Social Engagement and Health: a Structural Equation Modelling Analysis of Downstream Links to Health Outcomes Among White-collar Professionals

ABSTRACT SOCIAL ENGAGEMENT AND HEALTH: A STRUCTURAL EQUATION MODELLING ANALYSIS OF DOWNSTREAM LINKS TO HEALTH OUTCOMES AMONG WHITE-COLLAR PROFESSIONALS by Ahmad Iqmer Nashriq bin Mohd Nazan The University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee, 2017 Under the Supervision of Associate Professor Amy E. Harley High level of social engagement has been associated with improved health outcomes. Its capacity to influence one’s health has led to the conception of Berkman’s social relationship model which hypothesizes that health is impacted by social relationship through a series of causal processes that begin at the macro-social level (upstream factors) to micro-psychobiological processes (downstream factors). Social engagement can be defined as the enactment of potential ties in real life activity but the mechanisms through which these ties impact health are scarcely investigated. Furthermore, existing evidences on these mechanisms or mediators are flawed and questionable. Studies have also shown that social engagement level among white-collar professionals are gradually fading given the damaging factors they experience at work. Nonetheless, social engagement has never been considered as a predictor of health status for these professionals despite its correlation with health. Using Berkman’s model as the guiding framework, the study sought to: a) investigate the relationship between social engagement and health among white-collar professionals, b) evaluate the influence of their job strain, working hours, age, race, education, and income on social engagement level, (c) assess the associations of social engagement with the model’s behavioral and psychological variables, and (d) determine which of these variables mediate the link between social engagement and health. The current study emphasized on white-collar professionals in Malaysia as the country’s diverse background provided unique opportunities for assessing social engagement from the perspective of different work and cultural ethics as well as religious beliefs following its multi-ethnic, multi-cultural, and multi-religious society. A two-phase recruitment approach was employed. First, participants were invited for a cognitive interview to pretest the instruments. Comments from n=9 participants were reviewed to revise the 14 instruments used in the survey. Second, recruitment for survey research was conducted through paper and web invitations yielding a final sample of n=200. Data were analyzed with Mplus using confirmatory factor analyses and structural equation modelling techniques. The study showed that social engagement correlated positively with health. It was also found that age and race predicted the social engagement level of the Malaysian professionals. Additionally, social engagement exhibited significant associations with some of the behavioral and psychological variables tested in the model which include diet, help seeking, self-efficacy, self-esteem, coping effectiveness, depression, and purpose in life. Of these, only depression was found to mediate the association between social engagement and health. The results provide empirical support for several key areas in the social engagement literature and could be used to inform future formative research of behavioral interventions

Association of parental knowledge, attitude, and practice of oral health with early childhood caries among preschool children: a systematic review

Early childhood caries (ECC) is a serious public health problem in both developing and developed countries. Given that children mainly depend on their parents for their day-to-day activities, it is important to investigate the extent of parental influence on the oral health of their children. The objective of this study is to review the association of parental knowledge, attitude, and practice of oral health with ECC among preschool children. PubMed, Medline, and Google scholar were used to search for related articles published within the past 10 years. All of the studies that investigated parental oral health practice have shown association with the development of dental caries. However, there were discrepancies in the outcome of studies that examined the association of parental knowledge and attitude with ECC. More investigations on parental knowledge and attitude are needed to clarify their association with ECC

Effectiveness of health education interventions to improve malaria knowledge and insecticide-treated nets usage among populations of sub-Saharan Africa: systematic review and meta-analysis

IntroductionMalaria health education intervention is a community-directed approach that has long been considered important in preventing malaria in sub-Saharan Africa. However, its effectiveness is being questioned due to a lack of strong evidence. We aim to synthesize the evidence of the impact of health education on malaria knowledge and insecticide-treated nets (ITN) usage. Specifically, we analyzed the odds of correctly answering malaria-related questions and the odds of using ITN between the intervention and control groups.MethodsExperimental and observational studies conducted in sub-Saharan Africa between 2000 and 2021 which had quantitatively evaluated the impact of health education interventions on malaria knowledge and ITN usage were included in the review.ResultsA total of 11 studies (20,523 participants) were included. Four studies used educational interventions to teach appropriate ITN strategies and promote ITN usage. Two others focused on improving knowledge of malaria transmission, prevention, treatment, and its signs and symptoms. The remaining five studies assessed both ITN use and malaria knowledge. Of these, 10 were eligible for meta-analysis. On average, the odds of a person in the intervention group reporting better malaria knowledge (odds ratio 1.30, 95% CI: 1.00 to 1.70, p = 0.05) and higher ITN usage (odds ratio 1.53, 95% CI: 1.02 to 2.29, p = 0.004) increased significantly after receiving health education interventions compared to those in the control group. The odds of ITN usage also substantially increased when the interventions were based on a theory or model (odds ratio 5.27, 95% CI: 3.24 to 8.58, p = 0.05).DiscussionOur review highlights sub-Saharan Africa’s various health education strategies to curb malaria over the past two decades. Meta-analysis findings show that health education interventions are moderately effective in improving malaria knowledge and ITN usage and have contributed to the effort of global malaria strategy

Cognitive determinants of health information seeking behavior through social media platforms among Malaysian adults

Introduction: Health information-seeking behaviour is a process of gathering information for individuals to understand and cope with his/her health problems. Apart from the Internet or Web 1.0, Web 2.0 tools has been increasingly used as alternative to seek health information and one such tool is social media platform. This study aims to identify cognitive determinants of health information-seeking behaviour through social media platforms among Malaysian adults. Methods: A cross-sectional study by means of convenience sampling was conducted during a nationwide pandemic lockdown. Cognitive determinants were defined as respondent’s perceived usefulness, perceived ease of user, perceived benefit, perceived costs, perceived behavioural control, and perceived risk towards social media use. Questionnaires were distributed via Google Form link to multiple social media platforms and cross-platform messaging app. Differences between group of sociodemographic factors and other independent variables were tested with nonparametric tests while multiple linear regression was employed to determine the significant predictors of the health information seeking behavior. Results: A total of 705 individuals responded to the survey invitation, the majority of which were females (65%), Malay (93.6%), married (52.1%), and received tertiary education (88.5%). Multiple linear regression analysis showed that perceived benefit (β= 0.612, 95% CI: 0.517-0.708, p<0.001), perceived usefulness (β= 0.653, 95% CI: 0.453-0.853, p<0.001), and perceived risk (β= 0.131, 95% CI: 0.03-0.259, p=0.044) significantly predict health information seeking behavior through social media platform. Conclusion: Our findings provide fundamental grounds for stakeholders to better understand and influence online behavior. Staying abreast of the current online trend is crucial as more people have begun to rely on social media for health information

A systematic review and meta-analysis of interventions to decrease cyberbullying perpetration and victimization: An in-depth analysis within the Asia Pacific region

BackgroundCyberbullying perpetration and victimization are prevalent issues in adolescent development and are a rising public health concern. Numerous interventions have been developed and implemented to decrease cyberbullying perpetration and victimization. Through an updated systematic review and meta-analysis, this study aimed to tackle a significant gap in the cyberbullying literature by addressing the need to empirically determine the effectiveness of programs with non-school-aged samples with a specific focus on studies conducted within the Asia-Pacific region.MethodsA systematic literature review was conducted to identify intervention research to reduce cyberbullying perpetration and victimization published from January 1995 to February 2022. Ten electronic databases—Cambridge Journal Online, EBSCOHOST, ERIC, IEEE XPLORE, Oxford Journal Online, ProQuest Dissertations and Theses, PubMed (Medline), Science Direct, Scopus, Springerlink—and a subsequent manual search were conducted. Detailed information was extracted, including the summary data that could be used to estimate effect sizes. The studies’ methodological quality was assessed using the Effective Public Health Practice Project (EPHPP) quality assessment tool.FindingsEleven studies were included in the review of the 2,540 studies identified through databases, and 114 additional records were discovered through citation searching. Only four studies were included in the meta-analysis, exploring game-based, skill-building, school-based, and whole-school interventions. The first meta-analysis pooled estimates from these four studies that assessed cyberbullying perpetration frequency using continuous data post-intervention. These studies reported data from 3,273 participants (intervention n = 1,802 and control n = 1,471). A small but not statistically significant improvement favoring the intervention group from pre- to post-intervention was shown by the pooled effect size, −0.04 (95% CI [−0.10,0.03], Z = 1.11, P = 0.27). The second meta-analysis included two qualified studies investigating cyberbullying victimization frequency using continuous data at post-intervention among 2,954 participants (intervention n = 1,623 and control n = 1,331). A very small but non-significant effect favoring the intervention group was discovered.ConclusionThis research primarily highlights that the endeavor for cyberbullying intervention is still developing in the Asia-Pacific region, currently involving a limited set of stakeholders, settings, and delivery modes. Overall, meta-analyses of cyberbullying interventions conducted in the Asia Pacific found no significant effects in reducing cyberbullying perpetration and victimization.Systematic review registrationhttps://www.crd.york.ac.uk/prospero/, identifier CRD42022313369

Sociodemographic factors of mental health literacy among housewives living in low cost apartments in Puchong, Selangor, Malaysia

Introduction: Evaluation of mental health literacy is important in assisting the development of intervention and policies toward preventing mental health problems. This study aims to explore mental health literacy and its socio-demographic predictors in a group of housewives living in low-cost apartments in Selangor, Malaysia. Methods: A Malay version of the self-administered Mental Health Literacy Scale (MHLS) was used in this cross-sectional study. Age, ethnicity, religion, educational level and family income were tested using one-way ANOVA and independent t-test. Result: A total of 103 eligible respondents participated in the study. Most respondents were from the age group of 30 and above, from the Malay ethnic group, Muslims, had formal education up to secondary level with a monthly family income below RM4000 (USD980). The overall mean (sd) mental health literacy score was low 106.65 (11.21) and was significantly associated with ethnicity, religion, educational level and family income (p>0.05). Conclusion: Mental health literacy scores were low and showed variations within sociodemographic groups

Acceptance towards decriminalization of medical marijuana among adults in Selangor, Malaysia

Introduction: The issue of decriminalization of medical marijuana has gained public attention globally due to the decisions of various governments in developed and developing countries who have decriminalized marijuana for medical purposes. The action was the result of the change in perception towards medical marijuana use, which is now believed to be safe, acceptable, and should be decriminalized. Due to the progress of modernization and the wide access to information, the change in perception towards medical marijuana seems to be inevitable and might have already permeated among the public in Malaysia. However, at the moment there is no baseline data to determine any of this claim. Objective: To determine the prevalence and factors associated with acceptance towards decriminalization of medical marijuana among adults in Selangor, Malaysia. Methodology: The study was a cross-sectional study conducted in year 2021 among 462 adults aged 18 years old and above in Selangor, Malaysia. The respondents were sampled using a multistage random sampling. The data was collected via self-administered questionnaires and has been analyzed using SPSS version 25. Result: More than half of the respondents in this study (64.7%) show acceptance towards the decriminalization of medical marijuana in Malaysia. The results of statistical tests indicate that there are significant associations between age (p < 0.001), gender (p = 0.005), ethnicity (p < 0.012), level of education (p < 0.011), employment status (p = 0.001), ever smoked (p < 0.001), given up smoking (p = 0.002), ever used substance (p < 0.001), current substance use (p < 0.001), given up substance (p < 0.001), exposure to medical marijuana-related content (p < 0.001), perceived risk associated with medical marijuana use (p < 0.001), perceived risk of harm of medical marijuana use (p < 0.001), and perceived approval of medical marijuana use (p < 0.001) with acceptance towards decriminalization of medical marijuana. The predictors for acceptance towards decriminalization of medical marijuana are perceived high approval of medical marijuana use (aOR = 7.023, p < 0.001, 95%CI = 3.534,13.955), perceived low risk of medical marijuana (aOR = 5.716, p < 0.001, 95%CI = 2.828,11.554), perceived low risk of harm from medical marijuana use (aOR = 3.480, p = 0.001, 95%CI = 1.702,7.114), current substance use (aOR = 2.264, p = 0.050, 95%CI = 1.001,5.118), and ever used substance (aOR = 2.005, p = 0.004, 95% CI = 0.054,0.576). Conclusion: The results of the survey show that the current acceptance level towards decriminalization of medical marijuana is considerably high. However, the acceptance is mainly among those who are exposed to the substance and those who perceive low risk of medical marijuana. Thus, a further exploration of this phenomenon is needed, especially by increasing the sample size and expanding the study location to other states

A review of the effectiveness of interventions on medication adherence among hypertension patients

A majority of hypertensive patients will end up suffering uncontrolled hypertension, which is partly due to poor medication adherence. This paper aimed to review a range of interventions that could improve anti-hypertensive medication adherence. Literature search was conducted using PubMed, Scopus, Medline, and Science Direct databases, with publication dates confined to between October 2009 and October 2019. Eventually, only 11 studies were used for this study. It was found that interventions that are based on or include patient education, patient interviews, patient reminders, self-management and behavioural modifications have the potential to improve patients’ adherence to anti-hypertensive therapy. Most successful interventions involve patient reminder, self-management and behavioural intervention

Study protocol of a mixed-methods study to develop and validate the Malaysian anti-hypertensive agents non-adherence scale in hypertensive patients

Introduction: Domains of adherence and non-adherence to hypertensive medications have not been extensively documented in Malaysia due to the absence of theoretically driven and culturally appropriate measurement tools, leading to a poor understanding of the adherence and underlying factors. We aim to identify these domains in Malaysian hypertensive patients and subsequently apply the findings to develop and validate the Malaysian Anti-Hypertensive Agents Non-Adherence Scale (MAANS). Methods: This study has an exploratory mixed-methods design. In Phase 1, we will recruit hypertensive patients from two health clinics to participate in a semi-structured interview. Recruitment of participants will terminate once thematic saturation is achieved. Coding and thematic analyses will be performed to identify the domains of adherence and non-adherence to anti-hypertensive medications. In Phase 2, based on the domains generated from Phase 1, we will develop the Malaysian Anti-Hypertensive Agents Non-Adherence Scale (MAANS). Four hundred hypertensive patients will be randomly selected. Data from 200 participants (serving as the calibration sample) will be subjected to exploratory factor analysis while data from additional 200 participants (serving as the validation sample) will be subjected to confirmatory factor analysis. Factor structure, predictive validity, and reliability of the MAANS will be statistically tested. Discussion: With the presence of the MAANS, health care providers can gather crucial information regarding barriers and facilitators to hypertensive treatment adherence and design effective health promotion programmes to reduce complications of uncontrolled hypertension