Effects of photoaging information and UV photo on sun protection intentions and behaviours: a cross-regional comparison.

There is limited empirical evidence regarding differences in sun protection practices in different regions of the USA. This study examined whether there are regional differences in the efficacy of exposure to UV photographs and photoaging information (e.g. wrinkles and age spots) for increasing sun protection behaviours. Students attending a public university in either the Midwestern (Iowa) or Southwestern (Southern California) US reported baseline sun exposure and protection practices and were then randomly assigned to either receive information about photoaging, have a UV photo taken, both receive photoaging information and have a UV photo taken, or to receive neither intervention. Sun protection intentions were assessed immediately after the interventions, and both self-reported sun protection behaviours and an objective assessment (via spectrophotometry) of skin colour change were measured at the end of summer and one year following the interventions. The results showed a pervasive pattern of more risky UV exposure and less sun protection use at the Iowa site than at the Southern California site both prior to and following the interventions. Both interventions increased future sun protection intentions regardless of region. However, the intervention effects on skin colour and UV exposure differed across region, with generally more reliable effects at the Iowa site.

Effects of upward and downward social comparison information on the efficacy of an appearance-based sun protection intervention: a randomized, controlled experiment.

This experiment examined the impact of adding upward and/or downward social comparison information on the efficacy of an appearance-based sun protection intervention (UV photos and photoaging information). Southern California college students (N = 126) were randomly assigned to one of four conditions: control, intervention, intervention plus upward social comparison, intervention plus downward social comparison. The results demonstrated that all those who received the basic UV photo/photoaging intervention reported greater perceived susceptibility to photoaging (d = .74), less favorable tanning cognitions (d = .44), and greater intentions to sun protect (d = 1.32) relative to controls. Of more interest, while the basic intervention increased sun protective behavior during the subsequent 5 weeks relative to controls (d = .44), the addition of downward comparison information completely negated this benefit. Upward comparison information produced sun protection levels that were only slightly (and nonsignificantly) greater than in the basic intervention condition and, as such, does not appear to be a cost-effective addition. Possible mechanisms that may have reduced the benefits of upward comparison information and contributed to the undermining effects of downward comparison information are discussed.

Sun protection intervention for highway workers: long-term efficacy of UV photography and skin cancer information on men's protective cognitions and behavior.

BACKGROUND: The risk for skin cancer is increased among older males and outdoor workers who have high levels of ultraviolet (UV) exposure. PURPOSE: This study was designed to examine the long-term efficacy of UV photography interventions on male outdoor workers, the potential mediators of its impact, and the efficacy of UV photography and skin cancer vs. aging information with this population. METHODS: One hundred forty-eight male outdoor workers were randomly assigned to one of four intervention conditions or a control condition in a two by two plus one factorial design. The men in the intervention conditions received or did not receive a UV photo of their face and watched either a photoaging or skin cancer educational video. Participants completed pre-intervention, immediate post-intervention, and 2-month and 1-year follow-up assessments. RESULTS: Analysis of covariance and structural equation modeling revealed that participants in the UV photography and cancer information interventions reported higher levels of sun protection cognitions, which were significant partial mediators of increases in sun protection behaviors and decreases in skin color. CONCLUSIONS: This study provides evidence for effective sun protection interventions on male outdoor workers that may help reduce skin cancer risk.

Social norms information enhances the efficacy of an appearance-based sun protection intervention.

This experiment examined whether the efficacy of an appearance-based sun protection intervention could be enhanced by the addition of social norms information. Southern California college students (N=125, predominantly female) were randomly assigned to either an appearance-based sun protection intervention that consisted of a photograph depicting underlying sun damage to their skin (UV photo) and information about photoaging or to a control condition. Those assigned to the intervention were further randomized to receive information about what one should do to prevent photoaging (injunctive norms information), information about the number of their peers who currently use regular sun protection (descriptive norms information), both injunctive and descriptive norms information, or neither type of norms information. The results demonstrated that those who received the UV photo/photoaging information intervention expressed greater sun protection intentions and subsequently reported greater sun protection behaviors than did controls. Further, the addition of both injunctive and descriptive norms information increased self-reported sun protection behaviors during the subsequent month.

Effects of social comparisons with peers on women's body satisfaction and exercise behavior.

OBJECTIVE: Although exposure to thin-ideal females in the media has been shown to increase women's body dissatisfaction, only a few studies have examined the effects of comparisons with peers, and no prior work has studied the effects of peer comparisons in a naturalistic setting or on objective behavior. METHOD: Female undergraduates (n = 45) in a campus gym who exercised on a target apparatus were assigned to have a fit-peer, unfit-peer, or no-peer (control) exercise within their view on a nearby apparatus. Objective time spent exercising and body satisfaction reports were collected. RESULTS: Exposure to a fit peer had undermining effects on women's body satisfaction and exercise duration, whereas an unfit peer produced no compensating greater body satisfaction but did elicit longer exercise duration relative to controls. CONCLUSION: Incidental comparisons with fit versus unfit peers can affect women's body satisfaction and fitness-related behavior in a naturalistic setting.

Long-term effects of appearance-based interventions on sun protection behaviors.

OBJECTIVES: To examine the longer term efficacies of exposure to UV photographs and photoaging information (e.g., wrinkles and age spots) for increasing sun protection intentions and behaviors of young adults. DESIGN: Randomized controlled trial with 4- to 5-month and 12-month follow-ups. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Participants' self-reported sun protection intentions assessed immediately after the interventions, and both self-reported sun protection behaviors and an objective assessment (via spectrophotometry) of skin color change measured at the end of summer (4-5 months following interventions) and 1 year following interventions. RESULTS: Both interventions resulted in immediate positive effects on future sun protection intentions. Both interventions showed objective evidence of less skin darkening at the postsummer follow-up, with those in the photoaging information condition also reporting more sun protective behavior and continuing to show less skin darkening 1 year after intervention. There was also evidence that effects of photoaging information on subsequent skin color change were mediated by the earlier positive effect photoaging information had on participants' intentions to sun protect and their subsequent sun protection behaviors. CONCLUSIONS: UV photo and photoaging-information interventions each show promise as a brief and relatively inexpensive approach for motivating sun protection practices that may reduce skin cancer risk.

Marital quality predicts hospital stay following coronary artery bypass surgery for women but not men.

This study examined how two indices of spouse support, one relatively general and chronic (perceived overall marital quality), and one relatively situation-specific and acute (spouse support while in the hospital), separately and in interaction with patient gender, predict postoperative length of stays following major (coronary bypass) surgery. In a sample of 226 male and 70 female patients drawn from three hospitals in the San Diego area, California, the results indicated that marital quality, in combination with patient gender, predicted postoperative lengths of stay, such that relatively poor marital relationships elevated risk for longer stays for female but not male patients. Lengths of stay for female patients with higher quality marital relationships were similar to those of male patients (regardless of marital quality). These results were not attributable to any assessed preoperative differences in patient health and were independent of perceptions of spouse support received while in the hospital, which did not independently predict patients' lengths of stay.

Positive and negative opinion modeling: the influence of another's similarity and dissimilarity.

Modeling research that has focused on the effects of observing similar others appears to have underestimated the influence of observing dissimilar others. Two experiments demonstrated that observing a model express liking for a piece of music induced more favorable opinions of the music (positive modeling) when the model was similar to the participant observer in relevant opinions, and more negative opinions (negative modeling) when the model was dissimilar to the participant in relevant opinions. Of note, this pattern was more pronounced when participants also believed their general backgrounds were dissimilar rather than similar to that of the model. Underlying social comparison processes and the mediational role of participants' liking of the model are considered.

Using UV photography to reduce use of tanning booths: a test of cognitive mediation.

Two laboratory studies were conducted in which a new type of intervention was used to reduce ultraviolet radiation (UV) exposure from tanning booth use among college students (Time 1 Ns=70 and 134). The intervention uses UV photography to highlight the damage to facial skin caused by previous UV exposure. When the authors controlled for baseline measures of booth use, students in both studies who viewed their UV photographs reported less booth use at a follow-up session 3-4 weeks later than did students not shown a copy of their photograph. Also, in both studies, the decline in use was significantly mediated by a Tanning Cognition Index composed of variables suggested by the prototype-willingness (prototype) model of health risk: tanning attitudes, tanner prototypes, and willingness to engage in risky UV exposure.

Effects of UV photographs, photoaging information, and use of sunless tanning lotion on sun protection behaviors.

OBJECTIVES: To examine the efficacy of UV photographs and information about photoaging (eg, wrinkles and age spots) for increasing the sun protection intentions and behaviors of young adults and to determine whether any effects of this appearance-based intervention could be enhanced by providing a non-UV alternative for achieving a tan (ie, sunless tanning lotion). DESIGN: Randomized control trial with 1-month follow-up. SETTING: Two universities in Southern California. PARTICIPANTS: A volunteer sample of 146 college students, 91.1% of whom completed the "surprise" 1-month follow-up. INTERVENTION: A UV facial photograph and a brief videotape describing the causes and consequences of photoaging. The study tested the effects of the photoaging information/UV photographic intervention only, the intervention plus use of sunless tanning lotion, and a control condition. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Participants sun protection intentions as assessed immediately after the intervention and sun protection behaviors during the month after the intervention as assessed during a surprise telephone follow-up. RESULTS: The intervention resulted in significantly stronger sun protection intentions (P<.001) and greater sun protection behaviors (P<.05) relative to controls. Furthermore, the group that also used sunless tanning lotion tended to engage in greater sun protection behaviors than the group that received the intervention alone (P<.08). CONCLUSION: The UV photographic intervention holds promise as a cost-effective approach to motivate practices that may ultimately result in health benefits (ie, reduced skin cancer rates).

Volunteer support, marital status, and the survival times of terminally ill patients.

This study examines the possibility that volunteer support can influence how long terminally ill patients survive. Hospice patient files (N = 290) were coded for marital status and volunteer support condition, respectively, the latter on the basis of whether visits from volunteers were requested and received (n = 94), requested but not received (n = 28), or neither requested nor received (n = 168). Baseline health, disease type, and demographic dimensions were comparable across support conditions. Results indicated that when a baseline health status effect was controlled for (p<.0002), patients in the volunteer support condition survived significantly longer than did patients in either unvisited condition (p<.0001). Neither marital status nor gender independently predicted survival time.

Effects of appearance-based interventions on sun protection intentions and self-reported behaviors.

Two appearance-based interventions designed to increase sun protection intentions and behaviors were evaluated. Sixty-eight college students in Experiment 1 and 76 beachgoers in Experiment 2 were randomly assigned to receive or not receive a photoaging (premature wrinkling and age spots) information intervention and, separately, to receive or not receive a novel ultraviolet (UV) photo intervention that makes the negative-appearance consequences of UV exposure more salient. Both experiments indicated that the UV photo intervention significantly increased intentions to use sunscreen in the future. A follow-up conducted with the beach sample indicated that UV photo information also produced greater protective behaviors for incidental sun exposure and that the combination of UV photo and photoaging information resulted in substantially lower reported sunbathing.

Effects of a videotape information intervention for spouses on spouse distress and patient recovery from surgery.

Shortly before hospital release, the spouses of 226 male and 70 female coronary artery bypass graft patients were randomly assigned to view an optimistically slanted information tape, a tape that featured coping with more ups and downs, or no tape at all. Results indicated that women, whether as patients or as caregivers, were at elevated risk for a variety of negative outcomes during the subsequent 6 months. However, female patients who had spouses in the optimistic, mastery-tape condition were protected from the elevated levels of problems that characterized women whose spouses received only standard discharge preparation. Results are discussed in relation to research on optimism effects and work that suggests men may generally be less effective caregivers than women.

Counterfactual thinking and quality of life among women with silicone breast implants.

This study examined the relationship of counterfactual thinking (thoughts about how one's current situation might have turned out differently) with psychosocial adjustment and quality of life in a sample of women with silicone breast implants. Seventy-four women who were concerned about or who were experiencing problems with their implants were recruited following magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) evaluation. Participants completed measures of counterfactual thinking, psychosocial adjustment, and quality of life (QOL). Results indicated that counterfactual thinking was significantly associated with more psychosocial adjustment difficulties, more perceived implant-related health problems, and poorer QOL in the physical health domain. These findings provide additional insight into the factors that may influence adjustment in a complex and poorly understood population and also have implications for understanding the adjustment process to other types of illnesses.

Audience status moderates the effects of social support and self-efficacy on cardiovascular reactivity during public speaking.

Exaggerated blood pressure responses to stress are implicated in the development of cardiovascular disease, and an effort has been made to identify factors associated with such responses. One situational factor that impacts cardiovascular responses to stress is the presence of other people and their behavior. Here, we manipulated the status of the audience during a stressful public speaking task to explore its impact on reactivity and its possible role in moderating the effects of the speaker's confidence and the audience's response during the speech. Sixty-four normotensive female undergraduates, classified as having high or low self-efficacy for public speaking, gave a 5-min speech to an audience that responded positively or negatively. Half of the audiences were presented as public speaking experts and half as novices. Cardiovascular reactivity was greater for low-efficacy speakers and for those receiving positive feedback. Reactivity was also greater facing an expert audience. Furthermore, the effects of both self-efficacy and audience feedback were intensified before an expert audience. To understand social support effects, we must attend not only to characteristics of the recipient but also to those of the provider.