Serial Mediation Model Research Articles

Association of Maternal Immigration Status with Emotional Eating in Taiwanese Children: The Mediating Roles of Health Literacy and Feeding Practices.

Emotional eating has been linked to childhood obesity. A variety of emotions often trigger this form of eating, which has been associated with stress-induced overeating, loss of control eating, and binge eating in children. However, research on how maternal immigration status and feeding practices influence emotional eating in children within Asian contexts is sparse. This study examines the association between maternal immigration status and emotional eating in children, exploring the mediating roles of health literacy and feeding practices. The study focused on children aged 10-11 and their mothers in Taiwan, utilizing a sample of 2,308 mother-child dyads. The Child Feeding Questionnaire (CFQ) was used to assess mothers' feeding practices, while emotional eating was measured using a subscale of the Three-Factor Eating Questionnaire-Revised 18 (TFEQ-R18). Health literacy was evaluated using the Health Literacy Survey Questionnaire (HLS-EU-Q12). Confirmatory factor analysis, Pearson's correlation, and Structural Equation Models (SEMs) were employed to explore the potential pathways leading to children's emotional eating. Children of mothers with foreign nationality demonstrate higher emotional eating scores compared to those with native-born mothers (5.73 vs. 5.35, p = 0.04). These mothers also have significantly lower health literacy levels (35.21 vs. 38.52, p < 0.0001). They are more inclined to use rewarding and pressure-to-eat feeding practices while showing reduced tendencies toward monitoring and restriction. Serial mediation models suggest that maternal foreign nationality influences children's emotional eating primarily by increasing rewarding and pressure-to-eat practices alongside reduced health literacy, which ultimately lowers monitoring practices. Interventions should improve maternal health literacy and promote healthy feeding practices. Future research should investigate these pathways across various geographic regions and age groups to develop targeted interventions for immigrant families.

Moderated serial mediation effects of adaptation problems, academic stress, and interpersonal relationships on the sleep quality of early-year university students

PurposeDue to heightened anxiety levels, sleep disorders become more prevalent among university students. This study, centered on adaptive capacity in early-year university students, aimed to explore the underlying mechanisms through which anxiety affects sleep quality.MethodsBetween February 2023 and June 2023, a cohort of first- and second-year university students (mean age 18.8 years) from Hunan Province, China, took part in an online survey. Anxiety was assessed using the Self-rating Anxiety Scale; adaptation problems, academic stress, and interpersonal relationships were assessed using the Adolescent Self-Rating Life Events Checklist; and sleep quality was assessed using the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI). A moderated serial mediation model, based on Hayes’ Model 92, was used to assess the hypothesized model.ResultsThe survey resulted in 3,490 valid responses. Among respondents, 24% exhibited anxiety symptoms and 30.4% showed abnormal sleep patterns (i.e., PSQI score ≥ 8). The most significant path identified based on indirect effects was anxiety (β = 0.109), adaptation problems (β = 0.183), academic stress (β = 0.081), and sleep quality (all p-values &amp;lt; 0.001). Furthermore, interpersonal relationships moderated the effects of adaptation problems (β = −0.015, p &amp;lt; 0.001), academic stress (β = −0.012, p &amp;lt; 0.001), and anxiety (β = 0.003, p = 0.002) on sleep quality.ConclusionElevated anxiety and sleep disorders are common among university students. Adaptive capacity may play a crucial role in sleep disorders among early-year university students. Interventions such as fostering strong interpersonal relationships in campus environments, may prove beneficial in improving academic performance and sleep quality.

The effect of awe in wildlife tourists on animal-friendly behavioural intentions: a serial mediation model of connectedness to nature and empathy

ABSTRACT Wildlife tourism is experiencing rapid growth as people's desire to connect with nature intensifies, making the improvement of tourist behaviour in wildlife destinations a crucial research issue. In light of this, the current study, grounded in the appraisal theory of emotion, scrutinises how awe, connectedness to nature (CN), and empathy impact animal-friendly behavioural intentions (AFBI) by establishing and appraising a model incorporating serial mediation and moderation. The results reveal that awe positively influences AFBI, with CN and empathy serving as serial mediators. Furthermore, the extent to which awe, CN, and empathy affect AFBI is amplified at higher levels of animal welfare literacy. This research represents a beneficial attempt to investigate AFBI and its internal mechanisms. Destination management organisations (DMOs), tourism product and service designers, marketers, and policymakers can derive valuable practical insights from this study to enhance sustainable development in wildlife tourism.

Why Science Should Have a Female Face: Female Experts Increase Liking, Competence, and Trust in Science

Historically, female experts have been perceived as less competent but more likable than their male counterparts. This experimental study ( n = 958) examines the intricate relationship between likability, competence, scientist gender, participant gender, and trust scientific expertise. Our results illuminated the mediating role of likability in shaping perceptions of competence, where heightened likability positively influenced perceived competence. Moreover, exposure to science messages from female scientists significantly increased trust in science through a serial mediation model. Notably, participants liked the scientist of the opposite gender; thus we did not observe a gender affinity effect.

The power of many: analyzing the impact of shared leadership on project teams

PurposeShared leadership has received significant empirical and theoretical attention in the project management literature. However, a dearth of studies reveals how shared leadership promotes project performance. Drawing on the theory of conservation of resources, this research proposes a serial mediation model that investigates the relationship between shared leadership and project performance through team failure learning and team resilience.Design/methodology/approachA field study was conducted that surveyed 79 project teams in various industries (comprising 380 project team members and 79 project managers) using a multisource, time-lagged survey design.FindingsOur findings show that shared leadership has a positive impact on project performance. More importantly, team failure learning and team resilience play sequential mediating roles in the relationship between shared leadership and project performance.Practical implicationsThis research offers new ways for project managers to manage project performance effectively. Project managers are encouraged to recognize the benefits of shared leadership. To do this, they should facilitate team failure learning and improve team resilience, which serves to boost project performance.Originality/valueThis research provides a novel perspective on how shared leadership influences project performance. To the best of our knowledge, we are among the first to explore the serial mediating effects of team failure learning and team resilience on the relationship between shared leadership and project performance.

School Connectedness and Academic Burnout in Middle School Students: A Multiple Serial Mediation Model

Higher levels of school connectedness are associated with better study habits, but their relationship with academic burnout and the underlying mechanisms have not been revealed. We used a questionnaire to investigate the relationship between school connectedness and academic burnout and the mediating mechanisms of burnout in a sample of 394 Chinese middle school students, controlling for class, gender, and grade level. The results revealed that (1) school connectedness, autonomous motivation to learn, and core self-evaluations were significantly negatively related to academic burnout; and that (2) academic self-handicapping, core self-evaluations, and autonomous motivation to learn individually mediated the effects of school connectedness on academic burnout and mediated the effects of multiple factors. Therefore, educators should pay attention to the emotional needs of junior high school students, increase the level of school connectedness, consciously help students cultivate positive psychological factors such as autonomous motivation and core self-evaluations, reduce academic self-handicapping, increase their learning pleasure, and alleviate junior high school students’ academic burnout.

Influence of career-related parental behaviors on Chinese pre-service preschool teachers’ major satisfaction: A two-wave serial mediation model

Influence of career-related parental behaviors on Chinese pre-service preschool teachers’ major satisfaction: A two-wave serial mediation model

Mechanisms of the Native American pain inequity: predicting chronic pain onset prospectively at 5 years in the Oklahoma Study of Native American Pain Risk.

A pain inequity exists for Native Americans (NAs), but the mechanisms are poorly understood. The Oklahoma Study of Native American Pain Risk (OK-SNAP) addressed this issue and recruited healthy, pain-free NAs and non-Hispanic Whites (NHWs) to attend 2 laboratory visits and assessed mechanisms consistent with the biopsychosocial model of pain: demographics, physical variables, psychosocial factors, and nociceptive/pain phenotypes. Then participants were surveyed every 6 months to assess for chronic pain onset. Results at the 2-year follow-up found that NAs were ∼3x more likely than NHWs to develop chronic pain. Moreover, psychosocial factors (discrimination, stress, pain-related anxiety), cardiometabolic load (higher body mass index and blood pressure, lower heart rate variability), and impaired inhibition of spinal nociception partly mediated the pain inequity. The present study examined mechanisms of chronic pain at the 5-year follow-up for OK-SNAP. Results found that the NA pain inequity worsened-NAs were 4x more likely to develop chronic pain (OR = 4.025; CI = 1.966, 8.239), even after controlling for baseline age, sex assigned at birth, income, and education. Moreover, serial mediation models replicated paths from the 2-year follow-up that linked psychosocial variables, cardiometabolic load, and impaired inhibition of spinal nociception to chronic pain onset. Further, 2 new significant paths were observed. One linked discrimination, stress, sleep problems, and facilitated pain perception to increased pain risk. The other linked discrimination with higher spinal nociceptive threshold and pain risk. These results provide further evidence for a NA pain inequity and identify multiple psychosocial, cardiometabolic, and pronociceptive targets for primary interventions.

Social Media Linked to Early Adolescent Suicidal Thoughts via Cyberbullying and Internalizing Symptoms

AbstractEarly adolescents are increasingly engaged in visually rich social media platforms, which may lead to the involvement in visual cybervictimization, i.e., the unsolicited sharing of personal visuals, resulting in negative mental-health outcomes. The present study examined the association between social media use and suicidal ideation among early adolescents, with a focus on the mediating roles of visual cybervictimization and internalizing symptoms. The sample consisted of 1140 middle-school students from Northwestern Italy with a mean age of 12.35 years (SD = 0.97), 53.3% female, 45.1% male, and1.6% non-binary. We explored a serial mediation model, hypothesizing that increased social media engagement might lead to heightened suicidal ideation through elevated experiences of visual cybervictimization and subsequent rise in internalizing symptoms. Results indicated significant associations exist between increased social media use and both direct involvement in and bystander experiences of visual cybervictimization. Participating in visual cyberbullying events, both as victim and bystander, was significantly associated with higher levels of internalizing symptoms, in turn linked to greater suicidal ideation. These findings emphasize the critical need for digital literacy and interventions targeting visual aspects of cyberbullying to mitigate its detrimental effects on youth mental health.

Exploring the Link between Autistic Traits, Emotional Intelligence, and Self-efficacy in Understanding Social Anhedonia

Abstract: Autism severity has been found to be associated with social anhedonia. However, the mechanisms linking the two have not been clarified. Objective: The study was designed to examine the link between autistic traits and social anhedonia. The present study tested a serial mediation model, in which it was hypothesized that emotional intelligence and self-efficacy were serial mediators of the relationship between autistic traits and social anhedonia. Methods: Data from 245 participants (57.4% females, n = 134) ranging in age from 18 to 65 years were collected through self-report. Participants completed an online composite questionnaire consisting of The Comprehensive Autistic Trait Inventory, the Wong and Law Emotional Intelligence Scale, The General Self-Efficacy Scale and the Revised Social Anhedonia Scale. Results: The relationship between autistic traits and social anhedonia was mediated by emotional intelligence and serially mediated by emotional intelligence and self-efficacy. Self-efficacy alone failed to link autistic traits to social anhedonia. Conclusion: The study provides evidence for the significant role of emotional intelligence and self-efficacy as mechanisms underlying the relationship between autistic traits and social anhedonia. The findings are discussed in terms of elucidating the processes through which autistic traits may confer vulnerability to compromised emotional intelligence and self-efficacy, which then serve as additional risk factors for social anhedonia.

A serial mediation model for destination choice intention of hospitality and tourism students in an experiential learning context

A serial mediation model for destination choice intention of hospitality and tourism students in an experiential learning context

Social Media Characteristics and Consumers’ Online Brand-Related Activities (COBRAs): The Mediating Role of Time Spent and Emotional Connectedness

This paper explores the influence of different social media platforms’ characteristics for use intensity (i.e., time spent and emotional connectedness), which in turn partially affects the development of consumers’ online brand-related activities (COBRAs). Using a U.S.-based sample of 939 adult social media users, we tested three serial mediation models using partial least squares structural equation modeling. We find that different social media characteristics lead to different levels of time spent, emotional connectedness, and, ultimately, COBRAs. We show the superiority of using profile-based (vs. content-based) platforms in fostering COBRAs, despite its negative effect on use intensity. Also, using customized (vs. broadcast) messages boosts users’ time spent on social media, thus enhancing emotional connectedness to the platform. Notably, the time spent on a platform significantly affects COBRAs via the mediation effect of emotional connectedness. We contribute by exploring the role of platforms’ characteristics in developing COBRAs while unraveling how the two dimensions of use intensity influence brand-related activities on social media.

Third parties’ reactions to the illegitimate tasks of coworkers

PurposePrevious studies have mainly focused on the negative impact of illegitimate tasks on recipients but ignored its impact on observers. Drawing on deservingness theory, this research developed a moderated serial mediation model to examine the underlying mechanism in the relationship between observed illegitimate tasks and observers’ helping behaviour.Design/methodology/approachThis research tested the model using a sample of 218 employees in China through a two-wave field study. A path analysis was conducted with the bootstrapping procedure to test the hypothesized model.FindingsThe results showed that the effect of observing illegitimate tasks was contingent upon the degree of the observer’s interpersonal liking towards the recipient. Specifically, when the observer had a high level of interpersonal liking for a coworker, the observer may perceive that the coworker was undeserving of being assigned illegitimate tasks, which increased sympathetic emotion and the sequent helping behaviour.Originality/valueThis study shifted the perspective of the illegitimate task literature from the recipient to the third parties. Additionally, it provided a finer-grained understanding of the mechanism between observed workplace disrespectful treatment and the observer’s helping behaviour.

Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Mediate the Relationship Between Poor Sleep Quality and Suicidal Ideation Among Young Chinese Men

Objective Poor sleep quality exacerbates suicidal ideation. Depression, anxiety, and stress may play important roles in this relationship. However, the underlying mechanisms remain unknown. Method A total of 2,598 young men were recruited for a cross-sectional study focusing on a range of sociodemographic factors, emotions, sleep quality, and suicidal ideation. Parallel, serial, and moderated mediation models were used to determine whether depression, anxiety, and stress mediated the relationship between poor sleep quality and suicidal ideation. Results Direct and indirect effects of poor sleep quality on suicidal ideation were observed. Depression, anxiety, and stress mediated the relationship between poor sleep quality and suicidal ideation (β Depression = 0.166, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.144, 0191; β Anxiety = 0.153, 95% CI: 0.130, 0.177; β Stress = 0.176, 95% CI: 0.154, 0.200). The serial mediation model indicated that depressive and stress symptoms co-play a serial mediating role in the relationship between poor sleep quality and suicidal ideation (β a = 0.049, 95% CI: 0.036, 0.062; βb = 0.099, 95% CI: 0.080, 0.120). The moderated mediation model revealed that the mediating role of stress on the relationship between poor sleep quality and suicidal ideation was moderated by depression (β = 0.173, 95% CI: 0.150, 0.197). Self-reported measures and the study’s cross-sectional design preclude the causal inferences reported. Conclusions The findings of this study prompt clinical and scientific researchers to consider the interplay among affective disorders when investigating etiological and psychological factors that may contribute to suicidal ideation.

Sleep Efficiency Mediates the Association Between Neighborhood Disadvantage and Knee Osteoarthritis Pain: Findings from the Understanding Pain and Limitations in Osteoarthritic Disease Study 2.

The objective was to examine potential pathways linking neighborhood disadvantage to pain severity in individuals with knee pain consistent with or at risk for Knee Osteoarthritis (KOA). The current investigation is a cross-sectional analysis. Data were collected from 140 mid-to older non-Hispanic White and non-Hispanic Black adults from the Understanding Pain and Limitations in Osteoarthritic Disease Study 2 (UPLOAD 2). Relationships among neighborhood disadvantage, sleep efficiency, pain catastrophizing, and pain severity were assessed. Neighborhood disadvantage was quantified using the Area Deprivation Index (ADI) and actigraphy data were used to assess sleep efficiency. The Coping Strategies Questionnaire-Revised catastrophizing subscale and WOMAC (Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Arthritis Index) pain severity scale were used to assess pain catastrophizing, and pain severity, respectively. A serial mediation model assessed the neighborhood➔sleep➔catastrophizing➔pain pathway, as well as neighborhood➔sleep➔pain, and neighborhood➔catastrophizing➔pain pathways. Greater neighborhood disadvantage was associated with worse sleep efficiency, ultimately contributing to greater pain severity. While neither neighborhood disadvantage nor sleep efficiency were associated with pain catastrophizing, pain catastrophizing itself was associated with greater KOA pain. Neighborhood disadvantage impacts KOA pain outcomes through sleep efficiency, but not pain catastrophizing, thereby highlighting environmental aspects that impact sleep as potential targets for intervention.

Conflict and Intimacy in Emerging Adults’ Romantic Relationships and Depressive Symptoms: The Mediating Role of Identity and Couple Satisfaction

Romantic relationships in emerging adulthood may be associated with depression, but the role of possible mediators of this relationship remains to be explored. The present study tested a serial mediation model where intimacy and conflict in romantic relationships were predictors of depressive symptoms through the mediation of couple satisfaction and identity satisfaction. The study was conducted on a sample of 268 Italian emerging adults, 60% female (Mage = 19, ds = 1.4), all involved in a heterosexual romantic relationship. The results showed that the association between intimacy and depressive symptoms was direct and sequentially mediated through couple satisfaction and identity satisfaction. A single mediation pathway through identity satisfaction alone also emerged. The association between conflict and depressive symptoms was direct and sequentially mediated through couple satisfaction and identity satisfaction. These findings suggest the importance of helping emerging adults develop appropriate skills in managing conflict and intimacy in romantic relationships as useful resources for identity satisfaction and depression prevention.

Serial Multiple Mediation of the Marital Satisfaction and Parenting Competence in the Relationship Between Postpartum Depression and Parent-Infant Attachment in First-Time Parents With Low- and High-Risk Pregnancy Experiences: A Cross-Sectional Study.

Little is known regarding the effects of postpartum depression on parent-infant attachment in high-risk parents. Based on Mercer's theory of becoming a mother, this study aimed to (1) examine the mediating effects of marital satisfaction and parenting competence in the relationship between postpartum depression and parent-infant attachment using a serial mediation model in first-time parent couples during the first 6 months postpartum, and (2) compare the serial mediation models between parents who had experienced low-risk and high-risk pregnancies. In this cross-sectional study, a total of 194 first-time parent couples at 1 to 6 months postpartum were included. Participants completed an online survey on postpartum depression, marital satisfaction, parenting competence, and parent-infant attachment. In both low- and high-risk groups, parenting competence was a common mediator of the impact of postpartum depression on parent-infant attachment. A sequential mediation effect involving both marital satisfaction and parenting competence was observed in high-risk mothers. Our findings suggest that the adverse impacts of postpartum depression on parent-infant attachment can be mitigated by boosting parenting competence or improving the marital satisfaction in couples experiencing first high-risk pregnancy.

Attachment and problematic smartphone use among Indonesian college students during the COVID-19 pandemic: a serial mediation model

Attachment and problematic smartphone use among Indonesian college students during the COVID-19 pandemic: a serial mediation model

Optimizing healthcare employee performance: a serial mediation model.

The study investigates the serial mediation of psychological ownership and workplace innovation in the nexus between organizational leadership and employee performance among healthcare workers in Ghana. Six hundred and thirty-seven samples were selected using convenience sampling technique. The data gathered using self-reported questionnaire were analyzed using SEM-PLS. The findings reveal that organizational leadership directly improves healthcare employee's psychological ownership, workplace innovation and employee performance. Psychological ownership and workplace innovation separately and serially mediate the relationship between organizational leadership and healthcare employees' performance. The study highlights the significant influence of organizational leadership, psychological ownership and workplace innovation on the performance of healthcare employees. Healthcare organizations ought to allocate resources toward leadership development strategies to foster a favorable work atmosphere that promotes innovation and enables employees to assume ownership of their tasks and contribute to continuing enhancement, ultimately leading to enhanced performance. This research is a pioneering study on serial mediation of psychological ownership and workplace behavior in the association between organizational leadership and performance in healthcare settings in Ghana.

The Association Between Social Isolation and Medication Adherence Among Chinese Older Adults With Chronic Diseases: Serial Mediation of Social Support and Loneliness.

Medication adherence is essential for chronic disease management among older adults. Previous studies have shown significant links among social isolation, social support, loneliness, and medication adherence, yet most were based on cross-sectional designs. We conducted a longitudinal cohort study among Chinese older adults with chronic diseases to explore the mediating effects of social support and loneliness in the association between social isolation and medication adherence. This study followed a cohort of 797 older adults with chronic diseases in China from 2022 to 2023. The serial mediation model was examined via bootstrapping techniques to evaluate the mediating effect of social support and loneliness in the association between social isolation and medication adherence. From baseline to follow-up, there were significant decreases in social support (from 26.6 ± 6.2 to 23.5 ± 6.7) and medication adherence (from 6.7 ± 1.2 to 6.0 ± 1.5) and significant increases in social isolation (from 1.8 ± 1.3 to 2.5 ± 1.4) and loneliness (13.2 ± 4.1 to 23.5 ± 6.7), all with p < .001. A serial mediation model was confirmed, where social support and loneliness serially and partially mediated the association between social isolation and medication adherence (total effect c = -0.216, 95% CI = -0.296 to -0.136; direct effect c' = -0.094, 95% CI = -0.171 to -0.017; total indirect effect ab = -0.122, 95% CI = -0.179 to -0.070). Our findings yield critical insights into the relationship between social isolation and medication adherence through various mediating mechanisms. These findings hold significant implications for devising psychosocial interventions to enhance medication adherence among older adults with chronic diseases, underscoring the pivotal role of bolstering social support and alleviating loneliness.