Personal relative deprivation associated with functional disorders via stress: An examination of fibromyalgia and gastrointestinal symptoms

Perceived Stress and Life Stressors in Adults with and without Fibromyalgia

Chronic medical conditions (i.e., chronic widespread pain) may contribute to accelerated/accentuated aging, such that middle-aged individuals with comorbidities may actually show increased declines in physical, cognitive, and mental health compared to normal aging adults. We examined perceived stress, life stressors, and depression in adults with and without fibromyalgia, a chronic pain condition. Ninety-four participants (52% with fibromyalgia, 78% female) aged 50 to 93 were administered the Perceived Stress Scale, Social Readjustment Rating Scale, and Beck Depression Inventory. Hierarchical regression analyses were conducted: the predictor variables were age, gender, fibromyalgia status, depression, and fibromyalgia-depression interaction. The interaction term significantly predicted perceived stress, but not life stressors. Depression significantly predicted stress for Social Readjustment Rating Scale measures after controlling for covariates. Significant associations were found between perceived stress and life stressors in all participants. In addition, those with fibromyalgia were significantly more likely to report higher levels of stress above standardized scores on both the Perceived Stress Scale and the Social Readjustment Rating Scale. Finally, depressive symptoms played a more significant role than fibromyalgia status in predicting life stressors. Conclusions: These findings emphasize the importance of assessing different types of stress and stressors in individuals with chronic widespread pain and/or depression in mid-life and beyond to better treat individuals with these conditions.

Perceived Relative Deprivation Across the Adult Lifespan: An Examination of Aging and Cohort Effects

Despite being a core psychological construct for over 70 years, research has yet to examine how perceptions of deprivation relative to other individuals and/or groups develop across adulthood. As such, this preregistered study uses cohort-sequential latent growth modeling to examine changes in individual- and group-based relative deprivation (IRD and GRD, respectively) across the adult lifespan. Across 10 annual assessments of a nationwide random sample of adults (Ntotal = 58,878; ethnic minority n = 11,927; 62.7% women; ages 21-80), mean levels of IRD trended downward across the lifespan, whereas mean levels of GRD generally increased from young-to-middle adulthood before declining across late adulthood. Subtle cohort effects emerged for both constructs, although both IRD and GRD largely followed a normative aging process. Critically, the development of GRD-but not IRD-differed between ethnic groups, providing insights into how one's objective status may shape subjective (dis)advantage over time.

Moment-to-moment relationships between pain, fatigue, and distress as a function of GI symptoms in fibromyalgia

OBJECTIVE

There is emerging evidence that people with both fibromyalgia and functional gastrointestinal (GI) disorders report more severe psychological symptoms than people with only fibromyalgia or a functional GI disorder. We use Ecological Momentary Assessment (EMA) to examine whether, for people with fibromyalgia, accompanying GI symptoms result in stronger bidirectional relationships between distress and bodily pain or fatigue.

METHODS

Participants were 67 women with fibromyalgia from a study by Okifuji et al. (2011; 13), in which EMA data on pain, fatigue, and distress was collected over 30 days. Thirty-three participants reported GI symptoms at baseline, and 34 participants reported no GI symptoms but at least one other bodily symptom. Using multilevel linear regressions with interaction terms, we compared the two groups on the strength of reciprocal within-day and day-to-day relationships between pain, fatigue, and distress.

RESULTS

GI symptom status did not moderate relationships between distress and pain. However, participants with GI symptoms uniquely reported more distress following increased fatigue within days (b = 0.120, 95%CI: 0.041,0.198), and sharper distress escalations across days (b = 0.078 95%CI: 0.007, 0.149).

CONCLUSION

We do not find evidence of stronger bidirectional within-day and day-to-day relationships between distress and bodily symptoms in this patient group. We do, however, find evidence of heightened fatigue-related distress and escalating distress. These cyclical processes can become a focus for cognitive behavioural therapy, patient education, and physical (exercise/sleep) therapy aimed at addressing fatigue.

On a tendency in health economics to dwell on income inequality and underestimate social stress

Social stress can cause physical and mental harm. It is therefore not surprising that public health policy makers have sought to identify and implement policies aimed at tackling this social ill. A frequently prescribed remedy is to reduce social stress by reducing income inequality, which is typically measured by the Gini coefficient. Decomposing the coefficient into a measure of a population's social stress and a population's income makes it possible to show that steps taken to lower the coefficient can actually exacerbate social stress. We formulate conditions under which lowering the Gini coefficient coincides with increasing social stress. If the aim of public policy is to improve public health and increase social welfare, and if social welfare is reduced by social stress, then lowering the Gini coefficient may not be the right course of action.

Association of stress and functional gastrointestinal disorders in high school graduates

BACKGROUND

Psychosocial factors are seemed as important causes of functional gastrointestinal disorders (FGIDs). However, the role of stress in FGIDs in high school students under the pressure of college entrance examination is largely unknown. The aim of this study is to investigate the association between the stress and FGIDs in high school graduates.

METHODS

A cross-sectional survey was conducted in randomly selected high school fresh graduates. Questionnaires concerned health condition, living habits, gastrointestinal symptoms and life stress were given out and be finished voluntarily. Participants were diagnosed as FGIDs based on the Rome IV criteria.

RESULTS

Stress level of FGIDs population was higher than control group and stress was independent predicted factor of high risk of FGIDs. The stressor "changes" was significantly correlated with functional gastroduodenal disorders (OR1.118(1.011-1.238)). Stressor "frustration" was significantly correlated with functional bowel disorders (OR1.038(1.006-1.071)). "Physiological reaction" was correlated with functional bowel disease and functional gastroduodenal disorders + functional bowel disorders (OR1.027(1.007-1.046) and OR1.055(1.000-1.113)). Students with more than one gastrointestinal symptom exhibited higher stress level. Moreover, there was mediation effect of stress in the association between gender, sleep quality, allergies and FGIDs.

LIMITATIONS

This was a cross-section study and the sample included in the study were only from Wuhan, China.

CONCLUSIONS

Our findings illustrated the predicted and mediated role of stress in FGIDs in high school fresh graduates. Different stressors and reactions to stressors contributed to different FGIDs. Intervening measures aimed at stress coping strategies were warranted for students in daily school life.

The Relative Deprivation Trap: How Feeling Deprived Relates to Symptoms of Generalized Anxiety Disorder

Introduction: How income inequality associates with poorer mental health remains unclear. Personal relative deprivation (PRD) involves appraising oneself as unfairly disadvantaged relative to similar others and has been associated with poorer mental health and negative cognitive appraisals. As generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) is associated with negative cognitive appraisals, PRD may relate to the experience of GAD and its cognitive predictors, intolerance of uncertainty (IU), positive beliefs about worry (PBW), negative beliefs about worry (NBW), and experiential avoidance (EA).

Method: In two observational studies (Study 1, N = 588; Study 2, N = 301) participants completed measures of PRD, cognitive predictors and symptoms of GAD, subjective socioeconomic status (SES), self-efficacy, and self-esteem.

Results: A relationship between PRD and GAD was found across studies, which was simultaneously mediated by IU and NBW. These results remained when controlling for subjective SES but were weakened when controlling for self-concept factors.

Discussion: This research supports the possibility that the experience of deprivation may “trap” people in thinking patterns that contribute to anxious symptomology.

Examining the effectiveness of an online program to cultivate mindfulness and self-compassion skills (Mind-OP): Randomized controlled trial on Amazon's Mechanical Turk

OBJECTIVES

The demand for effective psychological treatments for depression, anxiety, and heightened stress is far outstripping their supply. Accordingly, internet delivered, self-help interventions offer hope to many people, as they can be easily accessed and at a fraction of the price of face-to-face options. Mindfulness and self-compassion are particularly exciting approaches, as evidence suggests interventions that cultivate these skills are effective in reducing depression, anxiety, and heightened stress. We examined the effectiveness of a newly developed program that combines mindfulness, self-compassion, and goal-setting exercises into a brief self-guided intervention (Mind-OP). The secondary aim of this study was to investigate the feasibility of conducting a randomized-controlled trial entirely on a popular crowdsourcing platform, Amazon's Mechanical Turk (MTurk).

METHODS

We randomized 456 participants reporting heightened depression, anxiety, or stress to one of two conditions: the 4-week Mind-OP intervention (n = 227) or to an active control condition (n = 229) where participants watched nature videos superimposed onto relaxing meditation music for four consecutive weeks. We administered measures of anxiety, depression, perceived stress, dispositional and state mindfulness, self-compassion, and nonattachment.

RESULTS

Intent-to-treat and per-protocol analyses revealed that, compared to participants in the control condition, participants in the Mind-OP intervention condition reported significantly less anxiety and stress at the end of the trial, as well as significantly greater mindfulness, self-compassion, and nonattachment.

CONCLUSIONS

Mind-OP appears effective in reducing anxiety symptoms and perceived stress among MTurk participants. We highlight issues (e.g., attrition) related to feasibility of conducting randomized trials on crowdsourcing platforms such as MTurk.

Stacking Up With the Stars: Relative Deprivation and Excessive Admiration of Celebrities

The purpose of this study was to investigate whether celebrity admiration is associated with personal relative deprivation, impulsivity, and materialism. We gave the Celebrity Attitude Scale, the Personal Relative Deprivation Scale, the MacArthur Scale of Subjective Social Status, a subscale from the Consideration of Future Consequences-14, and the Material Values Scale, to 149 respondents recruited through Mechanical Turk. We found a weak but significant association between personal relative deprivation and celebrity attitudes. We successfully replicated earlier research showing that celebrity attitudes were positively correlated with material values and impulsivity. Personal relative deprivation also correlated positively with both material values and impulsivity. These findings suggest that the constructs of personal relative deprivation and celebrity attitudes appear to have much in common as both are associated with poor quality of life.

Harnessing the Power of Microbiome Assessment Tools as Part of Neuroprotective Nutrition and Lifestyle Medicine Interventions

An extensive body of evidence documents the importance of the gut microbiome both in health and in a variety of human diseases. Cell and animal studies describing this relationship abound, whilst clinical studies exploring the associations between changes in gut microbiota and the corresponding metabolites with neurodegeneration in the human brain have only begun to emerge more recently. Further, the findings of such studies are often difficult to translate into simple clinical applications that result in measurable health outcomes. The purpose of this paper is to appraise the literature on a select set of faecal biomarkers from a clinician’s perspective. This practical review aims to examine key physiological processes that influence both gastrointestinal, as well as brain health, and to discuss how tools such as the characterisation of commensal bacteria, the identification of potential opportunistic, pathogenic and parasitic organisms and the quantification of gut microbiome biomarkers and metabolites can help inform clinical decisions of nutrition and lifestyle medicine practitioners.

Does stress mediate the association between personal relative deprivation and gambling?

Evidence has linked subjective feelings of personal relative deprivation with general gambling involvement and problem gambling tendencies. In turn, problem gambling tendencies have been linked with a wide array of damaging physical and mental health consequences. It has been theorized that the deleterious effects of perceived inequality on mental and physical health operate at the individual level through the experience of personal relative deprivation leading to psychosocial stress. We empirically examined whether the experience of perceived stress contributes to explaining the deprivation-gambling link using cross-sectional, self-reported survey data collected from a crowdsourced population of adults (n = 565). Results indicate that personal relative deprivation is associated with problem gambling tendencies (but not general gambling involvement) and that this association is mediated by perceived stress. These associations were particularly strong among participants who reported non-zero levels of problem gambling tendencies. Together, our results further emphasize the importance of individual-level social comparison reactions in the context of health.