Does alexithymia have a mediating effect between impulsivity and emotional-behavioral functioning in adolescents with binge eating disorder?

Objective: Binge eating Disorder (BeD) has recently been included in the Dsm-5. like many other eating disorder symptoms, BED is often present in adolescence. No studies have specifically investigated the influence of impulsivity and alexithymia on the emotional-behavioural functioning of adolescents diagnosed with BeD. Method: in this study, we recruited n = 162 adolescents (age range: 14-18) and divided them into two groups: 78 adolescents diagnosed with BeD, according to the Dsm-5 criteria (group A), and 84 healthy controls (group B). participants completed the youth self-report (ysr/11-18), the toronto Alexithymia scale (tAs-20) and the Barratt impulsiveness scale (Bis-11). Results: the results showed that group A had higher scores of alexithymia, impulsivity and maladaptive emotionalbehavioural functioning than Group B. Furthermore, alexithymia had a mediating effect on the relationship between impulsivity and emotional-behavioural functioning. Conclusions: These results allow us to hypothesise that alexithymia is a key variable influencing the emotional and behavioural problems of adolescents affected by BED. Our data confirms the previous studies underlining the association of impulsivity and alexithymia with the diagnosis of BeD in adolescents, and our study contributes to the previous literature, emphasising the central role of alexithymia in the mediating effect between impulsivity and emotional and behavioural problems. these results suggest the importance of promoting prevention and treatment polices focused on alexithymia

Behavioral Phenotyping of Dopamine Transporter Knockout Rats: Compulsive Traits, Motor Stereotypies, and Anhedonia

Alterations in dopamine neurotransmission are generally associated with diseases such as attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). Such diseases typically feature poor decision making and lack of control on executive functions and have been studied through the years using many animal models. Dopamine transporter (DAT) knockout (KO) and heterozygous (HET) mice, in particular, have been widely used to study ADHD. Recently, a strain of DAT KO rats has been developed (1). Here, we provide a phenotypic characterization of reward sensitivity and compulsive choice by adult rats born from DAT-HET dams bred with DAT-HET males, in order to further validate DAT KO rats as an animal model for preclinical research. We first tested DAT KO rats' sensitivity to rewarding stimuli, provided by highly appetitive food or sweet water; then, we tested their choice behavior with an Intolerance-to-Delay Task (IDT). During these tests, DAT KO rats appeared less sensitive to rewarding stimuli than wild-type (WT) and HET rats: they also showed a prominent hyperactive behavior with a rigid choice pattern and a wide number of compulsive stereotypies. Moreover, during the IDT, we tested the effects of amphetamine (AMPH) and RO-5203648, a trace amine-associated receptor 1 (TAAR1) partial agonist. AMPH accentuated impulsive behaviors in WT and HET rats, while it had no effect in DAT KO rats. Finally, we measured the levels of tyrosine hydroxylase, dopamine receptor 2 (D2), serotonin transporter, and TAAR1 mRNA transcripts in samples of ventral striatum, finding no significant differences between WT and KO genotypes. Throughout this study, DAT KO rats showed alterations in decision-making processes and in motivational states, as well as prominent motor and oral stereotypies: more studies are warranted to fully characterize and efficiently use them in preclinical research

From emotional mutual to self-regulation in attention deficit/ hyperactivity disorder: A pilot study on a sample of preschool-age children and their parents

The present study aimed to verify the relationship between parent-child interaction characteristics and the ability of children with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) to self-regulate their emotions. The sample included 60 participants: 20 mothers, 20 fathers, and 20 preschool-age males with a diagnosis of ADHD. Parents completed the 20-Item Toronto Alexithymia Scale. The Child Emotional Abilities Task was administered to the child and Autobiographical Emotional Events Dialogues were administered to mother-child and father-child dyads. Several characteristics of parent-child interactions, such as maternal ability to accept an active role of the child during the task, correlated with the child’s ability to identify and describe his own feelings. Parental abilities to involve the child in a reciprocal narrative and avoid boundary dissolution also correlated with the individual capability of the child in imaginative processes. In conclusion, parental emotional abilities were related to the ways in which parents interacted with their children with ADHD during an emotional task. The characteristics of these interactions were related to child emotional self-regulation abilities

Parental sensitivity to toddler's need for autonomy: an empirical study on mother-toddler and father-toddler interactions during feeding and play

During the second year of life, children's need for autonomy grows, and their behaviors become increasingly complex. Parental sensitivity to children's different cues is important in supporting adaptive psycho-emotional development. The present study assumes that mothers and fathers may respond with varying levels of sensitivity to the child's different cues, with particular attention to requests for greater autonomy. The study also examines the possible role played by interactive contexts (ie., play and feeding) and children's and parents' individual factors. The sample comprised N = 91 families with children aged between 12 and 24 months. Mother-toddler and father-toddler interactions were assessed during feeding and play. Parents completed questionnaires assessing children's temperament, psychopathological risk, and parenting stress. RESULTS: showed that toddlers' demands for autonomy were the most frequent cues in both play and feeding contexts, both with mothers and fathers. Furthermore, parents were more sensitive to toddlers' requests for cooperation than their requests for autonomy, in both interactive contexts. Moreover, mothers and fathers showed higher sensitivity to toddlers' demands for greater autonomy in the play context rather than in the feeding context. Mothers were more sensitive than fathers to toddlers' cues of resistance to parents' actions and to toddlers' requests for cooperation. Results showed differences and specificities in mother-toddler and father-toddler interactions in the two interactive contexts, showing associations between child negative emotionality, parental psychopathological risk and parenting stress, and maternal and paternal sensitivity to toddlers' demands for greater autonomy during play and feeding, respectively. These results confirm the initial hypotheses regarding parental sensitivity and its differential expression according to child cues. Implications are discussed

A latent profile approach for the study of internet gaming disorder, social media addiction, and psychopathology in a normative sample of adolescents

Background: For a small minority of individuals, the overuse of digital technologies has been associated with negative factors, including psychological distress and psychopathological symptoms. Two technology-based addictions – internet gaming disorder (IGD) and social media addiction (SMA) – have been found to be related to comorbid disorders and impulsivity especially in adolescents and emerging adults’ populations, but results in this field are inconclusive. Purpose: Using the latent profile analysis (LPA), this study identified different profiles of adolescents characterized by unique patterns of psychopathological risks, and similar levels of impulsivity, IGD, and SMA. Participants and methods: A total of 643 participants (312 males; Mage =16.02 years) were divided into three age groups (early, mid-, and late adolescence). They completed a battery of scales comprising: Internet Gaming Disorder Scale–Short Form, Bergen Social Media Addiction Scale, Barratt Impulsiveness Scale for Adolescents, and Symptom Checklist-90-R. Results: LPAs revealed distinct profiles across early, mid- and late adolescence with regards to the psychopathological variables taken into account. Specifically, only two profiles were identified in the 14–15 year age group, whereas three profiles emerged in the 16–17 year age group. Conclusion: This study highlighted that the profiles identified in each age group differed in terms of psychopathological risk (low, medium and high), showing instead similar (and non-clinical) scores in technology-based addictions and impulsivity. Results could be useful in designing prevention and intervention programs in youth showing similar patterns for technology-based addictions, but different levels of psychopathological symptoms

Perinatal Parenting Stress, Anxiety, and Depression Outcomes in First-Time Mothers and Fathers: A 3- to 6-Months Postpartum Follow-Up Study

Objective: Although there is an established link between parenting stress, postnatal depression, and anxiety, no study has yet investigated this link in first-time parental couples. The specific aims of this study were 1) to investigate whether there were any differences between first-time fathers’ and mothers’ postnatal parenting stress, anxiety, and depression symptoms and to see their evolution between three and 6 months after their child’s birth; and 2) to explore how each parent’s parenting stress and anxiety levels and the anxiety levels and depressive symptoms of their partners contributed to parental postnatal depression. Method: The sample included 362 parents (181 couples; mothers’ MAge = 35.03, SD = 4.7; fathers’ MAge = 37.9, SD = 5.6) of healthy babies. At three (T1) and 6 months (T2) postpartum, both parents filled out, in a counterbalanced order, the Parenting Stress Index-Short Form, the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale, and the State- Trait Anxiety Inventory. Results: The analyses showed that compared to fathers, mothers reported higher scores on postpartum anxiety, depression, and parenting stress. The scores for all measures for both mothers and fathers decreased from T1 to T2. However, a path analysis suggested that the persistence of both maternal and paternal postnatal depression was directly influenced by the parent’s own levels of anxiety and parenting stress and by the presence of depression in his/her partner. Discussion: This study highlights the relevant impact and effects of both maternal and paternal stress, anxiety, and depression symptoms during the transition to parenthood. Therefore, to provide efficacious, targeted, early interventions, perinatal screening should be directed at both parents

Magnetic resonance and conductivity study of a gelatin-based polymer gel electrolyte

This work reports results from proton nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) and complex impedance spectroscopy of gelatin-based polymer gel electrolytes containing chloridric acid, cross-linked with formaldehyde and plasticized with glycerol. Ionic conductivity of 4 × 10-5 S/cm were obtained at room temperature for samples prepared with 0.1 M of HCl. Proton (1H) lineshapes and spin-lattice relaxation times were measured as a function of temperature. Activation energies extracted from the 1H NMR relaxation data are in the range of 23-25 kJ/mol. The EPR spectra, which were carried out in samples doped with copper perchlorate, were interpreted with the aid of an axial spin Hamiltonian and indicate the presence of two different Cu2+ species in axially distorted sites. Copper complexation with both hydrogen and nitrogen was verified by electron spin-echo envelope modulation (ESEEM) techniques.CAPESCNPqFAPES

The functional architecture of mother-infant communication, and the development of infant social expressiveness in the first two months

By two-three months, infants show active social expressions during face-to-face interactions. These interactions are important, as they provide the foundation for later emotional regulation and cognition, but little is known about how infant social expressiveness develops. We considered two different accounts. One emphasizes the contingency of parental responsiveness, regardless of its form; the other, the functional architecture account, emphasizes the preparedness of both infants and parents to respond in specific ways to particular forms of behaviour in their partner. We videotaped mother-infant interactions from one to nine weeks, and analysed them with a micro-analytic coding scheme. Infant social expressiveness increased through the nine-week period, particularly after 3 weeks. This development was unrelated to the extent of maternal contingent responsiveness, even to infant social expressions. By contrast, specific forms of response that mothers used preferentially for infant social expressions - mirroring, marking with a smile- predicted the increase in these infant behaviours over time. These results support a functional architecture account of the perceptual and behavioural predispositions of infants and parents that allows young infants to capitalize on relatively limited exposure to specific parental behaviours, in order to develop important social capacities

Late adoptions:Attachment security and emotional availability in mother-child and father-child dyads

A growing body of research suggests that a history of neglect, abuse and institutionalization can negatively affect late-adopted children's attachment representations, and that adoptive parents can play a key role in enabling adopted children to earn secure attachments. Still, only a few studies have explored the quality of caregiver-child interaction in adoptive families. The present study aimed at verifying both the concordance of attachment in adoptive dyads (mother-children and father-children) and the relationship between attachment representations and parent-child interaction. The research involved 20 adoptive families in which the child's arrival had occurred between 12 to 36 months before the assessment, and where children were aged between 4.5 and 8.5 years. Attachment was assessed through the Adult Attachment Interview for parents and through the Manchester Child Attachment Story Task for children. The emotional quality of parent-child interaction was assessed trough the Emotional Availability Scales. Our results pointed out the presence of a relation between attachment representations of late-adopted children and their adoptive mothers (75%, K = 0.50, p =.025). In addition, we found that both insecure children and mothers showed lower levels of EA than secure ones. Some explanations are presented about why, in the early post-adoption period, child attachment patterns and dyadic emotional availability seem to be arranged on different frameworks for the two parental figures

Genitorialità e attaccamento

Adozione o affido? Quante volte, nella mente degli operatori socio-sanitari e della giustizia, è rimbalzato questo interrogativo a fronte di situazioni multiproblematiche e quante volte inoltre nel percorso di conoscenza la lettura degli stessi dati poteva far propendere a favore di una situazione o dell'altra a seconda che si ponesse l'attenzione sugli adulti o sui minori. D'altra parte il fatto che questo dilemma davvero sia sentito e che perduri in genere per lungo tempo fa pensare che le dinamiche di fondo da comprendere siano sostanzialmente le medesime e che proprio per questo prendere decisioni sia così difficile. Infatti la ricerca mostra come adozione e affido, che hanno ricadute diverse sul piano operativo e conseguenze diverse per i soggetti coinvolti, siano attraversati da problematiche intrapsichiche e relazionali simili quali il "gioco della doppia famiglia" e le strutture mentali, relazionali e intergenerazionali dell'"attaccamento-separazione". E' in questa prospettiva che recupera spessore e complessità il percorso conoscitivo e decisionale entro il quale sono chiamati ad operare in modo integrato specialisti appartenenti alle aree dei servizi socio-sanitari, psicosociali, della giustizia minorile, della ricerca universitaria. Può allora diventare fondamentale inoltre domandarsi quale sarà l'impatto del vissuto di una doppia famiglia che naturalmente assumerà significati molto diversi nel caso di un'adozione o di un affido. Il testo ha l'obiettivo di presentare una particolare ottica di lettura capace di orientare i quadri socio-culturali generalmente utilizzati; di influenzare lo stile di osservazione e i modi di selezione e acquisizione di informazioni critiche talvolta non valorizzate; di suggerire percorsi di comprensione meno stereotipati delle situazioni multiproblematiche affrontate. Livia Saviane Kaneklin, psicologa, psicodiagnosta, psicoterapeuta. Ha sviluppato una ventennale esperienza nei servizi pubblici sia dell'età evolutiva sia dell'età adulta. Si è occupata anche di affidamento familiare a livello di ricerca, di pubblicazioni e di formazione degli operatori. L'orientamento culturale e l'obiettivo delle attività svolte nell'arco degli ultimi dieci anni è stato quello di lavorare per lo sviluppo della professionalità degli operatori psicosociali: sia presso la SlPs, ove è stata Delegato Nazionale della Divisione Clinica; sia all'interno di altre associazioni promuovendo numerose iniziative di pubblico dibattito e di formazione. Attualmente svolge attività privata di psicodiagnosi e psicoterapia di adolescenti e adulti a Milano. Docente di psicologia dinamica all'Università Cattolica di Brescia, è, tra l'altro curatore e autore di diversi volumi. Indice: ATTACCAMENTO E SEPARAZIONE: LE DINAMICHE IN GIOCO 1. Attaccamento e separazione: idee, teorie e ricerche, di Livia Saviane Kaneklin 2. Adozione e affido: un approccio psicoanalitico ai temi della separazione e dell'abbandono, di Susanna Kuciukian 3. Genitorialità e attaccamento, di Renata Tambelli LA DOPPIA FAMIGLIA 4. La famiglia senza memoria, di Adriana Pagnoni 5. La famiglia d'origine: da cancellare o da condividere, di Roberta Carini e Donatella Guidi 6. In affido e in adozione: un bambino e più famiglie. Un approccio socio-clinico, di Ombretta Okely 7. L'altra famiglia: riflessioni sulla dinamica fantasmatica delle coppie affidatarie e adottive, di M. Clelia Zurlo PER UN PROCESSO DIAGNOSTICO 8. La diagnosi come processo dialettico, di Domenico Resta 9. La diagnosi possibile o impossibile, di M. Cecilia Zoffoli 10. Fra realtà interna e realtà esterna: le dinamiche collusive del contesto relazionale giudici-consulenti famiglie, di Emilio Masina e Giovanna Montinari 11. Storia familiare e genere terapeutico. Il caso dell'affidamento-accoglimento familiare, di Vittorio Cigol