Mairead Eastin Moloney

The Medicalization of Sleeplessness: A Public Health Concern

Sleeplessness, a universal condition with diverse causes, may be increasingly diagnosed and treated (or medicalized) as insomnia. We examined the trend in sleeplessness complaints, diagnoses, and prescriptions of sedative hypnotics in physician office visits from 1993 to 2007. Consistent with the medicalization hypothesis, sleeplessness complaints and insomnia diagnoses increased over time and were far outpaced by prescriptions for sedative hypnotics. Insomnia may be a public health concern, but potential overtreatment with marginally effective, expensive medications with nontrivial side effects raises definite population health concerns.

THE ROLE OF RACE AND TRUST IN TISSUE/BLOOD DONATION FOR GENETIC RESEARCH

Background: Public willingness to donate tissue samples is critical to genetic research. Prior work has linked minority status and mistrust with less willingness to provide specimens. Some have suggested recruitment of prior research participants to address these barriers. We present data from a genetic epidemiology study with a request for blood and/or saliva specimens to (1) measure willingness to donate tissue/blood samples, (2) identify demographic, trust, and other factors associated with willingness to donate samples, and (3) measure willingness to participate in future genetic research.Methods: We surveyed participants in the North Carolina Colorectal Cancer Study, which included biologic sample collection from consenting participants. Participants were later asked about sample provision; trust in researchers, and future research participation.Results: African Americans were less likely to give a blood sample, when compared with whites (21% vs. 13%, P < 0.05). After controlling for “trust,” this difference was no longer statistically significant (17% vs. 13%, P = 0.27). Those who had given samples were more likely to express willingness to participate in future research.Conclusion: Despite prior participation in a genetic epidemiology study, factors associated with provision of tissue samples reflected many previously identified demographic factors (race and trust). Interventions to improve and demonstrate the trustworthiness of the research team and recruitment of subjects with a record of sample donation might enhance future study participation.

Great expectations: views of genetic research participants regarding current and future genetic studies

Purpose: Recruitment of prior participants in genetic research is one strategy suggested to maximize efficient use of research dollars in gene-environment studies. We explored attitudes toward genetic research participation among people in a case-control genetic epidemiology study of colon cancer, the North Carolina Colorectal Cancer Study (NCCCS).Methods: Quantitative and qualitative cross-sectional analysis of 801 NCCCS participants.Results: Participants were “very positive” (63%) or “positive” (32%) about genetic research, and “very likely” (49%) or “somewhat likely” (40%) to participate in future genetic research. Variables significantly associated with feeling “very positive” were white race, more education, nonreligious, hearing “a lot” about genetic research, and two measures of trust in medical research. Except for race and education, the same variables were significantly associated with being “very likely” to participate in future studies. Qualitatively, “good things” for self and family included discovering causes and cures for cancer, and the value of genetic information. Many could not list “bad things”; those who did mentioned anxiety, “knowing too much,” losing confidentiality, or abuse of information.Conclusions: Despite very positive attitudes of these participants toward genetic research, there is significant variation based on participant characteristics. These findings should encourage and caution researchers attempting to recruit prior participants into genetic studies.

Asking the Right Questions: Views on Genetic Variation Research Among Black and White Research Participants

BackgroundGenetic variation research (GVR) may raise concerns about misuse of information and discrimination. Seemingly contradictory positive views about GVR have also been reported.ObjectiveTo dissect this inconsistency, our objectives were to: (1) explore open-ended views of GVR and (2) quantify views of and willingness to participate in GVR by race.DesignCross-sectional study.Participants801 African-American and white prior participants in a case-control genetic epidemiology study of colon cancer risks (NCCCS).MeasuresQualitative measures evaluated responses to questions about good and bad things about GVR. Quantitative measures evaluated positive and negative perceptions, perceptions of discrimination, and likelihood of future participation by race.ResultsOpen-ended queries about GVR resulted in few “negative” responses. In closed-ended questions, however, African Americans were more likely to feel that such research would: result in higher insurance (41% vs. 30%, p = 0.008), not benefit minorities (29% vs. 14%, p=<0.001), reinforce racism (32% vs. 20%, p = 0.002), and use minorities as guinea pigs (27% vs. 6%, p < 0.001). Overall, after adjustment for potential confounding factors, African-American race remained inversely associated with feeling “very positive” about GVR (46% vs. 57%, p = 0.035). In contrast, African Americans were as likely as whites to express willingness to participate in future GVR studies (46%).ConclusionsOpen-ended questions about GVR were unlikely to spontaneously generate “negative” responses. In contrast, when presented specific examples of potentially negative implications, more respondents agreed, and minorities were more likely to express concerns. This suggests that while participants appear generally positive about GVR, their inability to articulate views regarding these complex concepts may require that researchers engage lay audiences, ensure accurate understanding, and provide them with language to express concerns.

Studying Genetic Research Participants : Lessons from the Learning About Research in North Carolina Study

Given the prohibitive cost of recruiting large and diverse populations for genetic explorations in cancer research, there has been a call for genetic studies to engage existing cohorts of research participants. This strategy could lead to more efficient recruitment and potentially result in significant advances in the understanding of cancer etiology and treatment. The Learning About Research in North Carolina (LeARN) study responded to the National Human Genome Research Institute interest in research on how study participants from diverse populations who had participated in genetic research perceived the risks and benefits of participating in combined epidemiologic-genetic research, how well they understand the purpose of the research and the uses to which the research results may be put, and how involvement in such research affects perceptions of disease causality. In this article, we give an overview of the LeARN study, summarizing the methods we used, challenges we encountered, and lessons learned about recruiting participants who have previously participated in genetic research. (Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2008;17(8):2019–24)

“You’re Not Good Enough” Teaching Undergraduate Students about the Sexualization of Girls and Women

Sociologists have developed compelling pedagogical strategies to focus the undergraduate gaze on problems of gender and sexuality. Nested within the social construction of gender norms, the sexualization of girls and women negatively impacts individual, interpersonal, and societal levels of social interaction. Nevertheless, this important issue remains under-explored in the sociology of teaching and learning. This article reports on a pedagogical module that utilizes a multimedia presentation to define and illustrate the sexualization of girls and women. Lesson impacts were assessed through an online survey. Results indicate a critical gap between the social importance of this topic and educational exposure. Students unanimously recommended this module be taught in introductory sociology courses and offered specific examples of individual and interpersonal impacts. Our findings suggest an ongoing need to address the sexualization of girls and women inside, and outside, of the classroom.

#TheFappening: Virtual Manhood Acts in (Homo)Social Media

Using an interactionist framework, we analyze publicly available data from Twitter to track real-time reactions to the widely publicized celebrity nude photo hacking of 2014 (“The Fappening”). We ask: “Related to The Fappening, what manhood acts are employed in virtual social space?” Using search terms for “fappening” or “#thefappening,” we collected 100 tweets per hour from August 31 to October 1, 2014 (Average: 1,700/day). Coding and qualitative analyses of a subsample of tweets (N = 9,750) reveal four virtual manhood acts commonly employed to claim elevated status in the heterosexist hierarchy and reproduce gendered inequality. These acts include (1) creation of homosocial, heterosexist space; (2) sexualization of women; (3) signaling possession of a heterosexual, male body; and (4) humor as a tool of oppression. This article introduces the concept of “virtual manhood acts” and contributes to growing understandings of the reproduction of manhood and the oppression of women in online social spaces.Using an interactionist framework, we analyze publicly available data from Twitter to track real-time reactions to the widely publicized celebrity nude photo hacking of 2014 (“The Fappening”). We a...

People with Physical Disabilities, Work, and Well-being: The Importance of Autonomous and Creative Work

Abstract Objective Motivated by research linking job autonomy and job creativity with psychological well-being, this study examines how these work characteristics influence well-being among people with and without physical disabilities, utilizing both a categorical and continuous measure of disability. Method Data were drawn from two waves of a community study in Miami-Dade County, Florida, of 1,473 respondents. Structural equation modeling was used to assess whether job autonomy and job creativity mediate the associations between the indicators of physical disability considered and depressive symptoms and whether these associations varied by gender. Results Controlling for the effects of the sociodemographic control variables, both job autonomy and job creativity significantly influence the association between physical disability and depressive symptoms regardless of the measure of disability used. The effects of job autonomy were significantly greater for women than men in the context of greater functional limitation. Conclusions The findings highlight the need to further consider the work characteristics of employed people with disabilities. They also demonstrate that the conceptualization and measurement of physical disability has important research implications.

Bitten: A Patient With Tickborne Disease Struggles To Find The Right Provider

For a patient with Lyme disease–like symptoms, the biggest challenge is finding a specialist who understands her condition.

Intersectionality, Work, and Well-Being: The Effects of Gender and Disability:

Intersectionality emphasizes numerous points of difference through which those who occupy multiple disadvantaged statuses are penalized. Applying this consideration to the workplace, we explore ways in which status-based and structural aspects of work undermine women and people with physical disabilities and diminish psychological well-being. We conceptually integrate research on the workplace disadvantages experienced by women and people with disabilities. Drawing on a longitudinal analysis of community survey data that includes a diverse sample of people with and without physical disabilities, we explore the claim that women with disabilities are burdened by greater disadvantage in work settings compared to men with disabilities and women and men without disabilities. We find evidence that in comparison with these groups, women with disabilities on average are more psychologically affected by inequitable workplace conditions, partly because they earn less, are exposed to more workplace stress, and are less likely to experience autonomous working conditions.