The disease burden caused by pregnant women contracting influenza is an important public health issue, which not only directly threatens the health of pregnant women themselves, but also has adverse effects on the health of fetuses and newborns through mother-to-child transmission and other means. Although pregnant women are the preferred group for influenza vaccination, their willingness to receive the vaccine is generally low due to multiple factors, such as psychological mechanisms, socio-cultural factors, and policy implementation barriers in the actual implementation process, resulting in an extremely low vaccination rate. Therefore, building a comprehensive and multi-level precision strategy system based on the behavior change mechanism in the three dimensions of individual-society-policy is of great significance for enhancing pregnant women's willingness to receive vaccinations and promoting their conversion of willingness into actual vaccination behavior. In the future, we will evaluate the effectiveness of strategies from a more in-depth, systematic, and comprehensive perspective, explore their synergistic effects in different intervention strategies and their adaptability in diverse target populations, thereby expanding the coverage of public health services and enhancing the accuracy and depth of services, aiming to promote the steady development of public health along the path of precision and efficiency, and provide solid and powerful guarantees for the health of the entire population.

This study aimed to analyse how professional firefighters of the State Fire Service in Poland experienceand cope with stress, and to identify factors that facilitate or hinder their psychological adaptationafter exposure to traumatic events. The research problem focused on answering the question: Whatcoping strategies can be observed among State Fire Service officers, and which factors influence theeffectiveness of their psychological adaptation following traumatic incidents? The study employeda mixed-methods approach, including a review of relevant scientific literature and availableinstitutional reports, as well as a survey of firefighters. The Mini-COPE inventory, adapted to thePolish context by Juczyński and Ogińska-Bulik, was used to assess the coping strategies applied bythe participants. The findings contribute to a deeper understanding of firefighters’ psychologicalfunctioning in situations of chronic and acute stress and highlight the importance of targetedpreventive measures and support systems within operational services.

Purpose Brands increasingly rely on both celebrities and social media influencers to build brand equity in digitally mediated environments. Despite their widespread managerial use, it remains unclear why these two types of opinion leaders shape consumer-based brand equity (CBBE) through different psychological mechanisms. This study addresses this issue by examining whether credibility and parasocial relationships (PSRs) operate as distinct pathways through which celebrities and influencers contribute to brand equity on social media. Clarifying these mechanisms is essential for advancing endorsement theory and for guiding more effective endorsement strategy decisions. Design/methodology/approach The study employs a quantitative, cross-sectional design based on survey data from 310 active social media users in Lithuania. To capture both contributory and indispensable mechanisms, the analysis integrates partial least squares-structural equation modeling with Necessary Condition Analysis (NCA), allowing for a comparison of sufficiency-based effects and non-compensatory conditions across celebrity and influencer endorsement contexts. Findings The results reveal structurally different endorsement mechanisms. For influencers, credibility strengthens PSRs, which in turn positively drive CBBE. In contrast, for celebrities, PSRs do not significantly translate into brand equity. Instead, credibility emerges as a critical prerequisite for celebrities to generate brand equity, even though it does not exert a direct net effect. NCA further shows that PSRs are required, albeit weakly, for influencer-driven brand equity, whereas credibility constitutes a necessary condition in celebrity endorsements. Practical implications The findings demonstrate that celebrities and influencers should not be treated as interchangeable endorsement sources. Influencer strategies should prioritize long-term collaborations that foster relational closeness and emotional attachment, whereas celebrity endorsements require careful credibility screening and strategic fit with brand values. These insights enable managers to align endorsement choices with specific brand equity objectives and to evaluate endorsement effectiveness using mechanism-consistent performance metrics. Originality/value This study advances endorsement research by incrementally extending and refining existing theory to explain why celebrities and influencers influence brand equity through fundamentally different causal pathways. By combining structural equation modeling with NCA, it introduces an asymmetric perspective that moves beyond traditional net-effect explanations and clarifies theoretical boundary conditions in social media endorsement research.

ABSTRACT With the rapid growth of new second-generation populations in Taiwan, vocational and technical school (VTS) students from immigrant families increasingly face challenges in interpersonal interaction, identity formation, and school adaptation. Existing studies have rarely examined how interpersonal interaction functions as a psychological and social mechanism influencing school adaptation within multicultural vocational education contexts. Given the rising proportion of new second-generation students and their heightened risk of marginalization and maladjustment, an empirical investigation of facilitating factors is urgently needed. This study explores the relationship between interpersonal interaction and school adaptation among new second-generation VTS students in Taiwan. Drawing on Carl Rogers’ self-concept theory and Eisenberger’s perceived organizational support theory, a hypothesized theoretical model was proposed that incorporates self-concept as a mediating variable and perceived organizational support as a moderating variable. Partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) was employed to test the model. The results indicate that interpersonal interaction significantly predicts school adaptation, self-concept partially mediates this relationship, and perceived organizational support moderates the pathway between interpersonal interaction and self-concept. These findings contribute to multicultural education research and provide empirical support for inclusive vocational education practices aligned with SDG 4.5.

Mothers of children with disabilities often face persistent caregiving demands that elevate psychological distress and may adversely affect spiritual well-being, a key psychological resource related to meaning and life purpose. Drawing on stress and coping frameworks, the present study examined coping through meaning as a longitudinal mediating mechanism linking psychological distress to spiritual well-being among mothers of children with disabilities. Using a semi-longitudinal design, data were collected at two time points separated by three months from a final sample of 343 Turkish mothers of children with disabilities (M age = 34.65, SD = 5.64). A cross-lagged panel model within a structural equation modeling framework was estimated. Psychological distress at Time 1 negatively predicted coping through meaning at Time 2 (β = -.183, p < .01, 95% CI[-.318, -.043]). Coping through meaning at Time 1 positively predicted spiritual well-being at Time 2 (β = .277, p < .01, 95% CI[.166, .386]), and psychological distress at Time 1 also showed a direct negative effect on spiritual well-being at Time 2 (β = -.129, p < .01, 95% CI[-.244, -.016]). Mediation analyses indicated a significant indirect effect of psychological distress on spiritual well-being via coping with meaning (standardized indirect effect = -.034, 95% CI [-.052, -.010]), indicating partial longitudinal mediation. These findings suggest that psychological distress undermines mothers' ability to engage in meaning-making, which in turn contributes to reduced spiritual well-being over time. The results highlight coping through meaning as a key psychological mechanism and have implications for meaning-centered interventions in psychological counseling and family support programs.

Psychological science is facing an explanatory dead-end because it currently offers interpretations rather than scientific explanations without any way to move from mediators to mechanisms. The long-standing promise has always been that future investigators will transform mediators into mechanisms but this promise remains unfulfilled. The missing mechanism information might be discovered by new empirical methods that have yet to be developed, but presently there is little evidence of this. Another approach is to identify an explanatory narrative that already understands psychology in a way that provides the required causal mechanisms. Connectionist network models with sufficient mechanism information to effectively simulate/emulate psychological phenomena provide this perspective because they explain how psychological processing can take place or is brought about. Previously identified core and corollary connectionist network properties/principles function as psychological mechanisms from this perspective.

Introduction Exercise is often viewed as universally beneficial for older adults; however, a growing body of evidence suggests that excessive or compulsive exercise may be linked to underlying psychological vulnerabilities. In later life, retirement-related role changes and emotional challenges may increase reliance on exercise as a means of emotion regulation, potentially elevating the risk of maladaptive exercise patterns. Against this backdrop, the present study focuses on retired older adults who engage in regular exercise, examining the psychological mechanisms underlying exercise addiction. Methods This study investigates the role of difficulties in emotion regulation in predicting exercise addiction among retired individuals, with state anxiety and social dependence as mediators. Data were collected from 471 retired Chinese older adults with regular exercise habits through on-site paper-based surveys. Participants reported engaging in regular exercise, defined as planned physical activity performed at least three times per week for health or recreational purposes. The participants had an estimated mean age of 60.76 years (SD = 8.31). The sample consisted of 144 males (30.6%) and 327 females (69.4%). Validated scales were used to assess difficulties in emotion regulation, state anxiety, social dependence, and exercise addiction. Partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) was conducted to test the hypothesized model and examine both direct and indirect associations. Results Difficulties in emotion regulation were positively associated with state anxiety ( β = 0.811, p &amp;lt; 0.001) and social dependence ( β = 0.327, p &amp;lt; 0.001). Both state anxiety ( β = 0.312, p &amp;lt; 0.001) and social dependence ( β = 0.332, p &amp;lt; 0.001) were positively associated with exercise addiction, and each served as a significant mediator linking emotion regulation difficulties to exercise addiction. Conclusion Exercise addiction among older adults is shaped by both emotional and social vulnerabilities. Interventions should therefore focus on improving emotion regulation abilities and strengthening social support to reduce the risk of compulsive exercise.

BackgroundMultimorbidity, the coexistence of 2 or more chronic conditions, is associated with poor well-being. Health coaching apps offer cost-effective and accessible support. However, there is a lack of evidence of the impact of health coaching apps on individuals with multimorbidity.ObjectiveThis study aimed to assess the impact and acceptability of a health coaching app (the Holly Health [HH] app) on the subjective well-being (SWB) of adults with multimorbidity.MethodsThis study used an explanatory-sequential mixed methods design, with quantitative secondary data analysis in the first phase and qualitative interviews in the second phase. In the quantitative phase (n=565), pre- and post-SWB (Office for National Statistics' 4 personal well-being questions [ONS4]) scores from existing app users with multimorbidity were analyzed using Bayesian growth curve modeling to assess the impact of HH. In the qualitative phase (n=22), data were collected via semistructured interviews and analyzed using reflexive thematic analysis. Mechanisms of action that supported SWB were categorized using the Multi-Level Leisure Mechanisms Framework.ResultsThere was a significant increase in life satisfaction (Coef.=0.71, 95% highest density interval [HDI] 0.52‐0.89), worthwhileness (Coef.=0.62, 95% HDI 0.43‐0.81), and happiness (Coef.=0.74, 95% HDI 0.54‐0.92) and a decrease in anxiety (Coef.=−0.50, 95% HDI −0.74 to −0.25) before and after using the HH app. Overall, 8 acceptable app features activated 5 mechanisms of action, including behavioral, psychological, and social mechanisms. Three additional factors influenced the acceptability of the health coaching app: type of chronic condition, availability of time, and the use of other support tools.ConclusionsThe study demonstrates that health coaching apps could be effective and acceptable support tools for individuals with multimorbidity. This study contributes to understanding why health coaching apps support SWB and could be used to inform the development of future digital health interventions in multimorbidity.

User-generated content (UGC) plays a central role in social commerce. However, existing knowledge remains theoretically fragmented across constructs, perspectives, and empirical contexts. To address this gap, this study conducts a systematic review of 60 peer-reviewed studies published between 2014 and 2024, following PRISMA 2020 guidelines. It develops an integrative conceptual perspective structured around five key dimensions: trust, authenticity, perceived risk, engagement, and loyalty. The findings demonstrate that UGC influences consumer decision-making primarily through mediating psychological and social mechanisms, including trust, satisfaction, perceived value, social presence, and community identification. At the same time, perceived risk remains insufficiently theorized, and comprehensive multi-dimensional models remain scarce in the literature. The study advances social commerce theory by consolidating fragmented evidence into a coherent conceptual framework. It also explicitly foregrounds the central explanatory role of mediating mechanisms in UGC effects. From a practical perspective, the findings highlight the strategic importance of fostering authentic and trustworthy UGC. This supports sustainable consumer–brand relationships and long-term value creation within digital platform ecosystems. The review has limitations related to database coverage and language restrictions, which may have led to the omission of relevant studies.

As social media becomes increasingly embedded in daily life, understanding the psychological mechanisms that shape users’ digital experiences is essential for promoting healthy, sustainable digital behavior. This study examines two motivational life-orientation strategies—prioritizing meaning and prioritizing positivity—and investigates how they are differentially associated with patterns of social media use, digital flourishing, and psychological well-being. A sample of 414 adults completed validated measures of digital and psychological outcomes, including a Hebrew adaptation of the Digital Flourishing Scale (DFS), and measures of prioritizing meaning and prioritizing positivity. Across seven regression models, prioritizing meaning was consistently associated with more adaptive digital outcomes, including lower screen time, reduced FoMO, higher digital flourishing, greater self-compassion, and lower psychopathology. In contrast, prioritizing positivity was associated with greater social media engagement and elevated social comparison but showed no associations with digital flourishing or psychological well-being. These findings support a dual-pathway framework, suggesting that meaning-oriented individuals tend to interact with digital platforms more intentionally and resiliently, whereas positivity-oriented individuals engage in more affect-driven and evaluative patterns that do not translate into well-being benefits. The study advances current understanding of digital behavior by identifying motivational factors that shape how users navigate online environments and highlights implications for designing digital well-being interventions and platform features.

How perceived teacher support boosts learning engagement: The chain mediating roles of second language grit and foreign language enjoyment.

Previous studies have shown that the hope of breast cancer patients is related to the social relational quality, and personality is related to acceptance of disability. However, research is still unclear about the underlying potential psychological mechanisms of various psycho-social factors for this population. This study aims to investigate the impact of breast cancer patients' hope and type C personality on social relational quality and acceptance of disability, and to evaluate the mediating the role of medical coping styles. A total of 141 breast cancer patients during chemotherapy were recruited from Harbin, China completed a self-reported questionnaire containing the personal information questionnaire, Herth hope index (HHI), Type C behavior scale, Medical coping modes questionnaire (MCMQ), Social relationship quality scale (SRQS) and Acceptance of disability scale (ADS). Results showed that the proposed model fitted the data very well (χ2 = 8.357, df = 7, p = 0.302, χ2/df = 1.194, GFI = 0.981, CFI = 0.991, TLI = 0.982, RMSEA = 0.037). Further analyses revealed that, confrontation mediated the relationship between hope and social relational quality (indirect effect = 0.025, BC 95%CI = 0.001, 0.079), and acceptance-resignation mediated the relationship between type C personality and acceptance of disability (indirect effect = - 0.109, BC 95%CI = - 0.188, - 0.044). Confrontation and acceptance-resignation played critical roles in the relationship between hope, type C personality and social relational quality, the acceptance of disability of breast cancer patients. Healthcare practitioners should be aware of the coping strategies of breast cancer patients, and psycho-social interventions and supportive care should focus on these cognitive and emotional processes to improve social relational quality and acceptance of disability for this population.

This study investigated the psychosocial impact of perceived social stigma on adopted adolescents in Peshawar, Pakistan, focusing on emotional regulation difficulties, identity confusion and internalised shame. Grounded in Goffman’s stigma theory and Erikson’s theory of identity development, the research examined how stigmatising societal attitudes influence adolescents aware of their adoptive status. A total of 709 adolescents aged 12 to 18 years, who had lived with their adoptive families for at least three years and were enrolled in formal education, completed structured questionnaires with newly developed and validated scales measuring stigma, shame, identity confusion and emotional regulation. Using structural equation modelling, findings revealed that perceived social stigma significantly predicted internalised shame, emotional regulation difficulties and identity confusion. Internalised shame acted as a key psychological mechanism in these associations. Adolescents who felt stigmatised were more likely to internalise this negativity as shame, which in turn heightened their struggles with emotional regulation and identity development. These results highlight the psychological toll of stigmatisation on adopted youth and underscore the critical role of shame in shaping their development. The findings provide insights for educators, psychologists and social workers in supporting adopted adolescents and suggest the need for stigma reduction efforts in educational and social settings.

Against the backdrop of China’s national initiatives to strengthen the teaching workforce, fostering teachers’ work passion is essential not only for enhancing professional well-being but also for improving educational quality. This study examines how kindergarten principals’ caring leadership influences teachers’ work passion by testing the sequential mediating roles of teacher trust and teacher buoyancy. Using an independent quota sampling strategy, survey data were collected from 395 kindergarten teachers across China. The results indicate that principals’ caring leadership positively influences teachers’ work passion, but this effect is entirely indirect, operating through teacher trust, teacher buoyancy, and their sequential mediation, thereby confirming the “second-order effect” mechanism of leadership. Further mediation analyses reveal that the independent mediating effect of teacher trust (72.47%) is substantially stronger than that of teacher buoyancy (15.15%), while the sequential mediation pathway from teacher trust to teacher buoyancy accounts for 11.73% of the total effect. Overall, this study advances understanding of psychological mechanisms linking caring leadership to teachers’ passion and offers actionable insights for kindergarten principals seeking to refine leadership practices and foster sustained teacher engagement and enthusiasm.

Purpose This study aims to examine how self-initiated trial experiences with innovative products by older consumers influence their future choice behavior. Specifically, it investigates whether such autonomous engagement increases self-efficacy and leads to a greater tendency to make risk-taking choices in later and unrelated consumption contexts. Rather than treating chronological age merely as a demographic factor, this study views it as a proxy for underlying psychological mechanisms that shape consumers’ openness to innovation and their willingness to engage with uncertainty. This study challenges prevailing assumptions that older consumers are passive or avoidant toward technological innovation. Design/methodology/approach Three studies were conducted using both survey and experimental methods. Study 1 surveyed 85 Korean adults (Mage = 46.5) to assess the relationship between the frequency of recent self-initiated use of nine innovative services (e.g. kiosks, AI appliances and metaverse) and consumers’ current self-efficacy in using innovative technologies. Study 2 used a 2 (generation: younger vs older) × 3 (experience type: self-use vs helped by others vs control) between-subjects design (n = 186) using a scenario involving an unmanned service. Study 3 replicated the findings with a new product extension scenario (n = 198), testing the mediating role of situational self-efficacy through a bootstrapped moderated mediation analysis. Findings Across three studies using both survey and experimental methods, older consumers who independently engaged in self-initiated trial experiences with innovative services showed higher self-efficacy, which in turn increased their willingness to make riskier or more novel consumption choices. Self-efficacy played the role of a mechanism linking self-initiated engagement with innovation to subsequent risk-taking behavior. In contrast, younger consumers exhibited no significant changes in self-efficacy or choice tendencies. These results were consistently supported across survey data (Study 1) and two experimental replications (Study 2 and Study 3). Research limitations/implications This study was conducted in a single cultural context (South Korea), which may limit generalizability. Future research could explore different innovation types, long-term behavioral changes of older consumers or cross-cultural effects. Although this study used chronological age as a proxy for generation differences, considering other variables such as cognitive age, perceived control and time perspective would also provide insights into examining the impact of older adults’ engagement with innovation. Moreover, future research could examine whether other internal mechanisms, beyond differences in self-efficacy, could drive behavioral change in middle-aged and older adults. Overall, the findings contribute to age-specific consumer innovation research and provide empirical support for self-efficacy as a key psychological mechanism in transformative service experiences. Practical implications New product development marketers should design technological experiences that allow older consumers to independently experience innovative services. As new innovative technologies continue to emerge, older consumers with significant purchasing power and a growing market are becoming a key segment deserving particular attention in the marketing landscape. The findings of this study suggest that encouraging these consumers to use new technologies on their own can enhance their confidence and increase their openness to novel or unfamiliar product choices, which has meaningful practical implications. Social implications This study challenges age-based stereotypes by showing that older consumers can adopt innovative technologies and become more confident and risk-tolerant when given self-directed experiences. Crucially, even a single encounter with new technology can enhance self-efficacy, suggesting that such experiences have the potential to transform older consumers’ lives. Consequently, these findings highlight the importance of inclusive service environments that respect both chronological and psychological age diversity, support digital equity and promote active engagement in technology-driven societies. Originality/value To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this research is among the first to highlight the role of self-motivated engagement with innovation in shaping older consumers’ decision-making behaviors. It integrates self-efficacy theory with innovation adoption and risk-taking behavior, offering theoretical as well as managerial insights for designing inclusive service environments.

Human hunter-gatherer groups were commonly thought to be broadly egalitarian, with increasingly formal hierarchical social structures hypothesized to spread following the introduction of agriculture. However, this view is being challenged by mounting evidence for social hierarchies in several foraging populations. Nonetheless, the processes by which such hierarchies emerge, and whether human hierarchies are homologous with non-human systems of dominance, remains unclear. Here we examine the role of prestige, the tendency to freely confer status and influence on skilled or esteemed individuals and a proposed component of human-unique cultural psychology, in generating unequal patterns of social influence. Through a combination of cultural evolutionary modelling, human experimentation, and evolutionary simulations, we find that human prestige psychology generates highly unequal influence hierarchies, and that the “prestige sensitivity” we measure empirically in human participants closely matches the predictions of our evolutionary simulations, suggesting it is an evolved psychological adaptation. Nonetheless, unlike non-human dominance hierarchies, the processes involved are non-coercive, being driven by individuals freely seeking high quality information. We thus conclude that social hierarchies plausibly have a deep evolutionary history in our lineage, with prestige enabling hierarchies to be mutually beneficial as opposed to coercive.

Forced migration, as exemplified by the ongoing Syrian refugee crisis, has been consistently associated with elevated rates of psychiatric conditions, including post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, anxiety, and increased suicide risk. However, the psychological mechanisms linking trauma-related symptoms to suicide risk in refugee populations remain insufficiently understood. The present study examines the mediating role of anxiety sensitivity in the relationship between PTSD symptoms and suicide risk among Syrian refugees residing in Turkey. Data were collected from 627 Syrian refugees aged 18-65 years living in Bursa province. Participants completed validated self-report measures assessing PTSD symptoms (Impact of Event Scale-Revised; IES-R), depression (Beck Depression Inventory; BDI), anxiety sensitivity (Anxiety Sensitivity Index-3; ASI-3), and suicide risk (Suicide Probability Scale; SPS). Elevated PTSD symptom levels were observed in 81.2% of the sample. Logistic regression and mediation analyses were conducted to examine associations between PTSD symptom clusters, anxiety sensitivity dimensions, and suicide risk. Results indicated that intrusion and hyperarousal symptoms were positively associated with suicide risk, whereas avoidance symptoms and physical concern (ASI-3 subscale) were negatively associated. Mediation analysis revealed that cognitive concern-defined as fear of losing mental control-partially mediated the association between PTSD symptoms and suicidal ideation (SPS suicidal ideation subscale). Taken together, these findings suggest that maladaptive interpretations of cognitive distress may represent a clinically relevant target for reducing suicide risk in trauma-exposed refugee populations. In contrast, avoidance and heightened awareness of bodily sensations may function as temporary protective strategies in the context of overwhelming stress. Overall, the findings underscore the importance of trauma-informed interventions that prioritize suicide stabilization in forcibly displaced individuals prior to the initiation of PTSD-focused treatment.

Change in self-esteem after weight-loss treatment. Alexithymia as a psychological mechanism.

This study investigates how false fitness and supplement claims shape judgment and behavioral intention through cue-based interface features and considers the implications for public health. In a randomized online experiment ( N = 630), participants viewed simulated social-media advertisements that manipulated authority endorsement, scarcity framing, and conformity cues in a 2 × 2 × 2 design, along with a truthful control condition. Heuristic trust (M = 4.50, SD = 0.60) and perceived credibility (M = 6.54, SD = 0.44) were generally high and were closely linked to lower risk perception (M = 1.79, SD = 0.39) and stronger purchase intention (M = 5.02, SD = 0.68). Structural modeling showed that risk perception exerted a substantial negative association with intention, and the indirect pathway from heuristic trust to intention through risk perception was statistically reliable (indirect effect = 0.279, 95% CI [0.230, 0.329]). Regarding conditional effects, health literacy showed a consistent pattern in which higher literacy was associated with a stronger negative slope of risk perception on intention, although the interaction term was not statistically significant in the moderation model. Across conditions, persuasive impact was driven largely by interface cues and social validation signals rather than by the credibility of evidentiary content. These findings suggest that if persuasive cue structures remain unregulated in online health-related advertising, repeated exposure may gradually normalize low perceived risk and heighten purchase intention, posing longer-term challenges for consumer protection and public-health governance.

How social isolation accelerates biological aging: Exploring underlying behavioral and psychological mechanisms.