<p><span class="paragraphSection"></p>
<div class="boxTitle">Abstract</div>
<p>With the growing availability of multi-wave surveys, social scientists are turning to latent trend models to examine changes in social and political attitudes. Aiming to facilitate this research, we propose a framework for estimating trends in public opinion consisting of three components: the measurement model that links the observed survey responses to the latent attitude, the latent trend model that estimates a trajectory based on aggregated individual latent scores, and representativeness adjustments. We use individual-level item response theory models as the measurement model that is tailored to analyzing public opinion based on pooled data from multi-wave surveys. The main part of our analysis focuses on the second component of our framework, the latent trend models, and compares four approaches: thin-plate splines, Gaussian processes, random walk (RW) models, and autoregressive (AR) models. We examine the ability of these models to recover latent trends with simulated data that vary the shape of the true trend, model complexity, and data availability. Overall, under the conditions of our simulation study, we find that all four latent trend models perform well. We find two main performance differences: the relatively higher squared errors of AR and RW models, and the under-coverage of posterior intervals in high-frequency low-amplitude trends with thin-plate splines. For all models and across all scenarios, performance improves with increased data availability, which emphasizes the need of supplying sufficient data for accurate estimation of latent trends. To further illustrate the differences between the four latent trend models, we present a case study with an analysis of trends in political trust in Hungary, Poland, and Spain between 1995 and 2019. We note the relatively weaker performance of splines compared to other models in this application and conclude by discussing factors to consider when choosing the latent trend model, and further opportunities in this line of research.</span></p>
<p><a href="https://academic.oup.com/jssam/advance-article/doi/10.1093/jssam/smad024/7221047?rss=1&login=true" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Read the full article ›</a></p>
<p>The post <a rel="nofollow" href="https://ifp.nyu.edu/2023/journal-article-abstracts/7221047/">Modeling Public Opinion Over Time: a Simulation Study of Latent Trend Models</a> was curated by <a rel="nofollow" href="https://ifp.nyu.edu">information for practice</a>.</p>
<p>In March it was announced that £21million of cuts would be made to health and social care services to plug a funding gap, with £2m slashed from the Glasgow Alliance to End Homelessness and a hotel used to house homeless people “decomissioned”.<br />
Now members of UNISON have submitted a collective workload grievance as they say the numbers of rough sleepers has increased and staff are unable to cope with the extra demand, reports our sister title The Herald. </p>
<p>The post <a rel="nofollow" href="https://ifp.nyu.edu/2023/news/glasgow-homelessness-crisis-as-staff-struggle-with-cuts/">Glasgow homelessness ‘crisis’ as staff struggle with cuts</a> was curated by <a rel="nofollow" href="https://ifp.nyu.edu">information for practice</a>.</p>
<h2>Abstract</h2>
<p>The term function currently features prominently in outlines of social positioning theory but a sustained account of the view of function informing social positioning theory has yet to be supplied. In the absence of a fuller articulation of the theory’s underlying view of function confusion and misinterpretation are likely to be encouraged especially among those committed to one or other of the numerous alternative accounts of function available. In this paper key features of the concept of function as it now appears in social positioning theory are identified and the similarities and differences between it and selected other views of function explored.</p>
<p><a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/jtsb.12389?af=R" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Read the full article ›</a></p>
<p>The post <a rel="nofollow" href="https://ifp.nyu.edu/2023/journal-article-abstracts/jtsb-12389/">The Concept of Function in Social Positioning Theory</a> was curated by <a rel="nofollow" href="https://ifp.nyu.edu">information for practice</a>.</p>
<p><span class="paragraphSection"></p>
<div class="boxTitle">Abstract</div>
<p>The objective to reduce global health inequalities and inequities is integral to the global development agenda, from the Universal Declaration of Human Rights to the Sustainable Development Goals and the ongoing response to Covid-19. Yet summary measures of global health gains or of the cost-effectiveness of global health programs barely capture how well they improve the lives of the most disadvantaged populations.This paper instead explores the distribution of global health gains across countries, and the implications for health inequality and inequity (here referring to health disadvantages which reinforce economic disadvantage, and vice versa) across countries. Specifically, it studies the distribution of gains in life expectancy across countries (overall and owing to reduced mortality from HIV, TB, and malaria), using the Gini index and a concentration index ranking countries by GDP per capita as indicators of health inequality and inequity.By these counts, global inequality in life expectancy across countries declined by one-third between 2002 and 2019. Reduced mortality from HIV, TB, and malaria accounted for one‐half of this decline. 15 countries in sub‐Saharan Africa, containing 5 percent of the global population, accounted for 40 percent of the global decline in inequality, with nearly six‐tenth of this contribution coming from HIV, TB, and malaria. Inequity in life expectancy across countries declined by nearly 37 percent, with a contribution from HIV, TB, and malaria of 39 percent of this gain.Our findings show how simple indicators on the distribution of health gains across countries usefully complement aggregate measures of global health gains and underscore their positive contribution to the global development agenda.</span></p>
<p><a href="https://academic.oup.com/HTTPHandlers/Sigma/LoginHandler.ashx?code=lgn69e&state=dabbabb1-d63f-4927-86b2-68c3856dc580redirecturl%3Dhttpszazjzjacademiczwoupzwcomzjheapolzjadvancezyarticlezjdoizj10zw1093zjheapolzjczzad046zj7220370zsrsszr1" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Read the full article ›</a></p>
<p>The post <a rel="nofollow" href="https://ifp.nyu.edu/2023/journal-article-abstracts/7220370/">Contributions of Declining Mortality, Overall and from HIV, TB, and Malaria, to Reduced Health Inequality and Inequity Across Countries</a> was curated by <a rel="nofollow" href="https://ifp.nyu.edu">information for practice</a>.</p>
EMAIL LIST: https://www.clinicians-exchange.org & LEMMY: https://lem.clinicians-exchange.org
.
This robot publishes a LARGE VOLUME of psychology & health research-related posts. If this is irritating to you, please BLOCK this robot from your feed.
.
DATE:
August 12, 2023 at 03:33AM
.
TITLE:
Relative contributions of pre-pandemic factors and intra-pandemic activities to differential COVID-19 risk among migrant and non-migrant populations in the Netherlands: lessons for future pandemic preparedness
.
URL: https://ifp.nyu.edu/2023/open-access-journal-articles/s12939-023-01936-0/
<p>Although risk factors for differences in SARS-CoV-2 infections between migrant and non-migrant populations in high income countries have been identified, their relative contributions to these SARS-CoV-2 infect…</p>
<p><a href="https://equityhealthj.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12939-023-01936-0" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Read the full article ›</a></p>
<p>The post <a rel="nofollow" href="https://ifp.nyu.edu/2023/open-access-journal-articles/s12939-023-01936-0/">Relative contributions of pre-pandemic factors and intra-pandemic activities to differential COVID-19 risk among migrant and non-migrant populations in the Netherlands: lessons for future pandemic preparedness</a> was curated by <a rel="nofollow" href="https://ifp.nyu.edu">information for practice</a>.</p>
<p>Teachers in high-stress roles face increasing psychological distress such as anxiety and depression, underscoring the need for validated assessment instruments. Given the current absence of a comprehensive, de…</p>
<p><a href="https://bmcpsychology.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s40359-023-01242-y" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Read the full article ›</a></p>
<p>The post <a rel="nofollow" href="https://ifp.nyu.edu/2023/open-access-journal-articles/s40359-023-01242-y/">Psychometric evaluation of the depression, anxiety, and stress scale-21 (DASS-21) among Chinese primary and middle school teachers</a> was curated by <a rel="nofollow" href="https://ifp.nyu.edu">information for practice</a>.</p>
<h2>Abstract</h2>
<p>Like many countries, the Philippines faced severe economic, social, and political challenges during the COVID-19 pandemic. In March 2020 President Duterte issued an executive order announcing a national state of emergency that introduced a highly restrictive system for community quarantine and lockdown. While these measures led international observers to rank the Philippinesʼ pandemic response among the worldʼs most stringent, it is unclear whether subsequent health outcomes were sufficient to justify the severity. In this article, we evaluate discrepancies between COVID-19 policy goals and outcomes in the Philippines via a compelling but under-utilized method of democratic deliberation, the ‘mini-public’. The mini-public that we held brought together a random sample of citizens who heard testimony from local public health experts and political leaders, and then used this information in conjunction with their own experiences to identify policy shortcomings and develop recommendations for policymakers. The most substantial challenges to the governmentʼs pandemic response were reported to be inadequate enforcement and under-resourcing of government officials tasked with policy implementation. These challenges created a disconnect between policy objectives and their performance in practice. We conclude by summarizing the mini-public participantsʼ recommendations.</p>
<p><a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/app5.378?af=R" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Read the full article ›</a></p>
<p>The post <a rel="nofollow" href="https://ifp.nyu.edu/2023/open-access-journal-articles/app5-378/">Policy implementation in crisis: Lessons from the Philippines</a> was curated by <a rel="nofollow" href="https://ifp.nyu.edu">information for practice</a>.</p>
<p>Overall, 29% of male respondents and 30% of female respondents reported having had at least one of the mental health conditions in the 10 years prior to when they answered the survey’s questions. The lifetime risk that a person would develop a mental health condition by age 75 was 46% for male respondents and 53% for female ones, which the researchers estimated based on respondents’ experiences with disorders and their ages at the time of the survey, then projecting the risk of occurrence if all respondents lived for 75 years.</p>
<p>The post <a rel="nofollow" href="https://ifp.nyu.edu/2023/news/half-of-people-worldwide-at-risk-of-developing-mental-health-condition-by-age-75-per-new-study/">Half of people worldwide at risk of developing mental health condition by age 75, per new study</a> was curated by <a rel="nofollow" href="https://ifp.nyu.edu">information for practice</a>.</p>
<h2>Abstract</h2>
<p>A randomized-controlled-trial study (<i>N</i> = 219) tested two pre-registered hypotheses that mobile-phone app-based mindfulness training improves wellbeing and increases self-transcendent emotions: gratitude, self-compassion, and awe. Latent change score modeling with a robust maximum likelihood estimator was used to test how those changes are associated in the training versus the waiting-list group. The training increased wellbeing and all self-transcendent emotions regardless of interindividual variance in the changes across time. Changes in all self-transcendent emotions were positively associated with changes in wellbeing. The strength of those associations was comparable in the waiting-list group and the training group. More studies are needed to test whether the effects of mindfulness practice on wellbeing are driven by increases in self-transcendent emotions. The study was conducted over 6 weeks during the COVID19 pandemic. The results indicate that the mindfulness training can be an easily accessible effective intervention supporting eudaimonic wellbeing in face of adversity.</p>
<p><a href="https://iaap-journals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/aphw.12468?af=R" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Read the full article ›</a></p>
<p>The post <a rel="nofollow" href="https://ifp.nyu.edu/2023/journal-article-abstracts/aphw-12468/">App‐based mindfulness training supported eudaimonic wellbeing during the COVID19 pandemic</a> was curated by <a rel="nofollow" href="https://ifp.nyu.edu">information for practice</a>.</p>
<h2>Abstract</h2>
<h2>Objectives</h2>
<p>Derived from classical conditioning theory and rooted in motivational mechanisms, cue reactivity paradigms (CRPs) are used in addictions research to measure participants’ propensities for substance-relevant responses (e.g., craving) during exposure to substance-relevant cues (e.g., drug paraphernalia). CRPs are also useful in PTSD-addiction comorbidity research, allowing the study of affective and substance-relevant responses to trauma cues. However, studies using traditional CRPs are time-consuming with high attrition rates due to repeat testing. Thus, we sought to test whether a single session semi-structured trauma interview could serve as a CRP in terms of eliciting theorized cue exposure effects on craving and affect measures.</p>
<h2>Method</h2>
<p>Fifty regular cannabis users with trauma histories provided detailed descriptions of their most traumatic lifetime experience, and a neutral experience, according to an established interview protocol. Linear mixed models examined the effect of cue type (trauma vs. neutral) on affective and craving responses.</p>
<h2>Results</h2>
<p>As hypothesized, the trauma interview elicited significantly greater cannabis craving (and alcohol craving among the drinkers), and, greater negative affect among those with more severe PTSD symptoms, compared to the neutral interview.</p>
<h2>Conclusion</h2>
<p>Results suggest an established semi-structured interview may function effectively as a CRP for use in trauma and addictions research.</p>
<p><a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/mpr.1979?af=R" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Read the full article ›</a></p>
<p>The post <a rel="nofollow" href="https://ifp.nyu.edu/2023/journal-article-abstracts/mpr-1979/">Do we really need two sessions?: The use of a structured interview as a trauma cue reactivity paradigm</a> was curated by <a rel="nofollow" href="https://ifp.nyu.edu">information for practice</a>.</p>
<h3 class="a-plus-plus">Abstract</h3>
<p class="a-plus-plus">Extant research suggests that digital stress (DS) and its various components (Hall et al. in Psychol Assess 33(3):230–242, 2021) may mediate the association between social media use and psychosocial distress among adolescents and young adults. Yet no systematic review and meta-analysis has been conducted to examine the direct associations among DS components (i.e., approval anxiety, availability stress, fear of missing out [FOMO], connection overload, and online vigilance) and psychological outcomes. Thus, we aimed to comprehensively synthesize and quantify the association between these five DS components and psychosocial distress, and to examine whether these associations were statistically different from one another. Our search of PubMed, PsycINFO, and Communication and Mass Media Complete yielded a wide range of article abstracts across the five DS components. After reviewing inclusion and exclusion criteria, 7, 73, 60, 19, and 16 studies were included for availability stress, approval anxiety, FOMO, connection overload, and online vigilance, respectively. The results suggested that all five digital stress components had significant medium association with psychosocial distress (<em class="a-plus-plus">r</em> = .26 to .34; <em class="a-plus-plus">p</em> < .001). Age and sex did not significantly moderate the association between most digital stress components and psychosocial distress. However, age moderated the association between connection overload and psychosocial distress. Our findings further suggested no statistical differences among the associations between the five digital stress components and psychosocial distress. Notwithstanding its limitations, our outcomes help integrate the disparate effect sizes in the literature, indicate the strength of associations, and suggest directions for clinical intervention and future research.</p>
<p><a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10567-023-00440-9?error=cookies_not_supported&code=909421d3-7332-41e9-ace2-348a720a6391" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Read the full article ›</a></p>
<p>The post <a rel="nofollow" href="https://ifp.nyu.edu/2023/meta-analyses-systematic-reviews/s10567-023-00440-9/">Examining the Association Between Digital Stress Components and Psychological Wellbeing: A Meta-Analysis</a> was curated by <a rel="nofollow" href="https://ifp.nyu.edu">information for practice</a>.</p>
TITLE
Suicide Rates Continue to Rise Among Americans
DESCRIPTION
Source: United Press International - Health News
The mental health crisis hitting Americans shows no sign of abating, with provisional numbers for 2022 showing suicides rose by another 2.6% last year. That follows on an overall 5% increase in suicides in 2021, noted officials at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which on Thursday released the early data for 2022. Overall, 49,449 Americans took their lives last year, up from 48,183 deaths in 2021, the agency reported.
TITLE
British Sign Language Gets Climate Change Update
DESCRIPTION
Source: BBC News - UK News
Deaf scientists and other experts have created hundreds of new science-related signs for British Sign Language, such as "greenhouse gas" and "carbon footprint," which previously had to be finger-spelled. The goal is to create "signs that visualize scientific concepts," said Dr. Audrey Cameron, who leads the Edinburgh University sign language project, which has recently added 200 new environmental science terms to the BSL dictionary.
TITLE
Foundations Seek to Advance AI for Good and Protect Against Its Threats
DESCRIPTION
Source: ABC News - Science and Technology
While technology experts sound the alarm on the pace of artificial-intelligence development, philanthropists—including long-established foundations and tech billionaires—have been responding with an uptick in grants. Much of the philanthropy is focused on what is known as technology for good or "ethical AI," focused on preventing harmful effects from AI systems, predicting climate disasters, and discovering new drugs to save lives.
TITLE
LGBTQ+ People in Ethiopia Blame Attacks on TikTok Videos
DESCRIPTION
Source: ABC News - Science and Technology
Members of Ethiopia's LGBTQ+ community say they face a wave of harassment and physical attacks, and blame much of it on the social media platform TikTok, which they say is failing to take down posts calling for gay and transgender people to be whipped, stabbed, and killed. A local LGBTQ+ support group says that some TikTok users are also outing Ethiopians by sharing their names. In Ethiopia, homosexual acts are punishable by up to 15 years in...
TITLE
Five Things to Know About the First Postpartum Depression Pill
DESCRIPTION
Source: Google News - Health
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved the first-ever pill for treating postpartum depression, a potentially life-threatening condition that affects hundreds of thousands of new parents across the U.S. each year. The drug, Zurzuvae, has shown promising results in two company studies, with some patients reporting benefits after just 3 days, and may become available as soon as October. Here's what to know if you or a loved one is...