ABSTRACT
Objectives To determine the relationships between stress experienced by registered dietitians, eating competence, and risk for orthorexia nervosa amid the backdrop of COVID-19. Methods A cross-sectional study was used to compare Perceived Stress Scale, ORTO-15 Questionnaire, and Satter Eating Competence Inventory 2.0 scores computed from participant responses to understand how prevalence of stress, risk for orthorexia nervosa, and eating competence in registered dietitians relate to one another. Independent sample t-tests, Pearson's correlation coefficient, and two-way ANOVA were used to compare scores. A random sample of 5,000 registered dietitians in the United States were invited to complete an online survey;155 responses were received. Results Scores for the final sample (N = 83) suggested 63.9% had high stress, 61.4% were at risk for orthorexia nervosa, and 80.7% were eating competent. Statistical analysis revealed a negative association between stress and eating competence, but no relationship between stress and orthorexia nervosa risk. Risk for orthorexia nervosa and eating competence were positively associated. Conclusions Further exploration of the relationship between stress and eating competence in registered dietitians may offer insight into addressing stress in the dietetics profession. The positive association between orthorexia nervosa risk and eating competence may imply the presence of healthy orthorexia, or a non-pathological focus on eating healthfully, in registered dietitians. Funding Sources This research did not receive any specific grant from funding agencies in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.
ABSTRACT
Online misinformation poses a significant threat to global challenges, such as the COVID-19 pandemic and climate change. Misinformation is disproportionality shared by people with extreme political attitudes, especially among the far right. To understand the psychological and neurocognitive processes that underlie misinformation sharing among extremists, we conducted a pre-registered, cross-cultural experiment with conservatives and far-right supporters in the US and Spain (N = 1,609) and a neuroimaging study with far-right supporters in Spain (N = 36). Individuals who felt their personal identity was fused with their political group were more likely to share misinformation, especially when the misinformation was related to issues that involve sacred moral values (e.g., immigration and nationalism). Analytical thinking was unrelated to misinformation sharing when the misinformation involved sacred values (vs. non-sacred values) and fact-checks had little or no effect in this sample, especially among hyper-partisans. Far-right supporters also showed increased activity in brain regions associated with theory of mind in response to posts with sacred values, highlighting the social dimension of misinformation sharing. These results suggest that political devotion plays a key role in misinformation sharing and that identity-based interventions may help curb misinformation for specific groups.
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COVID-19ABSTRACT
IMPACT: Understanding the needs and barriers or facilitators to participation in research, especially among minority communities is critical not only for COVID-19 research but also for future clinical and translational research and health disparities studies. OBJECTIVES/GOALS: The overall goal of this project is to enhance education, awareness, access, and inclusion of underserved communities across Florida in COVID-19 research, especially among Black and Hispanic minority groups that are disproportionately affected by COVID-19. METHODS/STUDY POPULATION: Through strategic partnership among five academic institutions and community-based organizations across the state of Florida, the FL-CEAL team will implement focus groups and surveys in minority communities in Florida to gauge the awareness and understanding of COVID-19, and the barriers and facilitators for participation in COVID-19 research studies. These communities include but are not limited to Latinx and Black populations in South and Central Florida, and Black communities in North Florida. The outcomes will help shape strategies for outreach and dissemination activities and minority recruitment plans to promote participation of minorities into vaccine and therapeutic trials. RESULTS/ANTICIPATED RESULTS: An estimated 75-125 participants will be recruited for focus groups. Four focus groups with minority communities have been conducted and the results are being analyzed. A common Community-Based Needs Assessment survey is being finalized and will be deployed across the 11 states that are part of the national CEAL consortium. Community Health Workers are being engaged to support outreach and dissemination to educate targeted communities on COVID-19 research and the importance of participation in COVID trials. To date, 243 CHWs and 880 community members have been engaged. Minority participation in COVID-19 vaccine trials at University of Miami has been higher than the national average. DISCUSSION/SIGNIFICANCE OF FINDINGS: The FL-CEAL Alliance has successfully demonstrated a coordinated effort to engage minority communities affected by COVID. Through strategic geographic partnerships, FL-CEAL will positively impact minority communities throughout the state that has one of the most diverse populations in the nation.
ABSTRACT
IntroductionThe impact of the COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted training during the initial peak and partial recovery. Gastroenterology higher speciality training (HST) is reaching an inflection point with a reduction from five years to four. The potential compound impact is a source of concern for HSTs. The BSG Trainees Section biennial survey 2020 aimed to delineate the impact of COVID-19 and opinions on changes to training.MethodsAn electronic survey allowing for anonymised responses at the point of completion was distributed to all gastroenterology HSTs over a three month period from September to November 2020.ResultsIn total, 349 trainees completed the survey (response rate of 51% of 687 HSTs) with representation across all regions. 89%(307/344) of responders were full time trainees and 39%(136/349) female. There was a reduction in access to clinics;48.4%(169/349) reported due to general internal medicine (GIM) duties and 26.6% (93/349) due to reduction in available clinics. Reduction in experience in gastroenterology referrals were also mainly limited by GIM commitments (42.4%) (148/349). No endoscopy training occurred for 88.5(170/192)% of trainees at the peak. Recovery of training lists was reported by 67.3(175/260)% of responders in late summer yet 20.6(72/349)% reported training lists were still ‘not allowed’ in their trust. 71.0 (206/290)% of responders reported their time was predominantly taken by GIM, with 42.1 (110/261)% considering the need to extend their CCT date to compensate for this. 49.0%(128/261) of respondents were considering time out of programme or fellowships and 28.3 (74/261)% considering it in the future. The majority of responders reported virtual or online teaching was provided during the peak of the pandemic.Considering future training;96.8%(245/253) of respondents stated gastroenterology HSTs should have 1 year experience on a GI bleed rota, however only 21.3 (55/258)% reported having experience of this formally during training. 68.8%(174/253) of responders supported the idea of blocks of GIM training during HST to protect gastroenterology training. The majority of trainees (84.2%)(213/253) reported they would not feel ready to be a consultant after 4 years of HST. 46.7(122/261)% of responders would stop GIM training if given the opportunity.ConclusionsIn all aspects of gastroenterology training surveyed, more than half of training time was lost during the pandemic. This included training beyond endoscopy to other aspects of GI work including clinics and referrals. This is mirrored in anticipated concerns about completion of training and the perceived future competence as a consultant at the end of a 4 year higher training programme. Work is now required to ensure training trajectories are restored following the COVID-19 pandemic.
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Background: The COVID-19 global pandemic has brought far-reaching consequences on individual and societal levels. Social distancing and physical hygiene constitute effective public health measures to limit the spread of the virus. The current study investigates individual age and sex demographics, in interaction with countries’ human development index (HDI), as crucial factors influencing compliance with public health measures in a large multi-national adult lifespan sample.Methods: This report leverages data from a large-scale international collaboration (Van Bavel et al., 2020; https://psyarxiv.com/ydt95/ ) comprising 45,576 individuals from 66 countries/territories collected in Spring 2020. Participants provided self-reports of their compliance with three public health measures (i.e., spatial distancing, physical hygiene, policy support).Findings: Older age, female sex, and lower HDI were independently associated with greater compliance with public health measures. In addition, a significant three-way interaction between participant age, participant sex, and a country’s HDI revealed that compliance was lowest in young males from well-developed countries, while compliance was highest among females across all ages from less-developed countries.Interpretation: Compliance with public health measures is crucial in effectively reducing virus spread. Our findings suggest that age and sex as individual-level demographics, in tandem with HDI as a country-level predictor, affect individuals’ willingness to comply with public health measures. These results highlight the potential of data-driven tailored (i.e., towards specific demographics, countries) health campaigns and public policies in the fight against a global pandemic.Funding Statement: John Templeton Foundation; National Institute on Aging, National Institutes on Health; and Social Science and Humanities Research Council of Canada.Declaration of Interests: All authors declare no competing interests.Ethics Approval Statement: The protocol was approved by the ethics board at the University of Kent.