Treadmill based reference running data for healthy subjects is dependent on speed and morphological parameters

ObjectiveTo obtain spatiotemporal and dynamic running parameters of healthy participants and to identify relationships between running parameters, speed, and physical characteristics.MethodA dynamometric treadmill was used to collect running data among 417 asymptomatic subjects during speeds ranging from 10 to 24 km/h. Spatiotemporal and dynamic running parameters were calculated and measured.ResultsResults of the analyses showed that assessing running parameters is dependent on running speed. Body height correlated with stride length (r = 0.5), cadence (r = −0.5) and plantar forefoot force (r = 0.6). Body mass also had a strong relationship to plantar forefoot forces at 14 and 24 km/h and plantar midfoot forces at 14 and 24 km/h.ConclusionThis reference data base can be used in the kinematic and kinetic evaluation of running under a wide range of speeds.     

Effects of exercise self-regulation on subsequent eating self-regulation: Implications for depletion vs. improvement based on behavioral treatment foci

IntroductionAn improved understanding of individuals’ ability to self-regulate through barriers in the management of their weight-loss behaviors is important. Although self-regulation related to exercise might carry-over to increased eating-related self-regulation through the development of such skills, it also might be depleted because self-regulation is thought to be a limited resource. Additionally, mood might affect self-regulation change.ObjectiveThis field study aimed to determine if exercise-related self-regulation was associated with subsequent eating-related self-regulation, how treatment foci affected that relationship, and if mood change concurrently influenced self-regulation.MethodAn educational weight-loss treatment (n = 52) and a behaviorally based self-regulatory-focused treatment (n = 57) was administered to women with obesity via a community health-promotion setting. Baseline – Month 3 changes in their exercise self-regulation and overall negative mood, and Months 3–6 change in eating self-regulation, were assessed.ResultsImprovements were significantly greater in the self-regulation treatment group on exercise self-regulation, eating self-regulation, and mood. For the self-regulation group, there was a significant positive relationship between changes in exercise self-regulation and eating self-regulation, β = 0.27, p = 0.044. Conversely, the association of those variables was significant and inverse in the educational group, β = −0.29, p = 0.039. Reduction in negative mood was significantly related to increased exercise self-regulation, across groups, β = −0.32, p = 0.001.ConclusionWhen self-regulation was focused upon and rehearsed within an exercise context, its changes positively affected subsequent changes in eating self-regulation. However, when self-regulation was not targeted, self-regulation used for maintaining exercise depleted eating-focused self-regulation. Findings contributed to self-regulatory theory and had implications for the improvement of behavioral weight-loss treatments.     

Associations between self-rated health and the assessments of anchoring vignettes in cardiovascular patients

Background/ObjectiveAssessments of health can be biased by response shift effects. One method for detecting such effects is the use of anchoring vignettes. The aim of this study was to analyze the relationship between participants’ self-assessed health state and their assessments of these vignettes.MethodA total of 342 cardiovascular patients assessed their own state of health on a 0-100 visual analogue scale. The patients additionally assessed two vignettes featuring fictional persons suffering from specific complaints. A sample of the general population (N = 1,236) served as controls.ResultsThe participants rated the health state of the vignette character featuring physical problems as being significantly better than the general population did (effect size: d = 0.53). The group difference in the assessment of the vignette featuring primarily mental health problems was lower (d = -0.17). Participants’ assessments of the vignettes were positively correlated with their assessments of their own health state (r = .26 and r = .10) and with several quality of life variables.ConclusionsAnchoring vignettes are a useful tool for detecting response shift effects.     

The Spanish validation of the Short Health Anxiety Inventory: Psychometric properties and clinical utility

Background/ObjectiveThe Short Health Anxiety Inventory (SHAI) is a widely used self-report instrument to evaluate health anxiety. To assess the SHAI's factor structure, psychometric properties, and accuracy in differentiating Spanish non-clinical individuals from patients with severe health anxiety or hypochondriasis.MethodA total of 342 community participants (61.6% women; M_age = 34.60, SD = 14.91) and 31 hypochondriacal patients (51.6% women; M_age = 32.74, SD = 9.69) completed the SHAI and other self-reports assessing symptoms of hypochondriasis, depression, anxiety sensitivity, worry, and obsessive-compulsive.ResultsThe original two-factor structure was selected as the best structure, based on its parsimony and empirical support (Factor 1: Illness likelihood; Factor 2: Negative consequences of illness). Moreover, the Spanish version of the SHAI demonstrated good construct and concurrent and discriminant validity, and internal consistency. A cutoff of 40.5 (total score) accurately distinguished non-clinical individuals from patients with severe health anxiety or hypochondriasis.ConclusionsThe SHAI is an adequate screening instrument to measure health anxiety in Spanish-speaking community adults.     

Driving performance while using a mobile phone: A simulation study of Greek professional drivers

PurposeThe current study aims to assess the driving performance of professional drivers while using a mobile phone.Material and methodsA sample of 50 male professional drivers participated in the study. The sample was drawn conveniently from the professional drivers’ registries and the main taxi ranks. The inclusion criteria were: (a) age above 18 years, (b) possession of a driving license, (c) sufficient reading, writing, and communicating skills, (d) informed consent prior to participation. Laboratory tests were conducted using the VS500M driving simulator manufactured by Virage Simulation Inc. The intervention involved different tasks/assignments: (a) driving without using a mobile phone (Control time), (b) driving while having a conversation on the mobile phone, (Task_1), (c) driving while reading out loud text messages (Task_2) and, (d) driving while texting (Task_3). Differences in the driving performance between the control time and the time with assignments, were examined. The participants were evaluated on the followings outcome measures: (a) variation of the steering position per second, (b) following distance per second, (c) variation of the lateral lane position per second, and (d) sum of squared acceleration per second.ResultsThe analysis indicated that “variation of the steering position per second” was significantly affected by “text-message reading” [t(50) = −5.443; p < 0.0001] and “texting” [t(50) = −5.442; p < 0.0001]. A significant main effect was observed in terms of the “following distance per second” and the “variation of the lateral lane position per second” for all the three mobile phone assignments. Lastly, the “sum of squared acceleration per second” was significantly decreased during conversation on the phone [t(50) = 2.713; p = 0.009] as well as during texting [t(50) = 3.428; p = 0.001] as compared with the control time.ConclusionsThe study is among the few existing experimental studies in a country with one of the highest road fatalities in Europe but with limited evidence on road traffic behaviour. This study could guide the design of large-scale simulation studies aiming to explore the impact of mobile phone on driving behaviour.     

Prevention programme for eating disturbances in adolescents. Is their effect on body image maintained at 30 months later?

We assessed changes in the body image of Spanish adolescents who participated in a programme aimed at preventing disordered eating, with a 30-month follow-up. 254 girls and 189 boys aged 12–14 were assigned to a control group (n = 201) or one of two possible experimental conditions: media literacy programme (ML, n = 143) and media literacy plus nutrition awareness programme (ML + NUT, n = 99). Body image was assessed with the Body Image Questionnaire (Qüestionari d’Imatge Corporal; QÜIC). Pre-test, post-test, 7- and 30-month follow-up measurements were taken. Linear model analyses were carried out with a 2 × 3 × 3 ANOVA (sex × group × phase), adjusted by the baseline level. At 30-month follow-up, ML and ML + NUT participants showed fewer body problems and more body satisfaction than the control group. There is a need for prevention programmes addressing eating and body image disturbances that involve both boys and girls.     

Longitudinal examination of objectively-measured physical activity and sedentary time among children with and without significant movement impairments

BackgroundChildren with Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD) tend to be less active than typically-developing (TD) children. Current evidence, however, is based on cross-sectional and self-reported activity, and little is known about sedentary time among children with significant movement impairments such as DCD. The current study examines the longitudinal patterns of objectively measured physical activity and sedentary time in children with and without possible DCD (pDCD).MethodsData is from a longitudinal nested case-control study, with 103 participants (n = 60 males ages = 12 and 13 at baseline). Participants averaging ⩽16th percentile on the Movement Assessment Battery for Children were considered having significant movement impairments and pDCD (n = 49). All participants wore accelerometers for seven days.ResultsThere were significant main effects for time (Estimate = −23.98, p < .01) and gender (Estimate = 59.86, p < .05) on total physical activity, and time spent being sedentary (Estimate = 15.58, p < .05). Significant main effects for pDCD (Estimate = −5.38, p < .05) and gender (Estimate = 26.89, p < .01), and time by gender interaction (Estimate = −7.50, p < .05) were found for moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA). Sedentary time did not differ between children with and without DCD.ConclusionsResults suggest children with pDCD engaged in less MVPA compared to TD children. Consistent patterns of MVPA over time, however, suggest that the divergence in MVPA occurs earlier in childhood. Further longitudinal research following a younger cohort is necessary to identify the specific point that differences in MVPA emerge.     

Assessing Decentering: Validation,Psychometric Properties,and Clinical Usefulness of the Experiences Questionnaire in a Spanish Sample

Decentering is defined as the ability to observe one’s thoughts and feelings in a detached manner. The Experiences Questionnaire (EQ) is a self-report instrument that originally assessed decentering and rumination. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the psychometric properties of the Spanish version of EQ-Decentering and to explore its clinical usefulness. The 11-item EQ-Decentering subscale was translated into Spanish and psychometric properties were examined in a sample of 921 adult individuals, 231 with psychiatric disorders and 690 without. The subsample of nonpsychiatric participants was also split according to their previous meditative experience (meditative participants, n = 341; and nonmeditative participants, n = 349). Additionally, differences among these three subgroups were explored to determine clinical validity of the scale. Finally, EQ-Decentering was administered twice in a group of borderline personality disorder, before and after a 10-week mindfulness intervention. Confirmatory factor analysis indicated acceptable model fit, _sbχ² = 243.8836 (p < .001), CFI = .939, GFI = .936, SRMR = .040, and RMSEA = .06 (.060–.077), and psychometric properties were found to be satisfactory (reliability: Cronbach’s α = .893; convergent validity: r > .46; and divergent validity: r < − .35). The scale detected changes in decentering after a 10-session intervention in mindfulness (t = − 4.692, p < .00001). Differences among groups were significant (F = 134.8, p < .000001), where psychiatric participants showed the lowest scores compared to nonpsychiatric meditative and nonmeditative participants. The Spanish version of the EQ-Decentering is a valid and reliable instrument to assess decentering either in clinical and nonclinical samples. In addition, the findings show that EQ-Decentering seems an adequate outcome instrument to detect changes after mindfulness-based interventions.     

Explanatory models of muscle performance in acromegaly patients evaluated by knee isokinetic dynamometry: Implications for rehabilitation

PurposeTo evaluate the effects of demographics and hormonal variations on knee muscle performance in patients with acromegaly and develop explanatory models of peripheral muscle function in these individuals.MethodsThis was a cross-sectional study in which 53 acromegalics and 27 healthy subjects underwent knee isokinetic dynamometry to evaluate the peak torque value for leg extension at 75°/s (PTE75) and 240°/s (PTE240). Separate multivariable linear regression models for the prediction of PTE75 and PTE240 were tested using variables commonly used as predictors in the clinical setting and other specific variables related to acromegaly.ResultsThe final prediction model for PTE75 (R² = 0.888; adjusted R² = 0.820, SE of bias = 16.2 Nm, p < 0.001) was −0.221 × growth hormone + 36.791 × sex_male = 1 − 27.407 × status_active = 1 − 0.690 × age + 148.071. The final prediction model for PTE240 (R² = 0.816; adjusted R² = 0.805, SE of bias = 8.8 Nm, p < 0.001) was −0.174 × growth hormone + 12.522 × sex_male = 1 − 0.520 × age + 98.099.ConclusionsIn acromegalics, high growth hormone levels, female gender, and older age are associated with reduced muscle strength and endurance. Additionally, active disease negatively affects peripheral muscle strength in these patients.     

The influence of the number of toys in the environment on toddlers’ play

We tested the hypothesis that an environment with fewer toys will lead to higher quality of play for toddlers. Each participant (n = 36) engaged in supervised, individual free play sessions under two conditions: Four Toy and Sixteen Toy. With fewer toys, participants had fewer incidences of toy play, longer durations of toy play, and played with toys in a greater variety of ways (Z = −4.448, p < 0.001, r = −0.524; Z = 2.828, p = 0.005, r = 0.333; and Z = 4.676, p < 0.001, r = 0.55, respectively). This suggests that when provided with fewer toys in the environment, toddlers engage in longer periods of play with a single toy, allowing better focus to explore and play more creatively. This can be offered as a recommendation in many natural environments to support children’s development and promote healthy play.     

Under what conditions do lay people and health professionals accept a breach of doctor-patient confidentiality regarding a patient with signs of terrorist radicalization?

IntroductionConfidentiality is crucial to the establishment of a strong patient-physician relationship. However, certain situations create a dilemma for the physician who is faced with the choice of either respecting medical confidentiality or protecting others from a serious risk of violence.ObjectiveThis study aimed to observe how lay people and health professionals assessed the acceptability of breaching confidentiality when a physician is confronted to a patient showing signs of terrorist radicalization.MethodA total of 228 participants (174 from the general population and 54 health professionals) judged the acceptability of 54 scenarios which were constructed through the orthogonal combination of 4 factors frequently mentioned in the literature: presence of a “Psychiatric disorder”; “Signs of radicalization”; “Projects of violence”; “Collegiality”. Variance and cluster analyses were performed on all the raw data.ResultsResults showed that all factors influenced the judgment of participants but that “Psychiatric disorders” had a weaker impact. Five clusters were identified: “Favorable if collegiality” (n = 23); “Favorable to breach confidentiality” (n = 77); “Unfavorable to breach confidentiality” (n = 26); “Sensitive to all factors” (n = 71); “Favorable if violence” (n = 31), respectively with mean ratings of 5.87, 8.42, 3.64, 6.30 and 7.16, on an acceptability scale of 0–10.ConclusionThe importance that the great majority of participants attribute to these factors indicates that they influence their judgments in this specific context.     

The effect of belief in weight controllability on anti-fat attitudes: An experimental manipulation

IntroductionAnti-fat attitudes reflect a type of discrimination on the basis of body weight and are one of the last accepted types of social stigma.ObjectiveTo evaluate the effect of exposure to priming messages about the causes of obesity on attitudes toward fat people.MethodParticipants (n = 580, M age = 22.19, 64.1% female) were randomly assigned to one of three possible conditions and then provided responses on three AFA subscales: Dislike, Fear of fat, and Willpower.ResultsPriming participants with messages confirming/challenging the weight controllability belief was associated with higher/lower levels on Willpower respectively compared to the control group. Unexpectedly, participants in both confirming and challenging groups showed significantly higher scores on Fear of fat. No differences were found on scores indicating Dislike.ConclusionThe current findings emphasize the effect of exposure to information about the causes of obesity on weight controllability beliefs.     

Embodied image: Gender differences in functional and aesthetic body image among Australian adolescents

Perceptions of the body are not restricted to the way the body “looks”; they may also extend to the way the body “functions”. This research explores body image among male and female adolescents using the Embodied Image Scale (EIS), which incorporates body function into body image. Adolescents (N = 1526, male = 673, female = 853) aged 12–17 (M = 13.83, SD = 1.02), from 26 Western Australian high schools were surveyed. Information was gathered on pubertal timing, body mass index (BMI) and body image. Participants reported significantly higher value of, behavioral-investment in, and satisfaction with the functional dimension of the body compared to the aesthetic dimension. After controlling for age, pubertal timing, and BMI, females reported significantly higher aesthetic values and aesthetic behavioral-investment, and lower aesthetic satisfaction, functional values, functional behavioral-investment and functional satisfaction than male participants. Grade, pubertal timing and BMI category differences were also explored.     

The perception of positive and negative facial expressions by unilateral stroke patients

There remains conflict in the literature about the lateralisation of affective face perception. Some studies have reported a right hemisphere advantage irrespective of valence, whereas others have found a left hemisphere advantage for positive, and a right hemisphere advantage for negative, emotion. Differences in injury aetiology and chronicity, proportion of male participants, participant age, and the number of emotions used within a perception task may contribute to these contradictory findings. The present study therefore controlled and/or directly examined the influence of these possible moderators. Right brain-damaged (RBD; n = 17), left brain-damaged (LBD; n = 17), and healthy control (HC; n = 34) participants completed two face perception tasks (identification and discrimination). No group differences in facial expression perception according to valence were found. Across emotions, the RBD group was less accurate than the HC group, however RBD and LBD group performance did not differ. The lack of difference between RBD and LBD groups indicates that both hemispheres are involved in positive and negative expression perception. The inclusion of older adults and the well-defined chronicity range of the brain-damaged participants may have moderated these findings. Participant sex and general face perception ability did not influence performance. Furthermore, while the RBD group was less accurate than the LBD group when the identification task tested two emotions, performance of the two groups was indistinguishable when the number of emotions increased (four or six). This suggests that task demand moderates a study’s ability to find hemispheric differences in the perception of facial emotion.     

Relationships between match activities and peak power output and Creatine Kinase responses to professional reserve team soccer match-play

The specific movement demands of soccer that are linked to post-match recovery and readiness to train are unclear. Therefore, we examined the relationship between Global Positioning System (GPS) variables and the change (Δ; from baseline) in Creatine Kinase (CK) concentrations and peak power output (PPO; during the countermovement jump) at 24 h and 48 h post-match. Fifteen English Premier League reserve team players were examined over 1–4 matches. Measurements of CK and PPO were taken before (24 h prior to match-play) and after (+24 h and +48 h) each game during which movement demands were quantified using 10 Hz GPS data. High intensity distance covered (r = 0.386, p = 0.029; r = −0.349; p = 0.050), high intensity distance covered⋅min⁻¹ (r = 0.365, p = 0.040; r = −0.364, p = 0.040), high speed running distance (r = 0.363, p = 0.041; r = −0.360, p = 0.043) and the number of sprints⋅min⁻¹ (r = 0.410, p = 0.020; r = −0.368, p = 0.038) were significantly related to ΔCK and ΔPPO at +24 h post-match, respectively. No relationships were observed between any match variables and ΔCK and ΔPPO after +48 h of recovery. These findings highlight that high intensity match activities are related to ΔCK and ΔPPO in the 24 h, but not 48 h, following soccer match-play. Such information is likely of interest to those responsible for the design of soccer player’s training schedules in the days following a match.     

Meta-analytic evidence for higher implicit affiliation and intimacy motivation scores in women,compared to men

We used meta-analysis to test for gender differences in implicit needs for affiliation/intimacy, assessed via story-coding methods. We included thirty-three effect sizes from 26 publications and 2 unpublished studies, covering a total of 5962 research participants (58% female). Across studies, women scored higher than men in measures of implicit affiliation motivation (d¹ = 0.45, 95%CI = [0.37; 0.53]). This finding was not moderated by the coding system used, gender congruence of the picture cues presented, or correction for protocol length. Men and women did not differ in their implicit needs for power (N = 2493, k = 15, d¹ = −0.19, 95%CI = [−0.44; 0.05]) or achievement (N = 2235, k = 13, d¹ = 0.14, 95%CI = [−0.03; 0.30]).     

Identification of biological and environmental risk factors for language delay: The Let's Talk STEPS study

The aim of this population-based study was to identify demographic factors for language delays at an early age. The risk analysis covered 11 biological and 8 environmental factors. The mothers’ concerns regarding language development were also examined. A total of 226 children from a Finnish cohort study were invited to participate in language assessments at 36 months. The test results for word finding and language comprehension were compared with parental questionnaires about children's vocabulary at 13 and 24 months.Regression analysis revealed that the father's social class (t = −2.79, p = 0.006) and working full time (t = −2.86, p = 0.005) significantly predicted children's language delay. In addition, language comprehension was significantly predicted by the mother's social class (t = −2.06, p = 0.041) and by gender, with an advantage to girls (t = −2.71, p = 0.008). Vocabulary at 24 months was a powerful predictor for lexical development (t = 4.58, p < 0.0001) and language comprehension (t = 4.85, p < 0.0001) at 36 months. Mothers’ concerns were correlated with children's limited lexicons as early as 24 months (r = 0.31, p < 0.0001) and poor language comprehension (r = −0.35, p < 0.0001) at 36 months. Mothers were especially concerned if the parents needed special education during school years.At the population-level, gender was the most powerful biological factor in predicting language delays. Similarly, both parents’ social status had predictive value for the child's language development. In addition, it was found that the mother's concern about her child's slow language acquisition should be taken into account when making decisions regarding special support.     

Maternal postpartum depressive symptoms and infant externalizing and internalizing behaviors

Maternal postpartum depression has been shown to be one of the main predictors of externalizing and internalizing behaviors in toddlers and adolescents. Research suggests that presence of such behaviors can be observed as early as infancy. The current study uses longitudinal data from 247 mothers to examine the relationship between postpartum depressive symptoms at 8 weeks and the infant's externalizing and internalizing behaviors at 12 months. In unadjusted linear regression models, there were associations between postpartum depressive symptoms and infant externalizing behaviors (β = 0.082, SE = 0.032, p = 0.012) and internalizing behaviors (β = 0.111, SE = 0.037, p = 0.003). After controlling for potential confounding factors, including maternal age, race, education, home ownership, smoking status in the postpartum period, marital status, parenting stress, and happiness from becoming a parent, the associations between postpartum depressive symptoms and infant externalizing (β = 0.051, SE = 0.034, p = 0.138) and internalizing behaviors (β = 0.077, SE = 0.040, p = 0.057) were reduced and became non-significant. Furthermore, in these models the total amount of variance explained was 17.2% (p < 0.0001) for externalizing behaviors and 10.5% (p < 0.01) for internalizing behaviors; the only significant predictor of externalizing behaviors was maternal age (β = −0.074, SE = 0.030, p = 0.014), and of internalizing behaviors was white non-Hispanic ethnicity (β = −1.33, SE = 0.378, p = 0.0005). A combined effect of the confounding factors seems to explain the finding of no significant independent association between postpartum depressive symptoms and infant externalizing and internalizing behaviors.     

Validation française d’une version brève de l’Échelle de satisfaction maritale

IntroductionFew measuring instruments of couple satisfaction maximizing the individual perception of the relationship exists in French. Settings such as Liaison psychiatry of a general hospital could benefit from a questionnaire adapting to a variety of clinical profiles.ObjectiveThis article proposes a French revision and validation of the Marital Satisfaction Scale (MSS; Roach, Frazier, and Bowden, 1981), a 48-item self-reported questionnaire designed to evaluate personal satisfaction towards one's couple relationship.MethodA sample of 349 community-dwelling individuals aged 20–85 answered the MSS, the Dyadic Adjustment Scale (DAS; Spanier, 1976), and a series of inquiries related to sociodemographics. As an initial Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) did not validate the unidimensional structure postulated by the original authors, the item number was reduced to 14.ResultsThis brief version of the scale (MSS-14) was subsequently validated with an internal replication analysis, a strong criterion-related validity with the DAS (r_s = 0.73, P < 0.001), an excellent internal consistency (α = 0.961, IC à 95% [0.955, 0.967]), a strong test-retest reliability (r_s = 0.90, CI à 95% [0.85, 0.93], P < 0.001, Z = − 0.033, P = 0.973), and strong item-to-total correlations (> 0.69). The MSS-14 could differentiate individuals with and without marital distress (AUC = 0.97), while no sociodemographic variable seemed to have a significant influence on couple satisfaction.ConclusionThe MSS-14 appears to be a reliable instrument to assess the personal satisfaction towards a couple relationship in community-dwelling adults.     

Effects of whole body vibration on spasticity and lower extremity function in children with cerebral palsy

AimThe aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of whole body vibration (WBV) on lower extremity spasticity and ambulatory function in children with cerebral palsy (CP) with a complete crossover design.MethodSixteen participants aged 9.8(2.3) years received a 20-min WBV and a control condition in a counterbalanced order on two separate days. Change scores of each outcome variable were used to show the improvement.ResultsRepeated-measures analyses revealed significant differences in condition scores among variables including active range-of-motion (active ROM, increased), relaxation index (RI, increased), Modified Ashworth Scale (MAS, decreased), timed up-and-go (TUG, decreased), and Six Minute Walk Test (6MWT, increased). Significant differences were also found in time change scores for MAS and 6MWT. Correlation results revealed that TUG was significantly correlated with RI (r = −.512, p = .042), and 6MWT (r = −.700, p = .003).InterpretationThis study suggested that WBV intervention can control the spasticity, enhance ambulatory performance and increase active ROM. Along with previous results, data from this study revealed the potential use of WBV in clinical rehabilitation in children with CP. Future investigations should focus on finding the combination of treatment frequency and duration to achieve an ideal result.