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Social Support and Adherence to Treatment in Hypertensive Patients: A Meta-Analysis

BackgroundIt is important to examine factors associated with patient adherence to hypertension control strategies.PurposeA meta-analysis was conducted to examine whether social support was related to adherence to healthy lifestyle and treatment medication in hypertensive patients.MethodsJournal articles were searched in medical (CINAHL, MEDLINE), psychological (PsycINFO, PsycARTICLES), and educational (ERIC) electronic databases; in reference lists of selected papers; and in the reference list of a previous review.ResultsFindings of a set of meta-analyses indicated that (a) structural social support was not significantly related to overall adherence, (b) functional social support was significantly and positively related to overall adherence, (c) these findings were further confirmed in meta-analyses conducted on specific types of adherence, and (d) most results were characterized by heterogeneity across studies that was partially explained by moderator analyses.ConclusionsFunctional social support, but not structural social support, was associated with adherence in hypertensive patients.

The Situational Version of the Brief COPE: Dimensionality and Relationships With Goal-Related Variables.

This study is aimed at investigating the dimensionality of the situational version of the Brief COPE, a questionnaire that is frequently used to assess a broad range of coping responses to specific difficulties, by comparing five different factor models highlighted in previous studies. It also aimed at exploring the relationships among coping responses, personal goal commitment and progress. The study involved 606 adults (male = 289) ranging in age from 19 to 71. Using confirmatory factor analysis, we compared five models and assessed relationships of coping responses with goal commitment and progress. The results confirmed the theoretical factor structure of the situational Brief COPE. All the 14 dimensions showed acceptable reliability and relationships with goal commitment and progress, attesting the reliability and usefulness of this measure to evaluate coping responses to specific events.

A Type A and Type D Combined Personality Typology in Essential Hypertension and Acute Coronary Syndrome Patients: Associations with Demographic, Psychological, Clinical, and Lifestyle Indicators.

Many studies have focused on Type A and Type D personality types in the context of cardiovascular diseases (CVDs), but nothing is known about how these personality types combine to create new profiles. The present study aimed to develop a typology of Type A and Type D personality in two groups of patients affected by and at risk for coronary disease. The study involved 711 patients: 51.6% with acute coronary syndrome, 48.4% with essential hypertension (mean age = 56.4 years; SD = 9.7 years; 70.7% men). Cluster analysis was applied. External variables, such as socio-demographic, psychological, lifestyle, and clinical parameters, were assessed. Six groups, each with its own unique combined personality profile scores, were identified: Type D, Type A-Negatively Affected, Not Type A-Negatively Affected, Socially Inhibited-Positively Affected, Not Socially Inhibited, and Not Type A-Not Type D. The Type A-Negatively Affected cluster and, to a lesser extent, the Type D cluster, displayed the worst profile: namely higher total cardiovascular risk index, physical inactivity, higher anxiety and depression, and lower self-esteem, optimism, and health status. Identifying combined personality profiles is important in clinical research and practice in cardiovascular diseases. Practical implications are discussed.

A longitudinal study on the information needs and preferences of patients after an acute coronary syndrome

BackgroundResearch has shown that the provision of pertinent health information to patients with cardiovascular disease is associated with better adherence to medical prescriptions, behavioral changes, and enhanced perception of control over the disease. Yet there is no clear knowledge on how to improve information pertinence. Identifying and meeting the information needs of patients and their preferences for sources of information is pivotal to developing patient-led services. This prospective, observational study was aimed at exploring the information needs and perceived relevance of different information sources for patients during the twenty-four months following an acute coronary syndrome.MethodsTwo hundred and seventeen newly diagnosed patients with acute coronary syndrome were enrolled in the study. The patients were primarily men (83.41 %) with a mean age of 57.28 years (range 35–75; SD = 7.98). Patients’ needs for information and the perceived relevance of information sources were evaluated between 2 and 8 weeks after hospitalization (baseline) and during three follow-ups at 6, 12 and 24 months after baseline. Repeated measures ANOVA, Bonferroni post hoc tests and Cochran’s Q Test were performed to test differences in variables of interest over time.ResultsResults showed a reduction in information needs, but this decrease was significant only for topics related to daily activities, behavioral habits, risk and complication. At baseline, the primary sources of information were specialists and general practitioners, followed by family members and information leaflets given by physicians. Relevance of other sources changed differently over time.ConclusionThe present longitudinal study is an original contribution to the investigation of changes in information needs and preferences for sources of information among patients who are diagnosed with acute coronary syndrome. One of the main results of this study is that information on self-disease management is perceived as a minor theme for patients even two years after the event. Knowledge on how patients’ information needs and perceived relevance of information sources change over time could enhance the quality of chronic disease management, leading health-care systems to move toward more patient-tailored care.

The hidden side of the Ultimatum Game: The role of motivations and mind-reading in a two-level one-shot Ultimatum Game

The main aim of our study is to investigate the role of motivations and mind-reading in a two-level one-shot Ultimatum Game with three players. Our intention is to analyse subjects’ behaviour in both the responder and proposer roles. In the responder role, we found that the difference between the subjects’ expectations and the actual offers was the major factor that influenced their decisions and motivations in receiving money. In the proposer role, our results showed a significant influence of mind-reading, with a positive association between the fairness of subjects’ offers and the subjects’ expectations about the recipients’ willingness to accept. Although a shared concept of fairness exists findings suggest that decisions and motivations seem to depend on expectations, either when they are directly experienced or when they are ascribed to the counterpart.

Evolution of information needs in patients affected by coronaropathy and hypertension

Background: Many psycho-oncology studies use posttraumatic growth (PTG) measures designed for general trauma experiences, and as such they may not take into account life changes associated with a health-related context. Method: Study 1, a thematic analysis of written narratives (N = 209), emphasised cancer survivors’ newfound compassion. Study 2, with 504 prostate cancer survivors, measured the Posttraumatic Growth Inventory including five additional items derived from Study 1 to represent increased compassion. Findings: A Principal Components Analysis revealed a six-component structure after deleting eight items. Components related to compassion, new possibilities, relating to others, personal strength, appreciation of life, and spiritual change. Compassion accounted for 48.9% of variance, with the overall model accounting for 79.9% of variance. Strong factorability, internal consistency, and convergent validity were demonstrated. Discussion: The salience of newfound compassion after cancer was demonstrated. This research has important implications for accurately assessing the post-diagnosis trajectory of adjustment after cancer.Special Issue: Abstracts supplement: “Well-being, quality of life and caregiving” : 27th Conference of the European health psychology society, Bordeaux, France, 16th – 20th July 2013Background: Self-affirmation (i.e., focusing on a valued aspect of the self-concept) can promote health behaviour change. This study aimed to see if self-affirmation increased physical activity (PA) regardless of threat level presented in health messages. Methods: Sixty-eight participants were randomly allocated to condition in a 2 (self-affirmation, no affirmation) x 2 (high threat, low threat) between-participants design. Participants completed the Godin Leisure-Time Exercise Questionnaire at baseline and one week later to assess PA. Findings: A two-way ANCOVA with affirmation condition and threat level as predictor variables, controlling for baseline PA, was performed on follow up PA. Baseline PA was a significant predictor (F(1,63) = 399.63, p<0.001) and the main effect of affirmation condition approached significance (F(1,63) = 3.55, p=0.06). There were no other significant effects. Discussion: This study provides further evidence that self-affirmation can increase PA, but found no interaction between self-affirmation and threat level presented in health messages.Background: Contemporary alcohol research suggests that implicit attitudes are important predictors of drinking behaviour and there is growing interest surrounding factors influencing them. Research suggests that evaluative conditioning (EC) influences implicit attitudes and at a population level the most obvious and prolific use of EC is advertising. Methods: Participants (n= 51, mean age= 22.43) completed alcohol- and chocolate-related Implicit Association Tests (IAT) before viewing an advertisement for either chocolate or beer. Participants then completed post-test IATs before being provided with chocolate and beer products and asked to consume as much as they wanted. Findings: Viewing a beer advertisement produced a significant positive shift in alcohol-related implicit attitudes from pre- to post-test. No other significant effects on implicit attitudes or behaviour were found. Discussion: Alcohol advertisements are effective in changing alcohol-related implicit attitudes; however the influence on behaviour requires further investigation. Implications for the manipulation of alcohol-related implicit attitudes are discussed.Background: Recent research has highlighted the importance of automatic processes in predicting impulsive health risk behaviour. This has led to the creation of health behaviour models such as the Prototype Willingness Model (PWM) which take into account dual processes when predicting health behaviour. The current research argues that individuals are more likely to engage in impulsive drinking behaviour on a weekend as opposed to a weekday as there are fewer constraints placed upon drinking behaviour. Methods: Participants (n= 61, mean age= 22) completed an alcohol Implicit Association Test as well as a questionnaire assessing variables on the PWM and drinking behaviour. Findings: More positive alcohol-related automatic cognitions were significantly related to increased levels of both frequency and quantity of self-reported weekend drinking behaviour but were not significantly related to weekday drinking behaviour. Discussion: Automatic processes successfully predicted drinking behaviour when there were fewer constraints placed upon individuals.Background: The Prototype Willingness Model (PWM) suggests that there are two separate antecedents to behaviour: intention and willingness. Whereas intention is suggested to be rational and deliberative, willingness is more automatic and impulsive. The current study used a cross-cultural sample in order to examine the differing predictive power of the PWM for drinking behaviour. Methods: A sample of 193 individuals from Australia (n=108) and Singapore (n=85) completed a questionnaire measuring alcohol consumption and variables on the PWM. Findings: Willingness to drink significantly predicted alcohol consumption in Singaporeans. Both willingness and intention to drink significantly predicted frequency of alcohol consumption Discussion: The antecedents of the PWM differentially predict alcohol consumption in culturally different samples. Implications for health interventions aimed to reduce drinking across cultures are discussed.Background. Parenting has been associated with child weight status. This study aims to evaluate the effects on parenting skills and BMI-SDS of the BBOFT+ overweight prevention program, compared to care-as-usual (CAU). Method. In a cluster-randomized trial, 2500 parents participated. Parent-reported weight and length were used. Parenting was measured with subscales control and reinforcement of the parenting strategies for eating and activity scale (PEAS) and the warmth subscale from the Child Rearing Questionnaire. Results. The first univariate analyses show that at age 15 months, no statistically significant differences in BMI- SDS, parental control, reinforcement or warmth were found between the BBOFT+ and the CAU group. Further cluster analyses need to be conducted. Results from age 36 months will be presented during the conference, which will include all subscales of the PEAS and an assessment of parenting styles. Conclusion. The intervention does not seem to have an effect on BMI-SDS or parenting.Taylor & Francis makes every effort to ensure the accuracy of all the information (the “Content”) contained in the publications on our platform. However, Taylor & Francis, our agents, and our licensors make no representations or warranties whatsoever as to the accuracy, completeness, or suitability for any purpose of the Content. Any opinions and views expressed in this publication are the opinions and views of the authors, and are not the views of or endorsed by Taylor & Francis. The accuracy of the Content should not be relied upon and should be independently verified with primary sources of information. 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Communication and disease management: A qualitative study on coronaropathy and hypertension

B. Interactive poster presentations How do Spaniards use antimicrobials? A study to reduce self-medication and to promote the prudent use of antibiotics Jesús Rodrı́guez Marı́n, José Joaquı́n Mira Solv, Ma Virtudes Pérez-Jove, Lidia Ortiz Henarejos, Mercedes Guilabert Mora, Isabel Marı́a Navarro Soler Objective: To assess whether Spaniards do a prudent use of antibiotics. Methods: A crosssectional study was conducted. A total of 1526 patients were surveyed. Sample size was determined for a sampling error of less than 3% for p1⁄4 q1⁄4 0.50, and for a 95% confidence level. Respondents were selected at random from all the patients attended at a selection of health centres or hospitals of the public health sector in Spain. Results: In spite of an adequate information about the prudent use of antimicrobials, the self-medication continues (OR1⁄4 0.8; IC1⁄4 0.5–1.4). Self-medication is more frequent among those who do not know that the use of antibiotics can generate resistance (OR 1.8 95% IC 1.3–2.5) and keep left-over doses (OR 3.1, 95%; IC 2.3–4.2). Conclusions: To transmit information, it is not enough to change self-medication. Psychosexual factors and prostate-related problems in menAim: To examine the association between social support at work (SSW), health factors and working climate as a function of gender and professional grade. Methods: Belstress III database comprising data on 2983 workers of seven (semi-)public companies were used. Socio-demographic, working climate, mental and physical health indicators were collected. Professional grade and gender stratified logistic regressions were performed for evaluating the association between SSW and current health, stress, anxiety, bulling and mobbing. Results: SSW is always associated with health and working climate factors except for low qualified men. For women at the intermediate grade, the ORs for the association between low SSW and current health (1.37), stress (1.75), anxiety (1.56), bulling (6.78) and mobbing (3.49) are the lowest compared to those of all others groups. Conclusion: SSW is beneficial for workers’ health and working climate, but not at the same degree for women and men at different professional grades.