Why are psychological treatments prolonged? Predictors of a longer duration of treatment and analysis of the differences between long- and short-term cases

The purpose of this study was to identify variables that may explain a longer psychological treatment and to analyze differences between short- and long-term cases. Data from 419 patients of the University Clinic of Psychology at the Complutense University of Madrid were analyzed. Number of intervention techniques, comorbidity, previous treatments, and a primary diagnosis of mood disorder or eating disorder were the factors that explained longer treatment duration. Significant differences were observed between short- and long-term cases in number of intervention techniques, number of therapeutic objectives, and also in some clinical variables (diagnostic group, comorbidity, previous treatment) and demographics (age and educational level). Results are discussed and some lines of intervention and/ or reflection are proposed.     

Brain dynamics associated with face-naming and the tip-of-the-tongue state

Active brain areas and their temporal sequence of activation during the successful retrieval and naming of famous faces (KNOW) and during the tip-of-the-tongue (TOT) state were studied by means of low resolution electromagnetic tomographic analysis (LORETA) applied to event-related potentials. The results provide evidence that adequate activation of a neural network during the first 500 ms following presentation of the photograph--mainly involving the posterior temporal region, the insula, lateral and medial prefrontal areas and the medial temporal lobe--is associated with successful retrieval of lexical-phonological information about the person's name. Significant differences between conditions were observed in the 538-698-ms interval; specifically there was greater activation of the anterior cingulate gyrus (ACC) towards the supplementary motor area (SMA) in the KNOW than in the TOT condition, possibly in relation to the motor response and as a consequence of the successful retrieval of lexical-phonological information about the person.     

A model of the effects of child sexual abuse on post-traumatic stress: the mediating role of attributions of blame and avoidance coping

Employing structural equation modeling, the direct and indirect effects of the severity of Child Sexual Abuse (CSA), attributions of blame for the abuse, and coping strategies on Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) symptomatology are analyzed. The effects of other types of child maltreatment on PTSD were also controlled. The sample comprised 163 female college students who were victims of CSA. The results suggested that victims of more severe abuse showed higher levels of avoidant coping, self blame, and family blame. Having suffered other kinds of abuse or neglect was also related to higher family blame attributions. Lastly, both attributions of blame scales were indirectly related to PTSD symptomatology through avoidant coping. The strong relationships between attributions of blame, coping strategies, and PTSD suggest that it might be useful to intervene early with children who have suffered CSA in an effort to modify the attributions they make about the abuse and the way they cope with it.     

Weekend alcoholism in youth and neurocognitive aging

Numerous studies have shown that alcohol intake causes neuropsychological disorders that affect various brain structures. The ?premature ageing? hypothesis proposes that the brain areas of alcoholics undergo deterioration similar to that observed in old age. We investigated whether alcohol abuse by young people (binge drinking) causes alterations comparable to some found in elderly people. Ninety-one people were divided into four groups: a) young people who abused alcohol; b) young people who drank alcohol in moderation; c) young people who did not drink alcohol; and d) elderly adults without any significant cognitive deterioration. All of them were assessed with a neuropsychological battery. We observed some similarities in the results obtained by young drinkers and the elderly participants, which would provide some support for the hypothesis of premature aging. The tasks that young drinkers performed worse were those related to executive functions, in which the prefrontal cortex plays an essential role. We also found differences between the two groups of young drinkers (moderate and high consumption), which leads us to believe that the amount of alcohol consumed and the pattern of consumption are factors to consider in relation to cognitive impairment.     

Selective attention and distractor frequency in naming performance: comment on Dhooge and Hartsuiker (2010)

E. Dhooge and R. J. Hartsuiker (2010) reported experiments showing that picture naming takes longer with low- than high-frequency distractor words, replicating M. Miozzo and A. Caramazza (2003). In addition, they showed that this distractor-frequency effect disappears when distractors are masked or preexposed. These findings were taken to refute models like WEAVER++ (A. Roelofs, 2003) in which words are selected by competition. However, Dhooge and Hartsuiker do not take into account that according to this model, picture-word interference taps not only into word production but also into attentional processes. Here, the authors indicate that WEAVER++ contains an attentional mechanism that accounts for the distractor-frequency effect (A. Roelofs, 2005). Moreover, the authors demonstrate that the model accounts for the influence of masking and preexposure, and does so in a simpler way than the response exclusion through self-monitoring account advanced by Dhooge and Hartsuiker.     

Rejected and excluded forevermore, but even more devoted: irrevocable ostracism intensifies loyalty to the group among identity-fused persons

When people are ostrasized (i.e., rejected and excluded) by either an outgroup or an ingroup, they may either withdraw or engage in compensatory activities designed to reaffirm their social identity as a group member. The authors proposed here that individual differences in identity fusion (an index of familial orientation toward the group) would moderate the tendency for people to display such compensatory activity. Consistent with this reasoning, the results of four experiments showed that irrevocable ostracism increased endorsement of extreme, pro-group actions (fighting and dying for the ingroup) among fused persons but not among nonfused persons. This effect emerged when an outgroup ostracized fused individuals due either to their nationality (Experiment 1) or their personal preferences (Experiment 2). Similarly, ostracism by the ingroup amplified the tendency for fused persons to both endorse extreme pro-group actions, refuse to leave the group (Experiment 3), and donate money to an ingroup member (Experiment 4). Finally, compensatory activities emerged even when ostracism was based on being "too good" for the group, suggesting that a desire for self-enhancement does not mediate such activities (Experiment 4).     

Quality of Family and Work Roles and Its Relationship with Health Indicators in Men and Women

The purpose of the present study was to evaluate whether the perceived qualities of work-related, marital, and parenting roles differentially predict distress symptoms, cardiovascular risk, anxiety, depression, and self-esteem. Also, I sought to evaluate whether there are interactions among the quality of different roles (work, marital, and parenting) and whether there are differences between men and women. Participants were 340 women (ages 30–55 years) and 279 men (ages 21–66 years) who lived and worked in Bogotá, Colombia. The questionnaire included valid self-report scales, and questions of specific interest for this study. Results indicate that the perceived quality of the roles differentially predicts the health indicators studied. Psychological health indicators are more strongly predicted than the cardiovascular health indicators by role quality. Self-esteem and anxiety in men and depression in women are more strongly predicted by the perceived quality of the roles. There were differences as well as similarities between genders.     

Risk and Resistance Factors for Psychological Distress in Icelandic Parents of Chronically Ill Children: An Application of Wallander and Varni’s Disability-Stress-Coping Model

The purpose of the study was to investigate Wallander and Varni’s (1998) disability-stress coping model in a sample of 105 Icelandic parents of chronically ill children. The Revised Adult Attachment Scale (RAAS), the Attributional Scale (AS), the Defence Style Questionnaire (DSQ), the Sense of Coherence Scale (SOC), the World Assumption scale (WAS), The Coping Style Questionnaire (CSQ), The Impact on Family scale (IFS), the Trauma Symptom Checklist (TSC), and the Harvard Trauma Questionnaire (HTQ), were completed by the parents of children with various diseases. Despite the heterogeneity of the sample in terms of disease type, PTSD was present in 13.2% of the parents and an additional 28.6% had subclinical PTSD. Emotional coping, extent of daily care, time since diagnosis, and changes in employment due to the disease explained 71% of the variance in HTQ total score.     

Economic inequality enhances inferences that the normative climate is individualistic and competitive

In addition to the negative effects of economic inequality on a range of health and social outcomes, we propose that inequality should also affect how people perceive the broader normative climate in society. We predicted that people living in a more unequal (vs. equal) society are more likely to appraise the social context as one where individualism determines people's behavior. We tested this idea in three experiments by manipulating the degree of economic inequality in a fictional society. We showed that, compared to the low-inequality condition, participants in the high-inequality condition were more likely to project individualistic norms onto society. Furthermore, Experiments 2 and 3 showed that in the high- (vs. low-) economic-inequality condition, participants inferred more competition and less cooperation between people. Our results are discussed in light of the importance of the perception of a broader normative climate to explain the consequences of economic inequality.