Monday 2 December 2019
Adolescents' sleep difficulty: Trends in the Nordic countries 2002-2014
Title of publication
Trends in sleeping difficulty among adolescents in five Nordic countries 2002-2014
Abstract
Sleep has been found to be an important factor in adolescents’ mental and physical health. The aim of the present study was to examine trends in sleep difficulty (i.e., difficulty falling asleep more often than once a week) in the Nordic countries among 11- to 15-year-olds. We analysed Nordic data from the Health Behaviour in School-aged Children study (HBSC), which is conducted every four years, looking specifically at trends in sleep difficulty over a 12-year period from 2002 to 2014. The participants were aged 11 to 15 years. The total number of participants across these years was 113,447. A large percentage (17% to 31% in 2014) of adolescents in the Nordic countries experience sleep difficulty, and these difficulties increased from 2002 to 2014 in Denmark, Finland, Iceland, and Sweden. Only in Norway was there a decrease, mainly due to a reduction in sleep difficulty among 11-year-old boys and girls from 2010 to 2014. Sleep difficulty among boys and girls are prevalent and generally on the rise in the Nordic countries with the exception of Norway.Cite
Thorsteinsson, E. B., Potrebny, T., Arnarsson, Á. M., Tynjälä, J., Välimaa, R., & Eriksson, C. (2019). Trends in sleeping difficulty among adolescents in five Nordic countries 2002-2014. Nordisk välfärdsforskning | Nordic Welfare Research, 4, 77-87. https://doi.org/10.18261/issn.2464-4161-2019-02-05Poor sleep quality is predicted by stress, anxiety, depression, and rumination with all of these factors contributing to fatigue
Title of publication
Modelling the effects of stress, anxiety, and depression on rumination, sleep, and fatigue in a nonclinical sample
Abstract
Background: Stress and affective distress (e.g., anxiety, depression) have previously been shown to predict sleep quality, and all the factors have been shown to predict fatigue severity. However, few prior studies have examined the likely indirect mediational relationships between stress, affective distress, and poor sleep quality in predicting fatigue severity, and the potential role played by ruminative thinking. Thus, the relationship between stress, anxiety, depression, sleep, rumination, and fatigue was modelled using Structural Equation Modelling. Method: A short questionnaire asked 229 participants about their recent experiences of stress, affective distress, rumination, sleep and fatigue in a community sample. Results: High stress, anxiety, and depression was related to more ruminative thinking, which in turn was related to poor sleep quality; and sleep quality predicted worse fatigue. Conclusion: Results suggest that rumination parsimoniously explains the tendency of stress and affective distress to contribute to poor sleep quality, and together with poor sleep, it may also contribute to worse fatigue in some individuals.Cite
Thorsteinsson, E. B., Brown, R. F., & Owens, M. T. (2019). Modelling the effects of stress, anxiety, and depression on rumination, sleep, and fatigue in a nonclinical sample. The Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease, 207, 355-359. https://doi.org/10.1097/NMD.0000000000000973Intervention, health education, and schizophrenia literacy
Title of publication
Schizophrenia literacy: The effects of an educational intervention on populations with and without prior health education
Abstract
Background: Mental health literacy is an important predictor of appropriate help-seeking behaviour. Aims: This study investigated (a) the effects of an educational intervention on schizophrenia mental health literacy, beliefs about causes, discrimination, treatment, and attitudes that promote recognition, and (b) whether schizophrenia literacy would be higher in people with prior education in a health-related area than people without such education. Method: A randomised control design tested the effects of an educational intervention on schizophrenia literacy relative to a control group. Participants (N = 260; mean age = 31.18 years, SD = 11.43, female = 78.8%) answered a mental health literacy questionnaire, based on a vignette of a person with schizophrenia, before and after watching either an educational video on schizophrenia or a control video. Results: The intervention significantly increased schizophrenia identification and literacy, reduced personal stigma, and increased perceived discrimination in society. The health background group reported significantly greater schizophrenia identification than the no health background group. Participants thought help should be sought from health care professionals and through psychotherapy, close friends and physical activity. Conclusions: Targeted education can significantly improve the ability to identify schizophrenia which may have positive implications for reducing the time individuals take to seek help.Videos used
Control condition video
Cite
Thorsteinsson, E. B., Bhullar, N., Williams, E., & Loi, N. M. (2019). Schizophrenia literacy: The effects of an educational intervention on populations with and without prior health education. Journal of Mental Health, 28, 229-237. https://doi.org/10.1080/09638237.2018.1521923School stress among adolescents in the Nordic countries: Trends 2002-2014
Title of publication
Trends in perceived school stress among adolescents in five Nordic countries 2002-2014
Abstract
Associations between school-related stress and poor health, risk behaviours and low well-being are well documented. The aim of this paper was to estimate trends of perceived school stress experienced by boys and girls of different ages in the Nordic countries, and to describe trends in school stress between the Nordic countries. Nordic data from the Health Behaviour in School-aged Children study (HBSC) between 2002 and 2014 were used. The participants were aged 11–16 years. School stress was measured by a single item; “How pressured do you feel by schoolwork?” The participants answering “some” or “a lot” were categorised as reporting school stress. Sweden, Norway and Denmark had lower prevalence of school stress compared to Finland and Iceland. There was an increase in Iceland, Finland and Denmark, whereas adolescents from Sweden showed a decreasing trend. In Norway, the level was stable. Boys showed a marginal decline in school stress whereas girls showed an increase, and school stress increased by age for the whole period. It is a challenge for the public education systems in the Nordic countries to develop policies and practices that provide children with the necessary tools to achieve knowledge and skill, and at the same minimise stress in school.Cite
Löfstedt, P., Charli, E., Potrebny, T., Välimaa, R., Thorsteinsson, E. B., Due, P., Damsgaard, M. T., Suominen, S., Rasmussen, M., & Torsheim, T. (2019). Trends in perceived school stress among adolescents in five Nordic countries 2002-2014. Nordisk välfärdsforskning | Nordic Welfare Research, 4, 101-112. https://doi.org/10.18261/issn.2464-4161-2019-02-07Wednesday 27 November 2019
Attraction oriention and substance use: European adolescents
Title of publication
Romantic attraction and substance use in 15-year-old adolescents from eight European countries
Abstract
Sexual minority youth are at higher risk of substance use than heterosexual youth. However, most evidence in this area is from North America, and it is unclear whether the findings can be generalized to other cultures and countries. In this investigation, we used data from the 2014 Health Behaviour in School-aged Children (HBSC) study to compare substance use in same- and both-gender attracted 15-year-old adolescents from eight European countries (n = 14,545) to that of their peers who reported opposite-gender attraction or have not been romantically attracted to anyone. Both-gender attracted, and to a lesser extent, same-gender attracted adolescents were significantly more likely to smoke cigarettes, consume alcohol, get drunk and use cannabis, or be involved in multiple substance use in the last 30 days compared to their opposite-gender attracted peers. Those adolescents who have not been in love had significantly lower odds for substance use than all other youth. The pattern of results remained the same after adjusting for country, gender and family affluence. These findings are compatible with the minority stress and romantic stress theories. They suggest that sexual minority stigma (and love on its own) may contribute to higher substance use among adolescents in European countries.Cite
Költő, A., Cosma, A., Young, H., Moreau, N., Pavlova, D., Tesler, R., Thorsteinsson, E. B., Vieno, A., Saewyc, E. M., & Gabhainn, S. N. (2019). Romantic attraction and substance use in 15-year-old adolescents from eight European countries. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 16, Article 3063. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph16173063Research on adolescent positive mental health: How to enhance
Title of publication
Towards enhancing research on adolescent positive mental health
Abstract
The positive mental health and well-being perspective represents innovative public health research of first-rank priority in Europe. Good mental health is both a state and a resource for everyday life. Hence, the concept often refers to a subjective feeling (hedonic component) as well as positive functioning (eudaimonic component). Different conceptualisations of mental health-related issues are a background to this paper, which gives a brief overview of three research issues in the Nordic countries. First, the development in the occurrences of adolescent mental health-related indicators such as life satisfaction, health, sleep, and school pressure. Second, review of Nordic methodological studies reporting on different mental health-related measures. Third, the selection of measures of positive mental health employed in the 2017–2018 Health Behaviour among School-aged Children (HBSC) data collection in the Nordic countries. Using the Nordic HBSC data for 2002–2014, it was found that symptom and problem-oriented analyses of mental health can improve our understanding of the challenges adolescents face. However, there is also a need to examine positive aspects of mental health in order to enhance our understanding of different mental health-related dimensions. New measures were included in the 2017–18 HBSC data collection in the Nordic countries, enabling researchers to answer different research questions including analysing factors mediating and moderating positive mental health among school-aged children. Extending the perspective from a symptom- and problem-oriented view to a more positive and asset-based perspective adds additional value to studies of mental health.Cite
Eriksson, C., Arnarsson, Á. M., Damsgaard, M. T., Löfstedt, P., Potrebny, T., Suominen, S., Thorsteinsson, E. B., Torsheim, T., Välimaa, R., & Due, P. (2019). Towards enhancing research on adolescent positive mental health. Nordisk välfärdsforskning | Nordic Welfare Research, 4, 113-128. https://doi.org/10.18261/issn.2464-4161-2019-02-08Link
https://www.idunn.no/nordisk_valfardsforskning/2019/02/towards_enhancing_research_on_adolescent_positive_mental_heSleep, mental health, and help-seeking
Title of publication
Exploring poor sleep, mental health, and help-seeking intention in university students
Abstract
Objective: University students experience common mental health problems such as depression, anxiety, and stress along with poor-sleep quality. This study explores the relationships between these concepts and help-seeking intention in a generalAustralian university student population. The primary aim was to examine the moderating effects of sleep quality on help-seeking intention for common mental health problems. The secondary aim was to examine sex differences in help-seeking behaviour. Method: University students, between 18 and 55 years of age ( M = 30.18, SD = 11.37, N = 117) of which 98 were female, completed an on-line survey assessing help-seeking intentions, common mental health problems, and sleep quality. Results: High levels of depression, anxiety, and stress were signi fi cantly associated with decreased sleep quality or decreased help-seeking intention. A multiple regression analysis predicted that students were more likely to report intention to seek help if they had lower scores of depression, but higher scores of stress. Help-seeking intention levels were lower for males than females. Poor-sleep quality was not found to be a moderator of help-seeking intention. Conclusion: Although the proposed moderation effect of poor-sleep quality on the relationship between common mental health problems and help-seeking intention was not supported, the study advanced our knowledge of university students ’ low intention to seek help, despite high scores of poor-sleep quality. Implications for on-campus interventions and raising awareness among students about these issues are discussed.
Cite
Zochil, M. L., & Thorsteinsson, E. B. (2018). Exploring poor sleep, mental health, and help-seeking intention in university students. Australian Journal of Psychology, 70, 41-47. https://doi.org/10.1111/ajpy.12160Stillbirth and memory sharing
Title of publication
Empathy and the public perception of stillbirth and memory sharing: An Australian case
Abstract
Objective: Stillbirth devastates families and leaves them struggling to grieve the death of their baby in a society that expects grief symptoms to decrease over time. Previous research has suggested that increased memory sharing opportunities can lead to positive mental health outcomes. The aim of the current study was to examine people’s perceptions of stillbirth as well as the perceived appropriateness of affected parents sharing memories of their child. In addition, we examined whether manipulating empathy would have an effect on people’s perceptions of stillbirth.Method: Participants included 200 Australian men and women 18 to 74 years of age (M = 36.76, SD = 12.59) randomly allocated to one of three experimental conditions (i.e., low empathy, high empathy, and control). The high empathy group watched a video about stillbirth and was instructed to imagine how the people portrayed felt; the low empathy group watched the same video but was instructed to remain detached; and the control group watched an unrelated video. Participants were then asked how much money they would be willing to donate to a fictional stillbirth organization, followed by the completion of questionnaires measuring (a) perceptions of stillbirth, (b) empathy, and (c) the appropriateness of parents sharing memories of a stillborn child with different groups of people over time.
Results: The empathy manipulation had an effect on empathy and the willingness to help effected parents (high empathy vs. control). However, empathy did not have an effect on participants’ perceptions toward stillbirth nor appropriateness of sharing memories. The appropriateness of sharing memories decreased as time passed and social distance increased.
Discussion: Individuals who have experienced stillbirth need to be aware that societal expectations and their own expectations in relation to sharing memories may not correspond to each other and that they may need to educate their social group about their need to share memories. Removing the taboo surrounding stillbirth is vital for both parents and those to whom they would wish to communicate.
Cite
Keeble, C. J., Loi, N. M., & Thorsteinsson, E. B. (2018). Empathy and the public perception of stillbirth and memory sharing: An Australian case. Frontiers in Psychology, 9, Article 1629. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2018.01629Wednesday 27 February 2019
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: Attitudes toward evidence-based interventions
Title of publication
Psychological flexibility and attitudes toward evidence-based interventions by amyotrophic lateral sclerosis patients
Abstract
Objective. Declining a percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy (PEG) or non-invasive ventilation (NIV) by people with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is often contrary to advice provided by health-care-professionals guided by evidence-based principles. This study proposes relational frame theory (RFT) to offer a viable explanation of this phenomenon.Design. A total of 35 people (14 female, 21 male) aged between 34 and 73 years, with ALS, participated in this cross-sectional research.
Main outcome measures. This research examined the predictive power and interaction effect of psychological flexibility (the fundamental construct of RFT) and psychological well-being on attitudes toward intervention options.
Results. Participants with high psychological flexibility reported lower depression, anxiety, and stress, and higher quality of life. In addition, psychological flexibility was predictive of a participant’s understanding and acceptance of a PEG as an intervention option. Psychological flexibility was not found to be a significant predictor of understanding and acceptance of NIV.
Conclusion. Although the criterion measure had not been piloted or validated outside of the current study and asks about expected rather than actual acceptance, findings suggest that applied RFT may be helpful for clients with ALS.
Cite
Pearlman, J. R., & Thorsteinsson, E. B. (2019). Psychological flexibility and attitudes toward evidence-based interventions by amyotrophic lateral sclerosis patients. PeerJ, 7, e6527. doi:10.7717/peerj.6527Link
https://peerj.com/articles/6527/Alcohol use in Bhutan: Parenting style and distress
Title of publication
Parenting style, distress, and problematic alcohol use in Bhutan
Abstract
Background: Bhutan is a small landlocked country located between India and China that is largely rural and Buddhist. As the nation develops and adopts more Western practices, the nature of the relationship between its young people and alcohol is developing as well.Objectives: The present study examines how problematic alcohol use relates to parenting styles and distress factors in a sample of predominantly tertiary students.
Methods: For this study, 245 young adults completed self-report measures of parenting style, distress, and alcohol-related problems.
Results: Strong correlations were found indicating more dysfunctional parenting styles were associated with greater distress and problematic alcohol use. Further analyses to evaluate the relationship between parenting styles and alcohol use found no role for moderation but a significant effect for mediation which indicated that more dysfunctional parenting styles were associated with greater distress which in turn was associated with greater problematic alcohol use.
Conclusions: These findings replicate those found in Western countries and imply that the same vulnerabilities to problematic alcohol use are also present in Bhutan.
Cite
Penjor, S., Thorsteinsson, E. B., Price, I., & Loi, N. M. (2019). Parenting style, distress, and problematic alcohol use in Bhutan. Cogent Psychology, 6, 1-10. doi:10.1080/23311908.2019.1579503Link
https://doi.org/10.1080/23311908.2019.1579503https://www.cogentoa.com/article/10.1080/23311908.2019.1579503
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)