Milestone Age Affects the Role of Health and Emotions in Life Satisfaction: A Preliminary Inquiry

Jill turns 40. Should this change how she evaluates her life, and would a similar change occur when she turns 41? Milestone age (e.g., 30, 40, 50)—a naturally occurring feature in personal timelines—has received much attention is popular culture, but little attention in academic inquiry. This study examines whether milestone birthdays change the way people evaluate their life. We show that life outlook is impacted by this temporal landmark, which appears to punctuate people’s mental maps of their life cycle. At these milestone junctures, people take stock of where they stand and have a more evaluative perspective towards their lives when making life satisfaction judgments. Correspondingly, they place less emphasis on daily emotional experiences. We find that milestone agers (vs. other individuals) place greater weight on health satisfaction and BMI and lesser weight on daily positive emotions in their overall life satisfaction judgments, whereas negative emotions remain influential

Единое образовательное пространство в рамках государств содружества

Prostate cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer in men. Evidence suggests that smokers may be at increased risk of prostate cancer compared to non-smokers. In the present study we ask whether adult men who smoke are also less likely to undergo screening for prostate cancer. Adult men aged 46 and above completed a single questionnaire including demographic items and items concerning their smoking status and previous testing for prostate cancer. The questionnaire also included an 11 item numeracy scale. Compared to smokers, non-smokers and ex-smokers were around two times more likely to have undergone screening for prostate cancer, and had been tested more frequently. Smokers are not only more likely to develop prostate cancer, they are, paradoxically, less likely to undergo screening for prostate cancer. Health care professionals need to be cognizant of individual differences in screening behavior and that smokers have a reduced likelihood of choosing to screen. © 2012 Elsevier Ltd

Big Data in Science and Healthcare: A Review of Recent Literature and Perspectives

Objectives: As technology continues to evolve and rise in various industries, such as healthcare, science, education, and gaming, a sophisticated concept known as Big Data is surfacing. The concept of analytics aims to understand data. We set out to portray and discuss perspectives of the evolving use of Big Data in science and healthcare and, to examine some of the opportunities and challenges. Methods: A literature review was conducted to highlight the implications associated with the use of Big Data in scientific research and healthcare innovations, both on a large and small scale. Results: Scientists and health-care providers may learn from one another when it comes to understanding the value of Big Data and analytics. Small data, derived by patients and consumers, also requires analytics to become actionable. Connectivism provides a framework for the use of Big Data and analytics in the areas of science and healthcare. This theory assists individuals to recognize and synthesize how human connections are driving the increase in data. Despite the volume and velocity of Big Data, it is truly about technology connecting humans and assisting them to construct knowledge in new ways. Concluding Thoughts: The concept of Big Data and associated analytics are to be taken seriously when approaching the use of vast volumes of both structured and unstructured data in science and health-care. Future exploration of issues surrounding data privacy, confidentiality, and education are needed. A greater focus on data from social media, the quantified self-movement, and the application of analytics to small data would also be useful

Reaping the Benefits and Avoiding the Risks: Unrealistic Optimism in the Health Domain.

People's perceptions of benefits and risks play a key role in their acceptance or rejection of medical interventions, yet these perceptions may be poorly calibrated. This online study with N = 373 adults aged 19-76 years focused on unrealistic optimism in the health domain. Participants indicated how likely they were to experience benefits and risks associated with medical conditions and completed objective and subjective numeracy scales. Participants exhibited optimistic views about the likelihood of experiencing the benefits and the side effects of treatment options described in the scenarios. Objective and subjective numeracy were not associated with more accurate ratings. Moreover, participants' underestimation of the risks was significantly greater than their overestimation of the benefits. From an applied perspective, these results suggest that clinicians may need to ensure that patients do not underestimate risks of medical interventions, and that they convey realistic expectations about the benefits that can be obtained with certain procedures

Memory-experience gap in early adolescents' happiness reports

Studies among adult populations show that estimates of how happy one has felt in the past tend to be more positive than average happiness as assessed using time sampling techniques. This ‘memory-experience gap’ is attributed to cognitive biases, among which fading affect bias. In this paper we report a study among 352 pupils of a secondary school in the Netherlands. These youngsters reported subsequently: 1) how happy they had felt yesterday, 2) how happy they had felt during the last month, 3) what they had done the previous day and 4) how the

Design for Mobile Mental Health:An Exploratory Review

A large number of mobile mental health apps are available to the public but current knowledge about requirements of designing such solutions is scarce, especially from sociotechnical and user centred points of view. Due to the significant role of mobile apps in the mental health service models, identifying the design requirements of mobile mental health solutions is crucial. Some of those requirements have been addressed individually in the literature, but there are few research studies that show a comprehensive picture of this domain. This exploratory review aims to facilitate such holistic understanding. The main search keywords of the review were identified in a cross-disciplinary requirements workshop. The search was started by finding some core references in the healthcare databases. A wider range of references then has been explored using a snowball method. Findings showed that there is a good understanding of individual design requirements in current literature but there are few examples of implementing a combination of different design requirements in real world products. The design processes specifically developed for mobile mental health apps are also rare. Most studies on operational mobile mental health apps address major mental health issues while prevention and wellbeing areas are underdeveloped. In conclusion, the main recommendations for designing future mobile mental health solutions include: moving towards sociotechnical and open design strategies, understanding and creating shared value, recognizing all dimensions of efficacy, bridging design and medical research and development, and considering an ecosystem perspective

What do men understand about lifetime risk following genetic testing?:The effect of context and numeracy.

Objective: Genetic testing for gene mutations associated with specific cancers provides an opportunity for early detection, surveillance, and intervention (Smith, Cokkinides, & Brawley, 2008). Lifetime risk estimates provided by genetic testing refer to the risk of developing a specific disease within one's lifetime, and evidence suggests that this is important for the medical choices people make, as well as their future family and financial plans. The present studies tested whether adult men understand the lifetime risks of prostate cancer informed by genetic testing. Method: In 2 experiments, adult men were asked to interpret the lifetime risk information provided in statements about risks of prostate cancer. Statement format was manipulated such that the most appropriate interpretation of risk statements referred to an absolute risk of cancer in Experiment 1 and a relative risk in Experiment 2. Results: Experiment 1 revealed that few men correctly interpreted the lifetime risks of cancer when these refer to an absolute risk of cancer, and numeracy levels positively predicted correct responding. The proportion of correct responses was greatly improved in Experiment 2 when the most appropriate interpretation of risk statements referred instead to a relative rather than an absolute risk, and numeracy levels were less involved. Conclusion: Understanding of lifetime risk information is often poor because individuals incorrectly believe that these refer to relative rather than absolute risks of cancer. © 2011 American Psychological Association