Self-Rated Confidence in Vocal Emotion Recognition Ability: The Role of Gender.

PURPOSE: We studied the role of gender in metacognition of voice emotion recognition ability (ERA), reflected by self-rated confidence (SRC). To this end, we guided our study in two approaches: first, by examining the role of gender in voice ERA and SRC independently and second, by looking for gender effects on the ERA association with SRC. METHOD: We asked 100 participants (50 men, 50 women) to interpret a set of vocal expressions portrayed by 30 actors (16 men, 14 women) as defined by their emotional meaning. Targets were 180 repetitive lexical sentences articulated in congruent emotional voices (anger, sadness, surprise, happiness, fear) and neutral expressions. Trial by trial, the participants were assigned retrospective SRC based on their emotional recognition performance. RESULTS: A binomial generalized linear mixed model (GLMM) estimating ERA accuracy revealed a significant gender effect, with women encoders (speakers) yielding higher accuracy levels than men. There was no significant effect of the decoder's (listener's) gender. A second GLMM estimating SRC found a significant effect of encoder and decoder genders, with women outperforming men. Gamma correlations were significantly greater than zero for women and men decoders. CONCLUSIONS: In spite of varying interpretations of gender in each independent rating (ERA and SRC), our results suggest that both men and women decoders were accurate in their metacognition regarding voice emotion recognition. Further research is needed to study how individuals of both genders use metacognitive knowledge in their emotional recognition and whether and how such knowledge contributes to effective social communication.

Psychological Health and Quality of Life among Ultra-orthodox Mothers of Children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder: Impact of Occupational Experiences.

BACKGROUND: Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is a common neuro-developmental health condition in children and adolescents. Parenting a child with ADHD can profoundly affect mothers' health. Research is limited regarding occupational experiences and their impact on health among mothers of children with ADHD (MoCwADHD). Ultra-orthodox MoCwADHD may have unique cultural circumstances that have not been studied. AIMS: To broaden understanding of parental stress, psychological health, and quality of life (QoL) of ultra-orthodox MoCwADHD and explore a possible role of occupational experiences on these outcomes. METHODS: Ultra-orthodox MoCwADHD (N = 114) completed a sociodemographic questionnaire and measurements to assess child ADHD symptomatology, mother's ADHD, parental stress, psychological health, QoL, and occupational experiences. RESULTS: Participants displayed moderate parental stress, and 54.9 percent also showed psychological distress symptoms, similar to the literature on MoCwADHD in the general population. Frequency of engagement in health promoting occupations reflected patterns in line with cultural beliefs. Structure Equation Modeling showed that child ADHD negatively affected mothers' stress, psychological health and QoL. Importantly, occupational experiences directly and indirectly, via parental stress, impacted psychological health and QoL. CONCLUSIONS: MoCwADHD impacts maternal health in the ultra-orthodox population and occupational experiences may be a modifiable target for promoting their health.

Understanding the factors affecting teachers' burnout during the COVID-19 pandemic: A cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: During the COVID-19 pandemic, which enforced social distancing and isolation, teachers were required to handle multiple challenges related to their work, including dealing with remote teaching, in addition to personal, medical and financial challenges. The goal of the current research was to examine factors that contributed to professional burnout and commitment to work among teachers during the first and second waves of the COVID-19 pandemic. METHODS: A total of 344 elementary school teachers in Israel completed online self-report questionnaires, including assessments of stressors, anxiety, resilience, self-efficacy beliefs, and coping strategies. Structured Equation Modeling [SEM] was used to examine the contribution of these factors to professional burnout and commitment. RESULTS: The gaps between needed and received support had a direct effect on teachers' burnout and commitment, and an indirect effect through anxiety and self-efficacy beliefs. Stress relating to remote teaching and support-gaps regarding remote teaching were the most significant of all the stressors and sources of support. CONCLUSIONS: Collectively, these findings highlight the significance of remote teaching as the main cause of stress and professional burnout and suggest that proper preparation of teachers-before and during times of crisis, may have a significant impact on their mental and professional well-being.

Extra Peritoneal Packing for Exsanguinating Pelvic Hemorrhage: Should We Do It in the Emergency Department?

BACKGROUND: Extra peritoneal packing (EPP) is a quick and highly effective method to control pelvic hemorrhage. OBJECTIVES: To determine whether EPP can be as safely and efficiently performed in the emergency department (ED) as in the operating room (OR). METHODS: Retrospective study of 29 patients who underwent EPP in the ED or OR in two trauma centers in Israel 2008-2018. RESULTS: Our study included 29 patients, 13 in the ED-EPP group and 16 in the OR-EPP group. The mean injury severity score (ISS) was 34.9 ± 11.8. Following EPP, hemodynamic stability was successfully achieved in 25 of 29 patients (86.2%). A raise in the mean arterial pressure (MAP) with a median of 25 mmHg (mean 30.0 ± 27.5, P < 0.001) was documented. All patients who did not achieve hemodynamic stability after EPP had multiple sources of bleeding or fatal head injury and eventually succumbed. Patients who underwent EPP in the ED showed higher change in MAP (P = 0.0458). The overall mortality rate was 27.5% (8/29) with no difference between the OR and ED-EPP. No differences were found between ED and OR-EPP in the amount of transfused blood products, surgical site infections, and length of stay in the hospital. However, patients who underwent ED-EPP were more prone to develop deep vein thrombosis (DVT): 50% (5/10) vs. 9% (1/11) in ED and OR-EPP groups respectively (P = 0.038). CONCLUSIONS: EPP is equally effective when performed in the ED or OR with similar surgical site infection rates but higher incidence of DVT.

Ecological Momentary Mood, Resilience, and Mental Health Status as Predictors of Quality of Life Among Young Adults Under Stress: A Structural Equation Modeling Analysis.

Multiple internal factors, such as psychological resilience and mental health status, have been shown to contribute to overall quality of life (QoL). However, very few studies to date have examined how these factors contribute to QoL of youth and young adults in a stressful situation. Here, we studied the contribution of these factors, as well as of ecological momentary mood assessment, to QoL of young army recruits during their Basic Training Combat (BCT). To this end, we collected data from 156 male and female soldiers in a mixed-gender unit in the Israel Defense Forces (IDF). Using a mobile app installed on participants' phones, participants provided self-reports regarding their mental health status and psychological resilience at baseline, and QoL 2 weeks later. Momentary mood reporting was further collected during the 2-week interval period using a daily self-report mood scale (IMS-12). Structural equation modeling (SEM) was used to examine the interrelationships among the study variables based on a hypothesized model. We found that a model with all factors (gender, resilience, mental health status and momentary mood) provided a good fit for the data based on its fit indices [χ2(38) = 47.506, p = 0.139, CFI = 0.979, NFI = 0.910, RMSEA = 0.040, TLI = 0.964]. However, the only direct contributors to QoL were gender and momentary mood, accounting together for 61.5% of the variance of QoL. Psychological resilience and mental health status contributed to QoL only indirectly, through their associations with momentary mood. Collectively, these results highlight the importance of ecological momentary assessment of mental-health related factors such as mood to the prediction of QoL in young adults under stress. These findings may have broader implications for monitoring and improvement of well-being in young healthy populations as well as in clinical ones.

Participation Profile of Children and Youth, Aged 6-14, with and without ADHD, and the Impact of Environmental Factors.

BACKGROUND: Children and youth with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) may experience difficulties in participation, but few studies examine their participation and the environmental factors affecting participation. This study explored the participation and the environmental factors of children and youth, with and without attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), in the following three settings: home, school, and community. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Parents of 65 participants aged 6-14 (M = 9.91, SD = 1.87) with and without ADHD completed the Participation and Environment Measure for Children and Youth (PEM-CY) questionnaire, which evaluates participation and environmental factors, along with demographic and screening questionnaires. RESULTS: The ADHD group (n = 31) scored significantly lower than the non-ADHD group (n = 34) in "frequency" at home, "involvement", and overall environmental support in all settings, with parents expressing a greater desire to change their child's home and community participation. For the ADHD group, a relationship was found between environmental support and involvement in all three settings. CONCLUSIONS: The findings demonstrated differences in the participation of children and youth with ADHD across different settings, compared to those without ADHD, and confirmed the effect of environmental factors on participation, especially involvement. It is essential to consider participation measures and environmental factors when designing interventions for children and youth with ADHD.

Virtual Classroom Assessment for Children and Adolescents With Attention Deficits: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Measurement Properties.

Objective: The virtual classroom (VC) is a head-mounted display immersive system for the assessment of attention. A meta-analysis was performed to examine the use of the VC to assess attention in children and adolescents. Method: We conducted a systematic literature search to select articles up to December 2017. Results: Thirteen studies using the VC to assess attention were included. Studies reporting comparisons between patients with various clinical conditions and healthy controls were included in the meta-analysis. The meta-analysis results revealed significant differences between groups for the percentage of identified targets (nine studies; total combined N = 431), for commission errors, and reaction time (eight studies; total combined N = 399) in favor of the nonclinical group. Conclusion: Preliminary evidence establishes the validity of the VC and suggests that this task has the potential to serve as a useful and enjoyable ecological assessment tool for the diagnosis of attention deficits in children and adolescents. (J. of Att. Dis. XXXX; XX(X) XX-XX).

Hepatitis B and C virus infection as a risk factor for Parkinson's disease in Israel-A nationwide cohort study.

OBJECTIVE: To study the association between hepatitis C and B viruses and Parkinson's disease (PD) in Israel. METHODS: A retrospective cohort study was performed by analyzing the computerized database of Clalit Healthcare Service in Israel. Cohorts of people with hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection, hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection and nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) were constructed and compared to a reference cohort for prevalence of PD. RESULTS: The prevalence of PD in Israel was found to be 0.5% in the general population. The M-H (Mantel-Haenszel) odds ratio (OR) of PD for HBV-positive patients was 1.08 (95% CI: 1.00-1.16). The M-H OR of PD for HCV-positive patients was 1.18 (95% CI: 1.04-1.35). The M-H OR of PD for patients infected with both hepatitis C and B was 1.13 (95% CI: 0.87-1.47). The M-H OR of PD for patients diagnosed with nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) was 1.13 (95% CI: 1.08-1.19). CONCLUSIONS: We report evidence supporting a minor increased risk for PD in patients with HCV. Co infection of HCV and HBV was not associated with an increased risk for PD. The increased risk for PD in the group of patients with NASH, raises the possibility that liver disease per se is a risk factor for PD rather than viral infection. In addition, it cannot be ruled out that the association is, at least in part, the result of the occurrence of cirrhosis induced parkinsonism that was misclassified as PD.

Problem Behaviors among Israeli Undergraduate Students: Applying Jessor's Problem Behavior Theory among Young Adult Students.

PURPOSE: The current study tested the applicability of Jessor's problem behavior theory (PBT) in Ariel University. METHODS: A structured, self-reported, anonymous questionnaire was administered to undergraduate students. The final study sample included 1,360 participants (882 females and 478 males, mean age 25, SD = 2.9, range = 17). RESULTS: Findings indicated that the PBT was replicated in this sample. As shown from the hierarchal linear regression model, religiosity and high-academic achievements were found to be strong and significant protective factors that reduce risk behaviors. Among young and religious students, the personal vulnerability has almost no impact on involvement in risk behaviors. CONCLUSION: The PBT finds empirical support in this young adult undergraduate Israeli sample.

Multiple risk behaviors and suicidal ideation and behavior among Israeli and Palestinian adolescents.

Based conceptually on Problem Behavior Theory, Normalization Theory and theories of adolescent ethnic identity formation this study explores relationships between individual and cumulative multiple risk behaviors and suicidal ideation and behavior among mid-adolescents in three different populations in the Middle East. Data from the 2004 Health Behavior in School-Aged Children in the Middle-East (HBSC-ME) study included 8345 10th-grade pupils in three populations: Jewish Israelis (1770), Arab Israelis (2185), and Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank (4390). We considered risk behaviors and factors including tobacco use, bullying, medically-attended injuries, excessive time with friends, parental disconnectedness, negative school experience, truancy and poor academic performance. Substantial population differences for suicidal tendency and risk behaviors were observed, with notably high levels of suicidal ideation and behavior among Arab-Israeli youth and higher levels of risk behaviors among the Jewish and Arab-Israeli youth. For all populations suicidal tendency was at least 4 times higher among adolescents reporting 4+ risk behaviors, suggesting that similar psychosocial determinants affect patterns of risk behaviors and suicidal tendency. Results highlight the importance of understanding cultural contexts of risk behaviors and suicidal ideation and behavior.

Negative school perceptions and involvement in school bullying: a universal relationship across 40 countries.

Cross-national analyses explore the consistency of the relationship between negative school experiences and involvement in bullying across 40 European and North American countries, using the 2006 (40 countries n = 197,502) and 2002 (12 countries, n = 57,007) WHO-HBSC surveys. Measures include two Cumulative Negative School Perception (CNSP) scales, one based on 6 mandatory items (2006) and another including an additional 11 items (2002). Outcome measures included bullying perpetration, victimization and involvement as both bully and victim. Logistic regression analyses suggested that children with only 2-3 negative school perceptions, experience twice the relative odds of being involved in bullying as compared with children with no negative school perceptions. Odds Ratios (p < 0.001) increase in a graded fashion according to the CNSP, from about 2.2 to over 8.0. Similar consistent effects are found across gender and almost all countries. Further research should focus on the mechanisms and social context of these relationships.

Psychosocial outcomes related to subjective threat from armed conflict events (STACE): Findings from the Israeli-Palestinian cross-cultural HBSC study.

OBJECTIVE: This study investigates the relationship between exposure to armed conflict and terror events, and an array of mental and behavioral outcomes within a large cross-cultural scientifically representative sample of 24,935 Palestinian (7,430 West Bank and 7,217 Gaza) and Israeli (5,255 Jewish and 6,033 Arab) 11-, 13-, and 15-year-old school children. The children of the Middle East have been subjected to exposure from armed conflict and terrorism repeatedly with no adequate research or interventions aimed at shielding them from the hazards of such exposure to their mental and social well-being. METHOD: This paper studies the relationship between a newly developed scale (STACE) measuring levels of subjective perceptions of threat/fear due to exposure to armed conflict events and its predicting association with six psychosocial and behavioral outcomes covering (1) poor mental health, (2) positive well-being, and (3) risk behaviors. It also examines the role of parental support in "buffering" the effects of exposure to armed conflict events within the four target populations. RESULTS: Results showed that STACE has significant and strong effects on all six dependent variables representing (1) mental post trauma, (2) diminished well-being, and (3) elevated risk behaviors. STACE strongly affects all four populations with the greatest impact among the Jewish Israeli population and the least impact shown for the Arab Israeli youth. Parental support ("significant adult") has both a direct main effect on the outcomes of all six variables as well as a significant "buffering" effect on the impact of STACE on certain outcome variables (posttraumatic symptoms, life satisfaction, positive life perceptions, and tobacco use). CONCLUSIONS AND PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS: Regardless of the type of armed conflict events, the perception of threat and fear that a child experiences has a universal significant negative impact on mental, social, and behavioral well-being. The importance of the existence of a supporting significant adult in exposed children's lives is also emphasized. The findings show major implications for the development of community-based interventions focusing on enhancing parental, and other adult support in the lives of children living in armed conflict regions of the world.

Parents, teachers and peer relations as predictors of risk behaviors and mental well-being among immigrant and Israeli born adolescents.

This study examines the roles of parents (monitoring, involvement and support at school), teachers (support) and peers (excess time spent with friends, peer rejection at school) in predicting risk behaviors (smoking and drinking) and mental well-being among 3499 Israeli-born and 434 immigrant adolescents ages 11, 13 and 15, in the 2006 WHO Health Behavior in School-Aged Children cross-national survey. Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) showed that for native Israeli youth, in line with previous developmental literature, all three relationships - parents, teachers and peers - have a significant impact on both mental well-being and risk behaviors. However, for immigrant adolescents, it was the school environment (parental support at school, teacher support and peer relationships) that proved to be the significant predictor of risk behaviors and mental health outcomes. These findings suggest that the school is an important social support in the health and mental well-being of immigrant schoolchildren.

A cross-national profile of bullying and victimization among adolescents in 40 countries.

OBJECTIVES: (1) To compare the prevalence of bullying and victimization among boys and girls and by age in 40 countries. (2) In 6 countries, to compare rates of direct physical, direct verbal, and indirect bullying by gender, age, and country. METHODS: Cross-sectional self-report surveys including items on bullying and being bullied were obtained from nationally representative samples of 11, 13 and 15 year old school children in 40 countries, N = 202,056. Six countries (N = 29,127 students) included questions about specific types of bullying (e. g., direct physical, direct verbal, indirect). RESULTS: Exposure to bullying varied across countries, with estimates ranging from 8.6% to 45.2% among boys, and from 4.8% to 35.8% among girls. Adolescents in Baltic countries reported higher rates of bullying and victimization, whereas northern European countries reported the lowest prevalence. Boys reported higher rates of bullying in all countries. Rates of victimization were higher for girls in 29 of 40 countries. Rates of victimization decreased by age in 30 of 40 (boys) and 25 of 39 (girls) countries. CONCLUSION: There are lessons to be learned from the current research conducted in countries where the prevalence is low that could be adapted for use in countries with higher prevalence.