5,048 research outputs found

    The words of the body: psychophysiological patterns in dissociative narratives

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    Trauma has severe consequences on both psychological and somatic levels, even affecting the genetic expression and the cell\u2019s DNA repair ability. A key mechanism in the understanding of clinical disorders deriving from trauma is identified in dissociation, as a primitive defense against the fragmentation of the self originated by overwhelming experiences. The dysregulation of the interpersonal patterns due to the traumatic experience and its detrimental effects on the body are supported by influent neuroscientific models such as Damasio\u2019s somatic markers and Porges\u2019 polyvagal theory. On the basis of these premises, and supported by our previous empirical observations on 40 simulated clinical sessions, we will discuss the longitudinal process of a brief psychodynamic psychotherapy (16 sessions, weekly frequency) with a patient who suffered a relational trauma. The research design consists of the collection of self-report and projective tests, pre-post therapy and after each clinical session, in order to assess personality, empathy, clinical alliance and clinical progress, along with the verbatim analysis of the transcripts trough the Psychotherapy Process Q-Set and the Collaborative Interactions Scale. Furthermore, we collected simultaneous psychophysiological measures of the therapeutic dyad: skin conductance and hearth rate. Lastly, we employed a computerized analysis of non-verbal behaviors to assess synchrony in posture and gestures. These automated measures are able to highlight moments of affective concordance and discordance, allowing for a deep understanding of the mutual regulations between the patient and the therapist. Preliminary results showed that psychophysiological changes in dyadic synchrony, observed in body movements, skin conductance and hearth rate, occurred within sessions during the discussion of traumatic experiences, with levels of attunement that changed in both therapist and the patient depending on the quality of the emotional representation of the experience. These results go in the direction of understanding the relational process in trauma therapy, using an integrative language in which both clinical and neurophysiological knowledge may take advantage of each other

    Methodical Madness: How ADHD Affects Daily Life

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    Let me begin by saying that this project is not a kind of “self-help” document. While it may come off that way, that is not the primary objective of my project. My primary objective is to provide people with necessary, and in my opinion, essential information surrounding the experiences and struggles of daily life with ADHD. I am not here to make anyone feel guilty for treating someone with ADHD poorly, nor am I here to convince you that people with ADHD are the same as their neurotypical peers (spoiler alert, we aren’t). Additionally, this is not the kind of project where I try and convince people they have ADHD, nor am I going to push for those who do have ADHD to seek medication or other forms of treatment

    A Transdiagnostic Perspective on Social Anhedonia

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    Humans are highly social beings, yet people with social anhedonia experience reduced interest in or reward from social situations. Social anhedonia is a key facet of schizotypal personality, an important symptom of schizophrenia, and increasingly recognized as an important feature in a range of other psychological disorders. However, to date, there has been little examination of the similarities and differences in social anhedonia across diagnostic borders. Here, our goal was to conduct a selective review of social anhedonia in different psychological and life course contexts, including the psychosis continuum, depressive disorder, posttraumatic stress disorder, eating disorders, and autism spectrum disorders, along with developmental and neurobiological factors. Current evidence suggests that the nature and expression of social anhedonia vary across psychological disorders with some groups showing deficient learning about, enjoyment from, and anticipation of the pleasurable aspects of social interactions, while for others, some of these components appear to remain intact. However, study designs and methodologies are diverse, the roles of developmental and neurobiological factors are not routinely considered, and direct comparisons between diagnostic groups are rare—which prevents a more nuanced understanding of the underlying mechanisms involved. Future studies, parsing the wanting, liking, and learning components of social reward, will help to fill gaps in the current knowledge base. Consistent across disorders is diminished pleasure from social situations, subsequent withdrawal, and poorer social functioning in those who express social anhedonia. Nonetheless, feelings of loneliness often remain, which suggests the need for social connection is not entirely absent. Adolescence is a particularly important period of social and neural development and may provide a valuable window on the developmental origins of social anhedonia. Adaptive social functioning is key to recovery from mental health disorders; therefore, understanding the intricacies of social anhedonia will help to inform treatment and prevention strategies for a range of diagnostic categories

    The neuroscience of social feelings:mechanisms of adaptive social functioning

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    Social feelings have conceptual and empirical connections with affect and emotion. In this review, we discuss how they relate to cognition, emotion, behavior and well-being. We examine the functional neuroanatomy and neurobiology of social feelings and their role in adaptive social functioning. Existing neuroscience literature is reviewed to identify concepts, methods and challenges that might be addressed by social feelings research. Specific topic areas highlight the influence and modulation of social feelings on interpersonal affiliation, parent-child attachments, moral sentiments, interpersonal stressors, and emotional communication. Brain regions involved in social feelings were confirmed by meta-analysis using the Neurosynth platform for large-scale, automated synthesis of functional magnetic resonance imaging data. Words that relate specifically to social feelings were identfied as potential research variables. Topical inquiries into social media behaviors, loneliness, trauma, and social sensitivity, especially with recent physical distancing for guarding public and personal health, underscored the increasing importance of social feelings for affective and second person neuroscience research with implications for brain development, physical and mental health, and lifelong adaptive functioning

    Empathy in the Middle-School History Classroom: The Effects of Reading Different Historical Texts on Theory of Mind, Empathic Concern, and Historical Perspective-Taking

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    Theoretical and empirical evidence indicate a possibility that reading certain types of historical texts could improve different constructs of empathy that include theory of mind (ToM), empathic concern (EC), and historical perspective-taking (HPT).The objective of this study was to compare the effect of reading a collection of primary documents in comparison to a historical narrative on ToM, HPT, and EC for adolescents in an eighth-grade history class. Students were randomly assigned to read either a historical narrative or a collection of adapted historical documents with approximately the same length, and reading level. This researcher controlled for student comprehension scores, ToM scores, estimated amount of reading frequency, gender, and age. Post reading, students were assessed on ToM, EC, and HPT using age-appropriate and valid measures. The results demonstrated no statistical difference for individuals assigned to read either text as measured by ToM, EC, and HPT. Individuals with higher comprehension abilities in the historical document group were more likely to read for a longer period of time than individuals with high comprehension abilities in the narrative group. Empathic emotions for the narrative group were significantly correlated with higher HPT. The researcher argues that better ToM assessments need to be developed for adolescents and the relationship of reading historical texts and empathy for adolescents should be a topic of future research

    Driver Risk Behavior and Locus of Control

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    The objectives were: i) to compare the three factors of the Locus of Control scale with the behavior of drivers according to gender, age, type of involvement in accidents; (ii) to verify the relationship between the three factors of the Locus of Control scale (Internal, External-Others and External-Chance) and the four factors of the Driver Behavior Questionnaire (Lapses, Errors, Aggressive Violations, and Ordinary Violations), as well as number of traffic tickets and involvement in accidentsinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

    Conscience Sensitive Psychiatric Diagnosis of Maltreated Children and Adolescents

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    The sequelae of maltreatment are conceptualized according to the DSM IV multiaxial system expanded for heuristic purposes. Axis I and Axis IV are expanded to take into account important variables of maltreatment. Differential Axis I diagnoses are identified with special emphasis placed on PTSD, Dissociation, Depression and Disruptive Behavior Disorders. Axes II and III are heuristically expanded to call attention to developmental psychopathology, particularly in the domains of conscience, and associated putative neurobiological sequelae of maltreatment, indicating a pathway to the psychobiology of conscience. Conscience sensitive assessment of maltreated children is illustrated with two case vignettes and selected conscience drawings. A ‘transaxial,’ conscience sensitive approach to DSM nosology is recommended as a corrective. There will likely be additional implications for the psychobiology of conscience as neuroimaging and assessment of conscience functions in health and psychopathology become more refined.Support for this and other work by the I.U. Conscience Project conducted in collaboration with Pleasant Run Inc. has been generously provided by Mr. and Mrs. Jim Irsay and The Indianapolis Colts, The Moore Foundation and other individual anonymous donors

    Reward Processing and High-Risk Behaviour in Adolescents with a History of Childhood Abuse

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    Funding for this study was provided by a Young Investigator Award from the Brain and Behaviour Research Foundation (NARSAD – Grant Number: 18774) awarded to Pia Pechtel. Pia Pechtel reports no biomedical financial interests or potential conflicts of interest.Systematic Literature Review: Abstract Objective: Childhood abuse (CA) is commonly associated with increased frequency of high-risk behaviours (HRB) in adolescence. Similarly, research has highlighted links between CA and blunted responses to reward. To date, little attention has been devoted to examine if altered reward processes may also be linked to increased engagement in HRB. To explore this hypothesis, this systematic review collated research that investigated the relationship among CA, reward processes and HRB. Specifically, the review addressed the question: Are HRB associated with altered reward processes in children and adults with a history of CA? Method: Behavioural and neurobiological studies on CA, reward processing and HRB in children and adults were selected from multidisciplinary and subject-specific databases published prior to the 1st of March 2016. The systematic literature search yielded 271 records with 198 non-duplicated results. Screening of 14 full-text publications led to five eligible studies synthesized in this review. Results: Results confirmed impaired reward learning and increased HRB in those with a history of CA. Associations of blunted anticipatory or consummatory reward processing and HRB in individuals with CA remained inconclusive. Conclusions: Reward learning appears to be associated with CA. Further research is required to explore the relationship between reward processes and HRB. Understanding CA from a neurodevelopment perspective is a critical step to developing effective intervention strategies to reduce HRB. Empirical Paper: Abstract Objective: Following childhood abuse (CA), adolescence often sees the onset of depression and high-risk behaviour (HRB). Despite the prevalence, little is known about underlying neurobiological factors linking CA and HRB. To address this gap, I examined if anticipatory and consummatory reward processing in adolescents with CA predict frequency of HRB, irrespective of depressive symptoms. Methods: Thirty-seven adolescents (M=17.08 years; SD = 1.86) participated in the study: 13 females with CA and current major depressive disorder (MDD), eight females with MDD and no CA, and 16 individuals with no CA and no MDD for comparison (control group). Adolescents completed the Card-Guessing paradigm to assess reward processing, while undergoing a magnetic resonance imaging scan. Neural region-of-interest responses in the striatum and pallidum were assessed during anticipatory and consummatory reward phases. Hierarchical regression models investigated if neural responses to reward were altered based on exposure to CA and if altered neural responses predicted higher use of HRB. Results: Data showed that (1) depressed adolescents engaged more frequently in HRB irrespective of history of CA, (2) anticipatory and consummatory reward processes were not altered based on a history of CA, and (3) blunted activation in right pallidum in anticipation of rewards predicted HRB irrespective of depressive symptoms. Conclusion: Although the current study did not confirm changes in reward processing following CA, blunted reward ‘wanting’ was linked to more frequent HRB. Findings are relevant to theories highlighting the critical role of the pallidum in perceiving cues as rewarding and in initiating goal-directed actions to obtain rewards.Young Investigator Award from the Brain and Behaviour Research Foundation (NARSAD

    Poor Children: Child "Witches" and Child Soldiers in Sub-Saharan Africa

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