Women in midlife (ages 40-65) experience significant risk for cardiovascular disease (CVD), including declining physical activity (PA). Lack of social support is a key barrier, but PA partnerships show promise for increasing PA. Little is known about women's preferences for PA partnerships or how preferences are linked to women's broader conceptions of PA. In this study, we used a mixed methods design to evaluate beliefs about PA and preferences for PA partnerships among women in midlife with ≥1 CVD risk factor. Participants ( = 27, =53.3, =32.6 kg/m) used a proprietary web application for 7 days to view hypothetical PA partners and completed a 1-hour qualitative interview. Thematic analysis indicated that some women in midlife hold specific perceptions about PA that inform a desire to feel validated and understood. Their definitions of PA and the role of caregiving are critical to PA and partner preferences; they prefer to partner with women at similar starting levels of PA, though they are open to a range of partners who can foster motivation and growth. Findings show that PA partnerships may be desirable to women in midlife with elevated CVD risk and point to critical next steps for optimising partner-based PA promotion for women.

Somatic symptoms - persistent medically unexplained physical complaints - present a challenge for the healthcare system, partly because patients often resist psychological explanations and treatments. To inform patient-practitioner interactions, we provide country-specific population-representative longitudinal data on the relative contributions of physiological and psychosocial factors - individually, as specific targets for treatment, and as 'physiological' and 'psychosocial' variable clusters representing broad targets for treatment.

Lifestyle change is essential for managing chronic- or life-threatening somatic conditions. Virtual reality offers opportunities for designing immersive and engaging lifestyle interventions that enable patients to translate behavioural changes into daily living. This review maps the state-of-the-art to provide directions for future research and intervention development.

Dispositional optimism and pessimism have been linked to physical activity (PA) in adulthood, but longitudinal associations and relationships with physical fitness (PF) remain underexplored. We investigated whether optimism and pessimism are a) longitudinally associated with self-reported leisure-time physical activity (LTPA), b) cross-sectionally associated with device-measured PA and c) cross-sectionally and longitudinally associated with clinically measured PF. Additionally, potential bidirectional associations were explored.

Objective: Planning can help bridge the physical activity intention behaviour gap, but creating plans has proven burdensome for individuals. Personalised plan recommendations can alleviate this burden and improve plan quality. This study aimed to identify clusters of physical activities and predict these clusters based on static and dynamic person variables to identify relevant variables for personalising recommendations. Design: In a 14-day ecological momentary (EMA) assessment study, 52 participants completed surveys on static (e.g. gender, SES) and dynamic (e.g. mood) personal characteristics at baseline, each morning, and each time they were active for at least 5 min. Clusters of physical activities were identified based on activity (e.g. intensity) and context (e.g. location) characteristics. Clusters, activity domain, and location were predicted using both a conditional random forest algorithm approach and a multilevel multinomial regression approach. Results: A five-cluster solution was identified, with clusters being 'active transport activities', 'work-related activities', 'household activities', 'organised sport activities', and 'in the city activities'. We predicted up to 65% of clusters, exceeding baseline comparison. Predictions were largely based on static characteristics, most notably sociodemographic information. Conclusions: Our findings imply that personalised recommendations do not require daily assessment-though there is a risk of stereotyping. Future work should integrate passively collected data and evaluate different way of creating recommendations.

Health inequalities are partly due to social differences in health behaviours, but we know little about the underlying mechanisms. Health behaviour theories, summarised e.g. in the Theoretical Domains Framework (TDF) may outline such mechanisms. Two pathways have been theorised: Behavioural determinants mediate social differences in behaviour, and social differences in the determinants-behaviour relationship (moderation). Here, we summarise the literature on both pathways.

Physical activity (PA) is beneficial to both physical and mental health, and mindfulness has gained attention due to its potential to promote PA behaviours. However, the underlying processes linking trait mindfulness and PA remain less explored. Thus, the main purpose of this study was to explore the relationship between trait mindfulness and self-reported PA, and to examine whether mindfulness in PA, exercise self-efficacy, and exercise commitment play a mediating role in this relationship.

This systematic review aims to examine psychological interventions that target emotion regulation and broader emotional processes in the perinatal period, to bring together existing evidence, and to provide a comprehensive perspective on how these interventions address women's emotional challenges during pregnancy and the postpartum year.

Limited research has examined facilitators and barriers that affect patient care in osteogenesis imperfecta (OI). The present study seeks to identify (1) facilitators and (2) barriers to care as reported by medical providers and caregivers of individuals with OI, and (3) common themes between both stakeholder groups.

Burns are a common cause of unintentional injuries in childhood and a significant global public health issue. Parents of paediatric burn patients are a vulnerable group for psychological distress.

Supporting the uptake of protective health measures is key to the management of new and existing health threats. We present and test a novel theory-grounded messaging approach that combines death reminders with exposure to an NHS prime located on the facemask of the spokesperson.

Self-compassion is associated with reduced stress and health-promoting behaviours through enabling a positive attitude towards the self in times of difficulty. However, limited research has investigated the role of self-compassion in understanding the relationship between daily stress and eating styles. This study examined whether trait self-compassion was associated with daily eating behaviours and eating styles. It also tested moderation and mediation models that linked trait self-compassion, daily stress and daily eating. A sample of 146 individuals completed a measure of trait self-compassion at baseline and then a 7-day daily diary. At baseline, self-compassion was found to be associated with uncontrolled, restrained, emotional, and intuitive eating styles. Multilevel modelling found that daily hassles were positively associated with total snacking (unhealthy and healthy) behaviours. Trait self-compassion was associated with less daily hassles. However, self-compassion was not associated with between-meal snack consumption and did not moderate daily stress-snacking relationships. Multilevel mediation analyses revealed no indirect effects of self-compassion on between-meal snacking, daily hassles or uplifts. Future research ought to replicate the current findings and explore fluctuations in self-compassion at a daily level. Greater understanding of a state-trait approach to self-compassion is warranted for the associations with daily stress and eating behaviours.

Repetition of physical activity (PA) contributes to the formation of PA habit. However, daily repetitions of PA of varied intensities might differ in their impact on PA habits. This study investigated the effect of daily variability in PA on various facets of PA habits: lack of intention (LOI), lack of control (LOC) and efficiency of PA.

To examine the effectiveness of a physical activity (PA) programme incorporating partner support and enjoyment in preventing perinatal depression, anxiety, and comorbid anxiety and depression (CAD) among Chinese primiparas.

Mobile phone dependency, sleep duration, and body mass index (BMI) are interconnected facets of an adolescent's lifestyle. Existing research has largely yet explored only two of these variables in tandem at between-person levels. This study addresses this gap by examining the temporal dynamics among them over six timepoints, at both between- and within-adolescent levels.

There is a lack of research on how illness representations as represented in the Common Sense Self-Regulation Model (CS-SRM) emerge and develop. We aimed to describe the evolution of COVID-19 illness representations over time, and to explore associations with sociodemographic characteristics and protective behaviours.

Long COVID (LC) affects physical health and cognition, limiting participation in social and leisure activities. As a novel disabling condition following a COVID-19 infection, informal caregivers of those with LC have taken on expanded roles, including educating themselves on this diagnosis. Gathering insights from people living with LC (PWLC) and their caregivers is crucial for understanding its impact on well-being and identifying targeted rehabilitation practices across the LC care pathway. Utilizing a qualitative descriptive approach, we conducted interviews with 67 participants (52 people with LC and 15 caregivers). Results: Composite narratives were created to introduce three key themes: (1) The demands of managing physical and cognitive symptoms of LC limit the ability of PWLC and caregivers to engage in social and leisure activities; (2) The loss of meaningful social and leisure activities deepens a diminished sense of identity for PWLC and caregivers; and (3) The absence of shared social and leisure engagement intensifies feelings of disconnection and loneliness for PWLC and caregivers. The findings support a need for more social- and leisure-targeted interventions for LC rehabilitation to help to optimize efforts for coping with the psychosocial impacts of living with, or caring for someone with, LC.

Leisure time physical activity (LTPA) is important for physical and mental well-being, although many U.S. adults fail to meet daily physical activity guidelines. This two-part project examined associations between four dimensions of interoceptive awareness (IA) (i.e., Trusting, Body Listening, Self-Regulation, Not-Worrying) and daily engagement in and duration of LTPA.

This study examines the bidirectional dynamics of social support, role stress, and anxiety among middle-aged women, highlighting their interactions at both within-person and between-person levels over time.

Both affectively-charged and reflective motivation may be necessary to sustain recommended physical activity (PA) guidelines, especially in contexts with tempting alternatives. However, our understanding of how different sources of motivation facilitate PA across contexts is limited. This paper presents a novel value-based model that specifies how affectively-charged and reflective motivation interact to support PA decisions based on available alternatives at a given decision point.

Previous studies and theories have shown a bidirectional association between body dysmorphic disorder (BDD) symptoms, body image inflexibility, and appearance-related safety behaviors. Most previous studies are cross-sectional studies, lacking longitudinal studies. We aimed to explore the roles of body image inflexibility and appearance-related safety behaviors in BDD symptoms through a longitudinal study.

Establishing to what extent everyday behaviors are habitual will help intervention developers understand whether and which specific behaviors can become habitual or may require habit disruption to enable adoption of desired behaviors. Previous estimates of the prevalence of habit in everyday life have not distinguished between habitual instigation, whereby habit triggers action selection of a target action, and habitual execution, whereby habit facilitates smooth performance of action.

Although psychological factors predict the development of persistent pain after total knee arthroplasty (TKA), psychological interventions to prevent persistent pain are under-explored. This pilot trial evaluated the acceptability and feasibility of a cognitive-behavioural intervention targeting risk factors for post-surgical pain among patients scheduled for TKA (UTN: U1111-1243-1067/ACTRN12621001095853).

This study investigates the subjective experiences of individuals with persistent chemosensory dysfunction following COVID-19 illness. By exploring the perceptual and emotional dimensions of their altered sensory worlds, and using a realist phenomenological approach, the study aims to provide an in-depth understanding of the challenges these individuals face.

Cardiovascular disease (CVD), a leading cause of morbidity and mortality, frequently requires informal caregiving. Spousal caregivers may gain satisfaction while providing care, but there are associated risks, including reduced quality of life (QoL). Caregiving Style (CS; i.e. the ways one responds and is attentive towards their partner's needs) may help explain why some caregivers experience worse QoL. This study investigated the relationship between CS and QoL among caregivers of patients with a diagnosed cardiac condition.

To systemically explore parent and clinician experiences of type-1 diabetes (T1D) diagnosis at a large UK hospital. To use those experiences to collaboratively create an action plan to improve support for parents and clinicians.

The use of bisphosphonates to manage osteoporosis has diminished as reports of rare, serious side effects have gained attention. Experts have warned of a 'crisis in osteoporosis treatment', calling for research on psychological processes underlying medication decisions. We observed that people's tendency to judge the lower risk of action (i.e. side effects) as worse than the higher risk of inaction (i.e. osteoporotic fracture) may be consistent with an omission bias. The present work explored psychological predictors of this phenomenon.

Although the association between stress and pain is recognised, little is known about links between chronic pain and stress arising from perfectionist expectations. Two studies compared levels of socially prescribed perfectionism (SPP), self-oriented perfectionism (SOP), self-compassion (SC), and self-efficacy (SE) between individuals with and without chronic pain. In Study 1, 237 participants with chronic pain and 237 without pain completed an online survey. Participants with chronic pain had significantly higher levels of SPP and lower levels of SC than those without pain. However, there were no differences in SOP or SE. In Study 2, 294 individuals with chronic pain, and 278 without, completed an online survey. Individuals with chronic pain reported significantly higher levels of perfectionism and lower levels of SC and SE than pain-free individuals. SPP and SOP were higher in those with low SC scores. Correlation analyses identified that SOP and SC were positively associated with SE whereas SPP was associated negatively with SE. These findings largely align with the perfectionism social disconnection model. A clearer understanding of the inter-relationships between perfectionism and protective factors, such as SC and SE, has important implications for those experiencing chronic pain conditions, including potential pain management interventions and long-term wellbeing.

Diabetes stigma may lead to poor psychological health and self-management behaviors, resulting in adverse clinical outcomes. This study aimed to explore the associations between diabetes stigma and psychological, behavioral, and clinical outcomes and the moderating effects of hope, self-esteem, and social support in young and middle-aged Chinese patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM).

We examined the relationship between social distancing and daily fluctuating variables like mood, loneliness, substance use, and current illness symptoms in a U.S. nationally representative sample of  = 772 young adults who had reported alcohol use in 12th grade. Participants completed up to 14 daily assessments in Spring 2021. We measured social distancing related to the COVID-19 pandemic and daily mood, loneliness, substance use, and illness symptoms. Around a third of the sample reported social distancing on all days, and a third reported no social distancing. Young adults tended to adhere to a consistent level of social distancing. Those who socially distanced the most also reported less alcohol consumption and higher loneliness. When social distancing increased within person, cold/flu symptoms were higher, and positive mood and alcohol consumption were lower. Future public health efforts may benefit from findings that social distancing was quite stable within person, and not influenced by daily level of loneliness. We did find evidence that young adults slightly increased social distancing on days when cold/flu symptoms were higher, suggesting some adherence to public health guidelines.