Resourcefulness and health practices of diabetic women

More than one fourth of the millions of Americans with Type 2 diabetes experience depression, of which two thirds are women. Unless the individual is resourceful, coexisting diabetes and depression adversely affect one' health practices. The effects of diabetic and depressive symptoms on health practices and the mediating and moderating role of learned resourcefulness in this relationship were examined in 90 women with Type 2 diabetes. Regression analyses showed direct negative effects of diabetic and depressive symptoms on health practices. The effects of depressive, but not diabetic, symptoms were partially mediated by resourcefulness; no moderating effects were found. The results suggest the need to test interventions to minimize symptoms associated with diabetes, particularly depression. Teaching resourcefulness to Type 2 diabetic women may promote their positive health practices by minimizing their depression.     

Longitudinal analysis of resourcefulness,family strain, and depressive symptoms in grandmother caregivers

Background

Grandmothers living with grandchildren face stressors that may increase depressive symptoms, but cognitive-behavioral strategies, such as resourcefulness, may reduce the effects of stressors on mental health.

Purpose

This analysis examined the contemporaneous and longitudinal relationships among intra-family strain, resourcefulness, and depressive symptoms in 240 grandmothers, classified by caregiving status to grandchildren.

Methods

Grandmothers raising grandchildren, grandmothers living in multigenerational homes, and non-caregivers to grandchildren reported on intra-family strain, resourcefulness, and depressive symptoms using mailed questionnaires at three time points over 5 years. Structural equation modeling was used to evaluate the mediating effects of resourcefulness and the relationships between variables.

Discussion

Grandmother caregiver status had significant effects on depressive symptoms and intra-family strain but not on resourcefulness. At all waves, higher resourcefulness was associated with fewer depressive symptoms, which reduced appraisals of intra-family strain.

Conclusions

Interventions focused on strengthening resourcefulness could reduce depressive symptoms over time.     

The mediating and moderating roles of the cognitive triad on adolescent suicidal ideation

BACKGROUND: Adolescent suicide has been a major concern in Taiwan and continues to be an important research issue for mental health workers. The cognitive triad, which refers to an adolescent's views of the self, the world, and the future, was found previously to be related to both depressive symptoms and suicidal ideation. However, researchers have paid less attention to exploring the roles of mediation and moderation which the cognitive triad plays in the relationship between depressive symptoms and suicidal ideation. OBJECTIVES: To test the mediating and moderating effects of the cognitive triad on the relationship between depressive symptoms and suicidal ideation in a sample of school-aged adolescents. METHODS: A cross-sectional and correlational design was used in this study. Instruments were administered anonymously to a sample of 1,245 school-aged adolescents recruited from nine middle and high schools of Taipei City. Instruments used included the Children's Depression Inventory, the Cognitive Triad Inventory for Children, and the Positive and Negative Suicide Ideation. RESULTS: Regression analysis revealed that the cognitive triad significantly mediated and moderated the relationship between depressive symptoms and suicidal ideation. CONCLUSIONS: These findings have implications for theoretical development and health policies related to suicide prevention programs in schools.     

Mediating and moderating effects of learned resourcefulness on depressive symptoms and positive ideation in hospital nurses in Taiwan

Learned resourcefulness (LR) is important in facilitating mental health in individuals experiencing depression, and positive ideation plays a further protective role in the prevention of suicidal ideation. The purpose of this study was to explore whether LR mediates or moderates the relationship between depressive symptoms and positive ideation in hospital nurses. Participants were 807 full‐time hospital nurses. The relationship between depressive symptoms and positive ideation was both mediated and moderated by LR after controlling for age, job title, and marital status. Continuing education and counseling strategies may increase nurses' LR and thereby enhance positive ideation and reduce risk of depression and suicide. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Res Nurs Health 35:576–588, 2012     

Stress Experiences and Mental Health of Pregnant Women: The Mediating Role of Social Support

Stress in pregnancy is an exceedingly common issue that impacts the mother’s mental health and the health of her baby. Yet, women with a supportive network of friends and family may experience lower stress and improved mental health. Therefore, the aims of this secondary analysis were to (a) examine relationships between stress experiences (i.e. perceived stress, pregnancy-specific stress) and indicators of mental health (i.e. absence of depressive symptoms and resourcefulness), (b) determine the effects of social support on stress experiences and indicators of mental health, and (c) determine if social support mediates the relationship between stress experiences and indicators of mental health. A convenience sample of 82 women in their second and third trimester of pregnancy participated in the parent study. Findings indicate that stress experiences were moderately correlated with indicators of mental health and social support predicted stress experiences and indicators of mental health. All social support mediation models were not significant with the exception of social support mediating the relationship between pregnancy-specific stress and resourcefulness. This was the first study to investigate the mediating role of social support on the relationship between pregnancy-specific stress and resourcefulness. Pregnant women may benefit from social support interventions to meaningfully reduce their stress and promote mental health. Such interventions may be physical activity, group prenatal care, or even peripartum home visits.     

Loneliness,Stress, and Depressive Symptoms Among the Chinese Rural Empty Nest Elderly: A Moderated Mediation Analysis

This study aimed to explore the relationship of loneliness, perceived stress, and depressive symptoms among the Chinese rural empty nest elderly. The role of sense of coherence (SOC) as a moderating variable was investigated in a representative sample of older adults in Henan, China, from November 2016 to February 2017. Results indicated that perceived stress mediated the relationship between loneliness and depressive symptoms, and SOC acted as a moderator on this mediating model. The mediation effect of perceived stress was significant only when SOC was lower. The results emphasized the importance of perceived stress in older adults. SOC was a protective factor with regard to depressive symptoms, and improving SOC should be a focus of health promotion with the elderly.     

Relationships Among Perceived Burden,Depressive Cognitions,Resourcefulness, and Quality of Life in Female Relatives of Seriously Mentally Ill Adults

Providing care and support to a seriously mentally ill (SMI) family member can have deleterious effects on one's health and quality of life. This study explored relationships among perceived burden, depressive cognitions, resourcefulness, and quality of life in 60 African-American and Caucasian women family members of SMI adults. Caucasians reported greater burden than African-Americans; the groups were similar in depressive cognitions, resourcefulness, and quality of life. In Caucasians and African-Americans, burden correlated with depressive cognitions and both correlated with poorer mental health. In African-Americans, burden also correlated with lower personal resourcefulness and both correlated with poorer mental health. The findings suggest a mediating role by depressive cognitions for both groups and by resourcefulness in African-Americans. Thus, both groups of women may benefit from positive thinking while African-Americans also may benefit from learning personal resourcefulness skills.     

Anger correlated with psychosocial variables in rural youth

Uncontrolled anger is a contributing force in the three leading causes of adolescent death: homicide, suicide, and injuries. Anger may be one of the early warning signs which could lead to violent behavior. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between anger experience and expression with the potential correlates of life events, perceived social support, self-esteem, optimism, drug use, anxiety, and depressive symptoms in rural adolescents. The participants (n = 193) were aged 14 to 17 years old in ninth through eleventh grades enrolled at three rural Western Pennsylvania public high schools. Participants completed nine questionnaires. Negative life events, anxiety, drug use, and depressive symptoms had significant positive correlations with anger. In addition, anger was found to have significant negative correlations with the adolescents' perceived family support, self-esteem, and optimism. With this knowledge, health promotion programs conducted by pediatric nurses can target anxiety, drug use, and depressive symptoms while bolstering family support, self-esteem, and optimism to promote anger management in adolescent health care.     

Suicidal Ideation and Perceived Burdensomeness in Patients with Chronic Pain

There is a clear relationship between suicide risk and chronic pain conditions. However, the exact nature of this link has been poorly understood, with risk attribution often limited to comorbid depression. Perceived burdensomeness has already been confirmed as a risk factor for suicidal ideation (SI) and suicide attempt in the general population. Self‐perceived burden, studied among medically and terminally ill medical populations, has begun to receive a great deal of attention as a suicide risk factor. However, this risk has not been considered in an outpatient chronic pain population, a group likely to experience perceived burdensomeness as a particular problem. Guidelines recommend routine suicide risk screening in medical settings, but many questionnaires are time‐consuming and do not allow for the assessment of the presence of newly identified risk constructs, such as perceived burdensomeness. This retrospective study examined the relationship between depression, perceived burdensomeness, and SI in a patient sample seeking behavioral treatment for chronic pain management. A logistic regression model was developed, with preliminary results indicating perceived burdensomeness was the sole predictor of SI, even in the presence of other well‐established risk factors such as age, gender, depressive symptoms, and pain severity. Findings highlight the potential utility of a single‐item screening question in routine clinical care as an incrementally superior predictor of SI in a chronic pain population.     

Integrating Sociotropy,Negative Inferences and Social Stressors as Explanations for the Development of Depression in Adolescence: Interactive and Mediational Mechanisms

This study examined the conjoint contribution of sociotropy, negative inferences about social events, and social stressors to the development of depression in adolescents. This study tested the interactive and mediational mechanisms between these components from a transactional perspective of cognitive vulnerability and assessed the role of these mechanisms as explanations of gender differences in depression. Participants included 853 adolescents who completed measures of sociotropy, negative inferences about social events, and depressive symptoms at the beginning of the study, and measures of social stressors and depressive symptoms at a 6-month follow-up. An interactive model showed that the impact of negative inferences on depression was higher for adolescents who scored high on sociotropy. The mediational model suggested that negative inferences and stress generation mediated the association between sociotropy and the increase in depressive symptoms at follow-up. Higher scores on sociotropy and negative inferences accounted for the higher depressive symptoms observed among female adolescents. Finally, negative inferences, alone or interacting with social stressors, more strongly predicted the residual change in depressive symptoms for female than for male adolescents.     

Methamphetamine use and depressive symptoms among heterosexual men and women

This study investigated the relationship between intensity of methamphetamine use and depressive symptoms in a sample of 182 heterosexually identified methamphetamine users. Perceived stigma and social and health problems were hypothesized as potential mediators of the relationship between methamphetamine use and depressive symptoms. Forty per cent of the sample met criteria for moderate to severe depression. As hypothesized, the greater the intensity of methamphetamine use, the higher the levels of depressive symptoms. Results of the mediation analyses failed to identify mediating effects for stigma, social problems or health problems. However, perceived stigma had a significant positive direct effect on depressive symptoms. Gender, age and marital status also predicted higher levels of depression. This research suggests the need for drug treatment programmes to: (1) identify and treat depressive symptoms among methamphetamine users; and (2) address social and psychological issues, such as perceived stigma, in an effort to decrease depressive symptomatology and ultimately enhance programme effectiveness.     

Acceptance,cognitions, and resourcefulness in women with diabetes

The coexistence of diabetes and depression occurs frequently among young and middle-age women. Unless one is resourceful, simultaneous management of the symptoms of both conditions is especially challenging. Skills constituting resourcefulness are learned throughout life and are important for the optimal performance of daily activities. Little is known about specific factors that influence resourcefulness. In this study contextual factors (diabetic and depressive symptoms) and cognitive factors (positive cognitions and acceptance of diabetes) were examined as antecedents of learned resourcefulness in 82 women with type 2 diabetes. Regression analyses showed that depressive symptoms and positive cognitions were significant antecedents of learned resourcefulness: Positive cognitions mediated the effects of depressive symptoms on learned resourcefulness. The findings suggest the need for interventions thatfocus on development of positive cognitions to better promote resourcefulness in women with type 2 diabetes who are at risk for depression.     

How Illegal Drug Use,Alcohol Use,Tobacco Use,and Depressive Symptoms Affect Adolescent Suicidal Ideation: A Secondary Analysis of the 2011 Youth Risk Behavior Survey

The purpose of this study was to identify the major risk factors among adolescents who have either contemplated or attempted suicide. Along with successful suicides, suicide attempts and contemplation are coexisting factors that are prominent in the adolescent population and therefore warrant major concern. A secondary data analysis of the Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) was completed to explore the factors that may influence adolescents’ thoughts or actions about suicidal behavior. The YRBS represents high-school students throughout 50 states. Nine questions from the YRBS were used to elicit information about the relationships among the risk factors: (1) Suicidal thoughts and attempts; (2) illegal drug use; (3) alcohol use; (4) tobacco use; and (5) depressive symptoms. Statistically significant relationships among the risk factors were found for adolescents. Adolescents considered suicide (15.8%); attempted suicide at least once (7.8%); were injured while attempting suicide (n = 2.7%). Our findings support the idea that illegal substance use can lead to suicidal thoughts and actions. Depression had a positive relationship with suicidal ideations, supporting similar studies suggesting that depression leads to suicidal action.     

Health conditions,physical disabilities,perceived burdensomeness,and depressive symptoms influence suicidal ideation

The roles of perceived burdensomeness and depressive symptoms in the relationship between physical disabilities or health conditions and suicidal ideation warrant examination. The authors examined indirect effects using cross-sectional data from adults who answered questions online. The serial indirect effect of the number of physical disabilities on suicidal ideation through perceived burdensomeness and depressive symptoms was not significant, but the serial indirect effects of the combined number of physical disabilities and health conditions and number of health conditions on suicidal ideation through perceived burdensomeness and depression were each significant. For those with disabilities or health conditions, perceived burdensomeness may precede depressive symptoms in the development of suicidal ideation.     

Adaptive functioning and depressive symptoms in school-aged children

AIM: This paper is a report of a secondary data analysis to the hypothesis that a child's resourcefulness moderates the relationships between the primary female caregiver's variables (depressive symptoms and learned resourcefulness) and the child's outcomes (depressive symptoms and adaptive functioning). BACKGROUND: School-aged children between 10 and 12 years of age are at an important stage of development characterized by dramatic biological and psychosocial challenges. Maladaptive functioning and depressive symptoms increase markedly in this stage. To prevent long-term effects of depressive symptoms and impaired adaptive functioning, identifying moderators of the relationship between stress and these mental health indicators is critical. METHODS: A secondary analysis was conducted in 2004 using the data obtained in 2000 from a community-based sample of 122 school students aged 10-12 years and their primary female caregivers in four suburban public schools in Northeastern Ohio. Instruments included the Self-Control Schedule, Beck Depression Inventory, the Children's version of the Self-Control Schedule, the Children's Community Living Skills Scale, and the Children's Depression Inventory. FINDINGS: Children's resourcefulness significantly moderated the relationship between their female caregiver's depressive symptoms and their own adaptive functioning (P<0.01). Children's resourcefulness had a statistically significant impact on depressive symptoms and adaptive functioning (P<0.001). CONCLUSION: The key to reducing depressive symptoms and enhancing adaptive functioning among middle school children is to build their resourcefulness skills, especially in children whose female caregivers are depressed. This is an important role for school nurses.