Cancer-related Posttraumatic growth and Posttraumatic stress disorder: how are they connected and what are their correlates?

PurposeCancer is a stressful life event that can lead to specific posttraumatic reactions. Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and Posttraumatic growth (PTG) are two main posttraumatic reactions that are related to each other, and both have different correlates.MethodsThe linearity of the relationship between PTG and PTSD as well as the different socio-demographic, cancer-related, emotional and psychological correlates were analyzed in patients with cancer (N = 126).ResultsThe relationship between PTG and PTSD was found to be more curvilinear than linear. PTSD was more strongly related to psychological factors (e.g., anxious preoccupation, hope-helplessness, resilience) while PTG was strongly related to existential factors (e.g., self-transcendence, religiosity).ConclusionThe results show that cancer-related PTSD and PTG are specifically related constructs which are related differently to particular correlates.

An alarming absence of data on attitudes towards biobanking in the Central and Eastern Europe

In recent years, biobanking infrastructure has been gradually built in Central and Eastern Europe. The long-term success of biobanking, however, depends on the public’s engagement in the process. The available evidence indicates low informedness and hesitancy towards biobanking in CEE. Understanding of driving forces and barriers in laypeople’s participation in biobanking is thus a key challenge. The present paper aims to (1) summarize the available evidence, especially from the CEE countries, on public awareness and willingness to participate in biobanking, (2) provide the results of a systematic review on psychological correlates of engagement in biobanking in CEE, and (3) highlight the most pressing issues regarding the available evidence. In general, public awareness, biobanks’ communication and cooperation, ethical and legal regulations, and institutional/governmental trust seem to determine public engagement in biobanking the most. However, cultural specifics are likely to play a major role. Unfortunately, there is a dearth of behavioral data on this topic for the CEE countries. General recommendations on how to increase laypeople’s participation in biobanking are discussed. For the field to progress, future in-depth research on this topic conducted in the CEE countries is needed.

Using Public Datasets to Understand the Psychological Correlates of Smoking, Alcohol Consumption, and Obesity: A Country-Level Analysis

In the present research, we investigate whether cultural value orientations (CVOs) and aggregate personality traits (Big-5) predict actual levels of alcohol consumption, smoking, and obesity across 50 countries using averages derived from millions of data points. Aggregate traits explained variance above and beyond CVOs in obesity (particularly neuroticism and extraversion), while CVOs explained variance beyond aggregate traits in alcohol consumption (particularly harmony and hierarchy). Smoking was not linked to aggregated traits or CVOs. We conclude that an understanding of the cultural correlates of risky health behaviors may help inform important policies and interventions for meeting international sustainable development goals.

Smartphone Use and Well-Being in Two Contexts

Excessive smartphone use is a growing concern in many societies around the world today. To date, attention has primarily been paid to psychological correlates of use, including well-being, with less work concentrating on the role that context plays in smartphone use. This was the goal of the current project. College student smartphone use was measured twice over 1 week in two contexts – a college campus and an outdoor camp – and participant well-being was measured using the SPANE. The findings indicate that daily smartphone use significantly decreased for camp participants and significantly increased for campus participants, and latency to use a phone upon waking significantly increased for camp participants but remained stable for campus participants. Additionally, waiting longer to use a phone upon waking at the end of the week significantly predicted reduced well-being but only for camp participants. Overall, these findings suggest that setting is an important contextual variable to consider when pursuing an understanding of the complex relation between smartphone use and well-being.

Psychological Correlates of (Non)Use of Formal Resources by Family Caregivers of People With Dementia

Caring for a relative with dementia is a stressful task characterized by a high number of demands extended in time. Therefore, caregivers frequently report the need for assistance to cope with the situation. However, formal resources use is low among that population. The objective of this study was to explore the correlates of (non)use of formal resources (day care center and home care) by family caregivers of people with dementia. Participants were 225 dementia family caregivers that were individually assessed in a) use of formal resources, b) sociodemographic variables, c) stressors (frequency and reaction to behavioral problems), and d) psychological variables (depression, anxiety, and dysfunctional thoughts about caregiving). A logistic regression was done comparing those who used formal resources with those who did not use them. Caregivers who did not use formal resources were younger (OR = .95; 95% CI [.92 - .98]), devoted more daily hours to caring (OR = 1.07; 95% CI [1.02 - 1.11]), reported higher levels of dysfunctional thoughts about caregiving (OR = 1.07; 95% CI [1.04 – 1.10]) and higher anxiety levels (OR = 1.07; 95% CI [1.00- 1.13]), and their care-recipient had a higher functional autonomy (OR = 1.04; 95% CI [1.02 – 1.05]). Higher levels of anxiety and dysfunctional thoughts in caregivers may be act as barriers to seek for formal support. Targeting these variables may help to increase the use of formal resources by family caregivers of people with dementia.