Age, race/Hispanic origin, and COVID-19 mortality among sickle cell disease patients in the United States

The COVID-19 pandemic remains a global health challenge, with 6.7 million deaths worldwide as of January 2023. It has illuminated the health iniquities in underserved communities and populations like those with sickle cell disease (SCD). Researchers have associated the COVID-19 outcome among SCD patients in other regions of the globe. The purpose of this retrospective cross-sectional observational study was to investigate the relationship between age, race/Hispanic origin, and COVID-19 mortality among persons with SCD in the United States from January 2020 to March 2021. The Krieger ecosocial theory of disease distribution framed the study. Data were drawn from an existing Centers for Disease Control and Prevention provisional SCD death data set (N = 140). The binary logistic regression analysis result showed a statistically significant relationship between age and race/Hispanic origin and COVID-19 mortality. The variability between ages was 42.9%;race/Hispanic origin was 29.9%;and age and race/Hispanic origin were the highest, with 62.4% dying from COVID-19. Non-Hispanic Black patients were 9.6 times more likely to die overall but those aged 60+ were 17.5 times more likely to die from COVID-19 than the reference groups (0-19-year-old and other race). This study can benefit the research community, public health workers, medical professionals, and policymakers to understand better and influence policy on developing and prioritizing age- and race-tailored preventive protocols and medical care. They may minimize pain and suffering while mitigating mortality from COVID-19 and other unforeseen future pandemics within the SCD community at home and abroad and positively effect social change. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved)

Should age matter in COVID-19 triage? A deliberative study

The COVID-19 pandemic put a large burden on many healthcare systems, causing fears about resource scarcity and triage. Several COVID-19 guidelines included age as an explicit factor and practices of both triage and 'anticipatory triage' likely limited access to hospital care for elderly patients, especially those in care homes. To ensure the legitimacy of triage guidelines, which affect the public, it is important to engage the public's moral intuitions. Our study aimed to explore general public views in the UK on the role of age, and related factors like frailty and quality of life, in triage during the COVID-19 pandemic. We held online deliberative workshops with members of the general public (n = 22). Participants were guided through a deliberative process to maximise eliciting informed and considered preferences. Participants generally accepted the need for triage but strongly rejected 'fair innings' and 'life projects' principles as justifications for age-based allocation. They were also wary of the 'maximise life-years' principle, preferring to maximise the number of lives rather than life years saved. Although they did not arrive at a unified recommendation of one principle, a concern for three core principles and values eventually emerged: equality, efficiency and vulnerability. While these remain difficult to fully respect at once, they captured a considered, multifaceted consensus: utilitarian considerations of efficiency should be tempered with a concern for equality and vulnerability. This 'triad' of ethical principles may be a useful structure to guide ethical deliberation as societies negotiate the conflicting ethical demands of triage. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved)

Cross-cultural collaboration through virtual teaming in higher education

Scholars from three universities in three different parts of the world - North America, Africa, and Eurasia - across different cultures, disciplines, and contexts, collaborated with the objective of advancing transversal skills and intercultural competences through immersing their students in international virtual teamwork. Students and lecturers represented the Appalachian State University (United States of America), University of the Free State (South Africa), and Novgorod State University (Russia). In this article, we share our lessons learned from the challenges we faced in the hopes of deepening understanding in higher education concerning what can be accomplished through remote learning across continents and cultures. This work allowed us to be ahead of the collapse of traditional teaching on campuses caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, as we had prior experience of online pedagogies reaching across international borders, cultures, time zones, and languages. Even during hard lockdown, when travelling abroad was impossible, our students experienced internationalised curricula, interacted with international scholars and staff, and were able to continue with the programme as planned. We began this work more than five years prior to the pandemic;therefore, these efforts led to successfully switching to online learning in other courses. We began with engaging staff members as well as students in ongoing, project-based collaboration across cultures from these institutions. This required the use of synchronous and asynchronous digital platforms, which would enable staff members and students to work collaboratively for six to eight weeks to create realistic projects. Staff members began to compile the collaborative co-creating courses that would be taught together, thus combining and adapting various pedagogical approaches. We then shared the responsibility for co-facilitating each course, despite different philosophies of teaching and learning. The result was a balanced blend of pedagogies, allowing students to collaborate successfully with students from the other universities. Students overcame a number of challenges: (a) cultural differences;(b) infrastructure for technology platforms;(c) time zones;(d) languages;(e) age and generational differences;(f) unfamiliarity with various pedagogies;(g) interaction with other cultures and settings;and (h) stereotypes fuelled by popular media. We share our journey and the strategies that addressed these challenges, including the use of technology and results from this continued collaboration.

Academic Stress in Online Higher Education

With the unprecedented impacts of the COVID-19 outbreak, higher education institutions have faced a number of challenges, one of which is the transition to online education. University students have experienced varying levels of stress as the largest group affected by this transition. The perceived level of academic stress experienced by university students in this new system has become significant for the improvement in online learning at the tertiary level. Therefore, this study aimed to measure the level of academic stress among university students including the components of pressures to perform, perceptions of workload, academic self-perceptions, and time restraints during online learning. In order to measure the level of academic stress among university students, a quantitative research design was adopted through gathering statistical data from 147 undergraduate students studying online in different departments in Turkey utilizing "The Perception of Academic Stress Scale" including the components of pressures to perform, perceptions of workload, academic self-perceptions, and time restraints during online learning. The results of this quantitatively designed study revealed that the perceived level of academic stress among university students was found as neutral in general;regarding the components of "Pressures to Perform" as high, of "Perceptions of Workload", "Academic Self-Perceptions" and "Time Restraints" as neutral. Some statistically significant differences were also detected in the perceived level of academic stress in relation to the variables of gender, age (Gen X vs Gen Y), year of study, satisfaction with the learning and home environments.

Impact of Cohabitation during Confinement on Older Adults' Negative Affect: What Specificity of Life as a Couple?

BackgroundSocial isolation is a risk factor for older adults' physical and psychological health. The beneficial effect of social connections in times of major health events is undeniable. Nevertheless, it remains unclear whether the positive effect of social support depends on the relationship type.ObjectivesThis study aimed to investigate the influence of older adults' living conditions on the risk of experiencing negative affect during the first lockdown and post-lockdown.DesignAn epidemiological study conducted during the COVID-19 crisis, at the time of the first lockdown, and 2 to 3 months following the lockdown.SettingA subset sample of the PACOVID survey, a population-based survey of older adults. Participants: Altogether, 277 participants were included into three groups depending on their living conditions: Group 1 "living alone" (n = 141);Group 2 "living with their spouse" (n = 106);Group 3 "living in cohabitation with relatives" (n = 30). Measurements: Mixed logistic regression analyses were used to study the change in the risk of experiencing negative affects over time according to the living conditions. The presence of negative affects during lockdown was assessed using three items from the 20-item Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale: << Do you feel sad?>>;<< Do you feel depressed?;<< Do you feel lonely?ResultsParticipants living with their relatives or partner were significantly less likely to experience negative affect than those living alone during lockdown. Moreover, over time, only those living with their spouse had this lesser risk compared to those living alone.ConclusionsThese findings highlight the protective effect of social support over time and more specifically of that provided by the spouse. Couple functioning ought to be given consideration when studying the impact of health crisis situation on the mental health of older adults.

The Moderating Effects of Gender on Factors Affecting the Intention to Use Mobile Learning

Aim/Purpose The main aims of this research are to explore the moderating effects of gender on the relationships of such factors and the intention to use mobile learning, to examine the factors that influence m-learning acceptance in the universities and higher education institutions (HEI) in Iraq, and to investigate the influence of the intention to use on the actual use of mobile learning in (HEI). Background Over recent decades, mobile learning has played an increasingly important role in the teaching and learning process, especially for higher education. As such, acceptance and use of mobile learning has become a topic of interest within the education sector. In this regard, UTAUT is one of the widely used models for examining users' intention for use and acceptance of information technology.Methodology A survey method was used in this study involving a sample of 323 participants recruited from several universities in Iraq. Contribution This study has made significant contributions to the advancement of m -learn- ing in Iraq by developing a mobile learning model that can help guide practi- tioners to promote and facilitate the use of such an approach in universities.Findings The findings showed that gender moderated the relationships of social influ- ence (SI), effort expectancy (EE), and performance expectancy (PE) with re- spondents' intention to use m-learning. In addition, the findings confirmed the perceived enjoyment, performance expectancy (PE), effort expectancy (EE), self-efficacy (SE), and social influence (SI) had significant direct effects on in- tention to use m-learning. Furthermore, the respondents' intention to use or be- havioral intention had a significant impact on the actual use of m-learning.Recommendations for PractitionersIt is vital for university management and practitioners to encourage students about the advantages of mobile learning in higher education institutions. In Iraq, the research in mobile learning is still very new and there are few studies have analyzed the gender effect on the mobile technology acceptance in learn- ing. This study provides a roadmap of the gender effect on variables that could influence mobile learning acceptance in higher education institutions in Iraq.Recommendations for Researchers The gender moderation effect on the factors that influence the mobile learning acceptance is important, thus the new researchers are advised to examine the gender effect on other factors that could influence mobile learning acceptance. Moreover, cross-nation studies are needed to further validate the findings of this research because it was conducted from the perspective of a developing na- tion where mobile learning is still in its infancy. Future studies may broaden the research to examine additional potential elements, such as the quality of ser- vices in future models, which can help enhance the understanding of learners' acceptance and continuous usage of mobile learning as well as to improve the utility of UTAUT.Impact on Society The use of mobile learning has increased in its importance for higher education around the globe, including Iraq. Clearly, mobile learning has been pervasively used in education throughout the world due to the Covid-19 pandemic. During this time, students were required to study at home for months as per govern- ments' orders in order to avoid being affected by the virus. With mobile learn- ing, students were able to continue their studies;otherwise, they would have missed the academic year. Academic staff and administrators should therefore encourage and employ mobile learning for instruction, student communication, and exam administration.Future Research Given that the UTAUT model was used in higher educational settings for this research, it is advised to look into its application in corporate settings to see if comparable results can be repeated or not. More research is advised to look at the moderating effects of demographic factors, such as age and place of origin, in order to shed more light on students' adoption of mobile learning in HEIs in developing nations.

Depression and suicidal behavior in adolescents. (Special Issue: Clinical psychiatry.)

This is a title only record which contains no .

Workaholism: Personality factors and conditions of professional work

Question: The need for excessive work, also known as "workaholism", is a serious health problem in our society. In this study, we examined the impact of work characteristics (low boundaries between work and home) and personality traits (Big Five) on workaholism. Method: Data were collected from a sample of 111 employees aged 19 to 66. Participants completed the Big Five Inventory-SOEP (BFI-S), a questionnaire to determine central characteristics of work (Fragebogen zur Erfassung der zentralen Merkmale der Arbeit 4.0) and a scale to measure workaholism (Skala zur Erfassung von Arbeitssucht) online. Statistical analyses (correlation analyses, moderated regression analyses) were conducted using "R" and "PSPP". Results: Workaholism scores were found to be significantly correlated with low boundaries between work and home (r = .208), with neuroticism (r = .356) and with participants' age (r = -.321). The proportion of variance explained by all three predictors was 29 %. No moderating effect of the variable 'boundaries between work and home' on the relationship between neuroticism (UV) and workaholism (AV) could be found. Conclusions: In addition to the Big Five personality factor neuroticism and the age of participants, low boundaries between work and home play a relevant role in workaholism. These results are important in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, as employees more often work from home, which makes the separation between work and personal time more difficult. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved) Abstract (German) Fragestellung: Suchtartiges Arbeiten stellt ein ernst zu nehmendes Problem in unserer Gesellschaft dar. In dieser Studie wird der Frage nachgegangen, welche Rolle berufliche Rahmenbedingungen (Entgrenzung der Arbeit) und Personlichkeitsfaktoren (Big Five) bei suchtartigem Arbeiten spielen. Methode: 111 Erwerbstatige im Alter von 19 bis 66 Jahren beantworteten online den Personlichkeitstest Big Five Inventory-SOEP, den Fragebogen zur Erfassung zentraler Merkmale der Arbeit 4.0 und die Skala zur Erfassung von Arbeitssucht. Die statistischen Auswertungen (Korrelationsanalysen, moderierte Regressionsanalyse) erfolgten mittels R" und PSPP". Ergebnisse: Suchtartiges Arbeiten korreliert signifikant mit Entgrenzung (r = .208), Neurotizismus (r = .356) und dem Alter der Probanden (r = -.321). Alle drei Pradiktoren zusammen erklaren insgesamt 29 Prozent der Varianz von suchtartigem Arbeiten. Es konnte kein moderierender Effekt der Variablen Entgrenzung der Arbeit auf den Zusammenhang zwischen Neurotizismus und suchtartigem Arbeiten gefunden werden. Schlussfolgerungen: Neben dem Personlichkeitsfaktor Neurotizismus und dem Alter spielen bei der Vorhersage suchtartigen Arbeitens auch das Ausmas der Entgrenzung der Arbeit eine relevante Rolle. Die Ergebnisse sind vor dem Hintergrund der Covid-19-Pandemie relevant, da bei Mitarbeitern im Homeoffice die Grenzen von Arbeit und Privatleben besonders stark verwischen. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved)

Aging on parole: An empirical analysis of reentry, reintegration, and life satisfaction

As the prison population grays, so too does the people leaving prison. In New Jersey and New York, 35% and 26% of people on parole are over the age of 50 respectively. While older persons have lower recidivism rates compared to younger persons, there are physical, mental, and societal challenges that come with advancing age that can make reentry and reintegration a particularly difficult experience compared to younger persons. The aim of this dissertation is to explore the experiences of older adults on parole and the parole officers that assist them in their reentry and reintegration.This study is unique in that it is the first known study that looks at differences in redeemability and reintegration based on age. Additionally, this study uses sociological perspectives that are under-utilized when studying the correctional, but more specifically, the paroled population. Maruna (2001) and O'Sullivan's (2018) Belief in Redeemability, and Braithwaite's (1989) Reintegrative Shaming and Wolff and Draine (2004), Smith & Hattery (2011) and Lin's (2000) social capital theories will be used to address the following four research questions addressing persons on parole: (1) Do the needs of people leaving prison differ based on age? (2) Are there age-related differences in concerns regarding reintegration for people leaving prison? (3) Are there age-related differences in concerns regarding stigmatization for people leaving prison? (4) Are there age-related differences in finding meaning in life post incarceration? To understand parole officer perceptions of counseling older persons on parole Helfgott's (1997) theory on social distance as well as parole officer decision-making theories will be used to answer the following two research questions: (1) Are parole officers' experiences working with older persons on parole different than younger persons? (2) How do parole officers manage counseling and supervision of older persons on parole compared to younger persons?This dissertation is, as far as the author knows, the first mixed methods examination of life on parole for older persons, and how their experiences differ from their younger cohorts. This mixed methods study will use qualitative and quantitative methods of analysis to understand the experiences of older person on parole from multiple angles including thematic and quantitative content analysis, descriptive analyses and chi-square analyses where appropriate. This study defines older person on parole as someone over the age of 50, and a younger person on parole as someone between the ages of 18-49 under parole supervision. This proposal investigates whether older persons on parole believe they can be successfully reintegrated into the community, considering their age, time served and health conditions that typically accompany older persons who have been impacted by the criminal justice system as it compares to younger persons on parole. Furthermore, this study aims to understand how older persons on parole find life satisfaction after prison and parole. Finally, this dissertation aims to understand how parole officers view older persons on parole and seeks to understand their perceptions of managing and counseling older persons on parole.Data for the New Jersey responses was obtained from the New Jersey State Parole Board, which included access to people on parole, and parole officers. Data for the New York and Colorado parolee responses was obtained through convenience sampling and snowball sampling techniques. People on parole were surveyed on their experiences, and a subset of older adults were interviewed to obtain rich data on the experiences of being an older person on parole. Due to COVID-19 restrictions, younger people on parole were also interviewed to understand how their experiences compared to the older population. In addition to surveying parole officers in New Jersey, parole... (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved)

Fake news mediate the relationship between sociopolitical factors and vaccination intent in Brazil

Vaccination hesitancy has become a central concern and is a barrier to overcoming the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) crisis. Studies have indicated that mis/disinformation plays a role on the attitudes and behaviours towards vaccination. However, further formal statistical models are required to investigate how fake news relates to vaccination intent and how they mediate the relationship between socioeconomic/political factors and vaccination intent. We studied a sample of 500 Brazilians and found that people were mostly not susceptible to vaccine mis/disinformation. In addition, we found that their vaccination intent was high. However, suspicions that fake news could be true raised doubts over the vaccination intention. Although age and political orientation directly influenced vaccination intent, we found that the relationship between socioeconomic/political factors and vaccination intent was strongly mediated by belief in fake news. Our results raise the need to create multiple strategies to combat the dissemination and acceptance of such content. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved)

An analysis of the protecting access to post-COVID-19 telehealth act and its efficacy in health care access amid the COVID-19 pandemic

The purpose of this study is to examine the barriers and the socio-economic determinants of telehealth services utilization during COVID-19 pandemic. This study measured the association between behavioral health services, medical services, and socio-economic factors such as gender, race, age, income level, education level, and health insurance coverage to determine if there is any relationship between these social economic factors and telehealth access during the COVID-19 pandemic. A descriptive-correlational analysis of secondary data from the Household Pulse Survey (HPS) enabled the researcher to determine associations between social economic factors and healthcare access to answer the research questions and create a baseline to enable follow-up analyses. The independent variables were the socio-economic factors of gender, race, age, income level, education level, and health insurance coverage. The dependent variables were access to health care and telehealth services. Health care was divided into medical and behavioral health services. Levesque's conceptual framework of access to health care is used to synthesize characterizing access to health care and to describe the correlational relationship between the use of telehealth and social economic factors. The results of this study suggests that barriers to medical care were low, with as many as 87% of Louisiana residents having uninterrupted access to services and nearly 27% of residents utilizing telehealth services. The results of this study showed that the social economic factors of gender, race, age, income level, education level, and health insurance coverage were associated with access to health care services and use of telehealth. The regression analyses showed that collectively these social economic factors were significantly associated with health care access and telehealth use in Louisiana during the COVID-19 pandemic. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)

Cannabis use during the COVID-19 pandemic: Results from a longitudinal study of cannabis users

Background: The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has shifted life in the United States. It is reasonable to expect the challenges of cannabis use in the U.S. are amplified given the vast shutdowns and economic insecurity. The purpose of the research is to examine changes in adult cannabis use during COVID-19. Methods: This one-group, longitudinal, cohort study reports results from an online survey and six-month follow-up. Both surveys examined cannabis use and additional questions regarding COVID-19 were added to the follow-up. Quantitative analysis (e.g., ANOVA) was conducted on the questionnaire and thematic analysis was performed on a text question. Results: A majority of the sample (65.7%) reported no significant change in cannabis use as a result of COVID-19. A one-way ANOVA of CUDIT-R scores showed statistical significance (p < .01) between age groups. Contrary to the quantitative analysis, thematic analysis revealed many changes in cannabis use as a response to COVID-19. Conclusions: Self-efficacy can be seen through the empowered behaviors to change cannabis products but those with an increase in CUDIT-R scores may need targeted assessments and education to promote healthier cannabis use. Additionally, this study calls for a larger examination of changes in cannabis use by age and working conditions. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved)

Assessing vaccination strategies for the COVID-19 epidemic in Minas Gerais (Brazil). (Special Covid issue.)

In this work we analyze the effectiveness of vaccination strategies for the COVID-19 epidemic in the Brazilian state of Minas Gerais. Firstly we study the effectiveness of general vaccination in the decreasing of the number of infected individuals using a traditional non structured SEIR model. Secondly we consider an age-structured SEIR model with three age classes (youngster, adult and elderly) and we analyze the current strategy in the Brazilian state of Minas Gerais, of focusing the vaccination on the elderly group. We conclude by showing this strategy to be mistaken and that a vaccination focusing on the age group of the adults would be much more efficient in decreasing the total number of infected individuals.

The effect of education, age, and gender on disease risk perception and disease severity perception at a community college during the COVID-19 pandemic

The purpose of this study was to measure the correlation between knowledge of viral disease and disease risk perception, disease severity perception, and mask wearing during the COVID-19 pandemic by level of education, age, and gender at a community college in Phoenix, Arizona. Participants were recruited by an email sent to all students, faculty, and staff at PVCC using an all-college email distribution list. Disease risk and severity perception were assessed with the Brief Illness Perception Questionnaire 5, which was modified to include questions measuring participant age, education level, and whether they had ever taken a college biology course. Two additional question sets measured compliance of willingness to wear a face mask. Analysis showed a significant relationship between gender and mask wearing behavior and between knowledge of viral disease in combination with education level and the combined variables of disease risk perception, disease severity perception, and mask wearing behavior. No significant difference from having taken a biology course was found in risk perception, disease severity perception, and mask wearing behavior by age. The results suggest that formal higher education that includes a knowledge of viral disease influences how individuals perceive the severity and risk of COVID-19 and modify their mask wearing behavior accordingly. Gender influences people's willingness to wear a mask, even though it has no effect of risk perception or severity perception. The results can be used to modify existing health education strategies. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)

Career Planning and Self-Efficacy as Predictors of Students' Career-Related Worry: Direct and Mediated Pathways

The current study seeks to shed light on social-cognitive resources that mitigate master students' experience of dysfunctional career-related worry before graduation. Based on the career self-management model (CSM;Lent & Brown, 2013), we investigate concurrent and time-lagged direct and mediated relationships between career planning, career-related self-efficacy, and career-related worry among a sample of 482 students shortly before graduation. Using data collected at three time points, a negative relationship was found between career planning (T1) and career-related worry (T3) via career-related self-efficacy (T2). Our findings shed light on the role of career planning and career-related self-efficacy as malleable social-cognitive resources that diminish dysfunctional thinking before graduation in sequential order. These findings imply that career planning and career-related self-efficacy are relevant predictors of affective states and can be incorporated into the CSM.

Effecting well-being improvements in educational settings with positive psychology interventions

Optimal mental health is a global and increasingly pressing issue. Major events in recent times, such as the effects of global warming and the Covid-19 pandemic, have had undeniable negative effects on people's well-being. The mental health of young people is of particular importance: strategies to deal with adversity are learned and developed at this stage of life. Success aids the likelihood of being a lifelong resilient and hopefully flourishing individual, whereas difficulty may leave an individual vulnerable to slipping into persistent mental ill health. Given this, there seems an obvious and necessary role for educational institutions in promoting such strategies and thus improving the well-being of students. Positive psychology has a valuable contribution to make in this regard, as achieving optimal mental health is perhaps its primary purpose, and positive psychology interventions (PPIs) are broad-based and cost-effective to implement when compared with more traditional clinical approaches. They are also technology friendly, meaning they may be disbursed widely. The research in this thesis explores the use of several PPIs in school and university settings with the aim of building significant and lasting well-being improvements for young people. It works to find the most effective interventions and to understand what makes them so. Finally, it seeks to create real-world value by considering how such interventions may be designed and implemented in an educational context. The thesis comprises four studies. The first study used a positive diary exercise in a sample of primary school children. The exercise resulted in a significant increase in happiness and reduction in depressive symptoms during and up to three months after the intervention. A tertile split revealed interestingly different response profiles for participants depending on baseline well-being. A similar intervention in the second study found significant associated improvements in academic performance. The third study applied two PPIs in samples of undergraduates. The first part also used the diary exercise, which found there to be less convincing evidence of its effectiveness when compared with the first two studies. The second part used a signature strengths intervention, which resulted in marked and sustained improvements in self-esteem and life satisfaction. This study highlighted the differing outcomes that different interventions may have, particularly across age groups. It also raised questions as to why certain well-being markers improve more or last longer than others, suggesting that an individual's sense of autonomy or control may be a factor. These questions shaped the fourth study, which was more exploratory. It used a novel exercise-framed PPI to determine whether a sense of control, as measured by judgments of contingency, is linked with well-being, and whether positively manipulating such judgments might lead to improvements thereof. The complexity of the experimental paradigm meant that findings were inconclusive in this regard, but it opened the door to future work that might be able to distil more robust effects. Overall, this thesis finds that PPIs demonstrate huge promise for mental health improvements and that they are a feasible option for incorporation into an educational curriculum. However, it seems they are not universal aids and careful consideration needs to be given to the type of intervention used and who the target recipients are. Age and baseline well-being are two important factors, for example. If properly implemented, PPIs could be valuable tools to build resilience and enable young people to flourish now and through the rest of their lives. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)

The most diverse, tech-savvy, anxious, and socially conscious generation to date is entering the legal profession

GENERATIONAL THEORY Researchers William Strauss and Neil Howe pioneered the study of what they deemed "peer personalities" and how each generation's experiences of certain major events affect their values and behavior.3 Generally speaking, a generation is defined as the entire body of people born and living at about the same time and spans between 14 and 20 years.4 According to Strauss and Howe, as well as others who have studied the phenomenon, generational differences naturally develop based on the unique historical and cultural events that occur and the age of the individuals experiencing them.5 Although some of the dates vary slightly depending on the source, American researchers have identified the following generations since 1901: * The "Greatest Generation," born 1901-1924 * The "Silent Generation," born 1925-1945 * "Baby Boomers," born 1946-1964 * "Generation X," born 1965-1980 * "Millennials," born 1981-1994 * "Generation Z" or "Zoomers," born 1995-20126 Each of these eras produced what researchers refer to as "cohort identity" for the individuals of that generation.7 For example, members of the Silent Generation were book-marked between the Great Depression and World War II, while members of Generation X came of age during a resurgent consumer economy and the dawn of the digital age. Having these unique experiences at roughly the same age affects how one generation parents the next, which in turn produces another unique set of individuals with shared experiences.8 The Zoomer generation is smart, technologically savvy, and determined to change the world.9 In court, as in life, judges will be better able to communicate with this newest crop of young adults by understanding what motivates them and how they are different from older participants in the judicial process. Simply placing an entire group of people in a bucket based on a generational stereotype does a disservice to any industry attempting to prepare for or adapt to demographic change.14 Thus, labeling Millennials as lazy and entitled is just as erroneous as assuming every member of Gen Z is an ardent liberal.15 A trial judge should always be wary of such "generational hype. Generation Z has been called "a worried generation," reporting high rates of anxiety, depression, and loneliness.17 From 1991 to 2015, the percentage of youths reporting being "very happy" declined sharply18 We have yet to experience the full aftereffects of the COVID-19 pandemic, in which already isolated young people became even more separated from each other as well as from society as a whole.

Staying connected during stay-at-home: Communication with family and friends and its association with well-being

COVID-19 and the resulting stay-at-home orders issued to reduce the spread of the virus created a novel social situation in which people could not spend in-person time with their family and friends. Thus, emerging technologies like video calling and other forms of mediated communication like voice calling and text messaging became important resources for people to stay in touch. The purpose of this study was threefold. First, we wanted to test whether people would use more mediated communication (video calls, voice calls, text messaging) to stay in touch during the stay-at-home order. Second, we wanted to see if increased mediated communication would be positively associated with well-being. Finally, we explored whether mediated communication was related to age. To answer these questions, we surveyed 2092 participants who answered questions online about how their use of video calls, voice calls, and text messaging and their well-being had changed since the stay-at-home order. Our results show that people increased their use of mediated communication, particularly video calling;and increases in mediated communication with close others, particularly friends, was related to higher levels of well-being. Finally, we found that age was related only to the use of video calling;younger people tended to use more video calling. These findings support the compensatory theory of technology use, that people use technologically mediated communication to maintain contact with their close friends and family when in-person contact is not possible, and that this form of contact, when in-person interaction is unavailable, is associated with positive outcomes. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved)

Temporal effects on death by suicide: empirical evidence and possible molecular correlates

Popular culture and medical lore have long postulated a connection between full moon and exacerbations of psychiatric disorders. We wanted to empirically analyze the hypothesis that suicides are increased during the period around full moons. We analyzed pre-COVID suicides from the Marion County Coroner's Office (n = 776), and show that deaths by suicide are significantly increased during the week of the full moon (p = 0.037), with older individuals (age ≥ 55) showing a stronger effect (p = 0.019). We also examined in our dataset which hour of the day (3–4 pm, p = 0.035), and which month of the year (September, p = 0.09) show the most deaths by suicide. We had blood samples on a subset of the subjects (n = 45), which enabled us to look at possible molecular mechanisms. We tested a list of top blood biomarkers for suicidality (n = 154) from previous studies of ours 7, to assess which of them are predictive. The biomarkers for suicidality that are predictive of death by suicide during full moon, peak hour of day, and peak month of year, respectively, compared to outside of those periods, appear to be enriched in circadian clock genes. For full moon it is AHCYL2, ACSM3, AK2, and RBM3. For peak hour it is GSK3B, AK2, and PRKCB. For peak month it is TBL1XR1 and PRKCI. Half of these genes are modulated in expression by lithium and by valproate in opposite direction to suicidality, and all of them are modulated by depression and alcohol in the same direction as suicidality. These data suggest that there are temporal effects on suicidality, possibly mediated by biological clocks, pointing to changes in ambient light (timing and intensity) as a therapeutically addressable target to decrease suicidality, that can be coupled with psychiatric pharmacological and addiction treatment preventive interventions.

Coping in the time of COVID-19: Mindsets and the stories we tell

Across two studies (N = 803), we explored how meaning-making systems (i.e., mindsets and narrative identity) are related to each other as well as to coping in the wake of challenges faced during the COVID-19 pandemic. In Study 1, we find that struggle-is-enhancing, relative to struggle-is-debilitating, mindsets predicted stories defined by elements of personal control with opportunities for growth (agency) and an emphasis on the positive, rather than on the suffering (redemptive). Stronger enhancing mindsets and agentic as well as redemptive narratives predicted more adaptive coping, including less negative affect, less avoidance, and positive expectations for future success. In Study 2, we replicated these fundamental findings and explored relations with wellbeing. Struggle-is-enhancing, relative to debilitating, mindsets related to greater wellbeing as did agency and redemptive stories. Overall, creating meaning from struggle, crafting tales with more positive themes, and using active coping show promise for future work focused on enhancing social, emotional, and psychological wellbeing. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved)