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Understanding phenomenological experiences of autistic inertia using online community discourse
Full text linkThe term ‘inertia’ refers to the seemingly common Autistic experience of remaining in a state of rest or a state of motion until there is some form of external intervention. While a heavily discussed phenomenon in the Autistic community, it has been scarcely acknowledged in the academic literature. The present study aimed to advance knowledge of Autistic inertia by analysing a large qualitative sample of naturalistic discourse on the topic from Autistic online communities on the social media platform, ‘Reddit’. We identified 501 relevant posts shared between 2005 and 2023, including 9,955 comments. We analysed the posts using reflexive thematic analysis with an inductive approach. We identified four themes, centred on the “all or nothing” extremes of inertia (Theme 1), the range of factors that intersect with and exacerbate it (Theme 2), its joyful and often highly-disabling impacts (Theme 3), and the varied ways in which Reddit users manage it (Theme 4). Our findings corroborated those from existing interview-based studies and also uncovered additional insights, elaborating on ‘the vicious cycle’ of inertia, its fatiguing effects and its interaction with other commonly co-occurring conditions. We discuss these less-reported experiences and identify what we know - and are still yet to understand - about the key features of Autistic inertia
Instagram Passive Active Use Measure (iPAUM): Validation and relation to self-esteem
No full textThis preregistered study aimed to design and validate a questionnaire which measures passive and active Instagram use (iPAUM), and to explore its connection to users’ self-esteem levels. While Instagram, as an image-based social media platform, shares common features with other social networking sites (SNS) in enabling sharing of information and social interaction, its emphasis on visual content and specific digital features, such as algorithmic exposure to strangers’ content and public and one-directional interaction, may influence user experiences differently compared to other SNSs. Individual users interact with Instagram in a variety of ways. Consequently, studies that rely on general use measures, such as the time spent on Instagram, often yield mixed results in regard to psychological outcomes, as these measures do not account for variability in use. To address these nuances, a new scale for Instagram behaviours was created in two phases. In Study 1 (N = 289, Mage = 30.4, SD = 10.21), an 18-item questionnaire was developed, reflecting four categories of Instagram use: Active reacting, Active direct social, Active creating, and Passive use. The four-factor structure was established through exploratory factor analysis (EFA), and good internal reliability and validity were demonstrated. In Study 2 (N = 297, Mage = 29.6, SD = 9.8), confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was performed on an independent sample to validate the factor structure, confirming the reliability and discriminant validity of the measure. In the second part of Study 2, the iPAUM was employed to investigate associations between the four types of Instagram use and self-esteem, and whether following strangers on Instagram moderates this relationship. Self-esteem was not significantly associated with most types of Instagram use, except for a negative association between self-esteem and active direct social use, which was moderated by the percentage of strangers followed. The findings confirm the importance of differentiating between various types of Instagram use. The iPAUM is a validated tool which provides a more nuanced view of Instagram use for future research
Suicidal ideation among people with different gambling behaviour profiles: analysis of a longitudinal survey of people who gamble regularly in the UK
Full text linkBackground
People who gamble experience elevated rates of suicidal thoughts and behaviours. Longitudinal studies have been scarce, and none has focused on those who regularly gamble in the UK.
Aims
To examine the relationship between specific products and locations of gambling activity (and their combinations) and risk of subsequent suicidal thoughts.
Method
We analysed a UK longitudinal survey of 3927 adults (18 years old or over) who regularly bet on sports. Data were collected online between June and November 2020. Latent class analysis was used to identify groups of people with similar gambling profiles on the basis of 13 types of gambling activity. Weighted group characteristics are presented. Regression modelling was used to test associations between gambling groups and suicidal thoughts, adjusting for baseline characteristics.
Results
Five distinct groups were identified. One group (5.6% of the sample) reported multiple types of both in-person and online gambling. This group was the most likely to use electronic gambling machines. After adjustment for baseline suicidal thoughts, this group had significantly higher odds of subsequent suicidal thoughts (adjusted odds ratio 3.42; 95% CI: 1.18–9.89) than other groups.
Conclusions
Although many profiles of gambling activity present suicide risk, some types present greater risk. National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidelines recommend enquiry in primary care settings about gambling behaviours. Our findings suggest that clinicians should consider asking questions on mode (online or in-person) and product (especially electronic gambling machines) to identify those at heightened risk of suicidal ideation. Gambling should also be considered routinely in psychosocial assessments across clinical settings and incorporated into suicide prevention campaigns
Exploring Responsible Research and Innovation (RRI) in Youth Mental Health: Reflections from Researchers and Young People
Full text linkBackground
Responsible Research and Innovation (RRI) promotes inclusive, anticipatory, and reflexive research practices that respond to societal needs. While widely applied in technological fields, its application in youth mental health remains limited. This study aimed to explore how RRI principles are understood and enacted within a large interdisciplinary programme on digital youth mental health in the United Kingdom, focusing on the perspectives of both researchers and young people.
Methods
An online survey was conducted with 21 researchers and 5 young people (mean age = 21 years, standard deviation = 2.74) involved in the programme. The survey included open-ended questions exploring knowledge, attitudes, and practices related to RRI and youth mental health. Responses were analysed using Reflexive Thematic Analysis to identify patterns of meaning across the dataset and to generate themes.
Results
Six themes were developed, reflecting participants’ knowledge, attitudes, and practices. Both researchers and young people conceptualised youth mental health as multifaceted, shaped by personal, social, and cultural factors, and existing along a continuum from flourishing to struggling. Young people highlighted digital harms and economic precarity, while researchers emphasised biopsychosocial determinants, offering complementary perspectives. Involving young people was seen as essential for challenging adult assumptions, improving clarity and relevance of tools, and strengthening ethical integrity. Barriers included 4 communication gaps, entrenched hierarchies, inconsistent involvement, and the resource-intensive nature of participation. Key facilitators included mutual respect, care, flexibility, and procedural structures such as youth co-chairs (i.e., a young person co-leading the project/grant with the principal investigator/s) and regular collaborative meetings. Together, these elements demonstrated how RRI values can be embedded to foster meaningful and equitable youth–researcher partnerships.
Conclusions
This study shows that applying RRI in youth mental health research enhances co-production by integrating diverse perspectives, addressing ethical concerns, and strengthening the quality and social relevance of research. To fully realise this potential, RRI must be embedded as an ongoing practice supported by intentional infrastructures, such as youth leadership roles, communication training, and opportunities for intergenerational dialogue. Crucially, funders must recognise and resource the relational, iterative, and time-intensive nature of responsible youth involvement. Embedding RRI in this field provides a valuable framework for moving beyond tokenistic consultation towards inclusive, future-oriented, and ethically grounded research
Spitting Truth(S) to Power: Rap Music as Evidence of Racial Injustice
No full textRap music is frequently admitted into court as incriminating ‘evidence’ that stereotypically portrays defendants as ‘criminally minded’, ‘gang-affiliated’ desperadoes, whose creative output becomes proof of their ‘bad character’. Writing against such racist mythologies that (re) produce stereotypical associations between Black music genres and ‘criminality’, rap is approached instead as an eloquent testimony of racial injustice that puts the legal-penal system on the stand. Drawing on UK drill music as the latest rap subgenre to be targeted as criminogenic, this chapter outlines the carceral logics and tactics turn Black artistic expression into a criminal offence—arguing that the performative violence in drill exposes the actual violence with which it is suppressed, in ways that urge us to rethink our relationship with ‘the law’ and ‘justice’ as critical scholars and political actors alike
Why we value things more as we are about to lose them: A reference-based theory
Full text linkA common belief is that we only truly appreciate things or people when we are about to lose them. This phenomenon is often observed in real-world scenarios, such as when people place greater value on a meeting with a friend who is about to leave or, in marketing, when consumers are willing to pay more for a flight with only a few tickets remaining. But why does this happen? This paper explores the dynamics behind this behavior, focusing on how subjective value increases as reference standards – understood as expectations about the future availability of valuable events or opportunities – decline over time. We introduce a computational model to investigate how subjective value varies in response to shifting reference standards and uncertainty about them, leading to increased valuation as the expected future availability of events diminishes near a deadline. The model also demonstrates how this rising subjective value increases the likelihood of exerting effort to secure valuable opportunities before they are lost. Through simulations, we examine the psychological and economic implications of reference-dependent valuation. Our simulations show that the simple principle of a declining reference point as a deadline approaches explains shifts in subjective value and effort-based choices, providing a mechanistic account of phenomena previously linked to scarcity, FOMO, and related effects. This novel theory offers a testable, mechanistic explanation for why subjective value and effort-based decisions change over time, shedding light on reference-dependent behavior in both everyday and high-stakes decision-making contexts
Validation of the City Birth Trauma Scale in a sample of Norwegian mothers
Full text linkIntroduction
Approximately 3%–4% of women experience childbirth‐related posttraumatic stress disorder (CB‐PTSD). The City Birth Trauma Scale (City BiTS) is a questionnaire developed to assess CB‐PTSD, following the criteria outlined in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the psychometric properties of the Norwegian version of this questionnaire (City BiTS‐Nor).
Material and Methods
A community sample of 1079 mothers completed a cross‐sectional online survey. The survey included questions on sociodemographic and obstetric characteristics, the City BiTS‐Nor, the Impact of Event Scale‐Revised, the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale, the 10‐item anxiety subscale of the Hopkins Symptom Checklist, and the Bergen Insomnia Scale.
Results
Confirmatory factor analysis supported a bifactor model comprising Birth‐related Symptoms and General Symptoms in CB‐PTSD, along with a General CB‐PTSD factor that explained 58.4% of the variance. The study found high internal consistency (≥0.90), and good convergent and divergent validity were shown. Discriminant validity was evaluated by examining factors such as mode of birth, maternal complications, infant complications, parity, history of traumatic childbirth, and previous traumatic experiences. Higher General and Birth‐related scores were observed in women who experienced emergency cesarean sections or instrumental vaginal births. This trend was observed in primiparous women, cases involving pregnancy and birth complications, and individuals with prior traumatic experiences.
Conclusions
The City BiTS‐Nor presents appropriate psychometric properties for assessing CB‐PTSD symptoms according to DSM‐5 criteria. The findings suggest that using the total score, along with the individual subscale scores, is justified and enhances the comprehensive assessment of CB‐PTSD symptoms. These findings support the clinical utility of the City BiTS‐Nor as a screening tool for CB‐PTSD, with potential to differentiate childbirth‐related trauma from general psychopathology and to guide targeted interventions in perinatal care
Comparing the rate of retinal nerve fibre layer and visual field loss as outcomes in glaucoma trials
Full text linkPurpose
to compare the statistical power of structural and visual field (VF) outcomes for randomised clinical trials (RCTs) in glaucoma.
Design
analysis of retrospectively collected data.
Participants
Eighty-two glaucoma patients were recruited to a test–retest study, during which up to ten 24-2 SITA Standard VF and circumpapillary retinal nerve fibre layer (cpRNFL) Spectralis OCT scans were collected in separate sessions over 3 months.
Methods
Eyes with at least three sessions with a reliable VF (false positives < 15%) and cpRNFL scan (quality index ≥ 25 dB) were selected (127 eyes, 68 patients) to model the test-retest variability and the structural floor effect. These estimates were combined with a published realistic structure-function progression model from the United Kingdom Glaucoma Treatment Study to simulate longitudinal RCTs (30% neuroprotective effect). Simulations only included data from eyes with early to moderate VF loss (Mean Deviation, MD, ≥-10 dB, 107 eyes, 65 patients). Simulations were repeated 5000 times to estimate sample size requirements to detect a significant difference (p < 0.05) in the rate of change of MD and average cpRNFL thickness, estimated with a linear mixed effect model. We also tested the power of a significant outcome with either metric (p < 0.025). A supplementary analysis was performed including eyes with early VF loss only (MD ≥-6 dB). Main outcome measures sample size at 80% power for the linear rate of MD, cpRNFL and their combination.
Results
at 80% power, the required sample size (patients [95%-Confidence Interval]) was 38% smaller for the MD rate (292 [300, 283]) than the cpRNFL rate (470 [481, 459]). The sample size for the combined outcome was only marginally smaller than the MD alone (275 [283, 268]). The supplementary analysis on eyes with early VF loss showed similar results.
Conclusions
Using realistic modelling of structure-function progression and test-retest data, MD progression showed higher statistical power cpRFNL as an outcome measure for clinical trials
“I just saw the alcohol brand, I never really thought of the zeros”: Young people’s views of NoLo and alibi alcohol sponsorship
Full text linkAlcohol companies frequently use sports sponsorship to maintain high visibility, even in jurisdictions with advertising restrictions. Strategies such as alibi marketing - using brand-associated slogans, colours, or fonts in place of explicit brand names, and NoLo marketing - promoting zero-alcohol variants of core brands, enable continued brand exposure. This study investigates young people's awareness of alcohol sponsorship and their perceptions of alibi and NoLo marketing in sports contexts. In December 2024, ten online focus groups ( N = 44) were conducted with participants aged 11–17, stratified by age (11–13, 14–15, 16–17) and sex (male/female). Participants showed strong awareness of alcohol brands, with many recognising alibi sponsorships and associating them with full-strength alcohol products. Alibi strategies were perceived as deliberate efforts to circumvent regulations. NoLo sponsorships were rarely identified as marketing for non-alcoholic beverages; instead, branding similarities to alcohol products led participants to view them as covert advertising. Many recommended clearer differentiation to avoid misleading messaging. Findings highlight the pervasive impact of alcohol marketing on young people, even in partially restricted environments. Alibi and NoLo tactics sustain alcohol brand presence in sport, potentially normalising alcohol use and undermining policy efforts to reduce alcohol-related harm. These insights underscore the need for more comprehensive regulatory frameworks that address indirect marketing strategies and prioritise youth protection in sport sponsorship
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