The Health-Related Quality of Life, Work Productivity, Healthcare Resource Utilization, and Economic Burden Associated with Levels of Suicidal Ideation Among Patients Self-Reporting Moderately Severe or Severe Major Depressive Disorder in a National Survey.

Background: Suicidal ideation (SI) is a cardinal aspect of major depressive disorder (MDD); however, patient-reported outcomes data from large-scale surveys are limited concerning SI in the context of MDD. This study aims to understand the association between varying levels of SI and health-related quality of life (HRQoL), work productivity, healthcare resource utilization (HRU), and associated costs in patients with moderately severe/severe MDD. Methods: This was a retrospective, cross-sectional analysis of 2013 national survey data. Patients who self-reported moderately severe or severe MDD and completed the Short Form Survey Version 2 (SF-36v2), Work Productivity Loss and Activity Impairment questionnaire (WPAI), and questions related to HRU were analyzed. Direct and indirect costs were calculated. Patients were categorized and analyzed by the level of SI (no SI, low, moderate, and high) based on their response to Item 9 of the Patient Health Questionnaire-9. Results: Among 75,000 respondents, 15.3% self-reported receiving a physician diagnosis of moderately severe or severe MDD and 2.8% of the total sample endorsed some level of SI. Patients with high SI showed a higher burden than patients with no SI, reporting lower mean SF-36v2 mental component summary scores ( Conclusion: Higher levels of SI were associated with lower HRQoL, greater HRU, and more work impairment resulting in higher direct and indirect costs compared with patients with MDD but no SI. These results highlight the need to implement effective treatment models and interventions in the employed population

The Gendered Face of Partisan Politics: Consequences of Intersecting Gender and Partisan Stereotypes for Politician Perception

Historically, women have been at a disadvantage in U.S. politics. Recently, social-cognitive researchers have begun to investigate how gender and partisan stereotypes operate through politician appearance. Here I test the hypothesis that the gendered nature of the two major political parties in the United States manifests itself in the sex-typicality of politician appearance and has consequences for evaluations of female and male politicians. I draw from basic social cognition theory and the prejudice and stereotyping literature to propose a novel approach to understanding the consequences of gender stereotypes for perceptions of politicians (Chapter I). I specify a model documenting how partisan stereotypes and party-based adherence to traditional gender roles impact politician perceptions. The central tenets of this model are tested in Chapter II, Chapter III, Chapter IV, and Chapter V, and focus on a range of outcomes--trait evaluations, issue competencies, leadership ability, vote choice, and electoral success.In the study described in Chapter II, I describe how politicians' gendered appearance impacts trait evaluations. I find that when politicians' appearance is congruent with their partisan stereotype that they fare better in their evaluations of warmth and competence. Moreover, perceived warmth varies as a function of gendered appearance for counter-stereotypic groups. Thus, gendered appearance impacts assessments of male politicians' warmth and evaluations of female politicians' competence.In the study described in Chapter III, I test whether partisan stereotypes influence perceptions of politicians' issue competencies. I find evidence that partisan stereotypes drive perceptions of politicians' issue competencies such that a more feminine appearance compels more favorable evaluations of Democrats' ability to handle compassion/women's issues; a more masculine appearance compels more favorable assessments of politicians' ability to handle economic/military issues. In the study described in Chapter IV, I describe how politicians' gendered appearance impacts leadership ability assessments. The pattern of result remains unclear. A feminine-appearance benefits perceptions of female Democrats' and female and male Republicans' leadership ability; however, a masculine appearance benefits perceptions male Democrats' leadership ability. These findings are not in line with my prior research and other published findings regarding gendered appearance and perceptions of leadership ability. Therefore, additional research is warranted to fully understand the influence of gendered appearance on assessments of leadership ability