Young Adult Gambling Behaviors and their Relationship with the Persistence of ADHD

Young adulthood is a period renowned for engagement in impulsive and risky behaviors, including gambling. There are some indications that young adults exhibit higher gambling rates in comparison to older adults. Problem gambling has also been linked to ADHD. This longitudinal study examines the relationship between gambling and ADHD among an epidemiological sample of young adults (n = 235; males = 179, females = 56) aged 18-24. Results indicate that individuals who report childhood ADHD symptoms which persist into young adulthood experience greater gambling problem severity than participants with no ADHD or those with non-persistent ADHD.     

Do work commutes moderate the association between perceived neighborhood disorder and psychological distress?

ABSTRACT

Although numerous studies show that living in a neighborhood that is characterized by disorder (crime and dilapidation) can be psychologically distressing, very few studies have considered the element of exposure time or duration of exposure to adverse neighborhood environments. In this paper, we explore the intersection of commuting, mental health, and the subjective experience of neighborhood disadvantage and impoverished community life. Using data from the Welfare, Children, and Families project (2001), a probability sample of 1057 low-income women with children living in Boston, Chicago, and San Antonio, we test whether the association between neighborhood disorder and psychological distress is moderated or attenuated by commuting time and distance. Our results show that although neighborhood disorder is associated with higher levels of anxiety, depression, and somatization, disorder tends to be less distressing for residents who are able to spend time away from these environments through longer commuting times and distances. In other words, working away from one’s neighborhood of residence may help to mitigate the adverse psychological consequences of neighborhood disorder. Our findings support previous research on the stress process and neighborhood disorder. Our work builds on the commuting literature by re-conceptualizing commuting time and distance as protective resources for disadvantaged populations.     

Poverty and psychological distress in Latin America

The objective of this paper is three-fold: first, to study the psychological distress of the Latin American poor. Second, to study differences in psychological distress between the poor and the relatively wealthy in Latin America. Third, to study how economic growth impacts the psychological well-being of the poor.This paper uses micro-level information from the Gallup 2007 Survey for 16 Latin American countries to study psychological distress of the poor in Latin America; the survey is representative at the country level. The investigation works with approximately 12,500 observations. Psychological distress is measured on the basis of a set of questions regarding a person’s emotional situation the day before he/she answered the questionnaire.The investigation finds out that the poor show greater psychological distress than the wealthy and that the gap is statistically significant. However, it would be inappropriate to attempt predicting a person’s psychological well-being on the basis of his/her poverty condition alone, since many factors affect people’s psychological well-being. The paper also shows that rapid economic growth seems to be detrimental to the psychological well-being of the poor, and that the impact of economic growth on psychological well-being differs between the poor and the relatively wealthy.     

Self-blame and stress in undergraduate college students: The mediating role of proactive coping

Objective: This study aimed to examine the mediating relationship of proactive coping on self-blame and stress among US undergraduate college students. Participants: The sample of undergraduate college students (n?=?261) were recruited through their Introduction to Psychology course and registered for the study through a research-based computer program utilized at the university in the fall 2010 and spring 2011 semesters. Methods: Participants voluntarily completed a battery of self-report questionnaires that measured self-blame, proactive coping, and stress. Correlation and regression-based mediation analyses were utilized to address the study objectives. Demographic differences were explored using comparative analyses. Results: Proactive coping was identified as a mediator between self-blame and stress. Correlation analyses revealed self-blame, proactive coping, and stress were interrelated with one another. Ethnicity differences were observed on proactive coping. Conclusions: Proactive coping mediated the relationship between self-blame and stress and was negatively related to the other included behavioral constructs.     

Grappling with the Medicated Self: The Case of ADHD College Students

Drawing on interview data, this article is a case study of the “medicated self.” Specifically, we analyze how ADHD‐diagnosed college students construct how they are shaped by the behavioral effects of medicine. Students may perceive that pharmaceutical enhancement is necessary in the context of a competitive academic ethic. In this context something akin to Lareau's concept of concerted cultivation thrives as students practice what we call concerted medicalization in an attempt to literally embody the academic ideal. However, while medicine may enable students to manage academic performance and take control of “disordered bodies,” many remain uneasy about the extent to which they feel controlled by a drug. In the context of medical ambivalence, ADHD students engage in reflexive identity management and strategic pharmaceutical use to achieve some semblance of self‐control and self‐preservation during their college years. As their college education comes to a close, many prepare to return to what they construct as their “authentic,” nonmedicated selves as they enter the work world.     

Caregiving mothers of children with impairments: coping and support in Russia

Parents providing long‐term care for their children with impairments face myriad physical and emotional challenges. Researchers have examined coping strategies among parent caregivers in various contexts internationally. However, little research has focused on caregiving mothers of children with impairments in developing countries, and even less on mothers in Russia. The purpose of this qualitative study is to investigate the ways in which caregiving mothers cope and their perceptions of services and supports they need and utilize in a small Russian city. Semi‐structured interviews were conducted with caregiving mothers (n = 20) concerning postnatal and current treatment, information and services, finances, social support, and future plans. Analysis revealed that planning for the future and navigating limited resources, overcoming structural barriers and cultural obstacles, and maintaining social support were the three most important facets of mothers’ abilities to cope with the demands of caregiving.     

College students coping with interpersonal stress: Examining a control-based model of coping

Objective: The ways that college students cope with stress, particularly interpersonal stress, may be a critical factor in determining which students are at risk for impairing mental health disorders. Using a control-based model of coping, the present study examined associations between interpersonal stress, coping strategies, and symptoms. Participants: A total of 135 undergraduate students from 2 universities. Methods: Interpersonal stress, coping strategies, depression, anxiety, and somatization were assessed via self-report. Results: Students reporting more interpersonal stress reported more depression, anxiety, and somatization, and they reported less use of engagement coping strategies and greater use of disengagement coping strategies. Engagement coping strategies accounted for a significant portion of the association between interpersonal stress and mental health symptoms. Unexpectedly, coping strategies did not moderate the association between stress and mental health symptoms. Conclusion: Interventions designed to improve students' coping strategies may be an effective way to reduce mental health problems on college campuses.     

Economic distress and mental health: The role of family coping resources and behaviors

Relationships among economic distress, family coping resources and behaviors, and mental health are examined among a sample of 203 married men and 207 married women. Economic distress is negatively associated with mental health. Although family coping resources are lower among those experiencing economic distress and are generally positively related to mental health, their role as mediators of relationships between economic distress and mental health is limited. Economic distress is positively related to family coping behaviors. However, these behaviors do not have positive relationships with mental health and do not counteract the effects of economic distress on mental health. Some coping resources and behaviors have buffering effects on relationships between economic distress and mental health while others have exacerbating effects.This article is a revision of a paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Sociological Association, August, 1986. The research was supported by grant 84–164 from the Office of Program Evaluation and Research, Ohio Department of Mental Health. Additional support was provided by the Office of Computing Activities, University of Dayton.Patricia Voydanoff is Director of the Center for the Study of Family Development, University of Dayton. Dr. Voydanoff holds a Ph.D. in Sociology from Wayne State University. Her research interests include work and family life and coping with economic distress.Brenda W. Donnelly is a Research Associate at the Center for the Study of Family Development, University of Dayton. Dr. Donnelly received her Ph.D. from the University of Delaware. She is currently conducting research on adolescent childbearing and religion and family life.     

Childhood mental health and adult family relationships: How ADHD shapes experiences with intimate unions and parenthood

Increasingly recognized as a chronic condition that can endure across the life course, childhood attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is associated with less stable family formation and more strain around intimate unions (dating, cohabitation and marriage) and parenthood. This article reviews and evaluates multidisciplinary research on childhood ADHD, intimate unions and parenthood, with the purpose of motivating future sociological research in this area. The paper is organized into three general sections. First, I provide an overview of information on ADHD including its diagnosis and treatment, cross-disciplinary etiologies, and sociodemographic correlates. Next, I blend sociological perspectives on labeling and stigma, social stress, and the life course to consider the role of ADHD-related stigma in shaping associations of childhood ADHD with family formation processes (intimate unions and parenthood) and family functioning (relationship quality and communication) in adulthood. Finally, I discuss opportunities for future sociological research on childhood ADHD and adult family relationships that have the potential to contribute both to empirical research on childhood ADHD and adult family relationships, as well as to sociological research at the intersection of family and health.     

The prevalence of elevated psychological distress among Canadian undergraduates: findings from the 1998 Canadian Campus Survey

For a study of elevated psychological distress, the authors used data based on a national probability sample of 7,800 Canadian undergraduate students from 16 universities. They used the 12-item General Health Questionnaire to assess mental health. Thirty percent of the students in the sample reported elevated psychological distress, which varied significantly according to sex, region, year of study, and recreational and academic orientation. Rates of elevated distress were significantly higher among the students than among the general population in Canada.     

Impact of early memories and current experiences of warmth and safeness on adolescents' psychological distress

A variable-centered and a person-centered approach were performed to examine the role of early memories of warmth and safeness (EMWS) and current experiences of warmth and safeness (CEWS) on depressive and anxious symptoms among adolescents from community and residential youth care (RYC) settings. Variable-centered results revealed EMWS were only indirectly (through CEWS) associated with depressive and anxious symptoms. Person-centered outcomes allowed to identify four different profiles based on EMWS and CEWS, which differed on depressive and anxious symptoms. EMWS and CEWS seem to play an important role in psychological distress during adolescence. CEWS seem to have a protective role on RYC adolescents' psychological distress, even when EMWS were poor.     

The study of mental distress and the (re)construction of identities in men and women with experience of long-term mental distress

This article explores the possibility of using a theoretical framework drawn from disability studies in the field of mental health, and the study of identity (re)construction in the recovery process. In this PhD project, 33 narratives were analysed using framework analysis. The analysis showed that disablism was present and powerful in the participants’ lives, and also showed how disablism shaped how the participants thought and felt about themselves. As Carol Thomas argues, when analysing disablism one should also focus on who we are and are prevented from being, as disabled people. The conclusion is that processes of oppression were central when it comes to understanding the (re)construction of identities. A disability studies perspective is thus relevant in the field of mental distress, and can be used to enhance the understanding of the process of identity (re)construction.     

Proactive coping with discrimination: A mediator between ethnic-racial socialization and Latinx youth's internalizing symptoms

There is a dearth of knowledge in the coping literature on how minoritized youth cope with racism-related stressors and the predictors of effective coping responses. This two-wave study examined the direct and indirect effects of ethnic-racial socialization on depressive and anxiety symptoms via proactive coping with discrimination in a community sample of 135 Latinx adolescents (M_age = 16, SD = 1.27; 59% female). Results indicate that cultural socialization was related to higher use of proactive coping with discrimination 6 months later, which in turn, was related to fewer depressive and anxiety symptoms. There were no direct or indirect effects between preparation for bias and mental health outcomes.     

Family caregivers of the elderly: quality of life and coping in Estonia

The purpose of the study was to analyse the assessments of elderly people aged 65 and more about family caregiving as a factor influencing their quality of life and coping. The study is based on the project SUFACARE—‘Supporting family carers and care receivers in Estonia and in Finland’—in the framework of which the Institute of Social Work of Tallinn University carried out postal surveys in 2010. The Estonian survey was conducted in Tallinn and Lääne-Viru County. The total number of respondents was 581 (70% female and 30% male), of whom 98 (n=74 female and n=24 male) were family caregivers. Caregiving has not influenced the physical and mental health of caregivers, the reason being that many people who receive care are not of very ill health or suffer from dementia. People mostly take care of their spouses. Based on the Estonian Family Law Act (RT I 2009, 60, 395), adult descendants are required to provide maintenance if their relatives are not able to care for themselves. Caregivers whose health is below average consider caring to be physically demanding. We cannot speak of the social isolation of respondents who have care duties—they communicate actively and do not feel lonely. Women report caregiving to be physically strenuous more often than men. The mental health of male caregivers is better—fewer male respondents claimed to feel unhappy or depressed compared to female respondents.     

Anxiety and depression among college students with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD): Cross-informant,sex, and subtype differences

Objective: This study examined symptoms of anxiety and depression among college students with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Participants: Data were collected between March 2011 and March 2016 from 150 college students with ADHD and 150 college students without ADHD. Method: Participants with ADHD were compared to a sex- and ethnicity-matched control group. For the ADHD group, parent and self-report of anxiety and depression were also compared. Results: College students with ADHD self-reported significantly higher anxiety and depressive symptoms than did students without ADHD. Scores on parent-report measures of anxiety and depressive symptoms were significantly higher than scores on self-report measures. Significant sex differences were found for participants with ADHD, with females showing higher depressive and anxiety symptoms than males. Parent-reported anxiety symptoms were higher for those with inattentive type ADHD compared to combined type ADHD. Conclusion: The current study highlights the importance of multi-informant assessment in ADHD evaluations for college-aged adults.     

Prevalence and predictors of suicidal ideation,plan, and attempts,in first-year college students with ADHD

Abstract

Objective. The present study evaluated the prevalence of past suicidal ideation (SI), plan, and attempt in college students with ADHD (N?=?102) compared to a matched control (N?=?102). Predictors of SI, plan, and attempts, were examined. Participants. Study participants were first year college students at a large Southeastern university who completed measures during August or September of 2014 or January of 2015. Methods. Measures were completed by first year students via an online survey. Results. Prevalence rates for SI and related behaviors were higher among the ADHD group than the matched control, with suicide attempts rates four times higher in the ADHD group (13.7% vs. 2.9%). Results showed that ADHD predicted rates of SI and suicide attempt accounting for depression and key demographic variables. Conclusions. Findings have implications for suicide risk assessments conducted with college students with ADHD.     

Parental role strains, salience of parental identity and gender differences in psychological distress.

Although past research indicates that women's higher levels of psychological distress can be accounted for by their greater exposure and vulnerability to role-related stress, the social psychological factors contributing to female vulnerability have not been fully identified. This paper applies identity theory to the phenomenon of gender differences in distress among parents. From an identity perspective, I propose that salience of the parental identity in women's self-conceptions contributes to their vulnerability to parental role strains. Using 1988 survey data from a stratified random sample of married and divorced Indianapolis residents (N = 448), I find that gender differences in distress are explained by differences in exposure to parental role strains. Further analyses reveal, however, that salience of the parental identity contributes to both men's and women's vulnerability to parental role strains. These findings underscore the utility of identity theory for explaining psychological distress among women and men.     

The retention of public child welfare workers: The roles of professional organizational culture and coping strategies

The purpose of the current study was to investigate how professional organizational culture and coping strategies (control coping and avoidance coping) related to workers' intentions to remain employed in child welfare. With a sample of 234 frontline workers employed in Department of Human Services-Division of Family and Children Services (DHS-DFCS) offices in a state in the Southeastern region of the U.S., the current study tested a model in which coping strategies mediate the relationship between professional organizational culture and workers' intentions to remain employed in child welfare. Structural equation modeling was used to test the proposed model. Results revealed that professional organizational culture and control coping were significantly and positively related to workers' intentions to remain employed in child welfare. In addition, control coping mediated the relationship between professional organizational culture and worker retention. On the other hand, a significant relationship between avoidance coping and workers' intentions to remain employed in child welfare was not found. Implications of the findings for practice and recommendations for future research are discussed.     

Gender discrimination and career decision-making difficulties among female Chinese college students: The buffering role of coping styles

The current study examined the relationship between gender discrimination and a form of career decision-making difficulties: emotional and personality-related career decision-making difficulties among female Chinese college students. It further examined the buffering effect of coping styles on the above relationship. A series of hierarchical regression analyses were conducted on a sample of 1427 female Chinese college students from 19 universities located in different regions in China. Results indicated that only suppressive style of coping served as a buffer on the relationship between gender discrimination and career decision-making difficulties. Also, gender discrimination, reflective style of coping, and reactive style of coping were positively associated with career decision-making difficulties. These results supported the need to develop career interventions focusing on discussion of gender discrimination, its impact on one's career decisions, as well as teaching distraction coping strategies in reducing the negative impact of gender discrimination on career decision-making difficulties among female Chinese college students.     

Coping with workplace minority stress: Associations between dyadic coping and anxiety among women in same-sex relationships

ABSTRACT

Sexual minorities are exposed to stressors in the workplace (workplace minority stress), which can be detrimental for well-being (e.g., levels of anxiety). The present study examined whether a particular set of relationship processes, dyadic coping, served to moderate the association between workplace minority stress and symptoms of anxiety. Using a dyadic sample of 64 female same-sex couples, we found that partner problem-focused supportive dyadic coping (DC) and emotion-focused supportive DC (marginally) buffered, whereas partner delegated DC and negative DC did not moderate, the association between workplace minority stress and symptoms of anxiety. Implications for relationship researchers and mental health practitioners are discussed.