Depression, obesity and T2D are growing healthcare and societal burdens worldwide. Several studies showed that there are relationships between these burdens. T2D often coincides with depression and...Show moreDepression, obesity and T2D are growing healthcare and societal burdens worldwide. Several studies showed that there are relationships between these burdens. T2D often coincides with depression and vice versa, whereas elevated glucose levels can indicate T2D. Current study focuses on depressive mood, postprandial- and glucose levels. This cross-sectional cohort study utilized secondary, quantitative data from the Netherlands Epidemiology of Obesity (NEO) study (N = 6671), which included a meal challenge. The Inventory of Depressive Symptoms (IDS), was used to assess depressive mood. It was expected that depressive mood predicts elevated postprandial- and fasting glucose levels. Sex, BMI and Total Body Fat were expected to be moderators. Depressive mood significantly predicted elevated postprandial- and fasting glucose levels, before adding covariates other than age and sex. Sex, BMI and TBF all significantly moderated the associations between depressive mood and elevated postprandial- and fasting glucose. The effect of depressive mood on postprandial glucose, but not fasting glucose, was stronger in females than in males, with B = .017, p < .001 and B = 007, p < .001, respectively. Subjects with depressive mood are more at risk for developing IGM, IFG, and ultimately T2D. Women are more at risk than men, whereas excess weight also seems a risk factor for elevated glucose levels. It is suggested that future research focusses on the impact of confounding variables and depressive symptoms by itself, to more accurately study the effect of depression on IGM, IFG and T2D.Show less
As previous studies show a positive relationship between present time orientation and psychological well-being, the purpose of the current within-subjects study is to examine whether a present time...Show moreAs previous studies show a positive relationship between present time orientation and psychological well-being, the purpose of the current within-subjects study is to examine whether a present time orientation, and otherwise mindfulness, can be found in word use of suicidal musicians over time. Fewer words referring to the present, compared to the past and the future were expected. Moreover, a decrease in the use of present time words, and an increase in the use of past and future time words, closer to the moment of suicide, was expected. The different means of the time categories were calculated with the Linguistic Inquiry and Word Count (LIWC). The Wilcoxon Signed Rank Test was used to test for differences in these means. To test for change over time in the time categories, the Kendall’s Tau B correlation coefficients were used. Present time orientation (M = 8.449) had a mean greater than both the mean of past time orientation (M = 2.308) and the future time orientation (M = 1.500). Moreover, future time orientation had a mean greater than past time orientation. I found that these differences were statistically significant. There was a significant decrease in words referring to the past (τb = -.113, p = .005) and a non-significant decrease in words referring to the future (τb = -.071, p = .081). Lastly, there was a significant decrease in words referring to the present (τb = -.153, p < .001). The finding of a decrease in present time, and the finding of less words referring to the future, compared to the past, are in line with previous studies on this topic. It is concluded that fewer words referring to the future, compared to the past and present, and a decrease in present time words over time can be an indication of suicide risk.Show less
Deelnemers (N = 85) maakten de empathie vragenlijsten Questionnaire of Cognitive and Affective Empathy (QCAE) en de Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI). Daarnaast speelden zij een probabilistische...Show moreDeelnemers (N = 85) maakten de empathie vragenlijsten Questionnaire of Cognitive and Affective Empathy (QCAE) en de Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI). Daarnaast speelden zij een probabilistische leertaak waarin zij voor zichzelf, een vriend en een onbekende deelnemers leerden en een prijs konden winnen. Verwacht werd dat deelnemers over het algemeen beter zouden presteren voor zichzelf. De participanten die hoog scoorden op empathie zouden relatief beter presteerden voor een vriend en een onbekende ander dan de participanten die laag scoorden. Daarnaast werd verondersteld dat de eerder gevonden positieve correlatie tussen empathie en de cognitieve empathie subschaal van de QCAE: Online Simulation, gerepliceerd zou worden en dat dat affectieve empathie positief zou correleren met anoniem prosociaal gedrag. Uit de resultaten blijkt dat de deelnemers inderdaad beter presteren voor zichzelf dan een vriend of een onbekende ander. Er is geen significante correlatie gevonden met de Online Simulation subschaal en de leerprestaties voor een vriend en onbekende ander. Echter, er is een positieve correlatie gevonden tussen de cognitieve empathie subschaal van IRI: Perspective Taking, en de leerprestatie voor een onbekende ander. Tevens is een eenzijdig significante positieve correlatie gevonden tussen de totaalscore op de QCAE en de leerprestatie voor een onbekende ander. Hier wordt voorzichtig mee omgegaan. De resultaten van de huidige studie bevestigen dat men beter leert voor zichzelf en suggereren dat cognitieve empathie een rol speelt in anoniem prosociaal gedrag.Show less
Achtergrond: Professionals binnen de Geestelijke Gezondheidszorg in Nederland gebruiken Serious Games nog te weinig. Ondanks dat de effectiviteit van Serious Games gunstig blijken te zijn binnen de...Show moreAchtergrond: Professionals binnen de Geestelijke Gezondheidszorg in Nederland gebruiken Serious Games nog te weinig. Ondanks dat de effectiviteit van Serious Games gunstig blijken te zijn binnen de psychotherapie. Wat weerhoudt professionals om Serious Games in te zetten? Onderzocht werd wat de attitude was van de professionals ten opzichte van de belemmeringen voor henzelf of de cliënten in het gebruiken van Serious Games. Methode: Doormiddel van een online vragenlijst werden professionals binnen de Geestelijke Gezondheidszorg in Nederland, waarbij zij enige vorm van therapie geven aan cliënten, gevraagd naar hun attitudes omtrent Serious Games. Resultaten: Gebleken is dat bijna een kwart (23.3 procent) van de professionals Serious Games niet willen inzetten. De voornaamste reden hiervoor bleek het hebben van onvoldoende kennis in Serious Games en onvoldoende vertrouwen in de effectiviteit van Serious Games. Daarnaast weerhield het professionals om Serious Games te gebruiken voor cliënten met complexe problematieken. Conclusie/discussie: Omdat professionals aangeven te weinig kennis te hebben van Serious Games, wordt geadviseerd om trainingen te ontwerpen om professionals nog beter te informeren over het gebruik van Serious Games binnen de Geestelijke Gezondheidszorg in Nederland. Ook wordt geadviseerd nader onderzoek te doen naar de professionals met een negatieve attitude van Serious Games.Show less
Introduction: The aim of this study was to find out how to increase usage of serious games in mental healthcare through analyzing requirements for implementation of (former) patients. Methods: An...Show moreIntroduction: The aim of this study was to find out how to increase usage of serious games in mental healthcare through analyzing requirements for implementation of (former) patients. Methods: An online survey was conducted measuring (former) patients’ (n=82) attitudes towards usage of a serious game, requirements for implementation, and media usage. Attitude towards usage of a serious game groups, gender groups, and high and low frequency media usage groups were compared against each other on the requirements for implementation in categories of being necessary or not. All data was analyzed through a chi-square test in SPSS. Results: 75.6%(n=62) of the sample had a positive attitude towards the usage of a serious game. Patients with a positive attitude towards the usage of a serious game valued easy access and applicability(χ2 (1)=12.313, p<0.001), and entertainment of the game (χ2 (1)=5.22, p=.022) more than patients with a negative attitude towards the usage of a serious game. Women valued availability through insurance as significantly more necessary than men (χ2 (df(1)=5.838, p=.016). There were no differences between high and low media usage groups on their requirements for implementation. Discussion: Differences on requirements for implementation were found between genders, and patients with positive and negative attitudes towards usage of serious games. The main limitation of this study is that (former) patients were recruited through convenience sampling. Future studies should focus on experimenting whether implementing these requirements increase usage of a serious game in mental healthcare.Show less
Background: Despite increasing evidence for the effectiveness of Serious Games (SG), research and the implementation of such digital measures in mental health care lags behind. Insights into...Show moreBackground: Despite increasing evidence for the effectiveness of Serious Games (SG), research and the implementation of such digital measures in mental health care lags behind. Insights into attitudes and their influencing factors for professionals and clients of mental health care are assumed to facilitate the implementation and development of SG. Objective: This study aimed to gain a greater understanding of the attitudes of professionals and clients of mental health care towards SG and factors that influence (media usage, gaming experience) and moderate that relationship (age, gender). Method: A cross-sectional online survey with a quantitative study design was conducted with professionals (N = 166) and (former) clients of mental health care (N = 154). Two independent samples t-tests were conducted to study the influence of media usage and gaming experience on attitude towards SG, whereas four ANCOVAs were applied to examine the moderating effects of age and gender. Results: Media usage and gaming experience did not significantly influence the attitude towards SG in both samples. Also, age and gender did not significantly moderate the studied relationship. Conclusion: The factors media usage and gaming experience and the moderators age and gender do not contribute to a greater understanding of the attitude towards SG. Following these variables cannot facilitate the implementation and development of SG in mental health care. Based on the chosen sampling and measurement methods, the collected data was not considered representative of the studied population and statistical analysis were conducted with reduced power.Show less
Background: Serious games for mental health purposes is a young but rapidly growing concept, however, implementation in clinical practice lags behind. Knowing the characteristics and attitudes of...Show moreBackground: Serious games for mental health purposes is a young but rapidly growing concept, however, implementation in clinical practice lags behind. Knowing the characteristics and attitudes of the users, mental health professionals, will aid in seeking the optimal design and more efficient implementation. Objective: We wanted to gain more insight on what professionals want from the games, and if knowledge about games or practicing different therapeutic modalities is related to attitude on serious games. Method: We surveyed 123 MPHs via a cross-sectional online survey about technology usage, gaming knowledge, and attitudes towards serious games. Data were analysed using a t-test, chi-square test, exploratory factor analysis, and an ANOVA. Results: The results showed that overall interest to implement serious games with their own clients was high (75.6%), and perceived benefits outweighed perceived disadvantages, but current implementation rate was very low (.8%). The biggest reason for not wanting to use serious games was lack of knowledge (14.6%). Knowledge about gaming was significantly positively correlated to overall attitude, and with willingness to implement. There was no significant relationship between any specific therapeutic modality and the overall attitude towards serious games, which contradicts results from previous studies. Conclusion: Knowledge about games increases the attitude and willingness to try serious games with clients. Most mental health professionals reported to have beginner knowledge, thus educating them about (serious) gaming could help with implementation and adherence. More research is needed to map out why the professionals who are interested have not yet tried serious games. User-centred design (UCD) should be widely implemented when developing serious games for mental health purposes.Show less
