Personal Impact Research Articles

The association of cancer-related fatigue on the social, vocational and healthcare-related dimensions of cancer survivorship.

Cancer-related fatigue (CRF) is well documented in cancer survivors, but little is known about the personal and societal impact of CRF. This study aimed to examine the impact of CRF in relation to social and vocational functioning and health care utilization in a large sample of post-treatment cancer survivors. We conducted a cross-sectional descriptive study of early stage breast and colorectal cancer survivors (n = 454) who were within 5 years from treatment completion. Social difficulties (SDI-21), work status, absenteeism and presenteeism (WHO-HPQ) and healthcare utilization (HSUQ) were compared in those with (CFR +) and without (CRF -) clinically significant fatigue (FACT-F ≤ 34). A total of 32% met the cut-off criteria for CRF (≤ 34). Participants with CRF + had significantly higher scores on the SDI-21 across all domains and 55% of CRF + vs. 11% in CRF - was above the SDI cut-off (> 10) for significant social difficulties. Participants with CRF + were 2.74 times more likely to be unemployed or on leave (95% CI 1.62, 4.61, p < 0.001). In the subgroup of participants who were currently working (n = 249), those with CRF + reported working on average 27.4 fewer hours in the previous 4 weeks compared to CRF - (p = 0.05), and absolute presenteeism was on average 13% lower in the CRF + group (95% CI 8.0, 18.2, p < 0.001). Finally, individuals with CRF + reported significantly more physician (p < 0.001), other health care professional (p = 0.03) and psychosocial visits (p = 0.002) in the past month. CRF is associated with substantial disruption in social and work role functioning in the early transitional phase of cancer survivorship. Better management of persistent CRF and funding for the implementation of existing guidelines and recommended evidence-based interventions are urgently needed.

Theories of Consciousness and Emergent Technologies: The Impact of Personality on Approaches to Change and Choice

This article delves into the nature of consciousness, aiming to reconcile conflicting theories beyond dualism and panpsychism by addressing differences between early and late adopters of emerging technologies. We propose a new perspective on the integrity of consciousness that transcends binary divisions and embraces the unity of all life forms. Their contributions embrace the interplay between subjective and objective elements, acknowledging that changes and choices arise from complex interactions between known and unknown broader systemic influences. Appreciating the synthesis of traditional and progressive elements, alternative thinkers encourage a dynamic and balanced perspective, where truth is not confined to a singular perspective but emerges from the richness of diverse viewpoints. This paves the way for a more inclusive and comprehensive understanding of attitudes and opinions fostering a greater appreciation for the intricate interconnectedness of life's complexities.

The Influence of Proactive Personality on Teachers’ Professional Identity: The Moderating Effect of Person–Organization Fit

This research tried to explore the moderating effect of Person–Organization Fit (P-O Fit) in the impact of proactive personality on teachers’ professional identity. The data was collected by distributing questionnaires online to teachers of two high schools in Xiangtan. The analysis results show that P-O fit has a moderating effect on proactive personality and teachers’ professional identity. The positive impact of proactive personality on teachers’ professional identity will be stronger when the P-O fit is high. The results also show that young or newly engaged teachers have lower professional identity. Therefore, this study suggests school administrators pay attention to the development of young teachers’ professional identity and improve the fit between teachers and schools to improve the teaching quality.

Prevalence, Severity and Impact of Visuospatial Neglect in Geriatric Stroke Rehabilitation, a Cross-Sectional Study

ObjectivesVisuospatial neglect (VSN) is a common cognitive deficit of lateralized attention after stroke and can have a negative influence on patients’ daily activities, community participation, and caregiver burden. VSN prevalence has been investigated in several mixed-age populations, but rarely in only an older population. As the population in geriatric rehabilitation (GR) is understudied and VSN may influence rehabilitation goals in GR (return home), we examined the prevalence of VSN as well as associations between VSN (severity) and population characteristics and the impact of VSN on functioning, length of stay, and discharge destination after GR. DesignMulticenter cross-sectional study. Setting and ParticipantsStroke patients admitted to GR. MethodsThree VSN tests (Star cancelation task, Line bisection task, and Catherine Bergego Scale) were administered in the first 2 weeks of GR admission. To examine VSN severity, a composite score was calculated based on scores of the 3 tests. ResultsA total of 114 stroke patients were included [55.3% female; mean age 80.2 (SD 8.0) years]. VSN prevalence was 47.4%, in which allocentric and egocentric neglect were more prevalent than VSN during activities of daily living. Participants with VSN spent more days in GR compared to participants without VSN (median 68.5 vs 35.5 days) and had fewer home returns. In addition, VSN participants showed less mobility, lower cognitive functioning, and less independence during self-care compared to participants without VSN. Mobility, self-care, cognition, duration of rehabilitation, and home return were negatively associated with VSN severity. Conclusions and ImplicationsVSN is very prevalent in the GR stroke population. VSN severely hampers older people during daily activities and their rehabilitation process and, therefore, has a major personal and societal impact. Accordingly, systematic assessment of VSN in the early phase of geriatric rehabilitation with multiple VSN screening tests is recommended.

“I’ll live better, stay away from crime”: exploring the reintegration of former prisoners into the community through a music programme

PurposeThere is evidence that music programmes can have a positive impact on people in contact with the criminal justice system. However, little attention has been paid to the potential role of music programmes as people leave prison and re-enter the community. Providing support for former prisoners “through-the-gate” is important to aid resettlement and reduce the risk of reoffending. This paper aims to present research on a programme called Sounding Out: a two-year, London-based programme providing ex-prisoners with longer-term rehabilitative opportunities upon their release to bridge the gap between life inside and outside of prison.Design/methodology/approachThe study aimed to understand the impact of the Sounding Out programme on ex-prisoners from the perspective of participants, staff and family members. Semi-structured interviews took place with 17 people: ten participants across two Sounding Out projects; six members of staff – three from the Irene Taylor Trust, two musicians and one former prison worker; and one family member of a participant.FindingsThe research provides an understanding of the impact of involvement in a carefully designed programme of music creation, skills development and work placements. Thematic analysis of the data resulted in three key themes: personal impact, focus and direction and interpersonal relationships. The findings are consistent with the body of research that demonstrates the impact of music programmes on prisoners.Originality/valueThe current study adds to the relatively limited body of evidence on the role of music programmes in the reintegration of former prisoners into the community.

Harnessing Patient Life Stories to Engage Medical Trainees in Strengthening Veteran-Provider Relationships.

Medical trainees do not have many opportunities to develop communication skills with patients. We established the voluntary "My Life, My Story" (MLMS) program at the Clement J. Zablocki VAMC in Milwaukee, WI, to determine if this pilot narrative medicine program enhanced trainee interpersonal skills and improved patient-centered care. Trainees at the Medical College of Wisconsin conducted in-person or virtual interviews of Veterans receiving care at the Milwaukee VAMC about their meaningful life experiences. Post-interview, trainees wrote a short first-person narrative in the Veteran's voice, which, after the Veteran's approval, was added to the electronic medical record and made available to the patient's care team. Trainees, Veterans, and health professionals completed post-interview surveys, from which we conducted descriptive statistics and qualitatively analyzed the text-based feedback. Between 2020 and 2021, 24 medical trainees participated in our pilot implementation of the MLMS program, conducting a total of 32 interviews. All trainees reported a meaningful personal impact and found the pilot to be "valuable" and "rewarding." Both trainees and health professionals believed that the MLMS program improved "rapport building" with Veterans. Nearly all Veterans (n = 25, 93%) believed that their medical care team would be able to provide better care after reading their life story. Narrative medicine initiatives like the MLMS program may enable value-added education for trainees. Future research will allow us to better understand and maximize specific educational gains, while further enhancing patient care. The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s40670-023-01854-4.

Peer relationships: school mediation benefits for sustainable peace

ABSTRACT School mediation is a peacekeeping, conflict-resolution procedure. Evaluating mediation processes allows us to assess their effects through their participants. This systematic review of studies of school mediation aims to study what evidence exist on its educational benefits for teacher mediators, student mediators, and mediated students. The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) method was followed to ensure the transparency and reproducibility of the results. In total, 524 were initially identified, of which 141 were retained after screening. Of these, 32 studies were published from 2000 to 2020. The studies were analyzed according to their statistical design. In addition, their results were summarized along the following dimensions: interpersonal emotional, personal emotional, cognitive-moral, and social impact. School mediation has a personal impact that increases the likelihood of acting constructively and positively when facing conflicts.

Impact of Stress and Personality on Moral Cognition

With the development of society and the progress of science and technology, people's living standard is getting higher and higher. As people become richer in material life, their pursuit of the spiritual level is even greater. When there is material and spiritual inequality, people experience stress, which increases as the two dimensions of life become more and more unbalanced. Some people will suffer from mental illness such as depression, which will seriously affect their normal life and cognition, and even prompt them to make unethical decisions. Therefore, this article will study how stress and personality affect moral cognition. Through previous experiments can be analyzed, stress and personality have different degrees of influence on moral cognition. Of course, previous experiments also have shortcomings, and future studies can be more rigorous in terms of control variables. To conclude, by reviewing previous research, this study provides suggestions for individuals to reduce stress and avoid antisocial personalities.

Personality Traits and Physical Activity: Insights from German University Students.

This study explores the intriguing relationship between personality traits, self-rated fitness (SRF), and physical activity (PA) variables among German university students (N = 4244) and sheds light on the impact of personality on adherence to PA guidelines. Employing an online cross-sectional study, the short-form of the Big Five Inventory-2 assessed five domains of personality traits (Extraversion, Negative Emotionality, Agreeableness, Conscientiousness, and Open-Mindedness). PA, including sitting time, was assessed using the International Physical Activity Questionnaire (short-form). SRF and muscle-strengthening activities (MSA) were assessed with one item each. Multiple linear and logistic regression analyses examined associations of individual personality trait domains and all domains combined with SFR, PA variables, and adherence to PA guidelines, controlling for sociodemographic, behavioral, and (mental) health covariates. Most reliably, Extraversion and Conscientiousness revealed positive associations with PA variables, while Negative Emotionality yielded inverse relationships with PA variables. For instance, each unit increase in Extraversion corresponded to an additional 17 min of weekly MSA. On the contrary, daily sitting time was unrelated to personality. Of note, high Open-Mindedness was associated with lower odds for adhering to current PA guidelines. The findings have implications for developing targeted interventions that promote a physically active lifestyle and support students' well-being and academic success.

Exploring the Role of Personalization in Adaptive Learning Environments

: In recent years, the integration of technology in education has sparked interest in enhancing learning experiences. Adaptive learning environments, which customize educational content and strategies to individual learners, offer a promising approach. Personalization within adaptive learning environments is crucial for addressing learner diversity and maximizing engagement and learning outcomes. This research project aims to explore the role of personalization in adaptive learning environments and its impact on the user experience and educational outcomes. By investigating the effectiveness of personalized interfaces and adaptive strategies, we seek to understand how these technologies can create more engaging and effective learning environments. The project objectives are threefold. Firstly, we aim to design and implement adaptive learning interfaces with personalized elements to customize the learning experience for each user. Secondly, we will evaluate the impact of personalization on user experience dimensions, including engagement, satisfaction, and motivation. Lastly, we will assess the effect of personalization on learning outcomes, such as knowledge acquisition and retention. This research contributes to the field of educational technology and user experience (UX) design. By examining the role of personalization in adaptive learning environments, we aim to inform the development of more effective and learner-centered educational tools and strategies.

A mixed methods analysis of U.S. military veterans’ suicidal ideation experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic: Prevalence, correlates, and perceived impact

This mixed methods study sought to increase understanding of veterans’ experiences of suicidal ideation (SI) during the COVID-19 pandemic, including prevalence, correlates, and perceived impact. A national survey of veterans (n=567) was conducted from 12/2020 to 2/2021. Quantitative analyses (weighted to the veteran population) examined SI prevalence and correlates. Qualitative thematic analysis of veterans’ free text responses was used to examine veterans’ lived experiences regarding the perceived impact of the pandemic. Among veterans, 9.6% (95% CI: 6.8, 12.5) experienced past-year SI, and 5.0% (95% CI: 2.8, 7.3) experienced past-month SI, estimates of prevalence during the early phase of the pandemic. Additionally, 3.1% (95% CI: 1.4, 4.7) reported experiencing increased SI frequency, and 2.2% (95% CI: 0.7, 3.6) reported experiencing increased SI intensity, during the pandemic. SI (past-year, past-month, and increased frequency during the pandemic) was more prevalent among veterans who were younger, Black, had minor(s) at home, screened positive for posttraumatic stress disorder, screened positive for depression, obtained lifetime mental health treatment, and accessed past-year outpatient mental health care. In qualitative analyses, Veterans with increased SI frequency described multi-faceted negative impacts of the pandemic, including in regard to their mental health, employment, and family. Negative perceptions of the personal impact of the pandemic were strongly associated with SI (past-year, past-month, and increased frequency). Supporting veterans who have been negatively impacted by the pandemic, including with respect to mental health and family functioning, may be particularly important to addressing SI in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic and for prevention in future pandemics.

The impact of consumer personality and social network position on brand community engagement

The impact of consumer personality and social network position on brand community engagement

Do health beliefs about COVID‐19 predict morbidity? A longitudinal study

AbstractIn a highly powered (N ≈ 5000), six‐months longitudinal study (December 2020‐May 2021), we tested the assumption that beliefs concerning COVID‐19 and the precautions against it predicted morbidity. Six months after having filled out a survey measuring beliefs about the disease and the precautions against it, participants reported if they were or had been ill with COVID‐19. A lower likelihood of being or having been ill with COVID‐19 was predicted by personal optimism concerning infection, perceived personal control over infection, perceived effectiveness of precautions, and self‐reported personal or better‐than‐average adherence to the precautions. A higher likelihood of being or having been ill with COVID‐19 was predicted by perceived personal control over a good outcome of an infection, egocentric impact perception concerning the impact of the disease, perceived difficulty of adherence to the precautions, and both personal and egocentric impact perception concerning the impact of the precautions. Comparative optimism did not predict morbidity, nor did personal optimism concerning severe disease or a good outcome, perceived personal control over severe disease, and moralization of the precautions. We discuss implications for public health communication.

Unmet Primary Health Care Needs among Nepalese Immigrant Population in Canada.

Immigrants represent over one-fifth (21.9%) of the Canadian population, which is an increasing trend. Primary care is a gateway to accessing the healthcare system for the majority of Canadians seeking medical services; however, Canada reported a growing shortage of healthcare providers, mainly primary care practitioners. Canadians, including immigrants, encounter many unmet healthcare needs due to various reasons. This study aimed to assess unmet healthcare (UHC) needs and associated factors among Nepalese immigrants residing in Calgary. A cross-sectional study using a self-administered questionnaire was conducted in 2019. UHC needs were measured based on a single-item question: "During the past 12 months, was there ever a time that you felt you needed medical help, but you did not receive it". A follow-up question was asked to learn about associated unmet needs factors, and the responses were categorized into availability, accessibility, and acceptability. Descriptive and multivariable logistic regression was employed to assess the association between UHC needs and its predictors by using STATA version 14.2. Of 401 study participants, nearly half of the participants (n = 187; 46.63%) reported UHC needs, which was not significantly different among male and female participants (p = 0.718). UHC needs were nearly two times higher among those aged 26-45 (AOR 1.93) and those ≥56 years (AOR 2.17) compared to those under 25 years of age. The top reasons reported for unmet needs were long waits to access care (67.91%), healthcare costs (57.22%), and lack of knowing where to get help (31.55%). Overall, "services availability when required" was a leading obstacle that accounted for UHC needs (n = 137, 73.26%). Nearly two-thirds (n = 121, 64.71%) of participants reported that "accessibility of services" was a barrier, followed by "acceptability (n = 107, 57.22%). Those who reported UHC needs also reported an impact on their lives personally and economically. The most commonly reported personal impact was mental health impact, including worry, anxiety, and stress (67.38%). The most common economic impact reported due to UHC needs was increased use of over-the-counter drugs (33.16%) and increased healthcare costs (17.20%). UHC needs are presented in the Nepalese immigrant population. Accessibility to healthcare is limited for several reasons: waiting time, cost, distance, and unavailability of services. UHC needs impact individuals' personal health, daily life activities, and financial capacity. Strategies to improve access to PHC for disadvantaged populations are crucial and need to be tackled effectively.

Impact of High-Performance Human Resource Practices, Self-Efficacy and Proactive Personality on Employee’s Job Performance: A Conceptual Model

This study attempts to present a model in explaining a mechanism which ensures job performance of employees. A series of activities, which were already well researched in an isolated manner in different contexts were incorporated to develop this model. The literature-based data compilation was done to develop this model. Thereby, the Job Demand Resource Model (JD-R model) has been adopted to examine the impact of employees’ perceptions of High-performance Human Resource Practices (HPHRPs) and their job performance through personal resources such as self-efficacy and proactive personality. Therefore, when HPHRPs offer job resources to the employees, they can utilize the resources such as knowledge, skills and ability to build and enhance their personal resources to ensure their job performance in the work context. However, the JD-R model does not enough explain to make the resources connection process by the employees to be different, then resulting in varying their job performance levels. The main aim of this study is to address this lacuna by explaining to what extent employees have perceived that HPHRP has an impact on their job performance through self-efficacy and proactive personality. The main theoretical contribution is that it integrates HPHRPs, personal resources, and employees’ job performance within the same conceptualization by expanding the boundary conditions of the JD-R model. Further, this paper would make theoretical contributions and implications for managers and academics in this field.

EcoSanté Lifestyle Intervention: Encourage Reflections on the Connections between Health and Environment

EcoSanté is a mobile lifestyle intervention that encourages individual behavior change while also helping participants understand the deep connections between daily lifestyle choices and our collective impact on the planet. Informed by research on “small” intervention approaches, we sent participants daily behavioral challenges that demonstrated connections between personal health and environmental impact at large. Through a 20-day mobile intervention study, 139 participants uploaded 1,920 submissions documenting their attempts to engage in these challenges. We found that participants’ self-reported healthy eating behavior and general self-efficacy improved significantly immediately after the intervention. Moreover, 30 days after the intervention, participants’ self-reported eating, exercise, and general self-efficacy all significantly improved compared to the beginning of the study. Participants had a more negative reaction when being asked to come up with their own challenges. Based on quantitative and qualitative findings, we provide implications for future researcher on mobile behavior intervention research.

Pilot Study: Assessing Personal and Clinical Impacts from a Recovery-Centric Intervention in Inpatient Psychiatry Using Mixed Methods

Objective: The conventional model of biomedical mental healthcare focused on diagnosis, crisis stabilization, and pharmaceutical treatment might be enriched with recovery-oriented programming and improve the overall inpatient experience. This study aimed to assess the impacts of a person-centered intervention on patient-reported recovery measures and clinical progression over time. Methods: Eighteen patients from a tertiary-level regional unit enrolled in the pilot program over an eight-month intervention period. Clinical and proxy recovery data was collected and compared before and after the intervention in a combination of within group and between group assessments using unit clinical performance as a control. Results: Contrary to expectation, intervention participants reported a decline in four of five proxy recovery scores from the pretest to the post-test and concurrent deterioration in routine clinical monitoring scores. Research cohort scores declined in three of six domains with a statistically significant change in one category while unit clinical scores declined in five of six domains with statistically significant changes in three categories. A comparison of mean coefficients indicated more favourable outcomes for research participants in five clinical domains. Conclusions: Concurrent declines in recovery-focused and clinical measures suggest a risk of inpatient regression over time in hospital. The findings support the need for innovative approaches to inpatient service delivery including recovery-focused interventions which might improve clinical progression. The results also indicate the need for rigorous program evaluation which can be facilitated by leveraging existing clinical assessment tools and in considering patient perspectives in determining the effectiveness of interventions.

Doing it Together

The impersonal impact hypothesis states that news consumption leads to an increase of social concern, but not to an increase of personal concern, whereas the latter is most important for stimulating behaviour change. However, previous findings are mixed and mostly investigate private health behaviour. Here we, therefore, conceptually replicate these findings by studying a public health crisis: the case of the Covid-19 pandemic. The results of our longitudinal, five-wave study do not show support for the impersonal impact hypothesis, but rather seem to reveal the possibility of a personal impact hypothesis. That is, our findings show that news consumption increased participants’ personal concerns and to a lesser extent their societal concerns. News consumption furthermore indirectly affected adherence to governmental policy measures via these concerns. Additionally, participants adhered more to these measures when they believed they can make an incremental difference in stopping Covid-19 by adhering to Covid-19 policies (i.e., direct effect of participative beliefs). The belief of “doing it together” seems thus vital for policy adherence. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.

Pain, mental health and healthcare utilization: Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on youth with chronic pain, parents and siblings.

Paediatric chronic pain was a public health emergency before the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, and this problem is predicted to escalate. Pain tends to occur intergenerationally in families, and youth with chronic pain and their parents have high rates of mental health issues, which can further exacerbate pain. Siblings of youth with chronic pain have been largely overlooked in research, as well as the impact of the pandemic on posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms and healthcare utilization. This cross-sectional study examined pain, mental health and healthcare utilization in three groups: youth with chronic pain (n = 357), parents of youth with chronic pain (n = 233) and siblings of youth with chronic pain (n = 156) during the COVID-19 pandemic in Canada. More so than with pain symptoms, the results revealed high levels of mental health symptoms (i.e. anxiety, depressive, and PTSD), particularly in individuals more personally impacted by the pandemic. The largest effect was seen on PTSD symptoms for all groups. For parents with chronic pain, greater personal COVID-19 impact was related to worse pain interference. Reported rates of healthcare utilization were strikingly high, with youth with chronic pain, parents (reporting on behalf of their children with chronic pain), and siblings of youth with chronic pain reporting that most consultations were due to pain. Longitudinal research assessing these outcomes across continued waves of the pandemic is needed to ensure timely, tailored and equitable access to pain and mental health assessment and treatment. This study examined pain, mental health, substance use and healthcare utilization in youth with chronic pain, siblings and parents during the COVID-19 pandemic. Greater personal impact of the pandemic was not largely associated with poorer pain outcomes; however, it was associated with mental health, with the largest effect on PTSD symptoms. The high rates and significant association of COVID-19 impact with PTSD symptoms underscore the importance of including PTSD assessment as part of routine screening practices in pain clinics.

The green adolescent: The joint contribution of personality and divergent thinking in shaping pro-environmental behaviours

The ongoing environmental deterioration challenges present and forthcoming generations to adopt more suitable behaviours to avoid catastrophic consequences for Earth's ecosystem. This demanding scenario has raised several questions about human activities, leading to exploring the intrapersonal factors involved in pro-environmental behaviours (PEBs). In a sample of 146 late adolescents (Mage = 19.91 years, SDage = 1.31 years, 68.5% females), the current research addressed the extent to which the Big Five personality traits predict PEBs through the effect of fluency and creativity of divergent thinking (DT). Results revealed that not only openness but also extraversion and agreeableness were indirectly associated with PEBs through the mediation of DT creativity. This study extended previous knowledge about the impact of personality on green behaviours, suggesting that adolescents must invest in and increase their DT competencies to enhance their own disposition toward pro-environmental practices. Implications, limitations, and future research directions were discussed.