scholarly journals Adapting to Uncertainty: A Mixed-Method Study on the Effects of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Expectant and Postpartum Women and Men

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Inês M. Tavares ◽  
Joana Fernandes ◽  
Catarina V. Moura ◽  
Pedro J. Nobre ◽  
Mariana L. Carrito
Keyword(s):  
Social Support ◽  
Perceived Stress ◽  
Mixed Method ◽  
Transition To Parenthood ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Physical Contact ◽  
Negative Effects ◽  
New Mothers ◽  
Mothers And Fathers ◽  
Positive Effects

Detrimental biopsychosocial effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on populations have been established worldwide. Despite research indicating that the transition to parenthood is a vulnerable period for maternal and paternal health, an in-depth examination of the specific challenges the pandemic poses for new mothers and fathers is still lacking. Using a mixed-method design, we investigated individual and relational well-being of women and men who were expecting their first child during the first months of the COVID-19 pandemic in Portugal and its associations with contextual, individual, and relational factors. Adults older than 18 (n = 316, 198 women) from early pregnancy to 6-months postpartum completed a cross-sectional online survey assessing sociodemographic, individual (depression, anxiety, perceived stress), and relational (dyadic adjustment, perceived social support) self-report measures. From those, 99 participants (64 women) responded to an open-ended question and reported perceived changes in their couple’s relationship due to the pandemic. Men responding during strict lockdown measures reported significantly higher levels of perceived stress relative to those men who were not under lockdown. Overall, women reported higher levels of depression and greater social support than men. Qualitative analyses resulted in two main themes: Individual Changes and Relational Changes. These themes aggregate personal concerns and experiences (e.g., worsening of mental health, uncertainty about the future, lack of freedom) interrelated with relational issues (e.g., increased togetherness, avoidance of physical contact, and increased availability for parenthood during lockdown). The prevalence of negative effects (58.6%) exceeded the described positive effects (28.3%), and 13.1% described both positive and negative effects of the pandemic. Current findings offer grounds for important evidence-based strategies to mitigate the potential adverse effects of the current pandemic on new mothers’ and fathers’ individual and relational well-being.

Social Contribution and Psychological Well-Being among Midlife Adults with Chronic Pain: A Longitudinal Approach

2020 ◽  
Vol 32 (10) ◽  
pp. 1591-1601
Author(s):  
Nguyen P. Nguyen ◽  
Shin Ye Kim ◽  
Jacob Daheim ◽  
Ashley Neduvelil
Keyword(s):  
Social Support ◽  
Chronic Pain ◽  
Well Being ◽  
The United States ◽  
Protective Role ◽  
Negative Effects ◽  
Psychological Well Being ◽  
Positive Effects ◽  
Social Contribution ◽  
Negative Effect

Objectives: Contributing to the welfare of others has been shown to have positive effects on people’s social and psychological well-being (PWB). The current study examined whether social contribution (SC) could alleviate the negative effects of chronic pain on PWB through perceived social support (PSS) among midlife and older adults. Methods: The study consisted of 520 participants with chronic pain from the two waves of the Midlife in the United States dataset (MIDUS II and III). Results: Results from the longitudinal moderated mediation analysis indicated that SC at Time 2 (T2) significantly buffered the negative effect of pain interference (PI) at Time 1 (T1) on PSS at T2, which indirectly alleviated the negative effect of PI at T1 on PWB at T2. Discussion: The study suggested the protective role of SC and prosocial behaviors in mitigating the detrimental effects of chronic pain on social support and PWB.

Testing the Theory of Communication and Uncertainty Management in the Context of Digital Transformation with Transformational Leadership as a Moderator

2021 ◽  
pp. 232948842110239
Author(s):  
Masaki Matsunaga
Keyword(s):  
Social Support ◽  
Transformational Leadership ◽  
Job Performance ◽  
Self Efficacy ◽  
Relevant Literature ◽  
Uncertainty Management ◽  
Digital Transformation ◽  
Negative Effects ◽  
Positive Effects ◽  
The Impact

Digital transformation provokes a great deal of uncertainty among employees. To gain insights into how employees manage the uncertainty driven by digital transformation and also how leaders can support them, this study has drawn on the theory of communication and uncertainty management (TCUM), which posits that the impact of uncertainty varies by how individuals appraise it and social support enhances positive appraisal. Based on those tenets, the current study advanced the following hypotheses: (a) uncertainty has direct and indirect negative effects on employees’ appraisal of digital transformation, self-efficacy, and job performance; (b) in contrast, direct supervisors’ transformational leadership has direct and indirect positive effects on appraisal, self-efficacy, and job performance; and also (c) transformational leadership moderates the impact of uncertainty. SEM with 4-wave time-separated data ( N = 873 employee-supervisor dyads in Japan) found support for these hypotheses. The obtained findings are discussed with reference to TCUM, transformational leadership, and other relevant literature.

scholarly journals Toward a dynamic model of Gelotophobia: Social support, workplace bullying and stress are connected with diverging trajectories of life and job satisfaction among Gelotophobes

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Willibald Ruch ◽  
Alexander G. Stahlmann
Keyword(s):  
Social Support ◽  
Job Satisfaction ◽  
Panel Data ◽  
Work Stress ◽  
Perceived Stress ◽  
Workplace Bullying ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Negative Consequences ◽  
Dynamic Framework ◽  
And Performance

Abstract Recent theoretical advances have grounded gelotophobia (Greek: gelos = laughter, phobos = fear) in a dynamic framework of causes, moderating factors, and consequences of the fear of being laughed at. This understanding corresponds to that of vulnerability and translates gelotophobia into a distinguishable pattern of lacking resources (i.e., misinterpretation of joy and laughter) that can result in negative consequences (e.g., reduced well-being and performance) if individuals have no access to further resources (e.g., social support) or are exposed to severe stressors (e.g., workplace bullying). Based on the panel data provided by the Swiss National Centre of Competence in Research LIVES (N = 2469 across six measurement intervals), this study takes the first step toward empirically testing this model’s assumptions: First, we computed exemplary zero-order correlations and showed that gelotophobia was negatively connected with social support (resource) and life and job satisfaction (consequences) and positively connected with perceived stress, work stress, and workplace bullying (stressors). Second, we used longitudinal cluster analyses (KmL; k-means-longitudinal) and showed that the panel data can be clustered into three stable patterns of life and job satisfaction and that gelotophobia is primarily related to the two clusters marked by lower levels of satisfaction. Third, we computed partial correlations and showed that social support, perceived stress, and work stress (but not workplace bullying) can weaken or completely resolve gelotophobia’s relationships with such diverging trajectories of life and job satisfaction. We concluded that seeing gelotophobia through the lens of vulnerability is useful and that such research warrants further attention using more dedicated, theoretically grounded projects.

scholarly journals Fungal traits important for soil aggregation

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anika Lehmann ◽  
Weishuang Zheng ◽  
Masahiro Ryo ◽  
Katharina Soutschek ◽  
Rebecca Rongstock ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Soil Health ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Systematic Investigation ◽  
Fungal Species ◽  
Soil Aggregation ◽  
Aminopeptidase Activity ◽  
Aggregate Formation ◽  
Negative Effects ◽  
Saprobic Fungi ◽  
Positive Effects

AbstractSoil health and sustainability is essential for ecosystem functioning and human well-being. Soil structure, the complex arrangement of soil into aggregates and pore spaces, is a key feature of soils under the influence of soil life. Soil biota, and among them filamentous saprobic fungi, have well-documented effects on soil aggregation. However, it is unclear what fungal properties, or traits, contribute to the overall positive effect on soil aggregation. So far, we lack a systematic investigation of a broad suite of fungal species for their trait expression and the relation of these traits to their soil aggregation capability.Here, we apply a trait-based approach to a set of 15 traits measured under standardized conditions on 31 fungal strains including Ascomycota, Basidiomycota and Mucoromycota, all isolated from the same soil.We found a spectrum of soil aggregate formation capability ranging from neutral to positive and large differences in trait expression among strains. We identified biomass density (positive effects), leucine aminopeptidase activity (negative effects) and phylogeny as important modulators of fungal aggregate formation capability. Our results point to a typical suite of traits characterizing fungi that are good soil aggregators; this could inform screening for fungi to be used in biotechnological applications, and illustrates the power of employing a trait-based approach to unravel biological mechanisms of soil aggregation, which could now be extended to other organism groups.

scholarly journals Effectiveness of a Technology-Based Supportive Educational Parenting Program on Parental Outcomes in Singapore: Protocol for a Randomized Controlled Trial (Preprint)

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shefaly Shorey ◽  
Yvonne Peng Mei Ng ◽  
An Ling Siew ◽  
Joanne Yoong ◽  
Evalotte M�relius
Keyword(s):  
Social Support ◽  
Randomized Controlled Trial ◽  
Self Efficacy ◽  
Transition To Parenthood ◽  
Controlled Trial ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Perinatal Period ◽  
Educational Programs ◽  
Parenting Program ◽  
Randomized Controlled

BACKGROUND Supportive educational programs during the perinatal period are scarce in Singapore. There is no continuity of care available in terms of support from community care nurses in Singapore. Parents are left on their own most of the time, which results in a stressful transition to parenthood. There is a need for easily accessible technology-based educational programs that can support parents during this crucial perinatal period. OBJECTIVE The aim of this study was to describe the study protocol of a randomized controlled trial on a technology-based supportive educational parenting program. METHODS A randomized controlled two-group pretest and repeated posttest experimental design will be used. The study will recruit 118 parents (59 couples) from the antenatal clinics of a tertiary public hospital in Singapore. Eligible parents will be randomly allocated to receive either the supportive educational parenting program or routine perinatal care from the hospital. Outcome measures include parenting self-efficacy, parental bonding, postnatal depression, social support, parenting satisfaction, and cost evaluation. Data will be collected at the antenatal period, immediate postnatal period, and at 1 month and 3 months post childbirth. RESULTS Recruitment of the study participants commenced in December 2016 and is still ongoing. Data collection is projected to finish within 12 months, by December 2017. CONCLUSIONS This study will identify a potentially clinically useful, effective, and cost-effective supportive educational parenting program to improve parental self-efficacy and bonding in newborn care, which will then improve parents’ social support–seeking behaviors, emotional well-being, and satisfaction with parenting. It is hoped that better supported and satisfied parents will consider having more children, which may in turn influence Singapore’s ailing birth rate. CLINICALTRIAL International Standard Randomized Controlled Trial Number (ISRCTN): 48536064; https://www.isrctn.com/ISRCTN48536064 (Archived by WebCite at http://www.webcitation.org/6wMuEysiO)

All's well that ends well!? Moderating effects of goal progress on the relation between challenge and hindrance appraisal and well-being

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Kronenwett ◽  
Thomas Rigotti
Keyword(s):  
Time Pressure ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Conservation Of Resources ◽  
Negative Effects ◽  
Goal Progress ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Positive Effects ◽  
Path Analyses ◽  
Emotional Demands ◽  
Specific Challenge

PurposeDrawing from both the transactional theory of stress and the conservation of resources theory, this paper sets out to investigate the role of demand-specific challenge and hindrance appraisal of emotional demands, as well as time pressure and perceived goal progress within the challenge–hindrance framework.Design/methodology/approachFor this research, 91 employees provided daily diary data for one working week. Focusing on within-persons effects, multilevel moderated mediation models using multilevel path analyses were applied.FindingsBoth emotional demands and time pressure exert positive effects on work engagement when people expect resource gain (challenge appraisal), independent of actual resource gain (achievement). Furthermore, results show that goal progress buffers negative effects of perceived blocked resource gain (hindrance appraisal) on both emotional and motivational well-being.Originality/valueThis research proposes an extension and refinement of the challenge–hindrance stressor framework to explain health-impairing and motivational processes of emotional demands and time pressure, combining reasoning from both appraisal and resource theory perspectives. The study identifies demand-specific challenge and hindrance appraisals as mediators linking demands to emotional and motivational well-being, emphasizing the influence of goal progress as a resource on these relations.

scholarly journals Expanding the Utility of Race-Based Accountability: An Application of RBA to Longitudinal Data Analyses

2018 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 60-79
Author(s):  
Andrea L. Ruiz ◽  
Gabriel A. Acevedo ◽  
Raquel R. Marquez ◽  
Marcos Marquez
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Social Support ◽  
Health Outcomes ◽  
Childhood Abuse ◽  
Protective Factor ◽  
Mental Health Outcomes ◽  
Long Term Effects ◽  
Negative Effects ◽  
Positive Effects ◽  
Adult Mental Health

Despite the strong empirical evidence linking childhood abuse to negative mental health outcomes later in life, a number of questions remain regarding race variations in this association. Moreover, less is known about the salience of protective factors that can offset or ameliorate the negative effects of abuse on adult mental health, and whether these factors work differently by race. Using three waves of panel data from a nationally representative survey of American adults, the present study examined the long-term effects of childhood abuse on adult mental health over a span of 20 years. In addition, we assessed social support as a protective factor, and examined its differential effects on mental health outcomes for Whites and non-Whites. Results indicate that despite frequent childhood abuse, social support is associated with less depression for Whites—its positive effects being most pronounced for those with the most severe abuse experiences. However, social support is associated with worst depression for non-Whites—its negative effects being most pronounced for those with severe abuse experiences. These findings demonstrate that the factors commonly considered as protective and beneficial for adult victims of abuse work differently across racial groups and in fact, may be detrimental for non-Whites.

scholarly journals THE EFFECTS OF FOOT BINDING CUSTOM IN LISA SEE’S NOVEL SNOW FLOWER AND THE SECRET FAN

2019 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Moh Gusnaldi Putra ◽  
M Manugeren
Keyword(s):  
Qualitative Research ◽  
Economic Development ◽  
Human Life ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Material Objects ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Negative Effects ◽  
Cultural Elements ◽  
Positive Effects ◽  
Foot Binding

This study constitutes an Analysis of The Effect of Foot Binding Custom from Lisa See’s novel Snow Flower and The Secret Fan published in 2006. The Positive and Negative effects are the topics to discuss. This analysis uses the data  taken from the novel applying descriptive qualitative research. One of the significant theories of the custom used in this study is that a person who claims that the essence of a culture having a custom in it is not its artifacts, tools, or other tangible cultural elements but how the members of the group interpret, use, and perceive them. It is the values, symbols, interpretations, and perspectives that distinguish one from another in modernized societies; it is not material objects and other tangible aspects of human societies. People within a culture usually interpret the meaning of symbols, artifacts, and behaviors in the same or in similar ways. The findings show that Foot Binding Custom gives women positive effects such as high statue in the society, and symbol of beauty. Besides the positive effects, there are also negative effects such as infection, and even death. The conclusions of the study are Foot binding, as the time goes by, is not persevered anymore as it gives more negative effects than the positive ones. However, health is the most important part of human life. Health is the pivot upon which a man's whole personality and its well-being depend. An ailing and aching body saps the enthusiasm for pursuit. Unwholesome feelings and sensations retard the pace of functional activity, economic development and spiritual uplift.

scholarly journals The Impact of a Peer Social Support Network from the Perspective of Women with Fibromyalgia: A Qualitative Study

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (23) ◽  
pp. 12801
Author(s):  
Glòria Reig-Garcia ◽  
Cristina Bosch-Farré ◽  
Rosa Suñer-Soler ◽  
Dolors Juvinyà-Canal ◽  
Núria Pla-Vila ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Social Support ◽  
Complex Disease ◽  
Patient Empowerment ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Support Network ◽  
Social Support Network ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Positive Effects ◽  
Peer Social Support ◽  
The Impact

Background: Fibromyalgia is a chronic and complex disease whose management by patients requires a high level of commitment. Patient empowerment therefore represents an important milestone in chronic disease treatment and control. We explored the impact of a peer social support network from the perspective of women with fibromyalgia. Methods: A generic qualitative design was proposed for the study, for which women who had been diagnosed with fibromyalgia were purposefully selected. Six semi-structured interviews were conducted, and the collected data were thematically analysed. Results: Three key themes emerged regarding the peer social support network: (1) empowerment (facilitating acceptance of the diagnosis and acting as a source of information); (2) effects on well-being and quality of life (attenuated the stigma, improved physical well-being, provided emotional support and was a socialization medium); and (3), valuable aspects (transmitted feelings of being understood and listened to and increased personal feelings of satisfaction). Conclusions: A peer social support network for women with fibromyalgia exerts positive effects on their physical, mental, and social well-being and empowers them to better manage their disease. Healthcare for women with fibromyalgia should include strategies that connect them through peer social support networks.

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