scholarly journals Development and Validation of the Immune Status Questionnaire (ISQ)

2019 ◽  
Vol 16 (23) ◽  
pp. 4743 ◽  
Author(s):  
Livia J. F. Wilod Versprille ◽  
Aurora J. A. E. van de Loo ◽  
Marlou Mackus ◽  
Lizanne Arnoldy ◽  
Titia A. L. Sulzer ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Dietary Intervention ◽  
Immune Status ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
Likert Scale ◽  
Self Assessment ◽  
Immune Functioning ◽  
Student Sample ◽  
Health Related ◽  
Irritable Bowel ◽  
Normal Health

The self-assessment of perceived immune status is important, as this subjective observation leads individuals to decide whether or not to seek medical help or adapt their lifestyle. In addition, it can be used in clinical settings and research. The aim of this series of studies was to develop and validate a short questionnaire to assess perceived immune functioning. Five surveys were conducted among Dutch and International young healthy adults (18–30 years old), and two others among older age groups with various health complaints. For the first study, an existing immune functioning scale was modified and elaborated resulting in 23 immune-health-related items, of which the occurrence was rated on a 5-point Likert scale. A student sample was surveyed, and the results were used to shorten the 23-item listing into a 7-item scale with a predictive validity of 85%. Items include “sudden high fever”, “diarrhea”, “headache”, “skin problems (e.g., acne and eczema)”, “muscle and joint pain”, “common cold” and “coughing”. The scale is named Immune Status Questionnaire (ISQ), and it aims to assess perceived immune status over the preceding year. The second study revealed that the ISQ score correlated significantly with a 1-item perceived immune functioning (r = 0.383, p < 0.0001). In the third study, the final Likert scale descriptors were determined (“never”, “sometimes”, “regularly”, “often” and “(almost) always)”. The fourth study showed that the test–retest reliability of the ISQ is acceptable (r = 0.80). The fifth study demonstrated the association of ISQ scores with various neuropsychological and health correlates in an international sample, including perceived health and immune fitness, as well as levels of stress, fatigue, depression and anxiety. Study 6 demonstrated significant associations between ISQ scores and experiencing irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) symptoms in a sample of insomnia patients. Study 7 compared the effect of a dietary intervention in participants reporting “poor health” versus “normal health”. It is shown that ISQ scores can differentiate between those with poor and normal health, and that an effective intervention is associated with a significant improvement in ISQ scores. Data from Study 7 were further used to determine an ISQ cut-off value for reduced immune functioning, and a direct comparison with 1-item perceived immune functioning scores enabled constructing the final scoring format of the ISQ. In conclusion, the ISQ has appropriate face, content, and construct validity and is a reliable, stable and valid method to assess the past 12 month’s perceived immune status.

scholarly journals Restricted activity and negative self-assessment of health as risk indicators for latent disability analysis performed on population groups different as per sex and age

2021 ◽  
pp. 145-155
Author(s):  
L.N. Natsun ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Adult Population ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
Risk Indicators ◽  
Sociological Study ◽  
Self Assessment ◽  
Sampling Studies ◽  
Health Related ◽  
Research Goal ◽  
Restricted Activity ◽  
Using Data

A necessity to detect and assess probable latent disability makes the present research vital; it can be done using available parameters that characterize population health. Our research object was adult population living in the Russian Federation. Our research goal was to reveal a relation between self-assessment of health and health-related restrictions among respondents form different sex and age groups in order to determine latent disability among overall RF population. Previously Russian researchers revealed certain relations between disability and low self-assessment of one’s health. However, there was no profound study on an issue related to using such criteria as «negative self-assessment of health» and «restricted activities» used to reveal latent dis-ability. This aspect has not been examined in great detail in domestic research and it makes the present work truly vital. We took data collected via the Russian sociologic study performed within the European sociological study (ESS) in 2018–2019 as well as data from sampling studies on pop-ulation in the RF performed by the Federal Statistics Service in 2018 and 2019. To analyze a relation between self-assessment of health and existing restricted activity, we calculated Kramer’s coefficients for different sex and age groups of respondents who took part in the Russian sociologic study. Calculated Kramer’s coefficient values indicate there is an average relation between such parameters as «self-assessment of health» and «existing restricted activity». We established that 7% of respondents who were not disabled still had health characteristics implying there was a disability risk. It was shown that use of such criteria as «self-assessment of health» and «existing restricted activities» allowed more authentic assessment of latent disability among males aged 50–59 and women aged 20–29, 30–39, and 40–49. In future we plan to obtain more accurate results using data from other representative sociologic studies on population including regional ones.

scholarly journals Restricted activity and negative self-assessment of health as risk indicators for latent disability analysis performed on population groups different as per sex and age

2021 ◽  
pp. 145-155
Author(s):  
L.N. Natsun ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Adult Population ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
Risk Indicators ◽  
Sociological Study ◽  
Self Assessment ◽  
Sampling Studies ◽  
Health Related ◽  
Research Goal ◽  
Restricted Activity ◽  
Using Data

A necessity to detect and assess probable latent disability makes the present research vital; it can be done using available parameters that characterize population health. Our research object was adult population living in the Russian Federation. Our research goal was to reveal a relation between self-assessment of health and health-related restrictions among respondents form different sex and age groups in order to determine latent disability among overall RF population. Previously Russian researchers revealed certain relations between disability and low self-assessment of one’s health. However, there was no profound study on an issue related to using such criteria as «negative self-assessment of health» and «restricted activities» used to reveal latent dis-ability. This aspect has not been examined in great detail in domestic research and it makes the present work truly vital. We took data collected via the Russian sociologic study performed within the European sociological study (ESS) in 2018–2019 as well as data from sampling studies on pop-ulation in the RF performed by the Federal Statistics Service in 2018 and 2019. To analyze a relation between self-assessment of health and existing restricted activity, we calculated Kramer’s coefficients for different sex and age groups of respondents who took part in the Russian sociologic study. Calculated Kramer’s coefficient values indicate there is an average relation between such parameters as «self-assessment of health» and «existing restricted activity». We established that 7% of respondents who were not disabled still had health characteristics implying there was a disability risk. It was shown that use of such criteria as «self-assessment of health» and «existing restricted activities» allowed more authentic assessment of latent disability among males aged 50–59 and women aged 20–29, 30–39, and 40–49. In future we plan to obtain more accurate results using data from other representative sociologic studies on population including regional ones.

Facial Perceptions: Age's Influence on People's Perceptions of Facial Modifications

2010 ◽  
Vol 6 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nascine Howell ◽  
Lindsey Erin Overhalser ◽  
Abigail Eliza Randall ◽  
Rachael Dillon
Keyword(s):  
Age Groups ◽  
Likert Scale ◽  
Online Surveys ◽  
People’S Perception ◽  
The Face ◽  
Subject Experiment ◽  
People’S Perceptions

A 2x7 between-subject experiment examined the affect of age on people’s perceptions of facial modifications. Researchers instructed participants aged 18-60 to complete two online surveys. One survey contained 10 modified faces (facial piercings and neck tattoos) and the second survey contained 10 non-modified faces. Participants were instructed to look at each face and rate the face using a 5 point Likert scale on five traits: Trustworthiness, Attractiveness, Confidence, Intelligence and Friendliness. Modified faces were rated higher and perceived more positively than the non-modified faces by participants in all age groups. There was an effect of modification on age groups one (18-23 years old), two (24-29 years), five (30-35 years) and six (36-41 years) for the traits Attractiveness and Confidence. These findings suggest people’s perception of strangers’ is influenced by their own age at the time of the encounter and the age of the faces.

scholarly journals Validation of a French Version of the Career Decision-Making Difficulties Questionnaire: Relationships With Self-Esteem and Self-Efficacy

2021 ◽  
pp. 089484532110099
Author(s):  
Jérôme Rossier ◽  
Shékina Rochat ◽  
Laurent Sovet ◽  
Jean-Luc Bernaud
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Career Counseling ◽  
Self Efficacy ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
Career Decision ◽  
Self Esteem ◽  
Career Decision Making ◽  
Student Sample ◽  
French Version ◽  
The Relationship

The aim of this study was to validate the French version of the Career Decision-Making Difficulties Questionnaire (CDDQ) and to assess its measurement invariance across gender, age groups, countries, and student versus career counseling samples. We also examined the sensitivity of this instrument to discriminate a career counseling population from a general student sample. Third, we studied the relationship between career decision-making difficulties, career decision-making self-efficacy, and self-esteem in a sample of 1,748 French and French-speaking Swiss participants. A confirmatory factor analysis confirmed the overall hierarchical structure of the CDDQ. Multigroup analysis indicated that the level of invariance across groups almost always reached configural, metric, and scalar invariance. Differences between countries were very small, whereas differences between the general population and career counseling subsamples were much larger. Both self-esteem and self-efficacy significantly predicted career decision-making difficulties. Moreover, as expected, self-efficacy partially mediated the relationship between self-esteem and career decision-making difficulties.

scholarly journals Oral Health Related Quality of Life and Prosthetic Status among Institutionalized Elderly from the Bucharest Area: A Pilot Study

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (12) ◽  
pp. 6663
Author(s):  
Laura Iosif ◽  
Cristina Teodora Preoteasa ◽  
Elena Preoteasa ◽  
Ana Ispas ◽  
Radu Ilinca ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Oral Health ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
Health Related Quality ◽  
Institutionalized Elderly ◽  
Related Quality ◽  
Health Related ◽  
Prosthetic Status ◽  
The Impact

The aim of the study was to assess the oral health related quality of life (OHRQoL) of elderly in care homes, one of Romania’s most vulnerable social categories, to correlate it to sociodemographic, oral health parameters, and prosthodontic status. Therefore, a cross-sectional study was performed on 58 geriatrics divided into 3 age groups, who were clinically examined and answered the oral health impact profile (OHIP-14) questionnaire. Very high rates of complete edentulism in the oldest-old subgroup (bimaxillary in 64.3%; mandibular in 64.3%; maxillary in 85.7%), and alarming frequencies in the other subgroups (middle-old and youngest-old), statistically significant differences between age groups being determined. The OHIP-14 mean score was 14.5. Although not statistically significant, females had higher OHIP-14 scores, also middle-old with single maxillary arch, single mandibular arch, and bimaxillary complete edentulism, whether they wore dentures or not, but especially those without dental prosthetic treatment in the maxilla. A worse OHRQoL was also observed in wearers of bimaxillary complete dentures, in correlation with periodontal disease-related edentulism, in those with tertiary education degree, and those who came from rural areas. There were no statistically significant correlations of OHRQoL with age, total number of edentulous spaces or edentulous spaces with no prosthetic treatment. In conclusion, despite poor oral health and prosthetic status of the institutionalized elderly around Bucharest, the impact on their wellbeing is comparatively moderate.

Does Psychological Treatment Help Only Those Patients with Severe Irritable Bowel Syndrome Who Also Have a Concurrent Psychiatric Disorder?

2005 ◽  
Vol 39 (9) ◽  
pp. 807-815 ◽  
Author(s):  
Francis Creed ◽  
Elspeth Guthrie ◽  
Joy Ratcliffe ◽  
Lakshmi Fernandes ◽  
Christine Rigby ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Irritable Bowel Syndrome ◽  
Treatment Group ◽  
Psychiatric Disorder ◽  
Psychological Treatment ◽  
Health Related Quality ◽  
Related Quality ◽  
Health Related ◽  
Irritable Bowel

Objective: We have previously reported improved health-related quality of life in patients with severe irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) following psychological treatments. In this paper, we examine whether this improvement was associated with improvement in psychological symptoms and was confined to those patients who had concurrent psychiatric disorder. Method: Two hundred and fifty-seven patients with severe IBS entering a psychological treatment trial were interviewed using the Schedules for Clinical Assessment in Neuropsychiatry. At entry to the trial and 15 months later, patients were also assessed using the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale, Symptom Cheecklist-90 (SCL-90) and Short Form-36 (SF36) physical component summary score as the main outcome measure. Partial correlation was used to compare changes in SF36 score and changes in psychological scores while controlling for possible confounders, treatment group and baseline scores. Multiple regression analysis was used to examine whether changes in psychological scores, changes in pain and a history of abuse could account for most of the variance of change in SF36 physical component score. Results: Of 257 patients with severe IBS, 107 (42%) had a depressive, panic or generalized anxiety disorder at trial entry. There were moderate but significant correlations (0.21–0.47) between change in the psychological scores and the change in SF36 physical component scores. The correlation coefficients were similar in the groups with and without psychiatric disorder. The superiority of psychotherapy and antidepressant groups over treatment as usual was similar in those with and without psychiatric disorder. Multiple regression found significant independent effects of change in depression, anxiety, somatization and abdominal pain but there was still variance explained by treatment group. Conclusions: In severe IBS improvement in health-related quality of life following psychotherapy or antidepressants is correlated with, but not explained fully by reduction of psychological scores. A more complete understanding of how these treatments help patients with medically unexplained symptoms will enable us to refine them further.

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