Comparative analysis of integrative self-knowledge, mindfulness, and private self-consciousness in predicting responses to stress in Iran

How anxiety relates to blood donation intention of non-donors: the roles of moral disengagement and mindfulness

Blood donation anxiety is a major psychological obstacle for blood donation. However, it remains unclear what the mechanism underlying the relationship between anxiety and blood donation intention is and what factor(s) will buffer the negative effects of anxiety. Based on social cognitive theory, we theorized a model delineating the mechanism with which blood donation anxiety was related to blood donation intention. Data were collected in a three-wave online survey including 425 individuals and was analyzed using hierarchical multiple regression with SPSS 24.0 software. The results indicated that the negative relationship between blood donation anxiety and blood donation intention was mediated by moral disengagement. Meanwhile, mindfulness was found to play a buffering role in the relationship between blood donation anxiety and moral disengagement as well as the indirect relationship between blood donation anxiety and blood donation intention via moral disengagement. Our findings advanced the understanding of the detrimental consequences of blood donation anxiety and demonstrated that while blood donation anxiety came at a high cost, it can be managed.

The effect of ten versus twenty minutes of mindfulness meditation on state mindfulness and affect

We aimed to elucidate the effects of "dose" of a single-session of mindfulness meditation on state mindfulness and affect as well as moderators of effects. 372 adults recruited remotely via Amazon's MTurk platform were randomly assigned to either a: 10-min mindfulness meditation, 20-min mindfulness meditation, 10-min control, or 20-min control. Control conditions were recordings of a National Geographic article. Primary outcomes were changes in state mindfulness, anxiety, and negative and positive affect. Moderator variables included neuroticism, trait mindfulness, and prior meditation experience. Collapsing across doses, participants in mindfulness conditions reported greater increases in state mindfulness than in control conditions. There was a greater increase in state mindfulness in the 10-min mindfulness condition versus 10-min control condition. There were no differences between 10- and 20-min mindfulness conditions. Exploratory moderation analyses indicated that meditation (10 or 20) versus control (10 or 20) predicted increased state mindfulness among participants with lower trait mindfulness. Additionally, 20-min versus 10-min meditation predicted greater decreases in state anxiety among individuals with high trait mindfulness. Dose-response relationships were minimal, suggesting that 10 and 20 min of meditation may improve state mindfulness comparably. Findings support the benefits of brief mindfulness meditation and suggest that trait mindfulness moderates certain outcomes.

Does coping with pain help the elderly with cardiovascular disease? The association of sense of coherence, spiritual well-being and self-compassion with quality of life through the mediating role of pain self-efficacy

BACKGROUND

Population ageing is considered one of the biggest challenges facing the world, and the status of the elderly in society and their quality of life (QOL) have proved to be a concern in professional and scientific research circles. As a result, the current study sought to investigate the role of pain self-efficacy (PSE) as a moderator in the relationship between sense of coherence (SOC), spiritual well-being, and self-compassion with QOL in Iranian elderly with cardiovascular disease (CVD).

METHOD

This was a correlational study of the path analysis type. The statistical population included all elderly people with CVD who were at least 60 years of age in Kermanshah Province, Iran, in 2022, of whom 298 (181 men and 117 women) were selected using convenience sampling and according to the inclusion and exclusion criteria. The participants answered questionnaires from the World Health Organization on QOL, Paloutzian and Ellison's spiritual well-being, Nicholas's PSE, Antonovsky's SOC, and Raes et al.'s self-compassion.

RESULTS

The results of path analysis demonstrated that the hypothesized model of this study has a good fit in the studied sample. There were significant paths between SOC (β = 0.39), spiritual well-being (β = 0.13) and self-compassion (β = 0.44) with PSE. Although there were significant paths between SOC (β = 0.16) and self-compassion (β = 0.31) with QOL, there was no significant path between spiritual well-being and QOL (β = 0.06). Besides, there was a significant path between PSE and QOL (β = 0.35). Finally, PSE was found to mediate the relationship of SOC, spiritual well-being and self-compassion with QOL.

CONCLUSION

The results may provide psychotherapists and counselors working in this field of inquiry with advantageous information to choose or create a useful therapeutic method to work with the elderly with CVD. Meanwhile, other researchers are suggested to examine other variables which may serve a mediating role in the mentioned model.

Systematic review on somatization in a transcultural context among teenagers and young adults: Focus on the nosography blur

Aims

Somatic complaints are a frequent cause for consultation in primary care. In a transcultural context, somatic complaints are typically associated with psychological distress. A recent review about somatic symptom disorders in adolescence showed some nosographic heterogeneity and outlined various etiological hypotheses (traumatic, environmental, or neurologic), separate from the cross-cultural considerations. Migrants' children encounter specific problems involving cultural mixing-issues of filiation (familial transmission) and affiliation (belonging to a group). This paper aims to provide a systematic review of somatization in transcultural contexts among teenagers and young adults, aged 13 to 24, over the past decade.

Methods

This review adheres to the quality criteria set forth by the PRISMA guidelines (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses). Two authors queried three English databases (Medline, PsycInfo, WebOfScience) about somatization in transcultural contexts (migrant or non-Western population) among teenagers (13-18), young adults (19-24), or both. The methodological process comprised articles selection, data extraction, and then the analysis of emerging themes. Setting selection criteria to limit the transcultural field was difficult.

Results

The study analyzed 68 articles. We present a descriptive analysis of the results, centered on three main themes. First, the literature highlights a nosographic muddle reflected in the combination of anxious and depressive symptoms together with the highly variable symptomatology. Second, discrimination issues were prevalent among the migrant population. Lastly, the literature review points out possibilities for improving a care pathway and reducing the diagnostic delay induced by migrants' hesitancy about Western care and the recurrent use of inappropriate diagnostic criteria.

Conclusion

This review discusses the links between the nosographic muddle described here and the diagnostic delays these patients experience and raises concerns about rigid diagnostic compartmentalization. The work of the psychiatrist Frantz Fanon is here useful to understand externalized symptoms resulting from physical and psychological confinement. Discrimination issues raise questions about the cultural counter-transference health professionals experience in dealing with young migrants. Defining healthcare professionals' representations about somatic complaints in a transcultural context might be a fruitful path to explore in future research.

Protocol PROSPERO registration number

CRD42021294132. Available from: https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/prospero/display_record.php?ID=CRD42021294132.

Photo-experiencing and reflective listening: A trauma-informed photo-elicitation method to explore day-to-day health experiences

Despite the promise of photography in research, few methods offer a guide to leverage this medium in conjunction with experience sampling to facilitate individual reflection while capturing the experiences of participants as they interact with their social world. The purpose of this paper is to introduce a new photo-elicitation method to add to the photography research repertoire, Photo-experiencing and Reflective Listening (PEARL). PEARL leverages the benefits of experience sampling, mindful self-awareness, and trauma-informed interviewing to document daily health experiences. After engaging in an at-home photography activity, participants meet for a one-on-one interview to share and cluster their photographs to discuss key themes and needs going forward. Using a study aimed to understand the recovery experiences of survivors of sexual violence, we illustrate how PEARL can be applied to study a population of interest. The products developed through PEARL provide rich opportunities for analysis, dissemination, story amplification, and action, making it a research method helpful for those interested in improving health equity and catalyzing social change. Because of the high satisfaction voiced by the participants of this approach, PEARL shows promise as a therapeutic data collection method, where the participants leave with some benefit through new awareness gained.

Relationship Between Gender, Stress, and Quality of Social Support

BACKGROUND

Research suggests that gender differences exist in both stress and how social support is utilized and that the relationship between stress and social support may not be linear.

METHODS

An internet survey of n = 1080 participants was conducted evaluating quality and quantity of social support, gender, age, and perceived stress and coping.

RESULTS

Reported quality of social support, gender, and age significantly predicted perceived stress and that there was a curvilinear interaction between the quality of social support and gender which significantly predicted perceived stress.

CONCLUSION

The current findings supported Taylor's Tend and Befriend theory that females have higher reported stress levels, a larger support network, and report more quality in their social support.Practitioner points:  • Males and females may manifest stress differently in their relationships. • When working with males and females in practice it may be important to understand the depth and breadth of their social networks and how they utilize those networks. • Females indicate higher levels of stress and greater social support quality. • It is important to understand that one's social network can be an important source of support (a coping mechanism) but that it can also serve as a stressor in some cases.

Can Meaning at Work Guard Against the Consequences of Objectification?

Objectification at work reflects instrumentality and denial of humanness in work relationships. These relationships have deleterious consequences for workplace health. One of the consequences of this type of relationship is self-objectification in which the self is perceived as a non-person or as an object. This phenomenon leads to perceiving oneself without mental states (i.e., dementalization) or as an instrument (i.e., instrumentalization) and as a nonperson (i.e., loss of humanness). However, few studies have considered how to reduce these consequences. In this study, we examine the protective role of meaning at work against the consequences of objectification. A total of 153 employees answered an online questionnaire which measured objectification, meaning of work, mentalization, and instrumentality/humanness. The results highlight an impact of objectification on instrumentality and humanness but not on mentalization as in previous studies. There is also a moderation effect of the meaning of work on the relationship between objectification and humanness. These results lead us to consider instrumentality, humanness, and dementalization as separate constructs accounting for self-objectification.

The Mindful Self: A Mindfulness-Enlightened Self-view

This paper analyzes studies of mindfulness and the self, with the aim of deepening our understanding of the potential benefits of mindfulness and meditation for mental health and well-being. Our review of empirical research reveals that positive changes in attitudes toward the self and others as a result of mindfulness-enabled practices can play an important role in modulating many mental and physical health problems. Accordingly, we introduce a new concept-the "mindful self"-and compare it with related psychological constructs to describe the positive changes in self-attitude associated with mindfulness meditation practices or interventions. The mindful self is conceptualized as a mindfulness-enlightened self-view and attitude developed by internalizing and integrating the essence of Buddhist psychology into one's self-system. We further posit that the mindful self will be an important intermediary between mindfulness intervention and mental health problems, and an important moderator in promoting well-being. More generally, we suggest that the mindful self may also be an applicable concept with which to describe and predict the higher level of self-development of those who grow up in the culture of Buddhism or regularly engage in meditation over a long period of time.

Integrative self-knowledge and marital satisfaction

Married Iranian couples (N = 210) responded to the Integrative Self-Knowledge Scale along with a measure of marital satisfaction, the International Personality Item Pool (IPIP) Big Five, and an index of interpersonal problems. Integrative self-knowledge correlated positively with marital satisfaction, positively with all but the extraversion Big Five traits, and negatively with three indices of interpersonal problems. Integrative self-knowledge also mediated a number of personality relationships with marital satisfaction. Spouse-ratings of personality confirmed the adaptive implications of integrative self-knowledge for marriage. Linkages with questionnaire response styles supported the description of integrative self-knowledge as a measure of both self-insight and self-development. Results confirmed the potential of integrative self-knowledge for studying self-regulatory processes and suggested that the enhancement of self-knowledge may be a useful goal in efforts to strengthen marriages.

Self-Complexity and Self-Concept Differentiation - What Have We Been Measuring for the Past 30 Years?

Research on the relation between the structure of the self-concept and psychological well-being has yielded seemingly inconsistent and even conflicting results. This article presents studies that examined the validity of often-used measures of self-complexity and self-concept differentiation and tested their ability to predict personal identity and active cognitive processing. The findings revealed several conceptual and methodological problems that continue to plague self-structure research, including the conflating of self-concept content and self-concept structure. In short, our data indicated that the commonly used indices of self-complexity and self-concept differentiation cannot be considered pure measures of the underlying dimensions of self-structure. In addition, only weak correlations of the self-structure variables with measures of personal identity and thinking dispositions have been found. Moreover, once the theoretically irrelevant sources of variance were controlled, the effects of the included structural features of the self-concept on the outcomes of interest either did not occur or were less pronounced. Given the above, it seems reasonable to suggest that at least some of the conclusions regarding the adaptive value of self-structural variables drawn from previous research in this field need revision.

A multi-process model of self-regulation: influences of mindfulness, integrative self-knowledge and self-control in Iran

Self-regulation presumably rests upon multiple processes that include an awareness of ongoing self-experience, enduring self-knowledge and self-control. The present investigation tested this multi-process model using the Five-Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire (FFMQ) and the Integrative Self-Knowledge and Brief Self-Control Scales. Using a sample of 1162 Iranian university students, we confirmed the five-factor structure of the FFMQ in Iran and documented its factorial invariance across males and females. Self-regulatory variables correlated negatively with Perceived Stress, Depression, and Anxiety and positively with Self-Esteem and Satisfaction with Life. Partial mediation effects confirmed that self-regulatory measures ameliorated the disturbing effects of Perceived Stress. Integrative Self-Knowledge and Self-Control interacted to partially mediate the association of Perceived Stress with lower levels of Satisfaction with Life. Integrative Self-Knowledge, alone or in interaction with Self-Control, was the only self-regulation variable to display the expected mediation of Perceived Stress associations with all other measures. Self-Control failed to be implicated in self-regulation only in the mediation of Anxiety. These data confirmed the need to further examine this multi-process model of self-regulation.

[Etiopathogenetic aspects of somatoform disorders]

The etiopathology of somatoform disorders can only be understood against the background of an integrated biopsychosocial model. Cultural and historical influences must be taken into account as well as contemporary settings of scientific or medical priorities. In this context the emphasis on neurobiological findings can be interpreted as the non-accidental struggle for legitimacy of both patients and physicians. Altogether the available data on factors influencing the formation and maintenance of somatoform symptoms has to be described as both diverse and unspecific and thus points to a challenging research program in the coming years.