Substance Use and Trauma Among Adult Education Students in the United States

Adult basic education (ABE) programs in the United States serve millions of students annually to help them achieve high school equivalency, English proficiency, and other skills. These skills are necessary for upward mobility and competitiveness in the labor market, which is important for ABE students who are disproportionately affected by racial/ethnic disparities and poverty. Among learners who are not in ABE programs, substance use and trauma affect student outcomes. Similar research is limited among ABE students. Understanding the influence of these factors among ABE students can better inform interventions. The current study, grounded in Stress and Coping Theory, examined rates, risk factors, and gender differences for substance use and trauma among 286 ABE students. Results indicated that trauma is prevalent and associated with substance use, substance use suggests a need for brief counseling, and there were gender differences in substance use behaviors. Recommendations for interventions among ABE programs are discussed.

Machismo and Caballerismo Linked with Perceived Social Discrimination and Powerlessness in U.S. Latino Men

Concepts from the Threat Appraisal and Coping Theory, Precarious Manhood Theory, and Ambivalent Sexism suggest that U.S. Latino men who perceive social discrimination and powerlessness may respond with machismo beliefs that serve as coping responses to empower themselves and reassert their manhood. Machismo beliefs include both aggressive “traditional machismo” and gentlemanly family-focused “caballerismo.” Because past research has revealed that individuals respond to social abuse with anger, prompting them to feel empowered but less empathetic, we hypothesized that Latino men who perceive social discrimination combined with a sense of powerlessness would report more traditional machismo and less caballerismo. We also hypothesized that this three-variable sequence would be stronger for men with high rather than low in Latino identity, since discrimination would be a more personal threat to their identity and manhood. Participants included 1,530 U.S. Latinos who completed online surveys to report demographics (age, education, employment, sexual orientation, partner status, household size), perceived social discrimination, powerlessness, traditional machismo, caballerismo, and Latino identity. Mediational analyses confirmed the three-variable sequence in which powerlessness mediated associations between social discrimination and (more) aggressive machismo, and (less) gentlemanly caballerismo. Also as hypothesized, moderated mediational analysis revealed that these three-variable sequences were stronger for men with high rather than low Latino identity. With recent increases in social discrimination against U.S. Latinos, present results caution that men may respond to these challenges with increased aggressive patterns of traditional machismo.

Longitudinal influence of COVID-19-related stress on sexual compulsivity symptoms in Chinese undergraduates

Background The coping theory shows that stressful life events are associated with individuals’ psychology/behaviors; meanwhile, the coronavirus disease of 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic is known to have impacted individuals’ physical and mental health. Prior studies revealed that undergraduates have many sexual behavior and emotion disorders, which may be impacted during an isolation period, such as the one brought by COVID-19. However, few studies have explored the longitudinal associations between COVID-19-related stress and sexual compulsivity symptoms (SCS), and the mediating effect of emotions (i.e., depression and anxiety) on this relationship. This longitudinal study aimed to investigate these associations. Methods We employed a cross-lagged design (2020/2/12: Time 1, 3219 participants; 2020/6/6: Time 2, 2998 participants) and recruited Chinese undergraduates through an online system to respond to a survey. Results Our results showed that COVID-19-related stress at Time 1 directly influenced SCS at Time 1, and there was an indirect influence via depression and anxiety at Time 1. COVID-19-related stress at Time 1 positively correlated with depression, anxiety, and SCS at Time 2, and the first could directly and positively predict SCS at Time 2. Moreover, albeit depression at Time 2 was negatively linked to SCS at Time 2, anxiety at Time 2 enhanced the effect of COVID-19-related stress on SCS. Conclusions Our findings extend the literature on SCS, showing that the higher the COVID-19-related stress, the higher the SCS, and the longer-lasting effect was associated with anxiety in undergraduates. Furthermore, depression does not mediate the relationship between COVID-19-related stress and SCS.

Influence of Successful Aging, Quality of Life, and Factors Related to Potential Stressors on Older Consumers’ Purchase of Private Health Insurance in South Korea: An Empirical Study Based on Proactive Coping Theory

Considering the weak role of public health insurance in South Korea, this study identified the impact of older consumers’ coping resources such as income and education, well-being (e. g., successful aging and quality of life), and psychological and economic aspects affecting potential stressors on their purchasing of private health insurance (PHI) based on proactive coping theory. From the sixth wave of the 2016 Korean Longitudinal Study of Aging (KLoSA), a sample of 1,224 Korean older adults aged above 65 years was used; binary logistic regression was conducted to identify the association of PHI and purchase decision factors, first separately for two groups (lower/higher use of health care services), and then for the total group. The results showed that older adults with higher levels of well-being, especially with a higher successful aging index and coping resources such as income are more likely to purchase PHI in all three groups.

Longitudinal Influence of COVID-19-Related Stress on Sexual Compulsivity Symptoms in Chinese Undergraduates

Background The coping theory shows that stressful life events are associated with individuals’ psychology/behaviors, and the COVID-19 pandemic is known to have impacted individuals’ physical and mental health. Prior studies revealed that undergraduates have many sexual behavior and emotion disorders, which may be impacted during an isolation period, such as the one brought by COVID-19. However, few studies have explored the longitudinal associations between COVID-19-related stress and sexual compulsivity symptoms (SCS), and the mediating effect of emotions (i.e., depression and anxiety) on this relationship. This longitudinal study aimed to investigate these associations. Methods We employed a cross-lagged design (Time 1, 3,219 participants; Time 2, 2,998 participants) and recruited Chinese undergraduates through an online system to respond to a survey. Results Our results showed that COVID-19-related stress at Time 1 directly influenced SCS at Time 1, and there was an indirect influence via depression and anxiety at Time 1. COVID-19-related stress at Time 1 positively correlated with depression, anxiety, and SCS at Time 2, and the first could directly and positively predict SCS at Time 2. Moreover, albeit depression at Time 2 was negatively linked to SCS at Time 2, anxiety at Time 2 enhanced the effect of COVID-19-related stress on SCS. Conclusions Our findings extend the literature on SCS, showing that the higher the COVID-19-related stress, the higher the SCS, and that this effect was associated with increased anxiety in undergraduates. Thus, compared with depression, anxiety different which anxiety ought to some behavior to reduce individual inner negative emotions.

Caregiving Intensity and Caregiver Burden Among Dementia Caregivers: The Moderating Roles of Social Support

Objective: Using the stress-coping theory, the aims of the present study were to test what levels of caregiving intensity (hours actually spent on caregiving every day) posed the most negative influence on caregiver burden as well as how social support moderated such associations among dementia caregivers. Methods: Data from the baseline assessment of the Resources for Enhancing Alzheimer’s Caregiver Health (REACH II) (N = 637) were used. Caregiver burden (12-item Zarit caregiver burden scale), caregiving intensity (caregiving hours), and social support (Lubben social network, received support, satisfaction with support, and negative interactions) were the main measurements. Separate multivariate regression models were conducted with Stata 16. Results: The results showed that the relationships between caregiving hours and caregiver burden were nonlinear after controlling all of the socio-demographic variables. Further analyses showed that when caregiving hours reached 13.50 hours per day, the levels of burden were the highest. In addition, received social support, satisfaction with social support, and social network significantly moderated the relationship between caregiving hours and caregiver burden among dementia caregivers when they were examined separately. However, only social network played a significant moderator role when examining the four social support indicators simultaneously. Discussion and conclusion: These findings suggest the need for programs and practices on educating caregivers regarding how to identify, approach, and gain social support/s, especially in how to broaden the caregivers’ social network while caring for a family member with dementia.

Analysis of the use of memes as an exponent of collective coping during COVID-19 in Puerto Rico

During the emergence of the novel COVID-19, a proliferation of memes related to events discussed in Spanish-speaking social media was observed. This study analysed the four stages of collective coping to determine how memes became triggered social representations that gradually monopolized the mainstream media. The research was performed through an electronic survey of 351 participants from Puerto Rico, which was subsequently analysed through partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM). The study’s results reflected psychological implications in the use of memes in terms of how they were used to mitigate the stressful circumstances of a social event. This study is a pioneer in the application of Collective Coping Theory in the context of the effects that memes produce as a link to mitigate stressors. It also discusses how, when a culture faces a problem, memes become a decisive means to reinterpret the situation.