Emotional Distress, Stress, Anxiety and the Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Early Career Women in Healthcare Sciences Research

ObjectivesThe main objective of this study was to report stress and anxiety levels during the early period of the pandemic on early career women researchers in health sciences research and determine the factors associated with increased stress and anxiety.MethodsA 50-item self-administered internet questionnaire was developed using a mix of Likert-type scales and open-ended response questions. The survey was distributed via email and social media platforms June 10-August 3, 2020. Anxiety and stress associated with the demands of being in health sciences research as well as personal/family demands were assessed through validated measures (Patient Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS)-Anxiety Short Form and Perceived Stress Scale (PSS)) and open-ended responses.ResultsOne hundred and fifty-one early career women in healthcare sciences research completed the survey. The mean respondent age was 37.3±5.2 years, all had a college degree or higher, 50.3% holding a PhD and 35.8%, M.D. Of the 151 respondents, 128 reported their race/ethnicity and the majority were Caucasian (74.0%). One-third (31.2%) reported being ‘very much’ concerned about reaching their research productivity goals, and 30.1% were ‘very much’ concerned about academic promotion and tenure. Fifty percent reported a ‘moderate’ PROMIS anxiety score and 72.1% reported a ‘moderate’ PSS score. For the open-ended responses, 65.6% reported a worry about their professional goals as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Major concerns revolved around finances, childcare and job security.ConclusionsThroughout the pandemic, early career women investigators have reported high overall stress, anxiety and worries.

Strengthening of work-life balance while working remotely in the context of COVID-19 pandemic

BACKGROUND: Recently, quite a number of employees have been asked to choose remote work or even have been forced into it as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Notwithstanding the benefits suggested by remote working, e.g. saving on commuting time and expenses working from home generates numerous challenges for employees, including the blurred line between the roles of working and private life. While, previous studies have demonstrated that work-life balance, which refers to the ability of every individual to coordinate work and family obligations successfully, has a significant impact on employee well-being and organisational performance, ways for maintaining the balance under crisis remain underexplored. OBJECTIVE: Trying to narrow the gap, the paper aims at revealing the antecedents of work-life balance while working remotely during the COVID-19 pandemic. METHODS: A quantitative survey has been conducted in Lithuania (pilot study). The data have been collected from the employees working only remotely. RESULTS: The results provided evidence that employees struggled with work-home balance while working remotely. In line with the results, work and family demands served as detrimental factors for work-home balance, while manager support, co-workers support, job autonomy, and job control increased work-home balance. CONCLUSIONS: Thus, the research results expand the knowledge on the antecedents of work-life balance in a crisis situation. Moreover, the findings have significant implications for employers demonstrating that organisations need to carefully plan and implement new strategies and practices for work-home balance improvement for the employees who work from home.

Perceived Experiences of Korean Immigrant Mothers Raising Children With Disabilities in the United States

Introduction: The challenges of acculturation that immigrant families experience could intensify if they have a child with a disability. This qualitative descriptive study aimed to describe the experiences of Korean mothers raising children with a disability in the United States. Methodology: Semi-structured interviews were conducted based on the Resilience Model of Family Stress, Adjustment, and Adaptation. Directed content analysis was used. Results: Six Korean mothers participated in the interview and 16 codes were identified in relation to the five concepts of the Resilience Model, namely family demands, family resources, family appraisal, family problem-solving and coping, and family adaptation. Overall, mothers thought their families were well-functioning and viewed their quality of life positively within the context of immigration despite experiencing various family demands. Discussion: Findings of this study showed the resilience of Korean immigrant mothers and revealed the importance of understanding and considering unique cultural differences when providing care to this population.

Preferred Communication Channels Among Older Adults During COVID-19

Social distancing measures put in place during the COVID-19 pandemic limited in-person interactions and may have increased the risk for social isolation and loneliness in older adults. Purpose The purpose of this study was to understand the communication channels used by older adults (age 50+) during the COVID-19 pandemic to mitigate social isolation and loneliness. Methods Older adults (n=22) who were selected from a longitudinal study, ‘Aging in the time of COVID,’ and who had self-reported they successfully avoided loneliness, participated in a semi-structured online interview. Participants were asked to describe the communication techniques and efforts they used to stay connected to family and friends during the pandemic. All interviews were recorded and transcribed verbatim. A thematic analysis approach was used to identify common approaches. Results Participants were primarily female and white (100%) with a mean age of 64.7 years. Preliminary findings (n=5) suggest older adults relied heavily on technology to facilitate communication with family and friends including texting, phone calls, email, video calls or conferences (e.g., Zoom), WhatsApp and social media, primarily Facebook. In-person communication strategies, including one-on-one and small group gatherings following social distancing guidelines, were preferred, but used less often than technology-based approaches. Living close to friends and family, and previous experience with technology were facilitators. Competing work and family demands, distance, and technology challenges limited communication. Conclusions While older adults may adopt technology at a lower pace, they relied on digital communication technology to maintain social connections during COVID.

How to Prepare for the Membership of the Royal College of Physicians (UK) Part 2 Clinical Examination (Practical Assessment of Clinical Examination Skills): An Exploratory Study

The Practical Assessment of Clinical Examination Skills (PACES) examination is considered the most difficult component of the three-part Membership of the Royal College of Physicians (MRCP) United Kingdom (UK) diploma, which provides budding physicians with access to a diverse pathway of subspecialties and a rewarding medical career. Preparing for the exam is onerous, especially when also juggling work and family demands. This research explored how candidates can prepare for this exam in an organised manner to improve their chances of first-pass success. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 10 participants in the West Yorkshire region in the UK who had passed the PACES examination within 24 months. The interviews were transcribed onto QSR NVivo software, coded reflexively and analysed using thematic analysis. The analysis identified 25 codes that were aggregated into the following themes according to their density; (a) mental conditioning, (b) clinical exposure, (c) external factors and support, (d) revision courses, (e) knowledge acquisition, (f) playing the objective structured clinical examination (OSCE) game, (g) change of strategy, and (h) novel methods. In summary, it takes more than just clinical exposure and rote learning to pass the exam; preparation involves a complex, multifaceted approach. With proper mental conditioning, organisational skills and confidence, the adverse effect of test anxiety could be reduced to improve chances of success. Peer learning is an effective tool for facilitating examination preparation among candidates, besides providing a supportive framework. Cues from this study could act as a guiding framework for future PACES candidates to further refine their study strategies.

Do Gender and Gender Role Orientation Make a Difference in the Link between Role Demands and Family Interference with Work for Taiwanese Workers?

Based on the gender role orientation perspective, this study extends the resource depletion mechanism that links role demands to family interference with work by testing the moderating effects of gender and gender role orientation (egalitarian vs. traditional) on the relationships. Analysis of the data from 251 employees in Taiwan revealed two significant three-way interactive effects. Specifically, for men, the positive relationship between work demands and family-to-work conflict (FWC) was stronger for egalitarian than traditional individuals. For women, the positive relationship between family demands and FWC was stronger for egalitarian than traditional individuals. We also found a significant two-way interactive effect; that is, within the egalitarian group, the positive relationship between work demands and FWC was stronger for women than men. Our findings, thus, suggest both within-gender and between-gender variations in the links between work-to-family demands and conflict, jointly affected by the individual’s gender and gender role orientation. Contextualized within the cultural traditions of a Chinese society, we highlight the precarious position that egalitarian men and women (especially women) find for themselves in fulfilling work duties and family roles. The theoretical and managerial implications are also discussed.

A Structure Model of Family Empowerment in Preventing Smoking Initiation among Adolescent: An Empirical Study Conducted in Urban Area of Indonesia

BACKGROUND: Family empowerment is a critical component for smoking prevention efforts among adolescents. Few information regarding the family empowerment model developed in preventing smoking initiation among adolescents in Indonesia. AIM: The aim of this study was to identify determinants of the family empowerment model in preventing smoking initiation among adolescents in Indonesia. METHODS: A cross-sectional research design was used for families with adolescent girls and boys (aged 10–14 years) in West Java, Indonesia. The convenience sampling procedure was employed. The study analyzed family demands and parenting stress as stressors. Family resources were divided into family functioning and communication process. The perception or judgment factor was assumed as parenting efficacy. Family empowerment has been identified as an indicator of adaptation. Structural equation modeling was used for data analysis. RESULTS: The survey respondents consisted of 175 respondents. The mean age was 40.56 (SD = 11.73) and 57.2% had graduated from above high school. These findings suggest that family demands and parenting stress have an indirect effect on family empowerment through parenting efficacy, family functioning, and communication processes. The contribution of the effect of family demands, parenting stress, parenting efficacy, family function, and communication process on family empowerment was 68%. CONCLUSION: The family empowerment could be defined in the Double ABCX model in the prevention of smoking in adolescents and that the numerous adverse effects of stress can be modulated through parental efficacy as well as the ability to function of the family and communication. It recommends making family interventions an integral part of public health initiatives for the prevention of smoking initiation, as well as health policy formation.

‘Unfocused groups’: lessons learnt amid remote focus groups in the Philippines

The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has required tremendous shifts in data collection techniques. While an emerging body of research has described experiences conducting remote interviews, less attention has been paid to focus group discussions (FGDs). Herein, we present experiences conducting remote FGDs (n=9) with healthcare workers and caretakers of small children in the Philippines. We used ‘Facebook Messenger Room’ (FBMR), the preferred platform of participants. Despite some success, we generally encountered considerable challenges in terms of recruiting, retaining and moderating remote FGDs, particularly among caretakers of small children. Finding a quiet, private place proved unfeasible for many participants, who were juggling family demands in tight, locked down quarters. Connectivity issues and technological missteps compromised the flow of FGDs and minimised the ability to share and compare opinions. For the research team, remote FGDs resulted in a dramatic role shift for notetakers—from being passive observers to active tech supporters, chatbox referees and co-moderators (when audio disruptions occurred). Finally, we note that remote FGDs via FBMR are associated with ethical complexities, particularly as participants often chose to use their personal Facebook accounts, which can compromise anonymity. We developed and continuously refined strategies to mitigate challenges, but ultimately decided to forgo FGDs. We urge fellow researchers with more successful experiences to guide the field in terms of capturing high-quality data that respond to research questions, while also contending with privacy concerns, both in online spaces, as well as physical privacy despite lockdowns in tight quarters.

When workplace family-support is misallocated: effects of value congruence and fairness perceptions on supervisor family-support

To better manage our work demands and family demands, we often erect mental or physical ‘boundaries’ to help manage our experiences. However, preferences for preserving these boundaries differ across individuals (e.g., some individuals may prefer to segment work/family roles, while others may prefer to integrate these roles) and employees may not always have similar preferences/values as their supervisors. Applying a resource framework from the job demands-resources model (JD-R; Bakker & Demerouti, 2007), we explicate the process through which supervisor–employee value congruence reduces work–family conflict, when supervisors provide valuable emotional and instrumental resources through family-supportive supervisor behaviors (FSSB). Furthermore, we find evidence that supervisors can demonstrate adequate FSSB even when having incongruent values with employees by fairly allocating and individually tailoring family-support. With a diverse sample of 815 staff members from four southern US universities, we conduct mediation and moderation analyses to test our hypotheses.