Economic Adversity and Depressive Symptoms in Mothers: Do Marital Status and Perceived Social Support Matter?

Over the past decade there has been increasing interest in the idea that marriage and perhaps other forms of interpersonal support can buffer the negative effects of poverty. The current study tests the hypothesis that marital status, perceived social support and neighborhood collective efficacy can moderate the effects of economic adversity on depressive symptoms among parents. Hierarchical Linear Modeling was used to analyze data from the Project on Human Development in Chicago Neighborhoods. Participants were 1,957 mothers of minor children. Analysis of main effects revealed associations between neighborhood SES (β = ?0.69, SE (0.15), p < .001), family income (β = ?0.11, SE (0.05), p = .02) financial strain (β = 0.51, SE (0.18), p = .004), being single (β = 0.63, SE (0.24), p = .009) and perceived social support (β = ?0.22, SE (0.03), p < .001) on depressive symptoms. The hypothesis that interpersonal resources can buffer the effects of economic adversity was not supported. There were no significant interactions between marital status and economic adversity. There was a significant interaction between perceived social support and neighborhood level socioeconomic status (β = ?0.07, SE (0.03), p = .04) but the effects of social support were weakest in neighborhoods characterized by low socioeconomic status.     

Career adaptability,hope and life satisfaction in workers with intellectual disability

The unpredictable and unstable current work market is impacting in particular at-risk workers, such as individuals with disability. Based on Life Design approach, the present study focused on two variables, career adaptability and hope, relevant to coping with the current work context and their role in affecting life satisfaction. A partial mediational model between career adaptability and life satisfaction, through agency and pathway (hope), was tested. 120 (60 women and 60 men) adult workers with mild intellectual disability were involved. Results provided support for the model. Specifically, career adaptability indirectly, through agency and pathway, predicted life satisfaction. These results have important implications for practice and underscore the need to support workers with disability in their life design process.     

Core work evaluation: The viability of a higher-order work attitude construct

A great deal of research examining work attitudes has shown that they are related to important employee behaviors. Most of this research has parsed attitudes into ever more refined assessments of specific features of the work environment. Although this research has yielded valuable insights, for practical, theoretical, and empirical reasons we argue that an examination of a more global evaluative summary of the work environment is needed. In the present study we develop, conceptualize, and provide empirical evidence for a global work attitude construct called Core Work Evaluation (CWE). The conceptual foundation for CWE is drawn from classic and modern theory on attitudes and attitude formation. To test our theoretical assertions we follow recent recommendations for the development of higher order constructs in a series of three empirical studies. The results found that CWE: (1) explains meaningful shared variance across the more specific indicators (job satisfaction, organizational commitment, and work engagement) that is not merely the result of common method variance, (2) is distinguishable from nonevaluative features of the work environment and stable individual differences, and (3) predicts important work-related outcomes above and beyond its constituent indicators. Overall the results provided evidence of the viability of the CWE construct.     

Testing a longitudinal social cognitive model of intended persistence with engineering students across gender and race/ethnicity

We examined the temporal relations within Lent et al.'s (2013) integrative SCCT model of academic satisfaction and intended persistence in a sample of 551 engineering undergraduates from a Hispanic serving institution. They completed measures of instrumentality, support, self-efficacy, outcome expectations, interests, academic satisfaction, and intended persistence at two time points approximately 12 months apart. Using longitudinal cross-panel design, the findings supported a model where: (a) instrumentality predicted self-efficacy, (b) self-efficacy was a temporal precursor for both interests and academic satisfaction, (c) support was a temporal precursor for outcome expectations, while also predicting academic satisfaction, (d) academic satisfaction and intended persistence had a reciprocal relation with one another, and (e) relations in the model did not differ by gender or race/ethnicity. Implications for future research and practice are discussed.     

Gay and Lesbian Couples in Italy: Comparisons with Heterosexual Couples

Assessing couple relationships across diverse languages and cultures has important implications for both clinical intervention and prevention. This is especially true for nontraditional relationships potentially subject to various expressions of negative societal evaluation or bias. Few empirically validated measures of relationship functioning have been developed for cross‐cultural applications, and none have been examined for their psychometric sufficiency for evaluating same‐sex couples across different languages and cultures. The current study examined the psychometric properties of an Italian translation of the Marital Satisfaction Inventory – Revised (MSI‐R), a 150‐item 13‐scale measure of couple relationship functioning, for its use in assessing the intimate relationships of gay and lesbian couples in Italy. Results for these couples were compared to data from heterosexual married and unmarried cohabiting couples from the same geographical region, as well as to previously published data for gay, lesbian, and unmarried heterosexual couples from the United States. Findings suggest that, despite unique societal pressures confronting Italian same‐sex couples, these relationships appear resilient and fare well both overall and in specific domains of functioning compared to heterosexual couples both in Italy and the United States.     

Satisfaction profile (SAT-P) in 732 patients: Focus on subjectivity in hrqol assessment

Abstract

A 32-item questionnaire aimed at assessing patient's satisfaction about every day life is presented. In the Satisfaction Profile (SAT-P) patients are asked to evaluate their own satisfaction level on 32 daily life aspects concerning the last month. 732 participants were enrolled into the study: 490 in-patients suffering from different types of chronic diseases (e.g., chronic heart failure, severe respiratory failure, coronary heart disease) and 242 healthy persons of working age. SAT-P validity was confirmed by comparing its scores with the NHP, EPQ and STAI-X2 scores. The factor analysis extracted 5 factors which corresponded to the hypothesised areas (54% of variance explained). Test-retest reliability and internal consistency were confirmed: Pearson's coefficients were ranging from 0.45 to 0.93 and Cronbach's alpha coefficient was 0.92. SAT-P responsiveness, evaluated by comparing baseline and 6 months follow up scores from 45 chronic heart failure patients, resulted to be satisfatory, although further studies are needed. These results, together with the “user-friendly” structure, the brief administration and scoring time, the simple graphic representation, suggest to consider the SAT-P a useful complementary tool in HRQoL assessment. The Italian, English and French versions are available.     

Perceived partner support and psychosexual adjustment to breast cancer

Support from a partner can play a key role in a woman's emotional adjustment to breast cancer. However, little is known about the influence of partner behaviours on a woman's sexual adjustment. This study examined the prospective relationship between baseline levels of several types of perceived partner support (instrumental, informational, emotional and negative) and psychosexual adjustment (sexual functioning and relationship satisfaction) over the course of 12 months post-surgery in a sample of 130 women with breast cancer. Results indicated that perceptions of greater emotional and informational support from the partner at baseline were associated with less sexual difficulties among breast cancer patients concurrently and 6 months post-surgery. Baseline perceptions of greater emotional and instrumental support from a partner were associated with greater relationship satisfaction at all time points. Perceptions of informational support at baseline were related to greater concurrent relationship satisfaction. Baseline perceptions of negative partner support were related to less relationship satisfaction, but only concurrently. These findings suggest that the perception of a partner's provision of emotional, instrumental and informational support may each play a role in facilitating sexual adjustment and relationship satisfaction.     

Patient and spouse perceptions of the patient's heart disease and their associations with received and provided social support and undermining

Numerous empirical studies have investigated the relationships between cardiovascular diseases (CVD) and patients’ psychological well-being, with a focus almost exclusively on its dark side. Very little is known on the impact of illness severity on both negative and positive indicators of patients’ well-being, as well as on the psychosocial variables that may mediate this association. Aim of the study was to investigate the impact of illness severity on depression as well as on health satisfaction and life satisfaction of patients undergoing a cardiovascular rehabilitation. It also aimed at testing the mediation of illness perception and self-efficacy beliefs in managing cardiac risk factors. The study involved 172 patients (mean age?=?66.43?years; SD?=?9.99?years; 76.2% men). Illness severity was measured in terms of left ventricular ejection fraction at discharge from the cardiology department, whereas all psychological dimensions were assessed one week later. Results showed significant relationships among illness severity, depression and health satisfaction that were fully mediated by illness perception and self-efficacy beliefs, but not significant relation between disease severity and life satisfaction (χ ²(1)?=?2.30, p?=?n.s.). Overall, findings underline the importance of working on illness perception and self-efficacy beliefs to contrast depression and to improve health and life satisfaction in patients with CVD.     

The differential effects of acute marital distress on emotional,physiological and immune functions in maritally distressed men and women

Abstract

We examined the impact of acute marital conflict on emotion, cardiovascular arousal, and immune function in men and women. Subjects were 10 heterosexual, distressed couples, who panicipated in exchange for marital therapy. Each couple participated in a 40 minute conflict induction regarding an area of difficulty in their relationship. During this induction, blood pressure and heart rate were monitored and blood samples were drawn pre- and post-induction for analysis of immune change. Women responded to the experimental induction with significantly greater increases in depression and hostility, and with significantly greater increases in SBP than men. Women also responded to the acute marital distress with slight decreases in lymphocyte proliferative response to PHA, while men displayed an increase in PHA response. The sex by time interaction was significant Change in PHA was associated with change in hostility and SBP.