Body Image-Acceptance and Action Questionnaire-5: An abbreviation using genetic algorithms

Body image concerns are typically linked with negative outcomes such as disordered eating and diminished well-being, but some people can exhibit psychological flexibility and remain committed to their valued goals despite being dissatisfied about their bodies. Such flexibility is most frequently measured by the Body Image–Acceptance and Action Questionnaire (BI-AAQ). This study used a recently validated, fully automated method based on genetic algorithms (GAs) on data from an American community sample (N1 = 538, 71.5% female, Age: M = 40.87, SD = 13.5) to abbreviate the 12-item BI-AAQ to a 5-item short form, BI-AAQ-5. Validation tests were conducted on data from an independent community sample (N2 = 762, 44.6% female, Age: M = 40.65, SD = 13.06). The short form performed comparably to the long form in terms of its factor structure and correlations with theoretically relevant constructs, including body image dissatisfaction, stigma, internalization of societal norms of appearance, self-compassion, and poor mental health. Further, preliminary analyses using structural equation modeling showed that body image flexibility, as measured by either the long or short form, was associated with almost all the criterion variables, even while controlling for a highly related construct of body image dissatisfaction. These results demonstrate the potential discriminant validity of both the long and short form of the BI-AAQ, and show that the BI-AAQ-5 is a suitable alternative to its long form. We discuss how psychological flexibility with respect to body image dissatisfaction can be conducive to positive functioning

Acceptance and commitment therapy delivered in a dyad after a severe traumatic brain injury: a feasibility study

Objective: There is a high prevalence of complex psychological distress after a traumatic brain injury but limited evidence of effective interventions. We examined the feasibility of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy after a severe traumatic brain injury using the criteria, investigating a therapeutic effect, and reviewing the acceptability of measures, treatment protocol, and delivery method (in a dyad of two clients and a therapist). Method: Two male outpatients with severe traumatic brain injury and associated psychological distress jointly engaged in a seven session treatment program based on Acceptance and Commitment Therapy principles. Pre- and post-treatment measures of mood, psychological flexibility, and participation were taken in addition to weekly measures. Results: The intervention showed a therapeutic effect with one participant, and appeared to be acceptable for both participants with regard to program content, measures, and delivery mode by in a dyad. One participant showed both significant clinical and reliable change across several outcome measures including measures of mood and psychological flexibility. The second participant did not show a reduction in psychological inflexibility, but did show a significant drop in negative affect. Significant changes pre- to post-treatment for measures of participation were not indicated. Qualitatively, both participants engaged in committed action set in accordance with their values. Conclusions: This study suggests that Acceptance and Commitment Therapy may be feasible to be delivered in a dyad with individuals who have a severe traumatic brain injury. A further test of its potential efficacy in a phase II clinical trial is recommended

A heart and a mind: Self-distancing facilitates the association between heart rate variability

Cardiac vagal tone (indexed via resting heart rate variability - HRV) has been previously associated with superior executive functioning. Is HRV related to wiser reasoning and less biased judgments? Here, we hypothesize that this will be the case when adopting a self-distanced (as opposed to a self-immersed) perspective, with self-distancing enabling individuals with higher HRV to overcome bias-promoting egocentric impulses and to reason wisely. However, higher HRV may not be associated with greater wisdom when adopting a self-immersed perspective. Participants were randomly assigned to reflect on societal issues from a self-distanced- or self-immersed perspective, with responses coded for reasoning quality. In a separate task, participants read about and evaluated a person performing morally ambiguous actions, with responses coded for dispositional vs. situational attributions. We simultaneously assessed resting cardiac recordings, obtaining 6 HRV indicators. As hypothesized, in the self-distanced condition, each HRV indicator was positively related to prevalence of wisdom-related reasoning (e.g., prevalence of recognition of limits of one’s knowledge, recognition that the world is in flux/change, consideration of others’ opinions and search for an integration of these opinions) and to balanced vs. biased attributions (recognition of situational and dispositional factors vs. focus on dispositional factors alone). In contrast, there was no relationship between these variables in the self-immersed condition. We discuss implications for research on psychophysiology, cognition, and wisdom

Gender based adolescent self-compassion profiles and the mediating role of nonattachment on psychological well-being

Emerging research has shown that boys and girls may relate to compassionate and uncompassionate components of self-compassion differently and have distinct gender based self-compassion profiles. This study extended upon recent research by investigating gender based adolescent self-compassion profiles and their relationship with psychological well-being and the role of nonattachment in the link between self-compassion and well-being. A large cross-sectional sample of Australian Year 10 high school students (N = 1,944, Mage = 15.65 years, SDage = 0.43; 50% girls) completed measures of self-compassion, nonattachment, and well-being. Latent profile analysis identified distinct self-compassion profiles based on gender. Four profiles labelled ‘Low Self-Relating’, ‘Moderate Self-Relating’, ‘Compassionate’, and ‘Uncompassionate’ emerged for girls. Three profiles emerged for boys labelled ‘Low Self-Relating’, ‘Moderate Self-Relating, and ‘Compassionate’. ‘Low’ and ‘Moderate Self-Relating’ profiles involved low and moderate levels of both compassionate and uncompassionate self-relating. ‘Compassionate’ profiles involved high levels of compassionate and low levels of uncompassionate self-relating, and ‘Uncompassionate’ profiles involved the opposite. For both genders, ‘Compassionate’ profiles were associated with the highest psychological well-being and nonattachment and ‘Uncompassionate’ profiles with the lowest of both. ‘Low’ and ‘Moderate Self-Relating’ profiles showed no difference in psychological well-being or nonattachment. Mediation analysis indicated that nonattachment partially mediated the relationship between self-compassion profile and psychological well-being. These findings support recent research that illustrates adolescents relate to the components of self-compassion differently both between and within genders. It also highlights the crucial role nonattachment plays in the relationship between self-compassion and psychological well-being in adolescents

The role of the individual in the coming era of process-based therapy

For decades the development of evidence-based therapy has been based on experimental tests of protocols designed to impact psychiatric syndromes. As this paradigm weakens, a more process-based therapy approach is rising in its place, focused on how to best target and change core biopsychosocial processes in specific situations for given goals with given clients. This is an inherently more idiographic question than has normally been at issue in evidence-based therapy over the last few decades. In this article we explore methods of assessment and analysis that can integrate idiographic and nomothetic approaches in a process-based era.Accepted manuscrip

Perceived Parenting Style and Adolescent Self-Compassion : A Longitudinal, Within-Person Approach

Objectives: Caregiver responses are important in shaping how children, and later adolescents, engage in their own self-compassionate responding and uncompassionate self-responding. However, longitudinal research exploring the relationship between parenting style and adolescent self-compassion is limited. We examined the degree to which psychologically controlling and supportive parenting styles were linked to changes in compassionate self-responding (CSR) and uncompassionate self-responding (USR), both contemporaneously and longitudinally. We further explored the extent that any effects were heterogeneous: Does parenting influence self-compassion for some adolescents but not others? Method: We measured CSR, USR, parental support, and parental psychological control in a group of 2596 adolescents annually over 4 years (Grades 9 to 12 inclusive, Mages = 14.65 (T1) to 17.73 (T4) years). Results: The multi-level modelling analysis of individual relationships between parenting and self-compassion revealed relatively independent effects of perceived parenting on CSR and USR respectively. Individual changes in supportive parenting were more strongly associated with changes in CSR than with USR, and within-person changes in psychologically controlling parenting were more strongly associated with USR than with CSR. Further, the strength of these relationships was heterogeneous, with parenting having a larger effect on some than others. Longitudinally, controlling parenting predicted the development of USR. Conclusions: Overall, the link between parenting and adolescent self-compassion significantly varied, with some adolescents reporting a large change in self-compassion in years when parenting changed, and some reporting little to no change in self-compassion in years when parenting practices changed. The present study therefore highlights the importance of parenting in understanding self-compassion and the need for further research that seeks to identify factors that moderate the link between parenting and self-compassion

A model of superiors and subordinates\u27 aggressive communication in the workplace

In the workplace, superiors and subordinates may engage in a spiral of aggressive communication and emotional reaction that can lead to negative attitudes and unproductive organisational outcomes and higher staff turnover. In the manuscript, we develop and propose a model of superiors\u27 and subordinates\u27 aggressive communication and emotional reactions. In our model we suggest that organisational context (culture) and individual personal characteristics (personality, trust, self-esteem) influence superiors\u27 and subordinates\u27 aggressive communication. We also suggest that individual emotional characteristics (positive/negative affect, emotional intelligence) influence the protagonists\u27 emotional reactions. Finally, we propose that subordinates\u27 emotional reactions and organisational culture influence their attitudes (organisational identity, perception of a masculine vs. feminine organisation) and their considered behaviours (performance, turnover). We conclude with a discussion of potential limitations, and implications for theory, research, and practice.<br /

Can Acceptance and Commitment Therapy facilitate psychological adjustment after a severe traumatic brain injury? A pilot randomised controlled trial

This study i⁠nvestigated if an Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) intervention (ACT-Adjust) can facilitate psychological adjustment and reduce psychological distress following severe traumatic brain injury (TBI). The study design comprised a single centre, two-armed, Phase II pilot randomized controlled trial. Nineteen individuals with severe TBI (PTA ≥7 days) who met a clinical threshold for psychological distress (Depression Anxiety Stress Scales-21; DASS &gt; 9) were randomly allocated to either ACT-Adjust (n = 10) or an active control, Befriending Therapy (n = 9), in conjunction with a holistic rehabilitation programme. Primary (psychological flexibility, rehabilitation participation) and secondary (depression, anxiety &amp; stress) outcomes were measured at three-time points (pre, post and follow up). Significant decreases were found for DASS-depression (group by time interaction, F1,17 = 5.35, p = .03) and DASS-stress (group by time interaction, F1,17 = 5.69, p = .03) in comparison to the Befriending group, but not for the primary outcome measures. The reduction in stress post-treatment was classed as clinically significant, however interaction differences for stress and depression were not maintained at one month follow up. Preliminary investigations indicate potential for ACT in decreasing psychological distress for individuals with a severe TBI with further sessions required to maintain treatment gains. The pilot results suggest further investigation is warranted in a larger scale clinical trial

The bifactor structure of the Self-Compassion Scale : Bayesian approaches to overcome exploratory structural equation modeling (ESEM) limitations

The rapidly expanding self-compassion research is driven mainly by Neff’s (2003a, 2003b, 2023) six-factor Self-Compassion Scale (SCS). Despite broad agreement on its six-first-order factor structure, there is much debate on SCS’s global structure (one- vs. two-global factors). Neff et al. (2019) argue for an exploratory structural equation model (ESEM) with six specific and one global bifactor (6ESEM + 1GlbBF) rather than two global factors (6ESEM + 2GlbBF). However, ESEM’s methodological limitations precluded testing the appropriate 6ESEM + 2GlbBF, relying instead on a model combining ESEM and traditional confirmatory factor analysis (6ESEM + 2CFA). Although intuitively reasonable, this alternative model results in internally inconsistent, illogical interpretations. Instead, we apply recent advances in Bayesian SEM frameworks and Bayes structural equation models fit indices to test a more appropriate bifactor model with two global factors. This model (as does 6CFA + 2GlbBF) fits the data well, and correlations between compassionate self-responding (CS) and reverse-scored uncompassionate self-responding (RUS) factors (∼.6) are much less than the 1.0 correlation implied by a single bipolar factor. We discuss the critical implications for theory, scoring, and clinical application for the SCS that previously were inappropriately based on this now-discredited 6ESEM + 2GlbCFA. In applied practice, we endorse using scores representing the six SCS factors, total SCS, and CS and RUS components rather than relying solely on one global factor. Our approach to these issues (dimensionality, factor structure, first-order and higher order models, positive vs. negatively oriented constructs, item-wording effects, and alternative estimation procedures) has wide applicability to clinical measurement (see our annotated bibliography of 20 instruments that might benefit from our approach)