Attitudes Virtually Wellness Impact How Older Adults Engage Amongst Negative Wellness News
Tuesday, October 15, 2019
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"There's a lot of query showing that older adults prefer positive information, ofttimes avoiding or ignoring negative information," says Tom Hess, a professor of psychology at North Carolina State University in addition to co-author of a newspaper on the novel findings. "That tin guide maintain consequences for older adults, especially when it comes to data regarding their health. We wanted to encounter if at that topographic point was a agency to overcome this positivity bias when it comes to wellness news."
To that end, the researchers conducted a study of 196 adults betwixt the ages of 65 in addition to 80. Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 quarter of the study participants were shown images to pose them inwards a negative mood. Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 quarter were shown images to pose them inwards a positive mood. Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 quarter were asked to consummate a wellness checklist designed to brand them experience bad near the healthiness of their lifestyle choices. And a quarter were asked to consummate a checklist designed to brand them experience practiced near their lifestyle choices.
Study participants were in addition to thence shown the headlines of 6 articles near health. Three of the headlines were negative, but offered data relevant to the wellness of the study participants. The other iii headlines were positive, but were less probable to supply participants amongst useful information. Participants were asked to pick whatever iii of the 6 articles to read.
Study participants who completed the "positive" wellness checklist read to a greater extent than than l per centum to a greater extent than of the articles that had negative headlines, every bit compared to participants who completed the "negative" checklist.
"Specifically, study participants who completed the checklist giving them a positive mental attitude toward their wellness chose to read, on average, near lx per centum of the negative articles, whereas participants who completed the negative checklist chose simply 37 per centum of the negative articles," says Claire Growney, a Ph.D. pupil at NC State in addition to Pb writer of the paper. "There was no effect for participants who did non consummate the wellness checklist in addition to whose moods were simply influenced yesteryear images. We also ran the same study amongst a grouping of 201 younger adults, in addition to at that topographic point was no effect amongst whatever of the groups there. This tells us that having a positive mental attitude toward wellness may primarily behave on the willingness of older adults to engage amongst negative wellness news.
"We also asked the study participants what their motivations were earlier reviewing the wellness articles, in addition to institute that older adults amongst positive attitudes toward their wellness were to a greater extent than probable to try out health-related tidings that was relevant to their ain lives."
To confirm the finding, the researchers repeated the study amongst 199 adults betwixt the ages of 65 in addition to 85. This fourth dimension they focused alone on the negative in addition to positive wellness checklists. One departure amongst this mo study was that the wellness article headlines were dissever into iv categories: positive in addition to informative; negative in addition to informative; positive in addition to non informative; in addition to negative in addition to non informative.
"In this mo study, nosotros institute participants who completed the positive checklist were over xxx per centum to a greater extent than probable to select articles amongst negative headlines to read - but simply if the headlines were also informative," Growney says. "Specifically, the grouping amongst positive attitudes toward their wellness in i lawsuit to a greater extent than chose to read near lx per centum of the negative/informative articles, piece the grouping amongst negative attitudes toward their wellness chose simply near twoscore per centum of the negative/informative articles."
"These findings guide maintain practical value inwards damage of how nosotros portion negative data amongst older adults regarding their health," Hess says. "For example, it may endure useful for a wellness attention provider to tell 'here's what looks good' earlier talking to a patient near recommendations regarding diet or exercise." Sumber http://healthnewsreport.blogspot.com/