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Media coverage of large-scale violence can result in interfering thoughts and depression. This research investigates the relationship between interfering thoughts and depression when watching the Russo-Ukrainian war. In the theoretical model, the more the war is watched, the more it is related to interfering thoughts, which are related to depression. With the ongoing pandemic, depression, when watching the war, was related to coronavirus threat. Data was collected online from April to June, 2022, with university students in Germany, Finland, and Canada (N = 865). Path analysis results in each sample showed that the model fit the data with sample-specific modification indices. There was full mediation of watching the war by interference on depression, indicating that it is not watching the war, per se, but rather its relationship to cognitive interference, that is associated with depression. Denial and coronavirus threat were positively related to depression. Implications for research and student support are considered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Anger, depressive symptoms, and anxiety are known reactions to cancer and suggested to modulate pain experience. We examined the association between anger regulation, mood, and pain in 952 breast cancer patients followed for 3 years.Methods: Preoperatively, the patients completed questionnaires about depressive symptoms (BDI), state anxiety (STAI), anger regulation (STAXI-2), and pains in the surgical and other areas. Experimental pain sensitivity was tested. In the follow-up, BDI and STAI were assessed at 1 and at 6 months and at 1, 2, and 3 years after surgery. Pain in the surgical area was evaluated during the first 7 days and at 1 and 3 years after surgery. Pain-related disability was assessed at 3 years after surgery. Latent profile analyses were performed to identify mood profiles, and regression analyses to find independent predictors for mood and pain variables.Results: Anger inhibition and pain had associations with ongoing depressive symptoms and anxiety. Pain-related disability was associated with high anxiety at a hazard ratio (HR) of 2.24 (95% CI, 1.17-4.27), with older age (HR 1.07, 95% CI, 1.01-1.13), and with pain in the surgical area (HR 3.04, 95% CI, 2.41-3.85), but not with anger variables. Any relationship between anger regulation and pain intensity disappeared after controlling for age and mood.Conclusions: Different forms of pain are important to recognize and treat to support breast cancer patients' psychological well-being. Anger inhibition could be a target for psychotherapeutic intervention, to help with ongoing mood symptoms. The relationship between anger regulation and pain is not straightforward. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Burnout has been suggested to be related to depression. We examined the relationship between burnout and allostatic load, and whether this association is independent of psychological distress and depression. We measured burnout psychological distress, depression, and allostatic load in 3283 participants. Higher burnout (β = 0.06, p =0.003) and cynicism (β = 0.03, p = 0.031) and decreased professional efficacy (β = 0.03, p = 0.007) were related to higher allostatic load independent of age, sex, education, occupation and psychological distress. Depression, however, explained 60 percent of the association. Burnout is related to higher allostatic load, and this association partly overlaps with co-occurring depression. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We examined whether long QT syndrome status moderates the association between stressful life events and depressive symptoms. Participants were 562 (n = 246 symptomatic) long QT syndrome mutation carriers. Depressive symptoms were measured with a modified version of the Beck’s Depression Inventory. There was an interaction between long QT syndrome status and stressful life events on depressive symptoms. In the symptomatic long QT syndrome patients, stressful life events were associated with depressive symptoms (B = 0.24, p < 0.001). In the asymptomatic long QT syndrome mutation carriers, this association was 62.5 percent weaker (B = 0.09, p = 0.057). Compared to asymptomatic long QT syndrome mutation carriers, symptomatic long QT syndrome patients are more sensitive to the depressive effects of stressful life events. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Over the recent decades, the incidence of cardiovascular and heart diseases has decreased while levels of type-A behavior, i.e., a potential risk factor, appear to have increased. However, the long-term developmental patterns of type-A behavior is poorly understood. Both age- and cohort-related changes may be involved in these developments. Purpose: The purpose of this study was to examine an age- and cohort-related changes of Hunter-Wolf type-A behavior from adolescence to adulthood. Methods: Type-A behavior and its components (aggressiveness, leadership, hard driving, and eagerness energy) were assessed using the Hunter-Wolf A-B rating scale at five time points (1983, 1986, 1989, 2001, and 2007) in a population-based sample consisting of six birth cohorts born between 1962 and 1977 ( n = 3,341, a total of 10,506 person observations). Development of type-A behavior and its components was examined with cohort-sequential multilevel modeling. Results: Aggressiveness decreased with age, eagerness energy, hard driving, and global type-A behavior increased, and leadership exhibited no mean level changes. Younger cohorts had higher aggressiveness, lower hard driving, and global type-A behavior. Conclusions: The findings suggest that in order to understand the health consequences of type-A behavior, both life span and societal changes should be considered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: To examine whether work stress is associated with a symptomatic status of the long QT syndrome (LQTS). Methods: The sample comprised 173 KCNQ1, KCNH2, or SCN5A gene mutation carriers (70 symptomatic) and control groups of 203 relatives without the family mutation, and of 1209 population-based young Finns control subjects. Work stress was assessed using the Job Content Questionnaire and Occupational Stress Questionnaire. Results: We found an association between the occurrence of symptoms in the LQTS and high work stress, higher job demands/effort, lower job control, and lower rewards compared with control subjects. We also found that symptomatic LQTS mutation carriers had higher work stress than asymptomatic LQTS mutation carriers. Conclusions: Higher work stress is related to arrhythmic risk in the LQTS. It may be useful to incorporate assessment of work conditions and stress interventions into management of high-risk patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Personality dispositions may influence perceptions of work stress. The paper examines the relationship between temperament in terms of Strelau's Regulative Theory of Temperament and the effort-reward imbalance and its components. Material and Methods: There were 890 participants (360 men) aged 37.9 years on average. Temperament traits of briskness and perseveration (temporal characteristics of behavior), sensory sensitivity, emotional reactivity, endurance and activity (energetic characteristics of behavior) were measured by Strelau & Zawadzki's Formal Characteristics of Behavior-Temperament Inventory (FCB-TI) in 1997 and 2001. Effort and reward at work were assessed with the original effort-reward imbalance (ERI) questionnaire of 2007. Results: Higher ERI at work was predicted by higher emotional reactivity, higher perseveration, lower briskness, and lower endurance. Higher effort and lower rewards at work were predicted by higher perseveration and lower endurance. The FCB-TI temperament characteristics accounted for 5.2%, 4.8% and 6.5% of the variance in the ERI, effort and reward, respectively. Lower emotional reactivity, lower perseveration, higher briskness and higher endurance predicted higher esteem at work, job promotion and job security. Conclusions: Individual differences in arousability, reflected in temporal and energetic characteristics of behavior, may predispose to or to protect from an effort-reward imbalance at work. Individual differences should be acknowledged in work stress prevention and developing interventions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A population based study conducted to find whether Temporal and Energetic Characteristics of behaviour contributes to perceived job strain and its components is presented. Findings suggest that Higher Emotional activity and perseveration and lower briskness, endurance and activity leads to higher long term job strain, higher job demands and lower job controls.

Abstract: Objective: The long QT syndrome (LQTS) is an inherited cardiac disorder which predisposes the mutation carrier to ventricular arrhythmias that can lead to sudden death. The objective of the present study was to examine the association between the symptom status of congenital long QT syndrome mutation carriers and their temperament. Methods: The study subjects included 587 LQTS mutation carriers from the Finnish LQTS registry, and 2056 individuals from a database study, the Young Finns Study (YFS), representing general population and serving as control subjects. The LQTS subjects were divided into symptomatic (n=259) and asymptomatic (n=328) groups, according to their history of arrhythmic events. Temperament was assessed using the Cloninger''s Temperament and Character Inventory (TCI), assessing novelty seeking, harm avoidance and reward dependence. Results: Congenital long QT syndrome mutation carriers had a higher harm avoidance (HA) than those representing the general population (2.77 vs. 2.61, p<.001, η²=0.011). Symptomatic and asymptomatic LQTS mutation carriers did not differ from one another in any of the three Cloninger''s temperament traits. HA was significantly higher in women (2.72 vs. 2.54, p<0.001 η²=0.017). Conclusions: LQTS mutation carriers may have higher stress proneness because of their high HA, which in turn may predispose them to the effects of environmental loading and thus increase the risk of arrhythmias. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Objective: This study examined a longitudinal association between innate temperament and perceptions of long-term work stressors. Methods: The sample consisted of 276 men and 345 women (aged 30–45years in 2007) participating in the prospective population-based Cardiovascular Risk in Young Finns study. In 1992, temperament was self-assessed with the EAS questionnaire that assesses three temperamental traits: negative emotionality, activity, and sociability. Perceived work stressors were measured in 2001 and in 2007 using two models: Karasek''s demand/control-model in which a combination of high demands and low control results in job strain, and Siegrist''s Effort–reward imbalance (ERI) model. Results: The results showed that higher negative emotionality and lower sociability systematically predicted higher perceived job strain and ERI (P <.001). Activity predicted higher perceived ERI (P <.05). Activity did not predict perceived job strain, as it was related to both higher perceived demands and higher control. Conclusions: The results suggest that temperament may be a predisposing factor to the experiences of work stressors in adulthood. Although self-reported job strain and ERI are measures of job characteristics, they are affected by individual temperament. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: We examined the relationship between Cloninger’s temperament in adulthood, job strain and its components. There were 613 participants (273 men) aged 30–45years. Cloninger’s temperament scale () was used to measure temperament traits of novelty seeking (NS), harm avoidance (HA), reward dependence (RD) and persistence (P) in 1997 and in 2001. Job demands, job control, education and occupation were reported in 2001 and 2007. The results showed that low NS and high HA predicted higher long-term job strain. Higher NS, lower HA and higher P predicted higher long-term job control, and higher HA and higher P predicted higher long-term job demands. High RD predicted job strain only in 2001. Although job demands and job control mainly reflect characteristics of work environment, temperament tendencies seem to contribute to job strain and its components. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Emerging evidence suggests that temperament may predict childbearing. We examined the association between four temperament traits (novelty seeking, harm avoidance, reward dependence and persistence of the Temperament and Character Inventory) and childbearing over the life course in the population-based Cardiovascular Risk in Young Finns study (n = 1535; 985 women, 550 men). Temperament was assessed when the participants were aged 20–35 and fertility history from adolescence to adulthood was reported by the participants at age 30–45. Discrete-time survival analysis modelling indicated that high childbearing probability was predicted by low novelty seeking (standardized OR = 0.92; 95% confidence interval 0.88–0.97), low harm avoidance (OR = 0.90; 0.85–0.95), high reward dependence (OR = 1.09; 1.03–1.15) and low persistence (OR = 0.91; 0.87–0.96) with no sex differences or quadratic effects. These associations grew stronger with increase in numbers of children. The findings were substantially the same in a completely prospective analysis. Adjusting for education did not influence the associations. Despite its negative association with overall childbearing, high novelty seeking increased the probability of having children in participants who were not living with a partner (OR = 1.29; 1.12–1.49). These data provide novel evidence for the role of temperament in influencing childbearing, and suggest possible weak natural selection of temperament traits in contemporary humans. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents a study on the varied influence of different Type-A behavior dimensions on long-term work stress. The study involved 752 participants in the Cardiovascular Risk in Young Finns Study, and it shows that work stress is reported in adulthood. It concludes that high leadership predicted lower job stress and lower effort-reward imbalance (ERI) and higher reward at work, while high hard-driving employees appeared to be predisposed to work stress.

The article cites a study which investigated whether preemployment family factors predict adulthood work stress manifested as effort-reward imbalance (ERI) in Finland. The study sample involves 746 participants from the Cardiovascular Risk in Young Finns Study. The parents accounted their socioeconomic position and life satisfaction in 1983 when the participants were at 6 to 21 years of age. The participants reported ERI in 2001 at age 24 to 39, the authors noted. The results showed that high rewards were forecasted by high parental life satisfaction in men and by high parental socioeconomic position in women. The authors concluded that though preemployment family factors were related with the reward and effort components, they appeared to have mild effect on the total ERI.

Abstract: Objective: The objective of this study was to prospectively examine whether parental socioeconomic position (SEP) and parental life satisfaction predict job strain in adulthood. Methods: The cohort comprised 755 participants from the ongoing Cardiovascular Risk in Young Finns Study. The parents reported their SEP and life satisfaction when the participants were aged 6–21 years. Eighteen years later at ages 24–39 years, the participants responded to a survey on job strain and its components, job control and job demands. Results: According to structural equation modeling, lower parental SEP and higher parental life dissatisfaction independently predicted increased adulthood job strain. Lower parental SEP also predicted lower educational attainment, which in turn was linked with higher job strain and lower job control. We found no gender differences in these predictive relationships. Conclusion: Parental SEP and parental life satisfaction are associated with job strain in adulthood, and the effect is partly mediated by education. These prospective data suggest that preemployment factors should be taken into account as potential confounders in future research on job strain–health associations. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Neuropsychiatric symptoms cause a significant burden to individuals with neurocognitive disorders and their families. Insights into the clinical associations, neurobiology, and treatment of these symptoms depend on informant questionnaires, such as the commonly used Neuropsychiatric Inventory (NPI). As with any scale, the utility of the NPI relies on its psychometric properties, but the NPI faces unique challenges related to its skip-question and scoring formats. In this narrative review, we examined the psychometric properties of the NPI in a framework including properties pertinent to construct validation, and health-related outcome measurement in general. We found that aspects such as test-retest and inter-rater reliability are major strengths of the NPI in addition to its flexible and relatively quick administration. These properties are desired in clinical trials. However, the reported properties appear to cover only some of the generally examined psychometric properties, representing perhaps necessary but insufficient reliability and validity evidence for the NPI. The psychometric data seem to have significant gaps, in part because small sample sizes in the relevant studies have precluded more comprehensive analyses. Regarding construct validity, only one study has examined structural validity with the NPI subquestions. Measurement error was not assessed in the reviewed studies. For future validation, we recommend using data from all subquestions, collecting larger samples, paying specific attention to construct validity and formulating hypotheses a priori. Because the NPI is an outcome measure of interest in clinical trials, examining measurement error could be of practical importance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: This study investigated (i) whether compassion is associated with blood pressure or hypertension in adulthood and (ii) whether familial risk for hypertension modifies these associations. Method: The participants (N = 1112–1293) came from the prospective Young Finns Study. Parental hypertension was assessed in 1983–2007; participants' blood pressure in 2001, 2007, and 2011; hypertension in 2007 and 2011 (participants were aged 30–49 years in 2007–2011); and compassion in 2001. Results: High compassion predicted lower levels of diastolic and systolic blood pressure in adulthood. Additionally, high compassion was related to lower risk for hypertension in adulthood among individuals with no familial risk for hypertension (independently of age, sex, participants' and their parents' socioeconomic factors, and participants' health behaviors). Compassion was not related to hypertension in adulthood among individuals with familial risk for hypertension. Conclusion: High compassion predicts lower diastolic and systolic blood pressure in adulthood. Moreover, high compassion may protect against hypertension among individuals without familial risk for hypertension. As our sample consisted of comparatively young participants, our findings provide novel implications for especially early-onset hypertension. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

On 24 February 2022, Russia attacked Ukraine. Millions of people tuned into social media to watch the war. Media exposure to disasters and large‐scale violence can precipitate anxiety resulting in intrusive thoughts. This research investigates factors related to anxiety while watching the war. Since the war began during the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, threat from COVID‐19 is seen as a predictor of anxiety when watching the war. A theoretical model is put forward where the outcome was anxiety when watching the war, and predictors were self‐reported interference of watching the war with one's studies or work, gender, worry about the war, self‐efficacy and coronavirus threat. Data were collected online with independent samples of university students from two European countries close to Ukraine, Germany (n = 348) and Finland (n = 228), who filled out an anonymous questionnaire. Path analysis was used to analyse the data. Findings showed that the model was an acceptable fit to the data in each sample, and standardised regression coefficients indicated that anxiety, when watching the war, increased with interference, war worry and coronavirus threat, and decreased with self‐efficacy. Women reported more anxiety when watching the war than men. Implications of the results are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We examined the associations between allostatic load (AL) and sociodemographic factors, depressive symptoms, lifestyle and health characteristics in a population-based sample of 4993 adults in Finland. Thirteen biomarkers were used to construct AL. High AL was defined as scoring highly in ≥4 items. AL scores of 4 and above were exceeded in the age group of 45–54 years in men and 65–74 years in women. Age was the strongest predictor for belonging to the high AL score group. In addition, elevated depressive symptoms (BDI-6 ≥ 4), male sex, not engaging in physical exercise, high alcohol use and a low level of education were associated with an increased likelihood of belonging to the high AL group. The older the participants were, the greater their AL burden was. However, AL burden increased more steeply as a function of age in men. In addition to lifestyle interventions, effective prevention strategies for depression at the population level could have a major public health impact in reducing the accumulation of AL burden. • Aging increased the AL burden in the general population • AL burden starts increasing at a younger age in men than women • Depressive symptoms are more common among younger adults and females • Participants with depressive symptoms have a higher AL score than others • Sociodemographic and lifestyle factors associated with AL a population sample [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aimed to provide new information on the relationships between vitality at work and role clarity, role conflict, and psychological basic need satisfaction. Participants of the cross‐sectional study were 110 employees in a preventive intervention program. Associations between the focal constructs were examined with regression and bootstrapping analyses. The results suggest that the role clarity is associated with subjective vitality at work through higher autonomy and higher competence, and that role conflict is negatively associated with subjective vitality at work through lower autonomy and lower relatedness. Additionally, an interaction between the role characteristics was observed, suggesting that the strength of the association between role clarity and competence, and the strength of the indirect association between role clarity and vitality through competence may vary depending on the level of role conflict. The findings are consistent with the notion that that managers and co‐workers may affect the opportunities of individuals to achieve need satisfaction and feel energized by delineating and negotiating role‐related factors at work. Need satisfaction, in turn, is an antecedent of well‐being and motivation. Employees should feel able to clarify role ambiguities with their supervisor or co‐workers and thus reduce the role conflicts imposed by the expectations of various stakeholders. Limitations of the study include the self‐rating methodology, cross‐sectional design, and properties of the sample restricting generalizability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examined the association between five‐factor model personality traits and perceptions of organisational justice. The sample for the study comprised 903 participants (35–50 years old; 523 women) studied in 2007 and 2012. Measures used were the Neuroticism, Extraversion, Openness, Five‐Factor Inventory questionnaire and the short organisational justice measure. The results showed that high neuroticism was associated with low distributive, procedural and interactional justice. Furthermore, high agreeableness was associated with high procedural and interactional justice and high openness with high distributive justice. This study suggests that neuroticism, agreeableness and openness are involved in perceptions of organisational justice and that personality should be considered in research and in practices at the workplace. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Type 2 diabetes (T2D) has been associated with depressive symptoms, but the causal direction of this association and the underlying mechanisms, such as increased glucose levels, remain unclear. We used instrumental-variable regression with a genetic instrument (Mendelian randomization) to examine a causal role of increased glucose concentrations in the development of depressive symptoms. Method: Data were from the population-based Cardiovascular Risk in Young Finns Study ( n = 1217). Depressive symptoms were assessed in 2012 using a modified Beck Depression Inventory (BDI-I). Fasting glucose was measured concurrently with depressive symptoms. A genetic risk score for fasting glucose (with 35 single nucleotide polymorphisms) was used as an instrumental variable for glucose. Results: Glucose was not associated with depressive symptoms in the standard linear regression ( B = −0.04, 95% CI [−0.12, 0.04], p = .34), but the instrumental-variable regression showed an inverse association between glucose and depressive symptoms ( B = −0.43, 95% CI [−0.79, −0.07], p = .020). The difference between the estimates of standard linear regression and instrumental-variable regression was significant ( p = .026) Conclusion: Our results suggest that the association between T2D and depressive symptoms is unlikely to be caused by increased glucose concentrations. It seems possible that T2D might be linked to depressive symptoms due to low glucose levels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Testosterone is the main male hormone that has been associated with various behavioral traits in humans and other animals. We investigated whether levels of total testosterone, free testosterone, and sex hormone binding globulin were associated with temperament traits in a population-based sample of Finnish men at two measurement times taken 6 years apart (n =686 in year 2001, n =727 in year 2007). Temperament was assessed using the Temperament and Character Inventory that consists of four temperament traits: novelty seeking, harm avoidance, reward dependence, and persistence. Higher levels of total and free testosterone were associated with higher novelty seeking (standardized B =0.103, p <0.001). This association was also observed in a longitudinal within-person analysis (B =0.084, p =0.008), suggesting that the association is not confounded by stable between-individual differences in other characteristics. Within-individual variation in total testosterone was associated with higher reward dependence, and higher levels of free testosterone were marginally associated with higher reward dependence. Reward dependence reflects the importance of social rewards to an individual. These results provide additional evidence for the stable and time-varying associations between testosterone and temperament in humans. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

For young people, not being in education, employment or training (NEET) may be detrimental to self-esteem and limit possibilities for achieving financial security and a respectable position in society. One major educational problem in Estonia is low academic achievement at the upper level of basic education (Grades 7–9), reflected in a large number of drop-outs and ‘grade repeaters’ (students who are not transferred to the next grade because of poor study results and who thus need to remain in the same grade for a second year). In this article (through an Estonian case study placed in the context of the relationships between Estonia and the neighbouring country Finland), we analyse the essence of the NEET process in the light of family factors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses a study conducted to analyze the correlations between personality stress and work stress. The results demonstrate a correlation between the Siegrist's effort-reward imbalance (ERI) model and personality traits. High extraversion, agreeableness, and conscientiousness were associated with lower perceived work stressors; and higher neuroticism was related to higher perceived work stressors. It suggests that personality traits may help to protect people from work stress.

Background: Neuregulin-1 proteins are related to physiological correlates of Type A in terms of cardiac reactivity. Furthermore, neuregulin-1 gene (NRG1) may play a role in cardiovascular disease such as atherosclerosis and coronary heart disease i.e. the suggested "outcomes" of Type A behavior. Therefore, NRG1 is hypothesized to be associated with Type A behavior. Methods: The study examined whether Type A behavior pattern is associated with the single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) SNP8NRG221533 of the NRG1. The subjects were 631 men and women participating in the population-based Cardiovascular Risk in Young Finns study in 1992 and 2001. Type A was self-assessed with the Framingham Type A Scale and reassessed nine years later. Results: Type A was associated with NRG1 genotype. Carriers of genotype CC scored lower on Type A compared to the others. Conclusion: Our study has pinpointed a SNP in NRG1 that predicts Type A behavior. As previous evidence suggests an association for NRG1 with beta-adrenergic stimulation, its role underlying Type A is discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: We compared the level of allostatic load (AL) between patients with major depressive disorder (MDD) and non-depressed controls using two definitions of AL: continuous AL scores (AL index) and clinically significant high AL (≥4). We examined whether MDD was associated with AL independent of basic socioeconomic (age, sex, cohabiting status and level of education) and lifestyle factors (smoking and alcohol use).Methods: The MDD patient sample consisted of 177 psychiatric outpatients (mean age 33.7, SD 10.7 years), who were recruited from the Department of Psychiatry at Kuopio University Hospital, Finland, in 2016-19. The non-depressed controls (n = 228, mean age 49.8, SD 10.1 years) lived in the municipality of Lapinlahti, Finland. Ten biomarkers were used to construct the two AL variables. These indicators were systolic and diastolic blood pressure, total cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, triglycerides, glucose, creatinine, waist circumference, body mass index (BMI) and C-reactive protein (CRP).Results: The mean AL scores did not significantly differ between MDD patients (2.97) and non-depressed controls (3.12), thus it was not associated with MDD in univariate analysis. In multivariate models a higher AL index was associated with a 1.42 to 1.82 times higher likelihood of belonging to the MDD group. Furthermore, we found that high AL (i.e. AL ≥ 4) was associated with MDD, with the likelihood ranging between 2.27 and 2.96 compared with the non-depressed controls in multivariate models.Conclusions: Even young adult patients with MDD appear to display clinically significant, high AL compared with non-depressed controls. Thus, it is important to pay attention to the somatic health of depressed patients in addition to their mental health. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Trait-like sensitivity to stress in long QT syndrome patients has been documented previously. In addition, mental stress has been associated with symptomatic status of long QT syndrome. We examined whether the symptomatic type 1 long QT syndrome patients would be more sensitive to mental stress compared to asymptomatic patients and whether there would be differences in task-related physiological stress reactions between type 1 long QT syndrome patients and healthy individuals. The study population consisted of 21 symptomatic and 23 asymptomatic molecularly defined KCNQ1 mutation carriers, their 32 non-carrier relatives and 46 non-related healthy controls, with mean ages of 37, 39, 35 and 23 years, respectively. Electrocardiography was utilised to calculate inter-beat interval and high frequency and low frequency heart rate variability. Blood pressure was measured and mean arterial pressure and pulse pressure were calculated. Stress was induced using three different tasks: mental arithmetic, reaction time and public speech. Stress responses of symptomatic and asymptomatic type 1 long QT syndrome patients were not statistically different in any of the stress tasks. Short-term physiological stress reactivity of symptomatic type 1 long QT syndrome patients appears to be normal and does not enhance the risk assessment of asymptomatic mutation carriers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Supplemental digital content is available in the text. Purpose: Physical activity, sleep problems, and symptoms of depression contribute to overall well-being. The factors are reciprocally associated, but the nature of these associations remains unclear. The present study examined whether sleep problems mediated the association between physical activity and depressive symptoms. Methods: The eligible population (n = 3596) consisted of adults from the ongoing, population-based Cardiovascular Risk in Young Finns Study started in 1980. Participants' leisure-time physical activity was assessed with physical activity index (2007) and sleep problems with Jenkins' Sleep Questionnaire in 2007 and 2011. Depressive symptoms were measured using modified Beck Depression Inventory in 2007 and 2012, from which the items reflecting sleep problems were excluded. Mediation analyses, through which the associations between the variables were examined, were adjusted for sex and a set of health-related covariates assessed in 2007 and 2011. Results: Physical activity was associated with decreased levels of sleep problems and depressive symptoms (P < 0.05). The association between physical activity and depressive symptoms (b = −0.10, P < 0.01) was partly mediated by sleep problems (proportion mediated = 0.36, P < 0.01). The adjustment for depressive symptoms at baseline attenuated the mediation effect (proportion mediated = 0.30, P > 0.05). Conclusions: Physical activity's favorable contribution to depressive symptoms was mediated partly by sleep, but the mediation effect disappeared after adjusting for the previous depressive symptoms in adulthood. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Compassion is linked with individual well-being, but its early origins, especially in the context of caregiving, remain poorly understood. Using a cohort of 323 Finnish individuals followed prospectively from the age of 3 to the age of 35, we examined whether care arrangements at ages 3 and 6 are associated with dispositional compassion in adulthood. Participants' parents provided data on early child care arrangements (home care, family care, or center-based care), and dispositional compassion was self-reported when the participants were 20, 24, and 35 years old. Multilevel modeling was applied to examine the association between early care and compassion, adjusting for the correlation between repeated measures within participants and several potential confounders. Our results showed that care arrangements at age 6, but not at age 3, were independently predictive of compassion later in life. When joint effects of different care arrangements that covered both ages 3 and 6 were examined, above average scores on adulthood compassion were observed among participants in home care at age 3 and center-based care at age 6. Characteristics of early care appear to contribute to the development of compassion with effects that persist into adult life. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We examined the association of perfectionism with depressive symptoms and tested whether psychological detachment from work would both mediate and moderate the association. The participants were 76 primary school teachers (87% female) who responded to measures of perfectionism (Multidimensional Inventory on Perfectionism in Sports adapted for teachers), psychological detachment from work (The Recovery Experience Questionnaire), and depressive symptoms (Beck Depression Inventory-II). Perfectionism comprised both adaptive and maladaptive dimensions. Adaptive perfectionism referred to striving for perfection, whereas maladaptive perfectionism involved negative reactions to imperfection and perceived pressure to be perfect. According to our results, negative reactions to imperfection were associated with higher depressive symptoms, and lower level of psychological detachment from work played a minor mediating role in the association. There was, however, no association between negative reactions to imperfection and higher depressive symptoms when detachment from work was high. Our findings suggest that striving for perfection and perceived pressure to be perfect might not contribute to depressive symptoms in teaching. Instead, teachers experiencing negative reactions to imperfection and low psychological detachment from work could be at risk for developing depressive symptoms. Finding ways to psychologically detach from work may benefit teachers characterized by negative reactions to imperfection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: We examined associations between childhood temperamental activity, physical activity (PA), and television (TV) viewing over a 30-year period. Method: The participants (1220 boys and 1237 girls) were aged 3, 6, 9, and 12 years in 1980 and were followed until 2011. Temperamental activity was evaluated by participants' mothers at baseline. The PA was assessed based on maternal ratings of the child from ages 3 to 6 and via self-report age from the age of 9 across all measurements. TV viewing was assessed using self-reports taken from 2001 to 2011. The associations between temperamental activity and the level and change of PA and TV viewing were determined using linear growth modeling stratified by gender and age group. Results: High temperamental activity assessed from ages 9 to 12 was associated with high levels of childhood PA in both genders, but with a steeper decline in PA levels during the first 9 years of follow-up in boys. High temperamental activity assessed from ages 3 to 6 was associated with the decline of PA from childhood to youth in girls. High childhood temperamental activity was associated with decreased levels of PA in adulthood in men, but not in women. The associations between childhood temperamental activity and TV viewing during adulthood seemed to be positive but not consistently significant in all age and gender groups. Conclusion: High temperamental activity may contribute to the development of a physically inactive lifestyle. More evidence is needed with regard to gender differences among participants in similar study settings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sleep problems are common and impair the health and productivity of employees. Work characteristics constitute one possible cause of sleep problems, and sleeping poorly might influence wellbeing and performance at work. This study examines the reciprocal associations between sleep problems and psychosocial work characteristics. The participants were 1744 full-time employed individuals (56% women; mean age 38 years in 2007) from the Young Finns study who responded to questionnaires on work characteristics (conceptualised by the demand–control model and effort–reward imbalance model) and sleep problems (Jenkins Sleep Scale) in 2007 and 2012. Cross-lagged structural equation models are used to examine the associations. The results show that low control and low rewards at baseline predicted sleep problems. Baseline sleep problems predicted higher effort, higher effort–reward imbalance, and lower reward. Sleep problems also predicted lower odds for belonging to the low (rather than high) job strain group and active jobs group. The association between work characteristics and sleep problems appears to be reciprocal, with a stressful work environment increasing sleep problems, and sleep problems influencing future work characteristics. The results emphasise the importance of interventions aimed at both enhancing sleep quality and reducing psychosocial risks at work. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

There have been calls to know more about vulnerability factors that may predispose to adverse health outcomes at work. We examined if childhood adverse experiences would affect vulnerability to psychosocial stress factors at work. A nationally representative sample of 1546 Finnish men and women was followed up from childhood to adulthood. Childhood adverse experiences consisted of socioeconomic and emotional factors. Job demands and job control were measured 21 years later, and depressive symptoms were measured 21 and 27 years after the childhood measurements. Job demands predicted depressive symptoms over 6 years, and the association was modified by childhood emotional adversity. Participants with three or more emotional adversities in childhood had more depressive symptoms in response to high job demands compared with participants with zero or one emotional adversities in childhood (Betas = −1.40 and −2.01, ps < 0.05 and <0.01). No such moderating effect by childhood adverse experiences was found for the association between job control and depressive symptoms. Although modest in effect size, these findings provide a developmental viewpoint for understanding the role of childhood experiences in work‐related stress factors. Such knowledge can enhance understanding of individual differences in vulnerability to the demands of working life. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We used genome wide expression (GWE) data of circulating blood cells and pathway analysis to investigate the inflammatory and other molecular pathways that may be associated with long-standing depressive symptoms. Participants were 607 women and 316 men (mean age 42 years) from the Young Finns Study who participated in three consecutive study phases in 2001, 2007 and 2012. Using Gene-set enrichment analyses (GSEA) we focused our analyses to pathways (available in MSigDB database) that are likely to affect immunological and inflammatory processes. GSEA were performed for blood cell GWE data in 2012. Depressive symptoms were assessed using a modified 21-item Beck Depression Inventory in each of the three study phases. Participants who scored in the top quartile of depressive symptoms in each of the three measurement points (n = 191) differed from other participants (n = 732) in several gene–set pathways related to inflammatory processes or immune-inflammatory signaling including interleukin (IL-1) pathway, and pathways related to various immuno-inflammatory processes, such as toll-like, the NEF protein, the nuclear factor kB, the kinase AKT and the mature B cell antigen receptor pathway (false discovery rates, FDRs < 0.12). The results provide novel genome wide molecular evidence that support the association between chronic depressive symptoms and altered immune-inflammatory regulation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effect of acute mental stress on atherosclerosis can be estimated using arterial elasticity measured by carotid artery distensibility (Cdist). We examined the interactive effect of acute stress-induced cardiac reactivity and Cdist to preclinical atherosclerosis assessed by carotid intima-media thickness (IMT) in 58 healthy adults aged 24–39 years participated in the epidemiological Young Finns Study. Cdist and IMT were measured ultrasonographically. Impedance electrocardiography was used to measure acute mental stress-induced cardiac autonomic responses: heart rate (HR), respiratory sinus arrhythmia and pre-ejection period after the mental arithmetic and the public speaking tasks. Interactions between HR reactivity and Cdist in relation to preclinical atherosclerosis were found. The results imply that elevated HR reactivity to acute mental stress is related to less atherosclerosis among healthy participants with higher arterial elasticity. Possibly, increased cardiac reactivity in response to challenging tasks is an adaptive reaction related to better cardiovascular health. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

To study emotional distress in symptomatic and asymptomatic long QT syndrome mutation carriers who had experienced a recent stressful life event. The participants were 209 symptomatic and 279 asymptomatic long QT syndrome mutation carriers. Emotional distress was assessed with the Cope questionnaire and stressful life events with the Social Readjustment Rating Scale. Symptomatic long QT syndrome mutation carriers with burdening recent stressful life events reported a higher emotional distress (β = 0.35, p < 0.001), while the asymptomatic did not show such difference (β = 0.13, p = 0.393). Symptomatic long QT syndrome mutation carriers who have experienced stressful life events recently report an increased emotional distress. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Research on interventions improving psychological adjustment has suggested that sense of coherence (SOC) could be improved. Aims: In the present study, we measured the impact of an intervention on the SOC among adults with fi rst-episode depression. We also examined whether rehabilitation, depression, occupational stressors, life situation stressors and socio-demographic characteristics are associated with a change in the SOC. Methods: Occupational health care clients were screened for depression using the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) and a structured clinical interview (the The Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV: SCID-I). The participating subjects were randomized into a rehabilitation group (n = 134) and control group (n = 100) receiving treatment as usual. The Sense of Coherence Scale (SOC-13) was used at the baseline and in a 1-year follow-up to compare the change of the SOC between the groups. Results: The increase in the mean SOC score was statistically significant both in the rehabilitation group (54.91 compared with 62.85, P < 0.001) and in the control group (55.29 compared with 61.64, P < 0.001). There was no significant difference in the mean SOC scores between the groups at the follow-up. The improved SOC was associated with less severe depression (P = 0.003) and greater decreasing in BDI (P = 0.041) in the rehabilitation group. Conclusions: The results suggest that both rehabilitation and conventional depression treatment in a fi rst episode of depression may enhance the SOC and that rehabilitation itself enhances the SOC more effectively among those with less severe depression or those whose BDI scores had further decreased at the 1-year follow-up. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To examine the bidirectional relationship between job strain and cynicism. Methods: The study sample was obtained from the Young Finns study and comprised 757 participants (399 women, 53%). The bidirectional association between cynicism and job strain over a 6-year-follow-up was examined with a cross-lagged structural equation model, controlling for a number o f demographic variables. Results: High job strain (β = 0.08; P = 0.007) was associated with higher baseline-adjusted cynicism 6 years later. Nevertheless, cynicism was not associated with baseline-adjusted job strain. The additional analysis showed that cynicism mediated 21.5% of the relationship between job strain and depression. Conclusions: Perceptions of having a highly strenuous job may elicit mistrustful and cynical attitudes in employees, which in turn may lead to mental health problems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND: The American Heart Association has defined a new metric of ideal cardiovascular health as part of its 2020 Impact Goals. We examined whether psychosocial factors in youth predict ideal cardiovascular health in adulthood. METHODS AND RESULTS: Participants were 477 men and 612 women from the nationwide Cardiovascular Risk in Young Finns Study. Psychosocial factors were measured from cohorts 3 to 18 years of age at the baseline of the study, and ideal cardiovascular health was examined 27 years later in adulthood. The summary measure of psychosocial factors in youth comprised socioeconomic factors, emotional factors, parental health behaviors, stressful events, self-regulation of the child, and social adjustment of the child. There was a positive association between a higher number of favorable psychosocial factors in youth and greater ideal cardiovascular health index in adulthood ([beta]=0.16; P<0.001) that persisted after adjustment for age, sex, medication use, and cardiovascular risk factors in childhood ([beta]=0.15; P<0.001). The association was monotonic, suggesting that each increment in favorable psychosocial factors was associated with improvement in cardiovascular health. Of the specific psychosocial factors, a favorable socioeconomic environment ([beta]=0.12; P<0.001) and participants' self-regulatory behavior ([beta]=0.07; P=0.004) were the strongest predictors of ideal cardiovascular health in adulthood. CONCLUSIONS: The findings suggest a dose-response association between favorable psychosocial factors in youth and cardiovascular health in adulthood, as defined by the American Heart Association metrics. The effect seems to persist throughout the range of cardiovascular health, potentially shifting the population distribution of cardiovascular health rather than simply having effects in a high-risk population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background--The American Heart Association has denned a new metric of ideal cardiovascular health as part of its 2020 Impact Goals. We examined whether psychosocial factors in youth predict ideal cardiovascular health in adulthood. Methods and Results--Participants were 477 men and 612 women from the nationwide Cardiovascular Risk in Young Finns Study. Psychosocial factors were measured from cohorts 3 to 18 years of age at the baseline of the study, and ideal cardiovascular health was examined 27 years later in adulthood. The summary measure of psychosocial factors in youth comprised socioeconomic factors, emotional factors, parental health behaviors, stressful events, self-regulation of the child, and social adjustment of the child. There was a positive association between a higher number of favorable psychosocial factors in youth and greater ideal cardiovascular health index in adulthood (β=0.16;P<0.001) that persisted after adjustment for age, sex, medication use, and cardiovascular risk factors in childhood (β=0.15; P<0.001). The association was monotonic, suggesting that each increment in favorable psychosocial factors was associated with improvement in cardiovascular health. Of the specific psychosocial factors, a favorable socioeconomic environment (β=0.12;; P<0.001) and participants' self-regulatory behavior (β=0.7; P=0.004) were the strongest predictors of ideal cardiovascular health in adulthood. Conclusions--The findings suggest a dose-response association between favorable psychosocial factors in youth and cardiovascular health in adulthood, as denned by the American Heart Association metrics. The effect seems to persist throughout the range of cardiovascular health, potentially shifting the population distribution of cardiovascular health rather than simply having effects in a high-risk population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Temperament characteristics have been suggested to be associated with mental health outcomes, especially depression, but the direction of the association is unknown. In this study, we tested whether temperament characteristics, as defined by the Buss–Plomin adulthood emotionality–activity–sociability (EAS) temperament model, predict depressive symptoms or whether depressive symptoms predict changes in temperament characteristics. Methods Participants comprised a population-based sample of 719 men and 1020 women from the Young Finns study aged 20–35 years at baseline in 1997 and who responded to repeated surveys of temperament and depressive symptoms in four study phases from 1997 to 2012. The associations were tested using linear regression models, repeated cross-lagged structural equation models, parallel latent growth curve models and two-dimensional continuous-time state space model (Exact Discrete Model). Results Both low sociability ( β =−0.12, p <0.001) and high negative emotionality ( β =0.34, p <0.001) predicted subsequent increased depressive symptoms, whereas earlier depressive symptoms predicted increased negative emotionality ( β =0.50, p <0.001), but not low sociability. Limitations The depressive symptoms scale applied may not be used for measuring clinically recognized depression. Conclusions Our findings suggest that the direction of the association is from low sociability to depressive symptoms rather than the reverse, but the association between negative emotionality and depressive symptoms seems to be reciprocal. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Although previous studies have associated physical activity (PA) with lower depressive symptoms, the combined effects of the (1) frequency, (2) intensity, and (3) duration of long-term PA have not been examined in detail. Purpose: We examined the dose-response association between changes in frequency, intensity, and duration of PA and depressive symptoms in men and women over 6 years. Methods: Participants comprised 1,959 healthy adults (833 men and 1,126 women), aged 24-39 years in 2001, drawn from the ongoing Young Finns Study. PA was assessed using a self-report questionnaire completed in connection with a medical examination in 2001 and 2007. Depressive symptoms were simultaneously assessed using a modified version of Beck's Depression Inventory in both phases. Results: High doses of PA at baseline were prospectively associated with fewer depressive symptoms in men, while moderate doses of PA at baseline were inversely associated with the prevalence of depressive symptoms in women. Associations between baseline PA and depressive symptom changes were mediated by social and health-related factors which differed between men and women. Long-term participation in regular PA in all dimensions remained remarkably stable (all p < 0.001). Compared to those who remained inactive, the persistently active participants in all dimensions, with the exception of women's intensity group, were more likely to show decreases in depressive symptoms independent of the included confounders. An increase in PA in certain groups was also independently associated with fewer depressive symptoms, particularly in women. Conclusions: Regular and persistent participation in different doses of PA may provide short-term and long-term beneficial effects on depressive symptom changes. The results imply that the moderate to high doses of PA may serve as a buffer against depression in early midlife. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We studied the developmental trends of temperament and character in a longitudinal population-based sample of Finnish men and women aged 20–45 years using the Temperament and Character Inventory model of personality. Personality was assessed in 1997, 2001, and 2007 (n = 2,104, 2,095, and 2,056, respectively). Mean-level changes demonstrated qualitatively distinct developmental patterns for character (self-directedness, cooperativeness, and self-transcendence) and temperament (novelty seeking, harm avoidance, reward dependence, and persistence). Character developed toward greater maturity, although self-transcendence decreased with age. However, self-transcendence was the strongest predictor of overall personality change. Cohort effects indicated lower level of self-transcendence and higher level of self-directedness and cooperativeness in younger birth cohorts. Regarding temperament, novelty seeking decreased and persistence increased slightly with age. Both high novelty seeking and high persistence predicted overall personality change. These findings suggest that temperament and character traits follow different kinds of developmental trajectories. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The long QT syndrome (LQTS) is an inherited cardiac disorder that predisposes the mutation carrier to ventricular arrhythmias that can lead to sudden death. The objective of the present study was to replicate the previous finding in terms of stress-related temperament trait, i.e. behavioural inhibition system (BIS). The study subjects included 583 LQTS mutation carriers (256 symptomatic and 327 asymptomatic) from the Finnish LQTS registry and 79 healthy subjects randomly derived from the population-based sample of the Young Finns Study. Symptomatic and asymptomatic LQTS mutation carriers did not differ from each other on BIS (3.27 versus 3.24, p > 0.05), whereas LQTS mutation carriers scored higher on BIS than the comparison group derived from the representative population-based sample (3.25 versus 2.99, p = 0.003, η² = 0.014). BIS was significantly higher in women than in men (3.32 versus 3.06, p < 0.001, η² = 0.017). The results confirm our previous finding of higher stress proneness of LQTS mutation carriers. Their innate stress proneness may have relevance because it increases our understanding on the role of stress in the manifestation of symptoms. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Objective: Personality is a potential factor determining individual differences in body-weight change. The current study examines associations between personality traits and change in body-mass index (BMI) over six years. Method: The participants were 762 women and 648 men aged 24–39years at the base-line. Personality was assessed with the Temperament and Character Inventory (TCI). For calculating BMI, height and weight were assessed at a clinic. Results: Longitudinal analyses conducted with linear regressions showed that in men and women, higher Novelty seeking predicted higher BMI (p<.05), whereas lower Reward dependence predicted higher BMI in women (p<.05) when baseline BMI was taken into account. In addition, cross-sectional associations for several TCI traits were found in age and education adjusted analyses. In women, higher Self transcendence (p<.05) was associated with higher BMI. In men, higher Novelty seeking (p<.001) and Self transcendence (p<.01) and lower Self directedness (p<.01) and Cooperativeness (p<.05) were associated with higher BMI. In addition, analyses of variance were conducted for multidimensional trait profiles (trait combinations). Significant temperament profile related differences in BMI were found in all analyses in women. Associations with character profiles and in men were less consistent. Conclusion: The results give support for personality playing a role in weight gain. Knowledge on personality may be used for motivating weight loss and designing weight management interventions. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The current study examines associations between self- and teacher-rated temperament traits (activity, inhibition, negative emotionality, persistence, distractibility, and mood) and mathematics grades. The sample includes 310 ninth grade students (mean age 15.0) from several schools in Finland. Analyses were conducted with multilevel modeling. Except for mood, all temperament traits were associated with math grades independent of motivation and standardized cognitive ability test performance (intelligence). However, some relations were found only for teacher-reports and some only for student-reports. The rater dependent differences are of interest and emphasize a need for data from multiple raters before drawing conclusions on how temperament relates to school grades. The results suggest that temperament should be taken into account in schooling and in teacher education. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: We examined two alternative hypotheses on the association between low socioeconomic status (SES) and depressive symptoms: social causation and health selection. The latent growth curve (LGC) approach was used to examine trajectories of change in depressive symptoms over a period of 15 years in a dataset (the Young Finns study) consisting of a nationally representative sample of adolescents and young adults (n = 1613). Depressive symptoms were examined at four examination phases between 1992 and 2007. SES was measured as parental SES childhood (baseline of the study in 1980) and as the participants own SES in 2007 when the participants had reached adulthood and were between 30 and 45 years of age. The level of depressive symptoms was associated (r = −.14) with a slower decrease in symptoms during follow-up. Lower age, male gender, higher parental occupational grade but not parental income and lower negative emotionality in childhood were associated with a lower level of depressive symptoms. Higher age was also associated with a slower decrease in depressive symptoms. A lower level of depression and faster decrease in depressive symptoms were associated with a higher socioeconomic position in adulthood. A similar pattern was found in the relationship between the level of depression and income in adulthood. We concluded that the effect of childhood SES on depressive symptoms diminishes over time, but a higher level of, and especially faster decline of, depressive symptoms predicts the adulthood occupational SES gradient. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The article offers information on a study concerning the effects of leisure-time physical activities (LTPA) on job strain and depressive symptoms. The population study included an equal number of boys and girls living in Eastern and Western Finland. It was concluded that depressive symptoms are inversely associated with regular LTPA and directly associated with chronic job strain in both sexes.