Transdiagnostic model of psychological factors and sex differences in depression in a large sample of Ecuador

Background/Objective: depression represents a leading cause of disability and a major contributor to the overall global burden of disease with women systematically reporting a higher prevalence than men. This study aimed to examine the predictive value and relation of three transdiagnostic psychological factors (perceived stress, psychological inflexibility and loneliness) on depression and its sex differences for the general population in a large sample of Ecuador. Method: a non-probabilistic and non-clinical sample of 16.074 people from across Ecuador were online surveyed using a cross-sectional design. The structural equation model was based on scores from standardized questionnaires as measures of depression, psychological perceived stress, psychological inflexibility, and loneliness. Results: women reported significantly higher levels of depression, mediated by differences in perceived stress, psychological inflexibility and loneliness. Perceived stress was the most important predictor of depression and mediated the effect of loneliness on depression. Complementarily, psychological inflexibility partially mediated the effect of perceived stress and loneliness on depression. The overall model accounted for the 78% of the total variance in depression. Conclusions: results of this study provide a novel and robust transdiagnostic model of sex differences on depression and insights on how to design effective programs for preventing depression targeting modifiable transdiagnostic risk factors.The study was funded by the Particular Technical University of Loja (Ecuador) (PROY-INV-PSI2020-2781). Additional funding to P.R. was provided by the European Union— 'NextGenerationEU' through the Grant for the Requalification of the Spanish University System for 2021-2023 at the Public University of Navarra (Resolution 1402/2021)

Mental Stress, Psychological State and Coping Style During the COVID-19

It is a necessary for modern crisis management to understand public response to behavior under the condition of COVID-19. The 2002 questionnaires were designed to investigate mental stress, psychological states and coping styles of the public during the period of the COVID-19. The three scales were analyzed by exploratory factor analysis, and the factors influencing mental state were regressed in layers. The structural equation model of mental pressure, mental state and coping style was established, The hypothesis is verified, that is, health, less income, work can not be completed, marriage conflicts, family conflicts, media reports on the COVID-19 increase the public panic; public panic significantly increases their positive and negative coping behaviors. Finally, five suggestions are put forward

The Relationship Between COVID-19 Stress, Psychological Inflexibility, and Psycholoical Well-Being

Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the literature on the mental and physical health consequences of COVID-19 has expanded exponentially. Much of the published research has focused on the physical health and economic consequences of COVID-19. Research on the mental health effects of COVID-19 has primarily addressed the increase in anxiety and depression and related avoidance/safety behaviors surrounding COVID-19 (Taylor et al., 2020). Although there is an emerging literature on the COVID-19 mental health consequences, there is a paucity of research examining the processes of how people respond to COVID-19 stress and psychological well-being. Specifically, data examining potential psychological processes (i.e., psychological inflexibility) that are potential mechanisms for the relationship between COVID-19 stress and overall psychological well-being are limited. Thus, the purpose of the present study was to explore whether the processes of psychological inflexibility mediate the relationship between COVID-19 related stress and psychological well-being. We operationalized psychological inflexibility utilizing measures of cognitive fusion, experiential avoidance, commitment, and valued living. Participants were 137, primarily Latinx undergraduate students (60% female, 37% male, and 3% other) at a large Southwestern university. We hypothesized that the relationship between COVID-19 stress and psychological well-being would be indirect and mediated by psychological inflexibility. The hypothesis was supported utilizing an SPSS statistical macro program PROCESS (Hayes, 2013) for testing multiple mediation models. Results revealed that psychological inflexibility fully mediated the relationship between COVID-19 stress and psychological well-being. The full model accounted for a statistically significant amount of variance (R2 = .78, F (6, 145) = 87.83, p = .000), specifically, COVID-19 stress and psychological inflexibility accounted for 79% of the outcome variance. Additionally, there was a statistically significant total effect of COVID-19 stress (b=-.5450, p=.0000, 95% CI [-.7739, -.3161]) on psychological well-being. After accounting for the psychological inflexibility mediators, the direct effect of COVID-19 stress on psychological well-being was no longer statistically significant (b= -.0060, p= .9297, 95% CI [-.1397, .1277]). Based on the analyses, four variables of psychological inflexibility (experiential avoidance, committed action, values-progress, and values-obstruction) mediated the relationship between COVID-19 stress and psychological well-being. Clinical implications regarding psychological well-being in a global pandemic, limitations, and future directions of the research are discussed

Productivity effects of innovation, stress and social relations

Innovation is a source of increasing productivity, but it is also a source of stress. Psychological research shows that moderate stress increases the productivity of an actor, but above a certain level, additional stress decreases productivity. Stress is reduced by coping behaviour of the actor, and in addition it is buffered by social relations. However, high levels of stress negatively affect social relations, causing social erosion. In a formal model including inter-agent dynamics, we show that the variables moderating stress levels are of crucial importance for identifying the overall effects of different rates of innovation on productivity. The model shows among other things that the existence and nature of relationships of people determine the extent to which a certain rate of innovation effectively results in increasing productivity. In addition, it shows the possibility of multiple equilibria - under some parameter values both high- and low-stress steady states exist; and the dynamics exhibit hysteresis. At very high levels of stress, innovation can result in a dissolution of social relations, and has a negative relationship with the rate of economic growth.innovation, work-related stress, social relationships

Binegative Minority Stress, Psychological Processes, and Disordered Alcohol Use: Disparities Among Sexual Minority Womxn

Sexual minority womxn (i.e., woman-identified persons) tend to report more harmful alcohol use and more negative alcohol use outcomes than heterosexual women—a pattern not consistently observed in man-identified populations. Further, bisexually-oriented, hereafter called nonexclusively-oriented, womxn (NOW) report more negative alcohol use outcomes and meet criteria for alcohol use disorder at higher rates than both lesbians and heterosexual women (or exclusively-oriented womxn; EOW). These disparities require further investigation to explicate the antecedents and mechanisms impacting alcohol use for this at-risk population. This project examines the incremental negative effects of binegativity as a specific minority stressor and antecedent of disordered alcohol use. Given that non-exclusive orientation uniquely straddles sexual minority and heterosexual spheres, examining stressors and psychological processes that are distinctly experienced by NOW are vital steps toward informing targeted alcohol use treatment for this population. NOW and EOW (N = 432) responded to questions on an online survey regarding general minority stress, binegative minority stress, psychological processes (i.e., positive alcohol expectancies, alcohol use motivations, queer social support) and alcohol use. NOW report higher cumulative minority stress loads than EOW, although EOW reported more heterosexist experiences than NOW. Among NOW, binegative minority stressors accounted for unique variance in alcohol use disorder symptoms, over and above general minority stressors. General minority stressors accounted for variance in alcohol use disorder symptoms among NOW, too. NOW and EOW did not differ in reported positive alcohol expectancies or queer social support; however, NOW reported drinking alcohol to cope more than EOW. Parallel mediation analyses identified that drinking to cope and queer social support partially mediated the relationship between proximal, but not distal, binegative minority stress. Expectations of rejection, a key general minority stressor, was positively related to alcohol use disorder symptoms among NOW, but not related to psychological processes. General and binegative minority stressors are important factors related to alcohol use disorder symptoms among NOW. Additionally, psychological processes, particularly drinking alcohol to cope, and queer social support, may be important factors for health care providers to consider in the prevention of and invention on disordered alcohol use symptoms for this vulnerable group

Perceived stress, psychological well-being and burnout among female nurses working in government hospitals

Background: Few studies have studied about the Burnout among government employed Female Nurses in India.Methods: A cross sectional survey was done by mailing questionnaires containing Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-10), Copenhagen Burnout Inventory (CBI) and General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-28) to all 603 Nurses posted in thirty government hospitals of central India. Fifty seven percent responded and 298 valid questionnaires were analysed. Results: Sixty three nurses (21%) had GHQ 28 score more than 4 indicative of psychological distress. One hundred and forty four nurses (48.32%) had perceived stress scores above 17 in PSS -10. Age and Service were found to be negatively correlated with stress and burnout (p50 points on a scale of 0-100) were 27.2%, 14.7%, and 9.4% respectively for Personal, Work and Client related Burnout categories. More nurses employed in ICU, maternity ward, General Family Ward, Surgical wards, and Medical wards had work related burnout when compared to those in Administration, Emergency Room and VIP Wards. No significant differences were observed in the scores of GHQ-28, PSS-10 and CBI when the nurses were compared on the basis of their marital status or educational achievements. Conclusions: Prevalence of Burnout in government employed Female Nurses in India was less when compared to prevalence of burnout in nurses reported in western countries. The perceived Stress and Burnout was more in Nurses of 31-50 years age group, and being employed in the acute wards.

Graduate Student Impairment: The Impact on Counselor Training Programs

This article focuses on the issue of student impairment in graduate level counselor training programs and the factors that affect it, including: A definition of graduate student impairment; the prevalence of student impairment in counselor training programs; an explanation of the legal consequences when addressing student impairment; organizational issues in universities dealing with this issue; and, the impact of graduate student impairment on the counseling professions