<p> Increasingly, e-cigarettes are being used and claimed to be an effective means of smoking cessation. Clinical studies have been limited to the aspects of use pertaining to chemical dependence, yet little addiction research has examined the psychology of smoking cessation behavior utilizing e-cigarettes. Health behaviors, such as harm reduction in smoking through the use of nicotine replacement therapies, have been previously studied and several dispositional traits have been found to be highly related to these behaviors. These personality factors include Neuroticism and Conscientiousness, Self-Efficacy, Grit, and Hardiness. The present study aimed to determine psychological traits related to successful smoking cessation utilizing e-cigarettes using measures of NEO-FFI-3, GSE, DRS-II, and Grit-S. Results indicated that Self-Efficacy was a noteworthy factor associated with cessation with 6 months or more of e-cigarette use. A majority of the study participants did not concurrently smoke and use e-cigarettes. These findings support the potential of e-cigarettes as a replacement therapy and provide some insight into formulating interventions toward this end; however, smoking cessation attempts appeared to be inhibited from full success as a result of the efficacy of the replacement.</p>

<p>Objectives Past research has shown that low socioeconomic status (SES) and perceived discrimination are related to hypertension in African Americans. Past studies have used the Reserve Capacity Model (RCM; Gallo & Matthews, 2003; 2005; 2011) to understand these relationships which posits that stress can be mitigated by psychosocial resources which lead to healthy lifestyle behaviors predictive of cardiac health. However, few studies have examined the RCM resources to predict hypertension in African Americans and none have included discrimination as a stressor in the model. Methods We examined the mediational effects of RCM resources after low SES and discrimination experiences to predict health behavior (exercise) and hypertension in 1202 middle to older aged African Americans using structural equation modeling. Results Both low SES and perceived racial discrimination predicted a diagnosis of hypertension indirectly through levels of reserve capacity and exercise. Conclusions These findings provide support for the RCM as an explanatory framework for how social stressors affect health through modifiable psychosocial resources and health behaviors in middle to older aged African Americans.

There is considerable research on caregiving for individuals with various chronic illnesses, but there is relatively little research about caring for individuals with HIV/AIDS. Few studies have delved deeply into care recipients' and informal caregivers' subjective experiences of informal caregiving, the quality of the informal caregiving relationship, and their understanding of the impact of the relationship on the mental and physical wellbeing for both parties involved. Therefore, the goal of the project was to gain a better understanding of relationship quality in HIV informal caregiving relationships to determine if there are specific attributes that care recipients and caregivers perceive may contribute to the quality of the relationship and whether, and if so how, it subjectively impacts both parties involved. This project used a qualitative interview methodology (narrative analysis) to explore HIV positive care recipients' and their informal caregivers' subjective experiences. Due to the interdependence that is inherent in dyadic work, the data presented generally described both the receivers' and givers' experience together. Several themes emerged consistently across dyads, including caregiving being embedded into complex family structure and dynamics that accentuate normative feelings people have about their family or pre-existing relationships and caregiving creating learning curves with respect to how each member of each dyad learned about his or her self, as well as his or her partner, in addition to learning about HIV/AIDS, and informal caregiving. Several sub-themes emerged from the findings as well. Policy makers and health providers may benefit from understanding that caregiving is a dynamic activity that is ongoing across the lifespan and, depending on the age and health status of the caregiver, has important implications for the overall well-being of both the care recipient and the care provider.

<p> Instagram (IG) is a social media application that allows users to upload personal images in a public forum by including a searchable link (e.g. hashtag) along with a posted image. An IG community devoted to a pro-recovery (i.e., #anarecovery) perspective on eating disorders (EDs) stands alongside the pro-ana lifestyle IG community (i.e., #ana). Research has yet to examine the nature of visual representations associated with pro-ana and pro-recovery social media imagery and moreover, not much empirical attention has been given to the nature of this content on IG. Thus, the first aim of this qualitative content analysis was to examine how the underlying theoretical constructs of objectified body consciousness (OBC) and positive body image (PBI) were represented among #ana and #anarecovery content. A second aim was to compare the frequency of the themes present for #ana versus #anarecovery images. A coding guide was developed and high levels of interrater reliability were established for the primary codes (kappa &ge; .80). One hundred and fifty IG images each from #ana and #anarecovery were systematically coded. Within- and between-hashtag comparisons of images were performed using frequency counts and chi-square analyses. Within #ana images, the theme of body shame (62.7%) was more frequently depicted relative to body surveillance (22%) and appearance control (22%) themes. Within #anarecovery images, the theme of body protection was most prevalent (67.3%) followed by body functionality (38.7%) and body acceptance (11.3%) themes. All three OBC themes were more likely to be present in #ana images. Conversely, PBI themes of body protection and body functionality were more frequently represented in the #anarecovery images. The frequency of body acceptance themes did not differentiate the images sampled from both hashtags. This research calls for more expanded and distinguished definitions of the constructs that comprise the continuum of PBI. Findings also suggest how the lack of distinction in the frequency of body acceptance observed between the two hashtags may be clinically relevant for exploring potential risk factors that persist in the process of ED recovery.</p>

<p>The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore the perceptions of Latino males with type 2 diabetes regarding aspects of living with this condition. The sample consisted of 11 adult males. Semi-structured interviews were performed, applying a grounded theory approach. The men reported how culture had impacted their perceptions of diabetes, including the concepts of azucar, nervios, and susto. The men also described their sources of support and whether they were comfortable speaking to family and friends about sensitive topics. They also discussed how being a Latino male had affected their attitudes towards the illness and the various coping skills they were practicing to facilitate their diabetes management and relieve their feelings of sadness and stress associated with diabetes. The results suggest that social workers should provide education and support to Latino men and should provide them with a safe place to facilitate conversations about sensitive topics.

<p> Due to the deinstitutionalization movement, many mentally ill individuals have left asylum treatment centers and have had no safe housing. The purpose of this grounded theory study was to explore the attitudes and opinions of homeless, mentally ill people regarding the community resources they consume and how they perceive and navigate those resources. The research questions focused on homeless, mentally ill individuals' shared experiences accessing health care, psychiatric care, and housing services as well as, barriers that impacted homeless, mentally ill individuals' use of these services, and their needs to address these barriers. Data were collected using face to face, semi structured interviews with 12 homeless individuals. The thematic analysis consisted of open and axial coding. Axial coding was used to assign and like categories and subcategories of codes according to their properties and dimensions. Emergent patterns were identified from the data to explain the lived experiences of mentally ill homeless people and their opinion and attitudes towards navigating of mentally ill homeless programs. The responses expressed the needs that were unmet: lack of mental health assistance, food needs, hygiene needs, safety concerns and survival needs. In order to make positive social change outreach predicated on increasing clear communication between outreach workers and the homeless mentally ill allows for developing a trusting relationship necessary in establishing contact and credibility in providing on going impactful treatment for the homeless mentally ill population. </p><p>

<p> The ability to self-regulate cognitive, emotional, and physiological activity is integral to mental and physical health. Teaching these skills in early childhood is a promising preventative health intervention. Mindfulness-based Social Emotional Learning (MBSEL) programs aim to enhance social-emotional competencies and improve academic outcomes in classroom children. Barriers to implementing MBSEL programs include the need to alter existing classroom curricula, and allocating resources towards training classroom teachers or hiring an experienced mindfulness facilitator. Inner Explorer (IE) is a MBSEL program that uses audio-guided MP3 tracks to teach mindfulness in 10-minute daily sessions, minimizing classroom interference and negating the need for a facilitator. The current study evaluated the impact of IE on self-regulation skills and academic outcomes in 2^nd-4^th grade students and teachers in two Southern California elementary schools. Eighty-four students and seven teachers were assigned to either the IE or control group. Students were measured on mindfulness, executive functioning (EF), emotion regulation, and heart rate variability (HRV) at pre- and post-intervention. Teacher-rated grades (School 1 only), days absent and tardy (School 2 only), and social-emotional learning (SEL) scores were provided at the end of trimesters 1-3 (School 1) and semesters 1-2 (School 2). Teachers were measured on mindfulness at pre- and post-intervention. Students in the IE group did not show any pre-post differences in mindfulness, executive functioning, or emotion regulation compared to the control group. Contrary to hypothesis, the IE group showed a significant reduction in HRV from pre- to post-intervention; however, HRV changes were not significant between groups. The IE and control groups did not show any significant differences in grades, SEL scores, or days absent or tardy. Neither teachers in the IE nor control group reported significant changes in mindfulness. Children with lower levels of emotion regulation and mindfulness at baseline were more likely to report &ldquo;uncomfortable experiences&rdquo; when practicing mindfulness. Results are discussed in the context of methodological challenges in MBSEL research and future directions are suggested. Teaching self-regulation in early childhood is a promising approach to mitigating future mental and physical health problems, however this study raises questions about the most effective format, delivery, and measurement of MBSEL curricula.</p><p>

<p> Nearly 720,000 youth, ages 15 to 24, are living with HIV in South Africa. Black South African adolescents remain disproportionately impacted by HIV and face challenges to their development including issues of stigma, trauma, orphanhood and bereavement, increased poverty, and medication adherence and disclosure challenges. The majority of research on adolescents living with HIV (ALHIV) has only documented negative health outcomes and psychological distress. This study used a mixed methods approach to explore the factors that help South African ALHIV effectively cope with the adversities that they face and that contribute to their well-being and resilience. Participants included adolescents (<i>N</i>=7) from the Katlehong township in the Gauteng province, their primary caregivers (<i>N</i>=6), and their mental health providers (<i>N</i>=3). Photovoice was used to engage the adolescents in a process of taking photographs that represented how they cope with HIV and resources that contribute to their well-being. Adolescents also completed the <i>Child and Youth Resilience Measure-28 </i> to assess overall resilience and their access to ecological resources. To gain an additional perspective, caregivers were surveyed and mental health providers were interviewed. The study found that adolescents had access to protective factors and resources, across the ecological framework, which promoted psychological well-being and resilience. The protective factors were identified at the individual level (self-care, independence, being informed about HIV, and individual peer support), at the interpersonal level (family support), and at the community and contextual level (community support and finding purpose and belonging).</p><p>

<p>Research has demonstrated that acculturative stress is an important influence on anxiety and depression in Latinos, however methodological issues limit generalizability of findings. The present study examines Latino subgroup (i.e., Cuban, Puerto Rican, Mexican) differences in the influence of acculturative stress on Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) and Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD). Secondary data analysis of data from 2,554 Latino immigrants in the National Latino and Asian American Study (NLAAS) included stratified hierarchical logistic regression. The NLAAS collected data via in-person interviews at the participants' homes by bilingual interviewers in the participants&rsquo; language of choice. Acculturative stress was significantly related to MDD for Other Latinos (<i>p</i> &lt; .001), and to GAD for Mexicans (<i>p</i> = .040). Results provide empirical evidence for the need to disaggregate Latino subgroups. Subgroup heterogeneity may introduce important contextual factors that should be accounted for when exploring their mental health, particularly when examining acculturative stress. </p>

<p> HIV has remained a public health problem in Nigeria. The purpose of this cross-sectional study was to examine the effect of social support and HIV-related stigma on depression in people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA) and to examine the moderating effect of sociodemographic factors, Quality of Life (QOL), and time since HIV diagnosis on this relationship. This study was based on the social cognitive theory. Data were collected from 98 PLWHA attending the antiretroviral clinic of Federal Medical Center, Umuahia, Nigeria. Regression analyses were used to examine the relationships between the variables. Some 24.5% of the study participants were depressed. Significant relationships identified included negative relationships between depression and social support, positive relationships between depression and negative self-image, and a combination of poor social support and HIV-related stigma having synergic effects in predicting depression. Sociodemographic variables, quality of life, and time since HIV diagnosis did not have a moderating effect on the relationship between social support, HIV-related stigma, and depression in PLWHA. There is a need to improve social support and reduce HIV-related stigma in PLWHA in order to improve their mental health. These findings can help in bringing about positive social change by informing the development of public health initiatives aimed at improving the mental health of PLWHA.</p>