Material educativo

La aparición de comportamientos repetitivos y desadaptativos como la agresión son comunes y a menudo se producen en la población general, siendo los hombres los que presentan un particular punto de mira. La mayoría de las veces los hombres se ven inmersos en problemas judiciales. Este manual se deriva de una investigación realizada con población penitenciaria con delitos de violencia de género. El objetivo de este manual y de nuestro trabajo futuro es profundizar en esta problemática para dar soluciones adaptadas a los nuevos tiempos. Se trata de un material educativo donde aprenderás a identificar una serie de pensamientos, sentimientos y conductas que son desadaptativas para posteriormente pasar a su modificación.Este material ha sido financiado por Agencia Andaluza del Conocimiento. Consejería de Economía, Conocimiento, Empresas y Universidad. Proyectos de I+D+I del Programa Operativo FEDER de Andalucía (A.SEJ.154.UGR20)

Potential predictors of smoking relapse in treatment-seeking smokers

Impulsive behavior problems are powerful predictors of addiction treatment outcomes. However, a comprehensive assessment of these features has not been examined in relation to smoking cessation outcomes. This study aims to evaluate the capacity of impulsive behavior to predict the risk of relapse and the number of relapses for smokers. The sample comprised 141 participants (Mage= 47.3, SD= 8.31; 59% females) in psychopharmacology treatment for dependence to nicotine. Participants provided breath carbon monoxide samples for determining smoking throughout the study. The different impulsiveness dimensions were evaluated with a Go/NoGo task, the visual search and attention test and a delayed discount task, while self-informed impulsivity was assessed with Barratt’s Impulsiveness Scale. Unplanned impulsivity, attention failures and performance in the Go/NoGo task are postulated among the individual factors related to the number of relapses. Our results contribute to the understanding of relapse components and enable the inference of assiduity by quantifying relapse.Los problemas del comportamiento impulsivo representan poderosos predictores de los resultados del tratamiento en adicciones. Sin embargo, no se dispone una evaluación exhaustiva de estas características en los resultados del tratamiento de deshabituación tabáquica. Este estudio pretende evaluar la capacidad de las dimensiones de la conducta impulsiva para predecir el riesgo y el número de recaídas. La muestra comprendió 141 fumadores (Medad= 47,3; DT= 8,31; 59% mujeres) en tratamiento psicofarmacológico de deshabituación tabáquica. Los participantes proporcionaron muestras de monóxido de carbono para determinar la abstinencia. Las diferentes dimensiones de impulsividad se evaluaron con una tarea Go/NoGo, la tarea de búsqueda y atención visual y una tarea de descuento por demora, mientras que la impulsividad autoinformada se evaluó con la Escala de impulsividad de Barratt. La impulsividad no planeada, los fallos de atención y el rendimiento en la tarea Go/NoGo se postulan entre los factores relacionados con el número de recaídas. Nuestros resultados contribuyen a la comprensión de componentes de reanudación del consumo y posibilitan la inferencia de la asiduidad al cuantificar las recaídas

Executive Functions in Tobacco Use Disorder: New Challenges and Opportunities

The raw data supporting the conclusions of this article will be made available by the authors, without undue reservationThe studies involving human participants were reviewed and approved by Bioethics Committee of the University of Granada (Spain). The patients/participants provided their written informed consent to participate in this study.The authors would like to thank the research participants for their time and dedication.There is increasing evidence that executive functions have significative effects on nicotine abuse. An unresolved challenge for smoking cessation interventions is the detection of factors associated with nicotine use. In order to understand how cognition is affected by nicotine abuse, this study was designed to determine the relationship between years of smoking addiction and several variables of executive functions. The sample was composed of 174 smokers, whose age ranged between 27 and 69 years old (M = 47.44; SD = 8.48). Smokers were assessed at baseline with measures of cognitive inhibition [Go/No Go Task and Five Digit Test (FDT)], updating [Visual Search and Attention Test (VSAT) and Letter-Number Sequencing (WAIS IV)] and shifting [Delay Discounting Task (DDT) and Iowa Gambling Task (IGT)] while the outcome measure was years of smoking. The linear regression and correlation analysis highlighting that the variable which has the strongest association with years of smoking is updating. Multivariate analysis of variance (MANCOVA) followed by Tukey post-hoc tests revealed significant differences such that heavy smoking indicated worse performance than light smoking on updating tasks. These findings report the ability of working memory to predict years of smoking and suggest that cigarette packaging warning may experience a loss of effectiveness in heavy smokers

Impulsivity and Compulsivity and Their Relationship with Non-Adherence to Treatment in the Prison Population

The main challenge of interventions in penitentiary institutions is the re-education and reintegration of inmates, i.e., that inmates have the intention and ability to live law-abiding lives. Therefore, an increase in self-control or, on the contrary, the decrease or elimination of impulsive versus compulsive behaviors becomes necessary. This study aimed to evaluate the role of impulsivity versus compulsivity in treatment adherence in the prison population. The study included 134 men from the Penitentiary Center of Granada who were divided into two groups. Group 1 was considered treatment adherent, and Group 2 was considered non-adherent to treatment. The following instruments were used: Symptom Inventory (SCL-90-R), Addiction Severity Index (EuropASI), Impulsivity Scale (UPPS-P), and Compulsive Belief Questionnaire (OBQ-44). Statistically significant differences were found in impulsivity in the dimensions of negative urgency, sensation seeking, and positive urgency, with higher scores in all cases for the non-adherent group than for the adherent group. We also found statistically significant differences in responsibility/inhibition, perfectionism/uncertainty, and importance/control, with higher scores for the non-adherent group compared to the adherent group. Treatment adherence is inversely related to impulsive and compulsive behaviors

Measuring inappropriate sexual behavior among university students: using the randomized response technique to enhance self-reporting

This article analyzes the efficacy of the randomized response technique (RRT) in achieving honest self-reporting about sexual behavior, compared with traditional survey techniques. A complex survey was conducted of 1,246 university students in Spain, who were asked sensitive quantitative questions about their sexual behavior, either via the RRT (n = 754) or by direct questioning (DQ) (n = 492). The RRT estimates of the number of times that the students were unable to restrain their inappropriate sexual behavior were significantly higher than the DQ estimates, among both male and female students. The results obtained suggest that the RRT method elicits higher values of self-stigmatizing reports of sexual experiences by increasing privacy in the data collection process. The RRT is shown to be a useful method for investigating sexual behavior

Application of randomized response techniques for investigating cannabis use by Spanish university students

Cannabis is the most widely used illicit drug in developed countries, and has a significant impact on mental and physical health in the general population. Although the evaluation of levels of substance use is difficult, a method such as the randomized response technique (RRT), which includes both a personal component and an assurance of confidentiality, provides a combination which can achieve a considerable degree of accuracy. Various RRT surveys have been conducted to measure the prevalence of drug use, but to date no studies have been made of the effectiveness of this approach in surveys with respect to quantitative variables related to drug use. This paper describes a probabilistic, stratified sample of 1146 university students asking sensitive quantitative questions about cannabis use in Spanish universities, conducted using the RRT. On comparing the results of the direct question (DQ) survey and those of the randomized response (RR) survey, we find that the number of cannabis cigarettes consumed during the past year (DQ: 3, RR: 17 aproximately), and the number of days when consumption took place (DQ: 1, RR: 7) are much higher with RRT. The advantages of RRT, reported previously and corroborated in our study, make it a useful method for investigating cannabis use.Ministerio de Educación, Cultura y DeporteConsejería de Economía, Innovación, Ciencia y Emple

Indirect questioning methods for sensitive survey questions: Modelling criminal behaviours among a prison population

Information such as the prevalence and frequency of criminal behaviour is difficult to estimate using standard survey techniques because of the tendency of respondents to withhold or misrepresent information. Social desirability bias is a significant threat to the validity of self-reported data, especially when supplied by persons such as sexual offenders or those convicted of theft or substance abuse. The randomized response approach is an alternative to the standard interview method and offers great potential for researchers in the field of criminal justice. By means of a survey of 792 prison inmates, incorporating both indirect and direct response techniques, we investigate if the prison population also has problems recognizing their participation in criminal acts such as theft, illicit drug use, violence against property, reckless driving and arson. Our research findings suggest that self-reported criminal behaviour among a prison population is affected by social desirability bias and that the behaviour considered is significantly associated with the severity of obsessive-compulsive symptoms. The results also demonstrate the inadequacy of traditional, yet widely used, direct questioning methods, and the great potential for indirect questioning techniques to advance policy formation and evaluation in the field of criminal behaviour.Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad of Spai

Decisional balance and processes of change in community-recruited with moderate-high versus mild severity of cannabis dependence

Decisional Balance and Processes of Change are generally addressed in motivational interventions for the treatment of cannabis use disorders. However, specific aspects of these multifaceted constructs, with greater relevance for severe cannabis users, need to be ascertained to enable better interventions. This study aimed to compare the different facets of decisional balance and processes of change between mild and severe cannabis users in a community-based sample of young undergraduates. Thirty-one severe cannabis users and 31 mild cannabis users, indicated with the Severity of Dependence Scale, were assessed using the Decisional Balance Questionnaire (DBQ) and the Processes of Change Questionnaire (PCQ). We found that severe cannabis users had higher scores in the DBQ dimensions of Utilitarian Gains for the Self, Utilitarian Gains for Significant Others, and Self-approval, as well as in the total subscale of Gains but not Losses. The group of severe cannabis users also had higher scores in the PCQ dimensions of Self-revaluations and Counter-conditioning. Our results pinpoint specific dimensions of Decisional Balance and Processes of Change that are endorsed by severe cannabis users. This knowledge could be applied to inform motivational interventions targeting severe cannabis users

Fiabilidad y validez del cuestionario para evaluar la nomofobia (QANP)

Background: The real meaning of the term nomophobia remains somewhat obscure in studies assessing this disorder. There is an increasing interest in further exploring nomophobia: however, currently available measuring tools appear to only address mobile phone abuse and/or addiction. The objective of this study was to create a Spanish-language instrument to measure nomophobia. Methods: We developed an 11-item scale that we administered to 968 participants drawn from the population of Granada (Spain). We first performed an Exploratory Factor Analysis. After assessing the nomological validity of the scale, we conducted a Confirmatory Factor Analysis. Results: The Exploratory Factor Analysis revealed a three-factor structure. Factor 1 (Mobile Phone Abuse) comprised five items that described 19% of the variance; Factor 2 (Loss of Control) comprised three items that explained 12% of the variance; and Factor 3 (Negative Consequences) comprised three items that explained 10% of the variance. Cronbach's Alpha reliability coefficient was 0.80. Limitations: Nomophobia is a modern disorder that has yet to be classified as a disease. Self-report measures are affected by biased replies, and therefore the presence of confounders may be a potential issue. Conclusion: This scale is reliable and valid. It provides future researchers with the means to measure nomophobia in the Spanish population.Antecedentes: El verdadero significado de la nomofobia parece estar oculto en los estudios que evalúan este trastorno. Existe un creciente interés en profundizar en el estudio de la nomofobia, sin embargo, las herramientas de medición disponibles desarrolladas hasta ahora parecen centrarse solo en el abuso y / o adicción a los teléfonos móviles. Por ello, el objetivo de este estudio objetivo proponer y validar un instrumento de medición de la nomofobia para la población española. Método: Desarrollamos una escala con 11 ítems que fue administrada a 968 participantes de la población de Granada (España). En primer lugar se realizó un análisis factorial exploratorio y posteriormente se realizó un análisis factorial confirmatorio. Resultados: El análisis factorial exploratorio reveló una estructura de tres factores. El factor 1 (abuso de teléfonos móviles) está compuesto por cinco ítems y explica un 19% de la varianza; Factor 2 (Pérdida de control) incluye tres ítems y explica el 12% de la varianza y Factor 3 (Consecuencias negativas) contiene tres ítems y explica el 10% de la varianza. El valor del coeficiente de fiabilidad Alpha de Cronbach fue 0.80. Limitaciones: La nomofobia es un trastorno moderno que aún no se ha clasificado como patología, las medidas de autoinforme presentas respuestas sesgadas por lo que podemos encontrar algún error o sesgo. Conclusión: QANP es una escala fiable y válida y proporciona a los investigadores una forma de medir la nomofobia para futuros estudios en la población española

Use of the Therapy App Prescinde for Increasing Adherence to Smoking Cessation Treatment

Tobacco use poses major health risks and is a major contributor to causes of death worldwide. Mobile phone-based cessation apps for this substance are gaining popularity, often used as a component of traditional interventions. This study aimed to analyze adherence to an intervention using a mobile phone application (App-therapy Prescinde (v1)) as a function of sociodemographic variables (age, gender, educational level, and profession) as well as the primary activities supported by the app (reducing tobacco or cannabis use and increasing physical exercise). The participants were recruited through the web pages of the Occupational Risk Prevention Service and the Psychology Clinic of the University of Granada during the COVID-19 confinement period. The application’s contents include three components (self-report, motivational phrases, and goal setting). Our findings indicate that being male, being aged between 26 and 62, having a high school education, and being unemployed increase the likelihood of adherence to the Prescinde therapy app three months after usage. Our findings highlight the importance of developing new therapeutic approaches and conducting in-depth studies on the factors associated with adherence to tobacco cessation and cannabis cessation treatments via mobile phone applications.The study was conducted according to the guidelines of the Declaration of Helsinki, and approved by the Ethics Committee of University of Granada (568/CEIH/2018)