Variance In Negative Affect Research Articles

Are We Sailing in the Right Direction for Deeper Insights Into Acceptance? Evidence From a Systematic Review of Research in Laboratory Settings.

This systematic review aims to review and update the current state of research on the acceptance strategy for a healthy population in a laboratory setting. Using a previously defined search strategy, the PsycInfo, PubMed, and Web of Science databases were searched from 1961 to May 2020 for articles on this topic. Twenty-five high-quality articles, involving a total of 2265 participants, met inclusion criteria. According to these results, acceptance is a strategy with promising outcomes for handling pain in healthy populations, although its superiority over other strategies to reduce negative affect, anger, and other pain variables is unclear. The instructions and outcome variables vary widely between studies, and few studies compare acceptance with mindfulness. We discuss these findings and provide information to guide future researchers for designing fine-grained investigations that can address the gaps in this area.

Tokyo 2020: A Sociodemographic and Psychosocial Characterization of the Portuguese Paralympic Team.

The importance of practicing sports and its impact on the quality of life of people with disabilities is fundamental. Characterizing subjective well-being, resilience, and social influence in the practice of adapted sports, namely in those who participate in elite sport in Portugal, is truly important to support a set of initiatives to promote higher levels of practice. Thus, this study describes the Portuguese delegation at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games through sociodemographic and psychosocial (positive and negative affect, life satisfaction, resilience, and social support) variables. The study involved 31 of the 33 athletes of the Portuguese Paralympic team aged between 15 and 58 years (34.45 ± 11.7 years), with 21 men and 10 women. Individual-level sociodemographic data gave us a clear insight into the reality of adapted sport in Portugal. The high values of life satisfaction, high positive affect and low negative affect, as well as high levels of resilience and social support seem to be important variables for these athletes. The data from the present study highlighted the importance of understanding the characteristics of Paralympic athletes, in order to better understand the reality of Paralympic sport in Portugal.

Exploring the impact of community-based choral participation on cognitive function and well-being for persons with dementia: evidence from the Voices in Motion project

Objectives Music-based interventions are postulated to mitigate cognitive decline in individuals with dementia. However, the mechanisms underlying why music-based interventions facilitate cognitive benefits remain unknown. The present study examines whether a choral intervention can modulate patterns of cognitive change in persons with dementia and whether within-person variation in affect is associated with this change. Methods Thirty-three older adults with dementia engaged weekly in the Voices in Motion (ViM) study consisting of 3 choral seasons spanning 18-months. Performance on the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) and the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule was assessed monthly within each choral season using a longitudinal intensive repeated-measures design. Three-level multilevel models were employed to disaggregate between- and within-person effects across short- (month-to-month) and long-term (season-to-season) intervals. Results ViM participants exhibited an annual MMSE decline of 1.8 units, notably less than the clinically meaningful 3.3 units indicated by non-intervention literature. Further, variability in negative affect shared a within-person time-varying association with MMSE performance; decreases in negative affect, relative to one’s personal average, were linked to corresponding improvements in cognitive function. Conclusion Engagement in the ViM choral intervention may attenuate cognitive decline for persons with dementia via a reduction of psychological comorbidities such as elevated negative affect.

Linking mean level and variability in affect to changes in perceived regard: A dyadic longitudinal burst study of African American couples

High positive affect and low negative affect have been repeatedly tied to better individual and interpersonal well-being. However, research has focused on mean levels whereas the day-to-day unfolding of affect and its impact on romantic relationships remain largely understudied. Here, we examined the links between mean levels and variability in affect and changes in perceptions of partner regard —the extent to which people believe that their partners value and accept them. One hundred twenty-five African American couples ( N = 250 individuals) reported how positively they thought their partners viewed them across two sessions (T1 and T2), separated by a 3-week daily diary study in which participants reported on their positive and negative affect each day for 21 consecutive days. Using dyadic analysis, we found that higher actor negative affect variability was associated with lower perceived regard at T2 controlling for perceived regard at T1. This finding held when controlling for mean levels of actor and partner negative affect. By contrast, PA variability was curvilinearly associated with perceived regard, with moderate levels of variability associated with higher subsequent perceived regard. These results highlight the importance of accounting for mean levels and curvilinear effects when examining links between affect dynamics and relational well-being.

Variability in negative affect is an important feature of neuroticism above mean negative affect once measurement issues are accounted for

Neuroticism is an important predictor of well-being that is conceptualized by high levels of mean negative affect and negative affect variability. However, research has shown that negative affect variability only explained limited additional variance in neuroticism when the confound with mean negative affect was accounted for using a modified version of the standard deviation ( SD), the relative standard deviation ( RSD). Here, we (a) examined the suitability of the RSD as a variability measure, (b) introduced the number of negative affect episodes as an alternative measure of negative affect variability, and (c) investigated the relationship between neuroticism and negative affect variability, accounting for measurement error. Re-analyzing three experience sampling datasets ( N = 430 participants), we found several issues with the RSD, which limits its use as a negative affect variability measure, and which were not found for the number of negative affect episodes measure. Moreover, only the SD and the number of negative affect episodes explained substantial variance in neuroticism above mean negative affect. Thus, neuroticism was associated with experiencing negative affect more strongly and more often in daily life, when measurement error was accounted for, which demonstrates the importance to model reliability and to correct accordingly.

Self-esteem and psychosis in daily life: An experience sampling study.

Evidence suggests that self-esteem is an important mechanism in pathways to psychosis. However, whether low or high self-esteem is associated with psychotic experiences remains unclear. Besides, a limited number of studies has investigated fluctuations in state self-esteem in psychotic patients. This study investigated cross-sectional and temporal associations of momentary self-esteem and fluctuations in self-esteem with psychotic symptoms in three groups with different levels of (familial) liability to psychotic disorder. Using the Experience Sampling Method (ESM), momentary self-esteem, fluctuations in self-esteem (i.e., variability and instability), and psychotic experiences, paranoia, negative symptoms (i.e., event anhedonia and social anhedonia), intensity of negative affect and altered affective experiences (instability and variability in negative affect) were assessed in 147 psychotic patients, 131 of their siblings and 113 controls. Lower levels of momentary self-esteem were associated with an increased intensity of psychotic experiences, paranoia and negative affect, with the magnitude of the associations for momentary self-esteem being greatest in patients, followed by relatives. Variability in self-esteem was associated with psychotic and paranoid experiences, the magnitudes were greatest in relatives. Furthermore, we found reciprocal effects between momentary self-esteem and psychotic experiences, paranoia, negative affect, and instability in negative affect. These findings suggest that individuals with familial liability to psychosis (patients and their first-degree relatives) might benefit from targeting momentary self-esteem and variability in self-esteem to decrease the intensity of psychotic experiences, paranoia, and negative affect in daily life. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

Hookups Among U.S. College Students: Examining the Association Between Hookup Motives and Personal Affect.

"Hooking up" is prevalent on college campuses and is related to both positive and negative outcomes for students. The current study was an exploratory examination of hookup motives, and positive and negative affect, related to the most recent hookup experience. Participants were 256 U.S. college students who reported hooking up in the last 12months. Students completed a 30-min anonymous online survey assessing behaviors and cognitions during their most recent hookup, including alcohol use at the time of the hookup, motives for hooking up, and post-hookup affect. The model demonstrated that gender, conformity motives, and social-relationship motives significantly and positively predicted negative affect, whereas enhancement motives negatively predicted negative affect. Coping and enhancement motives significantly and positively predicted positive affect, whereas alcohol use negatively predicted positive affect. This study was a unique examination of hookup motives, with important findings that explained large portions of variance in post-hookup affect. The overall model explained approximately 23% of the variance in negative affect and 49% of the variance in positive affect. Findings highlight that, depending on the hookup motive, hooking up can be associated with positive outcomes, such as positive affect.

Measurement Invariance of Negative Affect in Ambulatory Assessments of Young-Old and Old-Old Adults

Gero-psychological research increasingly considered intense longitudinal assessments of momentary affect to address affective aging. In particular, many studies employed negative emotion item lists for ambulatory assessments of negative affect. However, frequent self-reports on emotion items within short time intervals might change alertness towards and perception of one’s emotional experiences. From an item-response-theoretic point of view, this might impair the stability of item functioning in terms of item discrimination between levels of affectivity and item severity (difficulty). Thus, we examined measurement invariance of negative emotion items commonly used for ambulatory assessments of negative affect. Ambulatory assessments from the EMIL study, obtained over seven consecutive days at six occasions per day from 123 young-old (aged 66-69) and 47 old-old (86-89) adults, were analyzed. Respondents self-reported on 13 negative emotion items, using a 0-100 slider to express the degree to which they felt the respective emotion. We ran multilevel structural equation models with Bayes estimation to analyze variability of negative affect factor loadings, item intercepts, and measurement error variances across repeated measures, thus checking for metric, scalar, and strict factorial invariance. For all sets of parameters, the findings do not strongly support measurement invariance, but point at partial invariance for item subsets. Taking on literature suggesting that criteria for invariance testing should not be too restrictive to meet pragmatic measurement equivalence requirements, further analyses and our conclusions focus on strategies that might allow for acceptable degrees of differential item functioning, enabling reliable analyses of intra-individual short-term variability in negative affect.

Cohort Differences in Daily Life: Older Adults Have Higher Affect Variability Than 18 Years Ago

Skilled nursing facilities (SNFs) are on the front lines of changing policies regarding the COVID-19 pandemic. The most recent development is a potential vaccine mandate for staff working in SNFs. We use ongoing findings from 130 of 160 in-depth, semi-structured interviews in progress with administrators at 40 SNFs in eight diverse healthcare markets across the United States to understand the current landscape of COVID-19 in SNFs. Four repeated interviews at 3-month intervals provide a unique longitudinal perspective on the impact of COVID-19 and SNFs’ response to vaccinations, including the vaccine mandate. Rigorous thematic analysis reveals insights into administrator responses and creative approaches to address vaccine hesitancy, and future expectations for SNF operations in light of the vaccine and the mandate. Administrators express cautious hope that the vaccine will allow SNFs to return to a new normal of daily life for residents in terms of family visitations, communal dining, and resident activities. Overriding questions include how to overcome persistent vaccine hesitancy from SNF staff who cite fear of side effects despite education initiatives and how to stem staff retirement or transition to other healthcare settings. SNFs represent a microcosm of the country’s concerns as a whole. Insight into the evolving and complex dynamics shed important light on national trends and help provide solutions for moving forward. Findings from this study have implications for policymakers and SNF leadership as they consider ways to promote vaccination and retain staff amid vaccine mandates.

Daily Emotional Dynamics of Custodial Grandfamilies: Cross-Dyad Correlations of Affect Means and Variability

Evidence indicates that daily emotional dynamics are associated with mental and physical health. However, these processes have not been examined among custodial grandmothers taking care of adolescent grandchildren. This daily diary study examined correlations between grandmothers and adolescents’ mean levels and variability in negative (NA) and positive affect (PA). Custodial dyads (M = 214) across the nation completed two weeks of daily surveys. For both grandmothers and adolescents, their own PA means were negatively correlated with NA means, PA variability, and NA variability; NA means were positively correlated with variability in PA and NA (ps <.01). Across dyads, grandmothers’ PA means were positively correlated with adolescents’ PA means and negatively correlated with adolescents’ NA means, PA variability and NA variability. Grandmothers’ NA means were positively correlated with adolescents’ variability in PA and NA (ps <.01). Our findings demonstrate how daily emotional dynamics are correlated within and between family members.

Attachment Style Differences in the Affective Experience of Chronic Pain in Osteoarthritis

Lifespan psychological and life course sociological perspectives have long acknowledged that individual functioning is shaped by historical and socio-cultural contexts. Secular increases favoring later-born cohorts are widely documented for general well-being (among older adults). However, little is known about secular trends in short-term fluctuations in daily affective well-being and whether historical changes have occurred in young, middle-aged, and older adults alike. To examine these questions, we compared data from two independent national samples of the NSDE survey obtained 18 years apart (1995/96 vs. 2013/14) and identified case-matched cohorts (per cohort, n = 782, aged = 23–75 years) based on age and gender. We additionally examine the role of economic and health resources for cohort differences in affective variability. Results revealed that later-born cohorts report higher variability in daily negative affect than did those 18 years ago. In contrast, no cohort differences emerged in variability in daily positive affect. We conclude from our national US sample that secular trends in affect variability do not generalize unanimously to different timescales across adulthood. We discuss possible underlying mechanisms and practical implications.

Controllability of Structural Brain Networks and the Waxing and Waning of Negative Affect in Daily Life

BackgroundThe waxing and waning of negative affect in daily life is normative, reflecting an adaptive capacity to respond flexibly to changing circumstances. However, understanding of the brain structure correlates of affective variability in naturalistic settings has been limited. Using network control theory, we examine facets of brain structure that may enable negative affect variability in daily life. MethodsWe used diffusion-weighted imaging data from 95 young adults (age [in years]: mean = 20.19, SD = 1.80; 56 women) to construct structural connectivity networks that map white matter fiber connections between 200 cortical and 14 subcortical regions. We applied network control theory to these structural networks to estimate the degree to which each brain region’s pattern of structural connectivity facilitates the spread of activity to other brain systems. We examined how the average controllability of functional brain systems relates to negative affect variability, computed by taking the standard deviation of negative affect self-reports collected via smartphone-based experience sampling twice per day over 28 days as participants went about their daily lives. ResultsWe found that high average controllability of the cingulo-insular system is associated with increased negative affect variability. We also found that greater negative affect variability is related to the presence of more depressive symptoms, yet average controllability of the cingulo-insular system was not associated with depressive symptoms. ConclusionsOur results highlight the role that brain structure plays in affective dynamics as observed in the context of daily life, suggesting that average controllability of the cingulo-insular system promotes normative negative affect variability.

Affective variability and childhood abuse increase the risk for nonsuicidal self-injury following psychiatric hospitalization.

Childhood abuse is associated with myriad negative behavioral health outcomes, including nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI). Models aimed at understanding the mechanism whereby childhood abuse may exert negative effects frequently highlight alterations or dysregulations in experienced affect, particularly during times of stress. The period immediately following discharge from psychiatric hospitalization represents a time of risk for individuals experiencing NSSI. We aimed to investigate the extent to which childhood abuse predicts affective variability and examine whether affective variability predicts who will experience NSSI thoughts or behaviors in the 6 months following hospital discharge. Participants were adults (N = 133) engaged in a 3-week ecological momentary assessment study immediately following psychiatric hospitalization who returned for a 6-month follow-up. Location scale modeling (LSM) was used to model the impact of childhood abuse on affect variability; estimates of affect variability were then resampled and examined as risk factors for NSSI at follow-up. Overall, individuals who experienced childhood abuse reported lower positive affect intensity. Participants exposed to emotional and sexual abuse reported less between-person variability in positive affect, and those who experienced sexual abuse evidenced higher between-person variability in negative affect. Models indicated that higher overall negative affect was associated with a higher NSSI risk, ORs ∼ 1.82-2.10 even after accounting for childhood abuse and lifetime NSSI. These findings indicate the importance of in vivo affect as a critical influence on behavior during high-risk periods, reinforcing the need to move beyond traditional cross-sectional approaches of assessment, analysis, and treatment.

Psychological distress and perceived job stressors among hospital nurses and physicians during the COVID‐19 outbreak

AimsThe study examined self‐reported job‐related stressors induced by the COVID‐19 pandemic and psychological distress among hospital nurses and physicians. In addition, we explored the role of negative affect (NA) and background variables in relation to COVID‐19‐related job stressors and psychological distress.BackgroundDuring COVID‐19 pandemic, hospital nurses and physicians were exposed to highly enduring occupational stress, that stem from subjective appraisal of inadequate job resources (i.e., personal protection equipment, information on how to manage safely in the ongoing work and organizational attention to the needs arising from the ongoing work).DesignCross‐sectional design.MethodsBetween May and July 2020, 172 nurses and physicians working at a medical centre in Israel filled in self‐report questionnaires about sociodemographic data, COVID‐19‐related job stressors, psychological distress and NA.ResultsOur results confirmed the positive direct link between perceived COVID‐19‐related job stressors and psychological distress among hospital nurses and physicians. NA was found to serve as a mediator in this association (indirect link). Furthermore, nurses and physicians' seniority was related positively to psychological distress and also played a moderator role in the indirect link.ConclusionWe recommend to monitor the mental health of hospital nurses and physicians and to provide a platform to address their job stressor concerns related to COVID‐19, and share helpful coping strategies.Impact statementDuring the abrupt COVID‐19 outbreak, hospital nurses and physicians face challenges that might raise NA and psychological distress. Our study revealed that among hospital nurses and physicians, COVID‐19‐related perceived job stressors and psychological distress were positively linked, and NA plays a mediating role in this association. Among nurses and physicians with moderate or high years of seniority (>11 years), higher COVID‐19‐related perceived job stressors associated with higher NA, which in turn was associated with greater psychological distress. Policymakers would be wise to provide a platform to address hospital nurses and physicians' mental health.

Predicting Negative and Positive Affect During COVID-19: A Daily Diary Study in Youths.

The COVID‐19 pandemic has the potential to profoundly affect youths’ mental health. Understanding predictors of affective responding to the pandemic is critical for prevention and intervention efforts. This study examines emotion regulation as an important predictor of youth’s changes in positive and negative affect. The present study of 115 participants (62 girls, M age = 11.77) explores the relation between pre‐existing emotion regulation strategies, as measured by multi‐week daily diaries pre‐COVID, and youths’ mean positive and negative affect levels and variability during a 28‐day period amidst the pandemic, while including COVID‐related worries and isolation as important moderators. The findings provide important insight into interactions between pre‐existing vulnerabilities and COVID‐related stressors in predicting affective adjustment in youth.

Associations of childhood and adult adversity with daily experiences in adulthood

AbstractData from 213 adults were analysed to test the stress accumulation and stress sensitization models as they relate to daily mood, health behaviours and social interactions. Adults reported on childhood adversity, past year adversity, and daily experiences on 14 evenings. Results largely supported the stress accumulation and not stress sensitization model such that childhood and past year adversity had independent but not synergistic effects on daily experiences. Both adversity measures were independently associated with greater daily negative affect and negative affect variability. Childhood adversity independently associated with greater mean variability in daily positive affect. Past year adversity was associated with more daily social activities, greater odds of reporting interpersonal tension at least once, and daily tension. Although childhood adversity was associated with greater odds of sharing about one's day at least once, past year adversity was associated with more daily sharing and childhood adversity with less. Both measures were unrelated to daily health behaviours except childhood adversity was associated with lower odds of being a current drinker. The only support for the stress sensitization model was number of daily cigarettes among smokers. Our findings suggest childhood and recent adversity independently relate to adults' daily experiences and should be considered jointly.

Resilience as a protective factor for well-being and emotional stability in elite-level football players during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic

ABSTRACT Background: In Denmark, the first COVID-19 pandemic lockdown resulted in a compact season finisher for elite footballers, potentially impacting their mental health.Purpose: This study aimed to investigate the protective role of resilience and the impeding role of trait anxiety on elite footballers’ level and variability of well-being and emotional stability.Material and Methods: One hundred and twenty-five male elite-level players (Mage = 25.04 ± 4.82) completed baseline measures on trait anxiety and resilience. Additionally, well-being and positive and negative affect were assessed before games (n = 24) over 62 days. Separate two-level regression analysis using Bayesian statistics was conducted to test potential relationships. Results: Results show a credible positive relationship between the average level of well-being and within-person variability over time as well as the average level in positive affect. This indicates that resilience might be a protector for mental health. In addition, higher levels of trait anxiety (i.e., subscale concentration disruption) were associated with higher levels of negative affect and higher variability over time. This indicates that trait anxiety might facilitate negative affect. No other credible relationships were found. Conclusion: High resilience and low trait anxiety are identified as relevant factors for mental health within elite footballers during COVID-19. Implications for practice are discussed.

Identifying mindfulness and acceptance as mediators between negative affect, functional disability and emotional distress in patients with fibromyalgia.

Fibromyalgia (FM) is a prevalent disabling condition characterised by chronic widespread pain. It is considered a complex illness in which the prognosis is conditioned by affective and cognitive mediators still largely unknown in FM. To investigate the correlation between psychological variables (acceptance, negative affect, and mindfulness) and functional disability or physical impact, anxiety/depression symptoms and emotional distress, and also to evaluate the mediating role of acceptance and mindfulness between negative affect, physical impact, anxiety/depression and emotional distress in individuals with FM. Two hundred and fifty-one patients with FM who met the 2010 ACR criteria were included and filled out validated self-reported screening measures. The study explored Pearson's correlation coefficients and multiple mediation using a Preacher and Hayes's computational software tool, including the indirect effect associated with the two mediators (mindfulness and acceptance). Functional disability or physical impact, anxiety/depression symptoms and emotional distress correlated positively with negative affect (r= 0.580) and negatively with acceptance and mindfulness (r= -0.579 and r= -0.471; all p-values <0.001), respectively. The mediation analyses showed that acceptance and mindfulness mediated the relationship between negative affect and dependent variables such as physical impact, anxiety/depression symptoms and distress. The findings highlight that mindfulness and acceptance have a significant indirect effect on physical impact, anxiety/depression and emotional distress when controlling for negative affect as an independent variable in the FM patients. Future investigation should replicate and extend these outcomes in other study populations to determine the mediating role of mindfulness and acceptance in FM.

Do romantic relationships promote happiness? Relationships’ characteristics as predictors of subjective well-being

This study aimed to investigate the predictive power of aspects of the romantic relationship on subjective well-being, beyond what is explained by sociodemographic and personality variables. Participants were 490 heterosexual adults (68.8% women), all involved in a monogamous romantic relationship. Romantic relationship variables were substantial predictors of the three components of subjective well-being, explaining 21% of the variance in life satisfaction, 19% of the variance in positive affect, and 15% of the variance in negative affect, in addition to sociodemographic variables and personality factors. Still, relationship satisfaction was one of the main predictors of subjective well-being. The results highlight the importance of romantic relationships over subjective well-being, suggesting that cultivating satisfying romantic relationships contributes to a happier life.

Everyday Emotional Experiences in Current and Remitted Major Depressive Disorder: An Experience-Sampling Study

The emotional experiences of people with major depressive disorder (MDD) are characterized by emotional disturbances. We examined whether these patterns characterize people with MDD in remission. Participants included individuals who had experienced at least two major depressive episodes (remitted-MDD group; n = 80), had current MDD (current-MDD group; n = 48), or were control participants ( n = 87). Participants reported their momentary affect five times per day for 14 days, from which we computed the mean (i.e., intensity), standard deviation (i.e., variability), and autocorrelation (i.e., inertia). Negative affect (NA) intensity and variability, but not inertia, differed between groups; the current-MDD group had the highest levels, the control group had the lowest, and the remitted-MDD group fell in between. Differences in NA variability held after accounting for mean NA. The only significant group difference for positive affect (PA) was that PA intensity was lower in the current-MDD group compared with the other two groups. Emotional disturbances of participants with remitted MDD appear limited to NA.