Impact of maternal adverse childhood experiences on child socioemotional function in rural Kenya: Mediating role of maternal mental health

Mothers in low‐ and middle‐income countries (LMIC) suffer heightened vulnerability for adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), which is exacerbated by the multitude of risk factors associated with poverty and may lead to increased risk of psychiatric disorder. The constellation of complex, co‐occurring biological, environmental, social, economic and psychological risk factors are in turn transmitted to her child, conferring vulnerability for adverse development. This study examines the association between maternal intra‐ and extra‐familial ACEs, maternal education and the mental health of her child, mediated by maternal mental health. Mother‐child dyads (n = 121) in Machakos, Kenya were examined cross‐sectionally using self‐report measures of ACEs, maternal mental health and child internalizing and externalizing mental health problems. The four models proposed to examine the relationship between intra‐ and extra‐familial maternal ACEs and child internalizing and externalizing problems demonstrated indirect pathways through maternal mental health. These effects were found to be conditional on levels of maternal education, which served as a protective factor at lower levels of maternal ACEs. These models demonstrate how the impact of ACEs persists across the lifespan resulting in a negative impact on maternal mental health and conferring further risk to subsequent generations. Elucidating the association between ACEs and subsequent intergenerational sequelae, especially in LMIC where risk is heightened, may improve targeted caregiver mental health programs for prevention and intervention.     

Hidden reality: sexual sphere in brain tumor patients

Most reports emphasize that tumors and their treatments affect sexual function. To date, no studies have focused on sexual functioning in patients with brain tumors. Our study’s objective is to describe the sexual sphere of patients with brain tumors and examine the possible differences between patients who reported sexual dysfunctions and those who did not with respect to their psychological and functional status. We tested 46 patients with brain tumors. We used an ad hoc questionnaire to assess patients’ subjective perception of their own sexual sphere. To assess patients’ psychological status, we used the following questionnaires: Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale; Psychological Distress Inventory; EORTC QLQ-C30; EORTC QLQ-BN20. Fifty-eight percent of patients reported sexual disturbance. Our data showed that a lack of or decrease in sexual desire is the most common sexual problem reported by our patients (56%). Patients with sexual problems reported higher levels of anxiety and depression and a worse self-reported quality of life (QoL) than did those who did not perceive adverse changes in their sexual sphere. In addition, we found that patients with a better performance status (KPS) reported more changes in sexual behaviors than did those who had performance difficulties. Of the patients, 15.2% received information regarding possible changes in the sexual sphere by physicians. Additionally, 10.8 of 15.2% of the patients reported having explicitly requested information from physicians. The study demonstrated a relation between QoL and sexual function. Therefore, it would be important to encourage clinicians to ask questions regarding patients’ sexual issues, thus providing them with an opportunity to expose their difficulties and receive adequate support.     

Psychological health in long-term cancer survivorship: an Italian survey on depression and anxiety

Since long-term survivorship is now a reality for an increasingly number of people with a history of cancer, understanding their psychological health can inform health care policy as well as help supporting individual patients. This study was aimed to describe depression and anxiety (i.e. two of the most common psychological symptoms reported in oncology) in a sample of Italian long-term cancer survivors (LTCSs) defined as people who have been free from cancer and cancer treatments for at least five years. Four hundred and four Italian adult LTCSs completed a battery of questionnaires including the Zung Self-rating Depression Scale and the State Anxiety sub-scale of the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory respectively for depression and anxiety assessment. 16.5% of the sample displayed mild depression, 11.1% moderate depression, and 7.1% severe depression. depression was negatively associated with education (p = .017), perceived social support as provided by the family (p = .028), and perceived social support provided by friends (p = .008), and it was positively associated with occupational status (p = .023), presence of health issues (p = .010), and anxiety (p < .001). 8.7 and 15.8% of the sample were respectively possible and probable cases of anxiety. Anxiety was negatively associated with occupational status (p = .038) and it was positively associated with depression (p < .001). These data support ongoing assessment and monitoring of depression and anxiety in LTCSs, and stimulate the development and testing of psychological interventions for such individuals. In addition, they encourage further study on the psychological health of this specific population.     

Avian movements in a modern world: cognitive challenges

Different movement patterns have evolved as a response to predictable and unpredictable variation in the environment with migration being an adaptation to predictable environments, nomadism to unpredictable environments and partial migration to a mixture of predictable and unpredictable conditions. Along different movement patterns, different cognitive abilities have evolved which are reviewed and discussed in relation to an organism’s ability to respond to largely unpredictable environmental change due to climate and human-induced change, and linked to population trends. In brief, migrants have a combination of reliance on memory, low propensity to explore and high avoidance of environmental change that in combination with overall small brain sizes results in low flexibility to respond to unpredictable environmental change. In line with this, many migrants have negative population trends. In contrast, while nomads may use their memory to find suitable habitats, they can counteract negative effects of finding such habitats disturbed by large-scale exploratory movements and paying attention to environmental cues. They are also little avoidant of environmental change. Population trends are largely stable or increasing indicating their ability to cope with climate and human-induced change. Cognitive abilities in partial migrants are little investigated, but indicate attention to environmental cues coupled with high exploratory tendencies that allow them a flexible response to unpredictable environmental change. Indeed, their population trends are mainly stable or increasing. In conclusion, cognitive abilities have evolved in conjunction with different movement patterns and affect an organism’s ability to adapt to rapidly human-induced changes in the environment.     

The gender effect in 3D-Mental-rotation performance with familiar and gender-stereotyped objects – a study with elementary school children

The study examined the influence of gender-stereotyped stimuli rotated in depth on children’s mental-rotation performance. Participants included 321 elementary school children who completed three-dimensional mental-rotation tasks with either male- or female-stereotyped stimuli (M-MRT-3D/F-MRT-3D). Results suggest that in-depth tasks are very difficult for second graders. No gender effect was found in the mental-rotation performance of 7- to 9-year-old children; however, task understanding indicates gender differences. For fourth graders, a significant interaction of gender and stimulus type could be demonstrated. Furthermore, results indicate that fourth-grade boys tend to guess more often in tasks with stimuli consistent to the respective own gender. In addition, regression analyses showed that next to grade and perceptual speed, the perceived level of stimulus familiarity predicted performance. Considering a possible link between dimensionality and familiarity, the influence of the gender-stereotyped stimuli on children’s confidence and task understanding as well as on transformational processes and strategy efficiency is discussed.     

Preparing the Field for Feasibility Testing of a Parenting Intervention for War‐Affected Mothers in Northern Uganda

In this article, we discuss the successful implementation of an adapted evidence‐based parenting intervention for families affected by two decades of war in Northern Uganda. The adaptation and adoption of such interventions to support mental health and family functioning is widely endorsed by prevention scientists and considered a priority in global mental health. The preparation and early adoption phases of engaging with a highly vulnerable community affected by war trauma are documented in this paper along with a discussion of the steps taken to adapt a parenting intervention for cultural and contextual fit. This study is a component of an overall program of research aimed at reducing the long‐term negative effects of war on parenting practices and childhood outcomes, which have considerable implications for preventing mental, neurological, and substance‐use disorders. The processes described here cover a 4‐year period culminating in the implementation of the nine‐session Enhancing Family Connection intervention piloted with a group of 14 mothers. The lessons in cultural adaptation have been valuable and the feasibility results promising for further testing the intervention.     

Regulatory mode and willingness to increase retirement savings contributions

This study examined how two self‐regulatory modes, locomotion and assessment, relate to the willingness to increase retirement savings. Locomotion is concerned with making things happen (“just do it”). Assessment is concerned with critical evaluation (“do the right thing”). We hypothesized that individuals who score high (vs. low) in locomotion, but not those who score high (vs. low) in assessment, would be more willing to increase their savings for retirement. In addition, because high (vs. low) assessment can lead to doing the right thing in terms of seeking to maximize economic returns, we hypothesized that combining high locomotion with high assessment would especially motivate willingness to increase retirement savings. We found support for both hypotheses from a survey of university employees.     

Gender and leadership aspiration: Interpersonal and collective elements of cooperative climate differentially influence women and men

Female leaders remain a minority. Because leadership aspiration is a predictor of advancement, understanding stimulating conditions is important. A neglected perspective is the impact of organizational climate. We propose that cooperative climate can engender individuals’ motivation to contribute to the organization through leadership, and that leadership aspiration of women and men is differentially sensitive to interpersonal and collective aspects of cooperative climate. We argue that women are more disposed toward relational self‐construal and men toward collective self‐construal, and hence women's leadership aspiration is more influenced by the interpersonal element of cooperative climate whereas men's leadership aspiration by the collective element of cooperative climate. Results of a survey of N = 404 employed men and women supported both hypotheses.     

Self-concept clarity buffers the impact of societal threat to safety on right-wing authoritarianism

Exposure to societal threat can elicit an increase in right-wing authoritarianism (RWA). In this study, using a quasi-experimental vignette design (Italian community sample, N = 86), we tested the moderating role of self-concept clarity (SCC). A moderated regression showed that manipulated societal threat to safety fostered RWA only among low SCC scorers. It is concluded that SCC is an important resource for individuals facing threat conditions.