this crisis. Relying on a cross-fertilization between Erikson’s personality theory and self-determination theory, this study aimed to examine possible sources of resilience (i.e., ego integrity and need satisfaction) and vulnerability (i.e., despair) in older adults’ (mal) adjustment, thereby additionally considering the role of multiple risk and protective factors (e.g., gender and marital status). During the second month of the lockdown period in Belgium, 693 older adults (Mage = 70.06, SD = 4.48, range: 65–89 years, 62.1% female) filled out online questionnaires concerning the study variables, while also completing assessments of several important sociodemographic factors. Structural equation modeling suggested that both ego integrity and despair related to indicators of well-being and psychological distress through experienced need satisfaction. Additionally, we found several factors to protect (e.g., higher perceived income) or diminish (e.g., being widowed) older adults’ well-being during these challenging times, with little evidence for a moderating role of these factors in associations between the psychological variables. Theoretical and practical implications of these results are discussed.

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Psychometric Properties of the Spontaneous and Deliberate Mind Wandering Scales

European Journal of Psychological Assessment ◽

10.1027/1015-5759/a000470 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 35 (6) ◽

pp. 878-890 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

David Marcusson-Clavertz ◽

Oscar N. E. Kjell

Keyword(s):

Anxiety Disorder ◽

Psychometric Properties ◽

Generalized Anxiety Disorder ◽

Social Desirability ◽

Cognitive Task ◽

Experience Sampling ◽

Well Being ◽

Mind Wandering ◽

Generalized Anxiety ◽

Psychological Variables

Abstract. Thinking about task-unrelated matters (mind wandering) is related to cognition and well-being. However, the relations between mind wandering and other psychological variables may depend on whether the former commence spontaneously or deliberately. The current two studies investigated the psychometric properties of the Spontaneous and Deliberate Mind Wandering Scales (SDMWS; Carriere, Seli, & Smilek, 2013 ). Study 1 evaluated the stability of the scales over 2 weeks ( N = 284 at Time 1), whereas Study 2 ( N = 323) evaluated their relations to Generalized anxiety disorder symptoms, Openness, Social desirability, and experience-sampling reports of intentional and unintentional mind wandering during an online cognitive task. The results indicated that the SDMWS were better fitted with a two-factor than a one-factor solution, although the fit was improved with the exclusion of one item. The scales exhibited strong measurement invariance across gender and time, and moderately high test-retest reliability. Spontaneous mind wandering predicted Generalized anxiety disorder and experience-sampling reports of unintentional mind wandering, whereas Deliberate mind wandering predicted Openness and experience-sampling reports of intentional mind wandering. Furthermore, Spontaneous mind wandering showed a negative association with social desirability of weak-to-medium strength. In sum, the scales generally showed favorable psychometric properties.

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