Journal of Health Psychology

This study investigated the effect of a smoking health message on smokers’ comparative optimism. Two groups watched an anti-smoking scenario, with one group imagining being part of the scenario. Participants, including controls, completed comparative optimism ratings for four smoking-related illnesses. The intervention had negative consequences with both intervention groups reporting significantly higher comparative optimism versus the control group for all four smoking-related illnesses. It is concluded that media health messages can be powerful tools in changing comparative optimism but are influenced by peoples’ prior perceptions. Health messages need to be systematically assessed to understand prior beliefs of the target audience.

Considering the significant negative consequences that are directly related to binge eating and drinking behaviors, many studies have explored the reasons why adolescents engage in them. This study examined the differences in the development, maintenance, and co-occurrence of “binge” behaviors associated with adolescent’s identity style and the level of commitment. One thousand four hundred Italian adolescents completed self-report measures assessing binge behaviors and identity styles. Overall, results show that diffused adolescents were more likely to be engaged in binge eating and binge drinking behaviors than others, validating the idea that the achievement of a consolidated ego identity is important for enhancing well-being.

This study explored the processes of significance about the risk communication in prenatal/preconception setting within 1 month to the end of genetic counselling intervention. Participants were all attending a programme of Cardiomyology and Medical Genetics in Naples, Italy, for the first time. Transcripts of 18 semi-structured interviews were analysed using interpretative phenomenological analysis. Themes arising included the following: the familiar outcomes of genetic counselling, the risk representation and the impacts on decision-making. The findings suggest the significance of the experience of genetic risk and the implications for the support of individuals and their family after the conclusion of the genetic counselling intervention.

In the fight against the type 2 diabetes epidemic, patients might be asked to discuss familial susceptibility to type 2 diabetes in their family. Illness representations of patients (N = 546) were assessed to explore their impact on perceived type 2 diabetes threat in relatives. Reporting high type 2 diabetes burden, emotional impact and perceiving type 2 diabetes as an inheritable disease seemed to increase patients’ family risk perception and worries about relatives’ future health. Patients with coherent illness understanding reported positive beliefs regarding type 2 diabetes prevention in relatives. Findings may give direction in how illness representations may be used to guide patients in the process of family risk disclosure.

This study investigated whether a clown doctor intervention could reduce preoperative anxiety in children hospitalized for minor surgery and in their parents. A randomized controlled trial was conducted with 77 children and 119 parents: the clown group consisted of 52 children accompanied in the preoperating room by their parents (n = 89) and two clowns while the comparison group consisted of children accompanied by the parents only. The clown intervention significantly reduced the children’s preoperative anxiety: children benefited from the clown’s presence and showed better adjustment than children in the comparison group. Mothers in Comparison Group showed higher anxiety.

This study mainly compared the prevalence of internalizing symptoms of 834 Spanish and 159 Latin-American immigrant adolescents. Participants completed self-report measures about depression, anxiety and somatic symptoms and a socio-demographic questionnaire. The results indicated that being Latin-American was associated with higher levels of depressive symptoms and being female was related to higher depressive and anxiety symptoms. Gender differences were more prevalent in Spaniards than in Latinos, with girls showing more symptoms than boys. High socio-economic status was negatively related to depressive symptoms and anxiety. The results may alert clinicians of the importance of assessing depressive symptoms in Latino adolescents in order to treat this group of youths effectively.

The psychological impact of living with congenital heart disease in adulthood was explored using semi-structured interviews with seven adults. Participants described living with congenital heart disease as a constant and limiting presence, which impacts upon the relationship with self and others. Psychological and emotional reactions ranged from depression, shame, trauma, lack of control and an ongoing struggle with issues of uncertainty and life expectancy. Various coping strategies were identified such as denial and overcompensation. Participants reported that they were not psychologically supported by health professionals. Implications of findings are discussed with regard to service provision.

Sickle-cell disease is a genetic disorder characterized by severe pain episodes or “vaso-occlusive crises” that may require hospitalization. This study examined the associations among emotion regulation, somatization, positive and negative affect, and hospitalizations for pain crises in youth with sickle-cell disease. Multivariate analyses indicated that emotional suppression and somatization were significantly associated with more frequent hospitalizations for pain crises in the previous year after controlling for sickle-cell disease type and pain. These results suggest that efforts to reduce emotional suppression and somatization may assist in decreasing the frequency of hospitalizations for pain crises among youth with sickle-cell disease.

This study investigated the associations among trait perfectionism, perfectionistic self-presentation, Type D personality, and illness-specific coping styles in 100 cardiac rehabilitation patients. Participants completed the Multidimensional Perfectionism Scale, the Perfectionistic Self-Presentation Scale, the Type D Scale-14, and the Coping with Health Injuries and Problems Scale. Correlational analyses established that emotional preoccupation coping was associated with trait perfectionism, perfectionistic self-presentation, and Type D personality. Perfectionism was linked with both facets of the Type D construct (negative emotionality and social inhibition). Our results suggest that perfectionistic Type D patients have maladaptive coping with potential negative implications for their cardiac rehabilitation outcomes.

This randomized controlled study evaluated the effect of massage on affect, relaxation, and experimental pain induced by electrical stimulation. Participants were 96 healthy women (M age = 20.13 ± 5.93 years; 84.4% White) randomly assigned to a 15-minute no-treatment control, guided imagery, massage or massage plus guided imagery condition. Multilevel piecewise modeling revealed no group differences in pain intensity, threshold, or tolerance. The two massage conditions generally reported decreased pain unpleasantness, lower unpleasant affect, maintenance of pleasant affect, and increased relaxation compared to the no-treatment condition. The results suggest that massage may alter immediate affective qualities in the context of pain.

Although effective type 2 diabetes management is essential for the prevention of complications, it is rarely carried out. Type 2 diabetes deaths in rural areas are higher than in metropolitan areas. A focus group (n = 8) and telephone interviews with patients (n = 10), and telephone interviews with health professionals (n = 18) in rural areas were conducted to examine this issue in a rural context. Inductive thematic analysis was used to generate 13 themes of barriers and facilitators to type 2 diabetes management at intrapersonal (denial of the illness, motivation, knowledge and skills and lack of time), interpersonal (stress and relationships), organisational (access to recommended foods, transport, health professionals, and exercise options) and societal (engagement and societal attitudes) levels of influence. Across all themes, participants highlighted the difficulty of maintaining management behaviours.