Why now and not later? An exploration into the neurocognitive correlates of delay discounting in bipolar disorder.

Increased delay discounting is evident in bipolar disorder, though there is minimal research on the factors that impact delay discounting in this population. We evaluated neurocognitive correlates of delay discounting among relatively euthymic participants with bipolar disorder (N = 76) with (n = 31) and without (n = 45) past-year substance use disorders. There were no significant differences in the mean delay discounting value between the bipolar disorder group and the comorbid bipolar disorder and past-year substance use disorders group (p = .082, Cohen's d = 0.41). Using multiple regression, we evaluated the most important predictors of the delay discounting value. Impairments in executive functioning (per number of categories completed on the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test) and visuospatial construction (per the Rey-Osterrieth Complex Figure Test Copy Raw Score), as well as decreased years of education (all ps < .05), offered the best neurocognitive characterization of increased delay discounting in this sample.

Worrying But Not Acting: The Role of Intolerance of Uncertainty in Explaining the Discrepancy in COVID-19-Related Responses.

Research indicates that Intolerance of Uncertainty (IU) is associated with COVID-19 emotional responses, but not necessarily with engaging in COVID-19 preventative behaviors. The current study was designed to further evaluate this discrepancy. Participants (N = 454) completed self-report forms about COVID-19 emotional responses (i.e., fear, worry, sensitivity to symptoms) and COVID-19 behavioral interference/responses (i.e., interference in daily activities, interference due to worry, and engagement in preventative behaviors). IU was positively associated with COVID-19-related emotional responses as well as two of the COVID-19-related behavioral interference/responses (i.e., interference in daily activities and interference due to worry), but negatively predicted engagement in COVID-19 preventative behaviors. Exploratory analyses revealed a significant indirect effect of IU on lower engagement in preventative behaviors through lower belief in the effectiveness of such behaviors. Thus, we further document the role of IU in statistically predicting higher distress but lower levels of adaptive health behaviors. Furthermore, we provide preliminary support for the hypothesis that these relationships may be explained by associations between IU and lower belief in the efficacy of health behaviors. Because some current analyses indicate small effect sizes, future studies should investigate IU alongside other potentially important markers. Supplementary Information: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s10608-022-10321-0.

Worrying But Not Acting: The Role of Intolerance of Uncertainty in Explaining the Discrepancy in COVID-19-Related Responses

Research indicates that Intolerance of Uncertainty (IU) is associated with COVID-19 emotional responses, but not necessarily with engaging in COVID-19 preventative behaviors. The current study was designed to further evaluate this discrepancy. Participants (N = 454) completed self-report forms about COVID-19 emotional responses (i.e., fear, worry, sensitivity to symptoms) and COVID-19 behavioral interference/responses (i.e., interference in daily activities, interference due to worry, and engagement in preventative behaviors). IU was positively associated with COVID-19-related emotional responses as well as two of the COVID-19-related behavioral interference/responses (i.e., interference in daily activities and interference due to worry), but negatively predicted engagement in COVID-19 preventative behaviors. Exploratory analyses revealed a significant indirect effect of IU on lower engagement in preventative behaviors through lower belief in the effectiveness of such behaviors. Thus, we further document the role of IU in statistically predicting higher distress but lower levels of adaptive health behaviors. Furthermore, we provide preliminary support for the hypothesis that these relationships may be explained by associations between IU and lower belief in the efficacy of health behaviors. Because some current analyses indicate small effect sizes, future studies should investigate IU alongside other potentially important markers. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s10608-022-10321-0.

Is Ignorance Bliss? Examining the Effect of News Media Exposure on Anxiety and Depression During the COVID-19 Pandemic.

ABSTRACT: There has been a widespread increase in affective disorders after the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic. In the current study, we investigated the effects of exposure to and perceived accuracy of news media and demographic characteristics on anxiety and depressive symptoms. We conducted an online survey of US adults (N = 480) using hierarchical linear regression models to understand the predictive roles of duration and frequency of news media exposure, as well as the perceived accuracy of COVID-19 portrayal by the news media, on anxiety and depression. Increased exposure duration predicted greater anxiety, and decreased frequency of exposure and perceived overreaction in the news media coverage of COVID-19 were linked to greater anxiety and depression. Perceived accuracy moderated the relationship of exposure frequency to both affective outcomes. Accordingly, our data support the importance of adequate levels of accurate and trusted information to help mitigate the overall mental health burden of the pandemic.

COVID-19 vaccine acceptance: influential roles of political party and religiosity.

Given recent declines in US vaccination rates and the emergence of COVID-19 vaccines, identifying sociodemographic influencers of vaccine willingness holds importance for developing effective public health campaigns aimed at enhancing nationwide COVID-19 vaccine acceptance. The present study utilized a hierarchical binary logistic regression model to assess demographic variables (age, gender, race/ethnicity, pre-existing medical conditions), political party membership, religious affiliation, level of religiosity, and fear of COVID-19 as predictors of COVID-19 vaccine acceptance ('Yes', would receive a vaccine or 'No', would not receive a vaccine) in a national sample of US adults (N = 249). Participants were recruited from Amazon's Mechanical Turk (MTurk) and completed several online questionnaires pertaining to mental health, health behaviors, and responses to the COVID-19 pandemic. Both Democratic party membership and decreased level of religiosity predicted acceptance of a COVID-19 vaccine. This investigation supports political party membership and religiosity as influencers of COVID-19 vaccine willingness and suggests that these variables could represent potential targets for public health interventions aimed at increasing vaccine adoption.

Evaluating the Interactive Effect of COVID-19 Worry and Loneliness on Mental Health Among Young Adults.

BACKGROUND: Young adults are overrepresented in terms of adverse mental health problems related to COVID-19. Emerging work has identified worry about the consequences and trajectory of COVID-19 and loneliness as important factors in mental health during the pandemic. However, the main and interactive effects of worry about COVID-19 and loneliness have not been explored in one overarching model in relation to mental health problems among young adults. METHODS: The present study therefore evaluated loneliness and COVID-19 related worry in terms of anxiety, stress, and depression among young adults (209 college students, 76.1% female, M age = 22.99 years, SD = 5.25) recruited to participate in an online survey study. RESULTS: Results indicated a significant interaction between COVID-19 worry and loneliness for each criterion variable (depression: b = .01, SE = .003, t = 2.86, p = .01; anxiety: b = .01, SE = .002, t = 2.36, p = .02; stress: b = .01, SE = .003, t = 2.54, p = .01), such that worry was more strongly related to each mental health outcome among those that endorsed higher levels of loneliness. CONCLUSION: The current findings suggest loneliness is related to negative mental health symptoms among young adults experiencing COVID-19 related worry. The current findings provide initial empirical evidence for the impact of COVID-19 worry on mental health among young adults experiencing loneliness. Future research may benefit from exploring how COVID-19 worry and loneliness interplay over time.

The role of fear of COVID-19 in motivation to quit smoking and reductions in cigarette smoking: a preliminary investigation of at-risk cigarette smokers.

Preliminary data suggest that cigarette smokers could have an increased mortality risk from the novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2), and that certain factors (e.g., increased age, medical comorbidities) can also increase risk of poor coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outcomes. Between April 30th, 2020 and May 28th, 2020, we evaluated self-reported changes in recent smoking patterns and motivation to quit smoking among current daily cigarette smokers (N = 103) on Amazon Mechanical Turk. We also assessed the relationship of these outcomes to age, medical comorbidity status, and fear of COVID-19. Most participants (68.9%) reported smoking less frequently than usual in the last 28 days. Among daily smokers, increased fear of COVID-19 predicted increased motivation to quit smoking and actual smoking reductions (ps < .05). Endorsement of one or more medical comorbidities, but not increased age, predicted increased motivation to quit smoking (p < .05). These data suggest the potentially greater relevance of psychological factors (e.g., fear of COVID-19) over external risk factors (e.g., medical comorbidity, increased age) on motivation to quit smoking and actual reductions in smoking patterns, and may reflect that the pandemic is a suitable time for offering smoking cessation intervention.