Depressive Traits and Suicide Risk in Young Adults: A Brief Report

The present study examines the predictive role of depressive traits in suicide risk. Using a longitudinal design, 64 undergraduate students completed measures of depressive symptoms and depressive traits at the baseline, and measures of depressive symptoms and suicide risk two months later. Results indicated that, controlling for the depressive symptoms measured at Time–1, depressive traits at Time–1 predicted suicide risk at Time–2. In addition, depressive symptoms measured at Time 2 tend to mediate the effect of Time–1 depressive traits on Time–2 suicide risk. Implications for clinical assessment and intervention are discussed

Self-Criticism, Neediness, and Distress Among Women Undergoing Treatment for Breast Cancer: A Preliminary Test of the Moderating Role of Adjustment to Illness

A diagnosis of cancer can be extremely stressful, and for that reason, cancer patients’ adjustment has been widely studied. Little is known, however, about how patients’ personality vulnerabilities affect their adjustment to cancer. The present study examined the moderating role of several psychological strategies of adjustment to cancer in the associations between the personality predispositions of self-criticism and neediness and distress among women diagnosed with breast cancer. Portuguese women who had been diagnosed with breast cancer for the first time (n _ 50) completed the Depressive Experiences Questionnaire, the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, and the Mini-Mental Adjustment to Cancer Scale questionnaires. Both self-criticism and neediness were found to be associated with increased levels of distress, with a stronger association observed for neediness. Hierarchical regressions indicated that more adaptive adjustment to cancer (i.e., low levels of helplessness/hopelessness, low levels of anxious preoccupation, high levels of fatalism, and high levels of fighting spirit) moderates the association between neediness and distress. There was no evidence that any of the adjustment variables had any mediating effect on the relationship between the personality variables (self-criticism and neediness) and distress. Results are discussed in the context of personality vulnerability and maladaptive psychological response to the disease as a stressful life event. Implications for treatment are discussed. Though promising, the results are preliminary and more research on larger samples is warranted

Recollections of Parental Rejection, Self-Criticism and Depression in Suicidality

The present study examines whether self-criticism and depressive symptoms mediate the relationship between recollections of parental rejection and suicidality. A community sample of 200 Portuguese adults completed, in counterbalanced order, a socio-demographic questionnaire, the short form of the Inventory for Assessing Memories of Parental Rearing Behaviour (EMBU), the Depressive Experiences Questionnaire (DEQ), the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CES-D), and reports of any suicide intention and=or ideation and suicide attempts. Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) indicated that recollections of parental rejection are significantly associated with depressive symptoms and suicidality. Recollections of parental rejection are indirectly associated with depressive symptoms and suicidality through self-criticism. The association between self-criticism and suicidality is mediated by depressive symptoms. In addition to a significant direct association between recollections of parental rejection and suicidality, the final model indicated that recollections of parental rejection are significantly associated with self-criticism. That same self-criticism is significantly associated with depressive symptoms which, in turn, are significantly associated with suicidality. Individuals with recollections of parental rejection are at greater risk for suicide ideation and behavior, possibly because such experiences predispose them to intense self-criticism which is a risk factor for depression associated with suicidal ideation and behavior

Laughing at the Looking Glass: Does Humor Style Serve as an Interpersonal Signal?

Objective: The provision of information appears to be an important feature of humor. The present studies examined whether humor serves as an interpersonal signal such that an individual\u27s style of humor is associated with how the individual is perceived by others. Method: We examined this issue across two studies. In Study 1, undergraduate participants (257 targets) were rated more positively by their friends and family members (1194 perceivers) when they possessed more benign humor styles. In Study 2, 1190 community participants rated the romantic desirability of targets ostensibly possessing different humor styles. Results: Across both studies, our results were consistent with the possibility that humor serves as a signal. More specifically, individuals with benign humor styles (affiliative and self-enhancing humor styles) were evaluated more positively than those targets with injurious humor styles (aggressive and self-defeating humor styles). Conclusion: These findings are discussed in terms of the role that humor may play in interpersonal perception and relationships

Neediness and depression in women

In a 6-month longitudinal design, the authors examined the links between neediness and increases in depressive symptoms in women. Neediness was assessed with the self-report Depressive Experiences Questionnaire (DEQ), supplemented by a projective measure that assessed an important component of dependency, oral dependency, on the Rorschach. Results indicate that neediness correlated significantly with increases in depressive symptoms over the 6 months. Orality interacted with neediness to substantially increase the prediction of increases in depressive symptoms

Self-criticism, dependency, and adolescents’ externalising and internalising problems

Objectives: The present study examines the role of dependency (interpersonal relatedness) and self-criticism (self-definition) in internalising and externalising problems. Methods: Three hundred forty-six suburban Portuguese high-school students age 14–18 (mean = 16.14, standard deviation = 1.19) responded to the Depressive Experiences Questionnaire and the Youth Self-Report. The impact of depression, measured by the Children’s Depression Inventory, on the relationship of dependency and self-criticism on internalising and externalising problem behaviours was examined. Results: Both self-criticism and dependency, controlled for level of depression, were associated with internalising behaviour problems in both girls and boys. Gender differences, however, were observed in externalising problems. Externalising problems in boys were also associated with self-criticism. But externalising problems in girls were not associated with psychological variables and thus may be more a function of environmental rather than psychological factors. Conclusions: Implications of these findings for intervention are discussed

Personality vulnerabilities in adolescent suicidality: The mediating role of psychological distress

The research literature consistently indicates that self-criticism is related to suicidality. Evidence for the role of dependency, however, is more controversial. This study examines the extent to which these personality vulnerabilities are mediated by psychological distress in the prediction of suicidality. As part of a study of adolescent psychopathology, a sample of 260 Portuguese adolescents (148 [56.9 %] female and 112 [43.1%] male), ranging in age from 15 to 18 years (M = 16.32, SD = 1.19) completed measures of personality, suicidal behavior, and current distress, in counterbalanced order. The measures were: self-criticism and dependency from the Depressive Experiences Questionnaire for Adolescents; two psychological distress scales, social withdrawal from the Youth Self Report and depression from the Center for Epidemiologic Studies of Depression Scale; and a measure of suicidality from the Suicide Behaviors Questionnaire Revised. Structural equation modeling indicated that self-criticism and dependency were both significantly associated with suicidality. Psychological distress, however, as measured by withdrawal and depression, fully mediated these relationships, but did not moderate them. The authors conclude that adolescents with higher levels of self-criticism and dependency are at greater risk for experiencing intense psychological distress—high levels of social withdrawal and depression—that account for their vulnerability to suicide ris

Understanding narcissistic spending: The connections between narcissistic personality traits and conspicuous consumption

The present study explored potential factors that may mediate the relationship between narcissism and conspicuous consumption, as the underlying reasons for this connection remain uncertain. Specifically, we investigated the following variables as potential mediators of the links between narcissistic personality traits and conspicuous consumption: consumer need for uniqueness, materialism, approval seeking, material meaning, consumer sexual signaling, and need for social status. In a sample of 2,944 Israeli community members, our study revealed that extraverted, antagonistic, neurotic, and communal narcissism frequently exhibited positive indirect connections with conspicuous consumption through these mediating factors, with the most robust associations often being observed for antagonistic narcissism. However, a clear departure from this pattern became apparent when the anticipated mediation of the connections between narcissistic personality traits and conspicuous consumption via the need for social status did not unfold as predicted. In contrast, extraverted, antagonistic, and communal narcissism exhibited negative indirect associations with conspicuous consumption through the need for social status. Collectively, these findings indicate both commonalities and distinctions in how narcissistic personality traits are associated with conspicuous consumption via specific mediators. The discussion delves into the significance of these outcomes in shedding light on why conspicuous consumption holds allure for individuals with narcissistic tendencies