Resilience Support Research Articles

Risk and protective factors associated with grandparent kinship caregivers' psychological distress in COVID-19: Kinship license status as a moderator.

COVID‐19 and its related policy measures have increased the psychological distress of individuals, including grandparent kinship caregivers. Guided by the Resilience Model of Family Stress, Adjustment, and Adaptation, this study examines relationships between material hardship, parenting stress, social support, resilience and psychological distress of grandparent kinship caregivers during the COVID‐19 pandemic, as well as the moderating role of kinship license status on these relationships. Kinship care licensing is a prerequisite to receiving financial assistance and other supporting services from the government. We administered a cross‐sectional survey of grandparent kinship caregivers (N = 362) in the United States. Logistic regression results indicated that material hardship was associated with higher odds of experiencing psychological distress, whereas resilience and social support were associated with lower odds. Kinship license status moderated the relationships of social support and resilience with psychological distress. Results suggest that additional emergency funds and more tailored financial services should be provided to meet material needs, and interventions with a focus on resilience and social support are particularly needed. The moderating effects of license status indicate that some interventions should be specifically implemented among licensed kinship caregivers, whereas parallel services should be provided to kinship caregivers regardless of their license status.

Community-led food resilience:A decolonizing autographic learning from an Inuit community

Food insecurity among Indigenous peoples of northern Canada is a significant public health challenge. To address this challenge, this paper is responding to community-led food sovereignty in Inuit communities in Canada. Drawing from a decolonial auto-ethnography research framework, I shared my learning experience regarding why the current food system became challenging to the community people; how the community explained the meanings of food security from the Indigenous food sovereignty; and community perspectives on how to develop community-led food security. This article aims to learn, practice, and support community perspectives that positively influence community vision and allow them to create new ways of food sovereignty. Through my decolonial auto-ethnography, I have learned that Inuit knowledge-ways have much to offer in support of resilience of food insecurity in Inuit communities, an intercultural reconceptualization of research methodologies, and educational programs, which support Indigenous communities. Significantly, this study highlights the importance of engaging the local community in the development of coordinated approaches to address Inuit food insecurity.

Association between internet addiction and suicidal ideation, suicide plans, and suicide attempts among Chinese adolescents with and without parental migration

Many left-behind children (LBC) are emerging in rural China and growing evidence indicated that parental migration was associated with various psychological problems. However, little is known about Internet addiction and suicidal behaviors among LBC. The study aims to explore the effect of Internet addiction and parental migration on three stages of suicidal behaviors, including suicidal ideation (SI), suicide plans (SP), and suicide attempts (SA). A total of 15,232 students graded 7 to 12 were recruited across five representative provinces in China. Results showed that LBC had a higher prevalence of SI and SA than non-LBC. However, after controlling for confounders, parental migration was insignificantly associated with suicidal behaviors. Internet addiction was significantly associated with increased odds of SI, SP, and SA. In addition, some variables showed different effects on suicidal behavior between LBC and non-LBC. Among LBC, psychological resilience, emotion management, and social support were negatively while loneliness was positively associated with SI, SP, and SA. Our findings suggest that adolescents with Internet addiction are more likely to report suicidal behaviors in rural China. For LBC, suicide preventive strategies could focus on reducing problematic Internet use and loneliness as well as improving psychological resilience, emotion management, and social support.

Psychological Responses of the Patients in Cabin Hospital to the COVID-19 Outbreak: A Comparative Epidemiologic Analysis.

The building of cabin hospitals in Wuhan has been proven to be clinically successful in curing mild-symptom COVID-19 patients shortly after the outbreak of COVID-19 in late 2019. At the same time, the psychological effect of patients being treated in cabin hospitals and the features of the psychological status of the whole society remained ambiguous. This study adopted a self-administrated questionnaire to investigate the stress, depression, and anxiety status of patients in cabin hospitals (n = 212) and healthy participants outside of Hubei province (n = 221) in a population level from February 29 to March 01, 2020. The research measured participants’ stress response, depression level, and anxiety level as well as their social support system and their resilience level. Results indicated that in this sudden outbreak of an unknown pandemic, all people (whether or not infected) showed a generally high level of stress, depression, and anxiety, regardless of age, gender, education level, and employment. It also showed that people with a lower level of psychological resilience and social support reported more severe symptoms of depression, anxiety, and stress. Moreover, the research also found a positive effect of cabin hospitals on the psychological recovery of COVID-19 patients. Stress response of patients increased after entering into cabin hospitals, while after 3–4 weeks’ treatment, patients showed a decrease in their depression and anxiety levels. This research advances the understanding of COVID-19 and gives suggestions to optimize the design and the allocation of resources in cabin hospitals and better deal with the unknown pandemics in the future.

Factors Associated With Burnout, Post-traumatic Stress and Anxio-Depressive Symptoms in Healthcare Workers 3 Months Into the COVID-19 Pandemic: An Observational Study.

Objective: This study examined how best to identify modifiable protective and risk factors for burnout in healthcare workers in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic. Individual, occupational, organizational and social factors were investigated. The study also assessed the impact of these factors on post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), anxiety, and depression.Methods: Healthcare workers in the Quebec (Canada) healthcare system were recruited between May 21 to June 5, 2020. Participants answered an electronic survey 3 months after the COVID-19 epidemic outbreak began in Canada. Using the Maslach Burnout Inventory, PTSD Checklist for DSM-5, and Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, we studied the prevalence of burnout, PTSD, anxiety and depression in this cohort. Multivariable logistic or linear regression models including resilience, social and organizational support, workload and access to mental health help, simulation techniques and protective personal equipment (PPE) as well as perception of PPE security were conducted for each outcome.Results: In mid-June 2020, 467 participants completed the survey. We found that half (51.8%) of the respondents experienced burnout characterized by emotional exhaustion and/or depersonalization at least once a week. In total, 158 healthcare workers (35.6%) displayed severe symptoms of at least one of the mental health disorders (24.3% PTSD, 23.3% anxiety, 10.6% depression). Resilience (OR = 0.69, 95% CI: [0.55–0.87]; p = 0.002) and perceived organizational support (OR = 0.75, 95% CI: [0.61–0.93]; p = 0.009) were significantly associated with burnout and other outcomes. Social support satisfaction, perception of PPE security, work type and environment, mental health antecedents and reassignment were associated with PTSD and/or anxiety and/or depression, but not burnout.Conclusion: Future studies should address primarily resilience and perceived organizational support to promote mental health and prevent burnout, PTSD, anxiety and depression.

Loneliness and Well-Being during the COVID-19 Pandemic: The Moderating Roles of Personal, Social and Organizational Resources on Perceived Stress and Exhaustion among Finnish University Employees.

The aim of this study is to investigate whether personal, social and organizational level resources can buffer against the negative effects of perceived loneliness on stress and exhaustion. The data was collected from Finnish university employees (n = 1463) in autumn 2020 via an electronic survey. Of the respondents, about 78% were working remotely, and 64% were female. Hierarchical multiple regression analyses were used to analyze the main and moderating (i.e., buffering) effects. The results indicated that perceived loneliness was directly and positively associated with stress and exhaustion. Further, as hypothesized, personal resilience moderated the relationship between loneliness and stress and exhaustion, and organizational support moderated the relationship between loneliness and stress. Unexpectedly, organizational support did not moderate the loneliness–exhaustion relationship. Moreover, a sense of social belonging was not associated with stress and exhaustion, nor did it moderate loneliness and well-being relationships. The results demonstrate the importance of personal resilience and organizational support in enhancing well-being in organizations during the COVID-19 pandemic. Future research directions and practical ways to promote resilience and to increase organizational support are discussed.

Resilience in the context of conflict-related sexual violence: children as protective resources and wider implications

ABSTRACT The phenomenon of children seemingly ‘doing well’ despite adversity spawned the early study of resilience, which has now expanded into a vast field of research. This article, however, is not about the resilience of children or the protective resources that they need to thrive. Locating the concept of resilience in the interactions between individuals and their social ecologies, it explores how children – as an important part of these ecologies – can be a significant protective resource for victims-/survivors of conflict-related sexual violence, and, hence, a support for resilience. It develops this argument using qualitative data from interviews with victims-/survivors of conflict-related sexual violence in Bosnia-Herzegovina (BiH), Colombia and Uganda. It further seeks to demonstrate that this linkage between children, social ecologies and resilience has broader implications for transitional justice. Specifically, the article underlines the need for transitional justice processes to give more attention to, and to invest in, the social ecologies – and the protective resources within them – that inextricably shape the lives of individuals affected by violence and human rights violations, including victims-/survivors of conflict-related sexual violence.

Predictive Validity of Resilience in the Treatment of Individuals With Anxiety and Depressive Disorders.

The current study sought to evaluate the predictive validity of resilience among individuals with anxiety and/or depressive disorders. Receiver operating characteristics were calculated for each of the 25-item and 10-item versions of the Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale, evaluated against psychological distress and treatment response, at screening and post-treatment. New referrals to an anxiety and related disorders clinic were recruited for this purpose (N = 672 at screening, N = 349 post-treatment). Robust cross-sectional associations between resilience and psychological distress and treatment response were noted and were strongest at post-treatment. However, the related sensitivity (63% to 66% at screening, 69% to 76% post-treatment), specificity (78% to 83% at screening, approximately 73% post-treatment), and areas under the curve (AUC; approximately 73% at screening, 78% to 82% post-treatment) were modest. Furthermore, there was minimal support for resilience as a predictor of recovery using the longitudinal data (sensitivity and specificity could not be determined, with AUC of approximately 68% for psychological distress and 56% for treatment response). Although a relatively large homogeneous sample was available for this study, analyses of specific diagnostic subgroups may offer valuable further insight. [Journal of Psychosocial Nursing and Mental Health Services, 59(7), 35-41.].

Elite athletes’ mental well-being and life satisfaction: a study of elite athletes’ resilience and social support from an Asian unrecognised National Olympic Committee

IntroductionThis study aimed to investigate elite athletes’ mental well-being, and to ascertain whether the personal factor resilience and the social factor social support can play a role in promoting mental well-being and life satisfaction. In addition, this is one of the first studies to investigate well-being among elite athletes who are from a region belonging to an unrecognised National Olympic Committee and are not eligible to join the Olympic Games.Material and methodsEighty-four full-time elite athletes (37 males, 47 females) with mean age of 22.36 years old participated in this quantitative research study. Formal letters describing the purpose and organiser of the study were sent to the sport entities in Macao asking their permission for the researchers to contact the elite athletes to participate in this study. After gaining the permission, the elite athletes belonging to these entities were approached individually, to inform them of the purpose of the study and receive their consent.ResultsRegression revealed that emotional support and adaptability of resilience were strong positive predictors of mental well-being. Additionally, mental well-being was found to be a strong positive predictor of life satisfaction. The results reflected that in elite athletes possessing high adaptability and receiving more emotional support could help to maintain their mental well-being.ConclusionsImplications (based on the findings) are discussed in order to provide insights for policy makers or coaches how to promote elite athletes’ mental well-being.

Psychosocial Impact and Role of Resilience on Healthcare Workers during COVID-19 Pandemic

Italy was the first European country to be affected by the 2019 coronavirus epidemic (COVID-19). Several studies have shown the risk of developing depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress disorder in medical and paramedical staff. Causes included the high contagiousness of the virus, the fear of contracting it, the lack of adequate personal protective equipment, and physical and psychological fatigue. In this context, resilience represents a protective factor against adversity and stress burden. The aim of this research was to investigate if and how the resilience and personality profile is able to influence the response to stress and anxiety on a sample of Italian healthcare workers, during the COVID-19 outbreak. The sample consisted of 152 frontline healthcare workers, physicians, and paramedical professionals. Participants completed the online questionnaire measuring the Resilience Scale for Adults, the Big Five Inventory-10 Item, the State Anxiety Inventory, and the Perceived Stress Scale. Analyses of data aimed to show differences in the stress of healthcare workers due to gender and professional role, and at finding, by means of multidimensional scaling, the relations among anxiety, stress, resilience, and traits of personality. The findings gave some suggestions for implementing strategies useful to increase the resilience in healthcare workers and support them to cope with stressful events, typical of the pandemic emergency.

Supporting resilience among young people at risk of child abuse in Ethiopia: The role of social system alignment

PurposeMany Ethiopian adolescents experience different forms of violence and abuse at home, at school, and in their communities. There are very limited referral, case management, and justice services, especially outside of urban areas, so young people draw largely on protective and promotive interpersonal resources. This article explores the extent to which available support systems promote processes of resilience among young people at risk of age- and gender-based violence and abuse. MethodsThe article draws on data from Gender and Adolescence: Global Evidence (GAGE), a longitudinal research study. Qualitative data were collected in 2017–2018 and 2019–2020 through individual interviews and focus group discussions with 595 adolescents and their families, and 77 service provider, community and governmental key informants. ResultsIn the absence of effective and at-scale formal protection services, young people who experience age- and gender-based violence draw on support from family members and diverse peer networks. These range from informal friendship groups to organized groups, school-based girls' clubs, and recently formed youth movements linked to the current political transformation in the country. However, given the complex economic, political and social drivers of age- and gender-based violence and abuse, we find that social systems drawn upon by adolescents are often misaligned with formal services and have limited capacity to enable their resilience. ConclusionsThe findings underline the need to invest in multi-systemic effective, low-cost and accessible social protection, justice, and referral services to address the multiple factors that drive intersecting forms of violence and support young people in preventing and overcoming the effects of abuse.

Neuroticism, resilience, and social support: correlates of severe anxiety among hospital workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in Nigeria and Botswana

BackgroundThe role of healthcare workers (HCWs) during the COVID-19 pandemic may make them more susceptible to anxiety than the general population. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of anxiety and evaluate the potential effects of resilience, neuroticism, social support, and other sociodemographic factors on anxiety among HCWs from two African countries.MethodsA cross-sectional survey of 373 HCWs was conducted in Botswana and Nigeria, using an anxiety rating scale, neuroticism subscale of Big Five Inventory, Oslo social support scale, and Resilience Scale. Data collection was done between May 1 and September 30, 2020.ResultsThe participants’ mean age (SD) was 38.42 (8.10) years, and 65.1% were females. Forty-nine (13.1%) of the HCWs reported clinical anxiety. In the final model of hierarchical multiple regression, neuroticism (B = 0.51, t = 10.59, p = p < 0.01), resilience (B = 0.34, t = − 7.11, p < 0.01), and social support (B = 0.079, t = − 2.11, p = 0.035) were associated with severe anxiety, after controlling for the significant sociodemographic factors.ConclusionsSevere anxiety exists among HCWs in Africa, although the rate was lower than reported elsewhere. Neuroticism, resilience, and social support may be vital targets for psychological intervention in a pandemic as COVID-19; thus, their roles should be further explored.

Gender Differences in Self-Efficacy, Resilience, and Social Support among Infertile Iranian Couples: A Dyadic Approach.

The article's abstract is not available.

Influence of Resilience and Social Support on Body Image of Patients in an Acute Stage Following Traffic Accidents

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to identify the relationships between resilience, social support, and body image in patients in an acute stage following traffic accidents and to investigate factors affecting body image.Methods: Data were collected from 86 patients at local hospitals from January 2019 to February 2020. To measure the variables, the body image scale, Conner-Davidson Resilience Scale, and Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support were used. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, independent t-tests, analysis of variance, Pearson correlation coefficient, and multiple regression.Results: Mean age of participants was 43.40±14.75 and the proportion of men was 73.3%. The average score for resilience, social support, and body image were 65.16±16.89, 72.93±8.11, and 12.24±6.63, respectively. The highest item on the body image scale was “Are you dissatisfied with the appearance of your scar?”. There were differences in scores for body image according to gender, age, and living status. Resilience (r=-.68, p&lt;.001) and social support (r=-.65, p&lt;.001) were negatively correlated with body image. In the regression model, resilience (β=-.41), social support (β=-.30), and gender (β=.22) accounted for 57.6% of the variance in body image.Conclusion: Resilience and social support were identified in this study as significant factors protecting body image of patients during the acute stage following a traffic accident. It is recommended that psychosocial nursing interventions be conducted throughout the course of treatment.

Acceptance and Strategic Resilience: An Application of Conservation of Resources Theory

The definition of individual resilience remains ambiguous. This article responds to that ambiguity by first deriving a definition of individual resilience from conservation of resources (COR) theory. Accordingly, to the extent individuals have sufficient resources and behave according to two key principles of COR theory, they will exhibit resilience in response to significant adversity. A second development builds upon the COR distinction between resources deployed in response to adversity which are resource-preserving as distinct from resource-enhancing, which generate what are here labeled acceptance resilience and strategic resilience, respectively. It is proposed that behaviors associated with acceptance resilience support relative continuity of environments, relationships, and life goals, with strategic resilience behaviors often involving changing environments, relationships, or life goals. Acceptance resilience is related to earlier COR understandings of resilience and relevant resources, while strategic resilience requires distinct or additional resources. Individuals demonstrating the two types of resilience will diverge in terms of openness to new experiences, persistence, loss aversion, and the valuation of future resources. It is further proposed that acceptance resilience is more common than strategic resilience and that organizations which find resilience valuable will tend to support acceptance resilience, in part because strategic resilience may generate turnover in response to adversity. The analysis addresses related issues, including coping, career change, burnout, as well as teams and organizations. Implications for theory, practice, and future research conclude the work.

The Mediating Role of Perceived Social Support Between Resilience and Anxiety 1 Year After the COVID-19 Pandemic: Disparity Between High-Risk and Low-Risk Nurses in China.

Introduction: One year after the Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak, China has made substantial progress in the prevention and control of the pandemic, while the epidemic situation remains grim in China since virus may easily survive with the falling temperature in winter. The present study aimed to compare the prevalence and associated factors of anxiety between high-risk and low-risk nurses 1 year after the COVID-19 outbreak, and examine the association between resilience and anxiety and its underlying mechanisms.Method: Connor-Davidson Resilience scale, Perceived Social Support Scale and Generalized Anxiety Disorder Scale were administrated to 701 nurses from Jiangsu Province, China, 1 year after the COVID-19 outbreak. The mediating effect was examined by Mackinnon's four-step procedure, while the moderated mediation model was tested by Hayes PROCESS macro.Results: The findings presented the prevalence of anxiety among nurses was 21.4% 1 year after the COVID-19 pandemic. High-risk nurses presented a higher prevalence of anxiety (24.5 vs. 19.3%) than low-risk nurses. Age and professional title were significantly associated with anxiety only in high-risk nurses (all P < 0.05). Perceived social support mediated the association between resilience and anxiety and the indirect effect was stronger for high-risk nurses than low-risk nurses.Conclusion: Anxiety remains prevalent among nurses 1 year after the COVID-19 outbreak, and resilience plays a protective role against anxiety. Programs that enhance resilience and social support should be designed and special attention should be paid to nurses from high-risk units.

Sense of self, depression and adaption to grief, in emerging adults who suffered parental loss

The death of a parent is a traumatic event usually accompanied by profound grief and psychological challenges. This study explored some of the factors which may predict sense of self, depression and adaption to grief in 328 parentally bereaved emerging adults. Our findings revealed a presence of pathological grief among young adults. The results also highlighted a strong negative relationship between sense of self and depression. Furthermore, depression was accounted for by sense of self, adaption to grief and time since loss of the parent/s. Interventions for parentally bereaved emerging adults should aim at strengthening their sense of self, for example through boosting resilience, social and professional support, meaningful relationships and ameliorative lifestyle changes.

Impacts of tourism on support for conservation, local livelihoods, and community resilience around Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya

The tourism enterprise-based approach to conservation can diversify livelihood opportunities in and around protected areas while incentivizing conservation support and building community resilience. However, the use of tourism as a tool for integrated conservation and development (ICD) has produced mixed results, underscoring the need for adaptive management that accounts for local context. We used a mixed-methods approach to examine how individual and community-level involvement in tourism influenced support for conservation, reliance on the natural environment, and perceptions of governance and community resilience in communities around Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya. During January 2017, we surveyed households in three communities (n = 197) with varying levels of tourism involvement and conducted focus groups with village elders (n = 28). Individuals and communities who engaged in tourism-related livelihoods expressed stronger support for conservation and reduced reliance on the natural environment. Links between tourism and environmental, social, and economic resilience varied. Results suggest the presence of a tourism sweet spot where moderate levels of tourism facilitate alignment of conservation and community development goals. Communities that achieve equitable access to and engagement in tourism and associated benefits may be more resilient and better positioned to capitalize on linkages between tourism-based livelihoods and biodiversity conservation. Supplemental data for this article is available online at https://doi.org/10.1080/09669582.2021.1932927 .

Parental stress of Korean immigrants in the U.S.: Meeting Child and Youth’s educational needs amid the COVID-19 pandemic

This study investigates Korean immigrants’ parental stress amid the COVID-19 pandemic, especially when they experience difficulties trying to meet their children’s educational needs. Korean immigrant parents residing in the U.S. were invited to complete an online survey through purposive sampling. The final sample included a total of 341 Korean immigrant parents from 42 U.S. states. Three models of Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) regressions were conducted to examine the associations between parent-reported difficulties meeting the children’s educational needs, parental stress, and the immigrant parents’ resilience and social support. Findings indicate that parents’ difficulties meeting their children’s educational needs in general as well as language barriers were associated with increased parental stress. Moreover, parents’ resilience and social support also significantly decreased parental stress levels. Implications for practice, policy, and future research are presented.

Mindfulness and Resilience in Britain: A Genealogy of the "Present Moment"

In Britain, mindfulness practice has increasingly been incorporated into preventative healthcare as a support for psychological resilience. An awareness practice originating in Buddhism, mindfulness is framed as a scientifically verified way of cultivating a skilful engagement with life to support mental health. What has led to this unprecedented interest in mindfulness? And how have British people come to think of cultivating a kindly relationship with their own minds as a constituent aspect of the “good life”? In this paper, I explore the specifically British history that informs the association between mindfulness and psychological resilience today. I show that the association between psychological resilience and mindfulness practice is the result of broader historical concerns about the nature of modern society and psychology. Taking a genealogical approach, I argue that changing patterns in British psychology and Buddhism, while framed in universalist registers, are constituted in and constitutive of a broader historical and political context.