Journal of Applied Gerontology, Ahead of Print.
The association of organizational context with quality of care in nursing homes is not well understood at the clinical microsystem (care unit) level. This cross-sectional study examined the associations of unit-level context with 10 unit-level quality indicators derived from the Minimum Data Set 2.0. Study settings comprised 262 care units within 91 Canadian nursing homes. We assessed context using unit-aggregated care-aide-reported scores on the 10 scales of the Alberta Context Tool. Mixed-effects regression analysis showed that structural resources were negatively associated with antipsychotics use (B = −.06; p = .001) and worsened late-loss activities of daily living (B = −.03, p = .04). Organizational slack in time was negatively associated with worsened pain (B = −.04, p = .01). Social capital was positively associated with delirium symptoms (B = .12, p = .02) and worsened depressive symptoms (B = .10, p = .01). The findings suggested that targeting interventions to modifiable contextual elements and unit-level quality improvement will be promising.

The Counseling Psychologist, Ahead of Print.
The model minority stereotype (MMS) has had a direct and significant impact on Asian Americans and their internal processes, like other stereotypes attributed to a group of people (e.g., stereotype threat; Steele & Aronson, 1995). In this article, we describe the development and validation of a measure named the Model Minority Stereotype-Response Scale (MMS-RS), which is designed to assess the responses Asian Americans experience when faced with the MMS to unveil how the stereotype impacts them. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses (CFAs) supported a two-factor structure of the MMS-RS, namely negative responses to and positive endorsement of the MMS. Alongside the reliability estimates, the evidence for construct validity demonstrated that the MMS-RS has good psychometric properties. Interestingly, both negative reaction to and the positive endorsement of the MMS were found to coexist. Overall, the MMS-RS is a useful instrument for scholars who are interested in researching, intervening, and advocating for Asian Americans’ experiences with the MMS.

Journal of Applied Gerontology, Ahead of Print.
Nursing homes were profoundly affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, influencing work outcomes of care aides who provide the most direct care. We compared care aides’ quality of work life by conducting a repeated cross-sectional analysis of data collected in February 2020 and December 2021 from a stratified random sample of urban nursing homes in two Canadian provinces. We used two-level random-intercept repeated-measures regression models, adjusting for demographics and nursing home characteristics. 2348 and 1116 care aides completed the survey in February 2020 and December 2021, respectively. The 2021 sample had higher odds of reporting worked short-staffed daily to weekly in the previous month than the 2020 sample. The 2021 sample also had a small but significant drop in professional efficacy and mental health. Despite the worsening changes, our findings suggest that this workforce may have withstood the pandemic better than might be expected.

Journal of Applied Gerontology, Ahead of Print.
A social pension, regarded as a reliable source of income, has the potential to significantly influence the overall wellbeing of vulnerable older adults. This study aimed to extend the understanding of the effects of social pension expansion beyond its economic impacts to encompass recipients’ health status. Using three-wave data from a representative sample of older adults, we employed a quasi-experimental assessment model to evaluate the impact of a recent social pension expansion in Hong Kong on health-related consumption and health outcomes among older adults. The results of the triple difference estimations revealed that an increased social pension significantly enhanced older people’s engagement in entertainment activities, utilization of healthcare services, and expenditures on preventive health products. Furthermore, the increased social pension was found to have a significant positive effect on mitigating poor self-rated health and poor sleep quality. However, it did not have a significant impact on the prevalence of depression. These findings suggest that social pension expansion should be coordinated with other policy initiatives to comprehensively improve the physical and mental health of older adults.

The Counseling Psychologist, Ahead of Print.

The Counseling Psychologist, Ahead of Print.
With the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, anti-Asian racism and hate crimes surged in the United States, placing Asian Americans (AAs) at increased risk for psychological distress (i.e., anxiety and depression symptoms). We examined how coping styles (i.e., direct and indirect) moderated the association between racial discrimination, fear of discrimination, and psychological distress in a sample of 229 AA parents. Results indicated that indirect coping styles significantly moderated the relationship between racial discrimination and anxiety symptoms, and fear of discrimination and anxiety symptoms. Simple slopes revealed that racial discrimination was associated with greater anxiety symptoms among parents with high levels of indirect coping, but not with low levels. Direct coping was not a significant moderator. Our findings highlight the need for the development of coping-focused interventions that are aimed specifically at buffering the adverse psychological outcomes among AAs experiencing racial discrimination.

The Counseling Psychologist, Ahead of Print.

Journal of Applied Gerontology, Ahead of Print.
Objectives: This study aims to identify patterns of social isolation and low social support, and discover their associations with frailty trajectories among Chinese older adults. Methods: The paper used five waves of the Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey (CLHLS, 2005–2018). The latent class analysis, multi-trajectory modeling, and the multinomial logistic regression approaches were used to perform the analysis. Results: The paper identified five types of social isolation and low social support, and three typical frailty trajectories. Patterns of social isolation and low social support were associated with frailty trajectories among older adults. Conclusions: Distinct patterns of social isolation and low social support were significantly correlated with frailty trajectories. To improve frailty trajectories among older adults, interventions such as Healthy China 2030 should prioritize addressing the interplay between social isolation and low social support.

Journal of Health Psychology, Ahead of Print.
Pain invalidation (e.g., having pain discounted) is a risk factor for depression among people with chronic pain, but the mechanisms remain unclear. Shame is a common, yet understudied, aspect of the pain experience. This study investigated whether pain-related shame helps explain the relationship between pain discounting and heightened depressive symptoms. The secondary aim was to examine whether social support can protect against the harmful effects of discounting. Patients with chronic pain (N = 305) were recruited from outpatient pain clinics. Participants completed an online cross-sectional survey and data were analyzed using moderated mediation analysis. Greater discounting was associated with greater depressive symptoms, and pain-related shame significantly mediated this relationship. Perceived social support attenuated the relationship between discounting and depressive symptoms. Greater attention towards pain-related shame as a treatment target is needed. Individual- and system-level interventions are required to address pain invalidation and bolster support for this population.

Journal of Health Psychology, Ahead of Print.
Concerning Europe, the lay public, mainly in Central regions, still lacks information about what surrogacy is and how the process works in practice. It is one of the most controversial methods of assisted reproduction precisely because it goes against traditional social norms and ideas about the conception of life. The main aim of our study was to map the social representations of lay people that are formed in internet discussions. We focused on discussion forums over a time span of the last 10 years, from 2013 to 2022. We were also interested in whether perceived risks or benefits formed the core of social representations. Through a reflexive thematic analysis, we identified two distinct constructions of social representations of surrogacy, finding that value settings in terms of liberalism and conservatism appear to have the greatest influence on the anchoring and objectification of surrogacy.