Object attachment and emotions in hoarding disorder

Background and aims Object attachment is a core feature of hoarding disorder (HD), but it also occurs in people without HD. It is therefore critical to clarify differences between normal and abnormal object attachment. Although previous studies show that HD is associated with high emotional reactivity, no study to date has examined the nature and intensity of discrete emotions in people with and without HD in relation to object attachment. Method Individuals with HD (n = 93) and matched controls (n = 93) were recruited via MTurk. They identified and described a possession of low monetary value that they were emotionally attached to and found difficult to discard. Participants rated their object attachment and the intensity of emotions when imagining being with the object (Scenario A) and irretrievably losing the same object (Scenario B). Results Unexpectedly, there were no significant between-group differences on object attachment; however, the HD group experienced more incongruent emotions about their possessions; they reported significantly higher disgust, anxiety and anger than controls when they imagined being with their chosen object (Scenario A) and were more relaxed compared to controls when the object was lost (Scenario B). There were no significant differences between groups on congruent emotions (i.e., positive emotions in Scenario A or negative emotions in Scenario B). Conclusion People with and without HD experience similar emotional attachment for sentimental items but people with HD experience more mixed emotions, consistent with an insecure object attachment

Оборудование для испытания листовых конструкционных материалов при двухосном растяжении. Сообщение 1. Испытания односторонним давлением рабочей среды

Рассмотрены конструктивные особенности оборудования для исследования прочности и закономерностей разрушения листовых конструкционных материалов при двухосном растяжении путем нагружения образцов односторонним давлением рабочей среды. Предложены решения ряда проблем методического характера, связанных с испытаниями при высоких уровнях давления рабочей среды, что позволяет обеспечить необходимые режимы охлаждения образцов, снизить уровень энергии разрушения, повысить надежность и безопасность испытаний.Розглянуто конструктивні особливості устаткування для дослідження міцності і закономірностей руйнування листових конструкційних матеріалів при двовісному розтязі зразків одностороннім тиском робочого середовища. Запропоновано рішення ряду проблем методичного характеру, що пов’язані з випробуваннями при високих рівнях тиску робочого середовища. Це дозволить забезпечити необхідні режими охолодження зразків, знизити рівень енергії руйнування, підвищити надійность та безпеку випробувань.Design features of the equipment for studying strength and regularities of fracture of sheet structural materials in biaxial tension by subjecting specimens to one-sided pressure of a working medium are considered. Solutions were suggested for a number of methodological problems related to testing at high levels of pressure of a working medium. These solutions make it possible to provide necessary conditions of cooling of specimens, lower the level of fracture energy, and improve reliability and safety of the tests

An online experimental test of the compensatory process in hoarding disorder : reducing loneliness and its effects on object attachment

Attachment theory suggests that strong object attachment in hoarding disorder (HD) may be due to an attempt at compensating for unmet relatedness needs. We tested this compensatory process with an online experiment and hypothesized that reducing loneliness among participants with high hoarding symptoms would result in lower object attachment, and that change in loneliness would mediate the impact of an online loneliness intervention on object attachment. A pretest-posttest control group design was used. Participants were 298 MTurk workers pre-screened for high hoarding symptoms recruited via cloudresearch.com. At Time 1, participants completed measures of hoarding severity, loneliness, and four aspects of object attachment: overall object attachment to possessions, insecure object attachment, attachment to an old cherished item, and attachment to a novel item. We randomly assigned participants to either a loneliness intervention (n = 142) or an active control (a health education program; n = 156). All participants completed follow-up questionnaires after two weeks. We conducted ANCOVAs to assess for group differences at Time 2 whilst controlling for Time 1 variables. Results showed small but significant improvements in loneliness, thwarted belongingness, and object attachment for the novel item for participants who received the loneliness intervention relative to control participants. Mediational analyses revealed that the change in loneliness mediated the effect of the intervention on insecure object attachment. Consistent with attachment theory, these results indicate that reducing loneliness might lead to lower object attachment in hoarding disorder. Trials with clinical participants using more intensive loneliness interventions are warranted

Interpersonal functioning in hoarding : an investigation of the link between hoarding symptoms and social support, social anhedonia, and social rewards

Background: One of the key areas of functional impairment in hoarding is interpersonal difficulties, with burgeoning evidence suggesting that these social difficulties are a component of the psychopathology observed in hoarding. The specific nature of these interpersonal difficulties, however, has yet to be fully elucidated. The aim of the current study was to investigate the contribution of social support and motivation to socialise, specifically social anhedonia and rewards from social stimuli, to hoarding symptom severity. Method: A total of 278 participants recruited via the crowd-sourcing website MTurk completed questionnaires assessing hoarding symptoms, social support, social anhedonia, and response to social rewards. Results: Results for social reward processing indicated that hoarding symptoms were associated with finding both negative and positive behaviours towards others more rewarding. Social anhedonia also positively predicted hoarding symptoms. Furthermore, social integration, a component of social support, was inversely associated with hoarding symptoms. These associations remained significant when controlling for depressive symptoms. These results suggest that hoarding may be linked to decreased social support and reduced social motivation, particularly, dysregulated reward processing of social stimuli, and greater social anhedonia. Limitations: Limitations of the current study include utilising an unselected sample, use of self-report measures, and analyses being correlational in nature. Future research utilising longitudinal or experimental research methods in a clinical population may further delineate the clinical conceptualisation of social difficulties in hoarding disorder. Conclusions: Current findings may inform interpersonal conceptualisations for hoarding disorder and suggest additional treatment avenues

Імпакт-фактори наукових журналів та індекси цитування вчених: проблеми точності, моралі, етики та можливості використання

Показано всебічно позитиви та негативи оцінки наукової діяльності за допомогою імпакт-факторів наукових журналів та індексів цитування вчених. Дано огляд дискусій західних вчених щодо цього.Показаны всесторонне позитивы и негативы оценки научной деятельности с помощью импакт-факторов научных журналов и индексов цитирования ученых. Дан обзор дискуссий западных ученых относительно этого.The author examines positive and negative implications of the R&D performance evaluation by use of impact-factors of scientific journals and citation indices of scientists, and reviews the debate among Western scientists about it

Object attachment: Humanness increases sentimental and instrumental values

Background and aims: People who hoard form intense attachments to their possessions and save items for sentimental and instrumental reasons. Feeling socially excluded may encourage these individuals to anthropomorphize objects (i.e., perceive them as human-like) to fulfill unmet belonging needs, which may increase the sentimental and instrumental values of objects, and then lead to stronger object attachment. Methods: We randomly assigned 331 participants with excessive acquisition tendencies to be excluded, included, or overincluded in an online ball-tossing game before presenting them with five objects that had human characteristics. Participants then completed measures assessing anthropomorphism, sentimental and instrumental values, and object attachment. Results: Inconsistent with this study hypothesis, socially excluded participants did not rate unowned objects as more human-like than the included or overincluded participants; however, stronger anthropomorphism predicted greater instrumental and sentimental values, which then predicted greater object attachment. Discussion and conclusions: Sentimental and instrumental values may explain how stronger anthropomorphism may lead to greater object attachment. Learning that leads to anthropomorphism may help us better understand object attachment

A naturalistic study of emotion regulation-enhanced cognitive-behavioral group therapy for hoarding disorder in a community setting

Background Cognitive-behavioral group therapy for hoarding disorder (HD) is efficacious, but outcomes are modest and dropout rates are generally high. Clinical challenges in this population include high rates of comorbidity and difficulty regulating and tolerating negative emotions, which may reduce engagement with discarding exposures and lead to increased dropout. Methods In the current naturalistic study, we evaluated standard group cognitive-behavioral therapy enhanced with a three-session emotion regulation module in a large sample of individuals (N = 115) seeking treatment for HD at a community mental health clinic. We evaluated outcomes for distress tolerance, as well as hoarding symptoms and comorbid depression and anxiety symptoms. Results Distress tolerance was significantly improved at post-treatment, Hoarding symptoms, anxiety, and depression were also significantly decreased. Distress tolerance predicted more severe hoarding symptoms at baseline, but improvement in distress tolerance was not significantly associated with improvement in hoarding symptoms. Limitations The primary limitation was the absence of a control treatment condition, but HD is known to be a chronic condition which tends not to improve in waitlist control conditions. Conclusions Integrating emotion regulation strategies may provide an important pathway to improving treatment outcomes for hoarding disorder

Pilot mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic: prevalence rates from semi-structured interviews, and associated vulnerability and protective factors

IntroductionPilots are a unique occupational group who perform a specialised job and face significant stressors. Pilot mental health has received increased attention since Germanwings Flight 9525; however, this research has largely focused on general anxiety, depression, and suicide and relied on a questionnaire-based methodology. This approach is likely to miss various mental health issues that may affect pilot wellbeing, leaving the prevalence of mental health issues in aviation unclear. In addition, the COVID-19 pandemic is likely to have a particular impact on the mental health and wellbeing of pilots, who experienced the devastating effect of COVID-19 on the industry.MethodIn the present study, we conducted a comprehensive assessment of 73 commercial pilots during the COVID-19 pandemic, using the DIAMOND semi-structured diagnostic interview and explored possible associated vulnerability and protective factors, including life event stressors, personality, passion, lifestyle factors, and coping strategies.ResultsThe COVID-19 pandemic had a significant impact on aviation during the time of this study, affecting 95% of participants. The diagnostic results revealed over one third of pilots had symptoms of a diagnoseable mental health disorder. Anxiety disorders were the most commonly found disorders, followed by Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), Adjustment Disorder, and Depressive Disorders. Pilots’ high life event scores placed them at an increased risk for the development of stress-related illness, though did not explain which pilots had mental health difficulties in this study. Regression analysis supported a diathesis-stress model for pilot mental health, with disagreeableness and obsessive passion contributing to pilots’ development of mental health issues, and nutrition as the most important protective factor.DiscussionThis study, though limited to the COVID-19 pandemic, provides a valuable precedent for a more thorough assessment of pilot mental health, and contributes to the broader understanding of pilot mental health, including suggestions to target factors associated with the development of mental health issues

Anxious attachment and excessive acquisition: The mediating roles of anthropomorphism and distress intolerance

Background and aims: Most individuals with hoarding disorder (HD) are prone to excessively acquiring new possessions. Understanding the factors that contribute to this collecting behavior will allow us to develop better treatment approaches for HD. The aim of this study was to test our assumption that an anxious attachment style is associated with a tendency to anthropomorphize comforting objects and an inability to tolerate distress, which in turn leads to excessive acquisition. Methods: A total of 361 participants with subclinical to clinical acquisition problems (77.8% female) completed a series of self-report measures. Results: As expected, greater anxious attachment was related to greater distress intolerance and stronger tendencies to anthropomorphize inanimate objects. In turn, greater distress intolerance and anthropomorphism were related to more excessive buying and greater acquisition of free items. Examination of the pathways and indirect effects showed support for double mediation rather than serial mediation, as distress intolerance did not predict anthropomorphism. Discussion and conclusion: These novel findings, if replicated, suggest that adding treatment modules that target improving distress tolerance and reducing anthropomorphism to standard treatment for HD may lead to further reductions in excessive acquiring

Finding help for OCD in Australia : development and evaluation of a clinician directory

Objective: People tend to live with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) for many years before receiving evidence-based treatment. This delay is partly due to a lack of access to information about which healthcare providers offer evidence-based treatment for OCD. This information was not easily accessible online for people in Australia. Methods: In this study, we describe how an online directory of clinicians was developed and evaluated. We report on a needs analysis and survey of treatment-seeking histories among consumers and carers impacted by OCD. We describe the key features of the directory developed, and present survey feedback on its usability and utility. Results: The results validated the need for a directory specific to clinicians who offer evidence-based treatment for OCD, and that it meets essential usability standards. Areas for improvement and further developments were identified. Conclusion: This directory contributes to broader efforts invested to improve the treatment-seeking process for people living with OCD in Australia