Mindfulness extends the trans-contextual model for autonomous motivation in physical education and leisuretime

in International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (2022), 19(20),

Mindfulness is assumed to foster the ability to consistently act in line with one’s authentic self; a skill which has been found to enhance students’ autonomous motivated behavior in the educational ... [more ▼]

Mindfulness is assumed to foster the ability to consistently act in line with one’s authentic self; a skill which has been found to enhance students’ autonomous motivated behavior in the educational context. However, evidence regarding how mindfulness can be integrated into existing conceptual frameworks such as the trans-contextual model is scarce. Therefore, the present study aimed to evaluate the role of mindfulness in students’ autonomous motivation in the school and leisure time contexts. Overall, N = 1877 students (M = 14.74 years, SD = 2.63) indicated their self-reported mindfulness, their perceived need for support in physical education, their autonomous motivation during physical education and leisure time, as well as their perceived behavioral control, attitude, subjective norm, and intention toward physical activity. Physical activity was additionally measured physiologically for n = 240 students using accelerometers. Path model analyses revealed that the inclusion of mindfulness substantially improved the trans-contextual model fit. Perceived autonomy support positively predicted mindfulness, which, in turn, predicted autonomous motivation in physical education and leisure time, attitude, subjective norm, and perceived behavioral control. Furthermore, mediation analyses revealed the significant indirect effects of mindfulness on physiological and self-reported physical activity. Based on these results, mindfulness can be considered a key factor in fostering students’ motivation to become physically active. [less ▲]

Safety Culture and the Positive Association of Being a Primary Care Training Practice during COVID-19: The Results of the Multi-Country European PRICOV-19 Study.

in International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (2022)

The day-to-day work of primary care (PC) was substantially changed by the COVID-19 pandemic. Teaching practices needed to adapt both clinical work and teaching in a way that enabled the teaching process ... [more ▼]

The day-to-day work of primary care (PC) was substantially changed by the COVID-19 pandemic. Teaching practices needed to adapt both clinical work and teaching in a way that enabled the teaching process to continue, while maintaining safe and high-quality care. Our study aims to investigate the effect of being a training practice on a number of different outcomes related to the safety culture of PC practices. PRICOV-19 is a multi-country cross-sectional study that researches how PC practices were organized in 38 countries during the pandemic. Data was collected from November 2020 to December 2021. We categorized practices into training and non-training and selected outcomes relating to safety culture: safe practice management, community outreach, professional well-being and adherence to protocols. Mixed-effects regression models were built to analyze the effect of being a training practice for each of the outcomes, while controlling for relevant confounders. Of the participating practices, 2886 (56%) were non-training practices and 2272 (44%) were training practices. Being a training practice was significantly associated with a lower risk for adverse mental health events (OR: 0.83; CI: 0.70–0.99), a higher number of safety measures related to patient flow (Beta: 0.17; CI: 0.07–0.28), a higher number of safety incidents reported (RR: 1.12; CI: 1.06–1.19) and more protected time for meetings (Beta: 0.08; CI: 0.01–0.15). No significant associations were found for outreach initiatives, availability of triage information, use of a phone protocol or infection prevention measures and equipment availability. Training practices were found to have a stronger safety culture than non-training practices. These results have important policy implications, since involving more PC practices in education may be an effective way to improve quality and safety in general practice. [less ▲]

A Typical Case Report: Internet Gaming Disorder Psychotherapy Treatment in Private Practice

in International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (2021), 18(4),

Background: Online or internet gaming disorder (IGD) is currently not recognized as a mental disorder in the actual Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5), although it is an ... [more ▼]

Background: Online or internet gaming disorder (IGD) is currently not recognized as a mental disorder in the actual Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5), although it is an emerging disease. Non-substance-related addictions often have similarities with substance addictions. It is therefore important to have a good understanding of the client but also to have a good endurance. Due to the rise of e-sports, there is an anticipated and therefore possible trend to have many more patients with a non-substance addiction. There are many parallels, for instance tolerance, withdrawal and social problems, resulting from an increasing investment of time spent on the internet. Case presentation: To reduce possible inhibition in treating a patient with IGD, we present a case of a 19-year-old adolescent man who exhibited IGD and showed social problems associated with his addiction. Conclusions: This paper shows the importance and the effects of treating a non-substance addiction with cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). After having successfully coped with an addiction, several shifts in addiction were often reported. In this case, no shifts were reported. The absence of such shifts makes our case a distinct and unique case. This is not a multimorbidity case, and that is the reason why we think this is an excellent example to show what we achieved, how we achieved it, and what we could establish. Of course, additional research and manuals are urgently needed. [less ▲]

A Narrative Review of Motor Competence in Children and Adolescents: What We Know and What We Need to Find Out

in International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (2020), 18(1), 1-20

Lack of physical activity is a global public health problem causing not only morbidity and premature mortality, but it is also a major economic burden worldwide. One of the cornerstones of a physically ... [more ▼]

Lack of physical activity is a global public health problem causing not only morbidity and premature mortality, but it is also a major economic burden worldwide. One of the cornerstones of a physically active lifestyle is Motor Competence (MC). MC is a complex biocultural attribute and therefore, its study requires a multi-sectoral, multi-, inter- and transdisciplinary approach. MC is a growing area of research, especially in children and adolescents due to its positive association with a plethora of health and developmental outcomes. Many questions, however, remain to be answered in this field of research, with regard to: (i) Health and Developmental-related Associations of MC; (ii) Assessment of MC; (iii) Prevalence and Trends of MC; (iv) Correlates and Determinants of MC; (v) MC Interventions, and (vi) Translating MC Research into Practice and Policy. This paper presents a narrative review of the literature, summarizing current knowledge, identifying key research gaps and presenting questions for future investigation on MC in children and adolescents. This is a collaborative effort from the International Motor Competence Network (IMCNetwork) a network of academics and researchers aiming to promote international collaborative research and knowledge translation in the expansive field of MC. The knowledge and deliverables generated by addressing and answering the aforementioned research questions on MC presented in this review have the potential to shape the ways in which researchers and practitioners promote MC and physical activity in children and adolescents across the world. [less ▲]

School-Class Co-Ethnic and Immigrant Density and Current Smoking among Immigrant Adolescents

in International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (2020), 17(2),

Although the school-class is known to be an important setting for adolescent risk behavior, little is known about how the ethnic composition of a school-class impacts substance use among pupils with a ... [more ▼]

Although the school-class is known to be an important setting for adolescent risk behavior, little is known about how the ethnic composition of a school-class impacts substance use among pupils with a migration background. Moreover, the few existing studies do not distinguish between co-ethnic density (i.e., the share of immigrants belonging to one’s own ethnic group) and immigrant density (the share of all immigrants). This is all the more surprising since a high co-ethnic density can be expected to protect against substance use by increasing levels of social support and decreasing acculturative stress, whereas a high immigrant density can be expected to do the opposite by facilitating inter-ethnic conflict and identity threat. This study analyses how co-ethnic density and immigrant density are correlated with smoking among pupils of Portuguese origin in Luxembourg. A multi-level analysis is used to analyze data from the Luxembourg Health Behavior in School-Aged Children study (N = 4268 pupils from 283 classes). High levels of co-ethnic density reduced current smoking. In contrast, high levels of immigrant density increased it. Thus, in research on the health of migrants, the distinction between co-ethnic density and immigrant density should be taken into account, as both may have opposite effects. [less ▲]

Adolescent Body Dissatisfaction in ContrastingSocioeconomic Milieus, Coming from a French andLuxembourgish Context

in International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (2020), 17(61),

: To analyze the relationships between body mass index (BMI), ideal body,current declared body shape, and gap between ideal and declared body shape, and the associationsthat these have with social and ... [more ▼]

: To analyze the relationships between body mass index (BMI), ideal body,current declared body shape, and gap between ideal and declared body shape, and the associationsthat these have with social and cultural factors among 329 adolescents (11 to 15 years i.e., at two stagesof adolescence, the early and late adolescence), attending an international school in Luxembourg,and 281 from Paris.Methods:A cross-sectional survey was conducted using an online questionnaire.Missing data were addressed using the data augmentation method in a Bayesian framework.Results: For both sets, higher the BMI and bigger their current body shape (CBS), the slimmertheir ideal body shape, especially for those who perceive a link between body shape and beauty.For girls, slimness is a shared ideal; for boys, older they are, more they want a muscular body shape.Most students want slimmer bodies, but in affluent or intermediate social milieu students in relationsto identification to personalities such as celebrities, while students from modest milieus, this isexpressed in relation to success in love. In addition, they declared that their “talk diet with friends”were associated with large gap between ideal and declared body shape.Conclusions:A social controlnorm was revealed involving a displacement of values affecting body weight and health in the latestage of adolescence to early adolescence, especially for boys. [less ▲]

Runner's Perceptions of Reasons to Quit Running: Influence of Gender, Age and Running-Related Characteristics.

in International journal of environmental research and public health (2020), 17(17),

Physical inactivity has become a major public health concern and, consequently, the awareness of striving for a healthy lifestyle has increased. As a result, the popularity of recreational sports, such as ... [more ▼]

Physical inactivity has become a major public health concern and, consequently, the awareness of striving for a healthy lifestyle has increased. As a result, the popularity of recreational sports, such as running, has increased. Running is known for its low threshold to start and its attractiveness for a heterogeneous group of people. Yet, one can still observe high drop-out rates among (novice) runners. To understand the reasons for drop-out as perceived by runners, we investigate potential reasons to quit running among short distance runners (5 km and 10 km) (n = 898). Data used in this study were drawn from the standardized online Eindhoven Running Survey 2016 (ERS16). Binary logistic regressions were used to investigate the relation between reasons to quit running and different variables like socio-demographic variables, running habits and attitudes, interests, and opinions (AIOs) on running. Our results indicate that, not only people of different gender and age show significant differences in perceived reasons to quit running, also running habits, (e.g., running context and frequency) and AIOs are related to perceived reasons to quit running too. With insights into these related variables, potential drop-out reasons could help health professionals in understanding and lowering drop-out rates among recreational runners. [less ▲]

Problematic smartphone use: Investigating contemporary experiences using a convergent design

in International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (2018), 15

Internet-enabled smartphones are increasingly ubiquitous in the Western world. Research suggests a number of problems can result from mobile phone overuse, including dependence, dangerous and prohibited ... [more ▼]

Internet-enabled smartphones are increasingly ubiquitous in the Western world. Research suggests a number of problems can result from mobile phone overuse, including dependence, dangerous and prohibited use. For over a decade, this has been measured by the Problematic Mobile Phone Use Questionnaire (PMPU-Q). Given the rapid developments in mobile technologies, changes of use patterns and possible problematic and addictive use, the aim of the present study was to investigate and validate an updated contemporary version of the PMPU-Q (PMPU-Q-R). A mixed methods convergent design was employed, including a psychometric survey (N = 512) alongside qualitative focus groups (N = 21), to elicit experiences and perceptions of problematic smartphone use. The results suggest the PMPU-Q-R factor structure can be updated to include smartphone dependence, dangerous driving, and antisocial smartphone use factors. Theories of problematic mobile phone use require consideration of the ubiquity and indispensability of smartphones in the present day and age, particularly regarding use whilst driving and in social interactions [less ▲]

Quality of Work: Validation of a New Instrument in Three Languages

in International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (2015), 12(12), 1498815006

Introduction and objective: A new instrument to measure quality of work was developed in three languages (German, French and Luxembourgish) and validated in a study of employees working in Luxembourg ... [more ▼]

Introduction and objective: A new instrument to measure quality of work was developed in three languages (German, French and Luxembourgish) and validated in a study of employees working in Luxembourg. Methods and results: A representative sample (n = 1529) was taken and exploratory factor analysis revealed a six-factor solution for the 21-item instrument (satisfaction and respect, mobbing, mental strain at work, cooperation, communication and feedback, and appraisal). Reliability analysis showed satisfying reliability for all six factors and the total questionnaire. In order to examine the construct validity of the new instrument, regression analyses were conducted to test whether the instrument predicted work characteristics’ influence on three components of well-being—burnout, psychological stress and maladaptive coping behaviors. Conclusion: The present validation offers a trilingual inventory for measuring quality of work that may be used, for example, as an assessment tool or for testing the effectiveness of interventions. [less ▲]

Effects of Habitual Anger on Employees Behavior during Organizational Change

in International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (2013), 10(12), 6215-6234

Organizational change is a particularly emotional event for those being confronted with it. Anger is a frequently experienced emotion under these conditions. This study analyses the influence of ... [more ▼]

Organizational change is a particularly emotional event for those being confronted with it. Anger is a frequently experienced emotion under these conditions. This study analyses the influence of employees’ habitual anger reactions on their reported behavior during organizational change. It was explored whether anger reactions conducive to recovering or increasing individual well-being will enhance the likelihood of functional change behavior. Dysfunctional regulation strategies in terms of individual well-being are expected to decrease the likelihood of functional change behavior—mediated by the commitment to change. Four hundred and twelve employees of different organizations in Luxembourg undergoing organizational change participated in the study. Findings indicate that the anger regulation strategy venting, and humor increase the likelihood of deviant resistance to change. Downplaying the incident’s negative impact and feedback increase the likelihood of active support for change. The mediating effect of commitment to change has been found for humor and submission. The empirical findings suggest that a differentiated conceptualization of resistance to change is required. Specific implications for practical change management and for future research are discussed. [less ▲]