Report of the American Psychological Association Presidential Task Force on Psychology and Health Equity.

There is overwhelming evidence of serious problems with access to health care services, quality of care, and unequal health outcomes among minoritized groups including Black, Indigenous, and other populations of people of color across numerous health outcomes. At the core of health inequities are structural factors that include systemic racism as well as a range of other characteristics associated with limited political, social, and economic power. The APA Presidential Task Force on Psychology and Health Equity was appointed to recommend a course of action for APA in contributing to the solution of health inequities. The Task Force developed the Resolution on Advancing Health Equity in Psychology (https://www.apa.org/about/policy/advancing-health-equity-psychology), adopted as APA policy in October 2021. The current report provides additional discussion of the limitations of current structures of psychology training, science, and professional practice in addressing health inequities. Recommendations are offered for specific actions in the following areas: (a) Education and Training, including recruitment, admissions, and retention along the pathway and curricula transformation throughout the training sequence; (b) Research and Publications, including advocacy for health equity in research funding, mitigating bias in reporting, and improving representation and inclusive excellence; and (c) Professional Practice, including developing competent professional practice models and guidelines and promoting viable service reimbursement. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).

The impact of Covid-19 on Latin American Psychology: research, profession, and public policy / O impacto da Covid-19 na Psicologia Latino-Americana: pesquisa, profissão e políticas públicas

In this paper, we offer an in-depth analysis of relevant scientific literature and a series of critical reflections based on a narrative review of the impact that the early stages of the Covid-19 pandemic had on Latin American psychology. We performed a non-exhaustive search, selection, and analysis of different documentary sources in scientific databases, institutional repositories, and websites of national and regional psychology organizations between May 25 and 31, 2020. In particular, we consulted SciELO, Redalyc, Dialnet, and Google Scholar using the following individual key words associated to psychology: "Coronavirus", "Covid-19" and "Pandemic". Various types of documents were retrieved for a subsequent in-depth analysis (e.g., articles, institutional documents, notes, bulletins, recommendation guides, etc.). Our review allowed us to identify three challenges for psychology in the region: (1) insertion of psychology in public policies; (2) construction of an own agenda of psychological research; (3) evaluation of practices and reorientation of professional training processes.

Neste artigo, é oferecida uma análise aprofundada da literatura científica relevante e uma série de reflexões críticas baseadas em uma revisão narrativa do impacto que os estágios iniciais da pandemia de Covid-19 tiveram na psicologia latino-americana. Foi realizada uma busca não exaustiva, seleção e análise de diferentes fontes documentais em bancos de dados científicos, repositórios institucionais e websites de organizações nacionais e regionais de psicologia entre 25 e 31 de maio de 2020. Em particular, foram consultadas as bases SciELO, Redalyc, Dialnet e Google Scholar usando as seguintes palavras-chave individuais associadas à psicologia: "coronavírus", "Covid-19" e "pandemia". Vários tipos de documentos foram recuperados para uma análise posterior em profundidade (por exemplo: artigos, documentos institucionais, notas, boletins, guias de recomendação, etc.). A revisão feita pelos autores permitiu identificar três desafios para a psicologia na região: (1) inserção da psicologia nas políticas públicas; (2) construção de uma agenda própria de pesquisa psicológica e (3) avaliação das práticas e reorientação dos processos de formação profissional.

School psychology during the covid-19 pandemic: exploring possibilities / Psicología Escolar en la Pandemia por Covid-19: explorando posibilidades / Psicologia escolar na pandemia por covid-19: explorando possibilidades

O período de pandemia devido à Covid-19 reforçou a necessidade de repensar o papel do psicólogo escolar diante dos desafios que o ensino remoto impõe. Este relato de experiência busca revelar as atividades desempenhadas pelas estagiárias de psicologia escolar em uma escola pública do interior da Bahia. As atividades incluíram construção e distribuição de materiais informativos virtuais, projeto de cartas terapêuticas, divulgação de informação em plataformas digitais, além de acolhimento online de casos específicos. O uso das tecnologias de informação e comunicação revelou-se como uma estratégia potencial para ação junto ao público adolescente, mas também escancarou as dificuldades de acesso à educação de modo remoto para os alunos de escolas públicas, que foram acirradas durante a pandemia.

El período de pandemia debido a la Covid-19 reforzó la necesidad de repensarse el papel del psicólogo escolar delante de los desafíos que la enseñanza remota impone. Este relato de experiencia busca revelar las actividades desempeñadas por las psicólogas escolar en formación en una escuela pública del interior de Bahía. Las actividades incluyeron construcción y distribución de materiales informativos virtuales, proyecto de cartas terapéuticas, divulgación de información em plataformas digitales, además de acogimiento online de casos específicos. El uso de las tecnologías de información y comunicación se mostró como una estrategia potencial para acción junto al público adolescente, pero también dejó claro las dificultades de acceso a la educación de modo remoto para los alumnos de escuelas públicas, que fueron acerradas durante la pandemia.

The COVID-19 pandemic reinforced the need to rethink the role played by school psychologists in the face of the challenges posed by remote education. This experience report intends to present the activities performed by school psychology interns at a public school in the countryside of the state of Bahia. the activities included the production and distribution of virtual information materials, the writing of therapeutic letters, and the dissemination of information on digital platforms, and online hosting for specific cases. The use of information and communication technologies was a powerful strategy for action with adolescents, but it also raised the issue of remote access to education for students from public schools, which became more serious during the pandemic.

Building a more equitable society: Psychology's role in achieving health equity.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention defines health disparities as "preventable differences in the burden of disease, injury, violence, or opportunities to achieve optimal health that are experienced by socially disadvantaged populations." Health disparities are often the result of persistent unjust policies and discriminatory practices that increase the risk of vulnerable populations for poor health. Environmental, social, and behavioral factors-all areas of psychology's expertise-contribute to health disparities in interacting ways. This article describes health disparities, including the evidence for them, the role that psychology and the American Psychological Association (APA) can play in addressing the health disparities, and the work of the APA Presidential Task Force on Psychology and Health Equity, including the APA Resolution on Psychology and Health Equity. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

Compounding inequalities: Adolescent psychosocial wellbeing and resilience among refugee and host communities in Jordan during the COVID-19 pandemic.

PURPOSE: The COVID-19 pandemic and associated risk-mitigation strategies have altered the social contexts in which adolescents in low- and middle-income countries live. Little is known, however, about the impacts of the pandemic on displaced populations, and how those impacts differ by gender and life stage. We investigate the extent to which the pandemic has compounded pre-existing social inequalities among adolescents in Jordan, and the role support structures play in promoting resilience. METHODS: Our analysis leverages longitudinal quantitative survey data and in-depth qualitative interviews, collected before and after the onset of COVID-19, with over 3,000 Syrian refugees, stateless Palestinians and vulnerable Jordanians, living in camps, host communities and informal tented settlements. We utilize mixed-methods analysis combining multivariate regression with deductive qualitative tools to evaluate pandemic impacts and associated policy responses on adolescent wellbeing and mental health, at three and nine months after the pandemic onset. We also explore the role of support systems at individual, household, community, and policy levels. FINDINGS: We find the pandemic has resulted in severe economic and service disruptions with far-reaching and heterogenous effects on adolescent wellbeing. Nine months into the pandemic, 19.3% of adolescents in the sample presented with symptoms of moderate-to severe depression, with small signs of improvement (3.2 percentage points [pp], p<0.001). Two thirds of adolescents reported household stress had increased during the pandemic, especially for Syrian adolescents in host communities (10.7pp higher than any other group, p<0.001). Social connectedness was particularly low for girls, who were 13.4 percentage points (p<0.001) more likely than boys to have had no interaction with friends in the past 7 days. Adolescent programming shows signs of being protective, particularly for girls, who were 8.8 percentage points (p<0.01) more likely to have a trusted friend than their peers who were not participating in programming. CONCLUSIONS: Pre-existing social inequalities among refugee adolescents affected by forced displacement have been compounded during the COVID-19 pandemic, with related disruptions to services and social networks. To achieve Sustainable Development Goal targets to support healthy and empowered development in adolescence and early adulthood requires interventions that target the urgent needs of the most vulnerable adolescents while addressing population-level root causes and determinants of psychosocial wellbeing and resilience for all adolescent girls and boys.

Registered report: How open do you want your science? An international investigation into knowledge and attitudes of psychology students.

The use of Open Science practices is often proposed as a way to improve research practice, especially in psychology. Open Science can increase transparency and therefore reduce questionable research practices, making research more accessible to students, scholars, policy makers, and the public. However, little is known about how widespread Open Science practices are taught and how students are educated about these practices. In addition, it remains unknown how informing students about Open Science actually impacts their understanding and adoption of such practices. This registered report proposes the validation of a questionnaire. The aim is to survey how much psychology students know about Open Science and to assess whether knowledge of and exposure to Open Science in general-be it through university curricula or social media-influences attitudes towards the concept and intentions to implement relevant practices.

Professor Sharon Clarke (Editor, Journal of Occupational Health Psychology).

In this brief article, the editor of the Journal of Occupational Health Psychology notes that there has been a rapid increase in the visibility of occupational health psychology over the last 25 years, which has seen growing impact and importance of OHP topics. In this time, the nature of work has changed considerably due to significant societal and technological transformations and particularly over the last 2 years as the result of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) global pandemic, which has impacted all of our lives, including our mental health, well-being, and safety in the context of work. The author welcomes the incoming editorial team, thanks members of the outgoing editorial team, and thanks the editorial board for their support as she starts her editorial tenure in 2022. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

Adolescents' psychosocial well-being one year after the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in Norway.

The COVID-19 pandemic has dramatically restricted adolescents' lives. We used nationwide Norwegian survey data from 2014-2021 (N = 227,258; ages 13-18) to examine psychosocial outcomes in adolescents before and during the pandemic. Multilevel models revealed higher depressive symptoms and less optimistic future life expectations during the pandemic, even when accounting for the measures' time trends. Moreover, alcohol and cannabis use decreased, and screen time increased. However, the effect sizes of all observed changes during the pandemic were small. Overall, conduct problems and satisfaction with social relationships remained stable. Girls, younger adolescents and adolescents from low socio-economic backgrounds showed more adverse changes during the pandemic. Estimated changes in psychosocial outcomes varied little with municipality infection rates and restrictions. These findings can inform means and interventions to reduce negative psychological outcomes associated with the pandemic and identify groups that need particular attention during and after the pandemic.

Psychological well-being and worries among pregnant women in the first trimester during the early phase of the COVID-19 pandemic in Denmark compared with a historical group: A hospital-based cross-sectional study.

INTRODUCTION: A pandemic may negatively influence psychological well-being in the individual. We aimed to assess the potential influence of the first national lockdown in Denmark (March to June 2020) due to the COVID-19 pandemic on psychological well-being and the content and degree of worries among pregnant women in early pregnancy. MATERIAL AND METHODS: In this hospital-based cross-sectional study based on self-reported data we compared psychological well-being and worries among women who were pregnant during the first phase of the pandemic (COVID-19 group) (n = 685), with women who were pregnant the year before (Historical group) (n = 787). Psychological well-being was measured by the five-item World Health Organization Well-being Index (WHO-5), using a score ≤50 as indicator of reduced psychological well-being. Differences in WHO-5 mean scores and in the prevalence of women with score ≤50 were assessed using general linear and log-binomial regression analyses. The Cambridge Worry Scale was used to measure the content and degree of major worries. To detect differences between groups, Pearson's Chi-square test was used. RESULTS: We found no differences in mean WHO-5 score between groups (mean difference) 0.1 (95% CI -1.5 to 1.6) or in the prevalence of women with WHO-5 score ≤50 (prevalence ratio 1.04, 95% CI 0.83-1.29) in adjusted analyses. A larger proportion of women in the COVID-19 group reported major worries about Relationship with husband/partner compared with the Historical group (3% [n = 19] vs 1% [n = 6], p = 0.04), and 9.2% in the COVID-19 group worried about the possible negative influence of the COVID-19 restrictions. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings indicate that national restrictions due to the COVID-19 pandemic did not influence the psychological well-being or the content and degree of major worries among pregnant women. However, a larger proportion of women in the COVID-19 group reported major worries concerning Relationship with husband/partner compared with the Historical group and 9.2% in the COVID-19 group worried about the possible negative influence of the COVID-19 restrictions.

The Impact of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 Pandemic on Adherence to Ocular Hypotensive Medication in Patients with Primary Open-Angle Glaucoma.

PURPOSE: Emerging evidence suggests that the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic is disrupting health behaviors such as medication adherence. The objective of this study was to determine whether adherence to ocular hypotensive medication was affected by the pandemic and to identify factors associated with this change. DESIGN: In this cohort study, we used a controlled interrupted time series design in which the interruption was the declaration of the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States on March 13, 2020. The 300-day monitoring period, which evenly bracketed this declaration, started on October 16, 2019, and ended on August 10, 2020. PARTICIPANTS: Patients with primary open-angle glaucoma enrolled in an ongoing longitudinal National Institutes of Health-funded study initiated before the onset of the pandemic were selected if they were prescribed ocular hypotensive medication and had adherence data spanning the 300-day period. METHODS: We applied segmented regression analysis using a "slope change following a lag" impact model to obtain the adherence slopes in the periods before and after the segmentation. We compared the 2 slopes using the Davies test. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: The main outcome measure was daily adherence to ocular hypotensive medication, defined as the number of doses taken divided by the number of doses prescribed, expressed in percent. Adherence was measured objectively using Medication Event Monitoring System caps. We assessed the associations between change in adherence and demographic, clinical, and psychosocial factors. RESULTS: The sample included 79 patients (mean age, 71 years [standard deviation, 8 years]). Segmented regression identified a breakpoint at day 28 after the declaration of the pandemic. The slope in the period after the breakpoint (-0.04%/day) was significantly different from zero (P < 0.001) and from the slope in the period before the breakpoint (0.006%/day; P < 0.001). Mean adherence in the period before the segmentation breakpoint was significantly worse in Black patients (median, IQR: 80.6%, 36.2%) compared with White patients (median, IQR: 97.2%, 8.7%; chi-square, 15.4; P = 0.0004). A significant positive association was observed between the Connor-Davidson resilience score and the change in slope between the periods before and after the breakpoint (P = 0.002). CONCLUSIONS: Adherence to ocular hypotensive medication worsened during the COVID-19 pandemic and seems to be related to patient resilience. This collateral consequence of the pandemic may translate into vision loss that may manifest beyond its containment.

Towards an Ideology-Free, Truly Mechanistic Health Psychology.

Efficient transfer of concepts and mechanistic insights from the cognitive to the health sciences and back requires a clear, objective description of the problem that this transfer ought to solve. Unfortunately, however, the actual descriptions are commonly penetrated with, and sometimes even motivated by, cultural norms and preferences, a problem that has colored scientific theorizing about behavioral control-the key concept for many psychological health interventions. We argue that ideologies have clouded our scientific thinking about mental health in two ways: by considering the societal utility of individuals and their behavior a key criterion for distinguishing between healthy and unhealthy people, and by dividing what actually seem to be continuous functions relating psychological and neurocognitive underpinnings to human behavior into binary, discrete categories that are then taken to define clinical phenomena. We suggest letting both traditions go and establish a health psychology that restrains from imposing societal values onto individuals, and then taking the fit between behavior and values to conceptualize unhealthiness. Instead, we promote a health psychology that reconstructs behavior that is considered to be problematic from well-understood mechanistic underpinnings of human behavior.

The psychology of saying what you don't mean: Celebrating the research career of Professor Albert Katz-A personal reflection.

Throughout his 45-year career, Professor Albert Katz (Department of Psychology, Western University) has tackled challeng ing aspects of human communication in a way that creatively merges the theoretical insights and empirical rigor of cognitive linguistics, psycholinguistics, and cognitive neuroscience. In this personal reflection, Professor Katz writes a short biographical piece on the life journey that led to his research programs. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).

Anxiety and psychosocial impact during coronavirus disease 2019 in home dialysis patients.

The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-Cov-2) resulting in the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is documented to have a negative psychosocial impact on patients. Home dialysis patients may be at risk of additional isolating factors affecting their mental health. The aim of this study is to describe levels of anxiety and quality of life during the COVID-19 pandemic among home dialysis patients. This is a single-centre survey of home dialysis patients in Toronto, Ontario. Surveys were sent to 98 home haemodialysis and 43 peritoneal dialysis patients. Validated instruments (Haemodialysis and Peritoneal Dialysis Treatment Satisfaction Questionnaire, Generalized Anxiety Disorder 7 Item [GAD7] Scale, Patient Health Questionnaire [PHQ-9], Illness Intrusiveness Ratings Scale, Family APGAR Questionnaire and The Self Perceived Burden Scale) assessing well-being were used. Forty of the 141 patients surveyed, participated in September 2020. The mean age was 53.1 ± 12.1 years, with 60% male, and 85% home haemodialysis, 80% of patients rated their satisfaction with dialysis at 8/10 or greater, 82% of respondents reported either "not at all" or "for several days" indicating frequency of anxiety and depressive symptoms, 79% said their illness minimally or moderately impacted their life, 76% of respondents were almost always satisfied with interactions with family members, 91% were never or sometimes worried about caregiver burden. Among our respondents, there was no indication of a negative psychosocial impact from the pandemic, despite the increased social isolation. Our data further supports the use of home dialysis as the optimal form of dialysis.

School-based autism evaluations in the COVID-19 era.

School psychologists play a critical role in school-based Autism (AU) evaluations. Evidence-based AU evaluations should be multimodal, include multiple informants, and assess functioning across several domains. In the current era of COVID-19, school-based AU evaluations have become increasingly complex with school psychologists having to significantly adapt face-to-face evaluation procedures and/or conduct evaluations via teleassessment approaches. This poses profound challenges for some families, many of whom are from vulnerable groups. In the current article, we outline school psychologists' traditional role in school-based AU evaluations and review best practice guidelines. We then discuss the impact of COVID-19 on these processes and provide a framework for school psychologists to use when conducting school-based AU evaluations during this unprecedented time. We also provide resources school psychologists may find useful as they conduct school-based AU evaluations during the COVID-19 pandemic. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).

From margin to center: An Asian Americanist psychology.

In the midst of a global pandemic and movements for racial justice, there is an opportunity to (re)imagine an Asian Americanist psychology that can bring about a more just society. The authors describe the contours of an Asian Americanist psychology that is grounded in historical context, an intersectional analysis, and representational ethics while focusing on community strengths and structural change. The article concludes with calls to action for Asian American psychologists, other psychologists of color, and White psychologists to envision a new era that centers Asian Americans in the multiracial pursuit of social justice. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).

Bound by Infinities: Technology, Immediacy and Our Environmental Crisis.

This paper explores the relationship between human desire, technology, and imagination, emphasizing (1) the phenomenology of this relationship, and (2) its ontological and ecological ramifications. Drawing on the work of Bion and Winnicott, the paper will develop a psychoanalytic container for attitudes contributing to our current climate-based crisis, paying special attention to the problematic effect technology has had on our sense of time and place. Many of our technologies stunt sensuous engagement, collapse psychic space, diminish our capacity to tolerate frustration, and blind us to our dependence on worlds beyond the human. In short, our technologies trouble our relationship to our bodies and other bodies. The paper argues that omnipotent fantasies organizing our relationship to technology, to each other, and to the nonhuman world, have cocooned us in a kind of virtual reality that devastates a sense of deep obligation to the environment.

Testimonios in the mouth of the dragon: A call for Black liberation in psychology.

U.S. society has witnessed and experienced the impact and suffering caused by the racial pandemic within the COVID-19 viral pandemic. In response to anti-Blackness, a multigenerational and multiracial movement of people is rising and demanding justice for Black lives. Using testimonio research and Liberation Psychology as a theoretical framework, the authors describe their current understanding of what it means to practice a more responsible resistance to racist power structures as non-Black Latinas in the field of psychology. Braun and Clarke's (2016) thematic analysis (TA) was used to search for patterns of meaning within the authors' testimonios. Results revealed four themes: (a) to "hold the line" means to struggle for Black liberation, (b) confront anti-Blackness and colonial mentality in the self and community, (c) challenge anti-Blackness within the field of psychology, and (d) collective struggle. The third theme was divided into two subthemes: (a) tear down and (b) center Black lives. The testimonios emphasize that practicing allyship involves being a dissenter who questions and challenges colonial mentality and anti-Blackness, who fights for the abolition of racist policies and power systems, and who moves beyond the hegemonic values that exist in the field of psychology. This study presents the use of testimonio research and Liberation Psychology as suitable tools for psychologists to increase their racial consciousness. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

Teaching and Learning During A Pandemic: How one Graduate Community Psychology Class Quickly Incorporated Healing Justice Into Our Practices.

In this first-person account, we describe the changes we made to align our graduate student-level community psychology class with a healing justice model. We undertook this intervention because the class started in March, at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic stay-at-home directive in our region. We describe the facets of a healing justice model, which promotes radical healing and collective action in a trauma-informed environment. We then discuss the changes we made to the class to better align with healing justice, including how enrolled students (i.e., co-authors) experienced the process of the course (e.g., reworking the syllabus, starting class with check-ins and an exercise to engage our parasympathetic nervous systems), as well as the content of the course (e.g., service projects to support people who are undocumented, unhoused, or minoritized in other ways; photovoice). We end with implications for teaching community psychology, including the importance of universal design, and for scholar-activist PhD programs.