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BACKGROUND: The identification of potential high-risk groups for depression is of importance. The purpose of the present study was to identify high-risk profiles for depressive symptoms in older individuals, with a focus on functional performance.

METHODS: The population-based Healthy Ageing Initiative included 2,084 community-dwelling individuals (49% women) aged 70. Explorative cluster analysis was used to group participants according to functional performance level, using measures of basic mobility skills, gait variability, and grip strength. Intercluster differences in depressive symptoms (measured by the Geriatric Depression Scale [GDS]-15), physical activity (PA; measured objectively with the ActiGraph GT3X+), and a rich set of covariates were examined.

RESULTS: The cluster analysis yielded a seven-cluster solution. One potential high-risk cluster was identified, with overrepresentation of individuals with GDS scores >5 (15.1 vs. 2.7% expected; relative risk = 6.99, P < .001); the prevalence of depressive symptoms was significantly lower in the other clusters (all P < .01). The potential high-risk cluster had significant overrepresentations of obese individuals (39.7 vs. 17.4% expected) and those with type 2 diabetes (24.7 vs. 8.5% expected), and underrepresentation of individuals who fulfilled the World Health Organization's PA recommendations (15.6 vs. 59.1% expected; all P < .01), as well as low levels of functional performance.

CONCLUSIONS: The present study provided a potential high-risk profile for depressive symptoms among elderly community-dwelling individuals, which included low levels functional performance combined with low levels of PA. Including PA in medical screening of the elderly may aid in identification of potential high-risk individuals for depressive symptoms.

The present study evaluated the dimensionality, measurement invariance, and nomological network of the Need Satisfaction and Frustration Scale (NSFS) in a sample of Swedish workers. Using confirmatory factor analysis, exploratory structural equation modeling, and bifactor modeling, 30 different measurement models were evaluated cross-sectionally (n = 2123) and longitudinally (n = 1506). Measurement invariance was tested across gender and time. The nomological network of the NSFS was examined through its relations with life satisfaction and cognitive weariness. The findings supported a first-order six-factor ESEM model and measurement invariance of the Swedish version of the NSFS. Need satisfaction was positively related to life satisfaction and unrelated to cognitive weariness. Need frustration was negatively related to life satisfaction and positively related to cognitive weariness. The present study supported a six-factor structure of the Swedish NSFS, which appears suitable for assessing changes over time and gender differences in ratings.

Rationale: The overall objectives of this research were to study the relationships between the transfer from higher education to working life for psychologists and social workers. We were interested in early career experiences of emotional demands, ability to influence work, and professional isolation. Finally, we expected psychological flexibility to be an important buffer in the performance of human services work and therefore investigated its potential moderating effect.

Method: A postal survey was sent to 5213 psychologists and social workers in Sweden who had graduated within three years of the spring of 2017. There were 2514 respondents, and after exclusion criteria, a final sample consisted of 2224 participants (642 psychologists; 1582 social workers). The gender distribution shows that substantially fewer men participated.

Results: The results of hierarchical multiple regressions with emotional exhaustion and physical fatigue and cognitive weariness as outcome variables explained 34.5% and 35% respectively. Significant main effects were found for emotional demands, influence, professional isolation and work-related psychological flexibility (-.15 (p<.001) for emotional exhaustion and physical fatigue respective -.27 (p<.001) for cognitive weariness); there was no significant effect for age and profession or any interaction terms.

In a cluster analysis derived from perceived influence, professional isolation, and most recent transition, work-related psychological flexibility is one of the constructs which could distinguish between the different clusters.

Implications: Our preliminary results show that work-related psychological flexibility affects emotional exhaustion and physical fatigue and cognitive weariness. By increasing psychological flexibility, we can decrease emotional exhaustion, and in turn buffer against work-related stress.

Given previous findings on test enhanced learning, the present study examined the implementation of this practice in terms of quizzing, during the progress of a course. After completing the university course, 88 Swedish teacher students were asked to answer an adapted Retrieval Practice and Test Anxiety Survey. The results showed that students perceived quizzing to improve learning, and reduce test anxiety. Nonetheless, based on students’ misconceptions regarding why quizzing actually enhances learning, it is suggested that implications of test enhanced learning was not fully conveyed. It is for educational purpose imperative to not forget this application.

The focus of this paper falls on ‘new’ employees; more specifically, social workers who start their first position after their studies, and psychologists who start their first position after their one year of practical training, following completion of their studies. This work firstly makes the assumption that both social workers and psychologists are exposed to emotionally demanding situations in their work life – even from early on. Early on in a new chosen career may typically be the time when a new employee experiences the least ability to influence their work – for example whom they work with and what kinds of tasks they work on. Also, this may also very likely be the time such an employee feels most isolated from other professionals in the same occupation – One is typically employed for one’s unique skills, but works with other professionals, with different skills sets. Lastly, how successfully one perceives oneself to have transitioned from academic to professional life may be an influencing factor.

A postal survey was sent to 5213 (respondents=2514, not target group=103, response rate 49%) psychologists and social workers in Sweden who had graduated within three years of the spring of 2017. In the analysis, psychology students who had not yet reached independent registration as psychologist were also excluded (Final sample=2224: 642 psychologists; 1582 social workers)

The central hypothesis was that emotional demands, perceived influence at work, and experienced isolation at work may contribute to the burnout (as indicated by the dimensions of cognitive weariness and physical fatigue) of psychologists and social workers. The paper set out to investigate a regression model where work-related variables relates to two dimensions of burnout (physical fatigue and cognitive weariness). Work-related variables to consider were self-rated transition from studies to work, emotional demands, influence at work and professional isolation, and work-related psychological flexibility was considered as a moderator.

Regarding physical fatigue, the results (34% explained variance) show that females and younger employees scored higher. Working as a psychologist vs. as social worker was not a significant predictor. In terms of the independent variables, a successful transition between studies and work (self-rated), emotional demands, influence at work, isolation at work and psychological flexibility all made significant direct contributions to physical fatigue. No evidence of moderation was found.

Regarding cognitive weariness, the results (35% explained variance) show that females scored higher. Age, and whether employees were working as a psychologist vs. as a social worker were not significant. In terms of the independent variables, a successful transition between studies and work (self-rated), emotional demands, influence at work, isolation at work and psychological flexibility all made significant direct contributions to cognitive weariness. A test of interaction effect showed that there is a positive relationship between cognitive weariness and isolation at work, for individuals who also score low on psychological flexibility.

This thesis explores how dental students experience their education. We aim to generate ways to understand which elements relate to the students’ experience based on current theories and models regarding the quality of working life and gender (and) power relations.  

Methods Twelve interviews with Umeå dental students in their clinical semesters were analysed with a Grounded Theory (GT) as well as a content analysis approach. A web-survey was sent to all clinical dental students in Sweden (P ≈ 805) with a response rate of 40% (p = 322). The quantitative methods included structural equation modelling and cluster analysis.

Results The GT analysis resulted in the core category “Experiencing ambiguity,” that captured the student’s role-ambiguity. Central categories focused on perceived stress and performance assessment in relation to ambiguous inner and outer demands. The content analysis resulted in three categories: “Notions of inequalities,” “Gendering,” and “The student position.” These categories present the ways groups of students are constructed in relation to the student/dentist norm and social gender relations, and how women and men of foreign descent risk subordination and stereotyping. The SEM-model contained psychosocial work environment, tolerance for ambiguity, perceived stress, and student satisfaction. Work environment influenced both perceived stress and satisfaction, and stood for almost all of the explained variance in perceived stress for women, indicating that women are constructed as co-responsible for the work environment. About half of the variance for the men was explained by tolerance for ambiguity, indicating that the feeling of uncertainty may lead to stress in men who include “being in control” in their gender identity. The cluster analysis resulted in a six-cluster solution ranging from “The fresh and positive” to “The worn critiques.” Psychosocial work environment again appeared to be the main factor. Gender also appears to be a factor as the gender distribution in the best as well as the two worst clusters differs from the population.

Conclusion Work environment stands out among the factors that relate to the students wellbeing and satisfaction, but the student group is heterogeneous and the ways students perceive their work environment relate to different processes and experiences. We suggest that the ways gender and ethnicity appear to be constructed in relation to the sociocultural gender power relations and the (traditional) medical hierarchy could be of importance for how the students’ experience their psychosocial work environment.

Dental students are often described as stressed. The stress has, among other things, been connected to stressors in their psychosocial environment and inconsistent feedback. The hypothesis of this study was that the psychosocial work environment in dental schools leads to stress and affects the satisfaction of dental students and that tolerance for ambiguity shields students from stress. A web-based survey was sent to the entire Swedish dental student population in clinical training (N=805); the response rate was 40 percent. Structural equation modeling used in the analyses contains four main constructs: psychosocial work environment, tolerance for ambiguity, perceived stress, and student satisfaction (χ²=267.437, d.f.=174, p<0.001, Normed χ²=1.537, RMSEA= 0.041, CFI=0.98). Psychosocial work environment influenced both perceived stress and satisfaction: it accounted for almost all of the explained variance in perceived stress for women, while about half of the variance for the men was explained by tolerance for ambiguity. This study concluded that about 40 percent of the total perceived stress of these female dental students was related to their psychosocial work environment. Tolerance for ambiguity shielded men but not women from stress. An improved psychosocial work environment in dental schools would decrease the stress of both male and female dental students.