Health Psychology最新文献

Objective: Despite improvements in structural and biomedical interventions to stop the spread of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), gay and bisexual men continue to be disproportionately impacted by HIV. One potential barrier to the uptake of HIV health care services is misconception about HIV prevention. Given high levels of societal stigma related to HIV and homophobia, we grounded the current study in the Health Stigma and Discrimination Framework and proposed that experiences of everyday discrimination would be associated with the endorsement of stigmatizing misconceptions about HIV prevention among gay and bisexual men. We also examined whether comfort with health care providers would mediate such association and whether differences by race and ethnicity existed.

Method: Gay and bisexual men in New York (N = 293) completed a survey between 2017 and 2018 assessing everyday experiences of discrimination, comfort with health care providers, misconceptions about HIV prevention, and demographics.

Results: Controlling for relevant covariates, regression analyses showed that more experiences of discrimination were associated with greater misconceptions about HIV, b = 0.23, t(284) = 6.240, p = .002. Next, although discrimination was negatively associated with comfort with health care providers, the overall mediation was not significant. Finally, moderation analyses revealed that the relationship between discrimination and misconceptions only held for non-Latine men (p = .002). Latine men had overall greater levels of misconceptions about HIV prevention regardless of discrimination experiences.

Conclusions: Given the pervasiveness of discrimination, stigma-reduction interventions will be pivotal in redressing the HIV epidemic and should be implemented alongside other culturally sensitive HIV reduction strategies. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2025 APA, all rights reserved).

Objective: Many studies have shown the prospective relation of illness representations to breast cancer patients' well-being. Still, very few have examined their bidirectional relationship over time. Here, the long-term mutual effects between physical well-being and illness representations were examined at the within-person level.

Method: Female patients with breast cancer were enrolled in the study 2-5 weeks after the surgery or biopsy (baseline N = 706; M_age = 54.93). Several illness representations (i.e., illness consequences, timeline, personal control, and emotional representations) and physical well-being (i.e., general physical functioning and specific breast and arm symptoms) were assessed at 6, 12, and 18 months after patients' inclusion in the study (years of data collection: 2019-2021). Two random-intercept cross-lagged panel models were used to examine whether intrapersonal changes in the two variables predicted each other across time.

Results: The findings showed strong general relations between illness representations and physical well-being at the between-person level. However, only changes in timeline and emotional representations predicted intrapersonal subsequent changes in physical functioning and arm and breast symptoms, respectively. No other cross-lagged effects were found.

Conclusions: While illness representations are significantly associated with physical well-being at the between-person level, their impact significantly varies at the within-person level. The findings reflect the complex relationships between these factors in patients with breast cancer and point to the need for new theoretical approaches to better depict their long-term intrapersonal interplay. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2025 APA, all rights reserved).

Objective: Social performance-the ability to successfully engage in social interactions-impacts outcomes in end-stage kidney disease (ESKD), including depressive symptoms and low self-efficacy, that are disproportionately experienced by Black Americans. However, the associations between social performance and health behaviors in ESKD are unknown. Social-emotional expertise (SEE) is a construct of individual differences in social performance that may be relevant to ESKD outcomes. Study goals are to establish the relation between SEE and health behaviors in Black American patients with ESKD by (a) examining the association of SEE with depressive symptoms, self-efficacy, and trust-in-physician and (b) the prediction of medication nonadherence and serum phosphorus by SEE.

Method: Ninety-nine Black Americans receiving in-center hemodialysis completed surveys at baseline and two follow-up visits over 12 months. Bayesian regression captured relations among self-efficacy, depressive symptoms, medication nonadherence, serum phosphorus, and SEE scale scores.

Results: SEE was positively associated with self-efficacy and negatively associated with depressive symptoms at baseline. Additionally, baseline SEE significantly predicted 12-month medication nonadherence (R² = .16, 95% credible interval = [.06, .26]) when accounting for self-efficacy and depressive symptoms. SEE at baseline did not predict 12-month serum phosphorus; however, a model with baseline SEE in combination with baseline depressive symptoms did predict 12-month serum phosphorus (R² = .10, 95% credible interval = [.02, .21]).

Conclusions: Higher perceived social performance-as measured by the SEE scale-predicted self-efficacy, depressive symptoms, and medication nonadherence, but not serum phosphorus control, in a cohort of Black Americans with ESKD. Socially focused interventions may have a positive impact on health behaviors among Black patients with ESKD. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2025 APA, all rights reserved).

Objective: Health information avoidance can prevent or delay the detection and diagnosis of a disease. One resource that could mitigate health information avoidance in individuals of African descent is engagement with ethnic identity. However, historical medical mistrust in these communities could make ethnic identity exacerbate information avoidance. The present study examines the association between ethnic identity and health information avoidance and the potential moderating effect of spontaneous self-affirmation (which has been shown to be protective against information avoidance) in an African descent cohort participating in an exome sequencing study (ClinSeq).

Method: Participants were 407 individuals who self-identified as African, African American, or Afro-Caribbean (M_age = 57.52 years old, SD_age = 6.22; 75.2% female). Prior to receiving their sequencing results, participants reported their engagement with their ethnic identity, tendency to self-affirm, and tendency to avoid health information in a baseline assessment. We used the Hayes PROCESS macro to test a moderation model with age, sex, education, and income as covariates.

Results: The model revealed a positive association between ethnic identity and health information avoidance only when self-affirmation was low, producing a significant interaction (b = -.25, SE = .11, p = .03, 95% confidence interval = [-.47, -.02]). No other associations were significant.

Conclusions: Self-affirmation may be protective against health information avoidance among individuals of African descent who engage highly with their ethnic identity. Future research should consider ethnic identity and self-affirmation as factors in health information avoidance. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2025 APA, all rights reserved).

Objective: Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection is a significant public health concern, particularly among young men who have sex with men (YMSM). Preexposure prophylaxis (PrEP) is highly effective in preventing HIV infection. However, PrEP does not protect against other sexually transmitted infections. Previous studies have shown unintended consequences following PrEP initiation, including increased sexual risk behaviors. Problematic alcohol use, to which YMSM are particularly vulnerable, may also play a role in increasing sexual risk. The present study examines the prospective relationship between PrEP initiation and alcohol-related sexual behaviors among YMSM.

Method: One hundred thirty-nine YMSM (M_age = 21.22) were enrolled in a longitudinal study examining PrEP initiation and alcohol-related sexual risk over 18 months. Participants completed a baseline assessment and follow-up assessments every 6 months. Data collection took place between 2016 and 2020.

Results: PrEP initiation was modeled at Time 1, Time 2, Time 3, and Time 4. Alcohol-related sexual risk behaviors were measured at Time 1 and Time 4. The trajectory of PrEP initiation was used to predict latent change in alcohol-related sexual behaviors. Consistent with our hypothesis, a combined latent change score and latent trajectory model revealed a positive association between PrEP initiation and alcohol-related sexual behaviors between baseline and 18-month follow-up.

Conclusion: These results are consistent with research identifying a potentially high-risk period following PrEP initiation among a vulnerable group (YMSM), with implications for risk assessment and interventions targeting alcohol-related sexual behaviors among YMSM. Findings may aid in reducing adverse sexual outcomes among YMSM who initiate PrEP and ultimately contribute to the minimization of sexual health disparities among YMSM. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2025 APA, all rights reserved).

Objective: Standard behavioral weight loss (SBT) is a first-line intervention for obesity, but its efficacy with Black adults is limited. Some preliminary work suggests that acceptance-based behavioral therapy (ABT), which integrates mindful decision making, experiential acceptance, and reflection on values, may be a better fit for the needs of Black adults. In this fully powered secondary data analysis, we compared the efficacy of SBT and ABT for Black adults.

Method: Black and non-Hispanic White adults (N = 737) with overweight or obesity (body mass index = 27-50 kg/m²) were enrolled in one of the five randomized controlled trials investigating the effectiveness of ABT versus SBT. Analyses assessed the impact of race, treatment condition, and their interaction on percent weight loss at posttreatment and first follow-up assessment while controlling for clinical trial.

Results: The interaction effects between race and treatment condition on weight loss were trending toward significance (p < .05) at posttreatment, F(1, 729) = 2.74, p = .089, but not at follow-up, F(1, 729) = .003, p = .957. Pairwise comparisons revealed that the disparity in posttreatment weight loss between Black and White participants in the SBT condition (M = 3.5%, p = .001) was attenuated in the ABT condition (M = 1.5%, p = .05).

Conclusions: ABT has promise for supporting Black adults in weight loss attempts, although weight regain after treatment remains persistent for Black and White adults alike. Future research is warranted to continue developing this treatment approach as a tool to reduce health disparities. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2025 APA, all rights reserved).

Objective: Ambivalence in relationships is related to health-relevant biological outcomes. However, the antecedent processes that contribute to this association are unknown. The primary aim of this study was to test the prediction of the social ambivalence and disease model, which highlights the potential role of childhood trauma as an antecedent factor linking spousal ambivalence to inflammation.

Method: A sample of 107 heterosexual couples who had been married for at least 10 years was recruited. Participants completed the social relationship index to assess spousal ambivalence and the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire. Blood was drawn to determine levels of high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) and interleukin-6 as measures of inflammation.

Results: Consistent with the social ambivalence and disease model, there was a significant indirect effect in which childhood trauma was related to greater spousal ambivalence which in turn was associated with higher hs-CRP levels. No evidence for the statistical mediational model was found for interleukin-6.

Conclusions: These results highlight the potential role of childhood trauma as an antecedent factor linking spousal ambivalence to hs-CRP. It also highlights potential pathways that might be targeted for interventions pending further work. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2025 APA, all rights reserved).

Background: Proinflammatory cytokine production may be related to poor emotional adjustment in dementia spousal caregivers. People who display attachment insecurity may be at increased risk for adverse caregiving experiences and poor psychosocial outcomes.

Objective: This study aimed to understand whether proinflammatory cytokine production was associated with anticipatory grief, caregiver burden, and depressive symptoms and whether those relationships were stronger for caregivers higher on attachment anxiety or avoidance.

Method: A sample of 103 dementia spousal caregivers provided self-report data on demographics, health information, and psychosocial outcomes. We also determined lipopolysaccharide-induced whole-blood interleukin-6, interleukin-1β, tumor necrosis factor-α, and interleukin-10 production and combined these cytokines into a composite score.

Results: Higher cytokine production was associated with increased anticipatory grief and depressive symptoms. Proinflammatory cytokine production was only associated with anticipatory grief, caregiver burden, and depressive symptoms for those high on attachment anxiety or avoidance.

Discussion: Targeting individuals who display a proinflammatory phenotype and report attachment insecurity may be a key first step in preventing poor caregiving adjustment in dementia spousal caregivers. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2025 APA, all rights reserved).

Objective: Higher life satisfaction is associated with reduced risk of age-related morbidities and premature mortality. However, the degree to which life satisfaction moderates the physical and mental health-related outcomes of daily stressors remains understudied. In this study, we evaluated whether higher life satisfaction moderated the association between the experience of daily stressors and reports of positive affect, negative affect, and physical symptoms.

Method: We used data from a substudy of the Midlife in the United States Study (n = 2,022; conducted 2004-2009). Participants reported their life satisfaction and daily diary entries on stress, positive/negative affect, and physical symptoms. We used multilevel modeling to assess whether life satisfaction moderated stress-related variations in affect and physical symptoms when participants reported a particularly high number of stressors.

Results: Higher life satisfaction was associated with lower negative affect and fewer physical symptoms among participants who reported more frequent stressors (i.e., between-subjects). We did not observe associations with positive affect. Life satisfaction also moderated the impact of stressors within individuals, such that people reported higher negative affect and physical symptoms on days with more stressors but this association was reduced among those higher in life satisfaction.

Conclusion: The findings from this study advance our understanding of how life satisfaction might confer benefits for mental and physical health, primarily through moderating the effect of stress on poorer outcomes. We discuss the findings in the context of the mechanisms linking psychological well-being to physical health in the context of stress across the lifespan. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2025 APA, all rights reserved).

Objective: To use a recently developed methodology, z-curve analysis, to estimate the likelihood of replication success for recently published studies in three leading health psychology journals with high impact factors that involved some form of a moderation analysis.

Method: Utilizing a z-curve analysis, we estimated the replicability, false positives, publication bias, and "file drawer ratio" of 124 independent tests of moderation with significant results published in recent issues of three leading journals in the field of health psychology. z-curve analyses were conducted for all the journals combined and each journal separately.

Results: The distribution of z scores derived from all 124 studies indicated that the estimation of the expected replication rate and false positive ratio were 46.0% and 8.3%, respectively. The estimated file drawer ratio was 1.6, indicating that for every statistically significant interaction reported, nearly two nonsignificant interactions go unreported. In comparing the three journals, Health Psychology had the best overall results (expected replication rate = 52.3%, Soric false discovery rate = 4.8%, file drawer ration = 0.9). Of the 124 studies examined, 23 conducted power analyses to determine sample size, seven preregistered hypotheses, and three conducted a replication analysis.

Conclusion: Results suggest a need for change regarding both the methodological practices used and the publication processes in place to improve the validity and efficacy of research regarding moderation effects in behavioral medicine-this includes preregistering hypotheses, using formalized methods to determine sample size, and utilizing attention checks. Journals can encourage or require these practices and foster acceptance of nonsignificant results to limit publication biases. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2025 APA, all rights reserved).