Social capital and perceived stress: The role of social context

Psychotropic medicine use without current or prior medical advice, storage at home and association with perceived stress in a primary health care setting in Greece

OBJECTIVE

Psychotropic medicines use alters according to socio-economic factors and perceived stress. The study aimed to assess the prevalence of use of psychotropic medicines and supplements (PMS) without medical advice, including storage at home, and its relationship with socio-demographic characteristics and perceived stress in primary care patients.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

A cross-sectional sample of adult attendees in an urban primary care unit in Crete, Greece, were surveyed during regularly scheduled appointments during a three-week period in October 2020. A questionnaire was distributed to investigate PMS use during the last 12 months. The validated Greek version of Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-14) was adopted to measure perceived stress.

RESULTS

Of 263 respondents (mean age 46.3±14.5 years; 66.5% females), 101 (38.4%; 95%CI 33.1-43.7%) recalled having psychotropic medicines stored at home cabinets and 72 (27.4%; 95%CI 22.4-32.3%) reported using PMS without medical advice in the last 12 months.

CONCLUSIONS

This study revealed a high prevalence of PMS use without medical advice, including storage at home. People>59 years of age, experiencing irregular sleep and scoring high in PSS, displayed increased prevalence of storing PMS at home or using them without medical advice. The findings could potentially inform primary care providers to focus on patients most likely to be users of PMS without medical advice.

How is intergenerational emotional cohesion linked to depression among older internal migrants in China: the mediating roles of loneliness and perceived stress

BACKGROUND

Late-life internal migration is frequently associated with a higher risk of depression in older parents. This research delves into the impact of intergenerational emotional cohesion (IEC) on depression in older internal migrants and the underlying mechanisms within the contemporary Chinese context.

METHODS

Obtained from a cross-sectional survey in Nanjing, China, the research involved 654 older internal migrants (66.97% female; mean age = 66.05 years; SD = 4.67). Variables were assessed using the Intergenerational Solidarity Inventory, 3-item R-UCLA Loneliness Scale, Perceived Stress Scale, and 9-item Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9). For mediation exploration, a serial mediation model was utilized, and the Bootstrap method was employed to test the signifcance of these mediation effects.

RESULTS

IEC demonstrates a negative correlation with depression. Through IEC, three significant mediation pathways were identified that directly affect depression: (1) loneliness (β=-0.06; Ratio=17.14%), (2) perceived stress (β=-0.09; Ratio=25.71%), and (3) loneliness and perceived stress (β=-0.03; Ratio=8.57%).

CONCLUSIONS

IEC can impact the depression of older internal migrants by mitigating negative psychological emotions during the migration process. This finding provides valuable theoretical insights for the prevention of mental health problems among this demographic.

The buffering effect of social capital for daily mental stress in an unequal society: a lesson from Seoul

This study attempted to illustrate whether mental health deterioration could be alleviated by high social capital in an environment with high economic inequality. Daily mental stress was employed as a mental health factor when analyzing the association with economic inequality in the Seoul Survey data. Regarding social capital, community trust and altruism were included as cognitive dimensions, and participation and cooperation were included as structural dimensions in each model. The first finding showed a significantly positive relationship between economic inequality and daily stress, meaning that, like other mental health problems, daily mental stress is also high in regions with high economic inequality. Second, the slope of the daily stress increased in respondents with high social trust and participation was alleviated in an economically unequal environment. This indicates that social trust and participation have a buffering effect by moderating the slope of daily stress in societies with high inequality. Third, the buffering effect differs depending on the social capital factor. The buffering effect of trust and participation showed in an unequal environment, while the buffering effect of cooperation showed regardless of the unequal environment. In summary, social capital factors showed the effect of relieving daily mental stress in the relationship with economic inequality. Also, the buffering effect of social capital on mental health may show different aspects for each element.

Adaptation of the personal social capital brief scale for the measurement of the offline and online social capital in Italy

Social Capital refers to the resources associated with durable and trustworthy social connections. Social Capital can be developed through offline and online relationships. It can be distinguished between cognitive Social Capital (perception of trustworthiness, reciprocity, and support) and structural Social Capital (density of social networks and membership, and participation in groups and associations). It can also be distinguished between bonding Social Capital (resources associated with informal networks; i.e., neighbors, friends, colleagues) and bridging Social Capital (resources associated with formal networks; i.e., community service, cultural, religious or political groups/associations). The different forms and dimensions of Social Capital may have distinct effects on health outcomes and self-rated health. Therefore, public health researchers need valid and reliable instruments to investigate Social Capital. However, valid instruments including the measurement of online Social Capital are not available. The Personal Social Capital Scale aims to assess bonding and bridging Social Capital by means of cognitive and structural items. In the present investigation, three studies were carried out (N = 1149) to adapt the Personal Social Capital Scale to develop the Personal On-Offline Social Capital Brief Scale, a brief scale for measuring online and offline bonding and bridging Social Capital in Italy. Factorial structure and convergent/divergent validity in relation to scales measuring constructs with different patterns of relationships with bonding and bridging Social Capital (i.e., social support and stress; sense of community and health) were also investigated. Overall, these studies provide evidence of reliability and validity related to the internal structure of the Personal On-Offline Social Capital Brief Scale in measuring online and offline bonding and bridging Social Capital and discriminating them from similar constructs. This scale is a useful instrument for planning public health interventions.

Effects of Multifaceted Determinants on Individual Stress: The Mediating Role of Social Capital

Stress substantially results in various negative health outcomes. While there is a nexus between social capital and individual stress, previous studies have primarily explored the direct relationship between them. Social capital may potentially have an indirect effect on perceived stress via social networking pathways that provide accessible resources. This study addresses this research gap by exploring the mediating effect of social capital for associations between personal-level features, personal-level behaviors, physical environments, and perceived stress. A household drop-off survey of 600 respondents was collected from two neighborhoods in Korea and analyzed by structural equation models. Results showed that social capital acted as a mediator on perceived stress level. The frequency of community center use had both direct and indirect impacts on stress level through social capital. Those who were satisfied with the cleanliness of the neighborhood had a higher level of social capital and a lower level of stress indirectly through social capital. Households with more children had a lower level of social capital, while persons who had chronic disease and were more extroverted, agreeable, and open to others enjoyed a higher level of social capital. The results provide policy implications on how community revitalization affects social capital and perceived stress.

The Impact of Enterprise Management Elements on College Students' Entrepreneurial Behavior by Complex Adaptive System Theory

At present, with the continuous rise in public consumption level, the pressure on college students' entrepreneurship or employment is increasingly severe. Under the concept of positive psychological intervention, the present work aims to alleviate the entrepreneurial pressure of college students and improve college students' entrepreneurial education through the analysis of enterprise management elements. A 3-month intervention experiment, including the pre-test, preventive curriculum intervention, post-test, and delayed test, is conducted on a control group and an experimental group, to investigate entrepreneurial intention, emotional management ability, and ability to deal with entrepreneurial pressure of college students. In addition, based on a complex adaptive system (CAS), the enterprise management elements are analyzed, and a three-layer network model is constructed. Meanwhile, new diversified elements of enterprise management are defined to discuss the effectiveness and psychological impact of diversified management, proving that psychological security plays an intermediary role in the cross-layer relationship chain in the three-layer CAS network. The experimental results indicate that on the whole, the positive psychological intervention reduces the pressure of students in the experimental group, significantly ameliorates depression and anxiety, and promotes the positive personality in all directions. Besides, in the delayed test after 3 months, the experimental group can maintain a relatively better state than the control group. By exploring the role effectiveness and characteristics of diversified management, this experiment confirms that the improvement of psychological security under positive psychological intervention has a positive impact on the effectiveness of diversified management. The present work discusses the hierarchical construction in enterprise management and puts forward reasonable suggestions and theoretical development for the influence of the entrepreneurial practice of college students.

Role of social capital and self-efficacy as determinants of stress in pregnancy

OBJECTIVES

The study investigated the role of social capital, self-efficacy, and depression as determinants of stress during pregnancy.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

In a cross-sectional study, 200 low-risk pregnant women with at least 5 years of education and ages 18 or more were enrolled in public obstetric clinics of Babol University of Medical Sciences. The participants completed four questionnaires including Social Capital, Revised Prenatal Distress Questionnaire (NuPDQ), Perceived Stress, and General Self-efficacy.

RESULTS

Women at late phase of pregnancy had lower mean scores of total social capital (61.5 ± 17.1 vs. 47.1 ± 18.1) and self-efficacy (60.1 ± 9.7 vs. 55.1 ± 15.2) compared to those at early pregnancy. Social capital was the negative independent variable associated with pregnancy-specific stress in the adjusted model (β = -0.418, P = 0.020). Both social capital (β = -0.563, P ≤ 0.001) and self-efficacy (β = -0.330, P ≤ 0.001) were negative independent variables associated with general stress.

CONCLUSIONS

Our findings suggest that health professionals should note the benefits of social capital in stress management and encourage women in establishing stronger relations and neighborhood environments during pregnancy.

The Effects of Psychological Capital and Internal Social Capital on Frontline Hotel Employees’ Adaptive Performance

This study examines the relationship between psychological capital, social capital, and adaptive performance in China’s lodging industry. Recent research has revealed that the production attributes of internal social capital can explain adaptive performance, and that psychological capital affects the relationship attributes of social capital. This raises the question of whether social capital might mediate between psychological capital and adaptive performance. Therefore, this study examined data from a sample of 304 hotel employees in China, using internal social capital as a mediating variable. The results confirmed that psychological capital has a significant positive impact on adaptive performance. Social capital also plays a mediating role partially between psychological capital and adaptive performance. The findings of this study contribute to the theoretical framework of psychological capital and adaptive performance and provide a new approach to human resource management in the lodging industry and other dynamically competitive service industries.

Subjective Family Socioeconomic Status and Peer Relationships: Mediating Roles of Self-Esteem and Perceived Stress

This study explored the relationships between subjective family socioeconomic status (FSES), self-esteem, perceived stress, and perceived peer relationships among Chinese adolescents. A total of 1,353 adolescents (age range: 15-19 years) were asked to complete a questionnaire. Mediation analysis revealed that subjective FSES influenced perceived peer relationships in three ways: first, through the mediating effect of perceived stress; second, through the mediating effect of self-esteem; and third, through the serial mediating effects of perceived stress and self-esteem. The results remained significant after controlling for parental education. In addition, a contrast analysis showed no significant differences in the mediating effects of self-esteem and perceived stress. Thus, we suggest that steps should be taken to improve adolescents' self-esteem and reduce their stress through training interventions and preventive measures, to help them improve their perceived peer relationships and reduce adverse effects associated with low subjective FSES.

Should Trust Be Stressed? General Trust and Proactive Coping as Buffers to Perceived Stress

Stress is becoming an increasingly important public health concern. Assuming that individual levels of trust and coping can buffer psychological stress, we explore validated measures of general trust [General Trust Scale (GTS)], proactive coping [Proactive Coping Inventory (PCI)], jointly with personality [Honesty-Humility, Emotionality, Extraversion, Agreeableness, Conscientiousness, and Openness to experience (HEXACO)], and intolerance of uncertainty (IUS), as predictors of perceived stress [Perceived Stress Scale (PSS)]. Data were collected from Qualtrics research panels using quota sampling to obtain two representative American community samples. The assumed alleviating effects of GTS and PCI on PSS remained but were attenuated when modeled jointly with HEXACO, IUS, and socio-economic background variables [socioeconomic status (SES)] in hierarchical regressions. In Study 1 (N = 1,213), SES explained 19% and HEXACO explained 29% of the variance in PSS. Introducing IUS and GTS added significant but small portions of explained variance. In Study 2 (N = 1,090), after controlling for SES which explained 18% of the variance, IUS explained an additional 18% of the variance in PSS. Adding GTS to the model showed modest contributions whereas PCI added 9% of explained variance in the final hierarchical step. The findings highlight that GTS and PCI remain important variables even after controlling well-known factors such as personality and ability to tolerate uncertainty. However, given the weak effects of GTS, to consider trust as a remedy for stress may be of limited use in clinical practice since it could potentially be explained largely as a proxy for a beneficial combination of personality, coping, and socioeconomic background.

Social integration, perceived stress, locus of control, and psychological wellbeing among chinese emerging adult migrants: A conditional process analysis

BACKGROUND

This study investigated the underlying determinants of the relationship between social integration and three dimensions of psychological wellbeing in a nationally representative sample of emerging adult migrants in China.

METHODS

Data on 6,084 migrants aged 18-29 years in the 2014 China Migrants Dynamic Survey were analyzed. A conditional process analysis tested hypotheses regarding the influence of social integration on self-rated health, life satisfaction, and mental illness. Perceived stress was tested as a mediator, and the locus of control was tested as a moderator.

RESULTS

Social integration negatively related to mental illness (β= -0.10, p < 0.001), and it positively related to self-rated health (β = 0.24, p < 0.001) and life satisfaction (β = 0.14, p < 0.001). Perceived stress had significant mediating effects on the influence of social integration on the dimensions of psychological wellbeing. The locus of control not only moderated the influence of social integration on perceived stress (β = -0.02, p < 0.05), it moderated the influence of perceived stress on the mental illness dimension of psychological wellbeing (β = -0.03, p < 0.001).

LIMITATIONS

The cross-sectional design impeded the ability to draw causal inferences.

CONCLUSIONS

Social integration was a key predictor of psychological wellbeing among emerging adult migrants in China. Perceived stress significantly mediated that relationship. The locus of control moderated the indirect effect of social integration on psychological wellbeing by weakening the buffering effect of social integration on perceived stress. Furthermore, the locus of control also buffered the negative effects of perceived stress.

Relationships between Social Capital, Social Capital Satisfaction, Self-Esteem, and Depression among Elderly Urban Residents: Analysis of Secondary Survey Data

The role that psychological variables play in depression among elderly urban residents has received little research attention. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to examine the relationships between social capital, social capital satisfaction, self-esteem, and depression among elderly urban residents. We used the responses provided by 701 elderly persons to scales assessing social capital (i.e., network, trust), social capital satisfaction, self-esteem, and depression, as part of the Korea Welfare Panel Study (KOWEPS). We conducted a confirmatory factor analysis and tested the validity of a proposed statistical model using structural equation modeling (SEM). The results showed that trust in social capital, social capital satisfaction, and self-esteem were significantly related to depression. Further, social capital satisfaction and self-esteem fully and partially mediated the relationship between trust and depression, respectively. These findings serve as an empirical base upon which social welfare policies can be founded that benefit elderly urban residents with weak social capital, low social capital satisfaction, and poor self-esteem.