Psychosocial and psychopathological factors of potential to repeat child abuse in the next generation.

Uvod: Zlostavljanje u detinjstvu predstavlja globalan fenomen sa nepovoljnim posledicama po pojedinca i društvo, među kojima je i mogućnost prenošenja kroz generacije. Mehanizam transgeneracijskog zlostavljanja još uvek nije dovoljno poznat. Cilj ovog istraživanja bio je da se ispitaju prediktivne vrednosti različitih psihosocijalnih i psihopatoloških faktora na sklonost ka zlostavljanju. Među ispitivanim faktorima su sociodemografske varijable, tip zlostavljanja u detinjstvu, dimenzije ličnosti, atačment, disocijativna iskustva, psihopatološki simptomi, i telesne bolesti. Pored toga, istraživanje je za cilj imalo da identifikuje razlike u prediktivnim modelima sklonosti ka zlostavljanju u grupama sa i bez istorije zlostavljanja u detinjstvu, kao i medijatorske i moderatorske efekte navedenih varijabli u vezi između zlostavljanja u detinjstvu i sklonosti ka zlostavljanju u odraslom dobu. Metod: Istraživanje je uključilo 372 roditelja iz nekliničke populacije (135 muškaraca i 237 žena, prosečne starosti 41,43 ± 8,12 godina), a korišćeni su sledeći instrumenti: opšti upitnik, Upitnik o traumatskim iskustvima u detinjstvu (Childhood Trauma Questionnaire – CTQ), Upitnik o sklonosti ka zlostavljanju dece (Child Abuse Potential Inventory – CAPI), Upitnik o temperamentu i karakteru, revidirana verzija (Temperament and Character Inventory Revised - TCI-R), Upitnik o iskustvima u bliskim odnosima, revidirana verzija (Experiences in Close Relationships Revised - ECR-R), Skala disocijativnih iskustava (Dissociative Experiences Scale – DES) i Revidirana lista simptoma (Symptom Checklist-90-Revised - SCL-90-R). Rezultati: Roditelji sa istorijom zlostavljanja imali su veću sklonost ka zlostavljanju u odnosu na one bez istorije zlostavljanja. U grupi roditelja sa istorijom zlostavljanja, značajni prediktori sklonosti ka zlostavljanju bili su sledeći faktori: veća starost najmlađeg deteta, veće emocionalno zlostavljanje, manja potraga za novim, veća istrajnost, manja samousmerenost i samotranscendentnost, veća anksioznost vezana za atačment, i veći indeks pozitivnih simptoma distresa (PSDI). Disocijacija i PSDI bili su delimični medijatori veze između emocionalnog zlostavljanja i sklonosti ka zlostavljanju...Background: Child maltreatment is a global phenomenon with adverse outcomes for both individual and society, including the potential for transgenerational repetition. The mechanisms of this repetition are still obscure. The aim of this study was to investigate predictive effects of several psychosocial and psychopathological factors on child abuse potential. These factors refer to socio-demographics, maltreatment type, personality dimensions, attachment-dimensions, dissociative experiences, psychopathological symptoms and somatic disease. In addition, the study was aimed at exploring the differences in predictive models of child abuse potential between groups of parents with and without child abuse history, as well as identifying the mediating and moderating roles of the aforementioned factors in relationship between child abuse history and child abuse potential. Method: The study enrolled 372 non-clinical parents (135 males and 237 females, mean age 41.43 ± 8.12 years), and used the following instruments: General questionnaire, Childhood Trauma Questionnaire – CTQ, Child Abuse Potential Inventory – CAPI, Temperament and Character Inventory Revised - TCI-R, Experiences in Close Relationships Revised - ECR-R, Dissociative Experiences Scale – DES, Symptom Checklist-90-Revised - SCL-90-R. Results: Parents with child abuse history had higher child abuse potential than those without such history. Among parents with child abuse memories, significant predictors of child abuse potential were the following factors: older age of the youngest child, more intensive emotional abuse, lower novelty seeking, higher persistence, lower self-directedness and self-transcendence, higher attachment anxiety, and higher positive symptom distress index (PSDI). Dissociation and PSDI were partial mediators of the relationship between emotional abuse history and child abuse potential. Among parents without child abuse history, significant predictors of child abuse potential were the following factors: lower income, higher harm avoidance, reward dependence and persistence, higher attachment-anxiety and PSDI..

The adolescent brain: Changes and challenges of development

Adolescence is a period between childhood and adulthood, characterized by specific physical and psychological development. It is a transitional developmental period, rather than a single snapshot in time. Traditional neurobiological and cognitive explanations of adolescent development of behavior have failed to account for the changes in behavior observed during adolescence. Magnetic resonance imaging studies have discovered that myelinogenesis continues from childhood to adulthood in the brain's region-specific neurocircuitry, which remains structurally and functionally vulnerable to impulsive habits. The maturation of the adolescent brain is influenced by heredity, environment, and sex, and they play a crucial role in myelination. Furthermore, one of the measures extracted out of MRI studies is also the thickness of cerebral cortex, a part that harbors synapses. It is the complexity of these synapses that allows humans to generate and understand complex thoughts and feelings in the real world, including the ability to solve analogies. And it is the complexity of those connections, remaining under construction during adolescence, that may be responsible for immature and impulsive behavior and neurobehavioral excitement during the adolescent life

Nonsuicidal Self-Injury (NSSI) in Serbia: Nationally representative sample study

Although NSSI has been drawing the attention of researchers intensely for the last 30 years, to date there is no published study about rates of NSSI behaviors in countries of south-eastern Europe. The study aimed to explore NSSI in the Republic of Serbia. Data were collected using multistage random sampling. The final sample consisted of 2792 participants (57.4% female) while the NSSI subsample consisted of 405 participants (54.3% males). Results showed the NSSI rate in Serbia is 4.3% based on a percentage of people who answered affirmatively to lifetime NSSI engagement. However, when the percentage of people who reported at least one positive answer through the NSSI behaviors checklist, the rate rises to 14.5%. The most frequent NSSI behavior is wound picking. NSSI rate drops to 8.8% when wound picking is excluded. Those engaged in NSSI were more likely to report suicide attempts and seek professional help than those who did not report NSSI. Gender differences in NSSI frequency are found only in cases of headbanging and burning oneself. This study showed the scope of NSSI-related problems is similar in Serbia compared to other countries. It also raised questions about the lack of preventive programs and treatment strategies for dealing with NSSI in Serbia.[https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2772598722000320]Corresponding author. Institute for Educational Research, Dobrinjska 11/3, 11 000, Belgrade, Serbia. E-mail addresses: [email protected], [email protected] (A. Radanović)

Psychosocial and psychopathological factors of potential to repeat child abuse in the next generation.

Uvod: Zlostavljanje u detinjstvu predstavlja globalan fenomen sa nepovoljnim posledicama po pojedinca i društvo, među kojima je i mogućnost prenošenja kroz generacije. Mehanizam transgeneracijskog zlostavljanja još uvek nije dovoljno poznat. Cilj ovog istraživanja bio je da se ispitaju prediktivne vrednosti različitih psihosocijalnih i psihopatoloških faktora na sklonost ka zlostavljanju. Među ispitivanim faktorima su sociodemografske varijable, tip zlostavljanja u detinjstvu, dimenzije ličnosti, atačment, disocijativna iskustva, psihopatološki simptomi, i telesne bolesti. Pored toga, istraživanje je za cilj imalo da identifikuje razlike u prediktivnim modelima sklonosti ka zlostavljanju u grupama sa i bez istorije zlostavljanja u detinjstvu, kao i medijatorske i moderatorske efekte navedenih varijabli u vezi između zlostavljanja u detinjstvu i sklonosti ka zlostavljanju u odraslom dobu. Metod: Istraživanje je uključilo 372 roditelja iz nekliničke populacije (135 muškaraca i 237 žena, prosečne starosti 41,43 ± 8,12 godina), a korišćeni su sledeći instrumenti: opšti upitnik, Upitnik o traumatskim iskustvima u detinjstvu (Childhood Trauma Questionnaire – CTQ), Upitnik o sklonosti ka zlostavljanju dece (Child Abuse Potential Inventory – CAPI), Upitnik o temperamentu i karakteru, revidirana verzija (Temperament and Character Inventory Revised - TCI-R), Upitnik o iskustvima u bliskim odnosima, revidirana verzija (Experiences in Close Relationships Revised - ECR-R), Skala disocijativnih iskustava (Dissociative Experiences Scale – DES) i Revidirana lista simptoma (Symptom Checklist-90-Revised - SCL-90-R). Rezultati: Roditelji sa istorijom zlostavljanja imali su veću sklonost ka zlostavljanju u odnosu na one bez istorije zlostavljanja. U grupi roditelja sa istorijom zlostavljanja, značajni prediktori sklonosti ka zlostavljanju bili su sledeći faktori: veća starost najmlađeg deteta, veće emocionalno zlostavljanje, manja potraga za novim, veća istrajnost, manja samousmerenost i samotranscendentnost, veća anksioznost vezana za atačment, i veći indeks pozitivnih simptoma distresa (PSDI). Disocijacija i PSDI bili su delimični medijatori veze između emocionalnog zlostavljanja i sklonosti ka zlostavljanju...Background: Child maltreatment is a global phenomenon with adverse outcomes for both individual and society, including the potential for transgenerational repetition. The mechanisms of this repetition are still obscure. The aim of this study was to investigate predictive effects of several psychosocial and psychopathological factors on child abuse potential. These factors refer to socio-demographics, maltreatment type, personality dimensions, attachment-dimensions, dissociative experiences, psychopathological symptoms and somatic disease. In addition, the study was aimed at exploring the differences in predictive models of child abuse potential between groups of parents with and without child abuse history, as well as identifying the mediating and moderating roles of the aforementioned factors in relationship between child abuse history and child abuse potential. Method: The study enrolled 372 non-clinical parents (135 males and 237 females, mean age 41.43 ± 8.12 years), and used the following instruments: General questionnaire, Childhood Trauma Questionnaire – CTQ, Child Abuse Potential Inventory – CAPI, Temperament and Character Inventory Revised - TCI-R, Experiences in Close Relationships Revised - ECR-R, Dissociative Experiences Scale – DES, Symptom Checklist-90-Revised - SCL-90-R. Results: Parents with child abuse history had higher child abuse potential than those without such history. Among parents with child abuse memories, significant predictors of child abuse potential were the following factors: older age of the youngest child, more intensive emotional abuse, lower novelty seeking, higher persistence, lower self-directedness and self-transcendence, higher attachment anxiety, and higher positive symptom distress index (PSDI). Dissociation and PSDI were partial mediators of the relationship between emotional abuse history and child abuse potential. Among parents without child abuse history, significant predictors of child abuse potential were the following factors: lower income, higher harm avoidance, reward dependence and persistence, higher attachment-anxiety and PSDI..

Attachment and emotional regulation in adolescents with depression

Background/Aim. Attachment and emotion regulation skills are recognized as important factors in the development of depression, but their specifics have rarely been discussed in clinical adolescent population. The aim of our study was to investigate attachment and emotion regulation strategies in adolescents with depression. Methods. The sample consisted of 101 adolescents, age 16 to 24, divided into three groups: 1) 41 adolescents with the diagnosis of depressive disorder; 2) 30 adolescents with the diagnosis of anxiety disorder; 3) 30 health adolescents (without psychiatric diagnosis). The assessment was done by the following instruments: the Socio-demographic questionnaire; the Semistructured clinical interview (SCID-I) for the Diagnostic and Stratistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition (DSM-IV); the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI); the Inventory of Parent and Peer Attachment (IPPA) and Emotional Regulation Questionnaire (ERQ). Data were analyzed using MANCOVA and partial correlation, with gender, age and birth order as covariates. Results. The adolescents with depressive disorders had less secure attachment to mother and peers than the health adolescents and less secure attachment to father comparing to other two groups (MANCOVA F = 4.571; p = 0.000). The adolescents with anxiety disorder had less secure attachment to father and peers compared to the healthy adolescents group (p < 0.05). The depressed adolescents used the strategy of cognitive reappraisal less often than both control groups (MANCOVA F = 5.200; p = 0.001). Subjective experience of depressive symptoms was related to insecure attachments to both parents and peers (r = -0.457; -0.436; -0.349; p = 0.000), as well as to lower use of cognitive reappraisal (r = -0.446; p = 0.000). Conclusion. Our findings related the adolescent depression to insecure attachment in all domains, with the specific weakness in emotion regulation (weak cognitive reappraisal). The findings could have practical implications for preventive and therapeutic interventions

Depression in adolescence, negative life events and sense of coherence

Introduction: Many studies have shown that negative life events and the sense of coherence are correlated with depression, but there is little data about their specifics in adolescent population. Goal: The objective of our study was to explore differences in the frequency of negative life events and sense of coherence in adolescents with depressive disorder, compared to adolescents with other psychiatric disorders and those in nonclinical population. Method: The sample consisted of 101 adolescents, age 16 to 24 years, divided in three groups: 1) study group consisted of 40 adolescents, with the diagnosis of depressive disorder; 2) psychiatric control group consisted of 30 adolescents that have not fulfilled criteria for depressive disorder, but had some other psychiatric disorder; 3) control group consisted of 30 adolescents that were never psychiatrically treated. The assessment was carried out by the following instruments: 1) General demographic questionnaire 2) Semistructured clinical interview for DSM-IV disorders; 3) Beck Depression Inventory; 4) Sense of Coherence Scale Questionnaire and 5) Negative Life Events Inventory. Results: Adolescents with depressive disorder had lower sense of coherence in all three dimensions (comprehensibility, manageability and meaningfulness) compared to adolescents in control groups, while the group of adolescents with other psychiatric disorders had lower sense of coherence in two dimensions (comprehensibility and meaningfulness), compared to non- clinical control group. Higher score of depressive symptoms was significantly correlated with higher prevalence of negative life events and with lower sense of coherence. Conclusion: Our findings have shown that depression among adolescents is correlated with higher number of negative life events and with lower degree of sense of coherence. These findings might be important for planning targeted therapeutic interventions aimed at strengthening the sense of coherence