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Revista Espanola de Salud Publica Jan 2023During the ageing process the loss of family and social relationships is frequent which conditions loneliness, similarly the current COVID-19 pandemic has generated more... (Review)
Review
OBJECTIVE
During the ageing process the loss of family and social relationships is frequent which conditions loneliness, similarly the current COVID-19 pandemic has generated more social limitations in this age group and has increased the risk factors to trigger feelings of loneliness. This paper aimed to examine how loneliness among older people had been studied in Europe over the last ten years. Specific objectives were: i) to describe the methodological aspects; ii) to identify the scales or questions for the assessment of loneliness; iii) what were the main variables or dimensions that were related to loneliness in old age.
METHODS
A total of 1,591 articles were found in WoS and Scopus digital platforms. After initial assessment of titles and abstracts, full text reading and review of the established criteria, 42 scientific articles were finally included in the systematic review.
RESULTS
The countries that had carried out the most studies were the Netherlands and Spain. Most of the research was quantitative and uses the De Jong Gierveld Loneliness Scale (DJGLS) and the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA) Loneliness Scale. The most analysed variables were: marital status, household structure, social support networks, social participation, depression, health problems, co-morbidity and physical functioning.
CONCLUSIONS
The scientific interest in studying loneliness, with a focus on social support networks, in older people in Europe and strategically addressing loneliness as a public health problem is confirmed.
Topics: Humans; Aged; Loneliness; Pandemics; COVID-19; Spain; Europe; Social Support
PubMed: 36700292
DOI: No ID Found -
Journal of Medical Internet Research Jan 2015Social media has emerged as a potentially powerful medium for communication with adolescents and young adults around their health choices. (Review)
Review
BACKGROUND
Social media has emerged as a potentially powerful medium for communication with adolescents and young adults around their health choices.
OBJECTIVE
The goal of this systematic review is to identify research on the use of social media for interacting with adolescents and young adults in order to achieve positive health outcomes.
METHODS
A MEDLINE/PubMed electronic database search was performed between January 1, 2002 and October 1, 2013, using terms to identify peer-reviewed research in which social media and other Web 2.0 technologies were an important feature. We used a systematic approach to retrieve papers and extract relevant data.
RESULTS
We identified 288 studies involving social media, of which 87 met criteria for inclusion; 75 studies were purely observational and 12 were interventional. The ways in which social media was leveraged by these studies included (1) observing adolescent and young adult behavior (n=77), (2) providing health information (n=13), (3) engaging the adolescent and young adult community (n=17), and (4) recruiting research participants (n=23). Common health topics addressed included high-risk sexual behaviors (n=23), alcohol, tobacco, and other drug use (n=19), Internet safety (n=8), mental health issues (n=18), medical conditions (n=11), or other specified issues (n=12). Several studies used more than one social media platform and addressed more than one health-related topic.
CONCLUSIONS
Social media technologies offer an exciting new means for engaging and communicating with adolescents and young adults; it has been successfully used to engage this age group, identify behaviors, and provide appropriate intervention and education. Nevertheless, the majority of studies to date have been preliminary and limited in their methodologies, and mostly center around evaluating how adolescents and young adults use social media and the resulting implications on their health. Although these explorations are essential, further exploration and development of these strategies into building effective interventions is necessary.
Topics: Adolescent; Communication; Female; Health Behavior; Health Promotion; Humans; Male; Sexual Behavior; Social Media; Social Networking; Young Adult
PubMed: 25560751
DOI: 10.2196/jmir.3692 -
International Journal of Environmental... Aug 2017There is consistent evidence that a good social environment in the workplace is associated with employee well-being. However, there has been no specific review of... (Review)
Review
There is consistent evidence that a good social environment in the workplace is associated with employee well-being. However, there has been no specific review of interventions to improve well-being through improving social environments at work. We conducted a systematic review of such interventions, and also considered performance as an outcome. We found eight studies of interventions. Six studies were of interventions that were based on introducing shared social activities into workgroups. Six out of the six studies demonstrated improvements in well-being across the sample (five studies), or for an identifiable sub-group (one study). Four out of the five studies demonstrated improvements in social environments, and four out of the five studies demonstrated improvements in indicators of performance. Analysis of implementation factors indicated that the interventions based on shared activities require some external facilitation, favorable worker attitudes prior to the intervention, and several different components. We found two studies that focused on improving fairness perceptions in the workplace. There were no consistent effects of these interventions on well-being or performance. We conclude that there is some evidence that interventions that increase the frequency of shared activities between workers can improve worker well-being and performance. We offer suggestions for improving the evidence base.
Topics: Humans; Interpersonal Relations; Job Satisfaction; Occupational Health; Quality of Life; Social Environment; Workplace
PubMed: 28813009
DOI: 10.3390/ijerph14080918 -
Effectiveness and User Experience of Virtual Reality for Social Anxiety Disorder: Systematic Review.JMIR Mental Health Feb 2024Social anxiety disorder (SAD) is a debilitating psychiatric disorder that affects occupational and social functioning. Virtual reality (VR) therapies can provide... (Review)
Review
BACKGROUND
Social anxiety disorder (SAD) is a debilitating psychiatric disorder that affects occupational and social functioning. Virtual reality (VR) therapies can provide effective treatment for people with SAD. However, with rapid innovations in immersive VR technology, more contemporary research is required to examine the effectiveness and concomitant user experience outcomes (ie, safety, usability, acceptability, and attrition) of emerging VR interventions for SAD.
OBJECTIVE
The aim of this systematic review was to examine the effectiveness and user experience of contemporary VR interventions among people with SAD.
METHODS
The Cochrane Library, Emcare, PsycINFO, PubMed, ScienceDirect, Scopus, and Web of Science databases were searched between January 1, 2012, and April 26, 2022. Deduplicated search results were screened based on title and abstract information. Full-text examination was conducted on 71 articles. Studies of all designs and comparator groups were included if they appraised the effectiveness and user experience outcomes of any immersive VR intervention among people with SAD. A standardized coding sheet was used to extract data on key participant, intervention, comparator, outcome, and study design items.
RESULTS
The findings were tabulated and discussed using a narrative synthesis. A total of 18 studies met the inclusion criteria.
CONCLUSIONS
The findings showed that VR exposure therapy-based interventions can generally provide effective, safe, usable, and acceptable treatments for adults with SAD. The average attrition rate from VR treatment was low (11.36%) despite some reported user experience difficulties, including potential simulator sickness, exposure-based emotional distress, and problems with managing treatment delivered in a synchronous group setting. This review also revealed several research gaps, including a lack of VR treatment studies on children and adolescents with SAD as well as a paucity of standardized assessments of VR user experience interactions. More studies are required to address these issues.
TRIAL REGISTRATION
PROSPERO CRD42022353891; https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/prospero/display_record.php?RecordID=353891.
Topics: Adolescent; Adult; Child; Humans; Databases, Factual; Emotions; Evidence Gaps; Phobia, Social
PubMed: 38329804
DOI: 10.2196/48916 -
Scientific Reports Jan 2024Social recognition is crucial for survival in social species, and necessary for group living, selective reproduction, pair bonding, and dominance hierarchies. Mice and... (Meta-Analysis)
Meta-Analysis
Social recognition is crucial for survival in social species, and necessary for group living, selective reproduction, pair bonding, and dominance hierarchies. Mice and rats are the most commonly used animal models in social memory research, however current paradigms do not account for the complex social dynamics they exhibit in the wild. To assess the range of social memories being studied, we conducted a systematic analysis of neuroscience articles testing the social memory of mice and rats published within the past two decades and analyzed their methods. Our results show that despite these rodent's rich social memory capabilities, the majority of social recognition papers explore short-term memories and short-term familiarity levels with minimal exposure between subject and familiar stimuli-a narrow type of social memory. We have identified several key areas currently understudied or underrepresented: kin relationships, mates, social ranks, sex variabilities, and the effects of aging. Additionally, reporting on social stimulus variables such as housing history, strain, and age, is limited, which may impede reproducibility. Overall, our data highlight large gaps in the diversity of social memories studied and the effects social variables have on social memory mechanisms.
Topics: Animals; Rats; Memory, Short-Term; Recognition, Psychology; Reproducibility of Results; Social Behavior; Social Dominance; Mice
PubMed: 38278973
DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-52277-z -
Social capital interventions targeting older people and their impact on health: a systematic review.Journal of Epidemiology and Community... Jul 2017Observational studies show that social capital is a protective health factor. Therefore, we aim to assess the currently unclear health impact of social capital... (Review)
Review
BACKGROUND
Observational studies show that social capital is a protective health factor. Therefore, we aim to assess the currently unclear health impact of social capital interventions targeting older adults.
METHODS
We conducted a systematic review based on a logic model. Studies published between January 1980 and July 2015 were retrieved from MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL, PsycINFO, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials and Web of Science. We included randomised controlled trials targeting participants over 60 years old and focused on social capital or its components (eg, social support and social participation). The comparison group should not promote social capital. We assessed risk of bias and impact on health outcomes and use of health-related resources applying a procedure from the Canadian Agency for Drugs and Technologies in Health (CADTH) based on vote-counting and standardised decision rules. The review protocol was registered in PROSPERO (reference number CRD42014015362).
RESULTS
We examined 17 341 abstracts and included 73 papers reporting 36 trials. Trials were clinically and methodologically diverse and reported positive effects in different contexts, populations and interventions across multiple subjective and objective measures. According to sufficiently reported outcomes, social capital interventions showed mixed effects on quality of life, well-being and self-perceived health and were generally ineffective on loneliness, mood and mortality. Eight trials with high quality showed favourable impacts on overall, mental and physical health, mortality and use of health-related resources.
CONCLUSIONS
Our review highlights the lack of evidence and the diversity among trials, while supporting the potential of social capital interventions to reach comprehensive health effects in older adults.
Topics: Aged; Canada; Humans; Middle Aged; Quality of Life; Social Capital; Social Participation; Social Support
PubMed: 27834223
DOI: 10.1136/jech-2016-208131 -
Journal of Advanced Nursing Jan 2021To identify, evaluate and summarize evidence from qualitative, quantitative and mixed method studies conducted using age suits or other age simulation equipment, with... (Review)
Review
AIM
To identify, evaluate and summarize evidence from qualitative, quantitative and mixed method studies conducted using age suits or other age simulation equipment, with health and social care students.
DESIGN
Convergent segregated mixed method review design as outlined by the Johanna Briggs Institute.
DATA SOURCES
CINAHL (+ with Full Text), MEDLINE, PsycINFO, PubMed, SocINDEX, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, Emerald Insight, Proquest nursing, Science Direct, Wiley Online and BioMed Central (January 2000-January 2020).
REVIEW METHODS
Convergent segregated synthesis was used to synthesize evidence from the studies and the MERSQI checklist used to appraise quality.
RESULTS
A total of 23 studies were reviewed: one randomized control, two post-test only randomized control, three quasi-experimental, 15 one-group pre/post studies and two qualitative studies. Of the seventeen studies carrying out inferential statistics on attitude scores post intervention, 11 reported an improvement, three indicated no significant change and three reported worsening scores. Key themes included use of appropriate scales, type of equipment used, location and length of interactions, debriefing and contextualization of interventions in broader teaching.
CONCLUSION
The impact of ageing simulation interventions on health and social care student's attitudes to older people was predominantly positive. However, further high-quality research is warranted to understand the optimal use of such interventions in the context of health care for a growing ageing population.
IMPACT
It is important health and social care staff have appropriate knowledge and training to enable them to provide high-quality care to older people and challenge potential ageism in the system. This review adds to the body of work around the use of simulation and experiential learning to educate health and social care students about ageing and ageism. It also offers recommendations for using ageing simulations effectively to inform attitudes of prospective professionals who will influence future health and social care.
Topics: Aged; Aging; Delivery of Health Care; Humans; Prospective Studies; Qualitative Research; Social Support
PubMed: 33022791
DOI: 10.1111/jan.14577 -
Journal of Clinical Nursing Dec 2016This article examines the existing qualitative and quantitative research on physical, psychosocial and social health of men who identify as Bears, a subcultural group in... (Review)
Review
AIMS AND OBJECTIVES
This article examines the existing qualitative and quantitative research on physical, psychosocial and social health of men who identify as Bears, a subcultural group in the gay community.
BACKGROUND
During the 1980s, one of the first Bear communities emerged in San Francisco. Using the United States as an example, other Bear communities were created throughout the world. Today, Bear-related organizations and events are found globally.
METHODS
A systematic review was conducted exploring the health of men who identify as Bears.
DESIGN
To identify articles addressing the health outcomes of men who identify as Bears, the researcher systematically reviewed articles indexed through CINAHL, PsycINFO, Humanities International Index, Cochrane Library, Medline, and LGBT Life.
RESULTS
The major findings across the 11 articles were systematically grouped into physical, psychosocial, and social health categories. Men identifying as Bears were more likely to have a higher body mass index, engage in risky sexual behaviours and have a lower self-esteem.
CONCLUSIONS
Future implications for research and practice regarding the health of men who identify as Bears are addressed.
RELEVANCE TO CLINICAL PRACTICE
Men who identify as Bears have unique health care needs and respond to health care providers who are sensitive towards their needs. Health care providers should understand and acknowledge the unique health needs of men who identify as Bears to better care for these men.
Topics: Adult; Gender Identity; Homosexuality, Male; Humans; Male; Sexual Behavior; Social Support
PubMed: 27174226
DOI: 10.1111/jocn.13368 -
Health Psychology Review Mar 2021There is growing evidence that social identity processes play an important role in a range of health outcomes. However, we know little about the nature and effectiveness... (Meta-Analysis)
Meta-Analysis
There is growing evidence that social identity processes play an important role in a range of health outcomes. However, we know little about the nature and effectiveness of interventions that build social identification with the aim of promoting health. In the present research, we systematically review and meta-analyze interventions that build social identification to enhance health and wellbeing. A total of 27 intervention studies were identified (= 2,230). Using a three-level meta-regression, results indicate that social identification-building interventions had a moderate-to-strong impact on health (Hedges = 0.66; 95%CIs[0.34, 0.97]). Analyses revealed significant variation in intervention effectiveness as a function of its type: group-relevant decision making (= 1.26), therapy programmes (= 1.02), shared activities (= 0.40), and reminiscence (= -0.05). By contrast, there was much less variation across health outcomes: quality of life (= 0.80), physical health (= 0.76), self-esteem (= 0.69), well-being (= 0.66), (reduced) anxiety (= 0.61), (reduced) depression (= 0.58), cognitive health (= 0.55), and (reduced) stress (= 0.49). Finally, speaking to the mechanism of the interventions, interventions tended to be more effective to the extent that they succeeded in building participants' social identification with the intervention group. We discuss the theoretical and practical implications of social identification-building interventions to foster health and outline an agenda for future research and practical application.
Topics: Anxiety; Humans; Quality of Life; Self Concept; Social Identification
PubMed: 31530154
DOI: 10.1080/17437199.2019.1669481 -
Sleep Medicine Reviews Jun 2022Adolescence is often characterised by changes in sleep patterns, with reports that the average adolescent does not get the recommended sleep time. Recent qualitative... (Review)
Review
Adolescence is often characterised by changes in sleep patterns, with reports that the average adolescent does not get the recommended sleep time. Recent qualitative research has identified the use of electronics at bedtime and engagement with social media platforms as barriers to gaining sufficient time and quality of sleep during adolescence. A systematic review and thematic synthesis was undertaken following the three-step thematic synthesis framework. Four databases were searched, and full texts were screened based on pre-existing inclusion/exclusion criteria. Fourteen studies were included, encompassing 967 participants. Three analytical themes were developed: 1) social motivations; 2) habitual smartphone use and 3) recognition of a problem. Findings confirmed how bedtime social media use requires a new framework for recognising the importance of peer relations, where increased frequency and immediacy of communication lays the foundation for social accountability to meet communicative norms and fear of missing out. In the review, adolescents commonly express a lack of control in relation to their social media use which triggered discussion of the habitual aspects of bedtime social media use. The importance of intervention strategies which recognise the wider peer-to-peer social implications of bedtime social media use is discussed with some practical insights offered.
Topics: Adolescent; Adolescent Behavior; Humans; Motivation; Peer Group; Sleep; Social Media
PubMed: 35468519
DOI: 10.1016/j.smrv.2022.101626