Social Psychological Interventions Research Articles

Health locus of control and symptom distress: The mediating role of illness acceptance and symptom severity in acute leukemia patients

ObjectiveThis study aims to explore the multiple mediating roles of illness acceptance and symptom severity between health locus of control and symptom distress in acute leukemia patients. MethodsFrom June 2022 to March 2023, a convenience sampling method was used to recruit 208 acute leukemia patients in the inpatient center of a hospital in Hebei. The Chinese versions of Multidimensional Health Locus of Control Scale, Illness Acceptance Scale, and Anderson Symptom Assessment Scale was used in the cross-sectional study. ResultsAll participants reported the presence of symptom distress. Symptom distress was significantly correlated with chance health locus of control, illness acceptance, and symptom severity (P＜0.05). Illness acceptance alone played a mediating role in the relationship between chance health locus of control and symptom distress in acute leukemia patients (β=0.087, 95%CI 0.030–0.167). The indirect role of chance health locus of control on symptom distress through symptom severity alone was also statistically significant (β=0.131, 95%CI 0.008–0.252). Furthermore, the multiple mediating role of chance health locus of control and symptom distress through illness acceptance and symptom severity combined was verified (β=0.027, 95%CI 0.001–0.089). The alternative model is also valid, indicating bidirectional relationships between symptom severity, illness acceptance, and chance health locus of control, collectively influencing symptom distress. ConclusionThere is a positive relationship between chance health locus of control and symptom distress; additionally, increasing social psychological interventions for illness acceptance and strengthening the management of core symptoms will help alleviate the impact of health chance locus of control on symptom distress in acute leukemia patients. Longitudinal studies are needed to confirm the causal relationships among the variables explored within the model. Impact on nursing practiceIt is recommended that healthcare professionals pay attention to the assessment of health locus of control in patients, identify patients with health chance locus of control in a timely manner, take measures to enhance their disease acceptance, and strengthen the management of core symptoms, thereby reducing their level of symptom distress.

RESILIÊNCIA PSICOLÓGICA DURANTE A PANDEMIA DE COVID-19

This bibliographic review addressed psychological resilience during the COVID-19 pandemic, aiming to analyze how individuals and communities coped and adapted to this unprecedented period of adversity. The methodology involved reviewing literature from academic databases, focusing on studies published from the beginning of the pandemic to the present. Results highlighted the significant impact of the pandemic on mental health, identifying anxiety, depression, and stress as common challenges. It was observed that psychological resilience, influenced by factors such as social support, coping strategies, and psychological interventions, played a crucial role in adapting to these challenges. Final considerations emphasized the importance of public policies and intervention strategies aimed at supporting psychological resilience, suggesting the need for integrated approaches that consider the various dimensions of mental health.

Unlocking the Benefits of Gender Diversity: How an Ecological-Belonging Intervention Enhances Performance in Science Classrooms

Gender diversity signals inclusivity, but meta-analyses suggest that it does not boost individual or group performance. This research examined whether a social-psychological intervention can unlock the benefits of gender diversity on college physics students’ social and academic outcomes. Analyses of 124 introductory physics classrooms at a large research institution in the eastern United States (N = 3,605) indicated that in classrooms doing “business as usual,” cross-gender collaboration was infrequent, there was a substantial gender gap in physics classroom belonging, and classroom gender diversity had no effect on performance. The ecological-belonging intervention aimed to establish classroom norms that adversity in the course is normal and surmountable. In classrooms receiving the intervention, cross-gender interaction increased 51%, the gender gap in belonging was reduced by 47%, and higher classroom diversity was associated with higher course grades and 1-year grade point average for both men and women. Addressing contextual belongingness norms may help to unlock the benefits of diversity.

Development and implementation of chemistry mindset modules in two general chemistry courses at a hispanic-serving institution: an exploratory study

Retention and underrepresentation of diverse ethnic groups have been and continue to be problematic in the science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) disciplines in the United States. One foundational course that is required for all STEM majors is general chemistry. One way to increase retention and diversity in STEM majors is by targeting students’ social-psychological beliefs about their academic success through the implementation of social-psychological interventions. These short impactful exercises aim to change students’ thoughts, feelings, and beliefs about their academic success and affective characteristics. In this exploratory study, we designed and implemented two chemistry specific growth-mindset modules (GMMs) in two first-year chemistry courses (general chemistry 1 (GC1) and general chemistry 2 (GC2)) at a Hispanic-Serving Institution (HSI). Students worked on the GMMs asynchronously at two specific time points throughout the semester. Using a mixed-methods approach, we assessed students’: (i) changes in mindset beliefs, chemistry self-efficacy (CSE), and chemistry performance, (ii) perceptions towards failures and challenges, and (iii) perceptions on growth-mindset modules (GMM) after participation in GMMs. Overall, GC2 students shifted towards a growth mindset and away from a fixed mindset, with small to medium effect sizes detected. No statistically significant changes in GC1 students’ mindsets were detected throughout the study period. For both courses, students increased in CSE by the end of semester. Furthermore, GC1 students who participated in any portion of the GMM intervention achieved higher scores on the ACS exam compared to those who didn’t participate. Additionally, students’ written responses highlighted an improved attitudinal change towards failures and challenges after participating in GMMs. For both courses, over 95% of the students agreed that the GMMs were valuable, over 95% students indicated they developed more positive attitudes and perspectives towards challenges, and over 96% students believed they could learn challenging topics with effort, determination, and persistence. While these results show differences in performance, CSE, mindset scores, and attitudinal change after participation in GMMs, it is also important to acknowledge that self-selection into the study may be one of the factors for explaining such differences. Results and implications for practice are discussed.

Rural tourism combined with psychological intervention on functional cognitive disorders

BackgroundFunctional cognitive impairment, also known as cognitive impairment, can lead to severe loss of daily or social communication abilities and diagnosis of dementia. The treatment methods for functional cognitive impairment include medication, psychological training, and so on.Subjects and MethodsThe study conducted an experiment on 88 patients with functional cognitive impairment, dividing them into a control group, a psychological group, and an experimental group. The control group only received prescription medication provided by the doctor, the psychological group received social psychological intervention treatment on the basis of the control group, and the experimental group received comprehensive treatment of rural tourism projects on the basis of the psychological group. The study used the MATRICS Consensus Cognitive Battery (MCCB) and Positive and Negative Symptom Scale (PANSS) to evaluate the condition of three groups of patients after treatment, in order to analyze the therapeutic effects of different treatment plans on the patient’s condition.ResultsAs the treatment duration increases, the patient’s MCCB score gradually increases and the PANSS score gradually decreases, indicating that all three treatment regimens can improve the patient’s cognitive impairment. The MCCB and PANSS scores of the experimental group were better than those of the control group and the psychological group.ConclusionsThe effect of simple drug therapy is unclear and the treatment course is long. Combining medication with social psychology intervention training can improve the treatment effect of patients. Rural tourism projects combined with social psychological intervention present the best treatment effect.AcknowledgementThe Year of 2021 Vocational Education Teaching Reform Research Project of Shandong Province (No.2021120).

The Social Factors of Emotion Regulation Strategies: Social Comparison and Psychological Intervention Research

This research paper delves into the complex interplay between social factors, specifically social comparison, and psychological interventions in the realm of emotion regulation. Emotion regulation is a critical component of psychological well-being, and understanding how individuals employ social comparison strategies within the context of psychological interventions are of paramount importance. The paper investigates the effects of various forms of social comparison on emotional responses and the outcomes of psychological interventions, with a particular focus on the Chinese cultural context. It also explores the integration of social comparison principles into psychological intervention approaches and discusses the challenges, gaps, and future directions in this evolving research field.

Using a Networked Improvement Community Approach to Design and Scale Up Social Psychological Interventions in Schools

In this article, we describe a researcher-practitioner partnership (RPP) that used a networked improvement community (NIC) approach to translate social-psychological interventions into educational practices to enhance student motivation and learning. Specifically, we highlight one of our first collaborative projects to develop and scale up an intervention to teach middle school students about adopting a growth mindset (Dweck, 2006) to address our practitioners’ concern that many of their students lacked the belief that they could learn. Using Plan-Do-Study-Act cycles, we show how we (a) successfully adapted a previously used growth mindset intervention designed for college students into a computer app appropriate for middle school students, (b) embedded using the app in different middle school contexts to promote growth mindset thinking, and (c) linked students’ growth mindset thinking to improved academic performance. We also discuss how this work was conducted as part of a networked improvement community sponsored by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching called the Student Agency Improvement Community.

Nursing Intervention Model to Overcome Psychosocial Problems of Breast Cancer Patients: A Literature Review

Chronic disease, such as breast cancer is a disease that requires comprehensive treatment and takes a long time. The prevalence of breast cancer patients continues to be high in number so that it will cause psychosocial problems such as social problems, anxiety, and even depression. This study aims to identify appropriate nursing interventions to address psychosocial problems in breast cancer patients. literature review was used in this study. Article searches were conducted in six journal databases, namely PubMed, JSTOR, Taylor, Willey Online, Sage, and Google Scholar. Seven articles were found that matched the inclusion of criteria. Results of this review show that social support interventions, palliative support, psychological interventions, home care, home visits, virtual reality and music therapy, relaxation techniques and motivational support, psychological therapy programs via offline and telephone, Adapted Physical Activity and Diet (APAD), Aromatherapy Plus Music Therapy can be performed on cancer patients to help reduce psychosocial problems so that the patient's quality of life will improve.

Effect of Social-Psychological Intervention on Self-Efficacy, Social Adaptability and Quality of Life of Internet-Addicted Teenagers.

Internet addiction leads to psychological and social damage to teenagers. Rehabilitation treatment of Internet-addicted adolescents has aroused widespread concern. This study aims to explore the effect of social-psychological intervention on self-efficacy, social adaptability, and quality of life of Internet-addicted teenagers. A total of 100 Internet-addicted teenagers in Guilin mental health center in China were selected and were randomly divided into control (n=50) and observation (n=50) groups. The teenagers in the control group received general withdrawal intervention, whereas those in the observation group received social-psychological intervention based on general withdrawal intervention. The intervention duration was 3 months. After intervention, the time management, interpersonal and health, Internet addiction tolerance, Internet withdrawal response, compulsive surfing of the Internet, and total score of Chinese Internet Addiction Scale of Internet-addicted teenagers in the two groups decreased significantly. Conversely, the total scores of boring and relaxation, stimulation and exposure, communication and information acquisition, negative emotion, and self-efficacy increased significantly, and the scores improved more significantly after the intervention in the observation group (P<0.05). Moreover, the scores of social adaptability, quality of life, and Internet avoidance of Internet-addicted teenagers in the two groups increased significantly after the intervention, whereas the scores of behavior monitoring and hazard perception decreased significantly, and the scores mentioned above improved more significantly in the observation group after the intervention (P<0.05). Social psychological intervention can effectively improve the self-efficacy of Internet-addicted teenagers, correct their bad surfing habits, and improve their social adaptability and quality of life, which is an intervention method worthy of promotion in the rehabilitation of Internet addiction.

Real-world effectiveness of a social-psychological intervention translated from controlled trials to classrooms

Social-psychological interventions have raised the learning and performance of students in rigorous efficacy trials. Yet, after they are distributed “in the wild” for students to self-administer, there has been little research following up on their translational effectiveness. We used cutting-edge educational technology to tailor, scale up, and track a previously-validated Strategic Resource Use intervention among 12,065 college students in 14 STEM and Economics classes. Students who self-administered this “Exam Playbook” benefitted by an average of 2.17 percentage points (i.e., a standardized effect size of 0.18), compared to non-users. This effect size was 1.65 percentage points when controlling for college entrance exam scores and 1.75 [−1.88] for adding [dropping] the Exam Playbook in stratified matching analyses. Average benefits differed in magnitude by the conduciveness of the class climate (including peer norms and incentives), gender, first-generation status, as well as how often and how early they used the intervention. These findings on how, when, and who naturally adopts these resources address a need to improve prediction, translation, and scalability of social-psychological intervention benefits.

The Effect of Some Symptoms and Features During the Infection Period on the Level of Anxiety and Depression of Adults after Recovery from COVID-19

Background:Considering the previous evidence regarding SARS/MERS outbreaks, ıt is expected that emergent psychiatric conditions such as mood disorders, anxiety, and depression disorders may occur in survivors of COVID-19.Objectives:In this study, the effects of clinical/neurological symptoms and sociodemographic characteristics of COVID-19 patients during the infection period on the level of anxiety/depression after recovery were investigated.Methods:Firstly, the socio-demographic characteristics of the participants and their clinical/ neurological symptoms during the infection period were determined. In addition, the Beck anxiety/depression scale was administered to the participants upon discharge. Then, the odds ratio of the variables was calculated by applying the Poisson regression method to determine the predictors affecting the level of anxiety/depression.Results:In this study, the clinical/neurological symptoms and the sociodemographic characteristics affecting the level of anxiety/depression were found to be associated with adults (mean age 45-years). The number of days of hospitalization was the only clinical feature that increased both anxiety and depression levels. In addition, post-discharge sleep disorder, headache, and alcohol use were found to be predictors of increased anxiety levels. In addition, smoking, the presence of a person with COVID-19 infection in the immediate vicinity, traveling in the last month before the illness, fever, and loss of smell during the infection period was found to increase the level of depression. Moreover, asthma was the only significant comorbidity that increased the anxiety level, while diabetes was the only comorbidity that increased the depression level.Conclusion:It is expected that this study will support social-psychological intervention and have some effects on reducing depressive/anxiety symptoms, which can vary widely in adults during stressful events.

Mindful Attention as a Skillful Means Toward Intergroup Prosociality

Mindful attention deployment has been found to have practical benefits for a range of interpersonal outcomes including prosocial action and emotion. Recently, theory has posited that contemplative training that incorporates mindful attention may enhance intergroup compassion. Here, we conduct a selective narrative review, drawing on the Buddhist concept skillful means to ask if mindful attention deployment presents an optimal starting point for intergroup compassion and action. An interdisciplinary theoretical framework is presented, which suggests that mindful attention dismantles common intrapsychic challenges to intergroup prosociality. Empirical research is described concerning cause and effect relationships between mindfulness and several outgrowths of intergroup prosociality. Specifically, mindfulness promotes basic social cognitive processes that allow intergroup prosociality to flourish. While this research is promising, to date, the science on this topic has been limited to individual-level outgrowths of mindfulness practice. Discussion focuses on the future of mindfulness research in intergroup prosociality and calls for an integrative approach situating mindful attention deployment within social (and other) psychological interventions to enhance intergroup compassion.

APLIKASI MODEL RESILIENSI TERHADAP USAHAWAN OKU KE ARAH PEMBENTUKAN PERNIAGAAN LESTARI

Person with Disabilities (PWD) is an individual that suffers a long-term physical, mental, intellectual, or sensory impairments, preventing one from full and effective participation in society when faced with challenges. The challenges and pressures as a disabled person are very high especially for the individual that was born normal. The relation of PWD with hardship and poverty is very close because of the inability to manage oneself, run a business or find a job to generate an income. The tenacity and strength to rise again by an individual who has faced the misfortune or difficulty shows the characteristics of a person who has a high resilience. The Resilience Model is applied in this study as a guideline to enhance the resilience among PWD’s entrepreneurs. The findings of this study focus on the external protective factors (social support, psychological intervention, public facility and source of inspiration) and the internal protective factors (religion, learning motivation, awareness of social support and self-identity) that influence the level of resilience among PWD’s entrepreneurs. Hence, it is believed that this study could help the PWD’s entrepreneurs to sustain their business while for the authorities like Department of Social Welfare (JKM) and Zakat Centre need to strengthen their role in order to realize the PWD-friendly ecosystem. A future empirical study would be able to strengthen the Resilience Model as suggested in this study.

Development of positive intergroup emotions amongst youth in contexts affected or threatened by conflict.

Social‐psychological research has established the importance of positive emotions for creating and maintaining positive intergroup relations in contexts affected or threatened by conflict (intergroup reconciliation). Building on existing body of evidence, we conceptualised intergroup reconciliation as a process aimed at regulating negative intergroup emotions such as hatred and creating more positive and relationship functional emotions such as trust. This review presents theoretical and empirical insights into the emotion regulation perspective on intergroup reconciliation. Regulation of negative intergroup emotions amongst youths affected by conflict is feasible through social‐psychological interventions.

The social psychology of work engagement: state of the field

PurposeResearch on work engagement is flourishing and shows important links between work engagement and career success. However, a systematic account of the social-psychological origins of engagement is largely lacking. In the paper, the author develops a theoretical model and discusses how employees actively influence and are influenced by employees' leader's, colleagues' and partner's work engagement.Design/methodology/approachThe author integrates literatures on emotional contagion, team work engagement, leadership, proactive work behavior and work-to-family spillover. This results in a model of the social-psychological processes involved in work engagement.FindingsWork engagement is the result of various social-psychological processes. First, work engagement is contagious – colleagues, leaders and the intimate partner can be important causes of engagement. Second, work engagement emerges at the team-level when team members collectively experience high levels of vigor, dedication and absorption. Team members of engaged teams synchronize their activities well and perform better. Third, leaders may influence employee work engagement through fast (unconscious) and slow (conscious) influence processes. Fourth, employees may use social forms of proactive behavior to stay engaged in their work, including job crafting and playful work design. Finally, work engagement may spill over and enrich the family domain. The social-psychological model of work engagement shows how leaders, followers and family members provide, craft and receive (i.e. exchange) resources and facilitate each other's work and family engagement.Practical implicationsOrganizations may increase work engagement by using social-psychological interventions, including training sessions that foster fast and slow leadership, team-boosting behaviors and (team-level) job crafting and playful work design.Originality/valueWhereas most previous studies have focused on job demands and resources as possible causes of work engagement, the present article outlines the state of the field regarding the social-psychological processes involved in engagement.

Effects of e-Health Training and Social Support Interventions for Informal Caregivers of People with Dementia—A Narrative Review

Along with the burden commonly experienced by informal caregivers (ICs) of people with dementia (PwD), associated with the progressive decline that accompanies dementia, the lockdown due to the public health crisis has had a great negative impact on the emotional wellbeing, physical health, and social relationships of ICs. Support interventions through telemedicine represent an opportunity for ICs to learn the skills required for the care and maintenance of social networks. In this work, a narrative review of the effects of e-health training and social support interventions was carried out. A literature search was conducted using the ProQuest, Ovid, and Scopus databases. Information regarding social support (SS), psychological interventions, and training for the management of medications and behavioral changes was extracted. One hundred and nine studies were included in this review. Forums and training platforms were the main tools for ICs. The most effective platforms to improve SS include the participation of both ICs and health professionals. However, no significant improvements in objective caring skills were identified. Platforms developed specifically for ICs should be based in tools that ICs are familiar with, because many ICs have not yet incorporated Information and Communication Technologies in many activities of their daily lives. Education in the digitalization to ICs of PwD should be one of the priority objectives in telehealth interventions.

Moral-Exemplar Intervention: A New Paradigm for Conflict Resolution and Intergroup Reconciliation

Conflict resolution and intergroup reconciliation are difficult to achieve because of many social and psychological obstacles, such as people’s belief that members of a social group that is an adversary of their own group are mostly bad and essentially all the same. In this article, we introduce a novel intervention aimed at challenging these beliefs by exposing people to stories about individuals who have risked some important aspects of their lives to save the lives of other social groups’ members (moral exemplars). The effects of this moral-exemplar intervention have been tested with field experiments in several postconflict contexts using members of real antagonistic groups. We discuss the results of these studies and three specific and important aspects of the moral-exemplar intervention: (a) its comparative advantage over existing social-psychological interventions aimed at conflict resolution and intergroup reconciliation, (b) its content and conditions, and (c) implications for future theorizing and research targeting prosocial changes in attitudes and intergroup behavior.

Post-traumatic Growth Level and Its Influencing Factors Among Frontline Nurses During the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Objective: To assess post-traumatic growth (PTG) level and explore its influence factors among frontline nurses during the COVID-19 pandemic.Methods: From April 11th to 12th, 2020, a cross sectional study was conducted on 116 frontline nurses who had participated in fight against the COVID-19 in Wuhan city, China. General information and psychological discomfort were collected. Chinese version post-traumatic growth inventory with 20 items was applied to assess PTG level. Univariable analyses and multiple linear regression were performed to explore potential influencing factors of PTGI score.Results: The average score of PTGI in frontline nurses was 65.65 ± 11.50. In univariable analyses, gender, age, education level, marital status, living with parents, professional title, working years and professional psychological support was not statistically associated with the PTGI score. In both univariable and multivariable analyses, having support from family members and friends, being psychological comfort and having children and increased the PTGI score significantly. The three factors only explained 3.8% variance.Conclusion: Moderate PGT was observed in the frontline nurses who had battled against COVID-19. Social support and professional psychological intervention should be applied to further improve PTG level. Further studies with large sample size are required to explore more potential influencing factors.

A local community course that raises wellbeing and pro-sociality: Evidence from a randomised controlled trial

Despite a wealth of research on its correlates, relatively little is known about how to effectively raise wellbeing in local communities by means of intervention. Can we teach people to live happier lives, cost-effectively and at scale? We conducted a randomised controlled trial of a scalable social-psychological intervention rooted in self-determination theory and aimed at raising the wellbeing and pro-sociality of the general adult population. The manualised course (“Exploring What Matters”) is run by non-expert volunteers (laypeople) in their local communities and to date has been conducted in more than 26 countries around the world. We found that it has strong, positive causal effects on participants' subjective wellbeing and pro-sociality (compassion and social trust) while lowering measures of mental ill health. The impacts of the course are sustained for at least two months post-treatment. We compare treatment to other wellbeing interventions and discuss limitations and implications for intervention design, as well as implications for the use of wellbeing as an outcome for public policy more generally.

Using Metacognitive Strategies to Improve Academic Performance in Biochemistry

Growing evidence suggests that students’ self-beliefs about the ability to alter their academic abilities can directly influence long-term achievement. These self-beliefs or mindsets can either be fixed (unchangeable) or growth oriented. Students with growth mindsets believe their academic abilities can change, which leads to higher grades and academic persistence in contrast to students with fixed mindsets. However, less is known about how these attributes affect student learning, particularly in college level biochemistry courses. In this study, we utilized social-psychological interventions to promote growth mindset among third and fourth year undergraduate students enrolled in a one semester Biochemistry survey course. Using a mixed-methods study design we evaluated student mindset, attitudes towards learning, and academic performance over four semesters. Our results suggest that although students’ mindsets did not change as a result of metacognitive interventions, their positive perceptions about learning vs performance did increase. Furthermore, students receiving growth mindset interventions significantly outperformed students who did not receive interventions on the final cumulative exam that assessed critical thinking skills. These results suggest that metacognitive interventions can be an effective tool to improve student academic performance in a biochemistry course.