A longitudinal study for the empirical validation of an etiopathogenetic model of internet addiction in adolescence based on early emotion regulation

Several etiopathogenetic models have been conceptualized for the onset of Internet Addiction (IA). However, no study had evaluated the possible predictive efect of early emotion regulation strategies on the development of IA in adolescence. In a sample of N = 142 adolescents with Internet Addiction, this twelve-year longitudinal study aimed at verifying whether and how emotion regulation strategies (self-focused versus other-focused) at two years of age were predictive of school-age children's internalizing/externalizing symptoms, which in turn fostered Internet Addiction (compulsive use of the Web versus distressed use) in adolescence. Our results confrmed our hypotheses demonstrating that early emotion regulation has an impact on the emotional-behavioral functioning in middle childhood (8 years of age), which in turn has an infuence on the onset of IA in adolescence. Moreover, our results showed a strong, direct statistical link between the characteristics of emotion regulation strategies in infancy and IA in adolescence. Tese results indicate that a common root of unbalanced emotion regulation could lead to two diferent manifestations of Internet Addiction in youths and could be useful in the assessment and treatment of adolescents with I

A longitudinal study for the empirical validation of an etiopathogenetic model of internet addiction in adolescence based on early emotion regulation

Several etiopathogenetic models have been conceptualized for the onset of Internet Addiction (IA). However, no study had evaluated the possible predictive efect of early emotion regulation strategies on the development of IA in adolescence. In a sample of N = 142 adolescents with Internet Addiction, this twelve-year longitudinal study aimed at verifying whether and how emotion regulation strategies (self-focused versus other-focused) at two years of age were predictive of school-age children's internalizing/externalizing symptoms, which in turn fostered Internet Addiction (compulsive use of the Web versus distressed use) in adolescence. Our results confrmed our hypotheses demonstrating that early emotion regulation has an impact on the emotional-behavioral functioning in middle childhood (8 years of age), which in turn has an infuence on the onset of IA in adolescence. Moreover, our results showed a strong, direct statistical link between the characteristics of emotion regulation strategies in infancy and IA in adolescence. Tese results indicate that a common root of unbalanced emotion regulation could lead to two diferent manifestations of Internet Addiction in youths and could be useful in the assessment and treatment of adolescents with I

The role of family relationships in eating disorders in adolescents: a narrative review

Abstract: Background: Adolescents’eatingdisordershavebeenexploredthroughvariousconceptual andempiricalmodels. Onlyrecently,scientificliteratureinthisareahasmorespecificallyinvestigated theroleofrelationships,withparticularattentiontofamilyfunctioning. Objective: Thispaperreviews family relationships aspects of eating disorders in adolescence. Methods: A narrative literature review of relational issues in adolescents’ eating disorders was performed. Results: Empirical evidence of family relationships in adolescents’ eating disorders confirms the relevance of relational aspects in the development and maintenance of the pathology. In particular, the contribution of the relational-systemic approach is wide, suggesting the need to refer to the family context for a better understanding of adolescents’ sufferance. Additionally, the empirical contributions from the conceptual model of Developmental Psychopathology, highlighting the importance of risk and protection factors in family relationships, provides knowledge about the phenomenon of adolescents’ eating disorders in terms of complexity. Conclusions: An integrated relational model aimed to explore adolescents’ eating disorders is worthy of investigation to accomplish specific program of intervention

A narrative review of binge eating disorder in adolescence: prevalence, impact, and psychological treatment strategies

Binge eating disorder (BED) represents one of the most problematic clinical conditions among youths. Research has shown that the developmental stage of adolescence is a critical stage for the onset of eating disorders (EDs), with a peak prevalence of BED at the age of 16–17 years. Several studies among adults with BED have underlined that it is associated with a broad spectrum of negative consequences, including higher concern about shape and weight, difficulties in social functioning, and emotional-behavioral problems. This review aimed to examine studies focused on the prevalence of BED in the adolescent population, its impact in terms of physical, social, and psychological outcomes, and possible strategies of psychological intervention. The review of the international literature was made on paper material and electronic databases ProQuest, PsycArticles, and PsycInfo, and the Scopus index were used to verify the scientific relevance of the papers. Epidemiological research that examined the prevalence of BED in adolescent samples in accordance with Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4th Edition showed a prevalence ranging from 1% to 4%. More recently, only a few studies have investigated the prevalence of BED, in accordance with the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Disorders, Fifth Edition criteria, reporting a prevalence of ~1%–5%. Studies that focused on the possible impact that BED may have on physical, psychological, and social functioning showed that adolescents with BED have an increased risk of developing various adverse consequences, including obesity, social problems, substance use, suicidality, and other psychological difficulties, especially in the internalizing area. Despite the evidence, to date, reviews on possible and effective psychological treatment for BED among the young population are rare and focused primarily on adolescent females

An exploratory study on adaptive psychopathological risk and problematic use of the web associated with procrastination in university students

La procrastinación es un fenómeno creciente entre los estudiantes universitarios y la investigación internacional ha señalado que puede afectar a la calidad de sus logros e incluso a su bienestar psicofísico. Se ha sugerido que, además de manifestarse en el contexto académico, la procrastinación representa en algunas materias una tendencia estable en diversas áreas de la vida diaria y puede persistir por el resto de sus vidas. Este estudio ha recopilado una muestra de conveniencia de N=382 estudiantes universitarios en Italia, que fueron administrados a través de la Escala de Procrastinación Pura, el Autoinforme de Adultos, la Prueba de Adicción a Internet y la Escala de Impulsividad de Barratt. Nuestros resultados confirmaron la relación entre el riesgo psicopatológico, la impulsividad, el uso problemático de la web y la propensión a la procrastinación académica en una muestra de estudiantes universitarios, brindando apoyo para la construcción de programas de prevención e intervención.Procrastination is a growing phenomenon among university students and international research has pointed out that it can affect the quality of students’ achievements, and even their psycho-physical well-being. It has been suggested that, besides manifesting in the academic context, procrastination represents in some subjects a stable trend in various areas of daily life and can persist for the rest of their lives. This study has recruited a convenience sample of N=382 university students in Italy, who were administered through the Pure Procrastination Scale, the Adult Self-Report, the Internet Addiction Test, and the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale. Our results confirmed the association between psychopathological risk, impulsiveness, problematic use of the web and a propensity towards academic procrastination in a sample of university students, providing support for the construction of prevention and intervention programs.peerReviewe

Psychopathological risk in parentally bereaved adolescents

For a child, the death of a parent is a traumatic experience and can give rise to several difficulties during the child’s development. International literature in this field has focused on clinical populations; evaluations of the psychological difficulties in adulthood have rarely been aimed at non-referred samples. The present study assessed the psychological functioning of a non-referred sample of adolescents, with consideration given to the impact of the loss of a caregiver during childhood on their psychological profiles. It also evaluated the association between the adolescents’ psychological profiles and possible psychopathological risk in the surviving parents. Three groups of subjects (N=96) were considered: adolescents who had suffered the loss before 3 years of age (Group A); adolescents who had experienced loss between 3 and 10 years of age (Group B); and adolescents who had experienced no loss (Group C). Psychological profiles, eating difficulties, and dissociative symptoms were evaluated during adolescence (14-16 years of age). Also assessed were the psychological profiles of the surviving caregivers. Group A had higher scores than Group B and C, indicating that there had not been an improvement in their psychological well-being. In addition, it was found that the psychological profiles of the surviving caregivers may have had an influence on the adolescents’ psychological difficulties. This result is important for prevention, and it could direct clinical work and early intervention in this specific field by taking into account the influence of the surviving parent

Early maternal relational traumatic experiences and psychopathological symptoms: a longitudinal study on mother-infant and father-infant interactions

Early maternal relational traumas and psychopathological risk can have an impact on mother-infant interactions. Research has suggested the study of fathers and of their psychological profiles as protection or risk factors. The aim of the paper is to assess the quality of parental interactions during feeding in families with mothers with early traumatic experiences. One hundred thirty-six (N = 136) families were recruited in gynecological clinics: Group A included families with mothers who experienced early sexual/physical abuse; Group B was composed of families with mothers who experienced early emotional abuse or neglect; and Group C comprised healthy controls. The subjects participated in a 10-month longitudinal protocol [at the fourth month of pregnancy (T0), 3 months after child birth (T1), and 6 months after child birth (T2)] that included an observation of mother-infant and father-infant interactions during feeding (Scala di Valutazione dell'Interazione Alimentare [SVIA]) and a self-reporting 90-item Symptom Checklist-Revised (SCL-90-R). Maternal higher rates of depression and early traumatic experiences of neglect and emotional abuse predicted more maladaptive scores on the affective state of the dyad SVIA subscale. Paternal anxiety predicted more severe levels of food refusal in the child during feeding

The new age of adolescence and the use of social networks in youths

Prof. Massimo Ammaniti is considered one of the most eminent Italian psychoanalysts specialized in the area of human development. In addition to carrying out his activity as a university lecturer and carrying out his profession as a psychoanalyst, Massimo Ammaniti is also the author of more than 200 scientific publications. He is a member of the International Psychoanalytical Association and he is in the Board of the World Association of Infant Mental Health. His main interests focus on parents-children interactions, adolescence, neurobiology, and the changes in the family functioning in the modern society. In this interview, he shares his thoughts about the recent transformations in the developmental stage of adolescence and reflects on the use made by youths of today's social networks

Adolescents’ psychological functioning and unintentional injuries: motor vehicles and sports accidents

Adolescence represents a crucial period for psychological development. Adolescents have been shown more prone to injuries than adults have and they are frequently involved in motor vehicle and sports accident. Although adolescents’ injuries have been widely investigated in international literature, victims’ psychological profiles associated with different types of accidents have been scarcely addressed. The present study aimed to identify adolescents’ psychological functioning associated with different types of injuries among a population of Italian adolescents who visited an emergency department. Moreover, the present paper intended to compare psychological profiles of adolescents who have had road and sports accidents. The sample was composed by N= 60 adolescents who attended an emergency department in central Italy. Subjects completed self-report measures assessing emotional and behavioural functioning and the use of defence mechanisms. Both road and sport accidents were associated with adolescents’ maladaptive psychological functioning. Adolescents involved in motor vehicle accidents showed a problematic emotional and behavioural functioning in general and a massive use of defense strategies; their peers who had sport accidents also show various difficulties in internalizing and externalizing functioning. Several adolescents’ emotional-behavioural variables are associated with injuries rates. Risk taking behaviours and other victims’ psychological profiles should be considered to have an exhaustive picture of individual factors that can impair a healthy development

Dopamine transporter and transmission of psychopathological risk. A review of gene-environment interplay

Research underlines that intergenerational transmission of psychopathological risk results from a complex interplay of genetic and environmental risk factors which predispose child to develop emotionalbehavioral problems. Mechanisms of transmission are poorly understood, but few studies have focused on the role played by dopamine transporter (DAT) gene. This review aims to examine mediating mechanism of DAT genotype-environmental interaction (GxE), DAT genotype-environmental correlation (rGE), and methylation status involved in transmission of psychopathological risk. The review of literature was made through researches in university libraries on paper material, and telematics systems research. Studies have evidenced that DAT is implicated in intergenerational transmission of psychopathological risk. Results are mixed regarding its genetic variants, but mechanisms through which this gene can affect both quality of parenting and child development are partially established. Only few studies have examined methylation mechanisms that can be implicated. Findings suggest to involve an improved focus on DAT genotypes, methylation status associated, and their relationship with environment to better understanding child’s vulnerability and resilience following exposure to contextual risk factors associated with parental psychopathological symptoms