Indirectly Linked Research Articles

A systematic literature review on the link between peer victimization and literacy during adolescence

Peer victimization and literacy failure are on the rise. Yet, there is little understanding of their interplay, particularly during adolescence–a period of heightened sensitivity to social–emotional and academic maladjustment. Guided by the Developmental Cascades Framework, this systematic literature review elucidated how peer victimization and literacy are directly and indirectly linked via negative behaviors, sex, and grade. A total of 21 studies were published between 1993 and 2022 that focused on typically developing 5th- to 8th-graders. Sample sizes ranged from 140 to 86,372 participants. Results indicated a bidirectional connection between increased peer victimization and poorer literacy. Preliminary evidence was found in support of an indirect link via internalizing behaviors, externalizing behaviors, and school engagement, but ambiguous support for the effect of sex. Taken together, adolescents who experience peer victimization are likely to struggle in literacy, as well as exhibit negative behaviors that may only serve to exacerbate this connection.

COVID-19-related stress exacerbates the effect of child maltreatment on negative affect via increased identity confusion during adolescence.

Exposure to childhood maltreatment may undermine the crucial developmental task of identity formation in adolescence, placing them at risk for developing negative affect. The current study investigated whether COVID-19-related stress intensified the indirect link between child maltreatment and adolescents' negative affect through identity confusion. Using multidimensional assessments of child maltreatment (threat vs. deprivation), the study included a sample of 124 adolescents (Mage = 12.89, SD = 0.79; 52% female) assessed before (January 2018 to March 2020) and during the pandemic (May to October 2020) in Georgia, United States. The majority of the participants were European American (78.8%), followed by African American (11.5%), Hispanic (3.8%), Asian/Pacific Islander (1.0%), and other (4.8%). We used structural equation modeling to test (a) the mediating role of identity confusion in the link between childhood maltreatment and negative affect and (b) whether COVID-19-related stress moderated these indirect effects. Simple slopes and Johnson-Neyman plots were generated to probe regions of significant interaction effects. Threat and deprivation predicted an increase in adolescent identity confusion. Additionally, childhood threat and deprivation were indirectly linked to adolescents' negative affect through increased levels of identity confusion. COVID-19-related stress significantly exacerbated the link between identity confusion and negative affect. Identity confusion is a mechanism underlying the link between child maltreatment and the development of negative affect in adolescence. Our results inform prevention and intervention programs that aim to reduce negative affect among adolescents who experience threatening and depriving rearing environments.

Do Coping Motives and Perceived Impaired Control Mediate the Indirect Links from Childhood Trauma Facets to Alcohol-Related Problems?

The Self-Medication Hypothesis suggests that individuals drink to alleviate undesirable affective states. Behavioral Economics Theory states that individuals deprived of resources (i.e., physically neglected) consume more reinforcing substances when they are available than others. Childhood trauma may indirectly increase impaired control over alcohol (IC; drinking beyond one's own intentions) and thereby increase alcohol use and problems through the employment of coping-motives. A structural equation model that included sex as a covariate examined mediated paths with 612 university students. Men were less likely to be emotionally abused and were more likely to use greater amounts of alcohol than women did. Physical neglect was directly linked to both more IC and alcohol use. Emotional and sexual abuse were directly linked to more coping motives. Both emotional and sexual abuse were indirectly linked to more alcohol use and its related problems through increased coping motives and IC. Consistent with Behavioral Economics Theory, there was a direct link between physical neglect and IC. We also found partial support for the Self-Medication Hypothesis regarding the emotional and sexual abuse trauma dimensions; they indirectly contributed to alcohol use and its related problems via the mediating mechanisms of more coping motives and IC. Our findings suggest coping motives could be a therapeutic target for intervention among those sexually or emotionally abused.

The Instagram Infodemic: Cobranding of Conspiracy Theories, Coronavirus Disease 2019 and Authority-Questioning Beliefs.

The novel coronavirus 2019 pandemic has brought about an overabundance of misinformation concerning the virus (SARS-CoV-2) and the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) it causes spreading rapidly on social media. While some more obviously untrustworthy sources may be easier for social media filters to identify and remove, an early feature was the cobranding of COVID-19 misinformation with other types of misinformation. To examine this, the top 10 Instagram posts (in English) were collected every day for 10 days (April 21-30th, 2020) for each of the hashtags #hoax, #governmentlies, and #plandemic. The #hoax was selected first as it is commonly used in conspiracy theory posts, and #governmentlies because it was the most commonly cotagged with #hoax. For comparison, we selected #plandemic as the most popular cotagged hashtag that was clearly COVID-19-related. This resulted in 300 Instagram posts available for our analysis. We conducted a content analysis by coding the themes contained in the posts, both for the images and the text caption shared by the Instagram users (including hashtags). The broad theme of general mistrust was the most common, including the idea that the government and/or media has fabricated or hidden information pertaining to COVID-19. Conspiracy theories were the second-most frequent theme among posts. Overall, COVID-19 was frequently presented in association with authority-questioning beliefs. Developing an understanding of how the public shares misinformation on COVID-19 alongside conspiracy theories and authority-questioning statements can aid public health officials and policymakers in limiting the spread of potentially life-threatening health misinformation.

Dimensions of childhood trauma and their direct and indirect links to PTSD, impaired control over drinking, and alcohol-related-problems

IntroductionPost-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) develops after experiencing events that evoke fear, helplessness, or horror. The Hyperarousablity Hypothesis suggests that those with PTSD may drink more to dampen physiological reactivity. We examined the direct and indirect relationships between childhood trauma (e.g., physical-neglect, emotional-abuse, physical-abuse, sexual-abuse) versus an emotionally-supportive-family on PTSD, impaired control over drinking (IC), alcohol-use, and alcohol-related-problems. IC reflects consuming more alcohol than one originally intended. MethodsWe fit a multiple-group SEM to data on 835 participants. Mediational analyses were conducted by using the (K = 20,000) bootstrap technique with confidence intervals. ResultsPhysical-neglect was directly linked to more IC among both genders. Emotional abuse was also found to be directly linked to more PTSD among both genders. Furthermore, PTSD was directly linked to more impaired control over alcohol use (IC) among both genders. Mediational analyses showed that physical-neglect was indirectly linked to more alcohol-related-problems through increased IC. Having an emotionally supportive family was directly linked to fewer PTSD symptoms among women. For both genders, emotional abuse was indirectly linked to more alcohol-related-problems through more PTSD symptoms, impaired control over alcohol use difficulties, and in turn, more alcohol-use. Sexual abuse was indirectly linked to increased alcohol-related- problems through increased PTSD symptoms and more IC, and in turn, more alcohol-use among men. ConclusionsRecalled childhood trauma (sexual and emotional abuse) may contribute to PTSD symptoms and dysregulated drinking. In conclusion, our data suggest that reducing PTSD symptoms may assist individuals in regaining control over their drinking.

Adverse Parenting Is Indirectly Linked to Delayed Reward Discounting via Blunted RSA Reactivity: the Protective Role of a Shift-and-Persist Coping Strategy

Exposure to adverse parenting experiences, either from being reared under conditions of threat or deprivation, is a major source of chronic stress that is linked to youths’ dysregulated stress responses and impulsive decision-making. Many youth, however, adapt well and develop optimal decision-making despite the experience of adversity. Research has shown that the use of cognitive strategies to cope with stress, such as accepting and adapting to an acute stressor (i.e., shifting) and effortfully pursuing future goals (i.e., persisting), can mitigate the influence of adverse parenting experiences on impulsive decision-making and risk behaviors. However, scarce research examines the role of shift-and-persist in mitigating the neurobiological mechanisms underlying the effects of adverse parenting on youths’ decision-making. The current study investigated whether shift-and-persist strategy can buffer the indirect link between adverse parenting and youths’ impulsive decision-making via dysregulated stress reactivity gauged by blunted respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA) reactivity. Data were obtained from a longitudinal sample of mostly minority (75.2% African American) low-SES preadolescents and their primary caregivers (N = 101). The youths’ decision-making was indexed by an assessment of delayed reward discounting (DRD). Results indicated that the threat dimension of adverse parenting was significantly linked to youths’ blunted RSA reactivity. Further, employing a shift-and-persist coping strategy significantly mitigated the indirect effect of threatening parenting behaviors on youths’ impulsive DRD via blunted RSA reactivity. Findings from the current study can inform prevention and intervention programs that aim to promote the development of resilience among youth who experience adverse and threatening rearing environments.

Attitudes towards sexual coercion by Polish high school students: links with risky sexual scripts, pornography use, and religiosity

ABSTRACTThe link between cognitive scripts for consensual sexual interactions and attitudes towards sexual coercion was studied in 524 Polish high school students. We proposed that risky sexual scripts, containing risk elements linked to sexual aggression, would be associated with attitudes condoning sexual coercion. Pornography use and religiosity were included as predictors of participants’ risky sexual scripts and attitudes towards sexual coercion. Risky sexual scripts were linked to attitudes condoning sexual coercion. Pornography use was indirectly linked to attitudes condoning sexual coercion via risky sexual scripts. Religiosity showed a positive direct link with attitudes towards sexual coercion, but a negative indirect link through risky sexual scripts. The results are discussed regarding the significance of risky sexual scripts, pornography use, and religiosity in understanding attitudes towards sexual coercion as well as their implications for preventing sexually aggressive behaviour.

A trust evaluation scheme for complex links in a social network: a link strength perspective

Potential security threats pose a significant challenge to evaluating the trustworthiness of complex links among users in a social network. Traditional trust computation methods typically consider user comments or interaction, thereby reflecting the trustworthiness between users according to their past experiences. However, the tie strength, which reflects the closeness of user relationships, is also a potential factor for estimating the trustworthiness of links among users. To incorporate this indicator, we propose a trust evaluation scheme for complex links comprising two aspects: the reliability and strength of links among uses. Our main contributions are (1) a trust calculation method, including direct trust for directly linked users and indirect trust for indirectly linked users, which is established based on the comment factor, forwarding factor, and approving factor; (2) a link strength evaluation method to determine the trustworthiness of direct and indirect links between users considering comment stability, mutual trust, interaction frequency, and common neighbours and community similarity, and (3) a link trust evaluation algorithm based on the link trust matrix synthesizing the reliability and strength of links. The experimental results and analysis show that our proposed scheme is feasible and effective in improving the performance of trust evaluation in a social network.

Direct and indirect links between parenting styles, self-concealment (secrets), impaired control over drinking and alcohol-related outcomes

IntroductionSelf-concealment reflects uncomfortable feelings, thoughts, and information people have about themselves that they avoid telling others (Larson & Chastain, 1990). According to Larson and Chastain (1990) these secrets range from the slightly embarrassing to the very distressing with an individual's most traumatic experiences often concealed. Parental attitudes including those involving self-disclosure are thought to be expressed in their choice of parenting style (Brand, Hatzinger, Beck, & Holsboer-Trachsler, 2009). The specific aim of this investigation was to examine the direct and indirect influences of parenting styles on self-concealment, impaired control over drinking (i.e. the inability to stop drinking when intended), alcohol use (quantity/frequency), and alcohol-related problems. MethodsA structural equation model with 419 (223 men, 196 women) university students was examined. Two and three path mediated effects were examined with the bias corrected bootstrap technique in Mplus. ResultsHaving an authoritarian mother was directly linked to more self-concealment, while having an authoritative father was directly linked to less self-concealment. Higher levels of mother authoritarianism were indirectly linked to both increased alcohol use and alcohol-related problems through more self-concealment and more impaired control over drinking. Moreover, higher levels of father authoritativeness were indirectly linked to less alcohol use and alcohol-related problems through less self-concealment and less impaired control over drinking. ConclusionsThese findings suggest that parenting styles influence vulnerabilities such as self-concealment in the impaired control over the drinking pathway to alcohol use and alcohol-related problems.

Coparenting and Children's School Readiness: A Mediational Model

We examined the long-term direct and indirect links between coparenting (conflict, communication, and shared decision-making) and preschoolers' school readiness (math, literacy, and social skills). The study sample consisted of 5,650 children and their biological mothers and fathers who participated in the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study-Birth Cohort. Using structural equation modeling and controlling for background characteristics, we found that our conceptual model of the pathways from coparenting to child outcomes is structurally the same for cohabiting and married families. Controlling for a host of background characteristics, we found that coparenting conflict and shared decision-making were negatively and positively, respectively, linked to children's academic and social skills and co-parental communication was indirectly linked to academic and social skills through maternal supportiveness. Coparenting conflict was also indirectly linked to children's social skills through maternal depressive symptoms. The overall findings suggest that for both cohabiting and married families, the context of conflicted coparenting may interfere with the development of children's social competencies and academic skills, whereas collaborative coparenting promotes children's school readiness because mothers are more responsive to their children's needs. These findings have implications for programs aimed at promoting positive family processes in cohabiting and married families.

The Role of Anxiety Sensitivity, Behavioral Inhibition, and Cognitive Biases in Anxiety Symptoms: Structural Equation Modeling of Direct and Indirect Pathways

Limited research has examined how temperamental (i.e., behavioral inhibition, anxiety sensitivity) and cognitive (i.e., interpretive and judgment biases) risks for the development anxiety covary to influence anxiety symptoms. Thus, the present study aimed to advance understanding of the direct and indirect links between anxiety sensitivity, behavioral inhibition, and interpretive biases, and judgment biases (in the form of perceived control) to anxiety outcomes (i.e., worry and trait anxiety symptoms). 842 emerging adults (mean = 18.75 years, standard deviation = 1.05; age range = 18-24; 70% women) recruited from a university in the northeast participated in this study. Participants completed a battery of self-report measures assessing risk factors and anxiety outcomes of interest. Structural equation modeling revealed anxiety sensitivity and behavioral inhibition were directly linked with anxiety outcomes. Anxiety sensitivity and behavioral inhibition were also indirectly linked with anxiety outcomes through interpretive and judgment biases. The hypothesized model was partially invariant across high-risk and low-risk groups for anxiety disorders. Results of this study provide preliminary support for theoretical models hypothesizing a developmental progression from temperamental to cognitive risks and culminating in the expression of anxiety symptoms. Limitations and clinical implications of this research are discussed.

Does the Ethical Culture of Organisations Promote Managers’ Occupational Well-Being? Investigating Indirect Links via Ethical Strain

The present study had two major aims: first, to examine the construct validity of the Finnish 58-item Corporate Ethical Virtues scale (CEV; Kaptein in J Org Behav 29:923–947, 2008) and second, to examine whether the associations between managers’ perceptions of ethical organisational culture and their occupational well-being (emotional exhaustion and work engagement) are indirectly linked by ethical strain, i.e. the tension which arises from the difference in the ethical values of the individual and the organisation he or she works for. The sample consisted of 902 managers from different organisations, in middle and upper management levels, aged 25–68 years. The results of the confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) provided support to the hypothesised eight-factor structure of the CEV scale; i.e. the scale contained the factors of clarity, congruency of supervisors, congruency of senior management, feasibility, supportability, transparency, discussability and sanctionability. In addition, it emerged from the CFAs that the high intercorrelations of these factors can be explained by the second-order factor of ethical culture. The managers’ perceptions of the ethical culture prevailing in their organisations were associated with their occupational well-being both directly (high-work engagement) and indirectly via a low level of ethical strain (low-emotional exhaustion). Thus, the findings indicated that the ethical culture of organisations plays a major role in managers’ occupational well-being.

Bullying and fighting among adolescents — Do drinking motives and alcohol use matter?

The present study investigates the direct and indirect links (through alcohol use) between adolescents' drinking motives and violent behaviors (i.e. bullying and fighting). Structural equation models were estimated based on a national representative sample of 5419 8th to 10th graders in Switzerland (mean age 15.0, SD = .86). Results demonstrate that enhancement motives were only indirectly linked (through alcohol use) to violent behaviors, whereas coping motives were both directly and indirectly linked, particularly among girls. No consistent link was found for social motives. Despite the negative indirect link (through alcohol use), conformity motives were the strongest predictor of bullying and fighting among boys, and even stronger than alcohol use itself. To conclude, drinking motives have a bearing on other problem behaviors besides excessive drinking, and may be useful for early identification and intervention for students who are likely to experience a variety of problems.

Using network analysis to understand community-based programs: a case study from highland Madagascar.

Programs using community-based distribution (CBD) of family planning services have had mixed success in Sub-Saharan Africa. Knowledge about why these programs succeed or fail is limited. In 1999, a total of 159 women and men of reproductive age were interviewed in a village in highland Madagascar with an active community-based family planning program. Network analysis informed by chi-square tests and multiple regression analysis was used to test whether respondents' communication with CBD agents and the location of their discussion partners were associated with their knowledge and use of family planning. The CBD agents were highly central in the village's family planning network; 35% of women and 19% of men directly communicated with a CBD agent about family planning or were indirectly linked to an agent. Knowledge of family planning was associated with having either a direct or an indirect link to a CBD agent; use of a modern method was associated with discussing family planning only with someone outside the village (odds ratio, 12.6) or with discussing it in the village and communicating directly with a CBD agent (10.8). Network analysis can improve the understanding of community-based program functioning by providing a way to examine who receives information from and is influenced by CBD agents.

Longitudinal direct and indirect pathways linking older sibling competence to the development of younger sibling competence.

A 4-wave longitudinal model tested direct and indirect links between older sibling (OS; M = 11.7 years) and younger sibling (YS; M = 9.2 years) competence in 152 rural African American families. Data were collected at 1-year intervals. At each wave, different teachers assessed OS competence, YS competence, and YS self-regulation. Mothers reported their own psychological functioning; mothers and YSs reported parenting practices toward the YS. OS competence was stable across time and was linked with positive changes in mothers' psychological functioning from Wave 1 to Wave 2. Mothers' Wave 2 psychological functioning was associated with involved-supportive parenting of the YS at Wave 3. OS Wave 2 competence and Wave 3 parenting were indirectly linked with Wave 4 YS competence, through Wave 3 YS self-regulation. Structural equation modeling controlled for Wave 1 YS competence; thus, the model accounted for change in YS competence across 3 years.

PH—Postharvest Technology: Mechanization and Sustainability in Arable Farming in England

Mechanization is a key component of modern farming. Although the direct and indirect links between mechanization and the sustainability of arable farming are recognized, they are not well defined. A framework based on the use of environmental, social and economic indicators was developed to assess the degree of sustainability of two typical arable farms in Bedfordshire, England. The indicators were defined in three broad categories: those directly associated with mechanization such as energy use, soil compaction and emissions to air; those indirectly linked with mechanization as an agent of intensive farming, such as the risks associated with the application of chemical inputs and the decline in soil organic matter; and those reflecting the impacts of mechanization such as labour employment, accidents, and the financial performance of farms.The study confirmed strong links between dominant mechanization practices and the sustainability of arable farming, especially regarding environmental performance. While it was possible to identify relevant mechanization-related indicators which show the degree of sustainability of mechanized farming, it was not possible to define critical values for these indicators in order to determine whether or not mechanized practices were absolutely sustainable. The study draws attention to the need to better define relevant performance indicators, compile baseline and benchmark values for major farm types, and to advise farmers on strategies for increasing the degree of sustainability through improved mechanization practices.