Examining the Antecedents of Social Support and Performance, Applying Generalisability Theory

Social support plays an important role in our physical and mental health, and is also recognised as a key factor for the success and well-being of athletes. It would be of significant interest for researchers and practitioners to identify the components of perceived and received social support, support antecedents, and subsequent consequences of support. The first aim of this thesis was to apply a univariate generalisability theory approach to examine the components of perceived and received support. The second aim was to apply a multivariate generalisability theory approach to identify the antecedents and consequences of perceived and received support across different levels of analysis. Four studies were conducted applying either a fully crossed or partially nested design to examine components of social support when athletes rated coaches or their most important support providers within their existing social networks. Further, in Studies 3 and 4, participants also completed a performance task in the presence of support providers. Univariate analyses demonstrated that consistently across all studies the relational and social components accounted for the largest amount of variance in both perceived and received support. These findings suggest that perceivers rated certain providers to be particularly supportive, in comparison to how they rated other providers. Across all studies multivariate analyses revealed that provider personality and social identity related to perceptions of support at the relational and social level. In Studies 1 and 4, coach competency also related to perceptions of support at the relational and social level. When athletes perceived certain providers to exhibit specific personality traits, particularly the trait of agreeableness, felt certain coaches were highly competent, and shared a common identity with providers, those providers were also perceived to be particularly supportive. Studies 3 and 4, however, were unable to identify antecedents of received support at any level of analysis, suggesting that perceived and received support have distinct antecedents. Further, in Studies 3 and 4, perceived and received support had unique relationships with self-confidence and performance across the different components. At the perceiver and trait level, when athletes felt they generally received support from providers, they generally felt more confident. In comparison, at the relational and social level, if athletes perceived certain providers to be particularly supportive, they performed better in their presence. The support received from those providers was also beneficial through enhancing self-confidence and, in turn, performance. The findings from the current thesis significantly further conceptual understanding of perceived and received support by identifying their correlates at the different levels of analysis. The current thesis also offers evidence based recommendations for social support interventions

Champ or chump? Challenge and threat states during pressurized competition

Copyright © 2013 Human Kinetics, IncThe present research examined the immediate impact of challenge and threat states on golf performance in both real competition and a laboratory-based task. In Study 1, 199 experienced golfers reported their evaluations of competition demands and personal coping resources before a golf competition. Evaluating the competition as a challenge (i.e., sufficient resources to cope with demands) was associated with superior performance. In Study 2, 60 experienced golfers randomly received challenge or threat manipulation instructions and then performed a competitive golf-putting task. Challenge and threat states were successfully manipulated and the challenge group outperformed the threat group. Furthermore, the challenge group reported less anxiety, more facilitative interpretations of anxiety, less conscious processing, and displayed longer quiet eye durations. However, these variables failed to mediate the group-performance relationship. These studies demonstrate the importance of considering preperformance psychophysiological states when examining the influence of competitive pressure on motor performance

An examination of social support, personality and psychological wellbeing in police employees

Introduction: Enhancing health and wellbeing of employees is becoming a growing concern for researchers, employers, policy makers and practitioners in today’s society. The promotion of employees’ psychological wellbeing can be mutually beneficial for individuals and organisations (Wright, 2010). Research has found that psychological wellbeing in a workforce is associated with a range of positive outcomes, including increased work performance (Ford, Cerasoli, Higgins & Decesare, 2011), enhanced job satisfaction (Wright & Cropanzano, 2000) and reduced voluntary staff turnover (Wright & Bonett, 2007). Given the desirability of these outcomes for employers, employees and broader society, this highlights the importance of understanding how psychological wellbeing can be enhanced and maintained in the workplace. Policing is becoming an increasingly complex and demanding work environment (e.g., Hesketh, Cooper & Ivy, 2015), and police can be exposed to a variety of stressors that can have a detrimental impact on health and wellbeing (Juniper, White & Bellamy, 2010). Higher levels of perceived organisational support have been associated with increased psychological wellbeing (Pannaccio & Vandenbergh, 2009), while an individual’s personality has also been identified as an important predictor of wellbeing (DeNeve & Cooper, 1998). To date, little research appears to have examined links between psychological wellbeing, social support and personality characteristics in policing. Therefore, the primary aim of the study was to examine the relationship between psychological wellbeing with received and perceived support from colleagues and personality characteristics in police. Design: The present study utilised a cross-sectional design. The variables assessed were psychological wellbeing, received social support, perceived social support and five personality characteristics, comprising agreeableness, openness to experience, emotional stability, conscientiousness and extraversion. Methods Participants: All operational and non-operational employees of a police force in the Midlands region of England were invited to participate in the study, with a total of 381 employees (M age = 42.49, SD = 9.85; female n = 187; male n = 183; unspecified gender n = 11) agreeing to take part (17.8% response rate). Ethical approval was obtained from a school ethics committee at a British university. Measures: Participants completed an online questionnaire via Qualtrics. The questionnaire comprised the Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Well-being Scale (WEMWBS; Tennant et al., 2007), an adapted version of the shortened Inventory of Socially Supportive Behaviours (ISSB; Barrerra, Sandler & Ramsay, 1981), Social Provisions Scale (SPS; Russell & Cutrona, 1987), and Ten-Item Personality Inventory (Gosling, Renfrow & Swann, 2003). Responses for the WEMWBS and ISSB reflected a four-week period prior to completing the questionnaire. Data analysis Data were analysed in SPSS 22. Initially, data were examined to establish whether the assumptions required to run parametric tests were satisfied. Visual inspection of scatterplots and results of normality tests revealed that data for psychological wellbeing, perceived support, received support, and personality characteristics were not normally distributed. As a result, the median, interquartile range, and standard deviations of these measures were calculated, and non-parametric analyses undertaken. A Spearman’s rank order correlation analysis was conducted to examine relationships between the study variables. A multiple logistical regression analysis was used to examine whether perceived support, received support, and personality characteristics predicted psychological wellbeing. Results: Results of the Spearman’s rank correlational analysis showed that psychological wellbeing was significantly (p < .05) and positively associated with perceived support, received support, extraversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness, emotional stability and openness to experience. The multiple logistical regression analysis indicated the likelihood of each variable predicting psychological wellbeing. In terms of social support, psychological wellbeing was significantly (p < .05) predicted by received support and perceived support. With regards to the predictive capacity of the personality characteristics, only extraversion and emotional stability significantly predicted psychological wellbeing. The remaining variables in the model, openness to experience, agreeableness and conscientiousness, were not significant predictors of psychological wellbeing. Discussion and Conclusions: The current findings advance understanding of the association between psychological wellbeing and received and perceived support, and personality in police employees. Both received and perceived support significantly predicted psychological wellbeing, demonstrating that employees that received more support from colleagues, and perceived support to be more readily available from colleagues, had elevated psychological wellbeing. Furthermore, the personality traits of extraversion and emotional stability significantly predicted psychological wellbeing, such that employees characterized by greater levels of these traits reported enhanced psychological wellbeing. These findings emphasise the important role that both received and perceived support, and certain personality traits, could have with respect to psychological wellbeing in police employees. These findings add to the organsational psychology literature, provide recommendations for employers of emergency service workers, and could help to inform the design of tailored psychosocial interventions

Physician antipsychotic overprescribing letters and cognitive, behavioral, and physical health outcomes among people with dementia: a secondary analysis of a randomized clinical trial

Importance Antipsychotics, such as quetiapine, are frequently prescribed to people with dementia to address behavioral symptoms but can also cause harm in this population. Objective To determine whether warning letters to high prescribers of quetiapine can successfully reduce its use among patients with dementia and to investigate the impacts on patients’ health outcomes. Design, Setting, and Participants This is a secondary analysis of a randomized clinical trial of overprescribing letters that began in April 2015 and included the highest-volume primary care physician (PCP) prescribers of quetiapine in original Medicare. Outcomes of patients with dementia were analyzed in repeated 90-day cross-sections through December 2018. Analyses were conducted from September 2021 to February 2024. Interventions PCPs were randomized to a placebo letter or 3 overprescribing warning letters stating that their prescribing of quetiapine was high and under review by Medicare. Main Outcomes and Measures The primary outcome of this analysis was patients’ total quetiapine use in days per 90-day period (the original trial primary outcome was total quetiapine prescribing by study PCPs). Prespecified secondary outcomes included measures of cognitive function and behavioral symptoms from nursing home assessments, indicators of depression from screening questionnaires in assessments and diagnoses in claims, metabolic diagnoses derived from assessments and claims, indicators of use of the hospital and other health care services, and death. Outcomes were analyzed separately for patients living in nursing homes and in the community. Results Of the 5055 study PCPs, 2528 were randomized to the placebo letter, and 2527 were randomized to the 3 warning letters. A total of 84 881 patients with dementia living in nursing homes and 261 288 community-dwelling patients with dementia were attributed to these PCPs. There were 92 874 baseline patients (mean [SD] age, 81.5 [10.5] years; 64 242 female [69.2%]). The intervention reduced quetiapine use among both nursing home patients (adjusted difference, –0.7 days; 95% CI, −1.3 to −0.1 days; P = .02) and community-dwelling patients (adjusted difference, −1.5 days; 95% CI, −1.8 to −1.1 days; P < .001). There were no detected adverse effects on cognitive function (cognitive function scale adjusted difference, 0.01; 95% CI, −0.01 to 0.03; P = .19), behavioral symptoms (agitated or reactive behavior adjusted difference, −0.2%; 95% CI −1.2% to 0.8% percentage points; P = .72), depression, metabolic diagnoses, or more severe outcomes, including hospitalization and death. Conclusions and Relevance This study found that overprescribing warning letters to PCPs safely reduced quetiapine prescribing to their patients with dementia. This intervention and others like it may be useful for future efforts to promote guideline-concordant care

Seven-day ischaemic preconditioning improves muscle efficiency during cycling

Ischaemic preconditioning (IPC) has emerged as a potential non-invasive ergogenic aid to enhance exercise performance. Repeated application of IPC has demonstrated clinical efficacy, therefore our aims were to investigate its effect on endurance cycling performance and muscle efficiency. Twenty participants undertook 7-d repeated bilateral lower limb occlusion (4 x 5-min) of IPC (220 mmHg) or sham (20 mmHg). Prior to and 72-h following the intervention, participants performed submaximal cycling at 70, 80 and 90% of ventilatory threshold (VT) followed by an incremental exercise test. IPC had no effect on VO2max (P = 0.110); however, time to exhaustion increased by ~ 9% and Wmax by ~ 5 % (IPC pre 307 ± 45 to post 323 ± 51 W) relative to sham (P = 0.002). There were no changes in gross efficiency (GE) (P > 0.05); however, delta efficiency (DE) increased by 3.1% following IPC (P = 0.011). Deoxyhaemoglobin (HHb) was reduced following IPC ~ 30% (P = 0.017) with no change in total haemoglobin (tHb). Repeated IPC over 7-d enhanced muscle efficiency and extended cycling performance. The physiological effects of repeated IPC on skeletal muscle efficiency explains the notable improvements in endurance performance

Canvass: a crowd-sourced, natural-product screening library for exploring biological space

NCATS thanks Dingyin Tao for assistance with compound characterization. This research was supported by the Intramural Research Program of the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences, National Institutes of Health (NIH). R.B.A. acknowledges support from NSF (CHE-1665145) and NIH (GM126221). M.K.B. acknowledges support from NIH (5R01GM110131). N.Z.B. thanks support from NIGMS, NIH (R01GM114061). J.K.C. acknowledges support from NSF (CHE-1665331). J.C. acknowledges support from the Fogarty International Center, NIH (TW009872). P.A.C. acknowledges support from the National Cancer Institute (NCI), NIH (R01 CA158275), and the NIH/National Institute of Aging (P01 AG012411). N.K.G. acknowledges support from NSF (CHE-1464898). B.C.G. thanks the support of NSF (RUI: 213569), the Camille and Henry Dreyfus Foundation, and the Arnold and Mabel Beckman Foundation. C.C.H. thanks the start-up funds from the Scripps Institution of Oceanography for support. J.N.J. acknowledges support from NIH (GM 063557, GM 084333). A.D.K. thanks the support from NCI, NIH (P01CA125066). D.G.I.K. acknowledges support from the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (1 R01 AT008088) and the Fogarty International Center, NIH (U01 TW00313), and gratefully acknowledges courtesies extended by the Government of Madagascar (Ministere des Eaux et Forets). O.K. thanks NIH (R01GM071779) for financial support. T.J.M. acknowledges support from NIH (GM116952). S.M. acknowledges support from NIH (DA045884-01, DA046487-01, AA026949-01), the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs through the Peer Reviewed Medical Research Program (W81XWH-17-1-0256), and NCI, NIH, through a Cancer Center Support Grant (P30 CA008748). K.N.M. thanks the California Department of Food and Agriculture Pierce's Disease and Glassy Winged Sharpshooter Board for support. B.T.M. thanks Michael Mullowney for his contribution in the isolation, elucidation, and submission of the compounds in this work. P.N. acknowledges support from NIH (R01 GM111476). L.E.O. acknowledges support from NIH (R01-HL25854, R01-GM30859, R0-1-NS-12389). L.E.B., J.K.S., and J.A.P. thank the NIH (R35 GM-118173, R24 GM-111625) for research support. F.R. thanks the American Lebanese Syrian Associated Charities (ALSAC) for financial support. I.S. thanks the University of Oklahoma Startup funds for support. J.T.S. acknowledges support from ACS PRF (53767-ND1) and NSF (CHE-1414298), and thanks Drs. Kellan N. Lamb and Michael J. Di Maso for their synthetic contribution. B.S. acknowledges support from NIH (CA78747, CA106150, GM114353, GM115575). W.S. acknowledges support from NIGMS, NIH (R15GM116032, P30 GM103450), and thanks the University of Arkansas for startup funds and the Arkansas Biosciences Institute (ABI) for seed money. C.R.J.S. acknowledges support from NIH (R01GM121656). D.S.T. thanks the support of NIH (T32 CA062948-Gudas) and PhRMA Foundation to A.L.V., NIH (P41 GM076267) to D.S.T., and CCSG NIH (P30 CA008748) to C.B. Thompson. R.E.T. acknowledges support from NIGMS, NIH (GM129465). R.J.T. thanks the American Cancer Society (RSG-12-253-01-CDD) and NSF (CHE1361173) for support. D.A.V. thanks the Camille and Henry Dreyfus Foundation, the National Science Foundation (CHE-0353662, CHE-1005253, and CHE-1725142), the Beckman Foundation, the Sherman Fairchild Foundation, the John Stauffer Charitable Trust, and the Christian Scholars Foundation for support. J.W. acknowledges support from the American Cancer Society through the Research Scholar Grant (RSG-13-011-01-CDD). W.M.W.acknowledges support from NIGMS, NIH (GM119426), and NSF (CHE1755698). A.Z. acknowledges support from NSF (CHE-1463819). (Intramural Research Program of the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences, National Institutes of Health (NIH); CHE-1665145 - NSF; CHE-1665331 - NSF; CHE-1464898 - NSF; RUI: 213569 - NSF; CHE-1414298 - NSF; CHE1361173 - NSF; CHE1755698 - NSF; CHE-1463819 - NSF; GM126221 - NIH; 5R01GM110131 - NIH; GM 063557 - NIH; GM 084333 - NIH; R01GM071779 - NIH; GM116952 - NIH; DA045884-01 - NIH; DA046487-01 - NIH; AA026949-01 - NIH; R01 GM111476 - NIH; R01-HL25854 - NIH; R01-GM30859 - NIH; R0-1-NS-12389 - NIH; R35 GM-118173 - NIH; R24 GM-111625 - NIH; CA78747 - NIH; CA106150 - NIH; GM114353 - NIH; GM115575 - NIH; R01GM121656 - NIH; T32 CA062948-Gudas - NIH; P41 GM076267 - NIH; R01GM114061 - NIGMS, NIH; R15GM116032 - NIGMS, NIH; P30 GM103450 - NIGMS, NIH; GM129465 - NIGMS, NIH; GM119426 - NIGMS, NIH; TW009872 - Fogarty International Center, NIH; U01 TW00313 - Fogarty International Center, NIH; R01 CA158275 - National Cancer Institute (NCI), NIH; P01 AG012411 - NIH/National Institute of Aging; Camille and Henry Dreyfus Foundation; Arnold and Mabel Beckman Foundation; Scripps Institution of Oceanography; P01CA125066 - NCI, NIH; 1 R01 AT008088 - National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health; W81XWH-17-1-0256 - Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs through the Peer Reviewed Medical Research Program; P30 CA008748 - NCI, NIH, through a Cancer Center Support Grant; California Department of Food and Agriculture Pierce's Disease and Glassy Winged Sharpshooter Board; American Lebanese Syrian Associated Charities (ALSAC); University of Oklahoma Startup funds; 53767-ND1 - ACS PRF; PhRMA Foundation; P30 CA008748 - CCSG NIH; RSG-12-253-01-CDD - American Cancer Society; RSG-13-011-01-CDD - American Cancer Society; CHE-0353662 - National Science Foundation; CHE-1005253 - National Science Foundation; CHE-1725142 - National Science Foundation; Beckman Foundation; Sherman Fairchild Foundation; John Stauffer Charitable Trust; Christian Scholars Foundation)Published versionSupporting documentatio

Canvass: A Crowd-Sourced, Natural-Product Screening Library for Exploring Biological Space

Natural products and their derivatives continue to be wellsprings of nascent therapeutic potential. However, many laboratories have limited resources for biological evaluation, leaving their previously isolated or synthesized compounds largely or completely untested. To address this issue, the Canvass library of natural products was assembled, in collaboration with academic and industry researchers, for quantitative high-throughput screening (qHTS) across a diverse set of cell-based and biochemical assays. Characterization of the library in terms of physicochemical properties, structural diversity, and similarity to compounds in publicly available libraries indicates that the Canvass library contains many structural elements in common with approved drugs. The assay data generated were analyzed using a variety of quality control metrics, and the resultant assay profiles were explored using statistical methods, such as clustering and compound promiscuity analyses. Individual compounds were then sorted by structural class and activity profiles. Differential behavior based on these classifications, as well as noteworthy activities, are outlined herein. One such highlight is the activity of (−)-2(S)-cathafoline, which was found to stabilize calcium levels in the endoplasmic reticulum. The workflow described here illustrates a pilot effort to broadly survey the biological potential of natural products by utilizing the power of automation and high-throughput screening

Broad-Spectrum Matrix Metalloproteinase Inhibition Curbs Inflammation and Liver Injury but Aggravates Experimental Liver Fibrosis in Mice

Background Liver fibrosis is characterized by excessive synthesis of extracellular matrix proteins, which prevails over their enzymatic degradation, primarily by matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs). The effect of pharmacological MMP inhibition on fibrogenesis, however, is largely unexplored. Inflammation is considered a prerequisite and important co-contributor to fibrosis and is, in part, mediated by tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α-converting enzyme (TACE). We hypothesized that treatment with a broad-spectrum MMP and TACE-inhibitor (Marimastat) would ameliorate injury and inflammation, leading to decreased fibrogenesis during repeated hepatotoxin-induced liver injury.Methodology/Principal Findings Liver fibrosis was induced in mice by repeated carbon tetrachloride (CCl4) administration, during which the mice received either Marimastat or vehicle twice daily. A single dose of CCl4was administered to investigate acute liver injury in mice pretreated with Marimastat, mice deficient in Mmp9, or mice deficient in both TNF-α receptors. Liver injury was quantified by alanine aminotransferase (ALT) levels and confirmed by histology. Hepatic collagen was determined as hydroxyproline, and expression of fibrogenesis and fibrolysis-related transcripts was determined by quantitative reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction. Marimastat-treated animals demonstrated significantly attenuated liver injury and inflammation but a 25% increase in collagen deposition. Transcripts related to fibrogenesis were significantly less upregulated compared to vehicle-treated animals, while MMP expression and activity analysis revealed efficient pharmacologic MMP-inhibition and decreased fibrolysis following Marimastat treatment. Marimastat pre-treatment significantly attenuated liver injury following acute CCl4-administration, whereas Mmp9 deficient animals demonstrated no protection. Mice deficient in both TNF-α receptors exhibited an 80% reduction of serum ALT, confirming the hepatoprotective effects of Marimastat via the TNF-signaling pathway.Conclusions/Significance Inhibition of MMP and TACE activity with Marimastat during chronic CCl4administration counterbalanced any beneficial anti-inflammatory effect, resulting in a positive balance of collagen deposition. Since effective inhibition of MMPs accelerates fibrosis progression, MMP inhibitors should be used with caution in patients with chronic liver diseases

The relationship between eruptive activity, flank collapse, and sea level at volcanic islands: A long-term (>1 Ma) record offshore Montserrat, Lesser Antilles

Hole U1395B, drilled southeast of Montserrat during Integrated Ocean Drilling Program Expedition 340, provides a long (>1 Ma) and detailed record of eruptive and mass-wasting events (>130 discrete events). This record can be used to explore the temporal evolution in volcanic activity and landslides at an arc volcano. Analysis of tephra fall and volcaniclastic turbidite deposits in the drill cores reveals three heightened periods of volcanic activity on the island of Montserrat (?930 ka to ?900 ka, ?810 ka to ?760 ka, and ?190 ka to ?120 ka) that coincide with periods of increased volcano instability and mass-wasting. The youngest of these periods marks the peak in activity at the Soufrière Hills volcano. The largest flank collapse of this volcano (?130 ka) occurred towards the end of this period, and two younger landslides also occurred during a period of relatively elevated volcanism. These three landslides represent the only large (>0.3 km3) flank collapses of the Soufrière Hills edifice, and their timing also coincides with periods of rapid sea-level rise (>5 m/ka). Available age data from other island arc volcanoes suggests a general correlation between the timing of large landslides and periods of rapid sea-level rise, but this is not observed for volcanoes in intra-plate ocean settings. We thus infer that rapid sea-level rise may modulate the timing of collapse at island arc volcanoes, but not in larger ocean-island settings

Bio-Inspired Materials For Parsing Matrix Physicochemical Control Of Cell Migration: A Review

Cell motility is ubiquitous in both normal and pathophysiological processes. It is a complex biophysical response elicited via the integration of diverse extracellular physicochemical cues. The extracellular matrix directs cell motilityvia gradients in morphogens (a.k.a. chemotaxis), adhesive proteins (haptotaxis), and stiffness (durotaxis). Three-dimensional geometrical and proteolytic cues also constitute key regulators of motility. Therefore, cells process a variety of physicochemical signals simultaneously, while making informed decisions about migration viaintracellular processing. Over the last few decades, bioengineers have created and refined natural and synthetic in vitro platforms in an attempt to isolate these extracellular cues and tease out how cells are able to translate this complex array of dynamic biochemical and biophysical features into functional motility. Here, we review how biomaterials have played a key role in the development of these types of model systems, and how recent advances in engineered materials have significantly contributed to our current understanding of the mechanisms of cell migration