Personal mastery predicts pain, stress, fatigue, and blood pressure in adults with rheumatoid arthritis

Role of self-esteem and personal mastery on the association between social support and resilience among COVID-19 long haulers

Although the COVID-19 mortality rate is declining, the number of individuals dealing with persistent COVID-19 symptoms is increasing worldwide, making long COVID a global public health concern. People with long COVID (long haulers) often deal with physical and mental stressors. Long haulers' psychological resilience could play a key role in coping with these stressors in intercorrelation with psychosocial resources. The current study aims to test a hypothesized relationship between social support and its functions (i.e., instrumental and emotional) and the resilience of long haulers through serial mediation by personal mastery and self-esteem. A cross-sectional and self-administered online survey was conducted among 460 individuals with long COVID recruited from COVID-19 Facebook support groups in the United States. Analyzing data indicated a positive correlation between social support and the resilience of long haulers. Structural equation modeling suggested that self-esteem and personal mastery fully mediated the association between social (instrumental) support and resilience. Personal mastery also mediated the association between self-esteem and resilience in social (instrumental) support models. However, in the emotional support model, the indirect effect was non-significant for the mediation by personal mastery and self-esteem. Findings suggest that social support, mainly instrumental support, may protect long haulers by promoting their resilience through self-esteem and personal mastery. This study emphasizes the importance of including social support services in designing programs for COVID-19 long haulers.

Substance use, psychiatric symptoms, personal mastery, and social support among COVID-19 long haulers: A compensatory model

BACKGROUND

Substance use has become a critical health concern during the COVID-19 pandemic, and emerging attention has been paid to people with the persistent symptoms of COVID-19 (COVID-19 long haulers) due to their high vulnerability. However, scant research has investigated their substance use and relevant psychosocial factors. The current study was to (1) examine substance use behaviors (i.e., legal drug use, illicit drug use, and non-medical use of prescription drugs); and (2) assessed their associations with psychiatric symptoms (i.e., depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress disorder) and psychosocial factors (i.e., personal mastery and social support) among COVID-19 long haulers.

METHODS

In January-March 2022, 460 COVID-19 long haulers (50% female), with an average age of 32, completed online surveys regarding their demographics, substance use, psychiatric symptoms, and psychosocial factors.

RESULTS

In the past three months, the most commonly used or non-medically used substances were tobacco (82%) for legal drugs, cocaine (53%) for illicit drugs, and prescription opioids (67%) for prescription drugs. Structural equation modeling suggested that psychiatric symptoms were positively associated with substance use behaviors (βs = 0.38 to .68, ps < 0.001), while psychosocial factors were negatively associated with substance use behaviors (βs = -0.61 to -0.43, ps < 0.001).

CONCLUSION

Substance use is common in COVID-19 long haulers and psychiatric symptoms are the risk factors. Personal mastery and social support appear to offer protection offsetting the psychiatric influences. Substance use prevention and mental health services for COVID-19 long haulers should attend to personal mastery and social support.

Substance use, psychiatric symptoms, personal mastery, and social support among COVID-19 long haulers: A compensatory model

BACKGROUND

Substance use has become a critical health concern during the COVID-19 pandemic, and emerging attention has been paid to people with the persistent symptoms of COVID-19 (COVID-19 long haulers) due to their high vulnerability. However, scant research has investigated their substance use and relevant psychosocial factors. The current study was to (1) examine substance use behaviors (i.e., legal drug use, illicit drug use, and non-medical use of prescription drugs); and (2) assessed their associations with psychiatric symptoms (i.e., depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress disorder) and psychosocial factors (i.e., personal mastery and social support) among COVID-19 long haulers.

METHODS

In January - March 2022, 460 COVID-19 long haulers (50% female), with an average age of 32, completed online surveys regarding their demographics, substance use, psychiatric symptoms, and psychosocial factors.

RESULTS

In the past three months, the most commonly used or non-medically used substances were tobacco (82%) for legal drugs, cocaine (53%) for illicit drugs, and prescription opioids (67%) for prescription drugs. Structural equation modeling suggested that psychiatric symptoms were positively associated with substance use behaviors ( β s = .38 to .68, p s < .001), while psychosocial factors were negatively associated with substance use behaviors ( β s = -.61 to -.43, p s < .001).

CONCLUSION

Substance use is common in COVID-19 long haulers and psychiatric symptoms are the risk factors. Personal mastery and social support appear to offer protection offsetting the psychiatric influences. Substance use prevention and mental health services for COVID-19 long haulers should attend to personal mastery and social support.

Intact pain modulation through manipulation of controllability and expectations in aging

BACKGROUND

Pain expectation and controllability can modulate pain processing. However, little is known about age-related effects on these cognitive factors involved in pain control. This study assessed age-related brain changes associated with pain expectation and controllability.

METHODS

17 healthy older adults (9 men; 65.65 ± 4.34 years) and 18 healthy younger adults (8 men; 20.56 ± 5.56 years) participated in the study. Pain evoked potentials and pain ratings were recorded while participants received painful electrical stimuli under two different conditions of pain controllability over the intensity of the stimulation (self-controlled vs. computer controlled) and two conditions of pain expectations (high vs. low pain).

RESULTS

Although the intensity of the painful stimulation was kept constant, all participants showed reduced pain perception in the controllable and low pain expectancy conditions. However, older participants showed reduced amplitudes of pain evoked potentials in the time window between 150 and 500 ms after stimulus onset as compared to younger participants. Moreover, younger participants showed greater negative amplitudes from 80 to 150 ms after stimulus onset for uncontrollable versus controllable pain.

CONCLUSIONS

These results suggest that although cognitive pain modulation is preserved during ageing, neural processing of pain is reduced in older adults.

SIGNIFICANCE

This research describes the impact of age on cognitive pain modulation evoked by the manipulation of pain controllability and pain expectations. Our findings constitute a first step in the understanding of the greater vulnerability of older individuals to chronic pain. Moreover, we show that older adults can benefit from cognitive pain control mechanisms to increase the efficacy of pain treatments.

A biopsychosocial network model of fatigue in rheumatoid arthritis: a systematic review

Fatigue in RA is prevalent, intrusive and disabling. We propose a network model of fatigue encompassing multiple and mutually interacting biological, psychological and social factors. Guided by this model, we reviewed the literature to offer a comprehensive overview of factors that have been associated with fatigue in RA. Six categories of variables were found: physical functioning, psychological functioning, medical status, comorbidities and symptoms, biographical variables and miscellaneous variables. We then systematically reviewed associations between fatigue and factors commonly addressed by rheumatology health professionals. Correlations of fatigue with physical disability, poor mental well-being, pain, sleep disturbance and depression and anxiety were ∼0.50. Mostly these correlations remained significant in multivariate analyses, suggesting partly independent influences on fatigue and differences between individuals. These findings indicate the importance of research into individual-specific networks of biopsychosocial factors that maintain fatigue and tailored interventions that target the influencing factors most relevant to that person.

Fatalism and hypertension prevalence, awareness, treatment and control in US Hispanics/Latinos: results from HCHS/SOL Sociocultural Ancillary Study

Compared with non-Hispanic whites, US Hispanics/Latinos display similar hypertension prevalence, but lower awareness, treatment, and control. Sociocultural factors may affect these patterns. Fatalism, the belief that health is predetermined by fate, relates to poorer adoption of risk reducing health behaviors. We examined the association of fatalism with hypertension prevalence, awareness, treatment, and control among 5313 Hispanics/Latinos, ages 18-74, who were enrolled from four US communities in the Hispanic Community Health Study/Study of Latinos Sociocultural Ancillary Study. After accounting for socioeconomic status and acculturation in logistic regression analyses, higher fatalism was associated with increased odds of hypertension (OR 1.14, 95 % CI 1.02, 1.28). This association was non-significant when diabetes and other health-related covariates were statistically adjusted. Fatalism was not associated with hypertension awareness, treatment, or control. Findings suggest that the association of fatalism with hypertension may be due largely to its association with SES, acculturation, or related health conditions.

Liguori E, Muldoon J, Jawahar I. Keeping the peace

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to investigate the interaction between self-reported proactive personality, competence, and interpersonal conflict in the prediction of supervisor ratings of organizational citizenship behaviors directed at individuals (OCBI) and organizations (OCBO).

Design/methodology/approach

– Data were obtained from 165 full-time subordinate-supervisor dyads. Employees self-reported personality and control variable information in wave 1 and competence and interpersonal conflict information in wave 2. Data regarding employee OCB performance were collected from supervisors in wave 3.

Findings

– Results suggest that OCBs are performed less frequently in stressful circumstances but that proactive personality appears to assuage the effects of stress. Significant two- and three-way interactions suggest the interplay of personal and situational characteristics are more complex in predicting OCBO than OCBI, likely due to its more distal nature.

Practical implications

– Results of the current study suggest steps managers may want to take to increase employee performance of OCBs, specifically, selecting proactive individuals, creating training programs to bolster employees’ competence, and minimizing interpersonal conflict at work.

Originality/value

– The current study confirms and extends extant research. The current study goes beyond previous work to consider a more complex interaction of factors that are related to employee engagement in OCBs.

Painful effects of auditory startle, forehead cooling and psychological stress in patients with fibromyalgia or rheumatoid arthritis

OBJECTIVE

The aim of this study was to determine whether the clinical pain associated with rheumatoid arthritis or fibromyalgia would increase during standard laboratory tasks and, if so, whether these increases were linked with individual differences in psychological distress.

METHODS

Twenty-three patients with fibromyalgia and 16 patients with rheumatoid arthritis rated changes in clinical pain after an acoustic startle stimulus, during painful forehead cooling, and during stressful mental arithmetic. In addition, pain tolerance was assessed during a submaximal effort tourniquet test, and patients provided ratings of distress on a standard Depression, Anxiety and Stress Inventory.

RESULTS

Pain at rest was associated with depression scores in patients with rheumatoid arthritis, and was associated with stress scores in the fibromyalgia group. However, pain tolerance was unrelated to individual differences in psychological distress in either group. In patients with fibromyalgia, clinical pain increased after the acoustic startle stimulus and painful forehead cooling, and increased during stressful mental arithmetic. Arthritic pain also increased during forehead cooling and mental arithmetic in association with indices of psychological distress.

CONCLUSIONS

These findings suggest that processes linked with individual differences in distress aggravate pain in rheumatoid arthritis, whereas some other mechanism (e.g., failure of stress-related pain modulation processes or an aberrant interaction between nociceptive afferent and sympathetic efferent fibers) triggers stress-induced pain in fibromyalgia.

Toward a more complete understanding of the effects of personal mastery on cardiometabolic health

OBJECTIVE

A great deal of research has been devoted to identifying the psychological factors that might be associated with reduced risk for cardiovascular diseases. In particular, coping resources such as personal mastery might attenuate stress-related pathophysiology. The purpose of the present review was to examine the existing literature reporting associations between personal mastery and cardiometabolic health outcomes to determine which outcomes have been studied to date, investigate the extent of inconsistency in the literature, and propose new directions for research.

DESIGN

Systematic review of articles examining the associations between personal mastery and cardiometabolic health.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES

Studies were included if they examined objective measures of cardiometabolic function, cardiovascular events, and/or mortality.

RESULTS

Thirty-two studies were identified examining the effect of mastery on the following outcomes: mortality and/or cardiovascular events, psychoneuroendocrine stress systems, cardiovascular reactivity to acute stress, metabolic dysregulation, inflammation/coagulation, and evidence of large vessel disease from imaging methods.

CONCLUSIONS

Overall, mastery was associated with better cardiometabolic health and reduced risk for disease and/or death, typically with a small-medium effect size. A relatively small proportion of studies reported contradictory findings that higher mastery was associated with poorer cardiometabolic outcomes. The state of the current research suggests that future investigations should focus on 1) clarifying the mediators and moderators most relevant in the association between mastery and downstream disease, 2) testing the association between mastery and biological outcomes longitudinally, 3) examining the physiological impact of mastery-increasing interventions, and 4) studying the relationship between mastery and disease risk in diverse ethnic or sociocultural groups.