General Life Stress Research Articles

Examining the role of racism in the risky alcohol use behaviors of black female college students

ABSTRACTObjective: This study explores the impact racism has on the drinking behaviors of Black college women. Little is known about Black college women's experience of racism and the impact racism has on their psychological wellbeing and drinking behaviors. The current study fills a gap in our understanding of the role racism plays in the risky drinking behavior of Black college women. Participants: 469 Black college women ages 18–29 were sampled from 8 colleges and universities across the US, in 3 waves from December 2014-August 2017. Results: Findings suggest that general life stress and perceived racism are significantly associated with alcohol use among Black college women. However, only increased experiences of racism increase Black college women's engagement in risky drinking. Conclusions: The findings of this study serve as an entry point for a more nuanced assessment of stressors among Black college women that may inform drinking behaviors in this population.

Testing the Theory of Resilience and Relational Load (TRRL) in Families with Type I Diabetes

ABSTRACTThe theory of resilience and relational load was tested with 60 couples and their adolescent children (ages 11–18) with type I diabetes (T1D). The couples participated in a stress-inducing conversation task in their home, followed by a random assignment to a two-week intervention designed to increase their relationship maintenance. Before the intervention, stronger communal orientation predicted greater maintenance for husbands and wives, but maintenance only reduced T1D stress for wives. The wives’ and adolescents’ T1D stress were also correlated, but the husbands’ T1D stress was not significantly associated with either of them. Better maintenance was associated with less conflict during couples’ conversations. Maintenance was also directly associated with less perceived and physiological stress (cortisol) from the conversation. Finally, wives in the intervention reported the most thriving, communal orientation and the least loneliness. The intervention also reduced adolescents’ general life stress, but it did not influence their T1D stress or thriving.

Does getting stigma under the skin make it thinner? Emotion regulation as a stress-contingent mediator of stigma and mental health.

Emotion regulation deficits may link stigma to poor mental health, yet existing studies rely on self-reported stigma and do not consider contextual factors. In the present research, we examined associations among cultural stigma (i.e., objective devaluation of others' status), emotion regulation deficits, and poor mental health. In Study 1, we created an index of cultural stigma by asking members of the general public and stigma experts to indicate desired social distance towards 93 stigmatized attributes. In Study 2, emotion regulation deficits mediated the association between cultural stigma and adverse mental health outcomes, including depressive symptoms and alcohol use problems, among individuals endorsing diverse stigmatized identities. The indirect effect of cultural stigma, via emotion regulation, on these outcomes was stronger among those reporting more life stress. These findings highlight the adverse impact of cultural stigma on mental health and its role in potentiating stigmatized individuals' susceptibility to general life stress.

Featured Article: Caregiver Perceptions of Stress and Sibling Conflict During Pediatric Cancer Treatment.

The current study examined the effect of stress on sibling conflict during the first year of pediatric cancer treatment. Families (N = 103) included a child with cancer (aged 2-17 years, Mage = 6.46, SD = 3.52) and at least one sibling aged <5 years of the child with cancer (Mage = 8.34, SD = 5.61). Primary caregivers completed monthly questionnaires throughout the first year of treatment assessing five sources of stress (i.e., general life, cancer-related, financial, perceived treatment intensity, and life threat) and level of sibling conflict. Using multilevel modeling, we explored the effects of these stressors on conflict both at the within- and between-family levels to examine if changes in stress resulted in concurrent changes in conflict within an individual family, and whether greater average stress affected the trajectory of conflict between families, respectively. At the between-family level, higher average levels of cancer-related stress, general life stress, and financial stress were associated with higher sibling conflict at the end of the first year of treatment. Perceived treatment intensity and life threat were not associated with conflict. No stressors were associated with conflict at the within-family level. During pediatric cancer treatment, some stressors may spill over into family relationships and contribute to increases in sibling conflict.

Moving Beyond Anger and Depression: The Effects of Anxiety and Envy on Maladaptive Coping

ABSTRACTAccording to general strain theory (GST), life stressors, or strains, lead to different types of negative emotions, some of which increase the likelihood of maladaptive coping. A considerable body of research testing GST focuses on anger and depression as manifestations of negative emotionality. Less research considers other types of negative emotions (e.g., anxiety and envy). The current study addresses this void in the literature through the use of surveys administered to a university-based sample. We also consider whether the effects of negative emotions vary by sex. The implications of our findings for theory, research, and mental health providers are discussed.

The Relationship between Eating Disorder and General Life Stressors among College Students in Jordan

Background: College students, in their transitional period to adulthood and into university environment may face emotional and psychological stress, due to new social environment, financial demands, academic caseload, new responsibility and expectations by their parents and peers. Eating disorder can become a coping strategy among students. Eating disorders considered being a significant problems and important issue concerning the care of young adults all over the world. The study aims to investigate the relationship between eating disorders and general life stressors among college students in Jordan. Methods: A student’s survey for General Life Stressors Inventory (GLSI), and Eating disorder scale were both developed and administered to college students. Results: The results indicated a moderate level of general life stressors and a low level of eating disorder among students. Moreover the results showed a significant positive relationship between general life stressors and eating disorder. Conclusion: Life stressors can be a very good predictor of eating disorder among college students. Moreover, there is no significant difference in general life stressors and eating disorders among students due to their Gender, Major, and Place of residence. Implications are in progress for focusing researches on life stressors as an effort in fostering intervention programs for eating disorder among students.

Loss, grief and depression: potential risk factors in grief-related depression

Objective: The present study investigates the association of depression with grief-related risk factors among bereaved individuals. Methods: The data were collected from 161 bereaved individuals who lost a first-degree rela-tive or a partner within the past six months. A highly semi-structured interview conducted to collect the data across several domains, including demographic variables, the relationship with deceased, the mode of death, past-trauma-tic experiences, and general life stressors. The Beck Depression Scales was used to gather depression scores. Chi-square tests (with continuity correction for 2x2 tables) were used to examine for possible differences in the categorical variables, and multiple regression analysis was used to examine the grief-related risk factors for depres-sion. Results: Factors such as sudden death, conflicted relationship with the deceased, witnessing the death of a loved one, and receiving social support have been associated with mourning depression. Frequency of depression was significantly more prevalent in participants who lost a loved one suddenly, had negative relationship with deceased and had a lack of family and social support. The frequency of depression was found higher in females. Conclusion: The conflict resolutions play a significant role in coping with grief and related psychopathology. The clinical treatment methods need to address these issues and ought to emphasize the use of social support in treating grief-related depression.

The role of minority stress in second-generation Black emerging adult college students' high-risk drinking behaviors.

This study used a minority stress framework to investigate the relationships between multiple stressors (e.g., general life stress, race related stress, and acculturative stress) and high-risk drinking behaviors in a sample of second-generation Black emerging adult college students across the United States. Participants (n = 148) were recruited from U.S. colleges and universities as part of a large, multiwave cross-sectional study. Findings from this study mirrored those in the extant literature: the positive relationship between race-related stress and high-risk drinking behaviors found in other marginalized groups. However, when all stressors were entered into the model, acculturative stress accounted for significant variance in high-risk drinking behaviors above and beyond general life and race-related stressors in second generation Black emerging adult college students. Findings underscore the need to better understand the influence of acculturative stress on high-risk drinking behaviors among second-generation Black emerging adult college students: an understudied population in both the acculturation and alcohol use literatures. Implications for future research and clinical practice are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record

Diabetes-Specific and General Life Stress and Glycemic Outcomes in Emerging Adults With Type 1 Diabetes: Is Race/Ethnicity a Moderator?

This study examines whether race/ethnicity moderates relationships of (a) diabetes stress and general life stressors with (b) diabetes outcomes of glycemic control and diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA) among emerging adults (aged 18-25 years) with type 1 diabetes (T1D). Using a T1D Exchange Registry sample of non-Hispanic White, African American, and Hispanic emerging adults (N = 3,440), multiple group analyses were used to determine whether race/ethnicity moderates the relationships between stress and diabetes outcomes. The relationships between the two stress types and glycemic control did not differ between African American and non-Hispanic Whites. However, as compared with non-Hispanic Whites, the association between higher diabetes-specific stress and poorer glycemic control was significantly stronger for Hispanics, and Hispanics had poorer glycemic control when they experienced a relatively fewer number of general life stressors than non-Hispanic Whites. The relationships between the type of stress (diabetes-specific and general stress) and DKA did not differ across racial/ethnic groups. Future research should evaluate possible mechanisms that contribute to the different relationships of stress with glycemic control among Hispanics compared with non-Hispanic Whites.

Minority stress and intimate partner violence perpetration among lesbians: Negative affect, hazardous drinking, and intrusiveness as mediators.

Lesbians report experiencing intimate partner violence (IPV) at rates greater than or equal to those reported by heterosexual women. However, relatively little is known about the underlying mechanisms contributing to IPV perpetration among lesbians. In the present study we tested a conceptual model of the relationship among general life stressors, sexual minority stressors, negative affect, hazardous alcohol use, interpersonal intrusiveness (i.e., possessiveness/jealousy, separation anxiety, emotional interreactivity), and physical assault perpetration. We hypothesized that stressors would be more distal factors associated with increased negative affect and alcohol use which would in turn be associated with more interpersonal intrusiveness and physical assault perpetration. Self-identified lesbian women (N = 342) completed an online survey assessing life stress, sexual minority stress, negative affect, hazardous alcohol use, intrusiveness, and perpetration of physical assault. RESULTS of structural equation modeling revealed negative affect and intrusiveness sequentially mediated the relationship between both minority and general life stress and physical assault perpetration. Also, life stress was related to increased hazardous alcohol use which was then associated with physical assault perpetration. Our conceptual model linking stressors to physical assault perpetration was mostly confirmed among this sample of lesbians. The results offer important information relevant to policies and clinical interventions aimed at reducing IPV in lesbian couples. Language: en

General Life and Diabetes-Related Stressors in Early Adolescents With Type 1 Diabetes

IntroductionTo examine general and diabetes-related stressors in early adolescents with type 1 diabetes (T1D). MethodData were from 205 participants (58% female; 33% minority; 11-14 years) enrolled in a clinical trial. Teens identified their top 3 stressors and responded to open-ended questions. A content analysis method was used to identify themes across stressor categories. ResultsEight-two percent of teens reported that school was a top stressor, followed by social life (49%) and diabetes (48%). We identified 5 themes of general life stressors (fitting in, having friends, balancing competing demands, living with family, and feeling pressure to do well) and 3 themes of diabetes-specific stressors (just having diabetes, dealing with emotions, and managing diabetes). DiscussionThough teens with T1D experienced stressors specific to T1D, they perceived stress related to normal adolescent growth and development more frequently. Teens with T1D may need psychosocial support that holistically addresses both typical developmental and diabetes-related stressors.

Stress and Quality of Life in Urban Caregivers of Children With Poorly Controlled Asthma: A Longitudinal Analysis

IntroductionThe intent of this analysis was to examine the longitudinal effects of risk and protective factors on quality of life (QOL) in caregivers of minority children with asthma. MethodCaregivers (n = 300) reported on demographics, child asthma characteristics, daily asthma caregiving stress, general life stress, social support, and QOL. Latent growth curve modeling examined changes in QOL across 12 months as a function of stress, asthma control, and social support. ResultsCaregivers were primarily the biological mother (92%), single (71%), unemployed (55%), and living in poverty. Children were African American (96%), Medicaid eligible (92%), and had poorly controlled asthma (93%). Lower QOL was associated with higher life stress, greater asthma caregiving stress, and lower asthma control over time. DiscussionFindings underscore the importance of assessing objective and subjective measures of asthma burden and daily life stress in clinical encounters with urban, low-income caregivers of children with poorly controlled asthma.

Development of the Gender Minority Stress and Resilience Measure.

Researchers currently lack a reliable and valid means of assessing minority stress and resilience factors in transgender and gender-nonconforming (TGNC) people. This study was conducted to develop and evaluate the validity of a tool to better assess these constructs in TGNC populations. The Gender Minority Stress and Resilience (GMSR) measure was developed grounded on Meyer’s minority stress model, and adjusted to reflect the experiences of TGNC populations based on TGNC literature and archival data from TGNC focus groups. The final GMSR includes scales assessing 9 constructs: gender-related discrimination, gender-related rejection, gender-related victimization, nonaffirmation of gender identity, internalized transphobia, negative expectations for future events, nondisclosure, community connectedness, and pride. In the current study, 844 participants completed the GMSR measure as well as measures related to mental health, general life stress, and social support. Results indicated good model fit, criterion validity, convergent validity, and discriminant validity for the 9 hypothesized scales. Discriminant validity for the scales were also partially supported. Overall, the current study offers preliminary evidence of the reliability and validity of the GMSR Measure for use with TGNC populations. The GMSR Measure has several uses for both research and clinical purposes, including increasing understanding of the experiences and correlates of gender minority stress and resilience factors and assessing whether specific therapies or interventions are helpful in reducing risk and supporting resilience in TGNC populations.

College student stressors, depression, and suicidal ideation.

This study was designed to explore whether stressors from college-related activities and stressors from general life experiences differed in their power to predict depression and suicidal ideation in college students. In a sample of 165 college undergraduates, depression was predicted by both sources of stress whereas past and current suicidal ideation were predicted only by general life stress.

Exploring and testing the predictors of new faculty success: a mixed methods study

The purpose of this mixed methods study was to investigate and test the factors contributing to new faculty members' success. In the first phase, qualitative analysis of focus groups revealed four prominent themes affecting new faculty members: expectations, collegiality, balance, and location. In the second phase, new faculty members completed an online survey using scales developed from the qualitative themes. Factor analysis revealed five distinct factors (qualitative theme ‘balance’ split into professional and personal), each demonstrating construct validity, reliability, and significant intercorrelations. Female faculty reported less personal balance, self-reported health, and general life satisfaction. Also, faculty with more years of service had lower job satisfaction and perceived departmental support. Finally, multiple regressions revealed professional balance had the greatest predictive effect on faculty members' self-perception of success at work; alternatively, expectations, collegiality, and location had greater effects on indirect success indicators such as job satisfaction, general life satisfaction, health, and stress.

The Manifestation of Occupational Stress in the Teaching Profession: The Unheeded Voices of Teachers

Numerous studies have established that teaching can be a stressful profession and that stress may affect career motivation and diminish effectiveness and job satisfaction of many loyal and gifted teachers. Van der Westhuisen (1991) observes that the increasing demands made on the schools and teachers have led to an alarming escalation of stress and professional burnout as career risks for those in the teaching profession. A major concern with occupational stress in the teaching profession is that prolonged experience of stress can precipitate both mental and physical ill-health (Walker & Cole, 1989:28). The widespread concern regarding occupational stress in teaching has led many researchers to focus on this area. Furthermore, there has been an increasing recognition of the link between mental and physical health and occupational stress, and indeed concern to improve the working lives of teachers (Williams & Gersch, 2004). This sought to investigate the sources of occupational stress amongst primary school teachers. The sample consisted of 168 teachers from primary schools in KwaZulu Natal province, South Africa. Data were collected using a questionnaire. The study reveals that teaching stressors which the teachers found stressful, in order of most to least stressful, were curriculum changes, work load pressures, job insecurity, poor relationship with colleagues, reward and recognition, learners discipline problems, poor rapport with management and role ambiguity. In terms of factors associated with teacher stress, the results showed that a combination of internal and external factors were associated with teacher stress. In terms of internal factors, organisational stressors and classroom stressors were associated with teacher stress. In terms of external stressors minimal general life stressors were also found to be associated with teacher stress. The areas which teachers viewed as most stressful were policy changes, time-work load pressures and classroom discipline. DOI: 10.5901/mjss.2014.v5n1p77

Benefit finding in response to general life stress: measurement and correlates

Benefit finding herein defined as “the process of deriving positive growth from adversity” has become a key construct in the evolution of positive psychology, and research suggests that it may provide the basis for a resource model of stress and coping. However, measures of benefit finding have tended to be domain specific. The current study focused on developing a more generic multidimensional measure of benefit finding. A measure of benefit finding was developed and tested in 855 students (574 females and 281 males) aged between 18 and 40 years. A 28-item scale with six dimensions was produced and Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) confirmed the scale structure. The model proposed that psychological and social resources would mediate the relationship between experienced stressors and benefit finding. Structural equation modelling with Analysis of Moment Structures (AMOS) shows that the model is a good fit for the data and psychological and social resources partially mediated the relationship. It is argued that psychological and social resources enable benefit finding in relation to life stress and provide a focus for the development of preventive interventions to improve positive health.

Neuropsychological Differential Diagnosis of Mild Traumatic Brain Injury

The diagnosis and evaluation of mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) is reviewed from the perspective of meta-analyses of neuropsychological outcome, showing full recovery from a single, uncomplicated mTBI by 90 days post-trauma. Persons with history of complicated mTBI characterized by day-of-injury computed tomography or magnetic resonance imaging abnormalities, and those who have suffered prior mTBIs may or may not show evidence of complete recovery similar to that experienced by persons suffering a single, uncomplicated mTBI. Persistent post-concussion syndrome (PCS) is considered as a somatoform presentation, influenced by the non-specificity of PCS symptoms which commonly occur in non-TBI samples and co-vary as a function of general life stress, and psychological factors including symptom expectation, depression and anxiety. A model is presented for forensic evaluation of the individual mTBI case, which involves open-ended interview, followed by structured interview, record review, and detailed neuropsychological testing. Differential diagnosis includes consideration of other neurologic and psychiatric disorders, symptom expectation, diagnosis threat, developmental disorders, and malingering.

Occupational safety beliefs among Latino residential roofing workers

This analysis describes beliefs about work safety and personal protective equipment (PPE) among Latino roofing workers, it delineates their perceptions of work environment characteristics that affect work safety and PPE use, and it describes how they experience work injuries and the consequences of these injuries. In-depth interviews were completed with 10 current and former Latino residential roofers. Interview transcripts were subjected to systematic qualitative analysis. Participants' valued productivity over safety, and this had a negative influence on their safety behavior and reduced their PPE use. They understood that roofing was hazardous. They limited use of PPE when they felt it reduced productivity and when it was uncomfortable. Work environment characteristics that affected safety included company size, the physical demands of the job, lack of training, the need for work, general life stress, and distractions at work. An injury had to result in lost work time to be considered significant. Access to health care is limited by employers not providing Workers' compensation. Future research is needed to substantiate these descriptive results and to delineate factors that are associated with safety behavior and use of PPE. Interventions, based on a lay health educator model, are needed to improve safety in this population. Safety regulations need to be evaluated and their enforcement needs to be improved.

Is the association between depression and blunted cardiovascular stress reactions mediated by perceptions of stress?

Symptoms of depression are related to blunted cardiovascular reactions to acute stress tasks. However, it is unclear what factors might mediate this association and whether blunted responses are specific to mental stress tasks or are also evident with other forms of stress. The present study assessed cardiovascular reactivity to both mental and postural stress and the role of background stress exposure and stress perception. Undergraduate students (N=119, 81 females) were screened for depressive symptoms using the Beck Depression Inventory. Twenty-six participants with probable depression and 26 non-depressed controls underwent cardiovascular stress testing. Heart rate (HR), systolic (SBP) and diastolic (DBP) blood pressure were measured at rest and in response to a 5min orthostatic challenge and an 8min mental arithmetic task. Stress exposure was measured using the Undergraduate Stress Questionnaire. Perceptions of general life stress were assessed using the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) and perceptions of the stress task impact were measured using Threat Appraisal (TA). Symptoms of depression were associated with blunted HR, F(2,98)=5.26, p=.010, η2=.097, and SBP, F(2,98)=6.47, p=.008, η2=.117, reactions to the mental stress but not to postural challenge. HR reactions were mediated by PSS score, while both PSS score and TA emerged independently as mediators of SBP reactions. These results confirm a negative relationship between depressive symptoms and cardiovascular reactions to acute stress, suggest that this association may be stress task-specific, and may be mediated by perceptions of stress.