Open Access
Inflammation in COVID-19 and the effects of non-pharmacological interventions during the pandemic: a review
(MDPI, 2022) Clemente Suárez, Vicente Javier; Bustamante Sanchez, Álvaro; Tornero Aguilera, José Francisco; Ruisoto Palomera, Pablo; Mielgo Ayuso, Juan; Ciencias de la Salud; Osasun Zientziak
Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) caused the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic that hit the health systems worldwide hard, causing a collapse of healthcare systems. One of the main problems of this new virus is the high inflammatory response it provokes, which is the cause of much of the symptoms. Different pharmacological approaches tried to stop the advance of the pandemic, but it seems that only vaccines are the solution. In this line, different nonpharmacological approaches have been made in order to improve symptomatology, contagion, and spread of COVID-19, the principal factors being the physical activity, nutrition, physiotherapy, psychology, and life patterns. The SARS-CoV-2 virus produces a disproportionate inflammatory response in the organism of the guest and causes complications in this that can end the life of the patient. It has been possible to see how different nonpharmacological interventions based on physical activity, nutritional, psychological, and physical therapy, and lifestyle changes can be functional tools to treat this inflammation. Thus, in the present review, we aim to provide an overview of the role of inflammation in COVID-19 and the nonpharmacological interventions related to it.
Open Access
Psychophysiological and psychosocial profile of patients attending drug addiction centers
(Springer, 2021) Clemente Suárez, Vicente Javier; Ruisoto Palomera, Pablo; Isorna-Folgar, Manuel; Cancelo-Martínez, Jesús; Beltrán Velasco, Ana Isabel; Tornero Aguilera, José Francisco; Ciencias de la Salud; Osasun Zientziak
Drug treatment centres provide the highest level of rehab services for patients diagnosed with drug addictions. Most inpatient drug rehab programs focus on medical detox and mental health interventions. However, how to optimize the later remains a challenge. The aim of this study was to examine the psychophysiological and psychosocial profile of patients attending drug addiction centres in comparation with the general population. A total of 105 inpatient drug rehab patients and 50 participants from the general population were compared based on standardized psychophysiological and psychosocial measures. Results of this study suggest that patients attending drug addiction centers differ from general population in several different psychophysiological and psychosocial factors. Patients reported significantly lower levels of physical activity and increased sympathetic responsiveness, and significantly higher levels in loneliness, psychologically inflexibility and neuroticism. The results of this study highlight the importance of address healthy lifestyle behaviors such as sport practice and psychological variables such as loneliness, psychological (in)flexibility and neuroticism to improve current programs aim to prevent or reduce problematic drug consumptions.
Open Access
Gender differences in risk factors for Stice’s bulimia in a non-clinical sample
(Cambridge University Press, 2015) Ruisoto Palomera, Pablo; Cacho Fernández, Raúl; López-Goñi, José Javier; Real Deus, José Eulogio; Vaca Gallegos, Silvia; Mayoral, Paula; Psicología y Pedagogía; Psikologia eta Pedagogia
Some females are at an increased risk of developing bulimia. However, etiological factors and their interplay remain controversial. The present study analyzed Stice’s Model for eating disorders in a non-clinical population by examining gender differences with respect to the following risk factors: body mass index (BMI), body dissatisfaction, perceived social pressure to be thin, body-thin internalization, and dieting behavior. A sample of 162 American college students (64 males and 91 females) was surveyed, and validated scales were used. The Stice’s model was tested using Structural Equation Modeling. Our results supported Stice’s Dual Pathway Model of bulimic pathology for females but not for males. The results of this study fail to support the role of BMI as a predictor of dietary restraint in females, the main risk factor of eating disorders. Males may abstain from dietary restraint to gain muscular volume and in turn increase their BMI. Implications are discussed.
Open Access
Editorial: Psychophysiology of stress
(Frontiers Media, 2022) Clemente Suárez, Vicente Javier; Nikolaidis, Pantelis T.; Knechtle, Beat; Ruisoto Palomera, Pablo; Ciencias de la Salud; Osasun Zientziak
Stress is a multifactorial complex phenomenon where organic resources are mobilized to deal with a real or perceived threat (Cohen et al., 1983). The stress response is one of the most important phylogenetic coping mechanisms that have allowed humans to successfully adapt to highly demanding and potentially dangerous contexts (Hadany et al., 2006; Korzan and Summers, 2021). The intrinsic neurobiological mechanisms involved in the stress response have not changed much in the last stages of the evolution of the human being, prominently including the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenocortical axis and the autonomic nervous system (Ulrich-Lai and Herman, 2009;McEwen et al., 2015; Cohen et al., 2016). In contrast, our social context has changed dramatically recently in evolutionary terms.
Open Access
The distinctive role of grounded optimism and resilience for predicting burnout and work engagement: a study in professional caregivers of older adults
(Elsevier, 2022) Nieto-Carracedo, Ana; Contador Castillo, Israel; Palenzuela, David L.; Ruisoto Palomera, Pablo; Ramos, Francisco; Fernández-Calvo, Bernardino; Ciencias de la Salud; Osasun Zientziak
Background: Resilience and optimism have been proposed as psychological resources which may help to cope better with work demands, preventing negative consequences of stress, whereas external locus of control (ELC) is considered an intra-psychic vulnerability factor associated with increased burnout. Noteworthy, the specific role of these overlapping constructs on the prevention of burnout and promotion of work engagement, respectively, remains unclear. Objective: The main aim of this study was to compare the differential significance of resilience and optimism, joined with ELC, on the prediction of burnout and work engagement. Method: A sample of 265 professional caregivers of dependent older adults was assessed using an extensive standardized protocol. Optimism and ELC were measured using the Palenzuela's Battery of Generalised Expectancies of Control, and the Connor-Davidson Scale was used to estimate resilience. Moreover, the Maslach Burnout Inventory and the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale were used to measure burnout and work engagement, respectively. Different hierarchical regression models were conducted with burnout and work engagement as dependent factors. Results: The results showed that more than half (51%) variance in resilience was accounted by grounded optimism scores. The ELC was the main explanatory factor of burnout, whereas optimism and resilience were the best predictors of work engagement. Finally, even after controlling the effect of resilience, the effect of optimism remained significant for predicting work engagement. Conclusions: These findings support distinctive role resilience and optimism, two closely related psychological constructs, for promoting work engagement and reducing burnout in professional caregivers of older adults.
Open Access
Modification in psychophysiological stress parameters of soldiers after an integral operative training prior to a real mission
(MDPI, 2022) Bellido-Esteban, Alberto; Ruisoto Palomera, Pablo; Tornero Aguilera, José Francisco; Clemente Suárez, Vicente Javier; Ciencias de la Salud; Osasun Zientziak; Universidad Pública de Navarra / Nafarroako Unibertsitate Publikoa
Background. Military personel could be defined as 'Tactical Athletes'. However, experimental evidence about the effects of new HIIT trainings in comparison with traditional training schedules is lacking. The aim of this study was to experimentally analyze the modifications on psychophysiological and performance response of soldiers after completing experimental integral operative training. Methods. A total of 43 male subjects of a special unit force of the Spanish armed forces were randomly selected and assigned into the experimental and control groups assessed after training and after deploying in a real operation area. The experimental group underwent an integral operative pre-mission 6-week training (IOT), and the control group, the 6-week traditional training. Results. HIIT-based integral operative training significantly improved combat performance (melee combat score) and the psychophysiological stress response, as measured by heart rate variability indexes. (4) Conclusion. This study provides experimental evidence supporting a new integral operative effective for improved autonomic regulation, reduced perceived stress, melee and close-quarter combat techniques, in addition to aerobic and anaerobic performance and lower body strength in comparison with the traditional training.
Open Access
Prevention of alcohol consumption programs for children and youth: a narrative and critical review of recent publications
(Health Psychology, 2022) Sánchez Puertas, Rafael; Vaca Gallegos, Silvia; López Núñez, Carla; Ruisoto Palomera, Pablo; Ciencias de la Salud; Osasun Zientziak; Universidad Pública de Navarra / Nafarroako Unibertsitate Publikoa
Background: youth substance use is a public health problem globally, where alcohol is one of the drugs most consumed by children, and youth prevention is the best intervention for drug abuse. Objective: review the latest evidence of alcohol use prevention programs in empirical research, oriented to all fields of action among children and youth. Methods: a narrative and critical review was carried out within international databases (PsychInfo, Pubmed, Web of Science, and Scopus) in August 2021 and was limited to empirical studies that appeared in the last five years (2017-2021). A flow diagram was used according to the PRISMA statements. Empirical research articles in English with RCTs and quasi-experimental design that included alcohol, children, and young people up to 19 years of age (universal, selective, or indicated programs) were included. The authors examined the results and conceptual frameworks of the Prevention programs by fields of action. Results: twenty-two articles were found from four fields of action: school (16), family (2), community (2), and web-based (2), representing 16 alcohol prevention programs. School-based alcohol prevention programs are clinically relevant [Theory of Planned Behavior, Refuse, Remove, Reasons, Preventure, The GOOD Life, Mantente REAL, Motivational Interviewing (BIMI), Primavera, Fresh Start, Bridges/Puentes], they are effective in increasing attitudes and intentions toward alcohol prevention behavior, while decreasing social norms and acceptance of alcohol, reducing intoxication, and increasing perceptions with regards to the negative consequences of drinking. Discussion: This narrative and critical review provides an updated synthesis of the evidence for prevention programs in the school, family, community, and web-based fields of action, where a more significant number of programs exist that are applied within schools and for which would have greater clinical relevance. However, the prevention programs utilized in the other fields of action require further investigation.
Open Access
Psychological inflexibility and loneliness mediate the impact of stress on anxiety and depression symptoms in healthcare students and early-career professionals during COVID-19
(Frontiers Media, 2021) Bonilla-Sierra, Patricia; Manrique-G., Alexis; Hidalgo-Andrade, Paula; Ruisoto Palomera, Pablo; Ciencias de la Salud; Osasun Zientziak
Background: the current mental health state of healthcare professionals and students during the COVID-19 pandemic in Ecuador remains understudied and how to improve their mental health is a challenge. Objective: this study aimed to explore the anxiety and depressive symptomatology among healthcare students and professionals in Ecuador and to examine the role of psychological inflexibility, loneliness, and psychological stress as predictors of anxiety and depression symptoms. Methods: a total of 191 undergraduate and graduate healthcare students in clinical practice (early-career healthcare professionals) in Ecuador were surveyed between January and March 2021 using standardized measures of psychological stress (PSS), psychological inflexibility (AAQ), loneliness (UCLA), alcohol consumption (AUDIT-C), and anxiety and depressive symptomatology (PHQ). Macro Process for SPSS (models 4 and 7) were used to test mediation effects. Results: alcohol consumption varied between men and women and anxiety and depression symptomatology was generally low among the sample. Psychological inflexibility and loneliness mediated the impact of stress on anxiety and depressive mood in participants, regardless of gender and previous personal history of COVID-19. Discussion: implications of psychological inflexibility and the prevention and coping with stress in healthcare professionals during COVID-19 are further discussed.
Open Access
Alcohol consumption in university professors: the role of stress and gender
(2018) Ruisoto Palomera, Pablo; Vaca Gallegos, Silvia; López-Goñi, José Javier; Cacho Fernández, Raúl; Fernández Suárez, Iván; Ciencias de la Salud; Osasun Zientziak
The role of job satisfaction and other psychosocial variables in problematic alcohol consumption within professional settings remains understudied. The aim of this study is to assess the level of problematic alcohol consumption among male and female university professors and associated psychosocial variables. A total of 360 professors (183 men and 177 women) of a large private university in Ecuador were surveyed using standardized instruments for the following psychosocial measures: alcohol consumption, job satisfaction, psychological stress, psychological flexibility, social support and resilience. Problematic alcohol consumption was found in 13.1% of participants, although this was significantly higher (χ2 = 15.6; d.f. = 2, p < 0.001) in men (19.1%) than women (6.8%). Problematic alcohol consumption was reported in men with higher perceived stress and job satisfaction. However, 83.3% of women with problematic alcohol use reported lower job satisfaction and higher psychological inflexibility. Results suggest that job satisfaction itself did not prevent problematic alcohol consumption in men; stress was associated with problematic consumption in men and psychological inflexibility in women. Findings from this study support the need to assess aspects of alcohol consumption and problematic behavior differently among men and women. Intervention strategies aimed at preventing or reducing problematic alcohol consumption in university professors must be different for men and women.
Open Access
Anatomy of educational innovations based on learning by discovery in higher education
(Consejo General de la Psicología de España, 2024) Ruisoto Palomera, Pablo; Contador Castillo, Israel; Quintero, Esperanza; López-García, Juan Carlos; Álvarez-Díaz, Beatriz; Cacho Fernández, Raúl; Fernández-Calvo, Bernardino; Ciencias de la Salud; Osasun Zientziak; Institute for Advanced Social Research - ICOMMUNITAS
El objetivo de este trabajo es examinar las innovaciones docentes derivadas del Plan Bolonia, centrando la atención en el aprendizaje basado en problemas y la gamificación, que resaltan la importancia del aprendizaje por descubrimiento o autónomo. Se analizan metaanálisis y artículos prominentes en ¿Education¿ and ¿Educational Research¿ de los últimos 5 años. Utilizando un símil biomédico, se identifican los principios activos de las innovaciones basadas en aprendizaje por descubrimiento, destacando la subordinación de contenidos teóricos a competencias prácticas y la ruptura del binomio docente-estudiante. Se señalan efectos adversos como la devaluación de clases magistrales, desacreditación de la autoridad docente y la infantilización de estudiantes. Diferentes estudios indican que la eficacia del aprendizaje por descubrimiento en la educación superior es débil e inconsistente. Por tanto, se aboga por la prudencia en su implementación y la preservación de la función social universitaria para transmitir conocimiento a niveles superiores.