Ecological systems contributors to internalizing symptoms in a national sample of adolescents during the COVID-19 pandemic

Internalizing problems are common in adolescence and increased substantially during the COVID-19 pandemic. Leveraging data from a U.S. nationally diverse sample of 2,954 adolescents (ages 13-16), we examined the associations between factors at multiple levels of youths’ ecologies – spanning indicators of threat and deprivation – and their depression and anxiety symptoms during the COVID-19 pandemic. Furthermore, we examined how these associations differed by adolescents’ racial/ethnic groups. Consistent with socio-ecological models, we found that indicators of threat and deprivation at the adolescents’ immediate home, and more distal neighborhood environments were associated with their depression and anxiety symptoms. The patterns of associations were similar across racial/ethnic groups in multigroup structural equation models. Additionally, we found that mean levels of internalizing symptoms and socio-ecological predictors significantly differed across racial/ethnic groups. These findings have important implications for understanding multi-level contributors to mental health among adolescents which may inform research, practice, and policy.

»Jaz sem 16 % Madžar in 50 % Slovenec in 80 % Anglež.« Jezikovni portreti petošolcev na narodnostno mešanih območjih

In this article, which originated as part of the project “Jeziki štejejo” (Languages matter), we discuss the differences in perception of individual languages, expressed through language portraits created by fifth-grade elementary school students. Special attention was paid to the comparison of portraits between pupils in nationally diverse regions (Slovenian Istria and Prekmurje) and pupils in other parts of the country. The results of quantitative analysis of these language portraits reveal statistically relevant differences with regard to the school model. Differences were particularly evident in the choice of marked languages and the position of each individual language in the language portraits.

National longitudinal evidence for growth in subjective well-being from spiritual beliefs

Previous research finds an association between spirituality and subjective well-being. However, the widespread use of poorly defined concepts of spirituality, tautological spirituality scales, and heavy reliance on cross-sectional samples cast doubts on prior findings. Here, we leverage ten waves of panel data from a nationally diverse longitudinal study to systematically test whether having spiritual beliefs leads to growth in personal well-being and life satisfaction ( N = 3257, New Zealand, 2010–2020). Contrary to previous research, we find that belief in a spirit or life force predicts lower personal well-being and life satisfaction. However, in support of previous speculation, belief (relative to disbelief) in a spirit or life force predicts increasing personal well-being and life satisfaction over time. These findings are robust even while accounting for known demographic influences; they even hold among those who believe in a God but disbelieve in a spirit or life force. The recent growth in spiritual beliefs and decline in traditional religion across many industrial societies motivates further causal investigations of the mechanisms by which spiritual beliefs lead to growth in subjective well-being.

No, Face Masks Aren’t Dehumanizing

Wearing facial coverings has become a key element in the fight against COVID-19. However, deep partisan divisions have arisen over the adoption of face masks, with Democrats more supportive than Republicans in the United States. Among opponents, a common argument is that facial coverings serve to dehumanize the wearer. Using an experimental study, I find no evidence, using a nationally diverse US sample, that face masks are dehumanizing, whether worn by a White or Black person. In addition, I test for moderation by partisanship, which shows a lack of dehumanizing effects and provides some suggestive evidence that face masks can humanize the wearer, for Democrats, though these effects are small. Under no circumstances do I find evidence that face masks dehumanize the wearer, even among Republican respondents.

Clinical features of DDX41 mutation-related diseases: a systematic review with individual patient data

Background: DDX41 serves as a DNA sensor in innate immunity and mutated DDX41 is pathogenic, mainly for myeloid neoplasms. Methods: In this study, “ DDX41” was searched in PubMed and Web of Science between 1 January 2015 and 29 April 2021 with individual-patient data seeking. A meta-analysis was not valid here due to the absence of a large dataset. Thirty articles were finally included in the qualitative analysis and 277 patients from 20 studies without overlap were involved in the quantitative summary. Results: Pooled incidence was 3.3% (95% confidence interval 2.4–4.2%) of unselected myeloid neoplasms. Patients with hematologic disorders harboring mutated DDX41 were featured as 80% males, median 66 (20–88) years old at diagnosis, 75% acute myeloid leukemia (AML) or myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS), 64% with normal karyotype. Eighty-five percent of patients had germline variants which were nationally diverse and more of frameshift type, whereas 64% of patients had somatic DDX41 variants where p.R525H and missense dominated. ASXL1 and TP53 were the top frequent concomitant somatic mutations. Therapeutically, 70% overall response rate was obtained of hypomethylating agents in MDS, 96% complete remission of chemotherapy in AML, and 8% of relapse in hematopoietic stem cell transplant. Neither overall survival nor progression-free survival could be summed. Conclusions: Several significant clinical differences were observed in different diagnosis groups, familial and sporadic cases, and p.R525H compared with other somatic variants. In conclusion, myeloid neoplasms carrying DDX41 mutations were mainly older, male, MDS, and AML patients who had promising responses to treatment. Both germline and somatic DDX41 variants possessed unique characteristics and groups of interest presented certain differences worth further research. (CRD42021228886)

America’s electorate is increasingly polarized along partisan lines about voting by mail during the COVID-19 crisis

Are voters as polarized as political leaders when it comes to their preferences about how to cast their ballots in November 2020 and their policy positions on how elections should be run in light of the COVID-19 outbreak? Prior research has shown little party divide on voting by mail, with nearly equal percentages of voters in both parties choosing to vote this way where it is an option. Has a divide opened up this year in how voters aligned with the Democratic and Republican parties prefer to cast a ballot? We address these questions with two nationally diverse, online surveys fielded from April 8 to 10 and June 11 to 13, of 5,612 and 5,818 eligible voters, respectively, with an embedded experiment providing treated respondents with scientific projections about the COVID-19 outbreak. We find a nearly 10 percentage point difference between Democrats and Republicans in their preference for voting by mail in April, which had doubled in size to nearly 20 percentage points in June. This partisan gap is wider still for those exposed to scientific projections about the pandemic. We also find that support for national legislation requiring states to offer no-excuse absentee ballots has emerged as an increasingly polarized issue.

Crime News Effects and Democratic Accountability: Experimental Evidence From Repeated Exposure in a Multiweek Online Panel

Publics hold chief executives uniquely responsible for national well-being, and they learn about national conditions through news. But when news disproportionately covers problems, what happens to democratic accountability? Here, we experimentally test how leader approval changes when crime loses prominence in news for a sustained period. We create an online news environment coding real news in real time, then experimentally filter news for nationally diverse U.S. panelists over 1 week. We find causal evidence that reducing crime news raises presidential approval and depresses problem importance evaluations for crime. No other leaders are credited, and reducing all problems produces no further gains. These effects persist well after exposure but dissipate within a week. We conclude with broad implications for journalism and democratic judgment.