Tony Towell

The prevalence and predictors of psychological distress in men with prostate cancer who are seeking support

OBJECTIVE The incidence of prostate cancer has risen sharply in the last decade, yet knowledge about the psychological health of men with this disease is still limited. A study was therefore undertaken to identify (1) the prevalence of psychological distress in these males, and (2) factors predicting psychological distress. DESIGN Retrospective cross-sectional survey design by means of a self-administered questionnaire. METHOD A sample of 94 men with various stages of prostate cancer completed the Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-Prostate Instrument (FACT-P), the Hospital Anxiety Depression Scale (HADS) and items measuring satisfaction with medical care. RESULTS We detected a prevalence rate of 38% of participants reporting psychological distress corresponding to a HADS cut-off score at or above 15. A standard multivariate regression analysis revealed social/family well-being, physical well-being and functional well-being as significant inverse predictors of psychological distress. CONCLUSIONS Health professionals should be aware of the potential for psychological distress in patients exhibiting poor physical functioning and those with apparent deficits in social or family support in this under-studied group of patients. Strategies for psychosocial intervention are implied.

Factors predictive of bone mineral density in eating-disordered women : A longitudinal study

OBJECTIVE Osteoporosis in eating-disordered women is well established, but factors predictive of this condition have proved elusive. The roles of behavioral factors, weight, menstrual status, and the degree of bone mineral density change over the clinical course of the eating disorder were investigated METHOD A cohort of 56 eating-disordered women was subjected to bone mineral density measurement at Scan 1 and were followed up between 9 and 51 months later for repeat measurement (n = 10) at Scan 2. RESULTS High levels of reduced bone mineral density were observed. Total duration of amenorrhea, body mass index, frequency of vomiting, and cigarette and alcohol consumption accounted for 40% of the variance in spinal bone mineral density measurement at Scan 1. No significant changes in bone mineral density were observed at Scan 2 despite increases in body mass index. DISCUSSION The results suggest that increases in weight appear not to be sufficient to increase bone mineral density.

Mental and physical health in students: The role of economic circumstances

Objectives. To investigate the relationship between the physical, social and psychological health of students and their financial circumstances. Design. A survey design was used. Methods. An opportunity sample of 482 university students from two London universities (one old and one new) completed a questionnaire providing information on demographic characteriscics, financial circumstances, smoking, drug and alcohol use. Physical and psychological well-being were assessed using a 14-item inventory of physical symptoms, the SF-36 and General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12). Results. All sub-scales of the SF-36 (except Physical Functioning) and the GHQ indicated levels of health significantly below population norms. Poorer mental health was related to longer working hours outside university and difficulty paying bills. Those who had considered abandoning study for financial reasons had poorer mental health, social functioning, vitality and physical health and were also heavier smokers. Being in debt was associated with knowing people involved in prostitution, crime or drug dealing to help support themselves financially. Conclusion. Results suggest that the financial circumstances of students may be having an adverse impact on their health.

Are There Ethnic Differences in Positive Body Image Among Female British Undergraduates

Numerous studies have examined ethnic differences in body image, although the literature has tended to focus on a negative orientation toward one’s body. The present study examined whether there were differences in positive body image among 131 Caucasian, 122 South Asian, 67 African Caribbean, and 67 Hispanic female undergraduates in Britain. Participants completed several scales measuring body appreciation, societal influence on body image, and self-esteem. Results showed that, after controlling for age, Hispanic women had the highest body appreciation scores, followed by African Caribbean, Caucasian, and South Asian women, respectively. Results also showed that Hispanics had the lowest score on media influence and the highest self-esteem. Finally, regressional analyses showed that self-esteem was a strong predictor of body appreciation, over-and-above ethnic affiliation. These results are discussed in relation to the extant literature on ethnic differences in body image.

Body image dissatisfaction and eating attitudes in visually impaired women

OBJECTIVE The high levels of body dissatisfaction and abnormal eating attitudes currently prevalent in Western societies have been attributed by many authors to the promotion of an unrealistically thin ideal for women. We investigated the role of the visual media by examining the relationship between body image dissatisfaction and eating attitudes in visually impaired women. METHOD Questionnaires were administered to 60 women, 20 congenitally blind, 20 blinded later in life, and 20 sighted. RESULTS Congenitally blind women had lower body dissatisfaction scores and more positive eating attitudes compared to women blinded later in life and sighted women, the latter having the highest body dissatisfaction scores and the most negative eating attitudes. Scores from sighted women were positively correlated with each other. DISCUSSION The results suggest the importance of the visual media in promoting unrealistic images of thinness and beauty and are discussed from a sociocultural perspective.

American Skullcap (Scutellaria lateriflora): a randomised, double-blind placebo-controlled crossover study of its effects on mood in healthy volunteers.

Scutellaria lateriflora, a traditional herbal remedy for stress and anxiety, was tested on human volunteers for its effects on mood. In a placebo‐controlled, double‐blind, crossover study, 43 healthy participants were randomised to a sequence of three times daily S. lateriflora (350 mg) or placebo, each over two weeks. In this relatively non‐anxious population (81% were mildly anxious or less, i.e. Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI) scores ≤ 15), there was no significant difference between skullcap and placebo with BAI (p = 0.191). However, there was a significant group effect (p = 0.049), suggesting a carryover effect of skullcap. For Total Mood Disturbance measured by the Profile of Mood States, there was a highly significant (p = <0.001) decrease from pre‐test scores with skullcap but not placebo (p = 0.072). The limitations of carryover effect, generally low anxiety scores and differences in anxiety levels between groups at baseline (p = 0.022), may have reduced the chances of statistical significance in this study. However, as S. lateriflora significantly enhanced global mood without a reduction in energy or cognition, further study assessing its putative anxiolytic effects in notably anxious subjects with co‐morbid depression is warranted. Copyright

Examination of the factor structure of the Schizotypal Personality Questionnaire among British and Trinidadian adults.

Much debate in schizotypal research has centred on the factor structure of the Schizotypal Personality Questionnaire (SPQ), with research variously showing higher-order dimensionality consisting of two to seven dimensions. In addition, cross-cultural support for the stability of those factors remains limited. Here, we examined the factor structure of the SPQ among British and Trinidadian adults. Participants from a White British subsample (n = 351) resident in the UK and from an African Caribbean subsample (n = 284) resident in Trinidad completed the SPQ. The higher-order factor structure of the SPQ was analysed through confirmatory factor analysis, followed by multiple-group analysis for the model of best fit. Between-group differences for sex and ethnicity were investigated using multivariate analysis of variance in relation to the higher-order domains. The model of best-fit was the four-factor structure, which demonstrated measurement invariance across groups. Additionally, these data had an adequate fit for two alternative models: (a) 3-factor and (b) modified 4-factor model. The British subsample had significantly higher scores across all domains than the Trinidadian group, and men scored significantly higher on the disorganised domain than women. The four-factor structure received confirmatory support and, importantly, support for use with populations varying in ethnicity and culture.

Competence-Based Training and Assessment by Portfolio: The Health Psychology Model

All UK postgraduate qualifications in applied areas of psychology will soon be competence-based. This will improve the professional recognition and esteem of applied psychology, and make it easier to transfer qualifications between psychology and other disciplines and between psychology sub-disciplines. However, the changes pose considerable challenges because there is very little clear evidence about the effectiveness of competence-based training and portfolio assessment. Health psychology has led the development of competence-based training in psychology with the ‘stage two’ qualification in health psychology, and this article considers postgraduate health psychology training in the context of what is known about competence-based training and portfolio assessment in professions such as medicine, nursing and education. This raises a number of questions for professional training and qualifications in psychology.

Measuring the Engagement of the Learner in a Controlled Environment using Three Different Biosensors

Irrespective of the educational model, the major challenge is how to achieve maximum efficiency of the education process and keep learners engaged during learning. This paper investigates the relationship between emotions and engagement in the E-learning environment, and how recognizing the learners emotions and changing the content delivery accordingly can affect the efficiency of the E-learning process. The proposed experiment aims to identify ways to increase the engagement of the learners, hence, enhance the efficiency of the learning process and the quality of learning. A controlled experiment was conducted to investigate participants emotions using bio sensors such as eye tracker, EEG, and camera to capture facial images in different emotional states. One-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) test and t-Test was carried out to compare the performance of the three groups and show if there was an effect of using the Affective E-learning system to improve the learners performance. Our findings support the conclusion that using bio sensors as a quantitative research tool to investigate human behaviours and measure emotions in real time can significantly enhance the efficiency of E-learning.

S113. THE ASSOCIATION BETWEEN SCHIZOTYPAL COMPONENTS AND CONSPIRACIST BELIEFS THROUGH COGNITIVE MEDIATORS

Abstract Background Belief in conspiracy theories (i.e., a subset of false narratives in which the ultimate cause of an event is believed to be due to a malevolent plot by multiple actors working together) is a widespread and stable aspect of contemporary public opinion. Given such findings, researchers have sought to understand the factors that make someone more or less likely to adopt conspiracist beliefs. More specifically, scholars have focused primarily on social and differential aspects, as well as possible psychopathological elements. These endeavours have led to reports of significant associations between schizotypal facets (odd or magical thinking and, to a lesser extent, ideas of references) and the endorsement of conspiracist beliefs. However, one limitation of extant findings is the assumption that the afore-mentioned relationships are ultimately direct; that is, schizotypal facets are directly associated with conspiracist beliefs, rather than influenced by mediating processes. To overcome this limitation, the present study sought to replicate previous findings by confirming the relationships between components of schizotypy and conspiracist beliefs. Second, this study examined the mediating influence of cognitive processes on this relationship. Methods An international online sample of 411 women and men completed measures of schizotypal components (i.e., odd beliefs or magical thinking and ideas of reference), conspiracist beliefs, and cognitive processes (i.e., need for cognition, analytic thinking, and cognitive insight). Results Through path analysis, results indicated associations between both schizotypal facets and conspiracist beliefs in the present sample. Further, there was evidence for the association between analytic thinking and conspiracist beliefs, and between cognitive insight and conspiracist beliefs. Indeed, cognitive insight was found to mediate the association between odd beliefs or magical thinking and ideas of reference with conspiracist beliefs. In addition, analytic thinking provided a mediating link to conspiracy ideation for odd beliefs or magical thinking, this was not found with ideas of reference. Despite an association between odd beliefs or magical thinking and need for cognition, this did not extend to conspiracist beliefs. Discussion In summary, the results of this study supported the association between schizotypal components and conspiracist beliefs. However, they also extend previous research by suggesting that cognitive processes mediate this link. That is, although a direct link between these variables may be tenable, it is also important to consider the possible ways in which schizotypy influences cognitive processes, which in turn have an effect on conspiracist beliefs. From a practical point-of-view, this highlights possible intervention routes for reducing conspiracist beliefs, either by targeting schizotypal traits indirectly or cognitive factors directly. While this research addresses schizotypy, patients with psychotic disorders and those with an at-risk mental state have also been shown to have reasoning biases. Therefore, future research, in relation to the clinical spectrum, should consider not only reasoning biases, but an outcome of conspiracy beliefs.