Threat Appraisal Research Articles

Worse sleep, worsening post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD): Poor sleep quality associated with increases in PTSD symptoms amongst those experiencing high threat of the COVID-19 pandemic.

SummaryThe coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID‐19) pandemic is a global health crisis with the potential to elicit and worsen psychiatric symptoms, particularly post‐traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms. Identifying modifiable protective factors is critical for preventing and treating PTSD symptoms both during and following the COVID‐19 pandemic. The present study examined associations of self‐reported sleep quality and anticipatory threat appraisals of the pandemic with PTSD symptoms 6 months later in a sample enriched for pre‐pandemic trauma exposure and PTSD. The sample included 590 adults (mean age 38.2 years) who completed a baseline survey in August/September 2020 and follow‐up survey in March/April 2021. The sample was recruited from a pool of participants interested in a prior study about traumatic stress. Participants self‐reported sleep quality and pandemic‐related anticipatory threat appraisals at baseline. PTSD symptoms were assessed at baseline and follow‐up. Baseline sleep quality was associated with PTSD symptoms at follow‐up controlling for baseline PTSD symptoms (B = −2.49, p = 0.001). Perceived anticipatory threat of the pandemic moderated this association such that worse sleep quality was related to more severe PTSD symptoms at follow‐up for participants with higher (B = −4.07, p < 0.001) but not lower (B = −0.43, p = 0.679) anticipatory threat about the COVID‐19 pandemic. These findings suggest that poor sleep quality may enhance vulnerability to later PTSD symptoms during the pandemic, particularly among those individuals who perceived the pandemic as threatening for their future. Treatments that address sleep problems may be beneficial for reducing trauma‐related symptoms during and following the global health crisis.

The role of threat appraisal and coping style in psychological response to the COVID-19 pandemic among university students.

BackgroundThe COVID-19 pandemic has led to psychological distress among community samples and university students. Some coping behaviors and cognitive appraisals allow individuals to experience positive psychological growth amid such a crisis (Folkman et al. 1986). In the event of continuing waves of COVID-19 infection and future viral outbreaks, understanding the relationships between coping behaviors, stress appraisals, and COVID-related distress and growth can empower public health officials and university leadership to mitigate negative consequences and encourage growth.Methods774 undergraduate students completed online self-report measures of coping (Brief COPE; emotion, problem, avoidant), stress appraisal (SAM; threat/centrality, challenge/self-efficacy, uncontrol, other-control), neuroticism (NEO—N), health anxiety (SHAI), and COVID-19 exposure/impact (C-PIQ; distress and growth). Hypotheses were examined via simple regressions and interactions.ResultsIncreased utilization of avoidant coping was associated with high levels of distress regardless of whether it was perceived as threatening or not. Emotion-focused and problem-focused coping strategies were associated with more growth, whereas avoidant coping was associated with less growth. Higher emotion-focused coping and challenge appraisal together predicted the most growth.LimitationsCross-sectional design precludes the tracking of distress and growth over time; this study relied on self-report data.ConclusionsThese results underscore the impact of stress appraisals on the mental health of students navigating the COVID-19 pandemic. Findings may inform public health messaging–or have clinical implications, as successful interventions exist for improving coping strategies and stress appraisals.

One and done? Exploring linkages between households' intended adaptations to climate-induced floods.

As climate change increases the probability and severity of natural hazards, the need for coordinated adaptation at all levels of society intensifies. Governmental-level adaptation measures are essential, but insufficient in the face of growing risks, necessitating complementary action from households. Apprehending the drivers of household adaptation is critical if governments are to stimulate protective behavior effectively. While past work has focused on the behavioral drivers of household adaptation, little attention has been paid to understanding the relationships between adaptation measures themselves-both previously undergone and additionally (planned) intended adaptation(s). Using survey data (N = 4,688) from four countries-the United States, China, Indonesia, and the Netherlands-we utilize protection motivation theory to account for the behavioral drivers of household adaptation to the most devastating climate-driven hazard: flooding. We analyze how past and additionally intended adaptations involving structural modification to one's home affect household behavior. We find that both prior adaptations and additionally intended adaptation have a positive effect on intending a specific adaptation. Further, we note that once links between adaptations are accounted for, the effect that worry has on motivating specific actions, substantially lessens. This suggests that while threat appraisal is important in initially determining if households intend to adapt, it is households' adaptive capacity that determines how. Our analysis reveals that household structural modifications may be nonmarginal. This could indicate that past action and intention to pursue one action trigger intentions for other adaptations, a finding with implications for estimating the speed and scope of household adaptation diffusion.

Protection Motivation and Food Waste Reduction Strategies

“Ugly food” refers to agricultural products that are discarded because their appearance is not attractive, even though their nutritional content is unaffected. In this study, protection motivation theory (PMT) was applied to analyze whether an individual’s awareness of food waste problems affects their “ugly food” purchase intention. Hence, the relationships between awareness of food waste problems, threat appraisal (severity and vulnerability), coping appraisal (response efficacy and self-efficacy), and ugly food purchase intention were analyzed. Additionally, a moderating effect analysis was conducted per consumer age. Descriptive statistical analysis, frequency, and SPSS reliability analysis were used, including confirmatory factor analysis, structural equation modeling, and multi-group analysis of the Amos program. For the final analysis, 361 samples were used. Results showed that awareness of food waste problems positively affected severity and vulnerability, response efficacy, and self-efficacy. Moreover, severity positively affected ugly food purchase intention and vulnerability did not. Response and self-efficacy positively affected ugly food purchase intention. In the moderating effect analysis per consumer age, the difference between severity and ugly food purchase intention and vulnerability and ugly food purchase intention was significant. This study has various academic and practical implications, and presents several strategies to reduce food waste to contribute to a sustainable future environment. It is also the first study linking the food waste problem, PMT, and ugly food purchase behavior.

It is time that matters in crisis communication: The role of temporal distance and crisis threat appraisal

The present study advances scholarly understanding of publics’ crisis responses by examining a potential role of temporal crisis distance and crisis threat appraisal from the perspective of publics. It explored whether and how temporal distance from the influence of crises (proximal future vs. distant future) might predict threat appraisal components (i.e., situational demands and required resources) and publics’ crisis responses (i.e., crisis emotions and supportive behavioral intentions). This study tested the mediation model to explicate how temporal crisis distance affected crisis responses through crisis threat appraisal. The results revealed that temporal crisis distance significantly predicted publics’ perception of situational demands, which in turn influenced crisis responses. Theoretical and practical implications for crisis communication are discussed.

Using an extended protection motivation theory to explain vaccine hesitancy: a cross-sectional study among Chinese adults

ABSTRACT Background Vaccine hesitancy was listed as one of the top 10 issues threatening global health in 2019. The objectives of this study were to (a) use an extended protection motivation theory (PMT) with an added trust component to identify predictors of vaccine hesitancy and (b) explore the predictive ability of vaccine hesitancy on vaccination behavior. Methods We conducted an online questionnaire from February 9 to April 9, 2021, in China. The target population was Chinese residents aged 18 and over. A total of 14,236 responses were received. Structural equation modeling was used to test the extended PMT model hypotheses. Results A total of 10,379 participants were finally included in this study, of whom 52.0% showed hesitancy toward vaccination. 2854 (27.5%) participants reported that they got flu shots in the past year, and 2561 (24.7%) participants were vaccinated against COVID-19. 2857 (27.5%) participants engaged in healthcare occupation. The model explained 85.7% variance of vaccine hesitancy. Self-efficacy was the strongest predictor, negatively associated with vaccine hesitancy (β = −0.584; p < .001). Response efficacy had a negative effect on vaccine hesitancy (β = −0.372; p < .001), while threat appraisal showed a positive effect (β = 0.104; p < .001). Compared with non-health workers, health workers showed more vaccine hesitancy, and response efficacy was the strongest predictor (β = −0.560; p < .001). Vaccine hesitancy had a negative effect on vaccination behavior (β = −0.483; p < .001), and the model explained 23.4% variance of vaccination behavior. Conclusions This study demonstrates that the extended PMT model is efficient in explaining vaccine hesitancy. However, the predictive ability of vaccine hesitancy on vaccination behavior is limited.

Relating teachers’ coping styles to student noise and perceived stress

School noise is a serious, inevitable problem that teachers experience as stress or strain. Coping styles have a huge impact on teachers’ mental health and therefore might influence this daily stress experience. Based on the stress-strain model and the transactional stress model, we examined in an online study how 99 teachers with different coping styles reacted to school noise. Four professional coping styles were derived from the overarching dimensions of professional commitment and experience resilience. The healthy type, the unambitious type, type A, and type burnout differed in terms of threat appraisal, noise stress, voice and hearing problems as well as noise-related burnout. Compared to the healthy type, types A and burnout showed higher levels of stress. Teachers of the risk types turned out to be more vulnerable to school noise than teachers of the healthy type. Specific prevention programs may help to improve teacher resilience.

Navigating the COVID-19 pandemic in the contingency framework: Antecedents and consequences of public’s stance toward the CDC

This study applied the contingency theory of conflict management to examine how contingency factors influence the public’s perceptual and behavioral responses to COVID-19 and stance toward the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). In particular, we tested political ideology as an important individual characteristic variable to examine its roles in the contingency theory framework. The findings revealed that two situational variables (i.e., threat appraisal and attitudes toward CDC) positively influenced the public’s contingency accommodation stance toward the CDC. Furthermore, greater conservatism was significantly associated with lower levels of threat appraisal and more negative attitudes toward the CDC, however it did not influence the stance toward the CDC. Theoretical and practical implications of the findings and directions for future research are discussed.

The Role of Passion in Psychological and Cardiovascular Responses: Extending the Field of Passion and Positive Psychology in New Directions.

The present study fills a void in research on passion by examining for the first time the role of passion in physiological responses. The aim of the study was to investigate the role of passion, and the mediating role of cognitive appraisals, in the psychological and physiological responses to a stressful situation related to one’s passion. Students (43 women, 12 men, M age = 27.21 years), who were passionate for their studies, completed the Passion Scale for their studies and the Cognitive Appraisal Scale (assessing perceptions of challenge/threat). Then, they engaged in an education task under stressful conditions, and a subsequent unrelated leisure task under no-stress. Physiological reactivity was measured throughout the entire session and their perceptions of situational vitality and positive and negative emotions were assessed directly after the education task. Results showed that harmonious passion (HP) positively predicted challenge appraisals that, in turn, were positively related to positive emotions, vitality, and positive cardiovascular adaptation while engaging in the stressful education task, but less so with the leisure task (unrelated to one’s passion for academia). On the other hand, obsessive passion (OP) positively predicted threat appraisals. In turn, threat appraisals were positively related to negative emotions, negatively associated with vitality, and not related to cardiovascular reactivity. The present findings suggest that HP creates the onset of an adaptive psychological and physiological response whereas the response is less adaptive with OP.

Consumer's transition to online clothing buying during the COVID-19 pandemic: exploration through protection motivation theory and consumer well-being

PurposeBy drawing on protection motivation theory, this study explores consumers' motivation to engage in adaptive behaviour envisioned through a transition from offline to online clothing purchasing during the COVID-19 pandemic. Additionally, this paper explores the conditioning effects of consumer resilience and satisfaction with retailers' assistive intent through the consumer well-being framework.Design/methodology/approachA total of 363 useable surveys were obtained from Croatian consumers. Data were analysed with confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modelling.FindingsCoping appraisal positively impacts adaptive behaviour by increasing online clothing purchase intention, while threat appraisal has no direct effect on adaptive behaviour. The relationship between threat appraisal and adaptive behaviour is negatively moderated by consumer resilience and satisfaction with the retailer's assistive intent.Research limitations/implicationsLimitations include the convenience sampling method and data collection at one point as well as the focus on consumers from one country.Practical implicationsThis study provides a blueprint for designing marketing actions that retail managers should consider to respond to a crisis effectively while maintaining satisfactory buying experiences during health crises and other challenging events.Originality/valueGiven the unique research context, i.e. the COVID-19 pandemic, this study is one of the few and the first in Croatia to unfold the importance of protection motivation theory in providing a greater understanding of consumer's adaptive behaviour (transition from offline to online) in online clothing retail channels during the period of the global health-related crisis. Benefits from understanding consumers' coping and threat appraisal mechanisms while addressing their buying needs in adverse circumstances are revealed. In addition, the theoretical implications regarding the conditional effects of consumer resilience and consumer satisfaction with retailers' assistive intent during a pandemic are also provided.

Bringing older consumers onboard to online banking: a generational cohort comparison

ABSTRACT Though online banking has become more pervasive in U.S. society, little research has examined how different generational cohorts perceive and use online banking. This study examines differences in online banking perceptions and intentions across three generational cohorts in the U.S.: Silent and G.I. generation (SGI) (born 1945 or earlier), older Boomers (1946–1954), and Millennials (1977–1992). Guided by the Technology Acceptance Model and Protection Motivation Theory, it tests a model that identifies factors that influence each generation’s acceptance and use of online banking. An online survey of 558 U.S. MTurk workers within three generational cohorts provided data for this study. Findings showed that coping appraisals (i.e., coping self-efficacy and response efficacy) were positive predictors of online banking intentions via reduced barrier perceptions and increased trust perceptions for all ages. Nevertheless, threat appraisals were not negative predictors of online banking intentions via any online banking perceptions. Results also identified generational differences by showing that coping appraisals only increased online banking intentions via enhanced benefit perceptions for Boomers and Millennials, not SGIs. Furthermore, benefit perceptions mattered most to Millennials, followed by Boomers, and did not influence online banking intentions for SGIs. Trust mattered most to SGIs, followed by Boomers, and did not matter to Millennials. This study contributes to our understanding of factors that can help bring older consumers onboard with online banking compared to younger consumers.

Work in times of Brexit: explanatory mechanisms linking macropolitical events with employee well-being

ABSTRACT With this study, we examine work-related phenomena that may convey the relationship between a macropolitical event (i.e., Brexit) and personal well-being in a sample of UK-based academics. Drawing on transactional stress theory, we propose an appraisal-based mediation model. Specifically, we argue that cognitive appraisal of Brexit relates to job (in)security and the relationship quality with co-workers which represent indicators of the fundamental humgan needs for safety and belonging and thus, relate to personal well-being. We conducted a three-wave panel study, the final sample consisted of 115 individuals, and we used Bayesian path analysis to test the presumed hypotheses. Results revealed that academics in this sample predominantly appraised Brexit as threatening and less as challenging. As expected, threat appraisal related to more qualitative job insecurity and worse well-being. Further, deviating from communal appraisal (i.e., appraising Brexit as challenging) related to deteriorating relationship quality and lower well-being. Our findings illustrate the relevance of an appraisal-based perspective when researching controversial shared events. They further outline that cognitive appraisal likely occurs in a social context whereby challenge appraisal may entail a dark side when it indicates a deviation from peers’ norms.

Sarima-Based Cyber-Risk Assessment and Mitigation Model for A Smart City’s Traffic Management Systems (Scram)

ABSTRACT A malicious hacker can compromise the integrated traffic management systems (ITMS) speed sensors in a smart city, causing a vehicle to misread the speed and result in collision or congestion on the pathways. Based on protection-motivation theory (PMT), we propose a Time series-based Cyber-risk Assessment and Mitigation for smart cities (SCRAM) model comprising three modules for the smart city administrator. In line with the threat appraisal component of PMT, our cyber-risk assessment (CRA) module uses a Seasonal time series forecasting method, takes ITMS average speed as an input, and outputs the probability of anomalies in the average speed of vehicles. Subsequently, based on the concepts of risk theory, the cyber-risk quantification (CRQ) module calculates the expected loss for a smart city due to collision or congestion on the pathways. In line with the coping appraisal component of PMT, our cyber-risk mitigation (CRM) module proposes strategies for the smart-city administrator to reduce cyber-risk using technological means and pass the residual risk to third-party cyber-insurer.

Organizational Data Breach: Building Conscious Care Behavior in Incident Response

Organizational and end user data breaches are highly implicated by the role of information security conscious care behavior in respective incident responses. This research study draws upon the literature in the areas of information security, incident response, theory of planned behaviour, and protection motivation theory to expand and empirically validate a modified framework of information security conscious care behaviour formation. The applicability of the theoretical framework is shown through a case study labelled as a cyber-attack of unprecedented scale and sophistication in Singapore’s history to-date, the 2018 SingHealth data breach. The single in-depth case study observed information security awareness, policy, experience, attitude, subjective norms, perceived behavioral control, threat appraisal and self-efficacy as emerging prominently in the framework’s applicability in incident handling. The data analysis did not support threat severity relationship with conscious care behaviour. The findings from the above-mentioned observations are presented as possible key drivers in the shaping information security conscious care behaviour in real-world cyber incident management.

Reappraising stress arousal improves affective, neuroendocrine, and academic performance outcomes in community college classrooms.

The field experiment presented here applied a stress regulation technique to optimize affective and neuroendocrine responses and improve academic and psychological outcomes in an evaluative academic context. Community college students (N = 339) were randomly assigned to stress reappraisal or active control conditions immediately before taking their second in-class exam. Whereas stress is typically perceived as having negative effects, stress reappraisal informs individuals about the functional benefits of stress and is hypothesized to reduce threat appraisals, and subsequently, improve downstream outcomes. Multilevel models indicated that compared with controls, reappraising stress led to less math evaluation anxiety, lower threat appraisals, more adaptive neuroendocrine responses (lower cortisol and higher testosterone levels on testing days relative to baseline), and higher scores on Exam 2 and on a subsequent Exam 3. Reappraisal students also persisted in their courses at a higher rate than controls. Targeted mediation models suggested stress appraisals partially mediated effects of reappraisal. Notably, procrastination and performance approach goals (measured between exams) partially mediated lagged effects of reappraisal on subsequent performance. Implications for the stress, emotion regulation, and mindsets literatures are discussed. Moreover, alleviating negative effects of acute stress in community college students, a substantial but understudied population, has potentially important applied implications. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

Inadequate sleep moderates effects of interparental conflict appraisals on adolescent adjustment

ObjectivesPrevious research and theory suggest that interparental conflict that is perceived by youth as frequent/intense, threatening, and/or the responsibility of the youth is predictive of adjustment problems. In contrast, sleep, an important precursor to emotion regulation, is likely a protective factor for youth experiencing interparental conflict. The goal of the current study was to investigate the extent to which adolescents who maintain better and/or longer sleep are buffered from the adjustment problems associated with greater interparental conflict. MethodsOne-hundred and fifty adolescents completed questionnaires assessing interparental conflict (frequency/intensity perceptions as well as threat and self-blame appraisals) as well as internalizing and externalizing behaviors. Participants also wore an actigraph over 1 week to objectively measure sleep quantity and quality; 123 participants had valid actigraphy data. ResultsResults of structural equation modeling analyses revealed that greater sleep quality weakened the association between interparental conflict and adjustment problems, particularly internalizing behaviors. However, sleep quantity was not a moderator. ConclusionThese results suggest that higher quality sleep may protect adolescents from the negative effects of interparental conflict.

Better self and better us: Exploring the individual and collective motivations for China's Generation Z consumers to reduce plastic pollution

Plastic pollution is one of the most urgent worldwide environmental issues that humans need to address. Despite the awareness of the harm that plastic pollution brings to our planet, environmental impact is the least important consideration for consumers when making their daily choices regarding plastic packaging. It is less known how to motivate consumers, especially those of generation Z, who are considered to be more concerned with the environment than previous generations, to engage in plastic pollution reduction and increase their intention to recycle in China. Drawing upon Protection Motivation Theory, we investigate the impacts of individual motivators (self-esteem, self-actualization, and self-expression) and collective motivators (social optimism, social pessimism, and Confucianism) on consumers’ environmental concern (threat appraisal) and how these drivers eventually influence consumers’ engagement and recycling intention (coping appraisal). Our findings reveal that engagement and recycling intentions are driven primarily by self-expression and social pessimism, respectively. Environmental concerns play a significant role in mediating these relationships. We offer important theoretical and practical implications for policymakers.

Beyond adaptive security coping behaviors: Theory and empirical evidence

Extant research seldom focuses on maladaptive security coping behaviors. Applying the extended parallel process model, this study has developed a research model to reveal the processes underlying users’ adaptive and maladaptive security coping behaviors. The model is empirically examined along with alternative models. Results show that perceived coping efficacy is the most influencing factor promoting adaptive coping behaviors and deterring maladaptive coping behaviors. Fear plays a mediating role in the threat appraisal process and leads to adaptive and maladaptive coping behaviors. Trust in the Internet as the contextual factor influences the threat and coping appraisal processes and adaptive coping behaviors.

Pre‐crisis commitment human resource management and employees' attitudes in a global pandemic: The role of trust in the government

AbstractStudies of human resource management (HRM) have produced plentiful results on commitment HRM, but its effects during a crisis have rarely been examined. Incorporating the commitment HRM view and the cognitive phenomenological framework, we examined whether and how commitment HRM practices implemented prior to the COVID‐19 mitigate employees' negative cognitive evaluations and attitudes during the pandemic. Moreover, a pandemic is a situation that requires strong government interventions, and we further examined whether employees' trust in the government would play a moderating role in explaining the effects of commitment HRM. With a multilevel framework, we measured commitment HRM via an analysis of big data provided online prior to the pandemic and matched the information to employees' responses collected from a survey after the outbreak of the pandemic. With data from 1010 employees and 52 companies, we found that employees in organizations with a higher utilization of commitment HRM showed less threat appraisals. Moreover, those experiencing fewer threat appraisals showed more commitment to their organizations. In addition, we found that the negative link between a company's commitment HRM and its employees' threat appraisals was pronounced when they had a lower level of trust in the government. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.

The paradoxical consequences of leader feedback seeking for subordinates: a theoretical framework

PurposeScholars in the feedback seeking domain have predominantly focused on subordinate feedback seeking. The authors still know very little about feedback seeking when the leader is the “seeker” and subordinates are the “targets” of such seeking. This paper aims to develop a theoretical framework that explores the potential benefits and costs of leader feedback seeking, specifically, leader feedback inquiry for subordinates.Design/methodology/approachThe authors draw upon the transactional theory of stress to propose a framework in which leader feedback inquiry influences two subordinate behaviors (in-role and proactive skill development behaviors) via appraisal processes (challenge and threat appraisals). With insights from regulatory focus theory, the authors propose that individual characteristics, namely, the regulatory focus of subordinates (promotion and prevention focus), determine the appraisals of leader feedback inquiry, subsequently influencing subordinate behavioral outcomes.FindingsThe authors contend that leader feedback inquiry can be appraised as a challenge which then produces beneficial subordinate behaviors (i.e. higher in-role and proactive skill development behaviors). However, leader feedback inquiry can also be appraised as a threat which then elicits detrimental subordinate behaviors (i.e. lower in-role and proactive skill development behaviors). The authors then argue that subordinates with a high promotion focus appraise leader feedback inquiry as challenging, thereby enabling beneficial behaviors. Subordinates with a high prevention focus, by contrast, appraise leader feedback inquiry as threatening, thereby prompting detrimental behaviors.Originality/valueThe authors shed light on the benefits and costs of leader feedback seeking for subordinates. The resulting framework underlines the importance of including individual characteristics and cognitive appraisal processes in research investigating the effects of leader feedback inquiry on subordinate outcomes.