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BMC Public Health Nov 2016Mortality from coronary heart disease (CHD) remains at quite notable levels. Research on the risk factors and the treatment of CHD has focused on physiological factors,...
BACKGROUND
Mortality from coronary heart disease (CHD) remains at quite notable levels. Research on the risk factors and the treatment of CHD has focused on physiological factors, but there is an increasing amount of evidence connecting mental health and personality traits to CHD, too. The data concerning the connection of CHD and dispositional optimism and pessimism as personality traits is relatively scarce. The aim of this study was to investigate the connection between optimism, pessimism, and CHD mortality.
METHODS
This was an 11-year prospective cohort study on a regional sample of three cohorts, aged 52-56, 62-66, and 72-76 years at baseline (N = 2815). The levels of dispositional optimism and pessimism of the study subjects were determined at baseline using a revised version of the Life Orientation Test (LOT-R). Eleven years later, those results and follow-up data about CHD as a cause of death were used to calculate odds. Adjustments were made for cardiovascular disease risk.
RESULTS
Those who died because of CHD were significantly more pessimistic at baseline than the others. This finding applies to both men and women. Among the study subjects in the highest quartile of pessimism, the adjusted risk of death caused by CHD was approximately 2.2-fold (OR 2.17, 95 % CI 1.21-3.89) compared to the subjects in the lowest quartile. Optimism did not seem to have any connection with the risk of CHD-induced mortality.
CONCLUSIONS
Pessimism seems to be a substantial risk factor for death from CHD. As an easily measured variable, it might be a very useful tool together with the other known risk factors to determine the risk of CHD-induced mortality.
Topics: Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Cause of Death; Coronary Artery Disease; Coronary Disease; Death; Female; Finland; Follow-Up Studies; Humans; Male; Mental Health; Middle Aged; Personality; Pessimism; Prospective Studies; Risk Factors
PubMed: 27852243
DOI: 10.1186/s12889-016-3764-8 -
PloS One 2022The phenomenon of "publish-or-perish" in academia, spurred on by limited funding and academic positions, has led to increased competition and pressure on academics to...
The phenomenon of "publish-or-perish" in academia, spurred on by limited funding and academic positions, has led to increased competition and pressure on academics to publish. Publication pressure has been linked with multiple negative outcomes, including increased academic misconduct and researcher burnout. COVID-19 has disrupted research worldwide, leading to lost research time and increased anxiety amongst researchers. The objective of this study was to examine how COVID-19 has impacted perceived publication pressure amongst academic researchers in Canada. We used the revised Publication Pressure Questionnaire, in addition to Likert-type questions to discern respondents' beliefs and concerns about the impact of COVID-19 on academic publishing. We found that publication pressure increased across academic researchers in Canada following the pandemic, with respondents reporting increased stress, increased pessimism, and decreased access to support related to publishing. Doctoral students reported the highest levels of stress and pessimism, while principal investigators had the most access to publication support. There were no significant differences in publication pressure reported between different research disciplines. Women and non-binary or genderfluid respondents reported higher stress and pessimism than men. We also identified differences in perceived publication pressure based on respondents' publication frequency and other demographic factors, including disability and citizenship status. Overall, we document a snapshot of perceived publication pressure in Canada across researchers of different academic career stages and disciplines. This information can be used to guide the creation of researcher supports, as well as identify groups of researchers who may benefit from targeted resources.
Topics: COVID-19; Female; Humans; Male; Pandemics; Publishing; Research Personnel; Surveys and Questionnaires
PubMed: 35731739
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0269743 -
BMJ Open Quality Apr 2024The failed or partial implementation of clinical practices negatively impacts patient safety and increases systemic inefficiencies. Implementation of sepsis screening... (Review)
Review
INTRODUCTION
The failed or partial implementation of clinical practices negatively impacts patient safety and increases systemic inefficiencies. Implementation of sepsis screening guidelines has been undertaken in many settings with mixed results. Without a theoretical understanding of what leads to successful implementation, improving implementation will continue to be ad hoc or intuitive. This study proposes a programme theory for how and why the successful implementation of sepsis screening guidelines can occur.
METHODS
A rapid realist review was conducted to develop a focused programme theory for the implementation of sepsis screening guidelines. An independent two-reviewer approach was used to iteratively extract and synthesise context and mechanism data. Theoretical context-mechanism-outcome propositions were refined and validated by clinicians using a focus group and individual realist interviews. Implementation resources and clinical reasoning were differentiated in articulating mechanisms.
RESULTS
Eighteen articles were included in the rapid review. The theoretical domains framework was identified as the salient substantive theory informing the programme theory. The theory consisted of five main middle-range propositions. Three promoting mechanisms included positive belief about the benefits of the protocol, belief in the legitimacy of using the protocol and trust within the clinical team. Two inhibiting mechanisms included pessimism about the protocol being beneficial and pessimism about the team. Successful implementation was defined as achieving fidelity and sustained use of the intervention. Two intermediate outcomes, acceptability and feasibility of the intervention, and adoption, were necessary to achieve before successful implementation.
CONCLUSION
This rapid realist review synthesised key information from the literature and clinician feedback to develop a theory-based approach to clinical implementation of sepsis screening. The programme theory presents knowledge users with an outline of how and why clinical interventions lead to successful implementation and could be applied in other clinical areas to improve quality and safety.
Topics: Humans; Sepsis; Mass Screening
PubMed: 38684345
DOI: 10.1136/bmjoq-2023-002593 -
The British Journal of Clinical... Sep 2022Unrealistic pessimism (UP) is an aspect of overestimation of threat (OET) that has been associated with obsessive-compulsive disorder/symptoms (OCD/OCS). During the...
OBJECTIVE
Unrealistic pessimism (UP) is an aspect of overestimation of threat (OET) that has been associated with obsessive-compulsive disorder/symptoms (OCD/OCS). During the COVID-19 pandemic, UP may have played an important role in the course of OCD. To investigate the relationship, we conducted two longitudinal studies assuming that higher UP predicts an increase in OCS.
METHOD
In Study 1, we investigated UP in the general population (N = 1,184) at the start of the pandemic asking about overall vulnerability to infection with SARS-CoV-2 and UP regarding infection and outcome of severe illness. Further, OCS status (OCS+/-) was assessed at the start of the pandemic and 3 months later. In Study 2, we investigated UP in individuals with OCD (N = 268) regarding the likelihood of getting infected, recovering, or dying from an infection with SARS-CoV-2 at the start of the pandemic and re-assessed OCS 3 months later.
RESULTS
In Study 1, UP was higher in the OCS+ compared to the OCS- group, and estimates of a higher overall vulnerability for an infection predicted a decrease in OCS over time. UP regarding severe illness predicted an increase in symptoms over time. In Study 2, UP was found for a recovery and death after an infection with SARS-CoV-2, but not for infection itself.
CONCLUSIONS
Exaggeration of one's personal vulnerability rather than OET per se seems pivotal in OCD, with UP being associated with OCD/OCS+ as well as a more negative course of symptomatology over the pandemic in a nonclinical sample.
PRACTITIONER POINTS
Unrealistic optimism, a bias common in healthy individuals, is thought to be a coping mechanism promoting well-being in the face of danger or uncertainty. The current study extends findings that its inversion, unrealistic pessimism, may play an important role in obsessive-compulsive disorder and may also be involved in the development of the disorder. This study highlights the importance that prevention programs during a pandemic should include targeting unrealistic pessimism.
Topics: COVID-19; Humans; Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder; Pandemics; Pessimism; SARS-CoV-2
PubMed: 35174521
DOI: 10.1111/bjc.12362 -
Inquiry : a Journal of Medical Care... 2022The COVID-19 pandemic has increased psychological distress among common people and has caused health care providers, such as nurses, to experience tremendous stress.
OBJECTIVE
The COVID-19 pandemic has increased psychological distress among common people and has caused health care providers, such as nurses, to experience tremendous stress.
METHODS
This prospective cross-sectional study assessed the psychological impacts on nurses in a community hospital in Taiwan, including major depressive disorder (MDD), posttraumatic stress (PTS), and pessimism. According to transactional theory, coping strategies and personal factors have psychological impacts. We hypothesized that behavioral responses to COVID-19 (problem-focused coping) are more effective in reducing psychological impacts than emotional responses to COVID-19 (emotion-focused coping). Independent variables were the use of behavioral and emotional coping strategies for COVID-19 and 3 personal factors, namely sleep disturbance, physical component summary (PCS-12), and mental component summary (MCS-12) of the 12-Item Short Form Health Survey (SF-12) obtained from the Medical Outcomes Study. Dependent variables comprised 3 psychological impacts, namely MDD, PTS, and pessimism.
RESULTS
We determined that behavioral coping strategies had significant negative effects on PTS and pessimism; however, emotional coping strategies had significantly positive effects on PTS and pessimism. Sleep disturbance was significantly associated with increased MDD and pessimism. PCS-12 had a significant negative effect on PTS, whereas MCS-12 was not significantly associated with any of the 3 psychological impacts.
CONCLUSIONS
Nurses who adopted protective behavior against COVID-19, such as washing hands, wearing masks, avoiding touching eyes, and mouth, and avoiding personal contact, were associated with less posttraumatic stress and pessimism. Healthcare providers should consider strategies for improving preventive behaviors to help ease their worries and fears concerning COVID-19.
Topics: Adaptation, Psychological; COVID-19; Cross-Sectional Studies; Depressive Disorder, Major; Humans; Pandemics; Prospective Studies; Surveys and Questionnaires; Taiwan
PubMed: 35532315
DOI: 10.1177/00469580221096278 -
Obesity (Silver Spring, Md.) Sep 2013Body mass index (BMI) and obesity (BMI ≥ 30) are often derived from self-reported weight and height; psychological dispositions may bias how participants report these...
OBJECTIVE
Body mass index (BMI) and obesity (BMI ≥ 30) are often derived from self-reported weight and height; psychological dispositions may bias how participants report these physical characteristics. The present research used a large national sample of US adults to examine the correspondence between reported and measured body weight and height and to test whether optimists and pessimists misreport their weight/height in ways that are consistent with their worldviews.
METHODS
Participants in the Health and Retirement Study (N = 11,207) reported their weight and height and completed a measure of dispositional optimism and pessimism; trained interviewers measured participants' weight and height.
RESULTS
There was a high correlation between measured and reported weight (r = 0.98) and height (r = 0.92). Consistent with their positive and negative worldviews, respectively, optimists under-reported and pessimists over-reported their weight. There was not a consistent association with misreported height. Optimism and pessimism were also associated with actual BMI and risk of obesity, but the protective/risk effects were amplified when using reported weight to derive BMI.
CONCLUSIONS
These findings suggested that reported body weight tends to be accurate, but that biases associated with psychological dispositions may inflate the relation between the disposition and obesity. Such biases may extend to associations with other self-reported factors thought to be related to optimism and pessimism.
Topics: Aged; Bias; Body Image; Body Mass Index; Body Weight; Female; Humans; Male; Middle Aged; Obesity; Perception; Personality; Self Report; United States
PubMed: 23512794
DOI: 10.1002/oby.20447 -
Journal of Diabetes Jun 2018Psychological attitudes reflecting expectations about the future (optimism, pessimism) and people (cynical hostility) independently predict incident cardiovascular...
BACKGROUND
Psychological attitudes reflecting expectations about the future (optimism, pessimism) and people (cynical hostility) independently predict incident cardiovascular disease and possibly diabetes, but underlying biologic pathways are incompletely understood. Herein we examined the cross-sectional relationship between optimism, pessimism, and cynicism and biomarkers of metabolic function in the Women's Health Initiative.
METHODS
Among 3443 postmenopausal women, biomarkers of metabolic function (fasting insulin [FINS] and glucose) were measured at baseline and used to calculate insulin resistance (homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance [HOMA-IR]) and pancreatic β-cell activity (homeostasis model assessment of β-cell function [HOMA-B]). Psychological attitudes were assessed by the Life Orientation Test, Revised (full scale, and optimism and pessimism subscales) and the Cook-Medley cynicism subscale. Multivariable linear regression modeled the association of psychological attitudes with biomarker levels, adjusting for sociodemographics, health conditions, and health behaviors. Because obesity promotes insulin resistance and obese individuals tend to report higher levels of pessimism and cynical hostility, an interaction with body mass index (BMI) was explored.
RESULTS
In fully adjusted models, only pessimism remained independently associated with higher FINS and insulin resistance (HOMA-IR). Scoring 1 point higher on the pessimism subscale was associated with a 1.2% higher FINS, whereas scoring 1 SD higher was associated with a 2.7% higher FINS (P = 0.03); results were similar for HOMA-IR. An interaction term with BMI was not significant.
CONCLUSIONS
In multivariable models, higher dispositional pessimism was associated with worse metabolic function; these findings were not modified by obesity status. Results extend prior work by linking pessimism to an objective biomarker of insulin resistance in elderly women.
Topics: Aged; Biomarkers; Cross-Sectional Studies; Female; Follow-Up Studies; Health Behavior; Hostility; Humans; Insulin Resistance; Metabolic Diseases; Middle Aged; Optimism; Pessimism; Prognosis; Risk Factors; United States; Women's Health
PubMed: 28703425
DOI: 10.1111/1753-0407.12584 -
International Journal of Developmental... 2022The aim of the study was to examine the relationship between parental stress and parental depression symptoms. A total of 67 mothers took part in this study, of whom 39...
The aim of the study was to examine the relationship between parental stress and parental depression symptoms. A total of 67 mothers took part in this study, of whom 39 mothers of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and 28 mothers of typically developing children. The self-reported measures of the Parental Stress Index III and the Questionnaire for Measuring Depression were used in this study. Mothers' stress domain, but not children' stress domain, was positively associated not only with mothers' total symptoms of depression but also with its dimensions such as cognitive deficits and a lack of energy, thinking about dead, pessimism, and a feeling of alienation, anxiety and guilt symptoms, psychosomatic symptoms and a loss of interest, and lower self-regulation abilities in a group of mothers of children with ASD. There were not nearly any significant associations between mothers' stress and mothers' depression symptoms in a sample of mothers of typically developing children. The results have practical implications for mental health support providers.
PubMed: 35937167
DOI: 10.1080/20473869.2020.1797450 -
American Journal of Epidemiology Dec 2011Pessimism, a general tendency toward negative expectancies, is a risk factor for depression and also heart disease, stroke, and reduced cancer survival. There is...
Pessimism, a general tendency toward negative expectancies, is a risk factor for depression and also heart disease, stroke, and reduced cancer survival. There is evidence that individuals with higher lead exposure have poorer health. However, low socioeconomic status (SES) is linked with higher lead levels and greater pessimism, and it is unclear whether lead influences psychological functioning independently of other social factors. The authors considered interrelations among childhood and adult SES, lead levels, and psychological functioning in data collected on 412 Boston area men between 1991 and 2002 in a subgroup of the VA Normative Aging Study. Pessimism was measured by using the Life Orientation Test. Cumulative (tibia) lead was measured by x-ray fluorescence. Structural equation modeling was used to quantify the relations as mediated by childhood and adult SES, controlling for age, health behaviors, and health status. An interquartile range increase in lead quartile was associated with a 0.37 increase in pessimism score (P < 0.05). Low childhood and adult SES were related to higher tibia lead levels, and both were also independently associated with higher pessimism. Lead maintained an independent association with pessimism even after childhood and adult SES were considered. Results demonstrate an interrelated role of lead burden and SES over the life course in relation to psychological functioning in older age.
Topics: Aged; Aging; Boston; Humans; Lead; Male; Middle Aged; Personality; Personality Assessment; Socioeconomic Factors; Tibia; United States; United States Department of Veterans Affairs
PubMed: 22071587
DOI: 10.1093/aje/kwr269 -
International Journal of Clinical and... 2017: The Life Orientation Test-Revised (LOT-R) is often used to assess dispositional optimism. The aims of this study were to test psychometric properties of the LOT-R, to...
: The Life Orientation Test-Revised (LOT-R) is often used to assess dispositional optimism. The aims of this study were to test psychometric properties of the LOT-R, to provide normative scores, and to test the association between optimism and several psychological, sociodemographic, and behavioral factors. : A randomly selected German general population community sample with an age range of 18-80 years ( = 9,711) was surveyed. : The Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) proved two (correlated) factors: and . Invariance tests across gender and age groups confirmed metric invariance. There were only small gender differences in the LOT-R total score (= 16.4 for females and = 16.1 for males). The correlation between the subscales and was strong for young and well educated people. Low optimism mean scores were observed for unemployed people, people with low income, smokers, and obese people. Normative scores of the LOT-R are provided. : The study confirmed the bidimensional structure of the LOT-R and invariance across age and gender. We can recommend using this instrument for measuring dispositional optimism and pessimism in epidemiological research and clinical practice.
PubMed: 30487891
DOI: 10.1016/j.ijchp.2017.02.003