Background: Motor vehicle accidents (MVAs) are associated with elevated psychological distress, yet many affected individuals do not seek psychological treatment, despite it being generally available within the health care system. Objective: This exploratory prospective cohort study examined psychological distress, psychological treatment utilization, and perceived barriers over 12 months among individuals with and without MVA exposure. Methods: Individuals with (n = 60) and without (n = 108) MVA exposure completed two online surveys 12 months apart. Psychological distress was assessed using the Brief Symptom Checklist and the Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Checklist for DSM-5. Utilization of psychological treatment and perceived barriers were also measured. Analyses compared distress between groups, examined associations between distress and treatment utilization, explored an indirect association of MVA exposure with treatment utilization via baseline distress, compared perceived barriers, and examined continuity in treatment utilization over time. Results: MVA-exposed individuals reported higher distress than unexposed individuals (d = 0.53, confidence interval [CI]: 0.14–0.92). MVA exposure was not associated with treatment utilization (b = −0.10, CI: −0.74–0.55), but it was indirectly associated through elevated baseline distress (b = 0.25, CI: 0.05–0.45). No group differences emerged in perceived barriers. Previous psychological treatment was associated with treatment utilization during follow-up independent of baseline distress (b = 2.43, CI: 1.04–3.99). Conclusion: MVA-exposed individuals reported persistently elevated psychological distress but were no more likely than unexposed individuals to receive psychological treatment. These exploratory findings suggest that specific factors may limit help-seeking following MVAs despite elevated psychological distress. Future research should identify these factors using larger samples and more comprehensive barrier assessment.
Background: Fear of missing out (FoMO) has been associated with poorer sleep among adolescents, but the psychological processes underlying this association remain unclear. Objective: This study examined whether FoMO was indirectly associated with poorer sleep quality through emotion regulation difficulties and whether regulatory emotional self-efficacy (RESE) moderated this indirect association. Methods: This cross-sectional study included 412 seventh- and eighth-grade students from one junior middle school in Wuhan, China. Participants completed measures of FoMO, emotion regulation difficulties, RESE, and sleep quality. PROCESS Models 4 and 7 were used to test mediation and first-stage moderated mediation, controlling for gender and grade. Results: Higher FoMO was associated with greater emotion regulation difficulties and poorer sleep quality. The standardized indirect association estimate for the pathway from FoMO to poorer sleep quality through emotion regulation difficulties was 0.15 (95% bootstrap confidence interval [CI] [0.09, 0.21]). RESE moderated the association between FoMO and emotion regulation difficulties (β = −0.12, p = 0.005), with the association becoming weaker at higher RESE levels. The index of moderated mediation was −0.036 (95% bootstrap CI [−0.065, −0.012]). Conclusion: Emotion regulation difficulties may help explain the association between FoMO and poorer sleep quality among adolescents, whereas RESE may serve as a potential protective resource by weakening the association between FoMO and emotion regulation difficulties.
Background: Depressive symptoms are common in older adults. However, few studies have assessed changes in health behaviors during the pandemic and gender differences among Chinese older adults. Objective: To examine the association of changes in health behaviors with depressive symptoms among Chinese older adults during the pandemic, and gender differences. Methods: The data were obtained from the 2020 China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study, which included 7,947 older adults. Binary logistic regression examined associations between changes in health behaviors and depressive symptoms, and subgroup analyses assessed gender differences in effects of physical activity, smoking, and alcohol consumption changes on depressive symptoms. Results: The prevalence of depressive symptoms among older adults in China was 39.37% during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. Female (odds ratio [OR] = 1.790, 95% CI: 1.578–2.031), unmarried (OR = 1.438, 95% CI: 1.266–1.634), rural residency (OR = 1.479, 95% CI: 1.321–1.657), and two or more chronic diseases (OR = 1.472, 95% CI: 1.253–1.729) were associated with higher odds of depressive symptoms. Decreased intense activities (OR=1.301, 95% CI: 1.133–1.493) and decreased smoking (OR = 1.500, 95% CI: 1.183–1.903) were associated with higher odds of depressive symptoms. Subgroup analyses revealed a significant interaction between gender and changes in alcohol consumption on depressive symptoms. Conclusion: The study found that decreased intense activities and decreased smoking were associated with higher odds of depressive symptoms. Health administrators should develop policies based on the relationship between changes in health behaviors and depressive symptoms among older adults of different genders.
Background: Somatic symptom disorder (SSD) is common and has high heterogeneity. Objective: This study aimed to identify subtypes of SSD based on a multicenter cross-sectional study in China. Methods: We analyzed data from 235 patients diagnosed with SSD. Exploratory graph analysis (EGA) was used to identify dimensions of somatic symptoms. Latent profile analysis (LPA) was then applied to classify patients into subtypes based on their symptom profiles across these dimensions. Finally, Bayesian network analysis was employed to explore the distinct patterns of relationships among psychological characteristics within each subtype. Results: EGA revealed a four-dimensional structure of somatic symptoms: gastrointestinal, musculoskeletal, cardiopulmonary, and neurological/general. LPA classified patients into two distinct subtypes: a generalized somatic symptom subtype (GSS-type), with symptoms spanning all four dimensions, and a localized somatic symptom subtype (LSS-type), with symptoms not covering all dimensions. Patients in the GSS-type group reported significantly higher levels of anxiety (t = 5.482, p < 0.001), depressive symptoms (t = 6.576, p < 0.001), health-related anxiety (t = 6.266, p < 0.001), and disability (t = 4.282, p < 0.001), alongside poorer physical (t = −4.766, p < 0.001) and mental quality of life (t = −3.646, p < 0.001) compared to the LSS-type. Bayesian network analysis indicated that in the LSS-type, somatic symptoms and their psychological characteristics were the potential origin of depressive symptoms and anxiety, whereas in the GSS-type, depressive symptoms were the potential central driver influencing both anxiety and somatic symptoms. Conclusion: SSD patients can be categorized into clinically distinct subtypes based on their somatic symptom distribution. The differing psychopathological mechanisms between the GSS and LSS subtypes suggest the need for tailored treatment strategies. These findings warrant further validation in larger, prospective studies.
Background: Changes in sensory input, such as declines in visual and auditory function among community-dwelling older adults, rather than sensory processing characteristics themselves, have been the focus of previous studies. Changes in sensory processing may influence the mental health of older adults. Objectives: To examine the association between sensory processing patterns and dementia worry among community-dwelling older adults. Methods: A self-administered questionnaire survey was conducted among 186 community-dwelling older adults. Sensory processing characteristics were assessed using the Adolescent and Adult Sensory Profile (AASP). Dementia worry was assessed using the Dementia Worry Assessment Scale (DWAS). Sensory processing patterns were extracted using cluster analysis. Multiple regression analysis was conducted using DWAS scores as the dependent variable and sensory processing patterns as independent variables. Results: Two clusters were identified based on the four AASP quadrants: The “Lower AASP Score Group” and the “Higher AASP Score Group.” In the multiple regression analysis, using the Lower AASP Score Group as the reference, the Higher AASP Score Group was significantly associated with higher DWAS scores (standardized β = 0.182, p = 0.011). Conclusion: These results suggest that individual differences in sensory processing characteristics may be associated with psychological reactions to dementia in older adulthood. Relatively higher scores for low registration, sensory sensitivity, and sensation avoiding were associated with higher levels of dementia worry.
