Measuring Health: A Guide to Rating Scales and Questionnaires

Psychologists have worried about the distortions introduced into standardized personality measures by social desirability bias. Survey researchers have had similar concerns about the accuracy of survey reports about such topics as illicit drug use, abortion, and sexual behavior. The article reviews the research done by survey methodologists on reporting errors in surveys on sensitive topics, noting parallels and differences from the psychological literature on social desirability. The findings from the survey studies suggest that misreporting about sensitive topics is quite common and that it is largely situational. The extent of misreporting depends on whether the respondent has anything embarrassing to report and on design features of the survey. The survey evidence also indicates that misreporting on sensitive topics is a more or less motivated process in which respondents edit the information they report to avoid embarrassing themselves in the presence of an interviewer or to avoid repercussions from third parties.

https://www.learnlab.org/research/wiki/images/a/a8/Tourangeau_SensitiveQuestions.pdf

Sensitive questions in surveys.

Aging with multimorbidity: a systematic review of the literature

Creativity: Flow and the Psychology of Discovery and Invention

How mental health care should change as a consequence of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Background: Group therapy and education and support sessions are used within health care across a range of disciplines such as chronic disease self-management and psychotherapy interventions However, there are barriers that constrain group attendance, such as mobility, time, and distance Using videoconferencing may overcome known barriers and improve the accessibility of group-based interventions Objective: The aim of this study was to review the literature to determine the feasibility, acceptability, effectiveness, and implementation of health professional–led group videoconferencing to provide education or social support or both, into the home setting Methods: Electronic databases were searched using predefined search terms for primary interventions for patient education and/or social support The quality of studies was assessed using the Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool We developed an analysis framework using hierarchical terms feasibility, acceptability, effectiveness, and implementation, which were informed by subheadings Results: Of the 1634 records identified, 17 were included in this review Home-based groups by videoconferencing are feasible even for those with limited digital literacy Overall acceptability was high with access from the home highly valued and little concern of privacy issues Some participants reported preferring face-to-face groups Good information technology (IT) support and training is required for facilitators and participants Communication can be adapted for the Web environment and would be enhanced by clear communication strategies and protocols A range of improved outcomes were reported but because of the heterogeneity of studies, comparison of these across studies was not possible There was a trend for improvement in mental health outcomes Benefits highlighted in the qualitative data included engaging with others with similar problems; improved accessibility to groups; and development of health knowledge, insights, and skills Videoconference groups were able to replicate group processes such as bonding and cohesiveness Similar outcomes were reported for those comparing face-to-face groups and videoconference groups Conclusions: Groups delivered by videoconference are feasible and potentially can improve the accessibility of group interventions This may be particularly useful for those who live in rural areas, have limited mobility, are socially isolated, or fear meeting new people Outcomes are similar to in-person groups, but future research on facilitation process in videoconferencing-mediated groups and large-scale studies are required to develop the evidence base [J Med Internet Res 2018;20(2):e25]

/pdf/telehealth-interventions-delivering-home-based-support-group-2e5zjyj0hf.pdf

Telehealth Interventions Delivering Home-based Support Group Videoconferencing: Systematic Review

A systematic review of the use of interactive voice response (IVR) was conducted. IVR is a telephone interviewing technique in which the human speaker is replaced by a high-quality recorded interactive script to which the respondent provides answers by pressing the keys of a touch telephone (touchphone). IVR has numerous advantages, including economy, autonomy, confidentiality, access to certain population groups, improved data quality, standardized interviewing, multilingual interfaces, and detailed longitudinal assessments. Despite this, there have been few applications of IVR. Previous studies have been in the areas of information services, reminder calls, monitoring, assessment, experimentation, interventions, and surveys. Areas that have received little attention have been the systematic evaluation of voice, multilingual interfaces, touchphone prevalence, survey response rates, use by the elderly, and acceptability.

https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.3758/BF03195462.pdf

Interactive voice response: review of studies 1989-2000.

Single index of multimorbidity did not predict multiple outcomes

OBJECTIVES: To assess the relationship between alcohol intake and mortality in a cohort of women aged 70 and older and to explore the relationship between level of alcohol use and changes in physical and mental health-related quality of life.



DESIGN: National longitudinal surveys from 1996 to 2002.



SETTING: Community based.



PARTICIPANTS: A national random sample of 12,432 Australian women aged 70 to 75 at baseline.



MEASUREMENTS: Alcohol consumption was the factor of interest, and the main outcome measures were survival and health-related quality of life, with adjustment for potential confounders.



RESULTS: Women who did not consume alcohol or who drank rarely were more likely to die (nondrinkers' hazard (HR)=ratio 1.94, 95% confidence interval (CI)=1.4–2.6; rare drinkers' HR=1.58, 95% CI=1.2–2.1) than women in the low-intake reference category (1–2 drinks per day, 3–6 days per week), or if they survived, they had lower health-related quality-of-life scores on the General Health and Physical Functioning subscales of the Medical Outcomes Study 36-item Short Form Survey after adjustment for smoking, comorbidity, education, body mass index, and area of residence. Nondrinkers also scored lower on the Mental Health and Social Functioning subscales.



CONCLUSION: Being a nondrinker of alcohol was associated with greater risk of death and poorer health-related quality of life. Results for other levels of intake were consistent with current Australian alcohol consumption recommendations for women and indicated that moderate alcohol intake may carry some health benefits for older women in terms of survival and quality of life.

A Drink to Healthy Aging: The Association Between Older Women's Use of Alcohol and Their Health-Related Quality of Life

A systematic review was undertaken of studies reporting interventions for reducing social isolation and depression in older people receiving aged care services (community or residential). Gray literature and relevant electronic databases were systematically searched for studies published in English between January 2009 and December 2013. Two reviewers independently screened studies for selection using predetermined inclusion and exclusion criteria and independently completed methodological quality review at study level. Studies of poor methodological quality were excluded. Data were extracted at study level by one reviewer and independently checked by a second reviewer, using a standardized form. The results across studies were qualitatively synthesized with outcomes described and summarized at last follow-up. Although the original objective was to review rural studies, no intervention studies based in rural areas met criteria for inclusion in the review, and only urban studies could be reviewed. Of 403 articles, six articles representing five studies with moderate-to-low risk of bias were included for review. All study participants were older adults ranging in age from 77 to 86 years. All studies had small sample sizes, ranging from 26 to 113 participants. Three of the five included intervention studies successfully reduced social isolation; one also successfully reduced depression. Only one intervention, group-based reminiscence therapy, was reported as successful in reducing both social isolation and depression in older people within an urban aged care setting. More research is needed to explore transferability of interventions across different aged care settings and into rural areas.

Lynne Parkinson

Papers

Telehealth Interventions Delivering Home-based Support Group Videoconferencing: Systematic Review

Interactive voice response: review of studies 1989-2000.

Single index of multimorbidity did not predict multiple outcomes

A Drink to Healthy Aging: The Association Between Older Women's Use of Alcohol and Their Health-Related Quality of Life

Systematic review of interventions addressing social isolation and depression in aged care clients.