Construct validation of individuating and relating autonomy orientations in culturally Chinese adolescents

Adolescent individuating and relating autonomies were compared to the concepts of detachment and public conformity. Participants included 573 junior high and 673 senior high school students. Each type of autonomy had a distinctive function in intrapsychic or interpersonal domains and clearly differed from detachment and public conformity. In the competing model analysis, individuating autonomy was more associated than relating autonomy with adjustment variables in the personal domain, such as the global and personal aspects of self-esteem, the personal aspect of happiness, and internalizing problems (mainly anxiety and depression). Relating autonomy was more associated than individuating autonomy with adjustment variables in the interpersonal domain such as social skills and externalizing problems (mainly aggression and delinquent behaviour).     

Later life health optimism,pessimism and realism: Psychosocial contributors and health correlates

Prior research has established positive outcomes of health optimism (appraising one's health as good despite poor objective health (OH)) and negative outcomes of health pessimism (appraising health as poor despite good OH), yet little is known about their contributors. We examined the role of psychosocial factors (life event stress, depression, dispositional optimism, perceived social support) in health realism (appraising health in accordance with OH), optimism and pessimism among 489 older men and women. We then accounted for the psychosocial factors when examining multiple health correlates of health realism, optimism and pessimism. Controlling for age, gender and income, regression results indicate that depression and social support were associated with less health optimism, while dispositional optimism was associated with greater health optimism among those in poor OH. Dispositional optimism was associated with less health pessimism and life event stress was associated with greater pessimism among those in good OH. Beyond the effects of the psychosocial factors, structural equation model results indicate that health optimism was positively associated with healthy behaviours and perceived control over one's health; health pessimism was associated with poorer perceived health care management. Health optimism and pessimism have different psychosocial contributors and health correlates, validating the health congruence approach to later life well-being, health and survival.     

Later life health optimism, pessimism and realism: psychosocial contributors and health correlates

Prior research has established positive outcomes of health optimism (appraising one's health as good despite poor objective health (OH)) and negative outcomes of health pessimism (appraising health as poor despite good OH), yet little is known about their contributors. We examined the role of psychosocial factors (life event stress, depression, dispositional optimism, perceived social support) in health realism (appraising health in accordance with OH), optimism and pessimism among 489 older men and women. We then accounted for the psychosocial factors when examining multiple health correlates of health realism, optimism and pessimism. Controlling for age, gender and income, regression results indicate that depression and social support were associated with less health optimism, while dispositional optimism was associated with greater health optimism among those in poor OH. Dispositional optimism was associated with less health pessimism and life event stress was associated with greater pessimism among those in good OH. Beyond the effects of the psychosocial factors, structural equation model results indicate that health optimism was positively associated with healthy behaviours and perceived control over one's health; health pessimism was associated with poorer perceived health care management. Health optimism and pessimism have different psychosocial contributors and health correlates, validating the health congruence approach to later life well-being, health and survival.     

Cognitive and Behavioral Differences Between Subtypes in Refractory Irritable Bowel Syndrome

Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a functional gastrointestinal syndrome consisting of different bowel pattern subtypes: diarrhea predominant (IBS-D), constipation predominant (IBS-C), and alternating (IBS-A). This paper aimed to identify whether (a) psychological factors implicated in the cognitive behavioral model of IBS were differentially associated with bowel pattern subtypes, (b) whether there were differences in symptom severity and work and social adjustment across the IBS-subtypes. Analysis was conducted on baseline data of 557 individuals with refractory IBS recruited into the Assessing Cognitive Therapy in Irritable Bowel (ACTIB) randomized controlled trial. Correlations assessed the associations between psychological factors, stool patterns, symptom severity, and work and social adjustment. Hierarchical regressions identified whether cognitive and behavioral factors were significantly associated with frequency of loose/watery stools, hard/lumpy stools and symptom severity while controlling for affective (anxiety and depression) and demographic factors (age, gender, symptom duration). One-way ANOVAs were conducted to assess differences across Rome III classified subtypes (IBS-A, D and C) in cognitive, behavioral, affective, symptom severity, and adjustment measures. Psychological factors were significantly associated with symptom severity and work and social adjustment. Increased avoidance behavior and unhelpful gastrointestinal (GI) cognitions were significantly associated with higher frequency of loose/watery stools. Increased control behaviors were associated with higher frequency of hard/lumpy stools. Cognitive and behavioral differences were significant across the Rome III classified IBS subtypes. There were no differences in anxiety, depression, overall symptom severity, or work and social adjustment. The results are discussed in terms of their utility in tailoring cognitive behavioral treatments to IBS subtypes.     

The relationship between psychological well- and ill-being,and perceived autonomy supportive and controlling interpersonal styles: A longitudinal study of sport coaches

The present study longitudinally explored sports coaches' psychological well-being (positive affect and integration of coaching with one's sense of self) and ill-being (negative affect and devaluation of coaching) as predictors of their perceived autonomy supportive and controlling interpersonal styles towards individuals under their instruction. Participants were 195 sport coaches who completed questionnaire measures at three time points across an eleven-month period. Controlling for social desirability, multilevel analyses revealed that within-person increases and individual differences in positive affect and integration were positively associated with autonomy support. Conversely, within-person increases and individual differences in negative affect, but not devaluation, were associated with increased use of interpersonal control. The indicators of well-being did not predict interpersonal control and the indicators of ill-being did not predict autonomy support. In their entirety, the present findings suggest that autonomy supportive and controlling interpersonal styles have unique correlates, and affective determinants may play a particularly central role in controlling interpersonal styles. Supporting the psychological health of coaches may lead them to create an adaptive interpersonal environment for their athletes.     

Depression and Social Anxiety in Children: Differential Links with Coping Strategies

Strategies that children use for coping with stressors are known to be related to emotional adjustment, but not enough is understood about specific links with social anxiety and depression. The present investigation tested differentiated associations of social anxiety and depression with specific types of coping strategies, and evaluated the direction of these associations over time. In Study 1, 404 children aged 8–13 years completed a coping scale modified from Kochendefer-Ladd and Skinner (Developmental Psychology 38:267-278, 2002) in order to evaluate factor structure and subscale internal consistency. In Study 2, 270 8–11-year-old children completed depression and social anxiety scales, a sociometric survey, and the coping scale from Study 1, with a follow-up timepoint 9 months later. In Study 1, factor analysis revealed six internally consistent coping subscales. In Study 2, social anxiety and depression were found to have distinctive longitudinal associations with subsequent coping strategies. Decreased problem-solving, social support-seeking, and distraction were uniquely predicted by depression but not by social anxiety. Internalising coping was a stronger outcome of social anxiety, and increased externalising was uniquely predicted by depression. There was also some evidence for a moderating role of peer relations. However, none of the coping strategies predicted changes in depression or social anxiety over the two timepoints. These results highlight the impact that emotional adjustment may have on children’s coping strategies, and clarify important distinctions between social anxiety and depression in relation to coping.     

Emotion regulation and biological stress responding: associations with worry,rumination, and reappraisal

ABSTRACT

Individual differences in the habitual use of emotion regulation strategies may play a critical role in understanding psychological and biological stress reactivity and recovery in depression and anxiety. This study investigated the relation between the habitual use of different emotion regulation strategies and cortisol reactivity and recovery in healthy control individuals (CTL; n?=?33) and in individuals diagnosed with social anxiety disorder (SAD; n?=?41). The tendency to worry was associated with increased cortisol reactivity to a stressor across the full sample. Rumination was not associated with cortisol reactivity, despite its oft-reported similarities to worry. Worry and rumination, however, were associated with increased cortisol during recovery from the stressor. The only difference between CTL and SAD participants was observed for reappraisal. In the CTL but not in the SAD group, reappraisal predicted recovery, such that an increased tendency to reappraise was associated with greater cortisol recovery. These results suggest an important role of the habitual use of emotion regulation strategies in understanding biological stress reactivity and recovery.     

Recent life events, social adjustment, and suicide attempts in patients with major depression and borderline personality disorder

This study investigated the impact of recent life events and social adjustment on suicide attempter status in 34 patients with major depression, 24 patients with borderline personality disorder, and 22 patients with co-morbid major depression and borderline personality disorder. Suicide attempters reported more recent life events and scored lower on a measure of social adjustment in their families and overall social adjustment, compared with non-attempters. Borderline disordered and borderline or depressed patients were more likely to have attempted suicide than patients with major depression only. Recent life events did not predict attempter status. Lower social adjustment in the immediate family and lower overall social adjustment were predictive of suicide attempter classification, regardless of diagnosis. Borderline disordered patients low on overall social adjustment were over 16 times more likely to have attempted suicide than patients diagnosed with major depression only. Recent life events may elevate suicide risk in groups already at high risk for suicide completion, whereas high levels of social adjustment may be protective against stress-related suicidal behavior.     

Emotional,motivational and attitudinal consequences of autonomous prosocial behaviour

When do prosocial actors experience positive versus negative psychological outcomes from helping others? In four studies and an internal meta-analysis, we tested the hypothesis that autonomy shapes the psychological consequences of helping others. In Study 1, prosocial behaviour was associated with a robust pattern of negative well-being outcomes (i.e., depression, anxiety, stress) for individuals low but not high in autonomy. In Studies 2–4, relative to reflecting on a neutral interpersonal experience, reflecting on an autonomous helping experience increased sadness and happiness, strengthened intentions to help in the future and raised support for social welfare. By contrast, reflecting on a controlled helping experience increased negative emotions and decreased positive emotions, but did not affect attitudes or behavioural intentions. Collectively, the findings indicate that autonomy (or lack thereof) shapes the emotional, motivational and attitudinal consequences of helping behaviour.     

The Interplay Among Risk Factors for Suicidal Ideation and Suicide: The Role of Depression, Poor Health, and Loved Ones' Messages of Support and Criticism

When individuals who receive social support are in poor physical or mental health and are criticized or made to feel unwanted, they may perceive themselves as a burden. Poor physical health and depression were hypothesized to exacerbate the harmful effects on suicidal ideation of receiving critical negative messages and of receiving social support. These hypotheses were tested using secondary analyses of data from a sample of 533 unemployed married individuals who were assessed shortly after job loss, and 6 months later. The results of our analyses supported the hypotheses and demonstrated that for participants with poor health or high level of depressive symptoms an increase in critical messages and social support (from Time 1 to Time 2) predicted increased suicidal ideation. This relationship was not observed for non- depressed participants in good health. The results are discussed in terms of their implications for suicide prevention.     

Hope, defense mechanisms, and adjustment: implications for false hope and defensive hopelessness

Two studies replicated and expanded an earlier finding that defense style plays a crucial role in the relation between hope and dysphoria (Kwon, 2000). Lower hope and higher defense style immaturity were each associated with greater dysphoria, depression proneness, and maladjustment. Individuals with low hope and low defense immaturity did not have poor outcomes, supporting the existence of a subtype of low hope (defensive hopelessness) that may have adaptive value. The combination of high hope and high defense immaturity was not associated with maladaptive outcomes, arguing against the false hope construct. Additionally, the findings remained after controlling for levels of anxiety. Thus, it appears that the results are not attributable to general distress or negative affectivity. Finally, domain-specific hope was shown to correlate most strongly with matching areas of adjustment, providing evidence for the validity of the construct.     

抑郁个体对社会反馈的加工：研究现状及存在问题

抑郁症伴随着严重的社会功能障碍。本文以“社会反馈”这一重要社会性信息为切入点,综述了抑郁症患者及抑郁倾向人群对社会反馈的体验、期待及情绪调节障碍的研究现状,发现抑郁个体对社会奖赏存在快感缺失,对社会排斥、社会拒绝等负性反馈表现出过敏化,对社会奖赏的期待降低,且可能存在情绪调节困难。目前此领域存在社会与非社会反馈神经机制的异同不清楚、异常脑区与社会反馈加工障碍的因果关系难以确定以及无法排除抑郁症患者和抑郁倾向人群存在不同社会反馈加工模式的可能性等问题。     

Job-occupation misfit as an occupational stressor

Drawing from theory on met expectations, person–environment fit, and social information processing, misfit between the pressure and autonomy experienced by workers and that which would be expected given their occupational roles was examined as a predictor of job satisfaction, perceived support, and depression. Results from a nationally (U.S.) representative sample using response surface methods indicate that job pressure had much stronger effects on job satisfaction, perceived support, and depression when it exceeded the pressure that would be expected given the occupational role's norms for time pressure and critical decision-making demands. When pressure fell short of occupational norms, effects were much weaker and in some cases reversed. Satisfaction was also highest and depression lowest when the autonomy was at or slightly above the norms for autonomy for one's occupational role. These results have implications for job design, realistic job previews, and the use of normative occupational information in developing work roles that fit worker abilities and interests.     

Motivational orientations and task autonomy fit: effects on organizational attraction

The main purpose of this study was to investigate whether there is congruence between applicant needs (i.e., motivational orientations) and what is available (i.e., task autonomy) from an organizational perspective based on the fit between needs and supply. The fit between work motivation and task autonomy was examined to see whether it was associated with organizational attraction. This experimental study included two phases. Phase 1 participants consisted of 446 undergraduate students, of whom 228 were recruited to participate in Phase 2. The fit relations between task autonomy and intrinsic motivation and between task control and extrinsic motivation were characterized. Findings indicated that the fit between work motivation and task autonomy was positively associated with organizational attraction. Based on these results, it may be inferred that employers should emphasize job characteristics such as autonomy or control orientations to attract individuals, and focus on the most suitable work motivations for their organizations.     

Emotional autonomy and adjustment among emerging adults: The moderating role of family relationships

Emerging adults build their personal maturity within the family context; however, few studies focus on the role of emotional autonomy during this stage. The aim of this study was to analyze the relationship between emotional autonomy and adjustment during emerging adulthood, bearing in mind the possible moderating role of parental support in this relationship. Data were collected from 1,502 Spanish undergraduate students (903 women) aged between 18 and 29. Participants completed measures of emotional autonomy (EAS, Steinberg & Silverberg, 1986), family social support (MSPSS; Zimet, Dahlem, Zimet & Farley, 1988), psychological well-being (PWBS; Ryff, Lee, Essex & Schmutte, 1995) and psychological distress (DASS-21; Lovibond & Lovibond, 1995). The results indicate that emotional autonomy correlates negatively with family support and psychological well-being and positively with psychological distress. However, only when young people perceive a family context with low social support is gaining emotional distance from their parents associated with an increase in their psychological well-being. Our findings highlight the crucial role that the family environment plays in well-being during young adulthood, and reveal that the effect of emotional distancing from parents on adjustment depends on the quality of the family climate. Future research should seek to gain greater insight into emotional autonomy during emerging adulthood, taking into account cross-cultural diversity.     

家庭功能与社会适应:个人自主的中介作用

采用大学生社会适应量表、自我调控问卷和家庭功能问卷调查了643名大学生社会适应的基本特点及其与家庭功能、个人自主间的关系。结果发现:(1)男生在校园生活适应上得分高于女生;大三学生在人际关系适应、自我适应维度上得分高于大四,大一学生在学习适应维度上得分高于大二、在满意度维度上得分高于大三;(2)除投射调控维度外,个人自主的其余维度与家庭功能及社会适应各维度及总均分间均存在显著相关;(3)分层回归结果表明,除投射调控维度外,个人自主其余各维度和家庭功能的亲密性能显著预测社会适应,且个人自主在家庭功能的亲密性和社会适应间起完全中介作用。     

Depression and anxiety among war-widows of Nepal: a post-civil war cross-sectional study

Thousands of Nepalese women were widowed as a consequence of a decade (1996–2006) long civil war in Nepal. These women are at grave risk of mental health problems due to both traumatic experiences and violation of natural order of widowhood. The present study explores the depression and anxiety among war-widows. In 2012, a cross-sectional study was designed to interview 358 war-widows using validitated Beck Depression Inventory and Beck Anxiety Inventory in four districts of Nepal – Bardiya, Surkhet, Sindhupalchowk and Kavrepalanchowk with history of high conflict intensity. The prevalence of depression and anxiety was 53% and 63% respectively. Financial stress was significantly associated with depression (2.67, 95% CI: 1.40–5.07) and anxiety (2.37, 95% CI: 1.19–4.72). High autonomy of women as compared to low autonomy, high social support as compared to low social support and literacy as opposed to illiteracy was associated with less likelihood of depression and anxiety. Our results suggest high magnitude of depression and anxiety among war-widows in Nepal. Future policy efforts should be directed at providing mental health services to identify mental health issues among conflict affected individuals with focus on education, employment and activities to promote social support and autonomy at community.     

The Effects of Dysphoria and Personality on Negative Self-Referent Attitudes and Perceptions of the Attitudes of Others

The cognitive model of depression posits that depressed individuals harbor more dysfunctional self-referent attitudes, but little is known about how depressed individuals perceive the attitudes and perceptions of others in their social arena. This study examined whether dysphoric individuals perceive others to hold equally negative attitudes about themselves, and whether such perceptions depend on sociotropic (i.e., highly invested in social approval and relationship success) and autonomous (i.e., highly invested in vocational or academic achievement and goal attainment) personality styles. A sample of undergraduate students (N = 197) was recruited, and after the assessment of their depression symptoms and personality style, participants read vignettes that described negative scenarios, and imagined that these scenarios occurred to themselves or the general university student. After reading each vignette, participants also rated their agreement with a number of statements that assessed dysfunctional attitudes. Results indicated that elevated dysphoria (i.e., showing signs of depression) scores were positively associated with dysfunctional self-referent attitudes. Further, moderational analyses examining the interaction of sociotropy and dysphoria did not support the hypothesis that individuals higher on dysphoria and sociotropy were less likely to perceive others as harboring negative attitudes about themselves in comparison to those with elevated dysphoria and lower levels of sociotropy. Last, individuals showing elevated dysphoria and higher scores on subdomains of autonomy were more likely to perceive others as exhibiting negative attitudes about themselves than those with low levels of the trait. These findings, their implications, and strengths and limitations of the current investigation are further discussed.     

Role clarity,role conflict,and vitality at work: The role of the basic needs

This study aimed to provide new information on the relationships between vitality at work and role clarity, role conflict, and psychological basic need satisfaction. Participants of the cross‐sectional study were 110 employees in a preventive intervention program. Associations between the focal constructs were examined with regression and bootstrapping analyses. The results suggest that the role clarity is associated with subjective vitality at work through higher autonomy and higher competence, and that role conflict is negatively associated with subjective vitality at work through lower autonomy and lower relatedness. Additionally, an interaction between the role characteristics was observed, suggesting that the strength of the association between role clarity and competence, and the strength of the indirect association between role clarity and vitality through competence may vary depending on the level of role conflict. The findings are consistent with the notion that that managers and co‐workers may affect the opportunities of individuals to achieve need satisfaction and feel energized by delineating and negotiating role‐related factors at work. Need satisfaction, in turn, is an antecedent of well‐being and motivation. Employees should feel able to clarify role ambiguities with their supervisor or co‐workers and thus reduce the role conflicts imposed by the expectations of various stakeholders. Limitations of the study include the self‐rating methodology, cross‐sectional design, and properties of the sample restricting generalizability.     

青少年公正世界信念对抑郁的影响:感恩和自尊的序列中介作用

为探讨青少年公正世界信念与抑郁的关系,以及感恩和自尊在二者关系中的作用机制,采用公正世界信念问卷(BJW)、感恩问卷(GQ-6)、自尊量表(SES)和流调中心用抑郁量表(CES-D)对1049名高中学生进行调查。结果发现:(1)青少年公正世界信念、感恩和自尊两两之间呈显著正相关,且三者均与抑郁呈显著负相关。(2)青少年公正世界信念通过感恩和自尊的中介作用对抑郁产生影响,且该中介效应包含了三条中介路径——感恩的简单中介效应,自尊的简单中介效应,以及感恩→自尊的链式中介作用。研究结果揭示了青少年公正世界信念对抑郁产生影响的内部心理机制,为引导青少年更好地利用公正世界信念提升感恩和自尊的水平以及更好地促进心理健康发展提供了有益建议。