The relationship among genital herpes simplex virus, stress, and social support

Despite widespread popular belief in the activation of recurrent lesions in genital herpes simplex virus (HSV) by psychosocial stress, little empirical evidence supports that contention. This study retrospectively examined the role of stress in activation of HSV lesions as mediated by social support. Participants were 59 volunteers who had self-reported culture-positive genital HSV for at least 10 months. Measures of stress proneness (State-Trait Anxiety Inventory; STAI-Trait), recent stressful events (Schedule of Recent Events; SRE), and subjective appraisal of stress (global self-rating) were administered along with measures of general social support and herpes-specific social support. When retrospective reports of HSV symptoms were examined using a multiple-regression approach, duration of disease and amount of herpes-specific social support were found to be significant moderators of the relation between stress and number of HSV recurrences in the preceding 12 months. When duration of disease was short (less than 4 years), stress (SRE) and number of recurrences were positively associated; when disease duration was longer, there was no relationship. Similarly, at low levels of herpes-specific social support, a positive relation between stress (SRE) and number of recurrences was found. However, at higher levels of herpes-specific social support, no association was found. No relation was found between stress proneness (STAI-Trait) and HSV symptoms. However, subjective appraisal (global rating) of stress in the preceding 12 months was positively and significantly correlated with reported number of recurrences. Results are discussed in terms of their clinical implications.     

Cognitive testing of an instrument to evaluate acceptability and use of pre-exposure prophylaxis products among women

Given the range of pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) products currently being tested to prevent HIV in women, a standardized Acceptability and Use of PrEP Products Among Women Tool may facilitate comparisons of product acceptability and use across different geographies, trials, and users. We conducted three rounds of cognitive interviewing over 2 months in 2016, with 28 South African women who had experience participating in a range of PrEP product trials. The final instrument contained 41 items, including five new items that improved construct validity and 22 items modified for clarity. Changes were made due to unclear wording, difficulty answering, participant embarrassment, low response variability, and administrative formatting. Cognitive interviewing provided a means to address issues that would have inhibited this tool's ability to accurately collect data otherwise. This rapid, low-cost study provided valuable insight into participants' understanding of questions and demonstrated the utility of cognitive interviewing in international clinical trials.     

Psychosocial aspects of genital herpes virus infection

Genital herpes virus infection is one of the most prevalent and perhaps the most emotionally difficult of the sexually transmitted diseases. This article examines the current empirical and clinical understanding of the psychosocial aspects of the disease and proposes a framework for future investigation. Psychosocial issues of importance in the disease are discussed and responses characteristic of the psychosocial adjustment process are presented. Evidence of the role of stress and psychosocial factors is reviewed. Finally, a biopsychosocial research approach to the psychoneuroimmunological mechanisms of the disease is suggested as a way of understanding etiology and process.     

A comparison of depression in children with and without mothers

The present research investigated depression in children with and without mothers. Differences in depression scores were tested by gender, socio-economic level, the cause of not having a mother, and the age of separation. The sample included 300 fourth and fifth grade elementary school children. Among them, there were 150 children (68 boys and 82 girls) who were living with their mothers and 150 (68 boys and 82 girls) who did not live with their mothers. Each group had an equal number of students (n=50) representing three different socio-economic levels (i.e., low, middle, high). Students in the sample came from 39 different public elementary schools. Children's ages varied between 10 and 12 years (M = 10.8, SD = .6). Teachers, administrators, and school counselors were asked to identify children without mothers. The children who were living with their mothers were randomly chosen. Results showed significant differences in depression between the two groups of children. Furthermore, there was a significant difference by socio-economic level. Depression of children without mothers is significantly associated with the cause of not having a mother and the age when the child was separated from the mother.     

The perceived vulnerability to disease scale: Cross-cultural measurement invariance and associations with fear of COVID-19 across 16 countries

Using cross-sectional data from N = 4274 young adults across 16 countries during the COVID-19 pandemic, we examined the cross-cultural measurement invariance of the perceived vulnerability to disease (PVD) scale and tested the hypothesis that the association between PVD and fear of COVID-19 is stronger under high disease threat [that is, absence of COVID-19 vaccination, living in a country with lower Human Development Index (HDI) or higher COVID-19 mortality]. Results supported a bi-factor Exploratory Structural Equation Modeling model where items loaded on a global PVD factor, and on the sub-factors of Perceived Infectability and Germ Aversion. However, cross-national invariance could only be obtained on the configural level with a reduced version of the PVD scale (PVD-r), suggesting that the concept of PVD may vary across nations. Moreover, higher PVD-r was consistently associated with greater fear of COVID-19 across all levels of disease threat, but this association was especially pronounced among individuals with a COVID-19 vaccine, and in contexts where COVID-19 mortality was high. The present research brought clarity into the dimensionality of the PVD measure, discussed its suitability and limitations for cross-cultural research, and highlighted the pandemic-related conditions under which higher PVD is most likely to go along with psychologically maladaptive outcomes, such as fear of COVID-19.     

Turkish adolescents' loneliness

The goal of this study was to characterize loneliness among adolescents with respect to socioeconomic level, sex, and mothers' and fathers' education. General information about the 400 adolescents and their families were obtained. The UCLA Loneliness Scale was administered. Results of a hierarchical multiple regression showed that mothers' educational level explained a slight but statistically significant amount of variance in adolescents' loneliness scores while sex, socioeconomic level and fathers' educational level did not.     

Correlations of conceptual development with motor skills for a Turkish sample of kindergarten children

The purpose was to research the conceptual development and motor skills of 36 healthy children of kindergarten age (M age = 67.6 mo., SD = 3.6). 19 girls and 17 boys completed the Bracken Basic Concept Scale-Revised and the Bruininks-Oseretsky Test of Motor Proficiency-Short Form.     

Association of depression in mothers of disabled children with the child's participation in integrated education

To measure depression in mothers of 5 to 7-yr.-old children with disabilities and to find out whether mothers' depression varied by sex of the child, 126 mothers from Ankara participated; 59 were mothers of children with disabilities who participated in integrated education and attended preschool classes in public schools and, as a comparison group, 67 were mothers of children with disabilities of similar age and characteristics who did not participate in integrated education while attending public and private schools. In the study, the Beck Depression Scale and General Information Forms were used. Depression in mothers of children with disabilities who did not participate in integrated education was higher than in mothers of children with disabilities who participated in integrated education.