Morning Routines Research Articles

Parents' perceptions of the impact of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) on the eating behaviors and routines of children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD).

Restricted interests and repetitive behavior are characteristics of autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The likelihood that persons with ASD will respond adversely to unfamiliar situations is great. The novel coronavirus outbreak has resulted in disruptions to all aspects of routine and behavior. Hence, this study proposed to investigate the impact of the outbreak on the eating behavior and routines of children with ASD in Saudi Arabia through the perceptions of their parents. A cross-sectional study with a quantitative approach was utilized to obtain data from 150 parents of children with ASD aged ≤18 years in Saudi Arabia. The data collected included demographic data of the parents, the ASD status of the family, impact of COVID-19 to the family, eating behavior of the children with ASD, and daily routines of the children with ASD. Moreover, parents were able to provide comments regarding their children's eating behavior or daily routines. The study found that changes in the eating behavior of children with ASD were found to differ significantly (p<0.05) based on the number of children with ASD, the age of the children with ASD, the gender of the children with ASD, and the severity of their ASD symptoms. Moreover, changes to dinner-time routines were found to differ significantly (p<0.05) based on the age of the children with ASD. Also, changes to morning routines were found to differ significantly (p<0.05) based on the age of the children with ASD, their gender, and the severity of their ASD symptoms. Additionally, impact of COVID-19 to the family had a significant impact to eating behavior and daily routines of the children with ASD. This study found that the eating behavior and daily routines of children with ASD in Saudi Arabia have been considerably worsened and changed. The study recommends the collaboration of multidisciplinary teams and parents to modify or design interventions that help to change their eating behavior and routine can be implemented in the home. It also recommends the provision of virtual helplines to aid parents of children with ASD in such cases.

Strong daily routinisation, weak energy flexibility: a survey study of the stability and adaptability of everyday energy practices

Fundamental changes in everyday consumption patterns are required to mitigate negative environmental impacts, and these include adapting the timing of consumption. For example, flexible energy demand becomes increasingly important in response to larger shares of fluctuating energy production while dynamic electricity pricing suggests there is a need to encourage staggered electricity use. In this paper, we explore the stability, adjustability and flexibility of everyday practices to critically address the potential for flexible household energy demand. Based on a survey questionnaire (N=1,470), the paper takes its empirical focus in the Nordic welfare state Denmark, which has a high share of wind power and little focus on energy justice. Across household groups, it seems that morning routines are strongly routinised, especially on weekdays, and that variations in these primarily involve adjustment to other household members. The analysis indicates that there are differences across household types, for example, households with children and households whose inhabitants are aged 41-60 tend to be associated with stable evening routines, women tend to agree more to adjusting routines to lifestyle and household, while being in employment seems to be associated with stronger dependence on time schedules determined by factors outside the household. The study suggests that socio-temporal rhythms of everyday practices strongly depend on societal rhythms and practices outside the home. It follows therefore that expectations of energy flexibility in household energy demand should initially focus on common temporal patterns and dependence on these rather than on individual households’ (apparent) capacity to consume energy flexibly.

An energizing microintervention: How mindfulness fosters subjective vitality through regulatory processes and flow experience at work.

Can adopting one's morning routines influence employees' experiences throughout the day? To answer this focal question, we examine the daily effects of a brief meditation in the morning on well-being throughout the day considering spillover effects from the home to the work domain and back. To identify the dominant underlying mechanisms of this daily spillover, we draw on the personality systems interactions theory that distinguishes between autonomous self-regulation and effortful self-control as two psychological processes that reflect the regulation of thoughts, emotions, and behaviors in alignment or contradiction with one's interests, values, and goals. Accordingly, we hypothesized that meditating in the morning before work fosters autonomous self-regulation and reduces effortful self-control in the work domain, which subsequently facilitates the experience of flow at work and hence fosters subjective vitality in the home domain after work. A quasi-experimental daily-diary study over 10 days with a brief 10-min mindfulness intervention during the final 5 days with 78 participants (588 day-level data points) supported most of our predictions. More specifically, our data suggest a positive indirect effect of the intervention on subjective vitality in the evening via self-regulation and flow experience. However, there was no indirect effect of the intervention on subjective vitality via self-control. The results help to clarify how a mindfulness-based intervention can influence distinct regulatory processes and well-being, crossing boundaries between the work and home domains. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

Re-Establishing Home and Work Boundaries by Pseudo-Commuting Whilst Working from Home

Over the past decade, modern collaborative tools and technologies have changed the way we think about e-work. Suddenly, this kind of work was not just a perk but a necessity for almost everybody. The pandemic has accelerated the interaction between social life and e-work. E-work has become extremely popular. The purpose of this study was to find out whether "pseudo-commuting" can pave the way to a work-from-home balance and increase productivity. Special attention is paid to the e-workforce, workers who are experienced in choosing their route to work and the place for work and have implemented various post-pandemic routines. Interviews were conducted with eight workers from different European Union countries to collect primary data for this study. On the basis of these data, a pseudo-commute (an imaginary commute) can help to re-establish the work-home boundaries. Overall, this means setting boundaries between those two elements by going through in one’s mind the thoughts, events and experiences associated with a commute. All respondents noticed a general sense of increased well-being. In short, this modern commuting mode is an opportunity to remix old commutes with new rituals. It creates a feeling of taking back what has been removed by the pandemic. Pseudo-commuting is probably here to stay. <br />Implications for a Central European audience: Pre-pandemic morning routines have a massive impact on physical and mental well-being. Before the pandemic, an average commute was less than 30 minutes. When the workforce is not able to detach from work, there is a risk of exhaustion and burnout. Pseudo-commuting, however, can pave the way to a work-from-home balance and increase productivity. This qualitative study may serve as a tool for remixing the old commute with new rituals in the modern working environment.Â

Time of Day Preferences and Daily Temporal Consistency for Predicting the Sustained Use of a Commercial Meditation App: Longitudinal Observational Study

The intensive data typically collected by mobile health (mHealth) apps allows factors associated with persistent use to be investigated, which is an important objective given users' well-known struggles with sustaining healthy behavior. Data from a commercial meditation app (n=14,879; 899,071 total app uses) were analyzed to assess the validity of commonly given habit formation advice to meditate at the same time every day, preferably in the morning. First, the change in probability of meditating in 4 nonoverlapping time windows (morning, midday, evening, and late night) on a given day over the first 180 days after creating a meditation app account was calculated via generalized additive mixed models. Second, users' time of day preferences were calculated as the percentage of all meditation sessions that occurred within each of the 4 time windows. Additionally, the temporal consistency of daily meditation behavior was calculated as the entropy of the timing of app usage sessions. Linear regression was used to examine the effect of time of day preference and temporal consistency on two outcomes: (1) short-term engagement, defined as the number of meditation sessions completed within the sixth and seventh month of a user's account, and (2) long-term use, defined as the days until a user's last observed meditation session. Large reductions in the probability of meditation at any time of day were seen over the first 180 days after creating an account, but this effect was smallest for morning meditation sessions (63.4% reduction vs reductions ranging from 67.8% to 74.5% for other times). A greater proportion of meditation in the morning was also significantly associated with better short-term engagement (regression coefficient B=2.76, P<.001) and long-term use (B=50.6, P<.001). The opposite was true for late-night meditation sessions (short-term: B=-2.06, P<.001; long-term: B=-51.7, P=.001). Significant relationships were not found for midday sessions (any outcome) or for evening sessions when examining long-term use. Additionally, temporal consistency in the performance of morning meditation sessions was associated with better short-term engagement (B=-1.64, P<.001) but worse long-term use (B=55.8, P<.001). Similar-sized temporal consistency effects were found for all other time windows. Meditating in the morning was associated with higher rates of maintaining a meditation practice with the app. This is consistent with findings from other studies that have hypothesized that the strength of existing morning routines and circadian rhythms may make the morning an ideal time to build new habits. In the long term, less temporal consistency in meditation sessions was associated with more persistent app use, suggesting there are benefits from maintaining flexibility in behavior performance. These findings improve our understanding of how to promote enduring healthy lifestyles and can inform the design of mHealth strategies for maintaining behavior changes.

Like clockwork? (Re)imagining rhythms and routines when living with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS).

Temporal trajectories of health, illness and disability-from biographical change to micro-embodied practices within social time-are important strands within medical sociology and disability studies. Drawing upon a UK-based qualitative study using diaries and follow-up interviews to explore everyday life with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), this article explores routines when living with the condition. It focuses specifically on accounts of routines being anticipated, slowed down and stretched out to accommodate and/or care for bodies, with personal and social rhythms weaved in, out and with each other. Such reflections are told through participants' accounts of knowing routines and rhythms, stretching out and pacing morning routines to care for the body and how everyday practices are reimagined as the body and the social meet. Drawing upon the concept of 'Crip Time' where the social bends to meet with the body, this article seeks to illuminate important intersections between medical sociology and disability studies through accounts of living with IBS. This article demonstrates the entanglement of structural, disabling temporal rhythms and embodied temporalities, through an acknowledgement of routines reimagined. It offers a contribution to both medical sociology and disability studies in reimagining social lives with embodied temporalities in mind.

Non-Oral Drug Delivery in Parkinson's Disease: Current Applications and Future.

Parkinson's disease (PD) is a type of movement disorder that affects the ability to perform daily activities. It is considered that 1 million people in the U.S. and more than 10 million people worldwide live with PD. It is a chronic and progressive disease, so symptoms worsen over the time. Patients experience motor symptoms such as tremors, stiffness and slow motion, and non-motor symptoms such as sleep problems, constipation, anxiety, depression and fatigue. Dopaminergic drugs are critical for treating motor symptoms in PD. Levodopa (L-DOPA) is the "gold standard" medication for the control of motor symptoms. Because of the progression of the disease, the effectiveness of oral L-DOPA decreases over time and motor fluctuations such as "delayed ON", "no ON" and unpredictable "ON-OFF" periods appear. These motor fluctuations affect the quality of life of the patient at a high rate and the patient has problems in fulfilling his daily morning routines. Gastrointestinal (GI) problems, as the common non-motor symptom, are the most important cause of motor fluctuations that occur because of inadequate oral treatment with the progression of PD. When oral treatments are not sufficient, non-oral treatments that are not affected by GI problems are required. In this review, the treatment strategies, developed and approved non-oral drug delivery systems in the early and advanced stages of PD are emphasized.

Audiobook routines: identifying everyday reading by listening practices amongst young adults

PurposeThis article explores, identifies and conceptualises everyday audiobook reading practices amongst young adults.Design/methodology/approachSemi-structured interviews were conducted with ten Swedish audiobook users aged 18–19. The material was analysed using qualitative content analysis and focused on their audiobook use during an average weekday, as this was the time that they listened the most. The theoretical framework consists of theories on practice, time and everyday routine.FindingsFive timespaces emerged when audiobook practices were most prevalent: morning routines, commuting routines, school routines, after school routines and bedtime routines. Within these timespaces, several practices could be identified and conceptualised. Three mobile practices were commute listening, exercise listening and chore listening while more stationary practices were homework listening, schoolwork listening and leisure listening. An unexpected finding was how audiobooks routinely were used to aid respondents’ wellbeing. This wellbeing listening was used to alleviate stress, loneliness and help listeners relax or fall asleep. Furthermore, respondents switch between Music, Audiobooks and Podcasts, which is conceptualised as MAP-switching.Originality/valueThere is a scarcity of research on audiobook use, and this paper contributes with new knowledge on audiobook reading practices, how audiobooks fit into everyday routine and provides concepts to aid further research on audiobook practices.

“My mom calls it Annaland”: A Qualitative Study of Phenomenology, Daily Life Impacts, and Treatment Considerations of Sluggish Cognitive Tempo

Objective: To conduct qualitative analysis of interviews to understand phenomenology, daily life impact, and treatment considerations of sluggish cognitive tempo (SCT) behaviors in children and adolescents. Method: Youth with elevated SCT symptoms (N = 15, ages 9–16 years) and their parents completed interviews focused on their perception and daily life impact of SCT behaviors. Parents were also asked about intervention targets. Results: Parents and youth had both negative and positive perceptions of SCT, with SCT fostering creativity/imagination and a break from stressors while also negatively impacting daily functioning. The domains most frequently selected by parents as SCT intervention targets were academics, emotions, mind wandering, morning routines, and self-esteem. Conclusion: Children and their parents share negative and positive views of SCT behaviors, while also detailing specific ways that SCT negatively impacts day-to-day functioning. This study offers insights into possible intervention targets as provided by youth and parents directly impacted by SCT.

Habitual window opening behaviour in residential buildings

Recent studies indicated that window opening behaviour is related to environmental and contextual factors, as well as to practices of everyday life, such as morning routines and daily activities. To the authors’ knowledge no studies have been conducted that focus on the habitual window opening behaviour in residential buildings. The aim of this study is to determine the extent of the habitual behaviour and to identify the types of window use habits. Additionally, a window use model is created that includes habitual behaviour. Results of the online survey conducted with Belgian households revealed that almost all occupants habitually interact with at least one window. Some household and building characteristics are related to the presence of certain habits. However, this impact is rather small in comparison to the impact of the habits of other rooms. These insights are utilized for the creation of a window use habit model. The model is explained in detail as well as the validation procedure. While further research is necessary regarding the cultural and seasonal dependency of the window use habits, this model is promising as it links the window use to the everyday life, resulting in the prediction of realistic and justifiable window use.

Self-development Tools Utilized by Plastic Surgeons: A Survey of ASPS Members.

Background:The plastic surgery literature is devoid of research on the topic of professional development tools that may be used to enhance performance as a plastic surgeon. After an extensive review of the medical literature, we selected the most frequently referenced professional development tools utilized by plastic surgeons, which included the following: goal setting, positive visualization, scheduled practice, critically analyzing mistakes, professional development conferences, involvement in sports, motivational videos, podcasts & audiobooks, daily morning routines, self-development books, and advice from mentors.Methods:A 10-question survey was sent to 2542 members of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS). The algorithm used to select ASPS members to survey was based on member demographics that would best reflect the views of the entire active society membership. Responses were compared based on demographic factors such as type of practice, gender, and age.Results:A total of 286/2542 (11.25%) ASPS members participated in the survey. Analyzing mistakes (96.3%), goal setting (88.51%), and advice from mentors (85.2%) were most commonly attributed to self-development. Respondents in an academic practice favored conferences and advice from mentors. Participants in a solo practice favored self-help books and morning routines. No statistical differences were observed based on training background.Conclusions:ASPS members attribute their professional development to setting measurable goals, carefully analyzing surgical mistakes, and guidance from mentors. This information opens the door for continued analysis of professional development within plastic surgery as well as supplement training practices at the resident and post-graduate level.

Stumbling out of the gate: The energy‐based implications of morning routine disruption

AbstractDespite academic and practical advice regarding the virtues of daily routines for effective work performance, such routines are vulnerable to disruption from any number of sources. To understand whether and how routine disruptions affect employees at work, we draw on cognitive energetics theory (CET) and explore the potential negative consequences of morning routine disruptions on employees’ energy allocations at work. Moreover, given that CET is fundamentally a theory of goal attainment, we examine the downstream impact of routine disruptions on employees’ work goal progress. Results from two daily experience‐sampling studies show that when employees’ morning routines were disrupted, employees experienced higher levels of depletion and reduced calmness. In turn, depletion was associated negatively, and calmness was associated positively, with daily work engagement. Finally, daily work engagement was positively related to subsequent daily goal progress. These findings have important implications for our understanding of employees’ morning routines and the ways that disruptions to those routines ripple through employees’ workdays.

The day-to-day experiences of caring for children with Osteogenesis Imperfecta: A qualitative descriptive study.

To explore the day-to-day experiences of family caregivers who are caring for children with Osteogenesis Imperfecta (OI). Osteogenesis Imperfecta is a rare genetic condition known to cause bone fragility. Family caregivers of children with OI play an important role in helping these children live well at home. A qualitative descriptive design was used. A qualitative descriptive study was conducted in accordance with the COREQ guidelines. Adult family caregivers (n=18) of children with OI were recruited from a university-affiliated, paediatric orthopaedic hospital in Montreal, Canada. Individual interviews were conducted, transcribed verbatim and inductively thematically analysed. Osteogenesis Imperfecta family caregiving entailed: (a) managing regular day-to-day caregiving activities, including morning routines, evening routines and the facilitation of their child's mobilisation; (b) coping with periods that made the caregiving routine more challenging, such as fractures, surgeries and pain; and (c) devising long-term strategies to support day-to-day care, such as managing the environment, accessing medical and school resources, and coordinating care and respite. The day-to-day routine of caring for a child with OI may be disrupted by challenging periods and improved by long-term strategies developed to ease day-to-day care. These strategies suggest future directions for clinicians and policymakers to improve health services and caregiver well-being. Clinical, policy and research endeavours need to incorporate new interventions to support the needs of family caregivers. These recommendations may be relevant to other clinicians and policymakers working with families living with rare and chronic physical conditions.

Influence of chronotype on daily mood fluctuations: pilot study in patients with depression.

Depression risk is associated with a late chronotype pattern often described as an 'evening chronotype'. Fluctuations in mood over consecutive days have not yet been measured according to chronotype in in-patients with depression. A total of 30 in-patients with depression and 32 healthy controls matched for gender and age completed a chronotype questionnaire and twice-daily ratings on mood for 10 consecutive days (registered in the German Clinical Trials Register: DRKS00010215). The in-patients had Saturdays and Sundays as hospital-leave days. The relationship between chronotype and daily mood was mediated by the weekday-weekend schedule with higher levels of negative affect in the evening-chronotype patient subgroup at weekends. Results are discussed with respect to a probably advantageous standardised clinical setting with early morning routines, especially for patients with evening chronotypes.

Exposure to predator models during the fertile period leads to higher levels of extra-pair paternity in blue tits.

The perceived risk of predation can affect breeding behaviour and reduce reproductive success in prey species. Individuals exposed to predators may also adopt different mating tactics with potential consequences for the distribution of paternity in socially monogamous species that engage in extra-pair copulations. We experimentally increased perceived predation risk during the fertile period in blue tits Cyanistes caeruleus. Every morning between nest completion and the onset of egg laying, we presented a model of either a predator or a non-predator (control) near active nestboxes. Broods from pairs exposed to predators had higher levels of extra-pair paternity than control broods. This mainly resulted from a higher proportion of extra-pair offspring in broods with at least one extra-pair young. Females exposed to predators first emerged from the nestbox later in the morning, stayed away from the nestbox for longer and were less likely to be visited at the nest by their social mate, but we detected no behavioural differences once the model was removed. Our results suggest that the higher rates of extra-pair paternity resulted from the disruption of morning routines, which may have inhibited within-pair copulations or increased opportunities for females to engage in extra-pair copulations. We conclude that the perceived risk of predation can have substantial effects on levels of extra-pair paternity.

Nighttime Habits That Impact Morning Routines of Persons With Chronic Disabilities—Temporality Revealed

Abstract Date Presented 04/05/19 This six-year qualitative study examines morning routines of persons with chronic disabilities. The focus of year six was on nighttime habits impacting morning routines. Semistructured interviews were conducted and analyzed using cross-case analysis and grounded theory. Results show night habits are used to manage pain, stiffness, or fatigue the next morning and to manage timeliness. It is critical for OTs to understand morning routines and how nighttime habits impact these routines. Primary Author and Speaker: MaryEllen Thompson

What makes a good action plan? Characteristics and enactment of fruit and vegetable plans

BackgroundOne promising intervention strategy to increase fruit and vegetable (FV) consumption is action planning. However, conditions of successful plan enactment, i.e., the translation of plans into action, have rarely been studied. Therefore, the relationship between plan characteristics and plan enactment is being examined. MethodsSecondary analyses of an existing data set were conducted, based on a larger behavioral intervention study with a baseline assessment as well as a 2-weeks and a 4-weeks follow-up. After baseline assessment, participants completed action plan calendars for the following seven days and subsequently reported on each plan's enactment. Two independent raters coded 1732 morning, noon/afternoon, and evening plans by n = 92 individuals regarding the level of specificity (unspecific vs. specific) and type of planned behavior (fruit vs. vegetable intake). To predict plan enactment, multilevel logistic regression analyses were conducted. FindingsOverall specificity of plans was unrelated to plan enactment, but interacted with time of day in predicting plan enactment. Only in the morning, specific plans were more likely being enacted than unspecific plans. Overall, plan enactment decreased during the day and throughout the seven days of the plan calendar. Furthermore, fruit plans were more likely being enacted than vegetable plans. DiscussionSpecific morning plans were found most beneficial for the enactment of FV plans. Here, possible underlying mechanisms such as stable morning routines should be further investigated. Moreover, the nutritional choice appeared to make a difference for plan enactment: Increasing one's fruit consumption may be easier than integrating more vegetables into one's daily diet.

Morning Routines of Adults With Chronic Disabilities and Without Disabilities

Abstract Date Presented 3/31/2017 The purpose of this qualitative research was to examine morning routines of adults with chronic disabilities. The study revealed that morning routines show similarities regardless of disability. Those with disabilities may need more time and objects, and they experience the need to change routines over time. Primary Author and Speaker: MaryEllen Thompson

Daily Symptom Variability in Patients With Stable COPD: A Narrative Review.

Daily symptom variability refers to the fluctuation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) symptoms over the day. Although most clinicians can describe the day-to-day variation in symptoms experienced by patients with COPD, little has been done to quantify the variability. This review aims to synthesize evidence of daily symptom variability among patients with stable COPD. Of the 325 potentially relevant articles that were retrieved, 11 observational articles were finally included in the review. Patients with stable COPD commonly experience daily symptom variability, with morning being the most troublesome time of day, followed by night. Morning symptoms had a significant effect on morning routines or daily activities, and night-time symptoms affected the sleep quality of patients. In comparison with patients without symptom variability, patients with morning/night-time symptoms or symptom variability exhibited poorer health status as well as greater disease severity and incidence of exacerbation.

In Practice Blog: School Schedules Make for Sleepy Teens

Blogger Scott Cuyjet addresses teenage sleep deficiency every day, both at home — guiding his zombie-like teens through their morning routines — and at