Patterns and personality disorders in persons with cocaine dependence in treatment

The aim of the present study is to determine patterns and personality disorder in subjects under cocaine dependence treatment using MCMI-II, and their relationship with sociodemographic variables and consumption characteristics. We assess 102 subjects under cocaine dependence treatment in Drug Abuse Centers in Galicia (Spain). The results indicate that the most prevalent basic scales of personality are the passive-aggressive, antisocial, narcisism and histrionic. Borderline and paranoid scales are the most prevalent with regard to the pathological personality scales. These results coincide with other international and national studies. We conclude pointing out the necessity to carry out studies with wider cocaine dependence samples in treatment, and the specific inclusion criteria should be established in the study. We also indicate the importance of carrying out a previous assessment of all demanding treatment subjects to design the objectives of the mentioned treatment.     

Amitriptyline administered after consolidation of inhibitory avoidance does not affect memory retrieval

In Experiment 1, the effect of the administration of the antidepressant amitriptyline (30 mg/kg) for 21 days on the acquisition and consolidation of the inhibitory avoidance task was studied in male and female mice. In Experiment 2, it was evaluated whether amitriptyline administered after the consolidation of this task would block the memory retrieval. Anxiety and spontaneous activity in the elevated plus maze were also assessed. When amitriptyline was given before the training phase of inhibitory avoidance it blocked learning in males and there was a tendency in the same direction in females. However, the drug administered between training and test phases did not affect conditioning. These effects of amitriptyline seem to be independent of its actions on anxiety and locomotor activity. It may be that the effects observed are related to the therapeutic effects of antidepressants.     

Sexual attraction: its dimensionality

The purpose of this research was to develop a new Sexual Attraction Questionnaire (SAQ) [Cuestionario de Atracción Sexual, CAS]. The goal was to determine whether sexual attraction could be represented as two different clusters (Attraction to men and Attraction to women), which would imply two negatively correlated factors or a bipolar one. Three studies were carried out with 182, 118, and 425 participants, respectively. Cluster and exploratory factor analyses were performed. The results obtained show satisfactory psychometric properties for the SAQ, the two clusters, and the two predicted negatively related factors or the bipolar factor. Results are discussed in the context of the different conceptions of sexual attraction and the fourfold typology: attracted to both sexes, to men, to women, or to neither sex.     

Family and school violence: the mediator role of self-esteem and attitudes towards institutional authority

This study analyses the influence of family communication and parental valuation of school on adolescent violent behaviour at school. By means of a structural equation model, both its direct and indirect influence through school and family self-esteem of the adolescent and his attitude towards school authority are analysed. The sample is composed of 665 adolescents whose ages range from 12 to 16 years old. The results confirm the existence of an indirect relationship but not direct influence of the family on school violence. The attitude of the adolescent towards school authority is the mediator variable which shows the strongest direct effect on school violence. Also, the two dimensions of self-esteem considered are significant intermediate variables. These results and their implications are analysed.     

Relationship between dispositional optimism/pessimism and stress coping strategies

Recent studies confirm that dispositional pessimism is related with a worse state of physical health, in comparison with dispositional optimism . The efficacy of stress coping strategies has been considered as a mediating mechanism in this relationship. The aim of the present study is to analyze in a sample of university students (n = 200) the association between dispositional optimism/pessimism and different categories of self-reported somatic symptoms , and evaluate the possible mediation of the stress coping strategies in this relationship. The results indicate that: 1) pessimism is positively related with the report of physical symptoms, whereas optimism is negatively associated to somatic complaints; and 2) this relationship can be mainly explained by the differential utilization of the coping strategy denominated self-criticism (characteristic of pessimism).     

Why do people change in therapy? A preliminary study

Why do people change in therapy? A preliminary study. This work represents the beginning of a new way to study the processes that can explain the therapeutic change. The method used is the observation and analysis of therapeutic sessions directly recorded and developed inside a behavioural approach. The category system tries to carry out a functional analysis of the therapist-client interaction which enables the identification of learning processes that work in clinical setting and explain success in therapy. Outcomes are provisional but show the utility of this initial trend of investigation to the comprehension of clinical phenomenon. Conclusions also emphasize the importance of associative learning processes on the therapeutic change.     

Validation of a questionnaire for measuring psychosocial factors associated with pharmaceutical care in Spanish community pharmacists

Pharmacotherapy follow-up (PTF) is the professional practice in which the pharmacist takes charge of the needs of the patients related to their drugs. OBJECTIVE: To validate a questionnaire to measure the ASE psychosocial determinants (attitude, social influence, self-efficacy) of PTF and the Prochaska & DiClemente's stage of change in Spanish community pharmacists. METHOD: Postal survey to 482 Asturian community pharmacists (test and retest). Validity was estimated in 134 pharmacists answering the test. Stability was estimated in 85 pharmacists answering the test and retest. Exploratory factorial analysis was used to investigate construct validity and produced 4 factors and 104 items. Those factors had high reliability (Cronbach's a between 0,87 and 0,96). DISCRIMINANT VALIDITY: Pharmacists in extreme stages of change showed significant differences of attitude, motivation and self-efficacy. Repeatability was good and the questionnaire appears valid and reliable.     

Effect of manipulating the risetime of an acoustic stimulus on two protective reflexes: cardiac defense and motor startle

Effect of manipulating the risetime of an acoustic stimulus on two protective reflexes: cardiac defense and motor startle. The risetime is a parametric characteristic of the eliciting stimulus frequently used to differentiate among psychophysiological reflexes. The aim of the present study was to examine the effect of manipulating the risetime of an acoustic stimulus on two protective reflexes: cardiac defense and motor startle. 100 participants underwent a psychophysiological reactivity test to five presentations of an intense acoustic stimulus (105 dB white noise) under one of five risetime conditions: 0, 24, 48, 96, and 240 ms. Total energy of the stimulus was controlled by increasing the base duration of the stimulus (1000 ms) by one third of the risetime. Results showed that risetime significantly affected motor startle but not cardiac defense. Startle amplitude decreased linearly with increasing risetime after 24 ms. On the other hand, repetition of the stimulus significantly affected cardiac defense but not motor startle. These results question the traditional differentiation between startle and defense based on risetime.     

Adaptation to Spanish of the Vividness of Visual Imagery Questionnaire-Revised Version (VVIQRV)

Adaptation to Spanish of the Vividness of Visual Imagery Questionnaire-Revised Version (VVIQRV). The main goal of this paper was to adapt to Spanish language and to examine the psychometric properties of the "Vividness of Visual Imagery Questionnaire-Revised Version" (VVIQRV), an instrument that can be used to assess vividness of visual imagery. The adaptation was carried out starting from the Spanish version of VVIQ and taking into consideration improvement proposals suggested in other studies. The questionnaire was then administered to a sample of 414 Spanish university students and the psychometric characteristics were estimated on the basis of the classic theory and the Rasch rating scale model (RSM). The results were convergent with previous studies and indicated that the Spanish VVIQRV has good internal consistency and can be characterized by a single main factor structure. Also, the RSM analysis showed that the increment in the number of response categories, a proposal to improve the instrument, was not appropriate.     

Stress in mothers of individuals with autistic spectrum disorders

The aim of this study was to analyze maternal stress in families of individuals with autism. We proposed a multi-factorial and global model based on the Double ABCX model of family stress (McCubbin & Patterson, 1983) in which, the factor aA (stressor) interacts with bB (social support) and cC (perception of stress or, in our study, sense of coherence, SOC) to produce the dependent factor xX (level of stress). Thirty-nine mothers with children diagnosed on Autistic Spectrum disorders completed four questionnaires relating to the factors. The data were statistically analyzed using path analysis. The results showed that the empirical data fitted the theoretically proposed model well. There existed a direct and positive relationship between stressor and stress. Social support and SOC had a direct and negative relationship to stress, and functioned as modulating variables.