Showing papers in "Anxiety Stress and Coping in 2019"
TL;DR: Worry may be an important target in stress prevention and efforts to prevent stress-related problems would benefit from focusing on early adolescence as especially school stress is already relatively common in grade 7.
Abstract: Background and Objectives: Stress and stress-related mental health complaints are common and increasing among adolescents, especially girls. Identifying typical sources of stress as well as central ...
89 citations
TL;DR: A unifying model, including five testable hypotheses regarding how resilience can be strengthened progressively via exposure to life-stressors, is introduced, suggesting that engaging with stressors can have positive consequences for longer-term healthy emotional development if scaffolded in adaptive reflective practices.
Abstract: Background: Exposure to demands is normally considered to drain resources and threaten wellbeing. However, studies have indicated a resilience-strengthening role for stressors.Objectives: This pape...
87 citations
TL;DR: Coping strategies may be an important point target for prevention or intervention for individuals who have experienced ACEs in the form of adverse childhood experiences and adult psychiatric and physical health outcomes.
Abstract: The current study examined whether coping strategies mediate the link between adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and adult psychiatric and physical health outcomes.Data were drawn from wave I (N ...
45 citations
TL;DR: It is found that the appraisal of job demands (time urgency, role conflict, and emotional demands) as a challenge moderated the associations between these demands and burnout/engagement and researchers should include appraisal more systematically in their theorizing and research on the effects ofJob demands on well-being.
Abstract: Background and objectives: Many job stress models assume that all workers experience a particular job demand in the same way – an assumption that may or may not be warranted and that has ra...
45 citations
TL;DR: Difficulties regulating positive and negative emotions were significantly positively associated with PTSD symptom severity and the potential utility of targeting difficulties regulating positive emotions in interventions for PTSD among women victims of IPV is suggested.
Abstract: Background and Objectives: Literature provides support for the role of emotion dysregulation in the development and course of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among women victims of intimate pa...
36 citations
TL;DR: High levels of self-efficacy may reduce threat appraisals and anxiety in the lead up to an exam, which are related to the intensity and decline of anxiety on the exam day, which may be beneficial to performance.
Abstract: Background and Objectives: High self-efficacy may reduce emotional and physiological stress responses in the context of an examination. The present study investigated how these stress responses dev...
35 citations
TL;DR: The findings outline that the effect of academic procrastination cannot be reduced to a history of academic difficulties or limited cognitive ability and that coping plays an important role in the Procrastination – achievement relationship.
Abstract: Background: Academic procrastination is common among university students and its effect on their achievement is worrisome. Although procrastination is often depicted as self-regulation failure, res...
34 citations
TL;DR: Findings suggest posttraumatic growth after loss has no substantive negative or positive effects on mental health, and development of specific treatments to increase PTG after bereavement appears premature.
Abstract: Background and objectives: Major negative life-events including bereavement can precipitate perceived positive life-changes, termed posttraumatic growth (PTG). While traditionally considered an ada...
31 citations
TL;DR: Perceived HR rather than actual HR is more closely associated with anxiety intensity during psychological stress, which has implications for stress management and the clinical treatment of anxiety symptoms.
Abstract: Background: Acute psychological stress elicits increases in heart rate (HR) and anxiety. Theories propose associations between HR, perceived HR, and anxiety during stress. However, anxiety is often...
28 citations
TL;DR: Preliminary support is provided for the assertion that MM increases the ability to monitor and modify coping strategies during times of stress.
Abstract: Background and objectives: Mindfulness meditation (MM) training promotes health and well-being. One potential mechanistic link between MM and health may be coping flexibility, (e.g., the ability to...
25 citations
TL;DR: Controllability and severity appraisals were associated with depression and anxiety symptoms, controlling for stressor frequency (which also predicted symptoms), for dependent but not independent stressors.
Abstract: Background and objectives: Stress is well established as a strong risk factor for internalizing psychopathology. Learned helplessness research demonstrates that perceived controllability of stresso...
TL;DR: The results suggest that reappraisal represents a protective factor against the deleterious effects of suppression on stress responsivity, and underlines the importance of investigating emotion regulation strategies as a means to understand individual differences in vulnerability to stress-related psychopathologies such as anxiety and depression.
Abstract: Background: People differ in their ability to regulate their physiological stress response. Individual differences in emotion regulation strategies such as suppression and reappraisal may explain t...
TL;DR: Contrary results involve that high trait anxiety individuals might benefit from the use of other kinds of strategies than reappraisal and distraction, some that may successfully target physiological responses.
Abstract: Background and Objectives: Emotion regulation involves attempts to influence emotion unfolding and may target experiential, expressive and physiological responses. Several strategies can be used, s...
TL;DR: This study confirms that IU, particularly Inhibitory IU, may convey risk for elevated PTS following adverse life events, and predicts post-event analogue PTS, even when controlling for anxiety sensitivity.
Abstract: BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: There is evidence that intolerance of uncertainty (IU) is associated with elevated post-traumatic stress (PTS) symptoms. There is a scarcity of research examining whether IU is prospectively related to PTS following exposure to negative life events. Using data from a Dutch student-sample, we examined the degree to which IU predicts post-traumatic stress symptoms associated with negative stressful life events (analogue posttraumatic stress (PTS)). DESIGN: This was a prospective survey-study. METHODS: A group of 193 undergraduate students completed self-report measures of Inhibitory IU, Prospective IU, and anxiety sensitivity (at Time 1, T1). One year later (at T2), participants rated adverse life-events experienced between T1 and T2, and completed a questionnaire tapping PTS associated with the most distressing event experienced in this time-frame. We hypothesized that pre-event Inhibitory IU and-to a lesser extent-Prospective IU would predict analogue PTS, after covarying for anxiety sensitivity. RESULTS: As predicted, pre-event Inhibitory IU predicted post-event analogue PTS, even when controlling for anxiety sensitivity. With respect to distinct analogue PTS clusters, Inhibitory IU predicted PTS avoidance and PTS hyperarousal, but was unrelated to PTS reexperiencing. CONCLUSIONS: This study confirm that IU, particularly Inhibitory IU, may convey risk for elevated PTS following adverse life events.
TL;DR: Findings suggest that both cumulative trauma exposure and positive emotion have implications for salivary cytokine responses to acute stress, and the inclusion of healthy women strengthens internal validity, and increases confidence that observed associations between trauma and salivaries cytokines can be attributed to trauma, rather than to confounding health problems.
Abstract: Background and Objectives: To better understand how trauma leads to poor health, this study examined whether cumulative trauma and emotion reactivity contribute to pro- (IL-1β) and anti-inflammator...
TL;DR: Individuals showing more RO coping reported better adjustment both early and later in the bereavement process, which might be useful for understanding complicated grief reactions following loss.
Abstract: Background and objectives: According to the Dual Process Model (DPM), shifting between loss-oriented (LO) and restoration-oriented (RO) coping is essential for adjustment following bereavement. Kno...
TL;DR: Investigation of the conditional indirect effects of workaholism on performance via emotional exhaustion, across low and high levels of supervisor recognition, revealed that the negative indirect effects on performance were stronger when supervisor recognition was low.
Abstract: Background and Objectives: Although workaholism has been associated with job performance, the mechanisms that explain this relationship remain unclear. In this study, we investigated the co...
TL;DR: The findings suggest that the interventions that target external academic LOC may help reduce the detrimental effects of PTS on academic achievement among trauma-exposed college students.
Abstract: Background and Objectives: Posttraumatic stress (PTS) has been found to be associated with poor academic performance among college students. However, our understanding of the mechanisms und...
TL;DR: The JLGS is a reliable and valid instrument to measure job loss-related CG symptoms and could stimulate systematic research on the antecedents and consequences of involuntary job loss.
Abstract: Background: Research on complicated grief (CG) symptoms following job loss is surprisingly rare. Involuntary job loss can turn someone's world upside down and can result in loss of identity, social contacts, and self-worth. In this study, we drew on the literature on major life events in conceptualizing involuntary job loss as a significant and potentially devastating life event. Objectives: The aim of this study was to develop and evaluate an instrument that measures job loss-related CG symptoms, the Job Loss Grief Scale (JLGS). The purpose of the JLGS is to foster systematic research on CG symptoms following job loss. Design: A cross-sectional study Methods: We recruited Dutch workers who had lost their job, 130 men and 158 women with an average age of 49.6 years. To examine the psychometric properties of the JLGS and its associations with other concepts we conducted correlational and confirmatory factor analyses. Results: CFA revealed that the JLGS was a one-dimensional instrument, and that CG symptoms were distinguishable from depression and anxiety symptoms. Conclusion: The JLGS is a reliable and valid instrument to measure job loss-related CG symptoms. The availability of the JLGS could stimulate systematic research on the antecedents and consequences of involuntary job loss.
TL;DR: The results of this study suggest that SSL may be useful in reducing symptoms of anxiety and depression, and a broad range of other issues, in Spanish children.
Abstract: Background and Objectives: Super Skills for Life (SSL) is a transdiagnostic protocol based on cognitive-behavioral therapy designed for children with internalizing problems. The present study examined for the first time the impact of the Spanish-adapted version of SSL in reducing anxiety and depressive symptoms in Spanish-speaking children. Design: A quasi-experimental design with one group, pre- and posttest, and 1-year follow-up was conducted. Analyses were performed on an intent-to-treat basis. Methods: Participants were 119 children (42.9% female; 8-12 years) recruited from nine schools. Children completed assessments of anxiety, depression, emotional and behavioral difficulties, and the extent to which anxiety interfered with life before and after receiving the 8-session SSL, and 12-months post-intervention. Results: Anxiety and depressive symptoms were significantly reduced at post-test and 12-month follow-up assessments. SSL also had positive impact on other symptoms assessed (e.g., interference of anxiety with children's life, peer problems, conduct problems). Overall, the long-term benefits of SSL appeared to be greater than the short-term benefits. Conclusions: The results of this study suggest that SSL may be useful in reducing symptoms of anxiety and depression, and a broad range of other issues, in Spanish children.
TL;DR: Results highlight the need to account for important moderators like the valence of social interaction when looking at the physiological consequences of maladaptive emotion regulation strategies.
Abstract: Background and Objectives: Major depression disorder (MDD) and social anxiety disorder (SAD) are characterized by the use of perseverative cognition (PC) as a dysfunctional coping strategy. We soug...
TL;DR: MBSR, and not CBGT, improved sleep quality among participants, and the effect of treatment condition on post-treatment social anxiety did not differ as a function of baseline sleep quality.
Abstract: Background and Objectives: Poor sleep is prevalent among individuals with social anxiety disorder (SAD) and may affect treatment outcome. We examined whether: (1) individuals with SAD differed from healthy controls (HCs) in sleep quality, (2) baseline sleep quality moderated the effects of treatment (Cognitive-behavioral group therapy [CBGT] vs. mindfulness-based stress reduction [MBSR] vs. waitlist [WL]) on social anxiety, (3) sleep quality changed over treatment, and (4) changes in sleep quality predicted anxiety 12-months post-treatment. Design: Participants were 108 adults with SAD from a randomized controlled trial of CBGT vs. MBSR vs. WL and 38 HCs. Methods: SAD and sleep quality were assessed pre-treatment and post-treatment; SAD was assessed again 12-months post-treatment. Results: Participants with SAD reported poorer sleep quality than HCs. The effect of treatment condition on post-treatment social anxiety did not differ as a function of baseline sleep quality. Sleep quality improved in MBSR, significantly more than WL, but not CBGT. Sleep quality change from pre- to post-treatment in CBGT or MBSR did not predict later social anxiety. Conclusions: MBSR, and not CBGT, improved sleep quality among participants. Other results were inconsistent with prior research; possible explanations, limitations, and implications for future research are discussed. ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT02036658.
TL;DR: Social capital may weaken the association between migration stress and sexual risk behavior by buffering the depression-sexual risk behaviors association for males, and is needed to examine this issue among females.
Abstract: Background: Few studies have examined the complex relationship of migration stress and depression with sexual risk behaviors among migrants. The relationship between migration stress and sexual ris...
TL;DR: The high social anxiety group had more negative interpretations and beliefs in social situations, and the interpretation bias was particular to social anxiety versus depression, after controlling for depression.
Abstract: Background and Objectives: Interpretation bias (IB), defined as the tendency to interpret ambiguous social situations in a threatening manner, has increasingly been studied in children and adolesce...
TL;DR: Taking a person-situation interactionist approach, the findings suggest that for employees high in emotional stability, interruptions may be both less detrimental and, in some cases, beneficial.
Abstract: Background/objectives: Intrusions are a type of workplace interruption defined as unexpected interpersonal contact that disrupts workflow. Drawing from the Job Demands-Resources model of work stres...
TL;DR: These findings clarify previous work which tied regulatory profiles to psychological health by extending a person-centered approach to understanding the ways in which individuals regulate their emotions.
Abstract: Background and Objectives: A promising method of capturing the complex nature of emotion regulation is to assess composite profiles of regulation (i.e., default pattern of regulation across multipl...
TL;DR: Findings suggest that coping strategies are mediators in the relationship between global and situational meaning and psychological well-being and provide empirical evidence that in severe cancer-related stress conditions both meaning structures and coping strategies influence patients’ psychologicalWell-being.
Abstract: Background and Objectives: Research demonstrates that the experience of cancer invariably violates patients' meaning structures, prompting them to use coping strategies to alleviate stress and enhance well-being. The current study aimed to examine the mediating effects of coping strategies in the relationship between global and situational meaning and psychological well-being in gastric cancer patients. Design and Method: One hundred eighty-seven patients (96 women and 91 men) with gastric cancer completed questionnaires measuring meaning in life, changes of beliefs and goals, coping, and psychological well-being. Participants were between 27 and 82 years of age. They were diagnosed with gastric cancer from 1 to 3.2 years ago. Using Structural Equation Modeling, both the direct and indirect associations between meaning structures, coping, and psychological well-being were examined. Results: Meaning in life exerted significant indirect effects on psychological well-being through three coping strategies: problem-, emotion-, and meaning-focused. The relationship between changes of beliefs and goals and psychological well-being was also mediated by coping. Conclusions: Findings suggest that coping strategies are mediators in the relationship between global and situational meaning and psychological well-being. They also provide empirical evidence that in severe cancer-related stress conditions both meaning structures and coping strategies influence patients' psychological well-being.
TL;DR: Psychosocial vulnerabilities represent one potential mechanism explaining Black women's greater risk of PTSD, although cumulative psychosocial vulnerability may be buffered by social support, despite higher support, inner-city White women's psychossocial vulnerability may actually outweigh support's benefits for reducing trauma-related distress.
Abstract: Background/Objectives: Inner-city Black women may be more susceptible to posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) than White women, although mechanisms underlying this association are unclear. Living i...
TL;DR: Examination of three cognitive processes suggested that trauma influences unique cognitive processes that affect the relationship between posttraumatic stress and depression.
Abstract: Background and Objectives: Trauma often affects cognitive processes; however, little is known about their role in the relationship between posttraumatic stress and depression among traumatized people. This study aimed to examine three cognitive processes (intrusive rumination, deliberate rumination, and looming cognitive style) and the moderated-mediation effect of these processes in the relationship between posttraumatic stress and depression.Design: The study design was multiple-group cross-sectional.Methods: Participants included 159 Holocaust survivors and 87 matched participants without Holocaust experience. Participants completed questionnaires that assessed levels of rumination, looming cognitive style, posttraumatic stress, and depression.Results: Holocaust survivors reported higher levels of intrusive and deliberate rumination and looming, as well as higher levels of posttraumatic stress and depression than the non-exposed participants. Structural equation modeling revealed a direct association between posttraumatic stress and depression among the non-exposed group. Among the Holocaust survivors, higher levels of posttraumatic stress were related to more depression through the mediators of looming and intrusive rumination, and lower levels of posttraumatic stress were related to lower levels of depression through deliberate rumination.Conclusion: Findings suggest that trauma influences unique cognitive processes that affect the relationship between posttraumatic stress and depression.
TL;DR: Processing modes that are generally maladaptive at the intrapersonal level may be adaptive when they are interpersonally influenced, and perceived similarity may facilitate interpersonal effects of processing mode on affiliation.
Abstract: Background and objectives. Social support is linked with psychological health, but its mechanisms are unclear. We examined supporters’ influence on recipients’ cognitive processing as a mechanism o...