The Role of Romantic Involvement and Social Support in Italian Adolescent Mothers’ Live

This study examined the experience of mothering in adolescence in the context of romantic involvement and social support. 30 adolescent mothers completed measures of adolescent self-development and motherhood, romantic relationship experience, availability of and satisfaction with social support, and parenting stress. Findings suggest that young mothers benefit greatly from the support of a partner, as evidenced by a more functional understanding of motherhood and the maternal role, greater satisfaction with social support, and lower levels of psychological distress. Education on social support should be made available to young mothers to address stress associated with adolescent parenting.     

Plasticity of brain and cognition in older adults

Aging is typically related to changes in brain and cognition, but the aging process is heterogeneous and differs between individuals. Recent research has started investigating the influence of cognitive and physical training on cognitive performance, functional brain activity, and brain structure in old age. The functional relevance of neural changes and the interactions among these changes following interventions is still a matter of debate. Here we selectively review research on structural and functional brain correlates of training-induced performance changes in healthy older adults and present exemplary longitudinal intervention studies sorted by the type of training applied (i.e., strategy-based training, process-specific training, and physical exercise). Although many training studies have been conducted recently, within each task domain, the number of studies that used comparable methods and techniques to assess behavioral and neural changes is limited. We suggest that future studies should include a multimodal approach to enhance the understanding of the relation between different levels of brain changes in aging and those changes that result from training. Investigating inter-individual differences in intervention-induced behavioral and neuronal changes would provide more information about who would benefit from a specific intervention and why. In addition, a more systematic examination of the time course of training-related structural and functional changes would improve the current level of knowledge about how learning is implemented in the brain and facilitate our understanding of contradictory results.     

Primary-secondary school transition under Covid-19: Exploring the perceptions and experiences of children,parents/guardians,and teachers

The transition from primary to secondary school is a major life event for eleven-year-old children in the United Kingdom, where they face simultaneous changes. Following the outbreak of Covid-19, transfer children face additional uncertainty on top of this. Negotiation of the multiple challenges, combined with the reduced support associated with Covid-19, could have a negative impact on children’s school adjustment and mental health. Given the rapidity of changes associated with Covid-19, there are key empirical and practical gaps on how best to support children as they negotiate these two key events. To date, there is no published research which has explored the experiences of transfer children, and that of their parents and teachers during this time. The present research aimed to narrow this research gap by answering the research question: What are parents’, children’s, and teachers’ experiences of primary-secondary school transition during Covid-19? This research used a series of UK wide surveys to gather data from 101 Year 7 children, 88 Year 7 parents, 26 primary school teachers, and 40 secondary school teachers using a mixture of open and closed questions. The data were analysed using Thematic Framework Analysis, taking an inductive-open coding approach. All three stakeholders reported negative impacts of Covid-19 on the transition, for example, in terms of missed opportunities. There were also many comments about the emotional impact of Covid-19 on children, parents, and teachers. Numerous strategies were reported that were used to meet children’s needs pre and post-transition, highlighting areas of good practice, along with practical suggestions for how to approach transition in the future. The study has identified ways that transition can be managed more effectively, thus, having short term implications in providing an evidence base to support transfer children this year, and long-term implications for future transition years.     

“Where Does it Come from?” Experiences Among Survivors and Parents of Children with Retinoblastoma in Kenya

Genetic testing and counseling have become integral to the timely control of heritable cancers, like the childhood eye cancer retinoblastoma. This study aimed to determine attitudes, knowledge and experiences related to retinoblastoma genetics, among survivors and parents of children with retinoblastoma in Kenya. This qualitative study used focus groups as the primary data collection method, coupled with a brief demographic questionnaire. Study settings were Kenyatta National Hospital and Presbyterian Church of East Africa Kikuyu Hospital. Thematic analysis was used to identify key themes. Thirty-one individuals participated in five focus groups. Two main concepts emerged: (1) the origins of retinoblastoma are unclear, and (2) retinoblastoma is associated with significant challenges. The lack of clarity surrounding the origins of retinoblastoma was linked to limited knowledge of retinoblastoma genetics, and limited genetic counseling delivery and uptake. The challenges associated with retinoblastoma were discussed in terms of the impact of the diagnosis on individuals and families, and unmet healthcare needs related to the diagnosis. Next steps will incorporate these findings to develop evidence-informed and accessible cancer genetic services in Kenya.     

The future of workplace commitment: key questions and directions

This position paper presents the state-of-the art of the field of workplace commitment. Yet, for workplace commitment to stay relevant, it is necessary to look beyond current practice and to extrapolate trends to envision what will be needed in future research. Therefore, the aim of this paper is twofold, first, to consolidate our current understanding of workplace commitment in contemporary work settings and, second, to look into the future by identifying and discussing avenues for future research. Representative of the changing nature of work, we explicitly conceptualize workplace commitment in reference to (A) “Temporary work”, and (B) “Cross-boundary work”. Progressing from these two themes, conceptual, theoretical and methodological advances of the field are discussed. The result is the identification of 10 key paths of research to pursues, a shared agenda for the most promising and needed directions for future research and recommendations for how these will translate into practice.     

Selective effects of motor expertise in mental body rotation tasks: comparing object-based and perspective transformations

Brain imaging studies provide strong evidence for the involvement of the human mirror system during the observation of complex movements, depending on the individual's motor expertise. Here, we ask the question whether motor expertise not only affects perception while observing movements, but also benefits perception while solving mental rotation tasks. Specifically, motor expertise should only influence the performance in mental body rotation tasks (MBRT) with left-right judgment, evoking a perspective transformation, whereas motor expertise should not affect the MBRT with same-different judgment, evoking an object-related transformation. Participants with and without motor expertise for rotational movements were tested in these two conditions in the MBRT. Results showed that motor experience selectively affected performance in the MBRT with the left-right judgment, but not with same-different judgment. More precisely, motor expertise only benefited performance when human figures were presented in (for non-experts) unfamiliar, upside-down body orientations.     

The theory of planned behaviour and breast self-examination: assessing the impact of past behaviour, context stability and habit strength

This study applied the theory of planned behaviour (TPB) to the prediction of breast self-examination (BSE) intentions and behaviour, and tested whether the frequency of past behaviour and context stability moderates intention-behaviour and habit-behaviour relations. Seventy-seven females completed measures of the TPB, frequency of past behaviour, context stability and habit strength (Self-Report Habit Index). BSE behaviour was assessed at 1-month follow-up (n?=?66). The TPB explained 33% of the variance in BSE intentions and 11% of the variance in time 2 BSE. The frequency of past behaviour moderated the intention-behaviour relationship such that the intention was only positively related to time 2 BSE behaviour when the frequency of past behaviour was low. Context stability and the combination of the frequency of past behaviour?×?context stability moderated the habit-behaviour relationship such that habit strength was only positively related to time 2 BSE behaviour when context stability and the combination of frequency of past behaviour?×?context stability were high. The results are consistent with the proposal that behaviours that are performed frequently in stable contexts are predominantly under the control of habitual processes, whereas behaviours that are performed infrequently in unstable contexts are predominantly under the control of intentional processes.     

Anxiety and Asthma Symptoms in Urban Adolescents with Asthma: The Mediating Role of Illness Perceptions

Twenty to 40% of adolescents with asthma experience significant symptoms of anxiety. This study examined the mediational role of illness perceptions in the relationship between anxiety and asthma symptoms in adolescents. One hundred fifty-one urban adolescents (ages 11–18) with asthma completed measures of illness perceptions, and anxiety and asthma symptoms. Using the Baron and Kenny approach and Sobel tests, we examined whether illness perceptions mediated the anxiety-asthma symptom relationship. Three illness perceptions significantly mediated the relationship between anxiety and asthma symptoms, z = 1.97–2.13, p < .05; adjusted R ² = 0.42–0.51, p < .05. Greater anxiety symptoms were associated with perceptions that asthma negatively impacted one’s life and emotions and was difficult to control. These negative illness perceptions were, in turn, related to greater asthma symptoms. Illness perceptions helped explain the anxiety-asthma symptoms link in adolescents. Results suggest that targeting illness perceptions in adolescents with asthma and anxiety may help reduce asthma symptoms.