Validation of the Copenhagen Psychosocial Questionnaire-Long Version II (COPSOQ II) in Greek employees

The aim of this study was to validate the long second version of the Copenhagen Psychosocial Questionnaire (COPSOQ II) in the Greek language. The study was carried out in two phases following a mixed-method design. Six hundred and fifty-two Greek employees (response rate 93.3%) responded in the second phase of the study, either online or in writing. Both types of participation to the study were confidential for the participants and the companies as well. Most participants were females (68.1%), married (47.4%), aged 30-49 years (60.9%), with high educational level (60.4%). The majority were occupied in the health and the social care services (37.4%) and employed by the private sector (63.2%). Internal consistency of the GR-COPSOQ II was assessed with the Cronbach alpha criterion (Cronbach’s a) and it was acceptable (0.8>α>0.7) for most of the scales. Mean scores were high in many scales that describe exposure to psychosocial risk factors at the workplace. Construct validity was established by exploratory factor analysis (EFA) for the entire study sample and scales. In conclusion, the Greek version of the COPSOQ-II (GR-COPSOQ II) has good psychometric properties and can be recommended as a valid tool for the assessment of psychosocial risk in Greek employees.

Validation of the Greek version of the Adolescent Sleep Hygiene Scale (ASHS)

Transition from childhood to adolescence is known to bring about many changes in the lifestyle and psycho-emotional state of adolescents. One of the major lifestyle factors that affect adolescents’ physical and mental health is sleep. The aim of this study was to validate the Adolescent Sleep Hygiene Scale (ASHS), a tool that measures sleep hygiene, in an adolescent sample living in Greece. The study’s sample consisted of 146 Greek adolescents aged 12-18 years. The Adolescent Stress Questionnaire was used for convergent validity and correlation with adolescents’ stress. The pilot and the main study demonstrated sufficient internal consistency. Exploratory Factor Analysis showed an adequate adaptation of the original ASHS questionnaire to the Greek adolescents. The findings of this study support the use of ASHS as a reliable and valid tool for evaluating sleep-facilitating and sleep-inhibiting practices of Greek adolescents.

Stress among pediatric oncology staff. A systematic review

Cancer is considered one of the dominant life-threatening diseases in children. Working in the field of pediatric oncology, although rewarding, can be a source of stress and emotional burden for health care providers. The aim of this systematic review was to summarise the evidence regarding the occupational stress of health care providers working with pediatric cancer patients. Extensive search of the Pubmed and Scopus databases was performed to identify studies relevant to the topic. Initial search retrieved 657 studies. The reviewing investigators, after applying the inclusion/exclusion criteria, extracted data to critically appraise the quality of evidence. The final step of search concluded in 23 studies of heterogeneous design. Results revealed two main domains of which occupational stress derived from i) the interaction of the health care provider with the patient and the family, and ii) several organisational factors, such as hierarchical structures, experience, workload, and low organisational support. Literature on the stress of pediatric oncology staff is limited. The rather small sample sizes of the studies, the heterogeneity of methodological design, the lack of assessment from a sociological point of view, as well as the limited psychometric instruments adapted to pediatric oncology staff, make the validity of the results questionable. Further research is warranted to obtain a more accurate view of the field, to identify a cause-effect relation between work-related stress and pediatric oncology staff, and, more importantly, to guide future recommendations on support systems and stress management training within pediatric oncology settings.

SOILomics; where Microbiome Genetics meets Precision Agriculture

Advances in genetics, soil biochemistry and microbiome analysis are opening up a new era in Precision Agriculture. In this direction, new techniques bring groundbreaking changes in land management practices through direct or indirect management of soil microbial communities. There is huge demand for the protection and enhancement of soil health and climate change resilience of crops. The increase in population, food consumption and fast approaching climate change pose a new threat to mankind that only by being proactive and highly prepared to deploy all novel and innovative stratagems in state-of-the-art soil microbiome precision agriculture can be avoided.

Ten Simples Rules on How to Organise a Bioinformatics Hackathon

The completion of the human genome sequence triggered worldwide efforts to unravel the secrets hidden in its deceptively simple code. Numerous bioinformatics projects were undertaken to hunt for genes, predict their protein products, function and post-translational modifications, analyse protein-protein interactions, etc. Many novel analytic and predictive computer programmes fully optimised for manipulating human genome sequence data have been developed, whereas considerably less effort has been invested in exploring the many thousands of other available genomes, from unicellular organisms to plants and non-human animals. Nevertheless, a detailed understanding of these organisms can have a significant impact on human health and well-being.New advances in genome sequencing technologies, bioinformatics, automation, artificial intelligence, etc., enable us to extend the reach of genomic research to all organisms. To this aim gather, develop and implement new bioinformatics solutions (usually in the form of software) is pivotal. A helpful model, often used by the bioinformatics community, is the so-called hackathon. These are events when all stakeholders beyond their disciplines work together creatively to solve a problem. During its runtime, the consortium of the EU-funded project AllBio - Broadening the Bioinformatics Infrastructure to cellular, animal and plant science - conducted many successful hackathons with researchers from different Life Science areas. Based on this experience, in the following, the authors present a step-by-step and standardised workflow explaining how to organise a bioinformatics hackathon to develop software solutions to biological problems.

Studying Depression, Anxiety, Distress and Somatization in a Community Sample of 2,425 Adults in Greece

A growing part of the literature has focused on depression, anxiety, distress and somatization. Identifying their prevalence and recording high-risk populations is essential in order to form relevant interventional programs addressing these symptoms. The aim of this study was to examine the prevalence and associated factors of distress, depression, anxiety and somatization in a community adult sample in Greece. Participants were recruited from two Greek cities; Giannitsa in the northern area and Athens in the southern area of the country and completed sociodemographic assessments, as well as the 4-Dimensional Symptom Questionnaire (4-DSQ), a self-reported instrument assessing depression, anxiety, distress and somatization.A total of 2,425 adults, females (60.1%) and males (39.9%), 18 to 84 years of age (mean age 46.98 ± SD) participated in the study. Mental health symptoms were reported by 10.8% for depression, 12% for anxiety, 13% for distress and 5.3% for somatization of the participants. Females scored higher than males in anxiety, distress, and somatization (p=0.000 in all cases), while there were no significant sex differences in depression (p=0.593). Statistically significant associations were found between age and depression, anxiety and distress (p=0.000 in all cases), since those between 18-34 years of age had higher scores than the older age groups in all variables. Higher scores of depression, anxiety and distress were reported by students and unemployed participants (p=0.000 in all cases) than participants with other occupations. This study mapped several sociodemographic groups with worse mental health. Studies in representative population samples are needed to guide public health interventions to improve the mental and physical well-being of high-risk populations.

A Biofeedback-Assisted Stress Management Program for Patients with Irritable Bowel Syndrome: a Randomised Controlled Trial

Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a functional gastrointestinal disorder that affects the functionality and quality of life of the affected persons. There is a well-established detrimental reciprocal relationship between stress and IBS. In this randomised controlled trial, IBS patients were randomly assigned to an 8-week biofeedback-assisted stress management intervention group (n=24) or a control group (n=22). Psychometric measures were performed at baseline and following intervention to assess perceived stress, health locus of control and depressive symptoms. In patients of the intervention group, perceived stress and symptoms of depression were significantly decreased, while the sense of control over health was increased. The intervention program was beneficial to the health and quality of life of individuals with IBS. Future randomised controlled studies with larger samples and longer follow-up are required to establish the effectiveness of stress-management techniques in functional gastrointestinal disorders.

Validation of the Greek version of the Bergen Social Media Addiction Scale in Undergraduate Students

Social Networking Sites (SNSs) number at least 3.81 billion users worldwide, while in Greece, 74.7% of internet users resort to SNSs. However, there is no instrument adapted to the Greek language that assesses addiction to SNSs. The Bergen Social Media Addiction Scale is a short 6-item questionnaire that assesses social media addiction. This study aimed to evaluate the psychometric properties of the Greek version of the Bergen Social Media Addiction Scale. The sample consisted of 325 University students (mean age 21.6 years, SD=5.26). Confirmatory factor analysis was performed that supported the one-factor model. The reliability of the tool was tested with various indicators and was found to be satisfactory. The regression analysis identified gender, time of SNSs use, number of SNSs held by an individual and stress as statistically significant predictors of SNSs addiction. Positive correlations were found between SNSs addiction and stress, depression, anxiety and loneliness, while negative correlations were observed between SNSs addiction, self-esteem and age. Stress fully mediated the relationship between depression and SNSs addiction. The findings of the present study indicate that the Greek version of the Bergen Social Media Addiction Scale is a valid and reliable instrument for assessing SNSs addiction. The relationship between SNSs addiction and the biopsychosocial model was confirmed.

Environmental impacts of war’s social consequences. Case Study: Aleppo Governorate Syria

War is an anthropogenic phenomenon with devastating effects, which cause loss of human life, alongside the disastrous effects on the natural environment. The environmental impacts of armed conflicts can be either direct, arising from the act of war itself, or indirect due to the massive population displacement, infrastructure breakdown, and militarised zones. Impacts may be irreversible, affecting areas even far away from the territory of the conflict where they manifest. The environmental impacts of war create social and economic consequences that lead to greater environmental degradation by showing the interdependent relationship between the environment, society, and economy. It is imperative to address the subject in a multidisciplinary approach and implement stricter international legislation on environmental disasters during wars. This study aims to identify environmental impacts by using satellite-derived images at Aleppo Governorate, analyse them via statistics supplemented with the available information for the research region, and demonstrate the subsequent social and economic consequences by creating indices, such as the Normalised Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), digital image composites and classified images, which record the extent of reduction of healthy vegetation and the extent of destruction at the city of Aleppo. Data from international organisations corroborated the findings, and hereinafter societal and economic effects were analysed. Using remote sensing alongside with geographic information systems can be a useful tool as it offers access to war zones where physical observations are usually impossible.

Validation of the Cosmetic Procedure Screening (COPS) Questionnaire in the Greek language

Practitioners in cosmetic and aesthetic treatment practices are likely to unknowingly work with patients with Body Dysmorphic Disorder (BDD). Screening questionnaires to identify the disorder in Greece are lacking. The purpose of this study was to validate a Greek version of the Cosmetic Procedure Screening (COPS) questionnaire, a self-report measure of how the respondents feel about their appearance, before an aesthetic intervention. The COPS was translated into Greek and was completed by 216 adult females from several areas of Attica (four private beauty centers, three dermatology clinics, five plastic surgery clinics, and Thriasio General Hospital of Elefsina) who pursued a cosmetic procedure. Participants also completed the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-14). The Greek version of the COPS questionnaire demonstrated high internal consistency (Cronbach's α of 0.856) with corrected item’s total range 0.468 to 0.687. Two of the factors explained 58.98% of total variance. Twenty (9.26%) women had a possible diagnosis of BDD (80% were unmarried, 95% had no children, 80% had university education). An increase in perceived stress levels was associated with an increase in the likelihood of being diagnosed with BDD (Pearson’s r=0.726). The Greek version of the COPS questionnaire is a valid instrument that can be used by professionals to screen adult women for BDD.