Self-perceived quality of social roles, activities and relationships predicts incident gingivitis

OBJECTIVES

While physical health status is known to impact social functioning, a growing literature suggests that social well-being may affect oral health. This investigation evaluated whether self-perceived quality of social roles, activities and relationships (social well-being) influences gingival inflammation.

METHODS

Data were from the Population Assessment of Tobacco and Health Study, a nationally representative cohort of US adults, biennial waves 4 (2017) to 6 (2021). Social well-being was derived from the validated PROMIS Global-10 survey instrument, categorized for this longitudinal analysis as high, moderate or low. The main outcome was incident self-reported gum bleeding (dichotomous, proxy for gingivitis). Survey-weighted logistic regression modelling adjusted for overall health status, sociodemographic (e.g. age, sex, race/ethnicity), socioeconomic (e.g. income, education) and behavioural (e.g. tobacco, alcohol) confounders and was used to predict marginal mean gum bleeding incidence.

RESULTS

Cross-sectionally at wave 4 (N = 23 679), gum bleeding prevalence was higher along a stepwise gradient of decreasing satisfaction with social activities and relationships (extremely satisfied: 20.4%; not at all: 40.1%). Longitudinally, among participants who had never reported gum bleeding through wave 4 (N = 9695), marginal predicted new gum bleeding at wave 6 was greater with each category of lower wave 4-5 social well-being (high: 7.6%; moderate: 8.6%; low: 12.4%). Findings were robust to alternative model specifications. Results should be interpreted considering study limitations (e.g. potential unmeasured confounding; outcome by self-report).

CONCLUSIONS

Social functioning may affect physical health. Specifically, social roles, activities and relationships may influence inflammatory oral conditions, like gingivitis. Confirmatory research is warranted, along with policies and interventions that promote social well-being.

Short-term changes in social role statuses across young adulthood and their relation to heavy drinking in a given month

Young adulthood is a developmental period during which individuals experience shifts in their social roles in various domains, which coincides with a period of time that is also high risk for lifetime peaks in alcohol use. The current study examined age-related changes in heavy episodic drinking (HED) and high-intensity drinking (HID) and associations with short-term (i.e., monthly) variation in young adults' social roles over a 2.5-year period in a community sample of young adults who reported past-year alcohol use (N = 778, baseline age range 18-23). Results showed probabilities of past-month HED and HID changed in a nonlinear fashion across ages 18-26 with greater probabilities of use at younger ages. Most participants did not report being in the same social role status every sampled month, underscoring the presence of short-term role variation. Living with parents and being in a serious romantic relationship in a given month were negatively associated with past-month HED. Living with parents in a given month was also negatively associated with past-month HID. Being a 4-year college student and being employed full-time in a given month were not significantly related to either outcome. Findings provided partial evidence that monthly statuses were associated with heavy drinking. Several avenues for future research are described in light of the findings.

The Impact of Chemotherapy-Related Cognitive Impairment on Social Roles and Well-Being in Breast Cancer Survivors

PURPOSE

To explore the impact of disruptions in information processing (DIPs) on social roles, well-being, and quality of life (QOL) in breast cancer survivors after chemotherapy.

PARTICIPANTS & SETTING

Experiences of DIPs were explored in eight breast cancer survivors aged 53-70 years, 12-60 months post-treatment, referred from a National Cancer Institute-designated cancer center and a nonprofit breast cancer support organization from January 6 to August 31, 2020.

METHODOLOGIC APPROACH

This study used a mixed-methods approach. Participants journaled and answered questionnaires sent via mail that asked them about changes in their cognition, QOL, and social roles. Qualitative data were thematically analyzed using constant comparative analysis, and questionnaire scores were compared with qualitative data.

FINDINGS

Journals revealed problems with functioning in occupational roles and increased stress, anxiety, and frustration. Women with more DIPs tended to have lower role satisfaction and QOL. Greater role satisfaction was associated with higher QOL and social role participation.

IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING

Mitigating the effects of DIPs on social function may allow women to continue in important roles, which has the potential to affect QOL.

The perceived role fit of women and men academics: evidence from the social sports sciences

Introduction

The underrepresentation of women in academia is often explained by the presence of gender stereotypes and the perception that women fit the role of an academic to a lesser extent. Based on social role theory and role congruity theory, this study investigates and estimates the perceived role fit of women and men academics in the social sports sciences.

Methods

Data were collected with a quantitative online survey. The sample (n = 792) includes individuals who study or work in sports economics, sport management, or sport sociology (referred to as social sports sciences). The questionnaire included items that reflect attributes of an ideal-typical academic as well as women and men academics in four dimensions, i.e., leadership, research methods, media visibility, and research topics. In the first step, these items were used to estimate a total role fit index for both women and men academics, as well as indices for all dimensions. In a second step, regression analyses were used to examine how respondents' individual characteristics (e.g., discipline, career stage, gender, presence of role models) are related to their perceived role fit indices and the differences in the perceived role fit.

Results and discussion

The role fit index ranges from 0 to 1, and women have a higher total role fit than men (0.77 vs. 0.75). The results suggest that women in the social sports sciences are perceived as a better fit for the role of an academic. In contrast to role congruity theory, women's leadership fit is higher than men's fit in this dimension (0.79 vs. 0.72). Regarding the associations of individual characteristics, professors seem to perceive a lower role fit for both genders than students. Furthermore, the difference between the perceived role fit of men and women is smaller for women respondents. Having a woman role model leads to a higher fit of women academics in the leadership dimension.

Inferences of Masculinity and Femininity Across Intersections of Social Class and Gender: A Social Structural Perspective

This research employs a social structural perspective to analyze the content of intersectional social class and gender stereotypes. We investigated how the structural positioning of class and gender categories differentially foster inferences of masculinity and femininity. The social structures that organize class and gender differ: Class is marked by access to resources, and gender is marked by a division of labor for care work. Thus, we examined whether masculinity inferences more strongly varied by social class and whether femininity inferences more strongly varied by gender categories. In Study 1, a total 427 undergraduates provided open-ended descriptions of social class and gender groups. In Study 2, a total 758 undergraduates rated the same groups on preselected trait measures. In Study 3, a total 83 adult participants considered a vignette that manipulated a target's structural resources and gender. Across datasets, variation in social class primarily influenced inferences about masculinity while variation in gender primarily influenced inferences about femininity.

How Social Roles Affect Sleep Health during Midlife

This study draws on role theory and the life course perspective to examine how sleep health (duration, quality, and latency) is shaped by social role accumulation (number of roles), role repertoires (role combinations), and role contexts among middle-aged adults. We also examine how the relationships between social roles and sleep health are gendered. We use data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1979 Cohort (N = 7,628). Results show that role accumulation is associated with less sleep and decreased insomnia symptoms, and that role repertoires also impact sleep (e.g., parenthood leads to diminished sleep quantity and quality). There is also evidence that contextual factors related to employment history, marital quality, and parenthood affect sleep health. Furthermore, results reveal that several of the relationships between social roles and sleep are gendered. Taken together, findings demonstrate the utility of examining links between multiple dimensions of social roles and sleep health.

'I'm still young… it doesn't matter' - A qualitative study on the neglect of prodromal myocardial infarction symptoms among young- and middle-aged adults

AIM

To explore why young- and middle-aged adults ignore prodromal myocardial infarction symptoms from a life course and sociocultural perspective.

DESIGN

A qualitative descriptive study.

METHODS

We applied purposeful sampling to recruit participants from a tertiary hospital in Guangzhou from July to November 2021. Face-to-face interviews were performed. Interviews were audio-recorded, transcribed verbatim and analysed using thematic analysis methods.

RESULTS

Twenty-four young- and middle-aged adults diagnosed with acute myocardial infarction participated in this study. Analysis revealed three main themes: I'm still young, it will not happen to me; to be somebody and different roles, multiple pressures. Age-related self-confidence led to inappropriate perceptions and responses to prodromal symptoms among young- and middle-aged adults. These individuals strived to align their behaviours and attention with social expectations and self-expectations, underestimating the importance of perceiving the warning signs of acute myocardial infarction and seeking medical treatment. Pressure from social roles also prevented them from paying enough attention to prodromal symptoms.

CONCLUSION

Targeted social support, public education and technologies should be provided to these individuals since they are pillars of the family and society. We also highlight how nurses can function these strategies appropriately.

IMPACTS

This study contributes to a better understanding of the neglect of prodromal symptoms among young- and middle-aged adults. Its results enhance our understanding of the perception of and coping with prodromal symptoms among this population, which will help avoid the burden caused by acute myocardial infarction.

PATIENT OR PUBLIC CONTRIBUTION

The patients involved in our study shared their experiences and insights to provide new perspectives regarding the neglect of prodromal myocardial infarction symptoms among young- and middle-aged adults.

Parents' management of alcohol in the context of discourses of 'competent' parenting: A qualitative analysis

How parents manage potential tensions between normative discourses of 'competent parenting' and their desires to consume alcohol has received little attention. In this article, we explore the elements that encourage or constrain parents' drinking and investigate how parents consider and manage their alcohol use in the context of multiple social roles with sometimes conflicting demands and expectations around 'competent parenting'. Our analysis draws on 30 semi-structured interviews with Australian parents, conducted as part of a broader project which aimed to explore how home drinking is integrated into everyday life. While parents' accounts of drinking alcohol highlighted effects such as embodied experiences of relaxation and facilitating shared adult moments, many participants described drinking less than they otherwise would if their children were not present. Participants discussed various social roles and routines which constrained consumption, with drinking bounded by responsibility. As such, drinking emerged as something needing to be actively negotiated, particularly in light of discourses that frame expectations of what constitutes 'competent parenting'. When considering parents' alcohol consumption in the future, we argue that it is important to destigmatise their consumption by acknowledging the importance of adults' pleasure and wellbeing, alongside children's needs for safety and modelling of safer alcohol consumption.

The Effects of Health Care Chatbot Personas With Different Social Roles on the Client-Chatbot Bond and Usage Intentions: Development of a Design Codebook and Web-Based Study

Background

The working alliance refers to an important relationship quality between health professionals and clients that robustly links to treatment success. Recent research shows that clients can develop an affective bond with chatbots. However, few research studies have investigated whether this perceived relationship is affected by the social roles of differing closeness a chatbot can impersonate and by allowing users to choose the social role of a chatbot.

Objective

This study aimed at understanding how the social role of a chatbot can be expressed using a set of interpersonal closeness cues and examining how these social roles affect clients’ experiences and the development of an affective bond with the chatbot, depending on clients’ characteristics (ie, age and gender) and whether they can freely choose a chatbot’s social role.

Methods

Informed by the social role theory and the social response theory, we developed a design codebook for chatbots with different social roles along an interpersonal closeness continuum. Based on this codebook, we manipulated a fictitious health care chatbot to impersonate one of four distinct social roles common in health care settings—institution, expert, peer, and dialogical self—and examined effects on perceived affective bond and usage intentions in a web-based lab study. The study included a total of 251 participants, whose mean age was 41.15 (SD 13.87) years; 57.0% (143/251) of the participants were female. Participants were either randomly assigned to one of the chatbot conditions (no choice: n=202, 80.5%) or could freely choose to interact with one of these chatbot personas (free choice: n=49, 19.5%). Separate multivariate analyses of variance were performed to analyze differences (1) between the chatbot personas within the no-choice group and (2) between the no-choice and the free-choice groups.

Results

While the main effect of the chatbot persona on affective bond and usage intentions was insignificant (P=.87), we found differences based on participants’ demographic profiles: main effects for gender (P=.04, η_p²=0.115) and age (P<.001, η_p²=0.192) and a significant interaction effect of persona and age (P=.01, η_p²=0.102). Participants younger than 40 years reported higher scores for affective bond and usage intentions for the interpersonally more distant expert and institution chatbots; participants 40 years or older reported higher outcomes for the closer peer and dialogical-self chatbots. The option to freely choose a persona significantly benefited perceptions of the peer chatbot further (eg, free-choice group affective bond: mean 5.28, SD 0.89; no-choice group affective bond: mean 4.54, SD 1.10; P=.003, η_p²=0.117).

Conclusions

Manipulating a chatbot’s social role is a possible avenue for health care chatbot designers to tailor clients’ chatbot experiences using user-specific demographic factors and to improve clients’ perceptions and behavioral intentions toward the chatbot. Our results also emphasize the benefits of letting clients freely choose between chatbots.

Delay of Gratification, Gender Role Attitudes, and Death Reflections Predict Death Anxiety

Previous work has established that gender, age, and self-control can predict Death Anxiety (DA), the distress that centers around thoughts of one's mortality. However, it has not been determined if DA is associated with Delay of Gratification (DG; a tendency to forgo immediate rewards to receive a more favorable outcome in the future), attitudes toward gender roles (as compared to gender identity itself), and Death Reflections (DR; positive goals that occur when contemplating death). To examine these relations, 131 adults (45% women; aged 23-67 years) completed questionnaires that assess these constructs. We found that greater DG, egalitarian gender role attitudes, and engagement with DR were all associated with reduced DA. Gender identity was not associated with any variable, including DA. Age correlated independently with DA, but not when included in the regression models. These results demonstrate that elements of self-regulation and prosocial attitudes may predict baseline DA.

The destabilization and destandardization of social roles across the adult life course: Considering aggregate social role instability and its variability from a historical-developmental perspective

Existing research focused on social role destabilization (historical increases in role instability) and destandardization (historical increases in variability of role instability) has primarily focused on discrete social roles during discrete periods of development. Building on this work, we applied a macro approach to elucidate the extent to which historical trends toward destabilization and destandardization are occurring at the aggregate among a key set of social roles (union formation, education, residential independence, and employment) and across the whole of adulthood. Applying a historical-developmental approach, we also document how historical trends toward destabilization and destandardization vary by age. We used 3 historical, longitudinal data sets: the Monitoring the Future study (N = 69,464; 55.4% women; 75.5% white), the Panel Study of Income Dynamics (N = 45,001; 51.4% women; 54.3% white), and The Health and Retirement Study (N = 30,913; 53.6% women; 75.6% white) that collectively cover the entire adult life course and over a century of U.S. birth cohorts. We found that aggregate destabilization and destandardization have occurred across the entirety of adulthood, although trends appear more pronounced at either end of the adult life course and the specific roles driving both trends vary across the adult life course. Findings were robust for educational attainment, and destabilization and destandardization were more pronounced among women. Findings highlight the importance of considering social role changes at the aggregate and singularly, and the need to evaluate social role changes in any 1 period of adulthood in conjunction with those occurring in other periods of adulthood. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

Out of the Lab and Into the World: Analyses of Social Roles and Gender in Profiles of Scientists in The New York Times and The Scientist

Although representations of female scientists in the media have increased over time, stereotypical portrayals of science persist. In-depth, contemporary profiles of scientists’ roles have an opportunity to reflect or to challenge stereotypes of science and of gender. We employed content and linguistic analyses to examine whether publicly available profiles of scientists from New York Times and The Scientist Magazine support or challenge pervasive beliefs about science. Consistent with broader stereotypes of STEM fields, these portrayals focused more on agency than communality. However, profiles also challenged stereotypes through integrating communality, purpose, and growth. This analysis also found similar presence of communal and agentic constructs for both female and male scientists. The current findings highlight the importance of considering counterstereotypic representations of science in the media: Communicating messages to the public that challenge existing beliefs about the culture of science may be one path toward disrupting stereotypes that dissuade talented individuals from choosing science pathways.

Socioeconomic and substance use changes in emerging adults and their relationship with mood disorders in a population-based cohort

In this report, we aim to assess the interaction of bipolar disorder and major depressive disorder with the evolution of social roles, economic classification, and substance misuse in emerging adults. This is a longitudinal population-based study (n = 231 at baseline), in which participants were reassessed at a mean of 5 years after baseline. A structured clinical interview was used to diagnose the participants with bipolar disorder and major depression; a control group without mood disorders was included. Men with mood disorders were less likely to be married in the beginning of the study and less likely to work in the follow-up. Women with major depression were less likely to study and more likely to be in a lower economic class at the beginning of the study. In comparison, women with bipolar disorder were less likely to live with their parents and more likely to live with their children in the first wave of the study. Substance misuse was more likely in people with mood disorders, especially in men, and women with bipolar disorder had the highest likelihood in the follow-up. Albeit longitudinal analyses were limited by a possibly insufficient sample size and mediating mechanisms for change, such as stigma, were not explored, the study suggests sex-related specificities regarding the change in social roles and substance use in people with mood disorders. Emerging adults, especially those with mood disorders, are in a period of change and instability and at a greater risk for substance use and abuse.

Role-Aware Information Spread in Online Social Networks

Understanding the complex process of information spread in online social networks (OSNs) enables the efficient maximization/minimization of the spread of useful/harmful information. Users assume various roles based on their behaviors while engaging with information in these OSNs. Recent reviews on information spread in OSNs have focused on algorithms and challenges for modeling the local node-to-node cascading paths of viral information. However, they neglected to analyze non-viral information with low reach size that can also spread globally beyond OSN edges (links) via non-neighbors through, for example, pushed information via content recommendation algorithms. Previous reviews have also not fully considered user roles in the spread of information. To address these gaps, we: (i) provide a comprehensive survey of the latest studies on role-aware information spread in OSNs, also addressing the different temporal spreading patterns of viral and non-viral information; (ii) survey modeling approaches that consider structural, non-structural, and hybrid features, and provide a taxonomy of these approaches; (iii) review software platforms for the analysis and visualization of role-aware information spread in OSNs; and (iv) describe how information spread models enable useful applications in OSNs such as detecting influential users. We conclude by highlighting future research directions for studying information spread in OSNs, accounting for dynamic user roles.

In the Mindset of Opportunity: Proactive Mindset, Perceived Opportunities, and Role Attitudes

Perceiving roles as fulfilling goals offers motivational benefits to students, and yet the features of individuals or contexts that align with seeing such role opportunities have not been studied systematically. The current research investigated how these goal affordances are related to proactive mindset or a person's belief that they can shape their contexts. Three studies examined how variation in proactivity aligns with perceiving more communal and agentic goal opportunities in roles. Study 1 found that highly proactive college students (vs. less proactive students) tended to perceive their future careers as fulfilling communal and agentic goals, which predicted positive career attitudes. Study 2 replicated this association, while ruling out behavioral flexibility as accounting for the proactivity-positivity relationship. Study 3 experimentally tested whether growth-oriented contexts foster proactivity. Proactive mindset aligns with more expansive views of roles as fulfilling fundamental motives. These views, in turn, carry positive implications for one's future career attitudes.

Occupational changes during the COVID-19 lockdown in Jordan

BACKGROUND

Measures to limit the spread of COVID-19 have disrupted the lives of countless millions of individuals worldwide.

OBJECTIVE

To explore the experiences of occupational disruption and changing social roles among Jordanians during COVID-19 lockdown in 2020. The specific aim was to explore the changing occupations, routines, roles and coping strategies.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

This qualitative study used a digital ethnographic approach. Data collection included online observations of Jordanian's posts of comments, photos and videos on six public Facebook pages during the COVID-19 lockdown for the initial 3-week period. In addition, 150 Jordanians participated in an online interview answering four open-ended questions to achieve triangulation. Qualitative analyses included open coding of the photos, videos and text as well as the interviews independently and blindly by the research team.

RESULTS

Four themes were identified: changing daily occupations; changing family roles; missing pre-lockdown life and coping strategies under lockdown.

CONCLUSION

The COVID-19 lockdown restrictions caused direct, significant and immediate changes to Jordanians' occupations, routines and roles; enforcing new obligatory occupations and eliminating desired ones.

SIGNIFICANCE

Knowledge from this study highlight the kinds of strategies and supports during and after lockdowns that need to be considered in future planning of occupational therapy practice in Jordan.

PROMIS Scales for Assessment of Persistent Post-COVID Symptoms: A Cross Sectional Study

Objective

Persistent post-COVID symptoms are estimated to occur in up to 10% of patients who have had COVID-19. These lingering symptoms may persist for weeks to months after resolution of the acute illness. This study aimed to add insight into our understanding of certain post-acute conditions and clinical findings. The primary purpose was to determine the persistent post COVID impairments prevalence and characteristics by collecting post COVID illness data utilizing Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS^®). The resulting measures were used to assess surveyed patients physical, mental, and social health status.

Methods

A cross-sectional study and 6-months Mayo Clinic COVID recovered registry data were used to evaluate continuing symptoms severity among the 817 positive tested patients surveyed between March and September 2020. The resulting PROMIS^® data set was used to analyze patients post 30 days health status. The e-mailed questionnaires focused on fatigue, sleep, ability to participate in social roles, physical function, and pain.

Results

The large sample size (n = 817) represented post hospitalized and other managed outpatients. Persistent post COVID impairments prevalence and characteristics were determined to be demographically young (44 years), white (87%), and female (61%). Dysfunction as measured by the PROMIS^® scales in patients recovered from acute COVID-19 was reported as significant in the following domains: ability to participate in social roles (43.2%), pain (17.8%), and fatigue (16.2%).

Conclusion

Patient response on the PROMIS^® scales was similar to that seen in multiple other studies which used patient reported symptoms. As a result of this experience, we recommend utilizing standardized scales such as the PROMIS^® to obtain comparable data across the patients’ clinical course and define the disease trajectory. This would further allow for effective comparison of data across studies to better define the disease process, risk factors, and assess the impact of future treatments.

Psychosocial and Organizational Processes and Determinants of Health Care Workers' (HCW) Health at Work in French Public EHPAD (Assisted Living Residences): A Qualitative Approach Using Grounded Theory

In a context marked by negative health indicators that make structural aspects more salient, this paper aimed at understanding and explaining the processes and determinants at work that positively and negatively interfere with the professionals’ health in the French public nursing home environment. To this purpose, the qualitative approach by grounded theory was chosen. In total, 90 semi-structured interviews were recorded and 43 were transcribed; in addition, 10 observations of 46 participations in meetings and working groups were carried out in four public service and hospital establishments. Our results indicate that the role of health workers, its definition, and its execution are fundamental to the understanding of their health at work. Two protective and constructive processes are involved in the maintenance and development of the professionals’ health in this work, with considerable confrontations with death and suffering: individual and collective control of emotional and cognitive commitment, and the development of resources for formation, information, and cooperation. Nonetheless, they are jeopardized when a lasting imbalance is generated between the work’s demands and the available resources. This leads to a loss spiral in organizational, inter-individual, and individual resources that makes it difficult to sustain work.

Gender Differences in the Attitudes of Parents Living with Adult Children with Schizophrenia

BACKGROUND

This paper explored the gender differences in the attitudes of parents toward taking care of their adult daughters or sons with schizophrenia, and focused on how parents define and think about the roles of their children, and how they cope with fulfilling the expected roles.

METHODS

Qualitative research design and purpose sampling were used to enroll parents who had adult patients with schizophrenia at a medical center in central Taiwan. Semi-structured in-depth interviews were conducted and content analysis was used to analyze the data.

RESULTS

Seven main themes emerged from the data provided by ten parents living with adult children with schizophrenia. Three themes that focused on gender difference are listed: parents continue to expect their sons with schizophrenia to carry on the family name; society as a whole expects males to be the "head of the family"; male family members are supposed to assume the responsibility of caring for siblings with schizophrenia.

CONCLUSIONS

The results of the study could help clinical professionals to understand and have greater empathy with regard to the difficulties for families and the concerns of parents taking care of their children with schizophrenia in the specific context of Chinese culture, and to provide more efficient and responsive assistance.

The Effect of Workplace Gender Composition on Investment Interest in Hypothetical Companies

The current study extends previous work on gendered workplace attitudes by manipulating the workplace gender composition (CEO gender, employee gender) of traditional male and female employment sectors. Participants reported general financial investment interest in purported male-role congruent (science laboratory) and female-role congruent (daycare) start-up companies, where CEO gender and employee gender were orthogonally manipulated. Participants had more favorable investment attitudes toward daycares when the CEO was a woman, and especially favorable investment attitudes when both the CEO and employees were women. These findings were stronger for participants higher in hostile sexism. For science laboratories, participants reported equivalent investment attitudes, regardless of CEO gender, as long as the employee gender composition matched the CEO gender (i.e., female CEO + female employees). These findings suggest that social role expectations influence investment attitudes in predictable ways for traditional female employment sectors, but in more nuanced ways for traditional male employment sectors.

Gender-related sociocultural differences and COVID-19: what influence on the effects of the pandemic?

In the first stages of the pandemic, the adverse outcomes of COVID-19 were significantly higher in men than in women most likely as the effect of biological, hormonal, metabolic differences between the two sexes. However, gender-related differences in lifestyles and social roles can also greatly influence the course of disease. To fully understand the influence of gender in the COVID-19 outbreak, the collection and dissemination of disaggregated data must be enhanced to allow a better knowledge of the effects of SARS-CoV-2 infection in men and women, not only from a biomedical point of view, but also considering the risk factors associated with the different roles that they play in the society.

The relationship between social roles and psychosocial adjustment in women with HIV: A structural equation model

BACKGROUND

The human immunodeficiency virus is a unique social phenomenon that affects almost all the aspects of the social and economic life of individuals. The present study was conducted for the path analysis of the relationship between social roles and psychosocial adjustment in women with AIDS.

METHODS

This cross-sectional study was conducted in 2019 on 240 women with HIV who referred to the Counseling Center for Behavioral Diseases of Imam Khomeini Hospital in Tehran. The eligible individuals entered the study through convenience sampling, and data were collected using five questionnaires, including the Psychosocial Adjustment to Illness Scale, the Perceived Social Support Scale, the Multidimensional Health Locus of Control Scales, the Illness Perception Questionnaire, the Experiences in Close Relationship Scale, and a socio-demographic checklist. Data were analyzed using SPSS 16 and Lisrel 8.8 software.

RESULTS

According to the results of the path analysis, internal health locus of control and patient's age have a significant positive relationship with psychosocial adjustment only through the direct path, and among them, patient's age has the greatest positive and direct relationship (B = 0.139). In the indirect path, education, external health locus of control, anxiety in experiences of close relationships, and perceived support have the greatest relationship with psychosocial adjustment, and among these variables, education has the highest positive relationship (B = 0.06). Illness perception, avoidance in experiences of close relationships, and chance locus of health control are associated with psychosocial adjustment through both direct and indirect paths, and among these variables, chance locus of health control has the greatest overall relationship with psychosocial adjustment (B = 0.238).

CONCLUSION

Based on the results, social roles and physical health are directly/indirectly associated with psychosocial adjustment, which emphasizes the need to pay more attention to all three aspects of psychosocial health, especially in this vulnerable group of the society.

Transitions Catalyst Model: Testing within- and between-Person Associations between Social Relationships and Alcohol Use, Motives, and Consequences among Young Adults

Background: The Transitions Catalyst Model suggests increased drinking during young adulthood is due to the notion that alcohol facilitates friendships and romantic/sexual relationships during a developmental period when these relationships are highly valued. However, little research has tested the utility of this model. We examined (1) whether young adults reported greater drinking and related consequences on months when friendships were more important to them or when they were dating casually, and (2) the extent to which social drinking motives explain these associations on a given month. Methods: Data were drawn from 752 young adults (ages 18-23 at screening) living in the Seattle, WA area (56.4% female). For 24 consecutive months, surveys assessed past month alcohol use and consequences, social drinking motives, friendship importance, and dating/relationship status. Bayesian multilevel models were conducted, adjusting for time-fixed and time-varying covariates. Results: Analyses included 11,591 monthly observations. Between-persons, greater average friendship importance was associated with greater drinking. On months when participants reported greater friendship importance than their own average, they reported greater drinking and alcohol consequences. Those who reported more months of casual dating reported greater drinking and consequences on average. Relative to casual dating months, participants reported less drinking during months they were single or in a relationship and fewer consequences during months in a relationship. Associations were partially accounted for by social motives. Discussion: Findings support the Transitions Catalyst Model. Effective strategies for reducing drinking and associated risks among young adults include brief interventions focused on how social drinking motives and relationships relate to drinking decisions.

Social Experience of Captive Livingstone's Fruit Bats (Pteropus livingstonii)

Social network analysis has been highlighted as a powerful tool to enhance the evidence-based management of captive-housed species through its ability to quantify the social experience of individuals. We apply this technique to explore the social structure and social roles of 50 Livingstone's fruit bats (Pteropus livingstonii) housed at Jersey Zoo, Channel Islands, through the observation of associative, affiliative, and aggressive interactions over two data collection periods. We implement binomial mixture modelling and characteristic-based assortment quantification to describe the complexity and organisation of social networks, as well as a multiple regression quadratic assignment procedural (MRQAP) test to analyse the relationship between network types. We examine the effects of individual characteristics (i.e., sex, age, and dominance rank) on social role by fitting models to explain the magnitude of node metrics. Additionally, we utilize a quadratic assignment procedural (QAP) test to assess the temporal stability of social roles over two seasons. Our results indicate that P. livingstonii display a non-random network structure. Observed social networks are positively assorted by age, as well as dominance rank. The frequency of association between individuals correlates with a higher frequency of behavioural interactions, both affiliative and aggressive. Individual social roles remain consistent over ten months. We recommend that, to improve welfare and captive breeding success, relationships between individuals of similar ages and dominance levels should be allowed to persist in this group where possible, and separating individuals that interact frequently in an affiliative context should be avoided.

Gender differences in social harms from drinking among young Australians: findings from the Mater University Study of Pregnancy and its Outcomes

Background: Despite the growing interest in investigating social harms from drinking, little is known about drinkers' reports of these harms and their gender differences among Australian young adults at age 30. We aimed to examine gender differences of social harms from drinking as reported by drinkers.Methods: 2,200 young adults at age 30 with complete data on social harms from drinking were drawn from the 30-year follow-up of the Mater-University of Queensland Study of Pregnancy. Measures included percentages of 11 past-year drinkers' self-reported social harms stratified by gender. Logistic regression was used to examine associations between gender and each social harm, accounting for relevant confounding.Results: More than one in five young adults (22%) reported at least one social harm in the past year. Among binge drinkers, 44% reported at least one social harm. After adjustments for social roles and binge drinking, we found no gender differences on several self-reported social harms: friendship problems, people criticizing drinking, non-marital family problems, employment problems, and alcohol-fuelled fights. However, men were more likely to report spousal threats to leave, drink-driving legal problems and financial problems.Conclusions: Our findings demonstrate that young adults are still vulnerable to risky drinking at age 30 and the social harm resulting from drinking. Thus, alcohol prevention campaigns should target this age group and include women in their focus. Strategies aiming to reduce alcohol-related harms, such as screening in clinical settings for risky drinking and alcohol-related harms, followed by motivational behavior interventions, could be beneficial among these vulnerable groups.

Social role functioning in Parkinson's disease: A mixed-methods systematic review

OBJECTIVES

Parkinson's disease (PD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disease that often impedes activities of daily living (ADL) and social functioning. Impairment in these areas can alter social roles by interfering with employment status, household management, friendships, and other relationships. Understanding how PD affects social functioning can help clinicians choose management strategies that mitigate these changes.

METHODS

We conducted a mixed-methods systematic review of existing literature on social roles and social functioning in PD. A tailored search strategy in five databases identified 51 full-text reports that fulfilled the inclusion criteria and passed the quality appraisal. We aggregated and analyzed the results from these studies and then created a narrative summary.

RESULTS

Our review demonstrates how PD causes many people to withdraw from their accustomed social roles and experience deficits in corresponding activities. We describe how PD symptoms (eg, tremor, facial masking, and neuropsychiatric symptoms) interfere with relationships (eg, couple, friends, and family) and precipitate earlier departure from the workforce. Additionally, several studies demonstrated that conventional PD therapy has little positive effect on social role functioning.

CONCLUSIONS

Our report presents critical insight into how PD affects social functioning and gives direction to future studies and interventions (eg, couple counseling and recreational activities).

Young adult longitudinal patterns of marijuana use among US National samples of 12th grade frequent marijuana users: a repeated-measures latent class analysis

BACKGROUND AND AIMS

Long-term frequent marijuana use is associated with significant negative outcomes, yet little is known about the longitudinal course of marijuana use among those who start frequent use during adolescence. Objectives are (a) to identify latent patterns of within-person marijuana use from ages 19-30 years among 12th graders reporting frequent marijuana use, (b) to examine if membership in identified patterns has changed across historical time and (c) to examine if key covariates differentiate class membership.

DESIGN, SETTING, PARTICIPANTS

Longitudinal, national US panel data from 4423 individuals [53.4% of the eligible sample; 2744 (62%) males] who reported frequent marijuana use in 12th grade (modal age 18 years; senior year cohorts 1976-2006) followed biennially from ages 19/20 to 29/30.

MEASUREMENTS

Self-reported past 30-day marijuana use (frequent use defined as use on 20+ occasions), demographics, college graduation, marriage and parenthood.

FINDINGS

Repeated-measures latent class analysis (RMLCA) identified five latent classes of past 30-day marijuana use from ages 19/20 to 29/30: continued frequent users (estimated membership 23.4%); frequent to non-frequent users (15.5%); consistent non-frequent users (18.4%); non-frequent users to discontinuers (19.5%); and discontinuers (23.2%). In multivariable models, membership in the highest-risk latent class (continued frequent users) versus one or more of the lower-risk latent classes was more likely for recent cohorts (P = 0.038 to <0.001), as well as those who did not marry (P = 0.039 to < 0.001) or become parents (P = 0.001) by modal age 29/30.

CONCLUSIONS

Nearly one in four 12th grade (modal age 18 years) frequent marijuana users in the US continues to report high frequency use to age 30; the proportion continuing high frequency use across young adulthood has increased among more recent cohorts.

Sex differences in adolescent physical aggression: Evidence from sixty-three low-and middle-income countries

A great deal of research shows that adolescent and adult males are more likely to engage in physical aggression and violence than females are. However, few studies have examined cross-cultural variation in sex differences, particularly among low- and middle-income countries [LMICs]. Based on social role and sexual selection theories, we derived two hypotheses regarding possible variations in sex differences across societal contexts: 1) sex differences increase with societal gender polarization (social role theory) and 2) sex differences are exacerbated in societies where socio-economic opportunities are scarce, unequal, or insecure (prediction derived from sexual selection theory). The current study examined the prevalence of and variation in sex differences in physical aggression, as measured by frequent fighting, among 247,909 adolescents in 63 low- and middle-income countries. The results show that, overall, males were over twice as likely (OR = 2.68; 95% CI = 2.60-2.76) to report frequent fighting in the past 12 months than females. However, sex differences vary significantly across LMICs, wherein countries with higher female prevalence rates have smaller sex differences in frequent fighting. Contrary to expectations derived from social role theory, sex differences in physical aggression decrease as societal gender inequality increased. In regards to sexual selection theory, we find no evidence that sex differences in frequent fighting varies according to societal rule of law or income inequality.

Work and the Family in Later Life: The Effects of Role Stressors, Role Enhancement, and Role Conflict on Self-Perceptions on Aging

The growing aging workforce comprises older workers with a concurrent family role. Guided by life span development and role theories, the primary study hypothesis was that rewards and stressors in the family and work domains would impact self-perceptions on aging because of the enhancement and conflict between these domains. The study sample consisted of workers older than 50 years with at least one of four family roles (spouse, parent of adult children, caregiver to an aging parent, and grandparent) from the 2010 and 2012 Health and Retirement Study ( N = 5,628). Results showed that self-perceptions on aging were impacted directly by family and work stressors and indirectly by these stressors through work-family enhancement and conflict . Work and family roles are thus crucial to the identity of adults in later life.

Contextualizing personality: Personality within and across social roles and conceptual levels

OBJECTIVE

Personality psychologists have begun to consider the predictive ability of comparable personality characteristics at the levels of traits, goals, and narrative identity. Here, we build upon and extend this work by adopting a contextualized personality approach. Doing so entailed exploring the implications of personality characteristics within three social roles and at each level of personality in relation to role-specific and generalized measures of psychological adjustment.

METHODS

Undergraduates (N = 155) rated traits and specified goals and narratives pertaining to their roles as friends, students, and sons/daughters. Measures of trait-based, goal-based, and narrative-based approach orientation were subsequently derived.

RESULTS

Within personality levels, mean-levels of approach orientation differed significantly across social roles. Goal-based and narrative-based approach orientation showed inconsistent associations with role-specific psychological adjustment. When approach orientation was aggregated across roles, however, it demonstrated positive relations with adjustment at each personality level.

CONCLUSIONS

There exists contextual variability among and between personality characteristics and adjustment. In addition, in certain cases, aggregating across contextualized personality measures (within conceptual levels) may provide a more reliable indicator of the underlying psychological construct. These results contribute to an evolving understanding of personality coherence and the relation between personality characteristics and context.

Gender in the Afterlife: An Exploration of Dynamic Gender Stereotypes in the Epitaphs of the Merry Cemetery of Săpânţa

Gender stereotypes are shaped by the roles men and women fulfill in society. Our study uses a cultural artifact analysis and explores the way in which remunerated jobs, development across lifespan and historical time frames influence the content of gender stereotypes. We coded the feminine and masculine attributes in a selection of epitaphs written on the painted crosses of the Merry Cemetery of Săpânţa (Romania) between 1935 and 2010. This novel historical approach allowed us to explore the dynamic nature of gender stereotypes and the extent to which changes in the social context or the social roles have transformed the content of gender stereotypes. We show that during years of social unrest associated with the World War II and the early communist years the masculine attributes are dominant while during the last decades of the communist regime and the post-communist period the feminine attributes become more prevalent. Moreover, people having paid jobs are described as being more masculine than the homemakers. Finally, our results show an increase of masculinity during the lifespan for both male and female as well as an increase of androgyny with age for women and a slight decrease with age for men.

Older Men's Social Integration After Prison

This study explores the social integration processes older men experience following prison release. Semi-structured in-depth interviews and brief surveys were conducted with 20 men, 50 years of age and older, recently released from prison in a large, Eastern U.S. city. A follow-up interview was conducted with each participant. Conventional content analysis was used to analyze these data. Results show that while men are able to connect with and rely upon some family members and establish basic public benefits, older men's release experience is nonetheless marked by pervasive disconnection from key desired social relationships and roles. Policies and programs designed to facilitate older men's social integration are discussed.

Dehumanizing Gender: The Debiasing Effects of Gendering Human-Abstracted Entities

The propensity to "gender"-or conceptually divide entities by masculinity versus femininity-is pervasive. Such gendering is argued to hinder gender equality, as it reifies the bifurcation of men and women into two unequal categories, leading many to advocate for a "de-gendering movement." However, gendering is so prevalent that individuals can also gender entities far removed from human sex categories of male and female (i.e., weather, numbers, sounds) due to the conceptual similarities they share with our notions of masculinity and femininity (e.g., tough, tender). While intuition might predict that extending gender to these (human-abstracted) entities only further reinforces stereotypes, the current work presents a novel model and evidence demonstrating the opposing effect. Five studies demonstrate that gendering human-abstracted entities highlights how divorced psychological notions of gender are from biological sex, thereby decreasing gender stereotyping and penalties toward stereotype violators, through reducing essentialist views of gender. Rather than "de-gendering" humans, we demonstrate the potential benefits of "dehumanizing gender."

Substance use behaviors and the timing of family formation during young adulthood

The impact of substance use on the life course of young adults can be substantial, yet few studies have examined to what extent early adult substance use behaviors are related to the timing of family formation, independent of confounding factors from adolescence. Using panel data from the Monitoring the Future study (N~20,000), the current study examined the associations between three substance use behaviors (i.e., cigarette use, binge drinking, and marijuana use) and the timing of family formation events in young adulthood. Survival analysis and propensity score weighting addressed pre-existing differences between substance users and non-users in the estimation of the timing of union formation (i.e., marriage, cohabitation) and parenthood. Results for young adult substance users showed general patterns of reduced rates of marriage and parenthood, and increased cohabitation during young adulthood. Variations were evident by substance and sex.

Power in everyday life

How does power manifest itself in everyday life? Using experience-sampling methodology, we investigated the prevalence, sources, and correlates of power in people's natural environments. Participants experienced power-relevant situations regularly, though not frequently. High power was not restricted to a limited few: almost half of the sample reported experiencing high-power positions. Positional power and subjective feelings of power were strongly related but had unique relations with several individual difference measures and independent effects on participants' affect, cognition, and interpersonal relations. Subjective feelings of power resulted more from within-participant situational fluctuation, such as the social roles participants held at different times, than from stable differences between people. Our data supported some theoretical predictions about power's effects on affect, cognition, and interpersonal relations, but qualified others, particularly highlighting the role of responsibility in power's effects. Although the power literature has focused on high power, we found stronger effects of low power than high power.

A Goal Congruity Model of Role Entry, Engagement, and Exit: Understanding Communal Goal Processes in STEM Gender Gaps

The goal congruity perspective provides a theoretical framework to understand how motivational processes influence and are influenced by social roles. In particular, we invoke this framework to understand communal goal processes as proximal motivators of decisions to engage in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). STEM fields are not perceived as affording communal opportunities to work with or help others, and understanding these perceived goal affordances can inform knowledge about differences between (a) STEM and other career pathways and (b) women's and men's choices. We review the patterning of gender disparities in STEM that leads to a focus on communal goal congruity (Part I), provide evidence for the foundational logic of the perspective (Part II), and explore the implications for research and policy (Part III). Understanding and transmitting the opportunities for communal goal pursuit within STEM can reap widespread benefits for broadening and deepening participation.

The Social Perception of Heroes and Murderers: Effects of Gender-Inclusive Language in Media Reports

The way media depict women and men can reinforce or diminish gender stereotyping. Which part does language play in this context? Are roles perceived as more gender-balanced when feminine role nouns are used in addition to masculine ones? Research on gender-inclusive language shows that the use of feminine-masculine word pairs tends to increase the visibility of women in various social roles. For example, when speakers of German were asked to name their favorite “heroine or hero in a novel,” they listed more female characters than when asked to name their favorite “hero in a novel.” The research reported in this article examines how the use of gender-inclusive language in news reports affects readers’ own usage of such forms as well as their mental representation of women and men in the respective roles. In the main experiment, German participants (N = 256) read short reports about heroes or murderers which contained either masculine generics or gender-inclusive forms (feminine-masculine word pairs). Gender-inclusive forms enhanced participants’ own usage of gender-inclusive language and this resulted in more gender-balanced mental representations of these roles. Reading about “heroines and heroes” made participants assume a higher percentage of women among persons performing heroic acts than reading about “heroes” only, but there was no such effect for murderers. A post-test suggested that this might be due to a higher accessibility of female exemplars in the category heroes than in the category murderers. Importantly, the influence of gender-inclusive language on the perceived percentage of women in a role was mediated by speakers’ own usage of inclusive forms. This suggests that people who encounter gender-inclusive forms and are given an opportunity to use them, use them more themselves and in turn have more gender-balanced mental representations of social roles.

U.S. masters track participation reveals a stable sex difference in competitiveness

It is well established that men are more likely than women to engage in direct competition, but it is unclear if this reflects social structural conditions or evolved predispositions. These hypotheses can be addressed by quantifying competitiveness in sports and testing if the sex difference is decreasing over time in the U.S., a society where social roles have converged. Study 1 assessed participation and the occurrence of relatively fast performances by masters runners (40-74 years old) at recent road races and track meets. Fast performances occurred over 20 times more often at track meets than at road races. Women comprised 55% of finishers at roads races but only 15-28% of finishers at track meets. Thus, the sex difference in masters track participation can serve as a measure of the sex difference in competitiveness. Study 2 used data from national championship meets and yearly rankings lists to test whether the sex difference in masters track participation decreased from 1988-2012. The sex difference decreased overall, but there was no evidence of change since the late 1990s. Therefore, the sex difference in the willingness to engage in direct sports competition appears to reflect both social structural conditions and evolved predispositions.

Sex differences in aggression among children of low and high gender inequality backgrounds: a comparison of gender role and sexual selection theories

It is well understood in aggression research that males tend to exhibit higher levels of physical aggression than females. Yet there are still a number of gaps in our understanding of variation in sex differences in children's aggression, particularly in contexts outside North America. A key assumption of social role theory is that sex differences vary according to gender polarization, whereas sexual selection theory accords variation to the ecological environment that consequently affects male competition [Archer, J. (2009). Behavioral and Brain Sciences, 32, 249-311; Kenrick, D., & Griskevicious, V. (2009). More holes in social roles [Comment]. Behavioral and Brain Sciences, 32, 283-285]. In the present paper, we explore these contradicting theoretical frameworks by examining data from a longitudinal study of a culturally diverse sample of 863 children at ages 7-13 in Zurich, Switzerland. Making use of the large proportion of children from highly diverse immigrant background we compare the size of the sex difference in aggression between children whose parents were born in countries with low and with high levels of gender inequality. The results show that sex differences in aggression are generally larger among children with parents from high gender inequality backgrounds. However, this effect is small in comparison to the direct effect of a child's biological sex. We discuss implications for future research on sex differences in children's aggression.

Defining young in the context of prostate cancer

The experience of prostate cancer is for most men a major life stress with the psychological burden of this disease falling more heavily on those who are younger. Despite this, being young as it applies to prostate cancer is not yet clearly defined with varied chronological approaches applied. However, men’s responses to health crises are closely bound to life course and masculinities from which social roles emerge. This paper applied qualitative methodology (structured focus groups and semistructured interviews with expert informants) using interpretative phenomenological analysis to define what it means to be young and have prostate cancer. Structured focus groups were held with 26 consumer advisors (men diagnosed with prostate cancer who provide support to other men with prostate cancer or raise community awareness) and health professionals. As well, 15 men diagnosed with prostate cancer and in their 40s, 50s, or 60s participated in semi-structured interviews. Participants discussed the attributes that describe a young man with prostate cancer and the experience of being young and diagnosed with prostate cancer. Chronological definitions of a young man were absent or inconsistent. Masculine constructions of what it means to be a young man and life course characteristics appear more relevant to defining young as it applies to prostate cancer compared with chronological age. These findings have implications for better understanding the morbidities associated with this illness, and in designing interventions that are oriented to life course and helping young men reconstruct their identities after prostate cancer.

Gender differences in the importance of participation associated with injured workers/persons perceived barriers to returning to work in the context of vocational rehabilitation

PURPOSE

To investigate gender differences in the importance of participation in core domains of life, and the association to perceived hindrances for return to work (RTW) before (T1) and after (T2) vocational rehabilitation.

METHODS

Two hundred-seventy (T1) and 149 (T2) respondents completed the questionnaire. Gender differences in the importance of participation were calculated using t-tests. A principal component analysis was conducted on 21 questions of hindrances for RTW. A four-component structure was chosen. The family care barrier component was kept as an outcome variable in the logistic regression.

RESULTS

There were mean gender differences in importance of participation in family prior to chronic pain and at T1. Importance of work changed from prior to pain to rehabilitation. At T1 children, age and importance of participation in work and family contributed to the model for women. For men importance of participation in leisure contributed to the model. The variables which contributed to the model at T2 for women were age and importance of participation in work and for men; children and importance of participation in leisure.

CONCLUSION

Understanding gender differences in participation, and the association to hindrances for RTW, can enhance the rehabilitation counsellor's ability to work collaboratively with the clients. Implications for Rehabilitation Participation is a value and context driven process which influences the process of vocational rehabilitation. Understanding the driving forces for participation in important domains of life can illuminate gender differences in the process and outcome of vocational rehabilitation. Understanding gender differences in importance of participation, and the association to perceived hindrances to return to work, facilitates a shared understanding of rehabilitation goals among clients and rehabilitation professionals.

Development and Psychometric Evaluation of a German Version of the PROMIS® Item Banks for Satisfaction With Participation

The Patient Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS) initiative aims to provide reliable and precise item banks measuring patient-reported outcomes in different health domains. The aim of the present work was to provide a German translation of the PROMIS item banks for satisfaction with participation and to psychometrically test these German versions. Cognitive interviews followed a forward-backward translation. Distribution characteristics, unidimensionality, Rasch model fit, reliability, construct validity, and internal responsiveness were tested in 262 patients with chronic low back pain undergoing rehabilitation. Results for the final 13- and 10-item German static scales (Satisfaction with Participation in Social Roles-German version [PSR-G] and Satisfaction for Participation in Discretionary Social Activities-German version [PSA-G]) regarding unidimensionality were satisfactory. The scales are reliable and show good Rasch model fit and distribution characteristics. Both scales are sensitive to small to moderate clinical changes, and we observed initial proof of construct validity. These German versions of the Satisfaction with Participation scales can be recommended to assess participation in a clinical context. The scales' applicability in other contexts should be examined.

Substance use changes and social role transitions: proximal developmental effects on ongoing trajectories from late adolescence through early adulthood

Substance use changes rapidly during late adolescence and early adulthood. This time in the life course is also dense with social role changes, as role changes provide dynamic context for individual developmental change. Using nationally representative, multiwave longitudinal data from age 18 to 28, we examine proximal links between changes in social roles and changes in substance use during the transition to adulthood. We find that changes in family roles, such as marriage, divorce, and parenthood, have clear and consistent associations with changes in substance use. With some notable exceptions, changes in school and work roles have weaker effects on changes in substance use compared to family roles. Changes in socializing (i.e., nights out for fun and recreation) and in religiosity were found to mediate the relationship of social role transitions to substance use. Two time-invariant covariates, socioeconomic background and heavy adolescent substance use, predicted social role status, but did not moderate associations, as within-person links between social roles and substance use were largely equivalent across groups. This paper adds to the cascading effects literature by considering how, within individuals, more proximal variations in school, work, and family roles relate to variations in substance use, and which roles appear to be most influential in precipitating changes in substance use during the transition to adulthood.

Men's and Women's Pathways to Adulthood and Their Adolescent Precursors

This study compared men's and women's pathways to adulthood by examining how role transitions in education, work, marriage, and parenthood intersect and form developmental pathways from ages 18-30. The study investigated how sociodemographic factors and adolescent experiences were associated with these pathways. We used latent class analysis to analyze longitudinal data from a gender-balanced panel of 808 contemporary young adults. We found three similar latent pathways for both genders, but men and women differed in the timing of marriage and when they began to live with children and the likelihood of combining both roles. The present study points to the continued, though differential, relevance of marriage and family in the transition to adulthood for men and women.

Perceived reciprocity in social exchange and health functioning in early old age: prospective findings from the GAZEL study

OBJECTIVES

To assess prospectively the effects of perceived non-reciprocity of exchange in three different types of social engagement on health functioning in early old age.

METHODS

In the frame of the prospective French GAZEL cohort study, data on reciprocity in three types of role-related social engagement (principal regular activity in everyday life, marital role relationship, trusting relationships in civic life) were collected from 8679 men and 2742 women (mean age: 60.4 years) in 2005. Two years later, health functioning was assessed using the SF-36 mental and physical component scores, as well as self-perceived health. Multivariate regressions were calculated, controlling for important confounders including baseline self-perceived health.

RESULTS

Consistent effects of perceived non-reciprocity in all three types of social exchange on mental and physical health functioning were observed. After adjustment for relevant confounders including baseline self-perceived, health effects were attenuated, but largely remained significant.

CONCLUSIONS

Findings underline the importance of the quality of social exchange (reciprocity vs. non-reciprocity) for health functioning in early old age.

Welfare receipt trajectories of African-American women followed for 30 years

Although there has been much discussion about the persistence of poverty and welfare receipt among child-rearing women in the US, little is known about long-term patterns of poverty and welfare receipt or what differentiates those who remain on welfare from those who do not. Furthermore, are there distinctions between child-rearing women who are poor but not on welfare from those who do receive welfare? This study examined trajectories of welfare receipt and poverty among African-American women (n = 680) followed from 1966 to 1997. A semiparametric group-based approach revealed four trajectories of welfare receipt: no welfare (64.2%), early leavers (12.7%), late leavers (10.1%), and persistent welfare recipients (10.1%). The "no welfare" group was further divided into a poverty group and a not poverty group to distinguish predictors of welfare from predictors of poverty. Multivariate analyses revealed differences in predictors of trajectory groups in terms of education, physical and psychological health, and social integration. In addition, earlier chronic illness and social integration were important predictors to differentiate between long-term users (i.e., late leavers, persistent recipients) and short-term users (i.e., early leavers). Trajectories did not differ in teenage motherhood, substance use, or family history of welfare receipt. Implications for public policy are discussed.

Resident-Assisted Montessori Programming (RAMP): use of a small group reading activity run by persons with dementia in adult day health care and long-term care settings

Six persons in the early to middle stages of dementia ("leaders") were trained in Resident-Assisted Montessori Programming (RAMP) to lead a reading activity for 22 persons with more advanced dementia ("participants") in an adult day health center (ADHC) and a special care unit (SCU) in a skilled nursing facility. Researchers assessed the leaders' abilities to learn and follow the procedures of leading a group, as well as their satisfaction with their roles. In addition, participants' engagement and affect were measured, both during standard activities programming and during client-led activities. Results of this study suggest that persons with dementia can indeed successfully lead small group activities, if several important prerequisites are met. Furthermore, the engagement and affect of participants was more positive in client-led activities than in standard activities programming.

Life course social roles and women's health in mid-life: causation or selection?

STUDY OBJECTIVE

To investigate whether relations between social roles and health are explained by health selection into employment and parenthood by examining the influence of early health on relations between long term social role histories and health in mid-life.

DESIGN

Prospective, population based, birth cohort study.

PARTICIPANTS AND SETTING

Women from a national British cohort born in 1946, including 1171 women with a valid measure of self reported health at age 54 and valid work and family role measures at ages 26, 36, 43, and 53, as well as 1433 women with a valid body mass index (BMI) measure at age 53 and valid work and family role measures at ages 26, 36, 43, and 53.

OUTCOME MEASURES

Self reported health at age 54 and obesity at age 53, taken from objective height and weight measures conducted by a survey nurse during face to face interviews in respondents' homes.

MAIN RESULTS

Women who occupied multiple roles over the long term reported relatively good health at age 54 and this was not explained by early health. Women with weak long term ties to the labour market were more likely to be obese at age 53. Examination of body mass index (BMI) from age 15 showed that long term homemakers were larger than other women from age 26, but their mean BMI increased significantly more with age than that of other women.

CONCLUSIONS

Relations between social roles and health were generally not explained by health selection into employment and parenthood, although some health selection may occur for obesity.