Negative Feelings Research Articles

The lived experience of patients with bipolar disorder with adapting their lifestyle to their condition

BackgroundAn important element of self-management strategies for people with bipolar disorder is adapting their lifestyle to their condition, since this improves their quality of life. However, not all people with bipolar disorder succeed in lifestyle adaptation. Knowledge about their lived experience with adaptation would enhance understanding about how healthcare providers optimize support. Research questionWhat is the lived experience of people with bipolar disorder with adapting their lifestyle to their condition? MethodA qualitative, descriptive phenomenological design was used. Individual, open interviews were conducted with 16 people with bipolar disorder. The data were analyzed according to the seven-stage process by Colaizzi. FindingsThree main themes were identified: (1) struggling to adapt lifestyle; (2) mixed feelings about lifestyle adaptation; and (3) supporting lifestyle adaptation. ConclusionParticipants reported that adapting their lifestyle to bipolar disorder is a struggle. Adaptation is influenced by factors such as the fluctuating nature of the disorder and differing levels of experiential knowledge and can evoke both positive and negative feelings. Lifestyle adaptation is also interrelated with other strategies for staying well, such as accepting the diagnosis and being open with others. It can be enhanced by support from other people and by making use of practical tools. RecommendationsHealthcare providers should support people adapting their lifestyle to bipolar disorder by being attentive to the interrelatedness of lifestyle aspects and other strategies for staying well with bipolar disorder.

Quality of life and psychopathology in different COVID-19 pandemic periods: A longitudinal study.

Τhe aim of this longitudinal study was to investigate the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on the mental health and quality of life (QoL) of the general population in the region of Attica, Greece, during the third year of the pandemic (2022), and tο compare the findings with those of a survey conducted in the first year (2020). Our sample consisted of 130 participants and the study was conducted through phone interviews. The instruments used were: the World Health Organisation QoL instrument, the Depression-Anxiety-Stress Scale, the Body Vigilance Scale, the Dimensional Obsessive-Compulsive Scale, as well as socio-demographic data and questions on stressors related to COVID-19. The findings of the study were the following: (1) Regarding the comparison of the variables between the first and the third year of the pandemic in the total sample: a) In comparison to the first year, in the third year we observed a significant decrease in negative feelings caused by the pandemic; b) obsessive compulsive (OC) and hypochondriacal symptomatology were significantly reduced, and the fact that participants felt safe following vaccination had a statistically significant effect on this decrease; c) job insecurity was aggravated; d) QoL remained low and even deteriorated in the Environment domain; f) no changes were found in Depression-Stress. (2) Regarding participants who were contaminated, there was a significant increase in negative feelings during the third year of the pandemic. Moreover, QoL decreased in the Physical, Psychological health, Environment domains, as well as in OC symptomatology. (3) Depression-Stress, hypochondriacal symptomatology, and the case of contamination were the predominant factors negatively associated with the dependent variables of QoL. (4) Vaccination was found to contribute to high levels of the QoL Environment domain score. (5) Anxiety, hypochondriacal symptomatology, fear of contamination, and negative feelings seemed to predict OC symptomatology. (6) The most vulnerable groups, in terms of QoL and mental health, were men, older and lower-educated people. Overall, it was found that the negative psychosocial impact of the pandemic persisted, especially on people who had fallen ill during the third year of the pandemic. Therefore, targeted psychotherapeutic interventions should be implemented, especially for those who got infected.

Empowering voices: Breaking mental health stigma

Empowering voices: Breaking mental health stigma John Hoey and Mary Cannon from Department of Psychiatry, RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences, Dublin, Ireland, share their research around breaking mental health stigma to empower voices. Research consistently shows that people from marginalised groups are almost four times as likely to experience mental conditions such as psychotic symptoms than the majority population (van der Ven et al., 2022). Yet, they are much less likely to seek timely clinical intervention or reach out to friends and family for support. Why is this, and what can be done to encourage people to seek help? In our April 2024 blog “Can the Arts be an Effective Tool to Combat Psychosis Stigma,” we described stigma, as defined in the Oxford English Dictionary, as “Negative feelings that people have about particular circumstances or characteristics that somebody may have.” Although in recent years, attitudes towards certain mental conditions such as anxiety or depression have become more ‘normalised’ and openly discussed, other conditions, such as psychotic symptoms, remain stubbornly stigmatic and shrouded in fear. When it comes to mental health, those who both fear most, and are the subjects of fear, are marginalised groups, which can negatively impact both engagement and recovery.

Use of meishi by Chinese females in romantic conversation

AbstractThis study explores the major types and main interpersonal functions of meishi (没事, literally ‘I'm fine’) by Chinese females in romantic conversation through analyzing collected posts from Sina Microblog. Results show that meishi by Chinese females in the context of romantic relationships primarily manifests the attributes of “expressive” and “assertive” (“insincere assertive” in particular), with specific functions to express comfort (expressive), to implicitly express negative feelings (expressive), and to avoid self-disclosure of negative emotion (insincere assertive). We hold that Chinese women's use of meishi is not only a realization of gendered discourse but also has a practical function as it detects the sincerity and attentiveness of their male counterparts.

Teachers’ Perceptions of Young Gifted Children in China

Teachers’ perceptions are important in identifying and serving gifted children. However, little attention is given to gifted education in the early years in China. This study aimed to investigate teachers’ perceptions of young gifted children (aged 3–6), exploring teachers’ understandings, feelings, practices, and perceived challenges. Qualitative data were collected from seven teachers through semi-structured interviews. Major conclusions included the following: (a) teachers showed a multifaceted understanding of giftedness but exhibited confusion about twice-exceptional students; (b) teachers had mixed feelings about young gifted children and their negative feelings might be associated with unfamiliarity with gifted characteristics; (c) compared to whole-group teaching, “areal games” showed a higher level of differentiated instruction and a more active role that teachers played in challenging gifted children; and (d) lack of professional knowledge, time, and energy were major challenges perceived by early years teachers to serve gifted children. Important implications for practice and policy are addressed.

Idea Generation Game Design Tool for Health Behavior Change Games

Serious games (SGs) must engage, be entertaining and have a serious purpose to be effective. A health behavior change game (HBCG) can help change poor health behaviors but are difficult to design. One problem is there are few design tools to support developers of these types of games. This paper describes a card-based design tool for use during the idea generation phase of game design. The research question is: To what extent does an idea generation card tool have perceived value for SG designers generating ideas for behavior change games? This paper reports on the deployment of the tool for an HBCG to help individuals improve their diet and levels of physical activity. An evaluation was undertaken using qualitative data gathered through interviews with serious game developers and a focus group conducted with student game designers. Emergent common themes across both data sets were that the tool had practical and emotional value. Practical value in using the cards was found in the card structure, card content and sorting process. Emotional value included the positive feelings of having physical cards in front of them to use, the presentation of ideas and support provided on a topic they knew little about which brought some relief, increasing confidence and allowing for a more creative environment by freeing up their imagination. Negative feelings were also experienced and included participants remaining anxious about the range, complexity and interrelatedness of the concepts they needed to consider.

Association of psychosocial factors with sleep quality among aging adults in India: Moderating role of functional limitations and negative feelings

ABSTRACT Sleep is one of the vital factors in physiological and psychological health and well-being. Good quality of sleep is essential for healthy aging and functioning. However, there is a lack of understanding of the role of psychosocial factors in sleep quality among aging adults in India. Further, with an increasing proportion of aging population in India, it becomes critical to understand the determinants of sleep quality among aging adults. The present study also explored the moderating role of negative feelings and functional limitations between psychosocial factors and sleep quality. The study used secondary data from the Longitudinal Ageing Study in India (LASI) wave –1 (2017–2018). A sample of 16,152 middle-aged and older adults was included in the study. Descriptive statistics, multiple regression, and moderation analysis were conducted to get an insight into the impacts of the predictors on individuals’ sleep quality. The results of the study suggest lower everyday discrimination (β = -.065, 99% CI [-.083, -.048]), good life satisfaction (β = -.009, 95% CI [-.017, -.002]), lower negative feelings (β = .1, 99% CI [.091, .109]), and functional limitations (β = .22, 99% CI [.197, .244]) was associated with good sleep quality. Furthermore, negative feelings and functional limitations acted as moderators in unadjusted models, while only functional limitations acted as moderators between life satisfaction and sleep quality, spirituality, and sleep quality in the fully adjusted model. This study implies the need for various measures to improve the sleep quality of aging adults by focusing on physical, psychological, and social domains of health and well-being.

Using network analysis to provide evidence for brain health as a unified construct relevant to aging with HIV.

Brain health is a dynamic state involving cognitive, emotional, and motor domains. Measuring brain health is a challenge owing to the uncertainty as to whether it is one or many constructs. This study aimed to contribute evidence for brain health as a unified construct by estimating the strength of relationships between and among patient-reported items related to the brain health construct in a population with brain vulnerability owing to HIV. Data for this cross-sectional analysis came from a Canadian cohort of people aging with HIV. The sample included 710 men recruited between 2014 and 2016 from five Canadian cities. A network analysis was conducted with 30 items selected from the brain-related domains of fatigue, cognition, depression, sleep, anxiety, and motivation. Node centrality measures were used to determine the most critical items in the network. The network showed small-world properties, that is, most nodes can be reached from other nodes with few hops," indicating strong connectivity. The most central symptoms were "How much do you enjoy life?" and "How often do you have negative feelings?". The small-world properties of the network structure indicate that brain health items are interconnected and may be influenced by shared underlying factors. The centrality indices suggest that items related to enjoyment of life and negative feelings may be particularly important for understanding brain health in this population. Future research should aim to replicate these findings in larger and more diverse samples to confirm their robustness and generalizability.

Enhancing User Experience on Social Media Platforms: A Flow Theory-Based Approach

In recent years, social media platforms, such as Facebook and Twitter have seen rapid growth and are favored by users of all ages. However, in the age of information overload, the quality of interactions on social media platforms varies significantly, leading to negative feelings among users and affecting their overall experience and loyalty. This study takes the Flow theory as its starting point and investigates the needs of social media users at various stages of the flow experience. We propose modifications to the flow theory model with the aim of enhancing user experience and satisfaction. Firstly, based on literature review, we identify micro-level issues of the product, propose hypotheses, and construct validation experiments in the context of social media. The experiment collects Electrodermal Activity (EDA) and heart rate variability (HRV) data of 31 participants using a multi-channel physiological instrument and collects their emotional experience data using the Pleasure-Arousal-Dominance (PAD) scale. Results indicate that a combined textual-graphical interface layout is superior to other layouts in positively inducing flow and emotional experiences. Positive content tonality is more effective at eliciting positive flow and emotional experiences than negative or neutral content. Video presentations have a stronger sense of immersion and emotional expression, making them more conducive to inducing flow experiences and positive emotional feedback. This study, grounded in user psychology, provides a theoretical framework based on flow and emotional experiences for social media product design, quantitatively examining the positive psychological activities of users when using social media.

Attitudes towards migrants and preferences for asylum and refugee policies before and during russian invasion of ukraine: The case of slovakia

Extant literature shows that well-being is one of the key drivers of attitudes towards migrants as well as preferences for asylum and refugee policies. Less in is known, however, about the relationship between well-being and attitudes towards migrants during sudden micro-level events that may elicit the sense of existential threat. To investigate the underpinnings of these relationships, two studies on samples of 600 Slovaks each were conducted before the Russian invasion of Ukraine and during its initial phase. The results show that well-being had a stable positive relationship with attitudes towards migrants across the studies, albeit not with preferences for asylum and refugee policies. During the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the negative feelings elicited by the war predicted preferences for asylum and refugee policies beyond well-being. The results indicate that incorporating psychological factors, such as emotional responses to the looming threat of war, may considerably inform the debate surrounding the support for inclusive asylum and refugee policies.

Against Prejudice and Discrimination: Moderators of the Relationship Between College Students’ Feelings and Attitudes Towards a Peer who Stutters

ABSTRACT The few studies assessing the affective reactions of different groups of respondents to this disorder reported that their physiological or emotional responses were negative. The purpose of this study was to determine the influence of college students’ gender and major on their feelings and attitudes towards a peer who stutters. The study was conducted with 342 college students aged 19–33 years from different majors. Their attitudes to stuttering peers were evaluated by the Sękowski’s Attitudes Toward Disabled Persons Scale (ATDPS) and feelings by the Positive and Negative Affect Scale (PANAS). The study revealed that some gender-major interactions were associated with less negative feelings and attitudes towards stuttering peers and that different emotions about a stuttering peer led to different attitudes. In male students, the main moderating effect of the major on the relationship between negative feelings and negative attitudes was only established for students of economics. The major of female students also differentiated the relationship between negative feelings and attitudes. Teaching programmes for helping majors (paramedics/nurses) stimulate students’ positive feelings towards persons who stutter. Students in non-helping majors may need special soft skill training to develop positive attitudes towards persons with speech fluency disorders.

Healthcare workers’ mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic: a qualitative analysis of a text message-based NHS workforce support line

BackgroundThe National Health Service (NHS) is suffering from a workforce crisis of mental and physical sickness and attrition following the COVID-19 pandemic. An in-depth understanding of healthcare workers’ (HCWs) experiences...

Investigating the cognitive and affective dynamics of social media addiction: Insights from peer contexts.

Informed by the interaction of person-affect-cognition-execution (I-PACE) theory, the present studies examined the association between peer rejection, peer popularity, and social media addiction (SMA) at both between-person and within-person levels. Two distinct processes, the fear-driven/compensation-seeking process and the reward-driven process were explored. In Study 1, using a cross-sectional sample of high school students (N = 318), both processes were supported via different cognitive mediators. Support for the fear-driven/compensation-seeking process was demonstrated by finding that avoidance expectancy was a significant cognitive mediator between peer-nominated rejection and SMA. In turn, the reward-driven process was supported by the significant mediation of reward expectancy between peer-nominated popularity and SMA. In Study 2, using ecological momentary assessment with college students (N = 54), we found the fear-driven/compensation-seeking process partially supported through both between-person and within-person mediations. Specifically, negative affect and social media craving were two affective mediators that linked peer rejection and addictive social media use behaviors. On the other hand, the reward-driven process was predominantly supported by within-person mediations, in which positive affect and social media craving were found to be mediators of the relationship between peer popularity and addictive social media use behaviors. The results underscore that adolescents experiencing rejection tend to use social media to avoid negative feelings and compensate for interpersonal deficits, while adolescents experiencing popularity tend to use social media to maintain positive feelings and gain social rewards. Implications for the assessment, case formulation, and treatment of SMA in counseling practice are discussed. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

The Nexus of Employee Attitudes Towards Performance Appraisals and its Impact on Employee Performance in the Zimbabwean Manufacturing Sector

Objectives: The study sought to examine the relationship between employee attitudes towards performance appraisal and its impact on work performance in the manufacturing sector using Ecomed Manufacturing (Pvt) Limited as a case study. This was in response to the general negative feelings against the performance appraisals by employees in the manufacturing sector. Methods: The researchers used an inductive research approach which recognizes that meaning emerges through interaction with participants of the study and adopted the realism philosophical position. The study used the case study research design and convenience sampling technique was adopted, thereby allowing the researchers to conveniently select 55 cases up to saturation point. Semi-structured in-depth interviews were used to solicit for information from the participants of the study which included both managerial and non-managerial staff. Thematic analysis was used to analyse the qualitative responses from participants. Results: The major findings of the study highlighted that the company under study is faced with negative employee attitudes towards performance appraisals. Hatred, bitterness, resentment, anger, competition among the employees were prevalent attitudes that the workforce exhibited against the appraisal system in place. Erosion of trust, antagonism and lack of team work among the workforce both in supervisory and non-supervisory levels was the greatest challenge faced by the organization studied. Regardless of the challenges faced, managerial participants concurred in stating that the performance appraisals in place brought about positive changes to the organization, exhibited by a steady increase in production due to competition among the employees which in turn led to meeting of targets. Conclusion: The researchers recommend that the Human Resource department should train and create awareness to about the entire performance management process so as to eliminate resentment towards the process. Furthermore, the Human Resource department should explore the introduction of self-rating performance appraisal methods where the employee can set targets and then monitor and rate own performance against set targets after a given period of time.

Application of Topic Modelling Technology to the Analysis of Social Media Comments in the Context of State Identity Politics Research

In the situation of a shrinking field of public politics and a crisis of political trust, citizens may seek an alternative arena for presenting their own point of view. The social Internet space serves as a virtual projection of public contradictions and acts as an arena for the presentation and confrontation of political interests. At the same time, the increasing state presence in virtual space and the growing trust to online sources of information make social media an important channel for promoting certain patterns of political interpretations. The aim of this paper is to analyse the reactions of social media users to discover their attitudes towards the main narratives of contemporary identity politics of the Russian state. We used the Topic modelling method to study citizens’ reactions to various aspects of state identity politics. The total number of comments in the collected database is 8,023 (09/2022‑09/2023). In almost all the identified topics we can note the polarity of citizens’ opinions, examples of which are given in the article. However, there are a few topics where the users’ opinion is quite consolidated; for example, the image of the Crimean bridge on the cover of new textbooks was widely supported in comments, while the topic of traditional values, on the contrary, evokes negative feelings and shows “public tiredness”. Despite the limitations described in the conclusion of the article, the study demonstrates the high potential of applying the method of topic modelling to the analysis of the reactions of social media users.

The Effects of Social Media on Adolescents’ Daily Lives

To investigate the effects of social media on adolescents’ daily lives, the research recruited 50 students from a Chinese university and asked them to finish a carefully designed questionnaire. The research found that the overuse of social media will lead to spending less time communicating with others, causing harm to relationships. Moreover, this condition may be due to high pressure in school and frequent negative feelings.

Страх красоты

The article discusses the problem of rejecting the image of beauty in modern dance. It is indicated that the theme of despair, fear, violence and depression begins to dominate in modern dance since its inception in the 20s of the last century. The characteristic features of movements and plasticity in expressionist dance, in the school of M. Graham, are described: broken vertical, inwardly turned chest and feet, sharpness and convulsiveness of movements, blows aimed at oneself, etc. The article consistently examines the possible causes of this trend, such as technical ease and accessibility, lower energy cost of ‘sad dances’, as well as the opportunity to demonstrate originality, nonconformism, express social protest, etc. There is an opinion that the expression of pathological motives, negative feelings, fears in art contributes to the liberation from their destructive effect in real life. This approach is questioned, because there is also a reverse mechanism: as a result of viewing relevant plots (for example, scenes of violence), infection with emotions occurs, role models arise, and the thresholds of what is permissible decrease. Along with criticism of a number of trends in contemporary art, the importance of the concept of ugliness for culture is emphasized. Meeting one’s own infirmity and imperfection, be that physical, psychological or moral, plays an essential role in the spiritual development of a person. However, modern art, including the dance performances considered, follow the path of establishing ugliness as a new norm and cultivate the perverted reality of the ‘sick’ creativity of a disintegrating personality. The expression of beauty, on the contrary, is characteristic of an integral personality striving for perfection and praising life.

Polish adaptation and validation of a family appraisal of caregiving questionnaire for palliative care (FACQ-PC)

Increasing numbers of people are taking on the role of informal caregivers of oncology patients in the advanced stages of the disease. The outcomes of such a decision are both positive (e.g. strengthening of bonds) and negative (e.g. strain). Their assessment is necessary to customise appropriate interventions for caregivers and is made possible by the FACQ-PC (multi-dimensional Family Appraisal of Caregiving Questionnaire for Palliative Care) – a tool used to assess the functioning of informal caregivers of patients receiving home-based palliative care. The aim of this study was to determine the psychometric properties of the Polish adaptation of the FACQ-PC. The study involved 150 informal caregivers of patients receiving palliative care at home, including 106 women and 44 men aged between 22 and 77 years. Study participants completed the Polish version of the FACQ-PC and a series of questionnaires measuring positive and negative feelings (SUPIN), stress (PSS-10) and satisfaction with family life (SOR- H). The study did not confirm the four-factor structure of the questionnaire; instead, a three-factor structure was found to be more appropriate. The following factors were determined: negative outcomes, positive caregiving appraisals and family well-being. Based on a validation review, the high reliability of the individual scales was established, and internal relevance was confirmed. FACQ-PC-PL was adopted as the abbreviated name of the tool. This tool can be used in scientific research and for initial assessments conducted in a clinical setting.

“Suffering in silence”: How social workers in child welfare practice experience and manage burnout

Social workers in child welfare practice encounter dilemmas, tensions, contradictions, ambiguities, and ambivalence as they attempt to meet the competing demands of the Tri-sphere — the formal child welfare system, the professional theories and values guiding practice, and the child welfare service recipients. This study explored how these encounters result in worker burnout and how that is managed. The study used a constructivist grounded theory approach. Data were collected in St. John’s, NL, Canada, employing in-depth individual interviews with 18 frontline child welfare social workers. Findings reveal that child welfare social workers regularly experience varied feelings and emotions of burnout and utilize a variety of self-care strategies to manage. Recommendations include a call for child welfare agencies to provide opportunities for workers to feel heard and acknowledged about any negative feelings and emotions, strengthen positive peer supports, and promote essential self-care practices such as offering reduced membership cost for physical activities.

Exploring Factors Influencing College Females' Perceptions of Menstruation: A Study on Awareness and Cultural Influences

This study surveyed 225 respondents on their attitudes towards menstruation, revealing predominantly negative feelings. A significant majority (84.9%) expressed disagreement with feeling proud during menstruation, while none agreed or felt happy about having their period. Most respondents (66.7%) also did not feel excited about menstruating. Similarly, a large portion of respondents (82.2%) were not eager to experience their first period, and 65.8% reported not being happy when they found out about menstruation. Although many respondents disagreed with feeling different during their period, nearly 58.7% agreed that menstruation makes them uncomfortable. When asked if it was acceptable to miss college due to menstrual cramps, 45.3% strongly agreed, indicating that many find menstruation physically challenging. The majority (75.1%) also disagreed with feeling scared, suggesting awareness and understanding of the menstrual process. Respondents were generally open to discussing menstruation, with 72% feeling comfortable talking to friends. However, 62.2% expressed feeling nervous when the word “period” is mentioned. Social stigma remains an issue, as 60.9% disagreed with fearing boys finding out about their period, but a smaller group (24.9%) expressed fear. Finally, 86.2% disagreed that girls should worry during their period. Overall, this survey highlights the widespread discomfort, negative associations, and stigma surrounding menstruation, with respondents showing minimal positive feelings or eagerness towards their periods.