Longitudinal Effects of the Pandemic and Confinement on the Anxiety Levels of a Sample of Spanish Children in Primary Education

(1) Background: The psychological effects of confinement due to the SARS-CoV-2 virus pandemic on children are only partially known. In Madrid, Spain, children suffered a strict confinement for 10 weeks and they returned to school under conditions that were far from normal. This work assesses the effects of the pandemic on the anxiety levels of a group of children living in Madrid. (2) Methods: Children were aged 6 to 11 years (N = 215). A self-report measure of anxiety was completed by participants at two time-points: (1) a few months before the beginning of the pandemic and (2) 1 year later. A smaller subgroup of participants also completed the measure during the confinement period (n = 60). (3) Results: A comparison of these three measures shows that the children’s anxiety was reduced during confinement, and that one year later these levels continue below those registered before the start of the pandemic. (4) Conclusions: These results contradict some previous studies, which found an increase in children’s anxiety as a result of confinement and the pandemic. The discussion considers protective and vulnerability factors in the context of the pandemic, which may affect children’s levels of anxiety.

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Longitudinal Associations between Internalizing Symptoms, Dispositional Mindfulness, Rumination and Impulsivity in Adolescents

Journal of Youth and Adolescence ◽

10.1007/s10964-021-01476-2 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Estíbaliz Royuela-Colomer ◽

Liria Fernández-González ◽

Izaskun Orue

Keyword(s):

Mental Health ◽

Depressive Symptoms ◽

Internalizing Symptoms ◽

Protective Factor ◽

Negative Association ◽

Dispositional Mindfulness ◽

Vulnerability Factors ◽

Time Points ◽

Longitudinal Associations ◽

One Year

AbstractMindfulness has been associated with fewer negative mental health symptoms during adolescence, but fewer studies have examined longitudinal associations between mindfulness and symptoms in conjunction with two vulnerability factors for psychopathology with mindfulness: rumination and impulsivity. This study examined longitudinal associations between internalizing symptoms (depression, anxiety, stress), mindfulness, rumination, and impulsivity over a one-year period among 352 Spanish adolescents (57.4% girls; M = 14.47, SD = 1.34). Participants completed self-reported measures of symptoms, mindfulness, rumination, and impulsivity at two time points. Mindfulness negatively predicted stress and depressive symptoms, and a bidirectional negative association was found between mindfulness and impulsivity. Impulsivity positively predicted stress, and anxiety positively predicted depressive symptoms, stress, and rumination. This study highlights the importance of mindfulness as a protective factor and impulsivity and anxiety as risk factors for internalizing symptoms throughout adolescence. These findings build on previous studies that examined longitudinal associations between mindfulness and symptoms by including rumination and impulsivity’s roles.

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Weathering Widowhood: Problems and Adjustment of the Widowed during the First Year

OMEGA - Journal of Death and Dying ◽

10.2190/vp4l-94kx-491m-1wve ◽

1980 ◽

Vol 10 (2) ◽

pp. 163-174 ◽

Cited By ~ 55

Author(s):

Raymond G. Carey

Keyword(s):

Self Report ◽

First Year ◽

Anticipatory Grief ◽

One Year ◽

Report Measure

Widows (n = 78) and widowers (n = 41) whose spouses died at a midwest suburban hospital were interviewed thirteen to sixteen months after they were widowed. An 8–item self-report measure of adjustment-depression was developed. The article discusses the factors related to adjustment, the problems faced by the widowed during the first year of bereavement, those who helped the most during the final hospitalization and during bereavement, and finally some practical considerations for those who are concerned with the problems of the widowed. Key results showed that adjustment was more difficult for widows than for widowers, that anticipatory grief was an important factor in the adjustment of widows, and that follow-up visits by physicians and local clergy were helpful to the widowed, 25 per cent of whom were still depressed after one year.

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Evaluation of a Modified Self-Report Measure of Social Adjustment

The British Journal of Psychiatry ◽

10.1192/bjp.141.1.68 ◽

1982 ◽

Vol 141 (1) ◽

pp. 68-75 ◽

Cited By ~ 135

Author(s):

Peter Cooper ◽

Madeline Osborn ◽

Dennis Gath ◽

Graeme Feggetter

Keyword(s):

Social Adjustment ◽

Mental State ◽

North American ◽

Self Report ◽

Psychiatric Research ◽

Local Populations ◽

One Year ◽

Report Measure ◽

Social Adjustment Scale ◽

Over Time

SummaryA self-report Social Adjustment Scale (SAS-M) for use in British populations was devised by modifying the original North American version, and its usefulness was evaluated among 331 women drawn from two local populations. In a group of mothers of one year old babies (n = 130), high levels of agreement were found between the subjects' self-ratings on the SAS-M and (i) a psychiatrist's ratings of their social adjustment made at interview; (ii) ratings of the subjects' social adjustment made by their husbands on the SAS-M; (iii) measures of concurrent mental state. In a group of women undergoing elective sterilization (n = 201), the SAS-M was found to be sensitive to changes in mental state over time. Possible applications of the SAS-M in psychiatric research, particularly when an interview is not feasible, are discussed.

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International Index of Erectile Functioning-5: A Critical Appraisal

Journal of Psychosexual Health ◽

10.1177/2631831820953665 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 2 (3-4) ◽

pp. 270-272

Author(s):

Ahmad Bilal ◽

Najam ul Hasan Abbasi

Keyword(s):

Clinical Trials ◽

Erectile Dysfunction ◽

Critical Appraisal ◽

Young Men ◽

Self Report ◽

Time Points ◽

Cutoff Points ◽

Regional Languages ◽

Report Measure

Background: Some studies have reported methodological flaws and shortcomings in the International Index of Erectile Functioning-5 (IIEF-5) which is a self-report measure for the assessment of erectile dysfunction (ED). Aim: The aim of this research is to point out methodological flaws and shortcomings in IIEF-5 when used with Pakistani men. Settings and Design: Two independent clinical trials were run to assess the efficacy of different forms of treatment for ED in young Pakistani men. Materials and Methods: The IIEF-5 in Urdu version was employed to diagnose and assess the severity of ED in young men at 3 time points. Results and Conclusions: Several flaws and shortcomings were noted including the unidimensionality of the scale, categorization of the scale into severity categories based on cutoff points, the inability of the scale to differentiate between organic and nonorganic ED, double barrel item statement, and lack of standardized translation in local or regional languages of Pakistan. The validity of IIEF-5 can be increased if the above-mentioned flaws and shortcomings are addressed.

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Dimensionality and Reliability Assessment of the Pain Patient Profile Questionnaire

European Journal of Psychological Assessment ◽

10.1027/1015-5759.24.1.22 ◽

2008 ◽

Vol 24 (1) ◽

pp. 22-26 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Brian E. McGuire ◽

Michael J. Hogan ◽

Todd G. Morrison

Keyword(s):

Self Report ◽

Pain Patient ◽

Fit Indices ◽

Depression And Anxiety ◽

Oblique Rotation ◽

Pain Experience ◽

Patient Profile ◽

Adequate Representation ◽

Pain Patients ◽

Report Measure

Abstract. Objective: To factor analyze the Pain Patient Profile questionnaire (P3; Tollison & Langley, 1995 ), a self-report measure of emotional distress in respondents with chronic pain. Method: An unweighted least squares factor analysis with oblique rotation was conducted on the P3 scores of 160 pain patients to look for evidence of three distinct factors (i.e., Depression, Anxiety, and Somatization). Results: Fit indices suggested that three distinct factors, accounting for 32.1%, 7.0%, and 5.5% of the shared variance, provided an adequate representation of the data. However, inspection of item groupings revealed that this structure did not map onto the Depression, Anxiety, and Somatization division purportedly represented by the P3. Further, when the analysis was re-run, eliminating items that failed to meet salience criteria, a two-factor solution emerged, with Factor 1 representing a mixture of Depression and Anxiety items and Factor 2 denoting Somatization. Each of these factors correlated significantly with a subsample's assessment of pain intensity. Conclusion: Results were not congruent with the P3's suggested tripartite model of pain experience and indicate that modifications to the scale may be required.

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Factor Structure and Measurement Invariance of the Obsessive-Compulsive Inventory – Child Version (OCI-CV) in General Population

European Journal of Psychological Assessment ◽

10.1027/1015-5759/a000276 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 33 (2) ◽

pp. 97-103 ◽

Cited By ~ 10

Author(s):

Tíscar Rodríguez-Jiménez ◽

Antonio Godoy ◽

José A. Piqueras ◽

Aurora Gavino ◽

Agustín E. Martínez-González ◽

...

Keyword(s):

General Population ◽

Children And Adolescents ◽

Factor Structure ◽

Self Report ◽

Obsessive Compulsive ◽

Compulsive Disorder ◽

Good Consistency ◽

Order Factor ◽

General Populations ◽

Report Measure

Abstract. Evidence-based assessment is necessary as a first step for developing psychopathological studies and assessing the effectiveness of empirically validated treatments. There are several measures of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and/or symptomatology in children and adolescents, but all of them present some limitations. The Obsessive-Compulsive Inventory-Revised (OCI-R) by Foa and her colleagues has showed to be a good self-report measure to capture the dimensionality of OCD in adults and adolescents. The child version of the OCI (OCI-CV) was validated for clinical children and adolescents in 2010, showing excellent psychometric properties. The objective of this study was to examine the factor structure and invariance of the OCI-CV in the general population. Results showed a six-factor structure with one second-order factor, good consistency values, and invariance across region, age, and sex. The OCI-CV is an excellent inventory for assessing the dimensions of OCD symptomatology in general populations of children and adolescents. The invariance across sex and age warrants its utilization for research purposes.

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Assessing Self-Efficacy in Presentation and Moderation Skills

European Journal of Psychological Assessment ◽

10.1027/1015-5759/a000423 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 35 (4) ◽

pp. 564-576 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Tobias Ringeisen ◽

Sonja Rohrmann ◽

Anika Bürgermeister ◽

Ana N. Tibubos

Keyword(s):

Construct Validity ◽

Self Efficacy ◽

Self Report ◽

Factor Analyses ◽

Confirmatory Factor Analyses ◽

Confirmatory Factor ◽

Constructed Self ◽

University Course ◽

Correlated Factors ◽

Report Measure

Abstract. By means of two studies, a self-report measure to assess self-efficacy in presentation and moderation skills, the SEPM scales, was validated. In study 1, factorial and construct validity were examined. A sample of 744 university students (41% females; more than 50% between 20 and 25 years) completed newly constructed self-efficacy items. Confirmatory factor analyses (CFAs) substantiated two positively correlated factors, presentation (SEPM-P) and moderation self-efficacy (SEPM-M). Each factor consists of eight items. The correlation patterns between the two SEPM subscales and related constructs such as extraversion, the preference for cooperative learning, and conflict management indicated adequate construct validity. In study 2, criterion validity was determined by means of latent change modeling. One hundred sixty students ( Mage = 24.40, SD = 4.04; 61% females) took part in a university course to foster key competences and completed the SEPM scales at the beginning and the end of the semester. Presentation and moderation self-efficacy increased significantly over time of which the latter was positively associated with the performance in a practical moderation exam. Across both studies, reliability of the scales was high, ranging from McDonald’s ω .80 to .88.

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