Assessment of hormonal parameters and psychological well‐being in healthy subjects after a Taoist qigong program: An exploratory study

Qigong is an ancient form of health maintenance, which is part of Traditional China Medicine. Numerous beneficial mental and physical effects have been classically ascribed to this traditional psychosomatic method. The purpose of this work has been to assess the effects of Taoist qigong practice on several hormonal parameters of the Hipotalamic‐Pituitary‐Adrenal axis and specific measures of psychological well‐being in healthy subjects. Forty‐three healthy volunteers participated in the study, of whom 22 were randomly allocated to the experimental group, and 21 were assigned to the control group. Experimental participants underwent a qigong training program for one month. Blood samples for the quantification of hormonal parameters, and several instruments to assess anxiety and depression symptoms as well as subjective sleep quality, were obtained before and after the program. Statistically significant differences were found between the experimental and control groups, with the experimental group showing lower blood levels of adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH). This study shows that Taoist qigong is a psychosomatic method able to exert a modulatory action on ACTH levels in healthy subjects. We consider the need to continue exploring the psychobiological modulation of this qigong method and its possible repercussion for human health care.     

Less is more? Effects of exhaustive vs. minimal emotion labelling on emotion regulation strategy planning

Previous research suggests that labelling emotions, or describing affective states using emotion words, facilitates emotion regulation. But how much labelling promotes emotion regulation? And which emotion regulation strategies does emotion labelling promote? Drawing on cognitive theories of emotion, we predicted that labelling emotions using fewer words would be less confusing and would facilitate forms of emotion regulation requiring more cognitively demanding processing of context. Participants (N?=?82) mentally immersed themselves in an emotional vignette, were randomly assigned to an exhaustive or minimal emotion labelling manipulation, and then completed an emotion regulation strategy planning task. Minimal (vs. exhaustive) emotion labelling promoted higher subjective emotional clarity. Furthermore, in terms of specific emotion regulation strategies, minimal emotion labelling prompted more plans for problem solving and marginally more plans for reappraisal, but did not affect plans for behavioural activation or social support seeking. We discuss implications for the cognitive mechanisms supporting the generation of emotion regulation strategies.     

Resilience in Holocaust Survivors: A Study of Defense Mechanisms in Holocaust Narratives

There is extensive literature examining the psychological adaptation of survivors after the Holocaust, including studies of Holocaust narratives (HN). As a measure of psychological adaptation, defense mechanisms (DM) have been studied in various clinical samples, however, to date, not in Holocaust narratives. Using a standardized observer-rated measure, we assessed DM in Holocaust versus pre/post Holocaust narratives (other narratives [ON]) in 20 in-depth survivor interviews. Regarding individual DM, isolation of affect and self-assertion were statistically more frequent in the HN than the ON. High adaptive (mature) level defenses were more frequent in the HNs than the ON. Furthermore, the overall defensive functioning (ODF) was higher in the HN than the ON, contradicting previous findings showing lower defensive functioning in life-threatening situations. Possible explanations include differences in the nature of trauma, the time elapsed between the trauma and the interview, and the specificity of the sample. A qualitative overview with several examples from the narratives are also presented.     

Brazil: hate and intolerance in times of pandemic in a mixed-race country

This paper intends to analyse the current political and social situation in Brazil and show how this context has influenced the management of the public health crisis generated by the COVID-19 pandemic. To this end, the authors conducted an investigation into Brazil’s historical roots, which have not only engendered deep class differences but, also, social psychopathologies such as dissociation and perversion. Finally, this paper presents a symbolic analysis of social exclusion and how the mythical figure of Sophia can inspire a renewed movement of inclusion and tolerance.     

Impulsive corporal punishment by mothers and antisocial behavior and impulsiveness of children

This study tested the hypothesis that corporal punishment (CP), such as spanking or slapping a child for purposes of correcting misbehavior, is associated with antisocial behavior (ASB) and impulsiveness by the child. The data were obtained through interviews with a probability sample of 933 mothers of children age 2–14 in two small American cities. Analyses of variance found that the more CP experienced by the child, the greater the tendency for the child to engage in ASB and to act impulsively. These relationships hold even after controlling for family socioeconomic status, the age and sex of the child, nurturance by the mother, and the level of non-corporal interventions by the mother. There were also significant interaction effects of CP with impulsiveness by the mother. When CP was carried out impulsively, it was most strongly related to child impulsiveness and ASB; when CP was done when the mother was under control, the relationship to child behavior problems was reduced but still present. ln view of the fact that there is a high risk of losing control when engaged in CP, even by parents who are not usually impulsive, and the fact that impulsive CP is so strongly associated with child behavior problems, the results of this study suggest that CP is an important risk factor for children developing a pattern of impulsive and antisocial behavior which, in turn, may contribute to the level of violence and other crime in society. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.