Evidence for Bidirectional, Cross-Lagged Associations Between Alliance and Psychological Distress in an Unguided Mobile-Health Intervention.

Bidirectional associations between changes in symptoms and alliance are established for in-person psychotherapy. Alliance may play an important role in promoting engagement and effectiveness within unguided mobile health (mHealth) interventions. Using models disaggregating alliance and psychological distress into within- and between-person components (random intercept cross-lagged panel model), we report bidirectional associations between alliance and distress over the course of a 4-week smartphone-based meditation intervention (n=302, 80.0% elevated depression/anxiety). Associations were stable across time with effect sizes similar to those observed for psychotherapy (ßs=-.13 to -.14 and -.09 to -.10, for distress to alliance and alliance to distress, respectively). Alliance may be worth measuring to improve the acceptability and effectiveness of mHealth tools. Further empirical and theoretical work characterizing the role and meaning of alliance in unguided mHealth is warranted.

Examining Equity in Access and Utilization of a Freely Available Meditation App.

Digital interventions have the potential to alleviate mental health disparities for marginalized and minoritized communities. The current study examined whether disparities in access and utilization of meditation in the United States (US) were reduced for a freely available meditation app. We analyzed demographic and usage data from US-based users of the Healthy Minds Program (HMP; N = 66,482) between October 2019 and July 2022. College education was associated with a greater likelihood of accessing (65.0% of users vs. 32.9% of the US population) and continuing to utilize the app (ß = .11-.17). Conversely, identifying as African American was associated lower likelihood of accessing (5.3% vs. 13.4% of US population) and continuing to utilize the app (ß = -.02-.03). African Americans were more likely to access content from an African American meditation teacher, but this did not appear to increase utilization. Additional efforts are warranted to identify factors which might reduce disparities.

Motivation for Meditation and its Association with Meditation Practice in a National Sample of Internet Users.

Objectives: There is limited understanding of what motivates people to initiate and sustain a meditation practice. This study investigates initial and current motivations for meditation, demographic variability in motivations, and associations with ongoing and lifetime meditation practice. Methods: A national sample of internet users were recruited to examine initial and current motivations for meditation practice. Results: 953 participants completed initial screening and 470 (49.3%) reported exposure to meditation practice. 434 (92.3%) completed a follow-up assessment. Participants most frequently reported mental health/stress alleviation as an initial motivation (n = 322, 74.2%) followed by spiritual (n = 122, 28.1%), physical health (n = 69, 15.9%), awakening/enlightenment (n = 64, 14.7%), cultural (n = 51, 11.8%) and other (n = 33, 7.6%). Participants reported a mean of 1.52 (SD = 0.83) initial motivations. Among those currently meditating, a significant increase in the number of motivations was found between initial and current motivations (1.60 [SD = 0.89] and 2.11 [SD = 1.16]), for initial and current motivations, respectively, Cohen's d = 0.45). The number of motivations was positively associated with meditation practice. Initial mental health motivation was found to be negatively associated with current and lifetime meditation practice, whereas spiritual motivation was found to be positively associated. Conclusions: While meditation started as a tool for spiritual attainment, findings suggest that it is predominantly used in the U.S. for mental health support and to manage stress. Findings suggest that both type and number of motivations may relate to the course of practice.

Caste and COVID-19: Psychosocial disparities amongst rural Indian women during the coronavirus pandemic.

The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated preexisting mental health disparities. In India, marginalization based on caste membership, gender, and rural residence are critical determinants of inequity across the lifespan. Guided by the theoretical frameworks of minority stress and intersectionality, this study examined caste-based disparities in fear of coronavirus (FOC), mental health symptoms, and perceived loneliness amongst rural women in north India during the COVID-19 pandemic. Participants (N = 316) completed self-report measures and were classified into three groups based on their responses: General caste (GC, n = 124), other backward castes (OBC, n = 122), and scheduled caste or tribe (SC/ST, n = 71). Using a three-way ANOVA and Tukey t-tests, women in SC/ST and OBC groups reported greater FOC (OBC d = .37; SC/ST d = .40) and greater mental health symptoms (OBC d = .58; SC/ST d = .43) relative to the GC group. OBC, but not SC/ST, group also reported higher perceived loneliness (d = .32). The results were consistent after adjusting for demographic variables such as wealth and highlight caste as an important social determinant for well-being during the COVID-19 pandemic amongst rural Indian women.

Adverse childhood experiences and maternal self-efficacy: Examining the mediating role of intimate partner violence and the moderating role of caste membership in rural India.

Maternal self-efficacy (MSE) is associated with healthy functioning in mothers and children globally. Maternal exposure to adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and intimate partner violence (IPV) is known to negatively impact MSE in high-income countries; however, the association has not been examined in low-and-middle-income countries, such as India, which face socioeconomic risks including poverty, illiteracy, and discrimination based on caste membership. The present study examines the mediating role of IPV in the association between ACEs (specifically-emotional, physical, and sexual abuse, neglect, household dysfunction, and discrimination) and MSE and tests caste membership as a moderator. A community-based, cross-sectional survey was performed with 316 mothers with at least one child between 0 and 24 months in a rural area in the North Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. A structural equation framework was used to test the moderated-mediation model. Results from the moderated-mediation model indicate that greater ACEs exposure was associated with lower MSE and this association was mediated by IPV exposure for low-caste but not high-caste mothers, even after controlling for wealth and literacy. These findings add to existing evidence on ACEs exposure as a significant burden for rural Indian mothers, negatively impacting parenting outcomes such as MSE. The critical role of caste membership is also highlighted, providing implications for future research.

La autoeficacia materna (MSE) se asocia con el saludable funcionamiento en las madres y niños globalmente. Se conoce que el hecho de que la madre haya estado expuesta a experiencias adversas en la niñez (ACE) y a la violencia de la pareja íntima (IPV) tiene un negativo impacto en MSE en países de altas entradas económicas; sin embargo, esta asociación no se ha examinado en países donde las entradas económicas son bajas o medias, como India, que enfrenta riesgos socioeconómicos entre los que se incluyen la pobreza, el analfabetismo, así como la discriminación basada en la pertenencia a una casta. El presente estudio examina el papel mediador de IPV en la asociación entre ACE (específicamente - el abuso emocional, físico y sexual, negligencia, disfuncionalidad en el hogar y discriminación) y MSE, y pone a prueba la pertenencia a una casta como aspecto moderador. Se llevó a cabo una encuesta de base comunitaria e inter-seccional con 316 madres con por lo menos un niño entre 0 y 24 meses de edad en un área rural en el estado de Uttar Pradesh en el norte de India. Se usó un marco de trabajo de ecuación estructural para examinar el modelo de moderación y mediación. Los resultados del modelo de moderación y mediación indican que una mayor exposición a ACE estaba asociada con una más baja MSE y que la exposición a IPV mediaba esa asociación para madres de castas bajas, pero no para madres de castas altas, aun después del factor control de recursos económicos y alfabetismo. Estos resultados contribuyen a la existente evidencia de que el haber estado expuesta a ACE es una carga significativa para las madres en la India rural, la cual tiene un impacto negativo en los resultados de crianza tales como MSE. También se subraya el papel esencial de la pertenencia a una casta, lo cual aporta implicaciones para la investigación futura.

L'auto-efficacité maternelle (MSE en anglais) est globalement liée à un fonctionnement sain chez les mères et les enfants. L'exposition maternelle à des expériences de l'enfance adverses (ACE en anglais) et à la violence intime ou conjugale (IPV) est connue comme impactant de manière négative l'auto-efficacité maternelle dans les pays à revenus élevés. Cependant ce lien n'a pas toujours été examiné dans les pays à faibles ou moyens revenus, tels que l'Inde qui fait face à des risques socioéconomiques qui comportent la pauvreté, l'illettrisme, la discrimination en fonction de l'appartenance à une caste. Cette étude examine le rôle médiateur de la violence conjugale (ou violence entre partenaires intimes) dans le lien entre les ACE (plus spécifiquement l'abus émotionnel, physiques, sexuel, la négligence, la dysfonction au sein du foyer et la discrimination) et l'auto-efficacité maternelle et les tests d'appartenance à une caste en tant que modérateurs. Un questionnaire communautaire, en coupe transversale, a été présenté à 116 mères ayant au moins un enfant entre l'âge de 0-24 mois dans une région rurale de l'état du nord de l'Inde, Uttar Pradesh. Un cadre d'équation structurelle a été utilisé pour tester le modèle de modération-médiation. Les résultats de ce modèle de modération-médiation indiquent que plus l'exposition aux ACE est grande, plus l'auto-efficacité maternelle est basse et cette association est affectée par l'exposition à la violence conjugale pour les castes moins élevées mais pas pour les mères des castes plus élevées, même en effectuant un contrôle pour la richesse et l'alphabétisation. Ces résultats s'ajoutent aux preuves existantes sur l'exposition aux ACE en tant que poids important pour les mères indienne de milieux ruraux, ce qui impacte de manière négative les résultats de parentage telles que l'auto-efficacité maternelle. Le rôle critique de l'appartenance à une caste est également mis en lumière, offrant des implications pour les recherches à venir.

Uncertainty in the Time of Corona: Precautionary Adherence, Fear, and Anxiety in New York City During the COVID-19 Pandemic.

ABSTRACT: The recent COVID-19 pandemic is having profound impacts on every sector of society, and New York City (NYC) emerged as an early epicenter of the disease. Given the novelty and scale of the disease, information surrounding COVID-19 has been marked by considerable uncertainty and confusion. Although various factors have been associated with COVID-19 distress, little is known about the relations between levels of intolerance of uncertainty (IU) and anxiety symptoms and behaviors. This cross-sectional study sought to examine potential correlates and pathways between anxiety and precautionary behaviors with the two levels of IU: prospective and inhibitory. Individuals from NYC (N = 99) completed an online survey through Amazon Mechanical Turk. Findings revealed that fear of COVID-19 accounts for associations between prospective IU and greater anxiety symptoms and behaviors, whereas precaution adherence accounts for associations between prospective IU and reduced anxiety symptoms and behaviors. In addition, precaution adherence accounts for associations between inhibitory IU and greater anxiety symptoms and behaviors. The results shed light on ways in which variations in IU may be associated with anxiety symptoms and behaviors in the context of COVID-19 and future pandemic scenarios.