Psychological characteristics and physiological reactivity to acute stress in mothers of children with autism spectrum disorder

Stress related to parenting a child with autism spectrum disorder can differently affect caregiver's physiological reactivity to acute stress. Here, parental stress levels, psychological characteristics, and coping strategies were assessed alongside measures of heart rate, heart rate variability, and cortisol during a psychosocial stress test in mothers of children with ASD (M‐ASD, n = 15) and mothers of typically developing children (n = 15). M‐ASD reported significantly higher levels of parental stress, anxiety, negative affectivity, social inhibition, and a larger preference for avoidance strategies. M‐ASD showed larger heart rate and cortisol responses to the psychosocial stress test. A positive relationship was found between parental stress levels and the magnitude of the cortisol stress response in both groups. The present findings indicate exaggerated physiological reactivity to acute psychosocial stress in M‐ASD and prompt further research to explore the role of individual differences in mediating the effects of parental stress on physiological stress responses.     

Cross-cultural perspectives on widowhood

Widowhood causes four problems: how to replace the functions of the dead spouse and those of the dead parent? who should inherit the property of the dead spouse/ parent? and, where should the surviving family live? Typical solutions to these problems are related to demographic characteristics of developing and developed countries.     

Measuring quality and level of care provided by family caregivers of persons with dementia: protocol for a systematic review of validated instruments

BackgroundChanges in the quality-of-life (QoL) of family caregivers as they care for their loved ones with dementia over time may affect the quality or level of care that these caregivers provide. We do not know if validated instruments exist to directly measure this quality or level of care. The purpose of this systematic review is to identify validated instruments for measuring the quality or level of care provided by family caregivers of persons with dementia.MethodsWe will include articles containing a validated instrument or questionnaire designed to measure quality or level of care provided by the aforementioned group of caregivers. The included articles may utilize the tools in primary or secondary data analyses, or evaluate the tools'' psychometric properties. The following electronic databases will be searched from inception date to the present: Medline, CINAHL Complete, Cochrane Central, and PsycINFO. We will also search the gray literature, the reference lists of included articles, and contact experts in the field to help identify relevant instruments. Included articles will be required to report on an instrument measuring at least one of the following outcomes: quality of care, level of care, appropriateness of care, amount of time spent providing care, and caregiver performance. Two reviewers will independently screen retrieved citations, extract data, and assess the methodological quality of each included article. A narrative synthesis method will be used to describe the findings.DiscussionResults of this systematic review will show whether validated instruments exist to measure the quality or level of care provided by family caregivers of persons living with dementia. This will make it possible to develop initiatives that are targeted towards improving the quality or level of care provided by family caregivers.     

COVID-19 and the Need for Adult Day Services

COVID-19 has shone a harsh light on the inequities of health care in the United States, particularly in how we care for older people. We summarize some of the effects of lockdown orders on clients, family caregivers, and staff of adult day service programs throughout the United States, which may serve as a counterpoint to scientific evidence suggesting a lack of efficacy of these programs. Given the ramifications of state lockdown orders for users and staff of the long-term services and support system, we provide recommendations to better support community-based programs and those they serve. Specifically, (1) adult day programs should be classified as essential, (2) a focus on the value of adult day and similar programs is needed, and (3) an exploration of new ways to finance home and community-based services is warranted. Such advances in policy and science would help to integrate adult day services more effectively into the broader health care landscape.     

基于IMB模型的初产妇及配偶双主体母乳喂养健康教育

目的 探讨基于信息—动机—行为技巧模型(IMB模型)的初产妇及配偶双主体线上孕妇学校课程母乳喂养健康教育的实施效果.方法 便利选取行剖宫产术的初产妇及配偶为研究对象,随机分为两组,入住产科A区(n=63)为对照组,按常规以初产妇为主体实施母乳喂养健康教育;入住产科B区(n=64)为观察组,实施基于IMB模型的初产妇及配偶双主体线上孕妇学校课程的母乳喂养健康教育管理.比较干预前后两组父亲支持母乳喂养自我效能、初产妇母乳喂养自我效能和产后6周内纯母乳喂养率.结果 干预后观察组父亲支持母乳喂养自我效能、初产妇母乳喂养自我效能评分和产后6周内纯母乳喂养率显著高于对照组(均P＜0.01).结论 基于IMB模型的初产妇及配偶双主体线上孕妇学校课程的健康教育可发挥初产妇配偶支持母乳喂养的积极作用,提高初产妇母乳喂养自我效能和产后纯母乳喂养率.     

照料失能配偶对老年女性抑郁程度的影响--基于CHARLS数据的实证分析

目的:研究照料失能配偶对老年女性抑郁程度的影响。方法:利用“中国健康与养老追踪调查”2015年全国数据,通过工具变量回归进行分析。结果:相比于没有照料配偶的女性,参与配偶照料的女性抑郁得分更高(P<0.01)。结论:提供长期照料会增加老年女性的抑郁程度。制定老年长期照料政策时应关注女性照料者的心理健康。     

Supportive and Negative Responses in the Partner Relationship: Their Association with Psychological Adjustment Among Individuals with Cancer

This study examined the association between positive and negative aspects of spouse responses and psychological adjustment among 15S individuals with cancer. Two contextual variables, gender and disease-related functional impairment, were taken into account when examining the association between spouse responses and patient psychological distress and well-being. Results indicated that negative aspects of close relationships played a comparatively stronger role than positive aspects in their associations with both psychological distress and well-being. For negative spouse responses, patient gender did not moderate the effects of these responses upon psychological outcomes. For positive aspects of spouse support, both gender and functional disability moderated the association between spouse support and psychological outcomes. These findings are integrated with the general literature on positive and negative aspects of close relationships. Implications for clinical interventions are also discussed.