Do past and prospective adversities intersect? Distinct effects of cumulative adversity and the hostile-world scenario on functioning at later life

Lifshitz, Rinat; Ifrah, Kfir; Markovitz, Noam; Shmotkin, Dov

doi:10.1080/13607863.2019.1597014

Cited by 10 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 47 publications

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“…In any event, as HWS is significantly associated with SWB (e.g. Lifshitz, Ifrah, Markovitz, & Shmotkin, 2020), the technostress-HWS association found in this study supports previous research and the call to consider technostress a threat to wellbeing in later life (Nimrod, 2018).…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 87%

Technostress in a hostile world: older internet users before and during the COVID-19 pandemic

Nimrod

2020

Aging & Mental Health

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Objective: Older adults are largely ignored in studies of technostress (stress induced by Information and Communication Technology (ICT) use). This study aimed at exploring individual and contextual antecedents to technostress among older ICT users. Methods: Online surveys with ICT users aged 60 years and above were conducted in 2016 (N ¼ 537) and during the COVID-19 pandemic of 2020 (N ¼ 407), examining technostress level, internet use patterns and sociodemographic background. The 2020 survey also assessed a COVID-19-related Hostile World Scenario (HWS). Results: The two samples had very similar background characteristics, but participants in 2020 were more experienced and their internet use was significantly more diverse and intense than that of their predecessors. The factors predicting technostress in both samples were poorer health, fewer years of use, fewer hours of use per typical week and smaller use repertoire. The technostress level in 2020 was significantly higher than that of 2016-a finding explained by the COVID-19-related HWS. Conclusions: Individual antecedents hardly vary in the presence of significant contextual antecedents, but HWS may leave users with fewer resources to cope with the negative effects of technology use. Future research should explore additional contextual factors and interventions that may alleviate technostress among seniors.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 87%

Technostress in a hostile world: older internet users before and during the COVID-19 pandemic

Nimrod

2020

Aging & Mental Health

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“…The concept of the HWS is a dynamic construct whereby individuals may encounter HWS representations by either negative engagement (HWS-NE), marked by the sense of losing competence in the face of life adversities, or by positive engagement (HWS-PE), marked by the sense of gaining competence in the face of life adversities. Hence, both HWS-NE and HWS-PE are adaptive modes for scanning and appraising the potentiality and implications of critical threats for the individual (Shrira et al, 2011;Shmotkin et al, 2016;Lifshitz et al, 2020). In this regard, it is also important to note that while the items comprising the HWS in the current study may be linked to anxiety (HWS-NE) or resilience (HWS-PE), both HWS-NE and HWS-PE cannot be seen as merely a reflection of one's state of distress or personal inner strengths; Rather, the HWS mainly relates to existential human concerns, such as the potentially critical inflictions of vulnerability (illness, pain, loss of personal independence), victimization (to violence, collective disasters) and imminent death (of self and close ones).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The current HWS measure was specifically derived from the current dataset (for other HWS operationalizations, see Shrira et al, 2011;Shenkman and Shmotkin, 2013;Shrira, 2015;Shmotkin et al, 2016;Lifshitz et al, 2020). It included eight items that corresponded to the conceptualization of HWS-NE, namely, the weakening of the individual's competence because of the encounter with the HWS representations.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…When the HWS is activated in an adaptive manner, it assists the individual to remain vigilant and alert in his/her striving to remain safe. Thus, the HWS proved capable of detecting changes in physical and mental health occurring in the past recent years (Lifshitz et al, 2020) as well as predicting changes in similar health outcomes occurring in subsequent years (Shmotkin et al, 2016). However, individuals with extremely activated HWS may operate in a constant state of survival within a perceivably disastrous world.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The Moderating Role of the Hostile-World Scenario in the Connections Between COVID-19 Worries, Loneliness, and Anxiety

et al. 2021

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The COVID-19 pandemic has had pronounced effects on individuals' psychological well-being around the world. Concerns regarding the consequences of infection, as well as the general uncertainty and governmental regulations have resulted in increased psychological distress among many populations and cultures. In this regard, research has shown that the manner by which individuals perceive such large-scale threats and appraise them significantly contributes to the psychological consequences of such events. According to the Hostile-World Scenario (HWS) model, negative engagement (NE) with such threats weakens one's competence and coping abilities, whereas positive engagement (PE) facilitates resilience and enhances psychological adjustment. Accordingly, the current study examines the moderating role of both NE and PE in the connections of two main features of the current pandemic, COVID-19-related worries and loneliness, with anxiety. Data were collected between March 16 and April 14, 2020, from 1,112 Israelis (age range 17–92, M = 46.90, SD = 16.46), who provided information regarding COVID-19 health worries, loneliness, and anxiety. A special measure assembled items pertinent to the HWS-NE and HWS-PE throughout the survey. Results demonstrated that both HWS-NE and HWS-PE were significant moderators. COVID-19-related health worries/loneliness were linked with anxiety only among individuals with high HWS-NE, and were non-significant among those with low HWS-NE. Moreover, the positive association between loneliness and anxiety was significantly mitigated by high HWS-PE. The discussion highlights the importance of the HWS for understanding the psychological consequences of COVID-19 and offers practical suggestions, which may aid mental health practitioners in providing assistance and support to the general population.

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“…The context of this short report is a quantitative study conducted in the framework of the conceptual model, the pursuit of happiness in a hostile world (Shmotkin, 2005(Shmotkin, , 2011Shmotkin & Shrira, 2012. This model focuses on the dynamics of sustaining wellbeing in the face of severe adversities-whether in the form of traumatic, or potentially traumatic, experiences in one's past or self-perceived threats that may still inflict harm to one's physical and mental integrity (Lifshitz et al, 2020). The latter notion of self-perceived threats constitutes the model's concept of hostile-world scenario (HWS), which contains one's personal image of life's adversities (Shmotkin, 2005).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Vulnerability and Resilience in Sensitive Research: The Case of the Quantitative Researcher

Bluvstein

Ifrah

Lifshitz

et al. 2021

Journal of Empirical Research on Human Research Ethics

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The emotional experiences of quantitative researchers, particularly while conducting sensitive research, are largely neglected. This article aims to advance the awareness of possible emotional strains for quantitative researchers engaged in sensitive research. It qualitatively assesses the ethical and emotional experiences of quantitative researchers conducting a study on aging of bereaved parents and people with a physical disability. Based on the detailed minutes of 66 weekly research meetings held during 2015–2017, a thematic analysis of the researchers’ experiences was performed. Our analysis identified two main themes: vulnerability and resilience. We delineate these themes, along with their subthemes and affinity to vicarious traumatization, moral stress, and vicarious posttraumatic growth. The current study is among the first to introduce the emotional and ethical experiences of the quantitative researcher. Tentative recommendations for the advancement of the researcher’s safety and well-being by training, institutional support, self-care skills, and policy development are provided.

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Do past and prospective adversities intersect? Distinct effects of cumulative adversity and the hostile-world scenario on functioning at later life

Cited by 10 publications

References 47 publications

Technostress in a hostile world: older internet users before and during the COVID-19 pandemic

Technostress in a hostile world: older internet users before and during the COVID-19 pandemic

The Moderating Role of the Hostile-World Scenario in the Connections Between COVID-19 Worries, Loneliness, and Anxiety

Vulnerability and Resilience in Sensitive Research: The Case of the Quantitative Researcher

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