Camilla W. Nonterah

Predictor and Moderator Effects of Ego Resilience and Mindfulness on the Relationship Between Academic Stress and Psychological Well-Being in a Sample of Ghanaian College Students

This study examined the predictor and moderator effects of ego resilience and mindfulness on the relationship between academic stress and psychological well-being in a sample of Ghanaian college students (N = 431). The results indicated that academic stress was positively associated with both anxiety and depression and that mindfulness and ego resilience were both negatively associated with anxiety and depression. Mindfulness buffered the positive relationship between academic stress and depression but not anxiety. In contrast, ego resilience buffered the positive relationship between academic stress and anxiety but not depression. Implications for the study’s findings are discussed and recommendations for future research are presented.

The influence of TBI impairments on family caregiver mental health in Mexico

Abstract Purpose: This study examined the influence of five types of impairments in individuals with traumatic brain injury (TBI)—and caregiver stress due to these impairments—on the mental health of family caregivers in Guadalajara, Mexico. Method: Ninety caregivers completed measures of TBI impairments and of their own mental health. The majority were female (92.20%) with a mean age of 47.12 years (SD = 12.67). Caregivers dedicated a median of 50 hours weekly to caregiving and had spent a median of 11 months providing care. Results: Two canonical correlation analyses suggested that these two sets of variables were broadly related, such that more severe impairments in individuals with TBI and more caregiver stress due to those impairments were associated with lower caregiver mental health. Across both analyses, social impairments were most associated with increased caregiver burden. Follow-up analyses also uncovered that caregiver stress due to cognitive impairments was uniquely associated with caregiver burden and anxiety. Conclusions: These results are the first to provide evidence that social and cognitive impairments in individuals with TBI from Latin America are the impairments most associated with caregiver mental health and highlight the need for interventions that target social and cognitive functioning.

Fear of Negative Evaluation as a Mediator of the Relation between Academic Stress, Anxiety and Depression in a Sample of Ghanaian College Students

This study examined the mediator effects of the fear of negative evaluation (FNE) on the relation between academic stress and psychological symptoms in a sample of Ghanaian college students (N = 431). A multi-step structural equation modelling (SEM) procedure was used to test the specified mediator model and several fit indices were calculated to assess how well the model fit the data. In addition, path coefficients were calculated to determine whether mediation had been established. The results indicated that the specified model produced a good fit to the data. Moreover, the findings revealed that FNE partially mediated the relation between academic stress and the psychological symptoms of anxiety and depression. Implications for the study’s findings are discussed and recommendations for future research are presented.

Living Kidney Donors' Information Needs and Preferences.

Introduction: Past research suggests the information exchanged from transplant centers to potential living kidney donors is, in many cases, suboptimal. The purpose of this study was to assess donors’ perceptions of the information provided while considering living donation. Methods: Semistructured telephone interviews conducted with 81 past living donors seen at 1 mid-Atlantic transplant center assessed the extent to which living kidney donors deemed Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS)-mandated information useful to making a decision about donation and to which more information was or would have been desired before donating. Understanding of and satisfaction with the information was also assessed. Results: Participants were primarily white (67.9%), females (67.9%), with an average age of 57.8 years. Perceived usefulness ranged from a mean of 3.1 for the confidentiality of the transplant center’s communication to 4.1 for postoperative care and short-term medical risks of donation. Donors of minority descent as well as those with more education and less income found the information provided most useful. Few donors desired additional information about the right to opt out of (8.6%) or decline (13.6%) donation; however, most wanted more information regarding the risk of being refused health, disability and/or life insurance after donating (77.8%), and insurance coverage for future health problems (66.7%). Discussion: This study revealed limited usefulness of certain CMS-mandated topics and a desire for additional information about donation. Efforts to standardize the informed consent process should incorporate donors’ perspectives as to the specific topics, quantity of information, and the mode of communication found most useful when considering living donation.

Communicating About Choices in Transplantation (COACH): Results of a Pilot Test Using Matched Controls

Introduction: Previous research highlights the difficulties patients with end-stage renal disease awaiting kidney transplant experience while attempting to manage both the logistical and the content-related aspects of discussions about transplantation. This article presents pilot results of the behavioral communication intervention program, Communicating about Choices in Transplantation (COACH), designed to improve transplant candidates’ communication about transplantation. Research Questions: As compared to matched controls, increases in knowledge of deceased and living donor transplantation, communication self-efficacy, intentions to hold conversations about transplantation, and self-reported discussion were expected for pilot participants from pre- and postassessment; decreases in conversational difficulties were also posited. Design: Using a nonrandomized quasi-experimental design, we compared transplant knowledge and communication between patients completing a 2-hour COACH session (pilot sample) to a sample of matched controls (n = 10). Data were collected via semi-structured telephone interviews upon enrollment and 1 month after enrollment or attendance at a COACH program session. Results: The results revealed significant differences in knowledge from pre- to postassessment between the pilot and control samples (P = .02). Although no other statistically significant between-group differences were found, paired-sample t tests revealed significant pre–post increases in transplant knowledge (7.6 [standard deviation, SD = 2.0] to 9.5 [SD =1.8]; P = .05) and communication self-efficacy (1255.8 [SD = 239.7] to 1513.8 [SD = 114.3]; P = .009) for pilot participants. Decreases in perceived conversational difficulties were also observed (P = .53). Discussion: Results provide preliminary support for the program’s impact. Moreover, participant evaluations of the COACH were overwhelmingly positive. A more definitive program evaluation with a larger, more diverse sample is currently underway.

Disparities in the completion of steps to kidney transplantation: protocol for a systematic review

Introduction Disparities in access to transplantation have been well documented. The extant literature, however, focuses largely on disparities and related barriers for African-American patients and none has used the steps to transplantation as a guiding framework. This review will catalogue disparities in the steps to transplantation as well as the barriers and facilitators to completion of each step identified in the extant literature. The results of the review will be used to generate recommendations for future research to improve equity in access to kidney transplantation. Methods and analysis Standard procedures will be used in the conduct of the review. Searches will be performed using the following electronic databases: PubMed/Medline, PsycINFO, CINHAL, EMBASE, Cochrane library and Web of Science. Reports of original research will be eligible for inclusion if they are published from 2005 to present, written or available in English language, performed in the USA, enrol adult participants (18 years of age or more), and employ descriptive or observational designs. Two authors will independently screen retrieved articles for inclusion. MaxQDA will be used for data analysis and management. All included reports will be coded for article characteristics; disparities identified; barriers and motivators of completion of steps to transplantation; and proposed solutions to disparities and barriers. Each report will be coded independently by two authors and discrepancies resolved by discussion among the full team. A qualitative approach to data analysis is planned. Risk of bias will be assessed using standard procedures. Ethics and dissemination The findings will provide crucial information on the current status of disparities in access to transplantation. PRISMA guidelines will be followed in reporting the results of the review. It is anticipated that these results will inform research which seeks to increase parity in access to transplantation. Systematic review registration PROSPERO CRD42014015027.

The complementarity of humility hypothesis: Individual, relational, and physiological effects of mutually humble partners

Abstract We report two studies of romantic couples that examine the interactive effects of actor and partner humility on individual, relational, and physiological well-being. Using both longitudinal (Study 1) and physiological (Study 2) methods from two samples of romantic couples, we explored the interactive effects of actor and partner humility. Individuals in dyads with complementary high humility reported better mental health over time following a major life transition, the birth of their first child, in Study 1 and higher relationship satisfaction and lower physiological responses (i.e. blood pressure) following the discussion of a topic of disagreement in Study 2. These results suggest that being humble is beneficial when one has a humble partner, but being arrogant – especially within a disagreement with one’s partner – could undermine the benefits of humility. That is, the benefits of humility are greatest in dyads in which both partners are humble.

Forgiveness as a Catalyst for Psychological, Physical, and Spiritual Resilience in Disasters and Crises

In this conceptual article, we argue that some people are resilient in the face of disasters while others are not. Resilience may necessitate forgiveness—of perpetrators of interpersonal harms (e.g., Rwandan Genocide in 1994); of inadequate responder assistance (e.g., Hurricane Katrina); or in situations where community members perceive themselves as victims of offense by virtue of their group affiliation, although they themselves were not actually harmed (e.g., survivors of school shootings). Victims may experience unforgiveness toward others in human-caused disasters and may deal with unforgiveness toward God in natural disasters. Forgiveness may be an effective response to disaster-related injustices that promotes resilience. We used a meta-analysis of forgiveness interventions and an empirical study of awareness-raising campaigns on college campuses to estimate the effects of forgiveness on public health, public mental health, relationships, and spirituality across society after disasters. We advocate for forgiveness as one of many potential resilient responses. Specifically, forgiveness could potentially transform unforgiveness into a stronger sense of purpose and improved social relations.