Nationwide Online Survey Enables the Reevaluation of the Safety of Coleus forskohlii Extract Intake Based on the Adverse Event Frequencies

The formulations of the functional ingredients of dietary supplements was studied with a small number of subjects, with a particular focus on their effectiveness, but not enough to evaluate their safety. In this regard, the reevaluation and estimation of the safe use of marketed products, with regards to their adverse event (AE) frequencies, are important. To address this issue, a post-marketing nationwide online survey was conducted for the herbal ingredient Coleus forskohlii extract (CFE), a popular weight-loss ingredient. The questionnaire included product names, adherence to the claimed amount, and AE experiences. The safe intake amount was estimated by the relationship between the claimed amount of CFE and the frequencies of AEs of each product. The number of users who experienced AEs was 75 (10.5% of all users). Gastrointestinal symptoms accounted for 92.0% (n = 69) of all AEs, and diarrhea alone accounted for 81.3% (n = 61). The amount of CFE was significantly associated with the occurrence of diarrhea (p = 0.005). The fitted curve showed that the safe intake amount of CFE was less than 250 mg/day; however, considering its effectiveness, 500 mg/day of CFE might be acceptable. In conclusion, nationwide online surveys of users enable us to confirm and reevaluate the safety of herbal supplements.

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Utility and Results from a Patient-Reported Online Survey in Myotonic Dystrophies Types 1 and 2

European Neurology ◽

10.1159/000511237 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 83 (5) ◽

pp. 523-533

Author(s):

Stephan Wenninger ◽

Kristina Stahl ◽

Federica Montagnese ◽

Benedikt Schoser

Keyword(s):

Muscle Weakness ◽

Online Survey ◽

Clinical Symptoms ◽

Age Of Onset ◽

Neuromuscular Disorders ◽

Gastrointestinal Symptoms ◽

Online Surveys ◽

Cardiac Symptoms ◽

Significant Difference ◽

Patient Reported

Introduction: Myotonic dystrophies (DMs) are the most frequent autosomal dominant neuromuscular disorders in adults. Our objective was to evaluate the utility of an online survey in a rare disease as well as to assess and compare the onset and the progression of clinical symptoms in patients with myotonic dystrophy types 1 (DM1) and 2 (DM2). Methods: We conducted a patient’s reported online survey assessing demographics, disease-related symptoms (age of onset, first symptom, time of diagnosis, current symptoms, inheritance, and family history) combined with capturing current symptoms by validated questionnaires. The questionnaire consisted of open, closed, single- and multiple-choice questions. Multiple answers were possible in some cases. Patients with genetically confirmed DM1 or DM2 who were registered in the German DM registry or the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Muskelkranke e.V. – Diagnostic Group for DMs were invited to participate in this online survey. We calculated descriptive and exploratory analysis, where applicable. Results: Out of 677 data sets from respondents, 394 were suitable for final analysis, containing completed questionnaires from 207 DM1 (56% female) and 187 DM2 patients (71% female). The median age of onset was 28 years for DM1 and 35 years for DM2. Muscular symptoms were most frequently reported as the first symptom. The onset of myotonia was earlier than the onset of muscle weakness in both DM1 and DM2. Forty-four percent of patients with DM1 and one-third of patients with DM2 indicated muscle weakness as the first symptom. Patients with DM1 were significantly younger when experiencing muscle weakness as first symptom. Fatigue was only mentioned by a small fraction of patients as a first symptom but increased significantly in the course of the disease. There was no statistically significant difference in the incidence of cataracts, cardiac symptoms, and gastrointestinal symptoms between DM1 and DM2. Falls were reported almost equally in both groups, and most of the patients reported 2–3 falls within the past year. Discussion: Overall, as our results are consistent with the results of clinical studies and online registries, it can be assumed that this type of systematic gathering of data from patients with rare diseases is useful and provides realistic and appropriate results. Due to the nature of online surveys and the absence of an assessor, some uncertainty remains. Furthermore, survey frauds cannot be completely excluded. An additional clinical assessment could confirm the given information and will improve the utility and validity of reported symptoms participants provide in online surveys. Therefore, we recommend a combination of data collecting by online surveys and clinical assessments.

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Income or Culture? Examining the Determinants of Subjective Wellbeing in an International Sample

10.31234/osf.io/yu53w ◽

2019 ◽

Author(s):

Siddharth Garg

Keyword(s):

Online Survey ◽

Subjective Wellbeing ◽

Regression Coefficient ◽

Marginal Utility ◽

Economic Class ◽

Income Groups ◽

Significant Difference ◽

The World ◽

Diminishing Marginal Utility ◽

The Relationship

Objective: The aim of this paper was to examine the relationship between income, subjective wellbeing, and culture among people from a higher socio-economic class across the world. Rationale: Ed Diener proposed the law of diminishing marginal utility as an explanation for differences in subjective wellbeing among different income groups across different countries (Diener, Ng, & Tov, Balance in life and declining marginal utility of diverse resources, 2009). Thus, people with higher incomes would experience less subjective wellbeing due to income, and culture should emerge as a significant predictor. Method: Data from this study came from another study (https://siddharthgargblog.wordpress.com/2019/07/14/love-for-money/). I used an online survey to collect data on annual income in US dollars, subjective wellbeing (WHO-5), and country of residence (Indicator of Culture). 96 responses (Indians = 24, Foreigners = 72) were entered in IBM SPSS and a regression analysis was conducted. The raw dataset used in this study can be found at https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.8869040.v1Results: ANOVA showed a significant difference (p < 0.05) between Indians and foreigners on levels of subjective wellbeing. Linear regression shows the regression coefficient of culture to be significant (Beta = -.254, p = .014) but the regression coefficient of income was not found to be significant. The overall model was found to explain 8.2% of the variance in wellbeing.Conclusion: The sample of this study is too small to make any kind of generalization; it does lend a little bit of support to the idea of diminishing marginal utility of income on subjective wellbeing and provides a rationale for further research.

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Politics of Nostalgia and Populism: Evidence from Turkey

British Journal of Political Science ◽

10.1017/s0007123420000666 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 1-18

Author(s):

Ezgi Elçi

Keyword(s):

Direct Effect ◽

Online Survey ◽

Positive Relationship ◽

Satisfaction With Life ◽

Survey Experiment ◽

Independent Variables ◽

Party Preference ◽

The Relationship

Abstract This article scrutinizes the relationship between collective nostalgia and populism. Different populist figures utilize nostalgia by referring to their country's ‘good old’ glorious days and exploiting resentment of the elites and establishment. Populists instrumentalize nostalgia in order to create their populist heartland, which is a retrospectively constructed utopia based on an abandoned but undead past. Using two original datasets from Turkey, this study first analyzes whether collective nostalgia characterizes populist attitudes of the electorate. The results illustrate that collective nostalgia has a significantly positive relationship with populist attitudes even after controlling for various independent variables, including religiosity, partisanship, satisfaction with life and Euroscepticism. Secondly, the study tests whether nostalgic messages affect populist attitudes using an online survey experiment. The results indicate that Ottoman nostalgia helps increase populist attitudes. Kemalist nostalgia, however, has a weak direct effect on populist attitudes that disappears after controlling for party preference.

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Coercive Controlling Behaviors and Reporting Physical Intimate Partner Violence in Australian Women: An Exploration

Violence Against Women ◽

10.1177/1077801220985932 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 107780122098593

Author(s):

Brittany Patafio ◽

Peter Miller ◽

Arlene Walker ◽

Kerri Coomber ◽

Ashlee Curtis ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Intimate Partner Violence ◽

Partner Violence ◽

Online Survey ◽

Physical Violence ◽

Intimate Partner ◽

Physical Intimate Partner Violence ◽

Differential Utility ◽

And Control ◽

The Relationship ◽

Controlling Behaviors

This study explores two approaches to measuring coercive controlling behaviors (CCBs)—counting how many different CCB types and examining the frequency of each CCB experienced—to examine their utility in explaining the relationship between CCBs and physical intimate partner violence (IPV). Australian women aged 18–68 years ( n = 739; Mage = 31.58, SDage = 11.76) completed an online survey. Count and frequency CCB approaches yielded similar significant associations with increased physical IPV. Both approaches suggest that frightening behaviors in particular are significantly indicative of also experiencing physical IPV; however, when you count CCB types, public name-calling becomes important, whereas when you examine the frequency of each CCB type, jealousy/possessiveness becomes important. These findings suggest differential utility between measures of CCBs, which examine the frequency of specific CCB types and which count CCB types, and that both approaches are useful in understanding how coercion and control relate to physical violence within intimate relationships.

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Buying-Shopping Disorder among Women: The Role of Vulnerability to Marketing, Buying Motives, Impulsivity, and Self-Esteem

European Addiction Research ◽

10.1159/000511769 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 27 (4) ◽

pp. 294-303

Author(s):

Emeline Chauchard ◽

Julie Mariez ◽

Marie Grall-Bronnec ◽

Gaëlle Challet-Bouju

Keyword(s):

Online Survey ◽

Marketing Research ◽

Self Esteem ◽

Marketing Strategies ◽

Fashion Industry ◽

Intention To Purchase ◽

And Coping ◽

Alcohol Users ◽

The Relationship

Introduction: The influence of marketing on addictive behaviours has been studied among tobacco and alcohol users. Although the fashion industry is highly influenced by marketing, research has poorly studied vulnerability to fashion marketing as a factor related to buying-shopping disorder (BSD) while considering psychological characteristics (buying motives, impulsivity, and self-esteem). Objective: The objective of the present work is to investigate the relationship between vulnerability to marketing and BSD. Methods: Women (n = 242) were exclusively recruited through social networking. They completed an online survey exploring the severity of BSD using the Compulsive Buying Scale (CBS) and the psychological factors associated with BSD (impulsivity, self-esteem, and buying motives) and an experimental task designed to investigate the intention to purchase in several situations, where marketing modalities such as price, brand, and packaging fluctuate. Results: Among the 242 participants in the study, 34 were identified as compulsive buyers (14%). Income level was considered, and compulsive buyers displayed a higher level of vulnerability to marketing, except for the packaging modality. High levels of positive urgency, lack of premeditation, and coping motivation were found to be significant predictors of the CBS score, but vulnerability to marketing was not. Discussion and Conclusions: Compulsive buyers seem to be more sensitive to marketing strategies, although vulnerability to marketing was not identified as a predictor of the severity of BSD. Given the enormous literature on the role of marketing in other addictive behaviours, further studies are needed to better understand the role of marketing in BSD to develop appropriate public health policies.

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User experience sharing

European Journal of Marketing ◽

10.1108/ejm-05-2016-0298 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 52 (5/6) ◽

pp. 1154-1184 ◽

Cited By ~ 26

Author(s):

Tom Chen ◽

Judy Drennan ◽

Lynda Andrews ◽

Linda D. Hollebeek

Keyword(s):

User Experience ◽

Online Communities ◽

Structural Equation ◽

Online Survey ◽

Mobile App ◽

Equation Modeling ◽

Content Type ◽

Key Driver ◽

The Relationship ◽

Level Of Effort

PurposeThis paper aims to propose user experience sharing (UES) as a customer-based initiation of value co-creation pertaining to service provision, which represents customers’ level of effort made for the direct benefit of others in their service network. The authors propose and empirically examine a user experience sharing model (UESM) that explicates customer-to-customer (C2C) UES and its impacts on firm-desired customer-based outcomes in online communities.Design/methodology/ApproachBased on an extensive review, the authors conceptualize UES and UESM. By using online survey data collected from mobile app users in organic online communities, the authors performed structural equation modeling analyses by using AMOS 24.FindingsThe results support the proposed UESM, showing that C2C UES acts as a key driver of both firm-desired customer efforts and customer insights. The results also confirmed that service-dominant (S-D) logic-informed motivational drivers exert a significant impact on C2C UES. Importantly, C2C UES mediates the relationship between S-D logic-informed motivational drivers and firm-desired customer-based outcomes.Originality/valueThis study offers a pioneering attempt to develop an overarching concept, UES, which reflects customers’ initiation of value co-creation, and to empirically examine C2C UES. The empirical evidence supports the key contention that firms should proactively facilitate C2C UES.

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The Relationship between Well-Being and Knowledge Sharing

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su13094978 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 13 (9) ◽

pp. 4978

Author(s):

Kei Aoki

Keyword(s):

Knowledge Sharing ◽

Paradigm Shift ◽

Online Survey ◽

Positive Impact ◽

Well Being ◽

Control Group ◽

User Innovation ◽

Work Style ◽

Financial Benefits ◽

The Relationship

This research studies the relationship between well-being and knowledge sharing. While user innovation has garnered greater attention in recent years, the market has failed to properly incentivize the diffusion of user innovations. This study proposes that this shortcoming could be resolved through a consumer-to-consumer (C-to-C) marketplace and sheds light on non-financial benefits for the contributors, specifically, how knowledge sharing impacts contributor well-being. This research consists of two online survey studies. In both studies, the level of well-being was compared between knowledge sharing contributors and a control group using a scale developed in positive psychology. This study empirically shows that participation in knowledge sharing has a significant positive impact on contributor well-being. In a C-to-C marketplace, contributors diffuse and monetize their creations themselves, resulting in increased well-being. Contributing to knowledge sharing may be a sufficient incentive for user innovators to diffuse their innovations. The findings of this study will gain significance as the utilization of personal knowledge increases due to the expansion of the C-to-C business and the paradigm shift in work style.

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Understanding the relationship between the 32-item motor function measure and daily activities from an individual with spinal muscular atrophy and their caregivers’ perspective: a two-part study

BMC Neurology ◽

10.1186/s12883-021-02166-z ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 21 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Tina Duong ◽

Jessica Braid ◽

Hannah Staunton ◽

Aurelie Barriere ◽

Fani Petridis ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Spinal Muscular Atrophy ◽

Motor Function ◽

Online Survey ◽

Muscular Atrophy ◽

Qualitative Interviews ◽

Functional Abilities ◽

Type 3 ◽

The Relationship ◽

Function Measure

Abstract Background The 32-item Motor Function Measure (MFM32) is a clinician-reported outcome measure used to assess the functional abilities of individuals with neuromuscular diseases, including those with spinal muscular atrophy (SMA). This two-part study explored the relationship between the functional abilities assessed in the MFM32 and activities of daily living (ADLs) from the perspective of individuals with Type 2 and Type 3 (non-ambulant and ambulant) SMA and their caregivers through qualitative interviews and a quantitative online survey. Methods In-depth, semi-structured, qualitative interviews were conducted with individuals with SMA and caregivers from the US. Subsequently, a quantitative online survey was completed by individuals with SMA or their caregivers from France, Germany, Italy, Poland, Spain, Canada, the United States (US) and the UK. In both parts of the study, participants were asked to describe the ADLs considered to be related to the functional abilities assessed in the MFM32. Results from the qualitative interviews informed the content of the quantitative online survey. Results Qualitative interviews were conducted with 15 adult participants, and 217 participants completed the quantitative online survey. From the qualitative interviews, all of the functional abilities assessed in the patient-friendly MFM32 were deemed as related to one or more ADL. The specific ADLs that participants considered related to the patient-friendly MFM32 items could be grouped into 10 key ADL domains: dressing, mobility/transferring, self-care, self-feeding, reaching, picking up and holding objects, physical activity, writing and technology use, social contact/engagement, toileting and performing work/school activities. These results were confirmed by the quantitative online survey whereby the ADLs reported to be related to each patient-friendly MFM32 item were consistent and could be grouped into the same 10 ADL domains. Conclusion This study provides in-depth evidence from the patient/caregiver perspective supporting the relevance of the patient-friendly MFM32 items to the ADLs of individuals with Type 2 and Type 3 SMA.

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Minority stress, resilience, and health in Italian and Taiwanese LGB+ people: A cross-cultural comparison

Current Psychology ◽

10.1007/s12144-021-01387-2 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Roberto Baiocco ◽

Cristiano Scandurra ◽

Fausta Rosati ◽

Jessica Pistella ◽

Salvatore Ioverno ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Minority Stress ◽

Online Survey ◽

Health Problems ◽

Sexual Stigma ◽

Common Path ◽

Mediating Role ◽

Cross Cultural Comparison ◽

Moderated Mediation Model ◽

The Relationship

AbstractThe present study, using a moderated mediational model, explored levels of distal/proximal stressors, rumination, resilience, and health in a group of Italian and Taiwanese LGB+ people. The study also examined the role of internalized sexual stigma (ISS) and rumination as mediators between discrimination and health, and resilience as a moderator of the relationship between discrimination and ISS, rumination, and health, respectively. An online survey was administered to 508 LGB+ participants (270 Italian and 238 Taiwanese) whose age ranged from 18 to 70 years (M = 37.93, SD = 13.53). The moderated mediation model was tested through a series of path analyses stratified by group nationality. Italian participants reported higher discrimination and resilience, but lower ISS, rumination, and health problems compared to their Taiwanese counterparts. The only common path between groups was the direct effect of discrimination on health problems. The mediating role of ISS and rumination in the relationship between discrimination and health, as well as the moderating role of resilience, were partly significant only for the Italian group. Conclusions: The findings suggest that mediators and moderators used to evaluate the effects of minority stress on health may differ between groups; further culturally sensitive research in the field of LGB+ health is needed.

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Development and Application of the Owner-Bird Relationship Scale (OBRS) to Assess the Relation of Humans to Their Pet Birds

Frontiers in Veterinary Science ◽

10.3389/fvets.2020.575221 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 7 ◽

Author(s):

Anne-Kathrin Burmeister ◽

Katrin Drasch ◽

Monika Rinder ◽

Sebastian Prechsl ◽

Andrea Peschel ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Quantitative Research ◽

Animal Studies ◽

Online Survey ◽

Major Influence ◽

Four Dimensions ◽

Sociological Approach ◽

Pet Birds ◽

Human Animal ◽

Relationship Of ◽

The Relationship

Only a few birds besides domestic pigeons and poultry can be described as domesticated. Therefore, keeping a pet bird can be challenging, and the human-avian relationship will have a major influence on the quality of this cohabitation. Studies that focus on characterizing the owner-bird relationship generally use adapted cat/dog scales which may not identify its specific features. Following a sociological approach, a concept of human-animal relationship was developed leading to three types of human-animal relationship (impersonal, personal, and close personal). This concept was used to develop a 21-item owner-bird-relationship scale (OBRS). This scale was applied to measure the relationship between pet bird owners (or keepers) (n = 1,444) and their birds in an online survey performed in Germany. Factor analysis revealed that the relationship between owner and bird consisted of four dimensions: the tendency of the owner to anthropomorphize the bird; the social support the bird provides for the owner; the empathy, attentiveness, and respect of the owner toward the bird; and the relationship of the bird toward the owner. More than one quarter of the German bird owners of this sample showed an impersonal, half a personal, and less than a quarter a close personal relationship to their bird. The relationship varied with the socio-demographic characteristics of the owners, such as gender, marital status, and education. This scale supports more comprehensive quantitative research into the human-bird relationship in the broad field of human-animal studies including the psychology and sociology of animals as well as animal welfare and veterinary medicine.

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