Children and adolescents weathering the storm: Resilience in the presence of bullying victimization, harassment, and pandemic lockdown in northern Norway.

Resilience is a concept of growing interest because it can systematically inform prevention measures and psychosocial interventions for children and adolescents. The aim of this study was to explore resilience factors among young people who are victims of bullying and harassment (age 9 to 16 years old). In 2021 the burden of the pandemic lockdown became an additional adversity.

The severe impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on bullying victimization, mental health indicators and quality of life.

Children and adolescents have been severely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The aim of this study was to explore the prevalence of traditional and digital bullying and mental health problems a year into the pandemic. Further, how anxiety level, loneliness, and self-perceived school functioning have influenced the quality of life.

Prevalence and Characteristics of Posttraumatic Nightmares in War- and Conflict-Affected Students.

Introduction: Recurrent nightmares, frequently associated with traumatic experiences, may impair quality of life and daily functioning. However, there have been few studies of posttraumatic nightmares occurring among children and youth, in particular for trauma-exposed populations in conflict zones.

Methods: Using two quantitative data sets, this study investigates the prevalence and characteristics of recurrent nightmares among conflict-exposed young people in the Gaza Strip (N = 300) and examines the characteristics of posttraumatic nightmares and their association with academic functioning among treatment-seeking students in Gaza (N = 1093).

The opioid receptor mu 1 (OPRM1) rs1799971 and catechol-O-methyltransferase (COMT) rs4680 as genetic markers for placebo analgesia.

The placebo effect is considered the core example of mind-body interactions. However, individual differences produce large placebo response variability in both healthy volunteers and patients. The placebo response in pain, placebo analgesia, may be dependent on both the opioid system and the dopaminergic system.

Influence of catechol-O-methyltransferase Val158Met on fear of pain and placebo analgesia.

Higher levels of fear have been shown to partly explain individual differences in placebo analgesic responding. The catechol-O-methyltransferase (COMT) rs4680 Val158Met polymorphism has been associated with both increased placebo analgesia and increased fear-related behavior, in what appears to be inconsistent findings in the literature. The aim of the study was therefore to investigate placebo analgesia and fear-related processes with regard to the COMT genotype, to sort out whether the Met-allele is associated with increased placebo analgesia or increased fear of pain (FOP).

The Placebo Analgesic Effect in Healthy Individuals and Patients: A Meta-Analysis.

Objective: The present meta-analysis investigates whether the magnitude of placebo analgesia is different in patients compared with healthy individuals and whether placebo analgesia is different in experimentally induced pain compared with clinical pain in patients.

Methods: A literature search in Web of Science (ISI) on the terms "placebo analgesia" and "placebo analgesic" was conducted. The search resulted in 71 studies, including 4239 participants.

Induced fear reduces the effectiveness of a placebo intervention on pain.

Fear was induced by the anticipation of electric shock in order to investigate whether fear reduced the effectiveness of a placebo intervention on reported pain and the acoustic startle reflex. Thirty-three subjects participated in a 3 Condition (Natural History [NH], Placebo [P], Placebo+Fear [PF])×3 Test (Pretest, Posttest 1, Posttest 2) within-subject design, tested on 3 separate days. Measures of fear were fear of pain (FOP), measured by the Fear of Pain Questionnaire (FPQ-III); fear-potentiated startle; and a self-report measure that assessed the effectiveness of the fear induction procedure.