Being able to get away from everyday stressors and demands, even if close to home and just for a few minutes, is important for wellbeing. During the Covid-19 lockdown periods, people's ability to get away changed significantly. An increase in visits to nearby natural places is well documented. Little is known about other types of places people visited to get away. An online UK survey was conducted in 2020 (N = 850) investigating what places people visited to get away during the pandemic, what they did in those places, how place and activity choices were related to each other and to demographic variables, and to recalled hedonic and eudaimonic wellbeing during those visits. Participants visited a rich array of places and engaged in a variety of activities that supported their hedonic and eudaimonic wellbeing needs. Responses were grouped into four types of places (at home outdoors, at home indoors, away from home outdoors, and away from home indoors) and seven activity types (cognitive, walks, nature engagement, social activities, technology use, relaxing, and exercise). Place and activity choices were strongly linked. Visiting outdoor places was most beneficial for wellbeing (and most common), especially when it involved mindful engagement with nature (bird watching, gardening) or exercise. Staying indoors, engaging with technologies (computers, television) was least beneficial and more common among those with no degree or job, living in urban areas, and identifying as male. The findings demonstrate the importance of understanding place -activity interactions to support the wellbeing benefits derived from visits to places to get away.
BackgroundDuring national lockdowns in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, previously office-based workers who transitioned to home-based teleworking faced additional demands (e.g., childcare, inadequate homeworking spaces) likely resulting in poor work privacy fit. Previous office research suggests poor work privacy fit is associated with lower wellbeing and higher work fatigue. Emerging evidence suggests a relationship between childcare duties during pandemic teleworking and work fatigue. In addition to psychosocial working conditions (job demand, job control, and job change management), which are acknowledged predictors of work fatigue, this poses a significant threat to occupational health during pandemic teleworking. However, the relative effects of aspects of the psychosocial environment (job demands and resources), the home office environment (including privacy fit), and the social environment (childcare) on work fatigue as well as their interactions are under-explored. ObjectiveThis study examined the relationships between the psychosocial, environmental, and social working conditions of teleworking during the first COVID-19 lockdown and work fatigue. Specifically, the study examined teleworkers' physical work environment (e.g., if and how home office space is shared, crowding, and noise perceptions) as predictors of privacy fit and the relationship between privacy fit, childcare, psychosocial working conditions (job demand, job control, and job change management), and work fatigue. Work privacy fit was hypothesized to mediate the relationship between childcare and work fatigue. MethodsAn online cross-sectional survey was conducted with teleworkers (n = 300) during the first COVID-19 lockdown in April and May 2020; most participants were in Germany, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom. ResultsPath analysis was used to examine the hypothesized relationships. Privacy fit was lower for those reporting greater levels of noise in home-working spaces and those feeling crowded at home. Work fatigue was lower amongst those with greater privacy fit and higher amongst those with high levels of job demand. An indirect relationship was observed between childcare and work fatigue with privacy fit mediating this relationship. ConclusionThe influence of privacy fit has so far been largely neglected in research on teleworking, especially during the pandemic. However, its contribution to workers' wellbeing should be acknowledged in occupational health strategies.
[This corrects the article DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2022.900474.].
Understanding antibiotic prescription patterns and non-clinical factors influencing antibiotic use is essential for implementing strategies to promote appropriate antibiotic use. There is, however, limited research exploring these issues with Ecuadorian veterinarians. Therefore, a questionnaire was developed and applied crosssectionally to veterinarians (n = 173) from two professional organizations to explore the antibiotic prescription patterns and non-clinical factors (e.g., attitudes and perceptions) influencing antibiotic use, and to identify strategies to reduce antibiotic use. The response rate was 78.4%. Responses were compared between veterinarians working mainly on cattle and poultry farms using Mann-Whitney U tests. The most important attitudes, beliefs and perceptions towards antimicrobial resistance (AMR) and antibiotic use were identified with the Relative Importance Index (RII). Veterinarians showed high awareness of AMR and its implications for public health, as well as the necessity of reducing antibiotic use. However, some veterinarians appear to underestimate the potential contribution of veterinary antibiotic use on AMR in humans. Veterinarians self-reported high prescription (> 20%) of antibiotics for cattle and poultry that are critically important for human medicine, such as 3rd and 4th generation cephalosporins, polymyxins and quinolones. Further, antibiotic therapy was not tailored to disease type. Cattle and poultry veterinarians perceived similar barriers to increasing antibiotic stewardship including: poor biosecurity measures, animal confinement, low feed quality, farmers' behaviors (such as stopping antibiotic treatment, storing antibiotics on farms, buying antibiotics in veterinary supply stores), and sales agents' roles as non-professional prescribers of antibiotics. Overall, veterinarians were broadly supportive (>90%) of most strategies to promote appropriate antibiotic use. They saw more merit in improving biosecurity of farms and implementing educational programs for farmers and veterinarians. This study provides insight into the complexity of antibiotic use on Ecuadorian farms and the need for holistic strategies in a One Health context, to achieve antibiotic stewardship.
Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a profound threat to human and animal health. Antimicrobial prescribing behaviours are influenced by psychological factors such as knowledge, beliefs, and emotions. As future antimicrobial prescribers, it is important to understand beliefs about AMR and stewardship among veterinary (vet) students. This cross-sectional online survey assessed vet students’ self-reported behavior, knowledge, and beliefs in specific relation to antibiotic resistance (ABR) and antibiotic usage. Participants were early years (first- and second-year; n = 460) and later-years (third- and fourth-year; n = 113) undergraduate vet students from three UK universities. Self-reported antibiotic-related behaviors were responsible among most students. Knowledge about ABR and stewardship was moderate among early years students and good among later years students. Vet students typically believed that vets had less responsibility for both causing and preventing ABR than other groups (animal owners, human medics, and the public). This study offers evidence that vet students (along with other groups) tend to lay greater responsibility for ABR/AMR outside of their own profession, which may impact their future prescribing behaviors. It is vital that AMR and antimicrobial stewardship are embedded across veterinary curricula, and that the One Health nature of the challenge posed by AMR is emphasized to encourage shared responsibility across all stakeholder groups, thereby helping to reduce ‘other-blaming’ for AMR.
Benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) is a common condition amongst older men and is associated with lower urinary tract symptoms and erectile dysfunction; these symptoms can be burdensome and negatively affect quality of life. Various surgical and pharmaceutical treatment options exist for BPH but there is a paucity of qualitative research exploring men’s decision-making when seeking BPH treatment. This study therefore qualitatively explored men’s experience of living with BPH and seeking treatment for BPH. Twenty men (aged 52-75) were recruited from outpatient urology clinics at a hospital trust in Southern England. Data were collected using semi-structured interviews (via video or telephone call) and were audio-recorded; transcripts were analysed using thematic analysis. Four themes were generated: “It’s about more than just symptoms”, “The path towards treatment”, “The process of information gathering’, and “Navigating hopes, fears and uncertainty”. Results indicate most men appear to seek treatment for BPH following a gradual, and sometimes lengthy, period of deterioration in symptoms; for some men, however, treatment seeking follows an acute episode of sudden or severe symptoms. The decision to proceed with surgical or minimally invasive treatment options appears to be dependent on men reaching a tipping-point; they no longer perceive their symptoms as tolerable and feel their ability to cope with symptoms is reduced. Men each bring their own set of concerns and preferences about side effects and risk-benefit profiles of different treatments. Clinicians need to be sensitive to these individual differences and incorporate them into shared decision-making for choosing between treatment options for BPH.
Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) represents a major threat to public and animal health, and inappropriate antimicrobial prescribing by doctors and vets is an important contributing factor to increasing rates of AMR. This study used vignettes, which are an under-utilised method in veterinary medicine research, to examine differences between farm vets’ ‘ideal’ antibiotic prescribing and their ‘real-world’ experiences of antibiotic prescribing. Vets attending the British Cattle Veterinary Association annual congress (n = 16) were presented with seven clinical scenarios relating to ailments in cattle and were asked to consider how likely they would be to prescribe antibiotics in each scenario, once in an ‘ideal, text-book’ situation, and once in a ‘real-world’ situation. Across all seven scenarios, participants reported being more likely to prescribe antibiotics in the ‘real-world’ situation compared to the ‘ideal, text-book’ situation. These results, based on the vignettes, support the hypothesis that farm vets’ everyday patterns of antibiotic prescribing are different from their ideals for antibiotic prescribing. It is recommended that further research is required to better understand how non-clinical factors influence vets’ prescribing decisions, in order to develop effective antimicrobial stewardship interventions that can help support vets to more frequently prescribe in line with stewardship ideals.
AimsThis longitudinal study examined the role of anger, disgust, and anxiety in the experience of misophonia, the quality of life of those with self-reported misophonia in comparison to those without misophonia, and the association of misophonia and quality of life over time.MethodsAn online longitudinal survey was conducted, with misophonia, anger, disgust, anxiety, depression, self-esteem, and quality of life measured at two time points (6-months apart) in two groups of people (those with self-reported misophonia and those without misophonia).ResultsAnger and disgust emerged as the primary predictors of misophonic responses. Anxiety and depression were not significantly associated with misophonia over time. Differences in quality of life were observed between those with and without self-reported misophonia in the current study, with lower scores across the SF-36 domains of role limitations due to emotional problems, energy/fatigue, emotional wellbeing, social functioning, and general health for those with misophonia compared to those without misophonia. Compared with other studies, scores for those with self-reported misophonia were lower than those with long-term physical conditions, similar to those with tinnitus, but higher than those with obsessive compulsive disorder. Misophonia was predictive of quality of life over time but only on two domains: role limitations due to emotional problems (predictors: avoidance, emotional responses, and impact on participation in life) and pain (predictor: impact on participation in life). Depression remained a strong predictor of quality of life over time.ConclusionAnger and disgust are more strongly associated with the experience of misophonia than anxiety. Quality of life in people with self-reported misophonia is lower than in the general population and may be similar to those with tinnitus. Depression, avoiding triggers, the extent of the emotional response, and perceived impact on participation in life are associated with perceptions of lower quality of life over time for people with self-reported misophonia.
Online supermarket platforms present an opportunity for encouraging healthier consumer purchases. A parallel, double-blind randomised controlled trial tested whether promoting healthier products (e.g. lower fat and lower calorie) on the Sainsbury's online supermarket platform would increase purchases of those products. Participants were Nectar loyalty membership scheme cardholders who shopped online with Sainsbury's between 20th September and 10th October 2017. Intervention arm customers saw advertisement banners and recipe ingredient lists containing healthier versions of the products presented in control arm banners and ingredient lists. The primary outcome measure was purchases of healthier products. Additional outcome measures were banner clicks, purchases of standard products, overall purchases and energy (kcal) purchased. Sample sizes were small due to customers navigating the website differently than expected. The intervention encouraged purchases of some promoted healthier products (spaghetti [B = 2.10, p < 0.001], spaghetti sauce [B = 2.06, p < 0.001], spaghetti cheese [B = 2.45, p = 0.001], sour cream [B = 2.52, p < 0.001], fajita wraps [B = 2.10, p < 0.001], fajita cheese [B = 1.19, p < 0.001], bakery aisle products (B = 3.05, p = 0.003) and cola aisle products [B = 0.97, p < 0.002]) but not others (spaghetti mince, or products in the yogurt and ice cream aisles). There was little evidence of effects on banner clicks and energy purchased. Small sample sizes may affect the robustness of these findings. We discuss the benefits of collaborating to share expertise and implement a trial in a live commercial environment, alongside key learnings for future collaborative research in similar contexts.
Breastfeeding has many known benefits, but rates vary globally. We propose two main reasons why psychological theory and interventions have not been successful to date in explaining breastfeeding behaviours. Specifically, prior research underestimates the importance of (1) specific emotions and (2) wider injunctive influences (i.e., societal and moral norms about what women feel they ought to be doing) in the breastfeeding experience. Therefore, we conducted a systematic review of quantitative, qualitative, and mixed-methods studies that explored whether injunctive norms and/ or specific emotions are associated with breastfeeding behaviours (i.e., intentions, initiation and duration). Seventy-two papers were included in this review; data were extracted and quality appraisals conducted for all included studies. A meta-analysis of effect sizes was performed with the quantitative data. A convergent qualitative synthesis of the data was conducted, resulting in the following line of argument: Breastfeeding is a social behaviour and not a personal/individual behaviour. From this line of argument, three themes with associated sub-themes were developed, highlighting the importance of both specific emotions and injunctive norms on breastfeeding behaviours. These influences are discussed in relation to both theoretical and practical implications, as well as future research.
Benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) is a common condition amongst older men and is associated with lower urinary tract symptoms and erectile dysfunction; these symptoms can be burdensome and negatively affect quality of life. Various surgical and pharmaceutical treatment options exist for BPH but there is a paucity of qualitative research exploring men’s decision-making when seeking BPH treatment. This study therefore qualitatively explored men’s experience of living with BPH and seeking treatment for BPH. Twenty men (aged 52-75) were recruited from outpatient urology clinics at a hospital trust in Southern England. Data were collected using semi-structured interviews (via video or telephone call) and were audio-recorded; transcripts were analysed using thematic analysis. Four themes were generated: “It’s about more than just symptoms”, “The path towards treatment”, “The process of information gathering’, and “Navigating hopes, fears and uncertainty”. Results indicate most men appear to seek treatment for BPH following a gradual, and sometimes lengthy, period of deterioration in symptoms; for some men, however, treatment seeking follows an acute episode of sudden or severe symptoms. The decision to proceed with surgical or minimally invasive treatment options appears to be dependent on men reaching a tipping-point; they no longer perceive their symptoms as tolerable and feel their ability to cope with symptoms is reduced. Men each bring their own set of concerns and preferences about side effects and risk-benefit profiles of different treatments. Clinicians need to be sensitive to these individual differences and incorporate them into shared decision-making for choosing between treatment options for BPH.
This systematic review and intervention content analysis used behavioural science frameworks to characterise content and function of interventions targeting supermarket shoppers' purchasing behaviour, and explore if coherence between content and function was linked to intervention effectiveness. Study eligibility: in-store interventions (physical supermarkets) with control conditions, targeting objectively measured food and/or non-alcoholic drink purchases, published in English (no date restrictions). Eleven electronic databases were searched; reference lists of systematic reviews were hand-searched. Methodological quality was assessed using the GATE checklist. A content analysis was performed to characterise intervention content and function, and theoretical coherence between these, using the Behaviour Change Wheel, Behaviour Change Techniques Taxonomy, and Typology of Interventions in Proximal Physical Micro-Environments (TIPPME). Forty-six articles (49 interventions) met inclusion criteria; 26 articles (32 interventions) were included in the content analysis. Twenty behaviour change techniques (BCTs), and four TIPPME intervention types were identified; three BCTs ('Prompts/cues', 'Material incentive', and 'Material reward') were more common in effective interventions. Nineteen interventions solely employed theoretically appropriate BCTs. Theoretical coherence between BCTs and intervention functions was more common in effective interventions. Effective interventions included price promotions and/or in-store merchandising. Future research should explore the effect of specific BCTs using factorial study designs. PROSPERO Registration: CRD42017071065.
Organisations have implemented intensive home-based teleworking in response to global COVID-19 lockdowns and other pandemic-related restrictions. Financial pressures are driving organisations to continue intensive teleworking after the pandemic. Understanding employees’ teleworking inclinations post COVID-19, and how these inclinations are influenced by different factors, is important to ensure any future, more permanent changes to teleworking policies are sustainable for both employees and organisations. This study, therefore, investigated the relationships between the context of home-based teleworking during the pandemic (pandemic-teleworking conditions), productivity perceptions during home-based teleworking, and employees’ future teleworking inclinations (FTI) beyond the pandemic. Specifically, the study examined whether pandemic-teleworking conditions related to the job, and the physical and social environments at home, influenced employees’ FTI, and if perceptions of improved or reduced productivity mediated these relationships. Data were collected during April and May 2020 with a cross-sectional online survey of teleworkers (n = 184) in Germany, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and other countries during the first COVID-19 lockdowns. Reported FTI were mixed. Most participants (61%) reported wanting to telework more post-pandemic compared to before the pandemic; however, 18% wanted to telework less. Hierarchical multiple regression analysis revealed that some teleworking conditions (job demands and work privacy fit) were positively associated with FTI. Other teleworking conditions (specifically, job change, job control, home office adequacy, and childcare) were not associated with FTI. Perceived changes in productivity mediated the relationship between work privacy fit and FTI. Findings highlight the role of work privacy fit and job demands in influencing pandemic productivity perceptions and teleworking inclinations post-pandemic. Results raise questions about the suitability and sustainability of home-based teleworking for all staff. As organisations plan to increase the proportion of teleworking post-pandemic, this study suggests there is a need to support employees who perceived their productivity to be poor while home-working during the pandemic.
Objective: Most current Misophonia scales are not validated, do not include both emotional and physiological responses to triggers, and/or focus only on auditory triggers. This research aimed to develop and validate a measure of the magnitude of the Misophonic response that addressed these omissions. Method: Three studies were carried out with individuals with self-diagnosed Misophonia. In study 1, expert opinion and participants commented on initial items to determine both face and content validity. In study 2, scale structure, reliability, and convergent and discriminant validity were determined using correlations, principal component analysis (PCA), and reliability analysis. In study 3, factor structure was confirmed in another sample of participants using confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). Results: The final 22-item scale assesses the magnitude of responses to triggers across any sensory modality. There are three subscales (emotional, physiological, and participation in life), with three additional items measuring frequency of triggers, avoidance of triggers, and time taken to recover from the triggers. The final scale showed suitable discriminant and convergent validity, with good internal consistency (Cronbach's alphas range 0.77 to 0.89). The three-component solution extracted using PCA explained 53.97% of variance, with all items loading between 0.45 and 0.84. The structure was confirmed with CFA (chi(2) = 269.01, p < .001; CFI = 0.96; TLI = 0.96 and RMSEA = 0.045 (CI 0.037-0.053). Conclusion: The Misophonia Response Scale, which is valid and reliable, will facilitate understanding of Misophonia as it is short and easy to use for self-report in research.
The authors wish to make the following corrections to their published paper [...].
It is widely understood that nature engagement benefits human wellbeing. Such benefits have been found for real as well as virtual engagements. However, little is known about the role of nature-based videos in social media on wellbeing. With COVID-19 restrictions limiting people’s direct engagement with natural environments, this study critically examined people’s reactions to nature videos posted on Facebook during the first UK COVID-19 lockdown in 2020. Data consisted of comments on videos containing highlights from the British Broadcasting Corporation’s (BBC) Springwatch 2020 television series, and from a UK television presenter and naturalist’s (Chris Packham) livestream videos, posted on Facebook from March to July, 2020. Looking at the quantitative profile of a range of videos (i.e. views, likes and shares) and a detailed analysis of the 143,265 comments using thematic analysis, three major themes were generated as: (1) engaging with nature via social media is emotionally complicated, (2) cognitive and reflective reactions are generated from social media nature engagement and (3) engagement with nature-based social media as a mechanism for coping with stress during COVID-19. These findings inform understanding of how nature-related social media content and associated commentary have supported wellbeing throughout the ongoing pandemic and their importance as a means of continued support for wellbeing. ‘We feel that the injection of wildlife into people’s homes, particularly at this point, would be really valuable and uplifting’. — Chris Packham, 2020
Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a pressing threat to public and animal health. There is evidence that antimicrobial prescribing and stewardship behaviors by veterinarians (vets) are influenced by non-clinical factors, such as psychological, social, and environmental factors. This study explored the role of context, beliefs, and values on vets’ antimicrobial prescribing decisions. UK-based practicing farm vets (n = 97) were recruited to an online study. Using an experimental vignette methodology, vets were randomly assigned across four conditions, to examine the effects of different contexts (pressure on farm economics, the farmer, or the vet-farmer relationship, compared to a control condition) on vets’ likelihood of prescribing antibiotics. Vets’ beliefs about different groups’ responsibility for causing and preventing AMR and vets’ values were also measured. Key findings were that context alone, values, and beliefs about groups’ responsibilities for causing AMR were not predictive of vets’ likelihood of prescribing antibiotics. However, vets’ beliefs about groups’ responsibilities for preventing AMR were predictive of an increased likelihood of prescribing antibiotics, when vets were exposed to the experimental condition of the vignette in which the vet–farmer relationship was under pressure. Farm vets also believed that different groups have different levels of responsibility for causing and preventing AMR. Results should be interpreted cautiously, given the smaller than planned for sample size, and the possibility for both false negatives and false positives. Further research is needed to explore how these findings could inform antimicrobial stewardship interventions in veterinary medicine.
This is a pre-publication version of the following article: Weber, C., Golding, S. E., Ratcliffe, E., Yarker, J., Lewis, R., & Munir, F. (2020). Homeworking during COVID-19 lockdown: Relationships between the physical and social environments at home, work-related burnout, and musculoskeletal pain. Health Psychology Update Special Issue: Health Psychology and COVID-19. British Psychological Association, 55-56.
I think it is fair to say that the broad focus of health psychology in the UK is on non-communicable disease and lifestyle-related health behaviours. I would like to suggest that perhaps the discipline could devote a little more time to infectious diseases, and not just because we find ourselves in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic. In this reflective piece, I outline some of the assumptions that I held, that I sought to challenge in Stage 1 students, and that I suspect are relatively implicit across health psychology as a discipline.