Health psychology : official journal of the Division of Health Psychology, American Psychological Association
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This study investigated factors related to health care utilization (HCU) among patients presenting to pediatric cardiologists with symptoms of chest pain later diagnosed as noncardiac chest pain (NCCP). ⋯ Psychological factors are related to HCU for children with NCCP, with depression positively associated with HCU. The child's sex plays an important role in depression and HCU. Family-focused psychological screening of pediatric patients with NCCP may aid in identifying families who may benefit from referrals for psychological assessment and treatment.
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Strategic self-presentation (SSP) is rooted in cognitive dissonance and self-perception theories, and holds that when a person presents him/herself as having certain attributes and publicly commits to having these attributes, then he or she may then begin to behave consistently with that presentation. SSP principles were integrated into an interdisciplinary chronic pain program to test whether self-presentation as a "good coper" made in a public context would increase pre- to posttreatment gains on measures of pain severity, interference, activity level, depression, pain self-efficacy, and coping. ⋯ Results imply that publicly committing to coping well with chronic pain enhances adjustment to pain relative to other commitment conditions.
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Very little research has been conducted that examines men, sport, masculinities, and disability in the context of health. Readdressing this absence, this article examines the health narratives told by spinal injured men and the work narratives do on, in, and for them. ⋯ The article advances knowledge by revealing the emergent narrative of health. It reveals too for the first time the way certain contexts and masculine identities create a new subject of health that cares about doing health work, but not too much. Building on the theoretical knowledge advanced here, this article contributes to practical understandings of men's health and disability by highlighting the potential of narrative for changing human lives and behavior.
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Health behaviors are important resources for the development and display of masculine identity. The aim of this mixed-method study was to examine how "masculine capital" is accrued via traditionally masculine behaviors and used to permit nonmasculine behavior. ⋯ The novel use of a gender-relations approach in this mixed-method study of young men and women expanded on earlier smaller scale studies of men and masculine capital. The findings add to understanding of the concept of "masculine capital" and suggest how it may aid efforts to better understand and improve young men's health. Young men's concerns about masculinity could be harnessed to encourage healthy "masculine" behavior. However, such approaches may not be effective for men who eschew traditional definitions of masculinity. Furthermore, failure to question socially constructed definitions of gender may reinforce stereotypes that restrict men's and women's opportunities.