Up North and Down South: Regional Differences in Pain, Religious Coping, and Negative Affect in Osteoarthritis

Objective: This research examines regional differences (Northern vs. Southern) in pain, religious coping, and negative affect among African Americans (AA) and non-Hispanic Whites (NHW) over the age of 50 with physician-confirmed knee osteoarthritis (OA). Methods: As part of a larger study of racial/ethnic differences in everyday quality of life with OA, 116 persons were recruited from sites in Alabama (n = 64) and New York (n = 52). Participants completed global measures of pain (PGC Pain Scale) and religious coping (Brief RCOPE); daily variability in pain, coping, and affect was assessed using a daily diary methodology consisting of 4 daily phone calls over 7 days. Site comparisons were conducted using one-way multivariate analysis of covariance (MANCOVA) with covariates of race, sex, education, and marital status. Results: There was a significant multivariate effect of site on pain, religious coping, and affect, F(5, 104) = 3.846, p = .003, Wilk’s Λ = .844, partial η2 = .156. Follow-up univariate tests and mean examinations revealed that Southerners reported statistically more daily pain (M = 2.023, SD = .89), religious coping (M = .618, SD = .427), and negative affect (M = 6.556, SD = 2.661) than Northerners (M = 1.810, SD = .719; M = .386, SD = .417; M = 5.865, SD = 1.446). Implications: Results contribute to a growing understanding of how individuals use their religious beliefs to cope with daily pain. (Supported by R01-AG041655 D. Smith and P. Parmelee, PIs.)

Examining Daily-Level Associations Between Nightly Alcohol Use and Next-Day Valued Behavior in College Students

Objective: Adverse consequences of binge drinking episodes are well-established, but fewer studies have investigated how incremental changes in daily alcohol use relate to well-being. We examined within- and between-person associations in alcohol use and next-day valued living to enhance our understanding of the impact of alcohol use on following-day outcomes in college students.Participants. During November 2018, 73 undergraduate participants (65.7% female) completed surveys through Qualtrics.Method: Using daily diary methodology, participants completed nightly surveys (N = 784) on their cellular devices over a two-week period.Results: Within-participant variations in evening alcohol use demonstrated a negative linear association with next-day valued living, controlling for relevant variables.Conclusions: Findings supplement other studies demonstrating the impact of individual variability in alcohol use on engagement in valued behaviors. Knowledge of the hazards of alcohol use within the context of valued living has the potential to inform alcohol use prevention and intervention programs.

Broadening the Structure of Meaning in Life: Experiential Appreciation as an Indicator of Existential Meaning

There is a growing consensus that perceptions of coherence, purpose, and mattering represent primary indicators of the subjective experience of meaning in life (MIL; Costin & Vignoles, 2019). While these variables are supported by recent empirical research, it is unclear whether they encompass all information people consider when judging the meaningfulness of their lives. Based on the ideas of classic (Frankl, 1986) and contemporary (Martella & Steger, 2016) meaning in life scholars, the current research examines whether valuing one’s life experiences, or experiential appreciation (EA), constitutes another unique indicator of MIL. Study 1 provided support for this idea showing that a theorized hub of meaning, generativity, was uniquely associated with purpose, mattering, and EA. Studies 2-4 used cross sectional and daily diary methodology to directly support the claim that EA predicted global evaluation of MIL above and beyond the contribution of coherence, purpose, mattering. Finally, Studies 5 & 6 experimentally influenced EA by exposing participants stimuli high in intrinsic value (awe inspiring videos), and showed that the EA manipulation indirectly influenced MIL. Importantly, in both studies, these indirect effects were not found though other indicators of MIL. Overall, these findings support Frankl’s argument that valuing one’s experiences is uniquely tied to perceptions of meaning. Implications for the incorporation of EA as a primary indicator of MIL are discussed. This manuscript has not yet been published

THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN GLOBAL AND DAILY LEVELS OF PAIN AND RELIGIOUS COPING

Objective: This research examines associations between global and daily levels of pain and the use of religious coping strategies among African American (AA) and non-Hispanic White (NHW) older adults with physician-confirmed knee osteoarthritis (OA). Methods: As part of a larger study of racial/ethnic differences in everyday quality of life with OA, 125 persons over the age of 50 completed a global measure of religious coping using the Brief RCOPE. Daily variability in pain and coping was assessed using a daily diary methodology consisting of 4 daily phone calls over 7 days. Hypotheses: Demographic characteristics (sex, race) were expected to predict religious coping at both the global and daily levels. Specifically, we expected women and AAs would use more religious coping than their male and NHW counterparts. Further, daily levels of pain were predicted to correlate with daily levels of coping. Results: AAs were found to engage in significantly more religious coping behaviors than NHWs at the global, but not daily, level. An intraclass correlation coefficient of .316 indicated sufficient within-person variability for the use of multi-level modeling to determine the association of daily pain and religious coping. Within individuals, pain was significantly lower on days when religious coping was not used. Implications: Results contribute to a growing understanding of how individuals use their religious beliefs to cope with daily pain and perhaps, to the formulation of more targeted therapies for individuals living with chronic illness. (Supported by R01-AG041655 D. Smith and P. Parmelee, PIs.)

Elections Have Consequences for Student Mental Health: An Accidental Daily Diary Study

Polling suggested that the 2016 United States presidential election affected citizens' mood and stress levels. Yet, polling often fails to employ repeated measurement designs that can capture pre- and post-levels of change within the same person. In this study, undergraduate students ( N = 85) completed a 14-day daily diary where mood, stress, and mental health outcomes were assessed before and after the election. Multilevel modeling revealed an immediate upsurge in anxiety, stress, and poor sleep quality the day after the election, followed by a recovery period indicating these effects were short-lived. Other reactions (anger, fear, marginalization, and experiencing discrimination) evidenced a significant upsurge without a significant recovery. We consider how daily diary research designs like this one could be integrated into college settings to inform counseling center resource allocation, and we also comment on the promise of the daily diary methodology for political research.

The Benefits of Teleworking in the Public Sector: Reality or Rhetoric?

Many public organizations implement teleworking: an organizational innovation expected to improve the working conditions of public servants. However, it is unclear to what extent teleworking is beneficial for public servants. This study adds to the literature by studying the effects of teleworking on a day-to-day basis. We used a daily diary methodology and followed public servants across five consecutive working days. Studies that apply a daily survey method are more accurate than cross-sectional measures because they reduce recall bias. The results highlight that public servants experience quite negative effects from teleworking, including greater professional isolation and less organizational commitment on the days that they worked entirely from home. Contrary to predictions, working from home did not affect work engagement. We also found that higher leader–member exchange (LMX) reduced the impact of teleworking on professional isolation. These findings not only contribute to the literature by showing the unfavorable effects of teleworking but also highlight that LMX can, to some extent, reduce these negative effects.