Underlining neighbourhood perception: a possible risk factor for dementia that deserves more attention

This essay highlights the interplay between the neighbourhood structural environment and neighbourhood perceptions on dementia by articulating how an individual's perception of neighbourhood, with respect to their individual differences, may provide key insights to understand the link between the neighbourhood and dementia.

A longitudinal assessment of variability in COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy and psychosocial correlates in a national United States sample

Recent evidence suggests that COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy is not static. In order to develop effective vaccine uptake interventions, we need to understand the extent to which vaccine hesitancy fluctuates and identify factors associated with both between- and within-person differences in vaccine hesitancy. The goals of the current study were to assess the extent to which COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy varied at an individual level across time and to determine whether disgust sensitivity and germ aversion were associated with between- and within-person differences in COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy. A national sample of U.S. adults (N = 1025; 516 woman; M_age = 46.34 years, SD_age = 16.56, range: 18 to 85 years; 72.6 % White) completed six weekly online surveys (March 20 - May 3, 2020). Between-person mean COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy rates were relatively stable across the six-week period (range: 38-42 %). However, there was considerable within-person variability in COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy. Approximately, 40 % of the sample changed their vaccine hesitancy at least once during the six weeks. There was a significant between-person effect for disgust sensitivity, such that greater disgust sensitivity was associated with a lower likelihood of COVID-19 vaccine hesitance. There was also a significant within-person effect for germ aversion. Participants who experienced greater germ aversion for a given week relative to their own six week average were less likely to be COVID-19 vaccine hesitant that week relative to their own six-week average. This study provides important information on rapidly changing individual variability in COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy on a weekly basis, which should be taken into consideration with any efforts to decrease vaccine hesitancy and increase vaccine uptake. Further, these findings identify-two psychological factors (disgust sensitivity and germ aversion) with malleable components that could be leveraged in developing vaccine uptake interventions.

The behavioral immune system and use of transportation services during the COVID-19 pandemic

Introduction

A primary means of reducing the spread of COVID-19 is avoidance of close contact with other people, particularly in closed areas. Transportation services generally require being in closed spaces with other people, which has resulted in a significant reduction in use during the COVID-19 pandemic. Understanding individual differences associated with likelihood of using transportation services may help in targeting individuals that are hesitant to use these services. Specifically, psychological processes that encourage disease avoidance (e.g., disgust sensitivity, germ aversion) may play a key role in people's hesitancy to use transportation services. The aim of this study was to identify demographic groups that were hesitant to use transportation services during the COVID-19 pandemic and determine the extent to which individual differences in disease avoidance processes are associated with the likelihood of using transportation services during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Method

A national sample of U.S. adults (N = 947) completed an online survey about the likelihood of using transportation services (i.e., public transportation, rental car, ride share, intercity trains, intercity buses, and commercial flight), germ aversion, disgust sensitivity, demographics, and control variables (e.g., COVID-19 concern).

Results

Regression analyses indicated that greater germ aversion was associated with lower likelihood of transportation use for all measured transportation services, controlling for disgust sensitivity, demographics, and control variables. Older age and higher COVID-19 concern were associated with lower likelihood of using most of the transportation services, while town size was associated with greater likelihood of using public transportation and ride share.

Discussion

Overall, germ aversion was consistently uniquely associated with lower likelihood of transportation service use. In the process of getting back to normal after the COVID-19 threat is reduced, structuring messages that target hesitant populations and use malleable psychological mechanisms like disease avoidance may aid in encouraging behavior change and increase transportation service use.

Is disgust proneness prospectively associated with influenza vaccine hesitancy and uptake?

Although various demographic and psychosocial factors have been identified as correlates of influenza vaccine hesitancy, factors that promote infectious disease avoidance, such as disgust proneness, have been rarely examined. In two large national U.S. samples (Ns = 475 and 1007), we investigated whether disgust proneness was associated with retrospective accounts of influenza vaccine uptake, influenza vaccine hesitancy, and eventual influenza vaccine uptake, while accounting for demographics and personality. Across both studies, greater age, higher education, working in healthcare, and greater disgust proneness were significantly related to greater likelihood of previously receiving an influenza vaccine. In Study 2, which was a year-long longitudinal project, disgust proneness prospectively predicted influenza vaccine hesitancy and eventual vaccine uptake during the 2020–2021 influenza season. Findings from this project expand our understanding of individual-level factors associated with influenza vaccine hesitancy and uptake, highlighting a psychological factor to be targeted in vaccine hesitancy interventions.

Disgust sensitivity relates to attitudes toward gay men and lesbian women across 31 nations

Previous work has reported a relation between pathogen-avoidance motivations and prejudice toward various social groups, including gay men and lesbian women. It is currently unknown whether this association is present across cultures, or specific to North America. Analyses of survey data from adult heterosexuals ( N = 11,200) from 31 countries showed a small relation between pathogen disgust sensitivity (an individual-difference measure of pathogen-avoidance motivations) and measures of antigay attitudes. Analyses also showed that pathogen disgust sensitivity relates not only to antipathy toward gay men and lesbians, but also to negativity toward other groups, in particular those associated with violations of traditional sexual norms (e.g., prostitutes). These results suggest that the association between pathogen-avoidance motivations and antigay attitudes is relatively stable across cultures and is a manifestation of a more general relation between pathogen-avoidance motivations and prejudice towards groups associated with sexual norm violations.

Health and Financial Risk-Taking Propensity During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Differences by Age and Time

The COVID-19 pandemic has presented a global health threat of unprecedented magnitude and had a devastating impact on the world’s economy. Accordingly, the riskiness of decisions related to health and finance may have increased. However, health and financial threats have differentially affected different age groups. For example, COVID-19 posed a greater health threat to older adults (65+ years) than younger or middle-aged adults, whereas financial threat due to the pandemic affected younger and middle-aged adults more than older adults. This study examined differences in the levels of health and financial risk-taking propensity by time of the pandemic and age group: young (18-39 years), middle-aged (40-64 years), and older adults (65+ years). A sample of 488 individuals residing in the US (245 Woman; Mage = 51.07, SD = 15.99) completed three waves of surveys in March, April, and May 2020. We found that risk-taking propensity for both health and financial decisions decreased over time. The risk-taking propensity was significantly lower in April and May than March, but risk-taking propensity in April and May did not significantly differ. The three age groups were all significantly different than each other in both health and financial risk-taking propensity at all three waves. Younger adults reported higher risk-taking propensity than older and middle-aged adults, and middle-aged adults reported higher risk-taking propensity than older adults. The findings indicate that the pandemic may have influenced all individuals to take less risks in the fields of health and finance regardless of their age.

Age differences in risk taking: now you see them, now you don't

Older age has often, but not always, been associated with less risk taking. Inconsistencies may be due to diversity in the risk-taking measures used and/or individual differences in cognitive abilities. We investigated the robustness of age differences in risk taking across three measures, and tested whether age differences in risk taking remained after accounting for cognitive abilities. Younger (aged 25-36) and older (aged 60+) adults completed behavioral (i.e., Balloon Analogue Risk Task, BART) and self-report (i.e., framing tasks and Choice Dilemmas Questionnaire) measures of risk, as well as several measures of cognitive ability (i.e., analytic thinking, numeracy, processing speed, memory, and attention). Older adults showed significantly less risk taking than younger adults on the behavioral measure of risk, but not on the two self-report measures. Older adults also had significantly lower analytic thinking, slower processing speed, and worse executive control compared to younger adults. Less risk taking on the BART was associated with lower analytic thinking and numeracy, slower processing speed, and worse shifting of attention. Age differences in risk taking on the BART remained after accounting for older adults' lower scores on tests of cognitive abilities. Implications for measuring age differences in risk taking are discussed.

Now You See Them, Now You Don’t: Age Differences in Risk Aversion

Older age has often, but not always, been associated with greater risk aversion. Some have suggested that age differences in risk may reflect age-related declines in cognitive abilities. This study investigated the robustness of age differences in risk aversion across three different risk-taking measures, after controlling for cognitive abilities. Community-dwelling younger (n = 75; 25-36 years, M age = 29.01) and older (n = 74; 60-90 years, M age = 69.11) adults completed self-report and behavioral measures of risk aversion and several measures of cognitive abilities. Results showed that older adults reported significantly greater risk aversion than young adults on the behavioral measure of risk (Balloon Analogue Risk Task, BART), but not on the self-report measures (Framing Task and Choice Dilemmas Questionnaire). Greater risk aversion on BART was significantly associated with lower analytic thinking, slower processing speed, and worse shifting of attention. Therefore, we tested the relation between age and risk aversion on the BART while controlling for these three cognitive abilities. Age differences in risk aversion remained significant even after accounting for cognitive abilities. Our results suggest that the lack of consistent age differences in risk aversion in the literature may at least partly be due to measurement differences, which raises concerns about the construct validity of these measures of risk aversion. Moreover, cognitive decline may not explain age differences in risk. Further research is needed to understand factors that dampen and heighten risk aversion in people of diverse ages.

Disease avoidance in the time of COVID-19: The behavioral immune system is associated with concern and preventative health behaviors

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) poses a serious global health threat. Without a vaccine, behavior change is the most effective means of reducing disease transmission. Identifying psychological factors that may encourage engagement in preventative health behaviors is crucial. The behavioral immune system (BIS) represents a set of psychological processes thought to promote health by encouraging disease avoidance behaviors. This study examined whether individual differences in BIS reactivity (germ aversion, pathogen disgust sensitivity) were associated with concern about COVID-19 and engagement in recommended preventative health behaviors (social distancing, handwashing, cleaning/disinfecting, avoiding touching face, wearing facemasks). From March 20 to 23, 2020, a US national sample (N = 1019) completed an online survey. Germ aversion and pathogen disgust sensitivity were the two variables most consistently associated with COVID-19 concern and preventative health behaviors, while accounting for demographic, health, and psychosocial covariates. Findings have implications for the development of interventions intended to increase preventative health behaviors.

Fraudulent health claims: Further consideration of the role of emotions

In order to combat fraudulent health claims, MacFarlane, Hurlstone, and Ecker (2020) have proposed a taxonomy intended to establish factors that increase susceptibility to such messages. We expand upon the work of MacFarlane and colleagues by highlighting the role of emotions in attitude change, and elaborate upon how emotions may increase susceptibility to fraudulent health messaging. We assert that to produce lasting and persistent attitude change, emotion needs to be incorporated into health care fraud interventions, as well as factual information. We concur with MacFarlane and colleagues that fraudulent health claims are a pressing issue with deleterious consequences, and supplement their work by enumerating the importance of emotion in promoting attitude and behavior change.

The Dark Side of Tinder

Abstract. Tinder is the leading online dating application. This study ( N = 271) explored the Dark Triad personality traits (i.e., Machiavellianism, narcissism, and psychopathy) and sociosexuality as correlates of Tinder use. The results revealed that Tinder users had higher scores on the Dark Triad traits and sociosexuality, compared to non-users. Also, Tinder users with higher scores on the Dark Triad traits and sociosexuality significantly showed greater motivation to use Tinder for short-term mating; however, there was no significant relation with Tinder use and motivation for long-term mating. This finding supports the idea that Tinder can be a new venue for people high on the Dark Triad to pursue their short-term mating strategies.