Self-esteem and mental health in adolescents – level and stability during a school year

Aim: Adolescence represent an important period for positive mental health development. The aim of the present paper was to investigate gender differences as well as the level, stability and predictive role of mental health (symptoms of depression/anxiety and mental well-being) and self-esteem in adolescents during a school year. Methods: The study sample consisted of a cohort of 351 students aged 15–21 years in Mid-Norway. In a survey administrated at the beginning and end of the 2016/2017 school year, mental well-being was assessed with Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Well-Being Scale, depression/anxiety with Hopkins Symptom Checklist and self-esteem with the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale. Two models were tested for prediction; self-esteem on mental health (vulnerability model) and mental health on self-esteem (scar model). Results: Girls reported significantly higher depression/anxiety than boys and showed a slightly significant increase in depression/anxiety, stress and self-esteem during the two assessments. Boys scored significantly higher on mental well-being and self-esteem and reported stable mental health during the school year. Selfesteem significantly predicted depression/anxiety and mental well-being. Mental well-being and depression/ anxiety also significantly predicted self-esteem. Conclusion: The results suggest that self-esteem and mental health are reciprocally associated. The results underline the gender differences in overall mental health in adolescents and thus the potential importance of acknowledging gender when working on universal strategies for positive mental health development

Validation of the WHOQOL-Bref: psychometric properties and normative data for the Norwegian general population

Background: The World Health Organization’s Quality of Life Questionnaire (WHOQOL-Bref ) is a frequently used instrument to assess the quality of life in both healthy and ill populations. Inquiries of the psychometric properties of the WHOQOL-Bref report that the validity and reliability is generally satisfactory. However, some studies fail to support a four-factor dimensionality; others report poor reliability of the social and environmental domain; and there may be some challenges of supporting construct validity across age. This paper evaluates the psychometric properties of the Norwegian WHOQOL-Bref and extends previous research by testing for measurement invariance across age, gender and education level. In addition, we provide updated normative data for the Norwegian population. Methods: We selected a random sample of the Norwegian population (n=654) aged 18–75 years. Participants flled out the WHOQOL-Bref, the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale and various sociodemographic variables. Results: We found an acceptable convergent and discriminate validity and internal consistency of the physical, psychological and environmental domains, but a marginal reliability was found for the social domain. The factor loadings were invariant across gender, education and age. Some items had low factor loadings and explained variance, and the model ft for the age group 60–75 years were less satisfactory. Conclusions: The original four-factor dimensionality of the WHOQOL-Bref displayed a better ft to the data compared to the one-factor solution and is recommended for use in the Norwegian population. The WHOQOL-Bref is suitable to use across gender, education and age, but for assessment in the oldest age group, the WHOQOL-Old module could be a good supplementary, but further studies are needed.publishedVersio

Self-esteem and mental health in adolescents - level and stability during a school year.

Aim: Adolescence represent an important period for positive mental health development. The aim of the present paper was to investigate gender differences as well as the level, stability and predictive role of mental health (symptoms of depression/anxiety and mental well-being) and self-esteem in adolescents during a school year. Methods: The study sample consisted of a cohort of 351 students aged 15–21 years in Mid-Norway. In a survey administrated at the beginning and end of the 2016/2017 school year, mental well-being was assessed with Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Well-Being Scale, depression/anxiety with Hopkins Symptom Checklist and self-esteem with the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale. Two models were tested for prediction; self-esteem on mental health (vulnerability model) and mental health on self-esteem (scar model). Results: Girls reported significantly higher depression/anxiety than boys and showed a slightly significant increase in depression/anxiety, stress and self-esteem during the two assessments. Boys scored significantly higher on mental well-being and self-esteem and reported stable mental health during the school year. Selfesteem significantly predicted depression/anxiety and mental well-being. Mental well-being and depression/ anxiety also significantly predicted self-esteem. Conclusion: The results suggest that self-esteem and mental health are reciprocally associated. The results underline the gender differences in overall mental health in adolescents and thus the potential importance of acknowledging gender when working on universal strategies for positive mental health development

Meaningful everyday life projects and activities in breast cancer survivors

The time-geographic diary, supplemented by interviews, is presented in this study as a useful method to demonstrate that desirable everyday life projects, with associated activities, may positively influence an individual’s quality of life. Breast cancer survivors can experience challenging everyday life activities due to late effects of treatment. Despite improvements in survivorship follow-up programs, we still lack knowledge about how the women themselves prioritise activities that are positive in everyday life. The aim of the present study was to identify everyday life projects that improve the quality of life in breast cancer survivors. The multi-method design included the time-geographic diary method and in-depth semi-structured interviews, carried out with a sample of fifteen breast cancer survivors. The interviews were performed with stimulus from the diary notes and consecutively analysed by directed content analysis. Meaningful everyday life activities were emphasised, and four projects were generated: 1) To do what is good for my body and soul; 2) To create something that is nice and for joy; 3) To keep my family and social network together; and 4) To keep my mind active. These findings can be directed to the development of more individual and peer-driven health care services

Utvikling av nettbasert studietilbud ved NTNU – tverrprofesjonelt samarbeid er suksesskriteriet

Den teknologiske utviklingen og en økende digitalisering i samfunnet har åpnet for samhandling på tvers av geografi og institusjonelle grenser. Utviklingen har medført et endret arbeidsliv og dermed også en endret studentmasse. For svært mange yrkesgrupper vil kontinuerlig læring og kompetanseheving bli stadig viktigere, fordi arbeidsoppgaver er i stadig endring. Styrking av kompetansen innen forskning, innovasjon og kunnskapsbasert praksis i de kommunale helse- og omsorgstjenestene er et viktig mål i Kompetanseløft 2020 (Helsedirektoratet, 2017). Systematisk kompetanseheving er også nedfelt i viktige tiltak for å møte fremtidens utfordringer i helsevesenet (Helse- og omsorgsdepartementet, 2014). For personer som er i arbeid vil studier som lar seg kombinere med jobb være det mest aktuelle og mulige studietilbudet å kunne gjennomføre. Kvalitetsmeldingen (Kunnskapsdepartementet, 2017a) understreker betydningen av at digitale muligheter utnyttes for at alle studenter skal møte aktiviserende og varierte lærings- og vurderingsformer. I tillegg til faglig relevant digital kompetanse skal studenten tilegne seg mer overordnet IKT-kompetanse og digital dømmekraft, som er relevant på tvers av fagområdene (Kunnskapsdepartementet, 2017b). Universitets- og høgskolesektoren skal tilby utdanninger for å møte dette endrede samfunnsbehovet

Utvikling av nettbasert studietilbud ved NTNU – tverrprofesjonelt samarbeid er suksesskriteriet

Den teknologiske utviklingen og en økende digitalisering i samfunnet har åpnet for samhandling på tvers av geografi og institusjonelle grenser. Utviklingen har medført et endret arbeidsliv og dermed også en endret studentmasse. For svært mange yrkesgrupper vil kontinuerlig læring og kompetanseheving bli stadig viktigere, fordi arbeidsoppgaver er i stadig endring. Styrking av kompetansen innen forskning, innovasjon og kunnskapsbasert praksis i de kommunale helse- og omsorgstjenestene er et viktig mål i Kompetanseløft 2020 (Helsedirektoratet, 2017). Systematisk kompetanseheving er også nedfelt i viktige tiltak for å møte fremtidens utfordringer i helsevesenet (Helse- og omsorgsdepartementet, 2014). For personer som er i arbeid vil studier som lar seg kombinere med jobb være det mest aktuelle og mulige studietilbudet å kunne gjennomføre. Kvalitetsmeldingen (Kunnskapsdepartementet, 2017a) understreker betydningen av at digitale muligheter utnyttes for at alle studenter skal møte aktiviserende og varierte lærings- og vurderingsformer. I tillegg til faglig relevant digital kompetanse skal studenten tilegne seg mer overordnet IKT-kompetanse og digital dømmekraft, som er relevant på tvers av fagområdene (Kunnskapsdepartementet, 2017b). Universitets- og høgskolesektoren skal tilby utdanninger for å møte dette endrede samfunnsbehovet.publishedVersionCopyright (c) 2018 Randi Johansen Reidunsdatter, Astrid Kilvik, Beathe Sitter Creative Commons License This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License

Decision Tree Analyses for Prediction of QoL over a One-Year Period in Breast Cancer Patients: An Added Value of Patient-Reported Outcomes

Despite the current shift in medicine towards patient-centered care, clinicians rarely utilize patient-reported outcomes (PROs) in everyday practice. We examined the predictors of quality- of-life (QoL) trajectories in breast cancer (BC) patients during the first year after primary treatment. A total of 185 BC patients referred for postoperative radiotherapy (RT) filled in the EORTC QLQ-C30 Questionnaire assessing global QoL, functioning and cancer-related symptoms before starting RT; directly after RT; and 3, 6 and 12 months after RT. We used decision tree analyses to examine which baseline factors best allowed for predicting the one-year trajectory of the global QoL after BC treatment. We tested two models: ‘basic’, including medical and sociodemographic characteristics, and ‘enriched’, additionally including PROs. We recognized three distinct trajectories of global QoL: ‘high’, ‘U-shape’ and ‘low’. Of the two compared models, the ‘enriched’ model allowed for a more accurate prediction of a given QoL trajectory, with all indicators of model validation being better. In this model, baseline global QoL and functioning measures were the key discriminators of QoL trajectory. Taking PROs into account increases the accuracy of the prediction model. Collecting this information in the clinical interview is recommended, especially for patients with lower QoL

Meaningful everyday life projects and activities in breast cancer survivors.

The time-geographic diary, supplemented by interviews, is presented in this study as a useful method to demonstrate that desirable everyday life projects, with associated activities, may positively influence an individual’s quality of life. Breast cancer survivors can experience challenging everyday life activities due to late effects of treatment. Despite improvements in survivorship follow-up programs, we still lack knowledge about how the women themselves prioritise activities that are positive in everyday life. The aim of the present study was to identify everyday life projects that improve the quality of life in breast cancer survivors. The multi-method design included the time-geographic diary method and in-depth semi-structured interviews, carried out with a sample of fifteen breast cancer survivors. The interviews were performed with stimulus from the diary notes and consecutively analysed by directed content analysis. Meaningful everyday life activities were emphasised, and four projects were generated: 1) To do what is good for my body and soul; 2) To create something that is nice and for joy; 3) To keep my family and social network together; and 4) To keep my mind active. These findings can be directed to the development of more individual and peer-driven health care services

Validation of the WHOQOL-Bref: psychometric properties and normative data for the Norwegian general population

Background: The World Health Organization’s Quality of Life Questionnaire (WHOQOL-Bref ) is a frequently used instrument to assess the quality of life in both healthy and ill populations. Inquiries of the psychometric properties of the WHOQOL-Bref report that the validity and reliability is generally satisfactory. However, some studies fail to support a four-factor dimensionality; others report poor reliability of the social and environmental domain; and there may be some challenges of supporting construct validity across age. This paper evaluates the psychometric properties of the Norwegian WHOQOL-Bref and extends previous research by testing for measurement invariance across age, gender and education level. In addition, we provide updated normative data for the Norwegian population. Methods: We selected a random sample of the Norwegian population (n=654) aged 18–75 years. Participants flled out the WHOQOL-Bref, the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale and various sociodemographic variables. Results: We found an acceptable convergent and discriminate validity and internal consistency of the physical, psychological and environmental domains, but a marginal reliability was found for the social domain. The factor loadings were invariant across gender, education and age. Some items had low factor loadings and explained variance, and the model ft for the age group 60–75 years were less satisfactory. Conclusions: The original four-factor dimensionality of the WHOQOL-Bref displayed a better ft to the data compared to the one-factor solution and is recommended for use in the Norwegian population. The WHOQOL-Bref is suitable to use across gender, education and age, but for assessment in the oldest age group, the WHOQOL-Old module could be a good supplementary, but further studies are needed