Distinct trajectories of physical activity and related factors during the life course in the general population: a systematic review

BACKGROUND

In recent years, researchers have begun applying a trajectory approach to identify homogeneous subgroups of physical activity (PA) in heterogeneous populations. This study systematically reviewed the articles identifying longitudinal PA trajectory classes and the related factors (e.g., determinants, predictors, and outcomes) in the general population during different life phases.

METHODS

The included studies used finite mixture models for identifying trajectories of PA, exercise, or sport participation. Three electronic databases, PubMed (Medline), Web of Science, and CINAHL, were searched from the year 2000 to 13 February 2018. The study was conducted according to the PRISMA recommendations.

RESULTS

Twenty-seven articles were included and organized into three age group: youngest (eleven articles), middle (eight articles), and oldest (eight articles). The youngest group consisted mainly of youth, the middle group of adults and the oldest group of late middle-aged and older adults. Most commonly, three or four trajectory classes were reported. Several trajectories describing a decline in PA were reported, especially in the youngest group, whereas trajectories of consistently increasing PA were observed in the middle and oldest group. While the proportion of persistently physically inactive individuals increased with age, the proportion was relatively high at all ages. Generally, male gender, being Caucasian, non-smoking, having low television viewing time, higher socioeconomic status, no chronic illnesses, and family support for PA were associated either with persistent or increasing PA.

CONCLUSIONS

The reviewed articles identified various PA subgroups, indicating that finite mixture modeling can yield new information on the complexity of PA behavior compared to studying population mean PA level only. The studies also provided novel information how different factors relate to changes in PA during life course. The recognition of the PA subgroups and their determinants is important for the more precise targeting of PA promotion and PA interventions.

TRIAL REGISTRATION

PROSPERO registration number: CRD42018088120 .

Sympathetic nervous system synchrony: An exploratory study of its relationship with the therapeutic alliance and outcome in couple therapy

In previous research, we found that sympathetic nervous system synchrony, measured via electrodermal activity (EDA), occurs between participants at the start of couple therapy. The aim now was to test whether this synchrony changes during the therapy process, and how any changes may be related to clients' and therapists' evaluations of the working alliance, and the outcome of therapy. Twelve different couple therapy processes were analyzed (24 clients, plus 10 therapists, working in pairs; hence, 4 persons per session) using EDA concordance indices and questionnaires (Outcome Rating Scale, Session Rating Scale, and Clinical Outcomes in Routine Evaluation-Outcome Measure). EDA synchrony between the couples increased from the beginning to the end of therapy. This seemed to be connected to a positive linear trend in female clients' well-being during the therapy process. There were no statistically significant changes in the EDA synchrony between the cotherapists, or between the clients and the therapists. We found specific changes in the EDA synchrony to be related to changes in the therapeutic alliance, and/or changes in the clients' well-being. Heightened EDA synchrony was frequently related to a better outcome; nevertheless, there was one instance in which decreasing synchrony seemed to be more beneficial. It appears that couple therapy can bring spouses closer together also on a physiological level, which could be especially important for the well-being of women. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).

Impacts of drainage, restoration and warming on boreal wetland greenhouse gas fluxes

Northern wetlands with organic soil i.e., mires are significant carbon storages. This key ecosystem service may be threatened by anthropogenic activities and climate change, yet we still lack a consensus on how these major changes affects their carbon sink capacities. We studied how forestry drainage and restoration combined with experimental warming, impacts greenhouse gas fluxes of wetlands with peat. We measured CO₂ and CH₄ during two and N₂O fluxes during one growing season using the chamber method. Gas fluxes were primarily controlled by water table, leaf area and temperature. Land use had a clear impact of on CO₂ exchange. Forestry drainage increased respiration rates and decreased field layer net ecosystem CO₂ uptake (NEE) and leaf area index (LAI), while at restoration sites the flux rates and LAI had recovered to the level of undrained sites. CH₄ emissions were exceptionally low at all sites during our study years due to natural drought, but still somewhat lower at drained compared to undrained sites. Moderate warming triggered an increase in LAI across all land use types. This was accompanied by an increase in cumulative seasonal NEE. Restoration appeared to be an effective tool to return the ecosystem functions of these wetlands as we found no differences in LAI or any gas flux components (PMAX, Reco, NEE, CH₄ or N₂O) between restored and undrained sites. We did not find any signs that moderate warming would compromise the return of the ecosystem functions related to C sequestration.

Effects of alertness management training on sleepiness among long-haul truck drivers: A randomized controlled trial

Education is a frequently recommended remedy for driver sleepiness in occupational settings, although not many studies have examined its usefulness. To date, there are no previous on-road randomized controlled trials investigating the benefits of training on sleepiness among employees working in road transport. To examine the effects of an educational intervention on long-haul truck drivers' sleepiness at the wheel, amount of sleep between work shifts, and use of efficient sleepiness countermeasures (SCM) in association with night and non-night shift, a total of 53 truck drivers operating from southern Finland were allocated into an intervention and a control group using a stratified randomization method (allocation ratio for intervention and control groups 32:21, respectively). The intervention group received a 3.5-hour alertness management training followed by a two-month consultation period and motivational self-evaluation tasks two and 4-5 months after the training, while the control group had an opportunity to utilize their usual statutory occupational health care services. The outcomes were measured under drivers' natural working and shift conditions over a period of two weeks before and after the intervention using unobtrusive data-collection methods including the Karolinska Sleepiness Scale measuring on-duty sleepiness, a combination of actigraphy and a sleep-log measuring sleep between duty hours, and self-report questionnaire items measuring the use of SCMs while on duty. The data analysis followed a per-protocol analysis. Results of the multilevel regression models showed no significant intervention-related improvements in driver sleepiness, prior sleep, or use of SCMs while working on night and early morning shifts compared to day and/or evening shifts. The current study failed to provide support for a feasible non-recurrent alertness-management training being effective remedy for driver sleepiness in occupational settings. These results cannot, however, be interpreted as evidence against alertness management training in general but propose that driver education is not a sufficient measure as such to alleviate driver sleepiness.

The family-oriented open dialogue approach in the treatment of first-episode psychosis: Nineteen-year outcomes

Open Dialogue (OD) is a family-oriented early intervention approach which has demonstrated good outcomes in the treatment of first-episode psychosis (FEP). Nevertheless, more evidence is needed. In this register-based cohort study the long-term outcomes of OD were evaluated through a comparison with a control group over a period of approximately 19 years. We examined the mortality, the need for psychiatric treatment, and the granting of disability allowances. Data were obtained from Finnish national registers regarding all OD patients whose treatment for FEP commenced within the time of the original interventions (total N = 108). The control group consisted of all Finnish FEP patients who had a follow-up of 19-20 years and who were guided to other Finnish specialized mental healthcare facilities (N = 1763). No difference between the samples was found regarding the annual incidence of FEP, the diagnosis, and suicide rates. Over the entire follow-up, the figures for durations of hospital treatment, disability allowances, and the need for neuroleptics remained significantly lower with OD group. Findings indicated that many positive outcomes of OD are sustained over a long time period. Due to the observational nature of the study, randomized trials are still needed to provide more information on effectiveness of approach.

The role of parental affection and psychological control in adolescent athletes' symptoms of school and sport burnout during the transition to upper secondary school

INTRODUCTION

The transition from compulsory school to upper secondary school is a challenging period for adolescents. Especially challenging it can be for adolescents who aim to integrate two domains of achievement, such as an athletic career and academic education. The pressure from two intertwined achievement domains may make student-athletes vulnerable to symptoms of burnout. The study examined the role of mothers' and fathers' affection and psychological control as possible risk or protective factors in the symptoms of school and sport burnout among 15-16 year olds adolescent athletes in Finland.

METHODS

The adolescents' (n = 391) burnout symptoms in the two domains were measured using questionnaires at the beginning and at the end of the first grade of upper secondary school. Mothers (n = 258) and fathers (n = 191) filled in questionnaires concerning their parenting behaviors at the beginning of the school year.

RESULTS & CONCLUSIONS

The results showed that the athletes' symptoms of both school and sport burnout increased across the school year. Maternal affection buffered against the increase of school burnout, but only when not combined with simultaneous psychologically controlling mothering.

Psychosocial Problems, Indoor Air-Related Symptoms, and Perceived Indoor Air Quality among Students in Schools without Indoor Air Problems: A Longitudinal Study

The effect of students' psychosocial problems on their reporting of indoor air quality (subjective IAQ) and indoor air-related (IA-related) symptoms has not been studied in schools in a longitudinal setting. Therefore, we analyzed whether changes in students' psychosocial problems (socioemotional difficulties and perceived teacher⁻student relations) between the beginning of seventh grade (age 12⁻13 years) and the end of ninth grade (15⁻16 years) predicted subjective IAQ and IA-related symptoms at the end of ninth grade. In order to explore the independent effect of psychosocial factors, we focused only on students in schools without observed indoor air problems. The analysis was of longitudinal data (N = 986 students) using latent change modelling. Increased socioemotional difficulties were related to more IA-related symptoms (standardized beta = 0.20) and deteriorated subjective IAQ (standardized beta = 0.20). Increased problems in teacher⁻student relations were related to deteriorated subjective IAQ (standardized beta = 0.21). Although students' psychosocial problems explained only 9⁻13% of the total variances, our findings support the notion that psychosocial factors also need to be taken into account in the evaluation of IAQ and the prevalence of IA-related symptoms in schools.

Indoor air problems and the perceived social climate in schools: A multilevel structural equation analysis

Indoor air problems in schools appear to influence learning outcomes and absence rates. However, previous research has not investigated whether indoor air problems influence the social climate of schools. Therefore, we studied whether indoor air problems observed in schools associate with students' perceptions of the teacher-student relationship and class spirit. The nationwide sample of Finnish schools (N=194 schools/27153 students) was analyzed using multilevel structural equation modeling. Data on the schools' social climate collected from students were merged with independently collected data on observed indoor air problems from school principals. We found that the teacher-student relationship was reported to be worse in schools with observed indoor air problems compared to those without observed indoor air problems. Furthermore, the reported class spirit was worse in schools with observed indoor air problems, but only among students with a high grade point average. Our findings indicate that indoor air problems may affect the student-perceived social climate.

Multilevel Latent Profile Analysis With Covariates

Latent profile analysis (LPA) is a person-centered method commonly used in organizational research to identify homogeneous subpopulations of employees within a heterogeneous population. However, in the case of nested data structures, such as employees nested in work departments, multilevel techniques are needed. Multilevel LPA (MLPA) enables adequate modeling of subpopulations in hierarchical data sets. MLPA enables investigation of variability in the proportions of Level 1 profiles across Level 2 units, and of Level 2 latent classes based on the proportions of Level 1 latent profiles and Level 1 ratings, and the extent to which covariates drawn from the different hierarchical levels of the data affect the probability of a membership of a particular profile. We demonstrate the use of MLPA by investigating job characteristics profiles based on the job-demand-control-support (JDCS) model using data from 1,958 university employees clustered in 78 work departments. The implications of the results for organizational research are discussed, together with several issues related to the potential of MLPA for wider application.

From early family systems to internalizing symptoms: The role of emotion regulation and peer relations

Research has demonstrated the importance of early family characteristics, such as the quality of caregiving, on children's later mental health. Information is, however, needed about the role of more holistic family systems and specific child-related socioemotional mechanisms. In this study, we conceptualize families as dynamic family system types, consisting of both marital and parenting trajectories over the transition to parenthood. First, we examine how early family system types predict children's anxiety, depression, peer exclusion, and emotion regulation. Second, we test whether couples' infertility history and other family related contextual factors moderate the effects of family system types on child outcomes. Third, we test whether children's emotion regulation and peer exclusion mediate the effects of family system types on anxiety and depression. The participants were 452 families representing cohesive, distant, authoritative, enmeshed, and discrepant family types, identified on the basis of relationship autonomy and intimacy from pregnancy to the child's age of 2 and 12 months. Children's anxiety, depression, emotion regulation, and peer exclusion were assessed at the age of 7-8 years. Structural equation modeling showed that distant, enmeshed, and discrepant families similarly predicted children's heightened anxiety and depression. Infertility history, parental education, and parity moderated the associations between certain family system types and child outcomes. Finally, emotion regulation, but not peer exclusion, was a common mediating mechanism between distant and enmeshed families and children's depression. The results emphasize the importance of early family environments on children's emotion regulation development and internalizing psychopathology. (PsycINFO Database Record

The associations of indoor environment and psychosocial factors on the subjective evaluation of Indoor Air Quality among lower secondary school students: a multilevel analysis

Subjective evaluation of Indoor Air Quality (subjective IAQ) reflects both building-related and psychosocial factors, but their associations have rarely been studied other than on the individual level in occupational settings and their interactions have not been assessed. Therefore, we studied whether schools' observed indoor air problems and psychosocial factors are associated with subjective IAQ and their potential interactions. The analysis was performed with a nationwide sample (N = 195 schools/26946 students) using multilevel modeling. Two datasets were merged: (i) survey data from students, including information on schools' psychosocial environment and subjective IAQ, and (ii) data from school principals, including information on observed indoor air problems. On the student level, school-related stress, poor teacher-student relationship, and whether the student did not easily receive help from school personnel, were significantly associated with poor subjective IAQ. On the school level, observed indoor air problem (standardized β = -0.43) and poor teacher-student relationship (standardized β = -0.22) were significant predictors of poor subjective IAQ. In addition, school-related stress was associated with poor subjective IAQ, but only in schools without observed indoor air problem (standardized β = -0.44).

Psychometric evaluation of the Finnish version of the impact on participation and autonomy questionnaire in persons with multiple sclerosis

OBJECTIVE

The objective of this study was to evaluate the psychometric properties of the impact on participation and autonomy (IPA) questionnaire. The Finnish version of IPA (IPAFin) was translated into Finnish using the protocol for linguistic validation for patient-reported outcomes instruments.

METHODS

A total of 194 persons with multiple sclerosis (MS) (mean age 50 years SD 9, 72% female) with moderate to severe disability participated in this study. A confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was used to confirm the four factor structure of the IPAFin. The work and educational opportunities domain was excluded from analysis, because it was only applicable to 51 persons. Internal consistency was investigated by calculating Cronbach's alpha.

RESULTS

CFA confirmed the construct validity of the IPA (standardized root mean square residual (SRMR) = 0.06, comparative fit index (CFI) = 0.93, Tucker-Lewis index =0.93, root mean square error of approximation (RMSEA) = 0.06), indicating a good fit to the model. There was no difference in the models for females and males. Cronbach's alpha for the domains ranged between 0.80 and 0.91, indicating good homogeneity.

CONCLUSIONS

The construct validity and reliability of the IPAFin is acceptable. IPAFin is a suitable measure of participation in persons with MS.

Social support as a mediator between problem behaviour and gambling: a cross-sectional study among 14-16-year-old Finnish adolescents

BACKGROUND

During the adolescent period, risk-taking behaviour increases. These behaviours can compromise the successful transition from adolescence to adulthood. The purpose of this study was to examine social support as a mediator of the relation between problem behaviour and gambling frequency among Finnish adolescents.

METHODS

Data were obtained from the national School Health Promotion Study (SHPS) from the years 2010 and 2011 (N=102 545). Adolescents were classified in the most homogeneous groups based on their problem behaviour via latent class analysis.

RESULTS

Path analysis indicated that social support was negatively associated with problem behaviour, and problem behaviour and social support were negatively related (except for social support from friends among boys) to gambling. Social support from parents and school mediated, albeit weakly, the relations between problem behaviour and gambling among girls and boys.

CONCLUSIONS

Problem behaviour may affect gambling through social support from school and parents. Thus prevention and intervention strategies should focus on strengthening adolescents' social support. In addition, because of the clustering of different problem behaviours instead of concentrating on a single form of problem behaviour multiple-behaviour interventions may have a much greater impact on public health.

Continuity From Prelinguistic Communication to Later Language Ability: A Follow-Up Study From Infancy to Early School Age

PURPOSE

This longitudinal study examined the development of prelinguistic skills and the continuity of communication and language from the prelinguistic stage to school age.

METHOD

Prelinguistic communication of 427 Finnish children was followed repeatedly from 6 to 18 months of age (n = 203-322 at ages 6, 9, 12, 15, and 18 months), and its associations with language ability at ages 2;0 (n = 104), 3;0 (n = 112), 4;7 (n = 253), 5;3 (n = 102), and 7;9 (n = 236) were examined using latent growth curve modeling.

RESULTS

Prelinguistic development across several skills emerged as a rather stable intraindividual characteristic during the first 2 years of life. Continuity from prelinguistic development to later language ability was indicated. The common level and growth of prelinguistic skills were significant predictors of language ability between ages 2;0 (years;months) and 7;9; the percentage explained varied between 10.5% and 53.3%. A slow pace of development across multiple skills, in particular, led to weaker language skills.

CONCLUSIONS

The results support (a) the idea of a developmental continuum from prelinguistic to linguistic ability and (b) the dimensional view of language ability by indicating that individual variations in early communication skills show consistency that extends beyond the toddler years. Our results also advocate developmental surveillance of early communication by emphasizing the significance of growth in predicting language development.

Practice Effects on Visuomotor and Problem-Solving Tests by Children

Practice effects on a visuomotor test (the Developmental Test of Visuo-Motor Integration), a timed visual discrimination test (the Underlining Test), and two problem-solving tests (the Porteus Mazes Test and the Tower of Hanoi Test) were analyzed. Children of two age groups ( Ms: 7.7 and 11.6 yr.) were chosen to study the effect of age on practice effects. The tests were repeated nine times with test-retest intervals of 2 mo. The Developmental Test of Visuo-Motor Integration showed no practice effects, while the Porteus Mazes Test, the Underlining Test, and the Tower of Hanoi Test showed significant practice effects. Practice effects were larger for the older age group on all the tests, except the Developmental Test of Visuo-Motor Integration. The Developmental Test of Visuo-Motor Integration and the Underlining Test showed good reliability, but those of the problem-solving tasks were less satisfactory. The stability of all the tests, except the Tower of Hanoi Test, was good.

Predicting athletes' functional and dysfunctional emotions: The role of the motivational climate and motivation regulations

This study examined the relationships between perceptions of the motivational climate, motivation regulations, and the intensity and functionality levels of athletes' pleasant and unpleasant emotional states. Specifically, we examined the hypothesised mediational role of motivation regulations in the climate-emotion relationship. We also tested a sequence in which emotions were assumed to be predicted by the motivational climate dimensions and then served as antecedents to variability in motivation regulations. Participants (N = 494) completed a multi-section questionnaire assessing targeted variables. Structural equation modelling (SEM) revealed that a perceived task-involving climate was a positive predictor of autonomous motivation and of the impact of functional anger, and a negative predictor of the intensity of anxiety and dysfunctional anger. Autonomous motivation was a partial mediator of perceptions of a task-involving climate and the impact of functional anger. An ego-involving climate was a positive predictor of controlled motivation, and of the intensity and impact of functional anger and the intensity of dysfunctional anger. Controlled motivation partially mediated the relationship between an ego-involving climate and the intensity of dysfunctional anger. Good fit to the data also emerged for the motivational climate, emotional states, and motivation regulations sequence. Findings provide support for the consideration of hedonic tone and functionality distinctions in the assessment of athletes' emotional states.

Does daily distress make parents prone to using psychologically controlling parenting?

The aim of the present study was to investigate whether parental daily distress in terms of negative emotions is associated with the daily variation in parental use of psychological control with their children. Whether parental positive emotions play a role in the use of psychological control was also investigated. The participants were 149 Finnish families with a child between the ages of 6 and 7 years. Parents’ negative and positive emotions, children’s misconduct, and parental use of psychological control when interacting with their children were measured daily using diary questionnaires filled in by the mothers and fathers over 7 successive days in the fall term of the children’s first grade and, for replication purposes, again in the spring term. The results of multilevel modelling showed that, after controlling for the level of children’s misconduct on a particular day, mothers’ and fathers’ negative daily emotions were related to a high level of psychological control in parenting. This relation was evident particularly when combined with parental perception of a high level of child misconduct. Positive emotions, in turn, were not found to be related to the daily variation in the use of psychological control. The results showed further that, at the level of individuals, mothers’ and fathers’ high overall level of negative emotions across the week was related to a high overall level of psychologically controlling parenting.

The role of social support in the association between gambling, poor health and health risk-taking

AIMS

Studies have shown that gambling is associated with poor health and health risk-taking behaviour. However, little is known about those factors that can influence the association between gambling, health risk-taking and health. Using a population-based School Health Promotion Study of eighth- and ninth-grade Finnish boys and girls (N = 62,956), we investigated the relationships between gambling frequency, health risk-taking and poor health as well as whether social support from parents, friends and school staff could mediate these associations.

METHODS

Path analysis was used to discover direct and indirect effects of health, health risk-taking and gambling.

RESULTS

Social support from parents and school staff decreased gambling among boys and girls, whereas among boys support from friends increased gambling. However, the role of social support as a mediator was very weak. Overall poor health and health risk-taking were associated with increased gambling. CONCLUSIONS GAMBLING SHOULD BE CONSIDERED AN IMPORTANT PUBLIC HEALTH ISSUE BECAUSE IT CLUSTERS WITH OTHER UNHEALTHY BEHAVIOUR PATTERNS INTERVENTIONS CONCERNING ADOLESCENT GAMBLING SHOULD ALSO TAKE OTHER SIMULTANEOUS RISK-TAKING INTO CONSIDERATION ALSO SOCIAL SUPPORT FROM PARENTS AND SCHOOL SHOULD BE NOTED WHEN TRYING TO DECREASE ADOLESCENTS' GAMBLING.

Paternal mental health trajectory classes and early fathering experiences

A father’s mental health is important for family well-being, but research is scarce on paternal symptoms during the transition to fatherhood. This study identified fathers’ latent mental health trajectory classes from the pre- to postnatal period and examined their associations with early fathering experiences. It further analysed, whether a family’s infertility history was associated with mental health trajectory classes and moderated their effects on fathering experiences. Finnish fathers ( N = 773) reported psychological distress (General Health Questionnaire; GHQ-36) and depressive symptoms (Beck Depression Inventory; BDI-13) in pregnancy (T1), and at 2 months (T2) and 12 months (T3) postpartum. They further reported their fathering experience (Parenting Stress Index; PSI-36) at T2 and T3. Results revealed five paternal mental health trajectory classes, differing in timing and course of symptoms across the pre- and postpartum: stable low (79%) and moderate increasing (9%) levels of symptoms, and prenatal (5%), early fatherhood (3%) and heterogeneous high levels of (4%) problems. The trajectory classes were associated with fathering experiences within parental, interactive and child domains, across the child’s first year. The stable low levels of symptoms-class showed the most positive experiences and the heterogeneous high levels of problems-class the most negative ones; mental health problems in the early fatherhood-class reported negative fathering experience, but only when the child was 2 months old. A family’s infertility history neither showed any significant association with trajectory classes nor moderated their impact on early fathering, supporting the growing evidence that infertility treatments do not place an additional burden on early fatherhood.

Conflicting personal goals: a risk to occupational well-being?

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to investigate the moderating role of goal conflict in the relationship between the contents of managers’ personal work goals and occupational well-being (burnout and work engagement). Eight goal categories (organization, competence, well-being, career-ending, progression, prestige, job change, and employment contract) described the contents of goals. Goal conflict reflected the degree to which a personal work goal was perceived to interfere with other life domains.

Design/methodology/approach

– The data were drawn from a study directed to Finnish managers in 2009 (n=806). General linear models were conducted to investigate the associations between goal content categories and occupational well-being and to test whether goal conflict moderates the relationship between goal content categories and occupational well-being.

Findings

– Career-ending goals related to significantly higher burnout than progression goals. Participants with organization, competence, or progression goals reported the highest goal conflict, whereas participants with well-being, career-ending, or job change goals reported lower goal conflict. Goal conflict was found to have a moderating role: in a high-goal conflict situation, participants with organizational, competence, and progression goals reported lower occupational well-being, whereas participants with job change goals reported higher occupational well-being.

Originality/value

– The research highlights that both the contents and appraisals (e.g. goal conflict) of personal work goals should be taken into account when investigating the relationship between personal goals and well-being at work.

Psychological distress of children with early-onset type 1 diabetes and their mothers' well-being

AIM

Few studies have focused on the psychological adjustment of pre-adolescent children with type 1 diabetes. This study examined psychosocial functioning in nine- and 10-year-old children with early-onset type 1 diabetes, and their mothers, and associations between psychosocial functioning and diabetes management.

METHODS

The mothers of 63 children with early-onset diabetes and 86 healthy children evaluated their own psychosocial functioning, and their child's, with standardised rating scales. We used general linear models to analyse the children's behaviour problems and the mothers' well-being. Associations between the children's behaviour problems, diabetes-related measures and the mothers' well-being were studied with partial correlations.

RESULTS

Children with diabetes had more internalising problems than the controls (p = 0.001), and these were associated with poor glycaemic control at the early stage of the illness (p = 0.033) and the use of insulin pumps in girls (p = 0.004). Mothers in the diabetes group had more child-related stress than the controls (p < 0.001), and poorer well-being was associated with the children's behavioural problems (p < 0.024).

CONCLUSION

Children with early-onset diabetes faced an increased risk of internalising problems in middle childhood. The mothers' psychological distress was associated with children's behaviour problems rather than their diabetes.

Subjective stress, objective heart rate variability-based stress, and recovery on workdays among overweight and psychologically distressed individuals: a cross-sectional study

BACKGROUND

The present study aimed to investigate how subjective self-reported stress is associated with objective heart rate variability (HRV)-based stress and recovery on workdays. Another aim was to investigate how physical activity (PA), body composition, and age are associated with subjective stress, objective stress, and recovery.

METHODS

Working-age participants (n = 221; 185 women, 36 men) in this cross-sectional study were overweight (body mass index, 25.3-40.1 kg/m(2)) and psychologically distressed (≥3/12 points on the General Health Questionnaire). Objective stress and recovery were based on HRV recordings over 1-3 workdays. Subjective stress was assessed by the Perceived Stress Scale. PA level was determined by questionnaire, and body fat percentage was assessed by bioelectrical impedance analysis.

RESULTS

Subjective stress was directly associated with objective stress (P = 0.047) and inversely with objective recovery (P = 0.046). These associations persisted after adjustments for sex, age, PA, and body fat percentage. Higher PA was associated with lower subjective stress (P = 0.037). Older age was associated with higher objective stress (P < 0.001). After further adjustment for alcohol consumption and regular medication, older age was associated with lower subjective stress (P = 0.043).

CONCLUSIONS

The present results suggest that subjective self-reported stress is associated with objective physiological stress, but they are also apparently affected by different factors. However, some of the found associations among these overweight and psychologically distressed participants with low inter-individual variation in PA are rather weak and the clinical value of the present findings should be studied further among participants with greater heterogeneity of stress, PA and body composition. However, these findings suggest that objective stress assessment provides an additional aspect to stress evaluation. Furthermore, the results provide valuable information for developing stress assessment methods.

Web-Based Acceptance and Commitment Therapy for Depressive Symptoms With Minimal Support

Low-intensity interventions for people suffering from depressive symptoms are highly desirable. The aim of the present study was to investigate the outcomes of a web-based acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT)–based intervention without face-to-face contact for people suffering from depressive symptoms. Participants ( N = 39) with depressive symptoms were randomly assigned to an Internet-delivered acceptance and commitment therapy (iACT) intervention or a waiting list control condition (WLC). Participants were evaluated with standardized self-reporting measures (Beck Depression Inventory [BDI-II], Symptom Checklist–90 [SCL-90], Acceptance and Action Questionnaire [AAQ-2], Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire [FFMQ], Automatic Thoughts Questionnaire [ATQ], and White Bear Suppression Inventory [WBSI]) at pre- and post-measurement. Long-term effects in the iACT group were examined using a 12-month follow-up. The iACT program comprised home assignments, online feedback given by master’s-level students of psychology over a 7-week intervention period, and automated email-based reminders. Significant effects were observed in favor of the iACT group on depression symptomatology (between effect sizes [ESs] at post-treatment, iACT/WLC, g = .83), psychological and physiological symptoms (g = .60), psychological flexibility (g = .67), mindfulness skills (g = .53), and frequency of automatic thoughts (g = .57) as well as thought suppression (g = .53). The treatment effects in the iACT group were maintained over the 12-month follow-up period (within-iACT ES: BDI-II, g = 1.33; SCL-90, g = 1.04; ATQF/B [Frequency/Believability], FFMQ, WBSI, AAQ-II, g = .74-1.08). The iACT participants stated that they would be happy to recommend the same intervention to others with depressive symptoms. We conclude that an ACT-based guided Internet-delivered treatment with minimal contact can be effective for people with depressive symptoms.

Parental causal attributions and emotions in daily learning situations with the child

This study investigated the dynamics between the causal attributions parents reported daily for their children's success in learning situations and parental positive emotions. The sample consisted of 159 mothers and 147 fathers of 162 first graders (83 girls, 79 boys; aged from 6 to 7 years, M = 7.5 years, SD = 3.6 months). Parents filled in a structured diary questionnaire concerning their causal attributions and emotions over 7 successive days in the fall semester and again over 7 successive days in the spring semester. Multilevel analyses showed that both parental causal attributions and positive emotions varied more within parents (between days over the week) than between parents. Furthermore, mothers' positive emotions on a certain day predicted their causal attributions on that same day rather than vice versa. The higher the level of positive emotions parents reported in a specific day, the more they used effort and ability as causal attributions for their offspring's success on that same day.

Psychological Flexibility and Mindfulness Explain Intuitive Eating in Overweight Adults

The current study investigated whether mindfulness and psychological flexibility, independently and together, explain intuitive eating. The participants were overweight or obese persons ( N = 306) reporting symptoms of perceived stress and enrolled in a psychological lifestyle intervention study. Participants completed self-report measures of psychological flexibility; mindfulness including the subscales observe, describe, act with awareness, non-react, and non-judgment; and intuitive eating including the subscales unconditional permission to eat, eating for physical reasons, and reliance on hunger/satiety cues. Psychological flexibility and mindfulness were positively associated with intuitive eating factors. The results suggest that mindfulness and psychological flexibility are related constructs that not only account for some of the same variance in intuitive eating, but they also account for significant unique variances in intuitive eating. The present results indicate that non-judgment can explain the relationship between general psychological flexibility and unconditional permission to eat as well as eating for physical reasons. However, mindfulness skills— acting with awareness, observing, and non-reacting—explained reliance on hunger/satiety cues independently from general psychological flexibility. These findings suggest that mindfulness and psychological flexibility are interrelated but not redundant constructs and that both may be important for understanding regulation processes underlying eating behavior.

Towards a physically more active lifestyle based on one's own values: the results of a randomized controlled trial among physically inactive adults

Background

The high prevalence of physical inactivity has led to a search for novel and feasible interventions that will enhance physical activity, especially among the least physically active individuals. This randomized controlled trial aimed to determine the effectiveness of a value-based intervention to promote a physically more active lifestyle among physically inactive adults. The framework of the study was based on Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT).

Methods

Physically inactive participants aged 30 to 50 years (n = 138) were randomly allocated to a feedback (FB, n = 69) or an acceptance- and commitment-based group (ACT + FB, n = 69). Both groups received written feedback about their objectively measured physical activity and were offered a body composition analysis. In addition, the participants in the ACT + FB group attended six group sessions and were given a pedometer for self-monitoring their physical activity during the nine-week intervention. The primary outcome was physical activity. In addition, participants’ cognitions related to exercise and physical activity were evaluated at baseline and at three- and six-month follow-ups. The changes in mean physical activity level were analysed using multilevel random regression and rank order stability, using the structural equation model.

Results

Participants in both groups increased their objectively measured and self-reported physical activity with high individual differences. No difference was observed in the change of physical activity level between the FB and ACT + FB groups over time. However, the cognitions related to physical activity and exercise improved more in the ACT + FB group than in the FB group. In addition, after re-analyzing the data among the non-depressive participants, higher stability was observed in objectively measured physical activity at the individual level between the three- and six-month follow-ups in the ACT + FB group as compared to FB group.

Conclusions

Acceptance- and commitment-based group intervention, combined with the self-monitoring of physical activity, was beneficial in supporting the cognition related to exercise and physical activity, and brought more stability to the individual level physical activity behaviour change, especially among the non-depressive participants.

Trial registration

ClinicalTrials.gov, number NCT01796990. Registered in February 2013.

Electronic supplementary material

The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12889-015-1604-x) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Associations between private speech, behavioral self-regulation, and cognitive abilities

We examined the associations between 5-year-old children’s private speech, behavioural self-regulation, and cognitive abilities. Behavioural self-regulation was assessed using parental and preschool teacher questionnaires. Cognitive abilities (i.e., language, inhibition, planning and fluency, and memory) were assessed with neurocognitive tests, and the effectiveness of private speech (i.e., whether the child performs better when using speech than when not using speech) with the Hammer Task. About 43% of the children used private speech spontaneously, and about 76% performed better on the Hammer Task when they used speech. Associations between behavioural self-regulation and speech effectiveness were few, but all cognitive scores were significantly associated with the speech effectiveness score, i.e., the poorer the child’s neurocognitive test performance was, the more he/she benefited from using speech. The findings lend support to the relevance of children’s cognitive abilities when seeking understanding on the development, use, and effectiveness of private speech.

Associations between toddler-age communication and kindergarten-age self-regulatory skills

PURPOSE

In this study, the authors aimed at gaining understanding on the associations of different types of early language and communication profiles with later self-regulation skills by using longitudinal data from toddler age to kindergarten age.

METHOD

Children with early language profiles representing expressive delay, broad delay (i.e., expressive, social, and/or symbolic), and typical language development were compared in domains of kindergarten-age executive and regulative skills (attentional/executive functions, regulation of emotions and behavioral activity, and social skills) assessed with parental questionnaires.

RESULTS

Children with delay in toddler-age language development demonstrated poorer kindergarten-age self-regulation skills than children with typical early language development. Broad early language delays were associated with compromised social skills and attentional/executive functions, and early expressive delays were associated with a generally lower level of kindergarten-age executive and regulative skills. Regression analyses showed that both earlier and concurrent language had an effect especially on the attentional/executive functions.

CONCLUSIONS

The findings suggest that different aspects of toddler-age language have differential associations with later self-regulation. Possible mechanisms linking early language development to later self-regulative development are discussed.

ACT Internet-based vs face-to-face? A randomized controlled trial of two ways to deliver Acceptance and Commitment Therapy for depressive symptoms: an 18-month follow-up

The aim of the present study was to investigate two interventions based on Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) for depressive symptoms: A face-to-face treatment (ACT group) was compared to a guided self-help treatment delivered via the Internet consisting of two assessment sessions (pre and post) and an ACT-based Internet program (iACT). Outpatients experiencing at least mild depressive symptoms were randomized to either approach. The iACT treatment group received access to an ACT-based Internet program and supportive web-based contact over a period of 6 weeks. The face-to-face group received ACT-based treatment once a week over the same period of time. In both groups, the results showed a significant effect on depression symptomatology, and general wellbeing after treatment and at the 18-month follow-up. However, the data indicated that the iACT group changed differently regarding depressive symptoms and wellbeing as compared to the face-to face ACT group. Results showed large pre-treatment to 18-month follow-up within-group effect sizes for all symptom measures in the iACT treatment group (1.59-2.08), and for most outcome measures in the face-to-face ACT group (1.12-1.37). This non-inferiority study provides evidence that guided Internet-delivered ACT intervention can be as effective as ACT-based face-to-face treatment for outpatients reporting depressive symptoms, and it may offer some advantages over a face-to-face intervention.

Children with differing developmental trajectories of prelinguistic communication skills: language and working memory at age 5

PURPOSE

In this article, the authors examine the developmental continuity from prelinguistic communication to kindergarten age in language and working memory capacity.

METHOD

Following work outlining 6 groups of children with different trajectories of early communication development (ECD; Määttä, Laakso, Tolvanen, Ahonen, & Aro, 2012), the authors examined their later development by psychometric assessment. Ninety-one children first assessed at ages 12-21 months completed a battery of language and working memory tests at age 5;3 (years;months).

RESULTS

Two of the ECD groups previously identified as being at risk for language difficulties continued to show weaker performance at follow-up. Seventy-nine percent of the children with compromised language skills at follow-up were identified on the basis of the ECD groups, but the number of false positives was high. The 2 at-risk groups also differed significantly from the typically developing groups in the measures tapping working memory capacity.

CONCLUSIONS

In line with the dimensional view of language impairment, the accumulation of early delays predicted the amount of later difficulties; however, at the individual level, the prediction had rather low specificity. The results imply a strong link between language and working memory and call for further studies examining the early developmental interaction between language and memory.

Associations of physical activity, fitness, and body composition with heart rate variability-based indicators of stress and recovery on workdays: a cross-sectional study

BACKGROUND

The purpose of this study was to investigate how physical activity (PA), cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF), and body composition are associated with heart rate variability (HRV)-based indicators of stress and recovery on workdays. Additionally, we evaluated the association of objectively measured stress with self-reported burnout symptoms.

METHODS

Participants of this cross-sectional study were 81 healthy males (age range 26-40 y). Stress and recovery on workdays were measured objectively based on HRV recordings. CRF and anthropometry were assessed in laboratory conditions. The level of PA was based on a detailed PA interview (MET index [MET-h/d]) and self-reported activity class.

RESULTS

PA, CRF, and body composition were significantly associated with levels of stress and recovery on workdays. MET index (P < 0.001), activity class (P = 0.001), and CRF (P = 0.019) were negatively associated with stress during working hours whereas body fat percentage (P = 0.005) was positively associated. Overall, 27.5% of the variance of total stress on workdays (P = 0.001) was accounted for by PA, CRF, and body composition. Body fat percentage and body mass index were negatively associated with night-time recovery whereas CRF was positively associated. Objective work stress was associated (P = 0.003) with subjective burnout symptoms.

CONCLUSIONS

PA, CRF, and body composition are associated with HRV-based stress and recovery levels, which needs to be taken into account in the measurement, prevention, and treatment of work-related stress. The HRV-based method used to determine work-related stress and recovery was associated with self-reported burnout symptoms, but more research on the clinical importance of the methodology is needed.

Flexibility in weight management

The purpose of the study was to investigate the relationships between changes in flexible vs. rigid restraints of eating during weight management, as well as how changes in the cognitive restraint of eating were related to psychological well-being and flexibility. The data includes information on 49 overweight persons who participated in a weight loss and maintenance (WLM) intervention and a follow-up assessment after 8-9 months. An increase in flexible cognitive restraint during the weight loss intervention was related to better weight loss maintenance and well-being. The more flexible restraint increased during the WLM intervention, the more psychological distress decreased. Moreover, larger reduction of rigid restraint during the follow-up period (between the WLM intervention and the follow-up assessment) was related to a better maintenance of improved psychological well-being at the follow-up endpoint. These results suggest that increasing flexible control while reducing rigid control of eating after an active weight loss phase improves success in weight management and the psychological well-being of weight losers.