Search PubMed⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

M Lentz

Publications and source records attributed to M Lentz.

23 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

The new woman: health-promoting and health-damaging behaviors.

Compared with their mothers, contemporary women are better educated, live alone more of their adult lives, and participate in the labor force more consistently throughout their lives. Most studies of the New Woman have focused on the effects of the configuration of her roles on her health and health-related behavior. Few have considered both the influence of women's roles and the broader context of their lives on their health. Moreover, investigators have devoted little attention to the health behavior patterns of the New Woman, despite the demonstrable impact of health-related behaviors on mortality and morbidity. The present study was designed to test models relating women's roles, gender role norms, social demands and resources, and health-promoting and -damaging behaviors. Women who resided in middle-income and racially mixed neighborhoods (N = 659) were interviewed in their homes. The women were a mean age of 32.7 years and had an educational level of 14.2 years. Approximately 57% were married or partnered, and 76% reported some level of employment outside the home. Women who had fewer life stressors and were better educated performed more health-promoting behaviors. Women who experienced more stressors, were less well educated, had more contemporary attitudes toward women, were not partnered, or experienced depressed mood engaged in more health-damaging behaviors. These results underscore the importance of considering women's social context in health promotion efforts and as a deterrent to health-damaging behaviors.

Adolescent↗

Depressed mood and self-esteem in young Asian, black, and white women in America.

During the last two decades, investigators have explored the relationship between women's life conditions and their mental health. Some have related women's socially disadvantaged status, or their socialization to a traditional feminine role, to depression and low self-esteem. Others have emphasized the consequences of women's roles, or the balance of social demands and resources, on their well-being. More recently, feminist scholars have proposed a developmental account of depression. We tested a model comparing the effects of personal resources, social demands and resources, socialization, and women's roles, on self-esteem and depressed mood in young adult Asian, Black, and White women in America. Women who resided in middle-income and racially mixed neighborhoods were interviewed in their homes. Personal resources were indicated by education and income and social resources by unconflicted network size as measured by Barrera's (1981) Arizona Social Support Interview Schedule. Social demands were assessed by conflicted network size as measured by the Barrera scale and by the Positive Life Events and Negative Life Events scales from Norbeck's (1984) revision of the Sarason Life Events Scale. Women's roles included employment, parenting, and partnership with an adult (e.g., marriage). Self-esteem was assessed with the Rosenberg Self Esteem Scale (Rosenberg, 1965) and depressed mood with the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression scale (Radloff, 1977). Although models for Asian, Black, and White women differed, social network and social demands as well as personal resources were common to each group as predictors of self-esteem and depression.

Adolescent↗

Melatonin, light therapy, and jet lag.

If you enter the words jet lag into your Internet search engine, multiple sites come up. Jet lag is a term common to all travelers, but what is it? The medication melatonin, available in most convenience stores, is marketed as a sleep agent or treatment for jet lag, but is it safe? Is it a sleeping pill? How is light therapy related to melatonin?

Humans↗