The relationship between disgust sensitivity, anxiety and obsessions

Three hundred participants, including volunteers from an obsessional support group, filled in questionnaires relating to disgust sensitivity, health anxiety, anxiety, fear of death, fear of contamination and obsessionality as part of an investigation into the involvement of disgust sensitivity in types of obsessions. Overall, the data supported the hypothesis that a relationship does exist between disgust sensitivity and the targeted variables. A significant predictive relationship was found between disgust sensitivity and total scores on the obsessive compulsive inventory (OCI; Psychological Assessment 10 (1998) 206) for both frequency and distress of symptomatology. Disgust sensitivity scores were significantly related to health anxiety scores and general anxiety scores and to all the obsessional subscales, with the exception of hoarding. Additionally, multiple regression analyses revealed that disgust sensitivity may be more specifically related to washing compulsions: frequency of washing behaviour was best predicted by disgust sensitivity scores. Washing distress scores were best predicted by health anxiety scores, though disgust sensitivity entered in the second model. It is suggested that further research on the relationship between disgust sensitivity and obsessionality could be helpful in refining the theoretical understanding of obsessions.     

Confirmatory factor analysis of the Penn State Worry Questionnaire: Multiple factors or method effects?

The latent structure of the Penn State Worry Questionnaire (PSWQ) was evaluated with confirmatory factor analyses (CFAs) in 1200 outpatients with DSM-IV anxiety and mood disorders. Of particular interest was the comparative fit and interpretability of a two-factor solution (cf. Behaviour Research and Therapy 40 (2002) 313) vs. a one-factor model that specified method effects arising from five reverse-worded items. Consistent with prediction, the superiority of the one-factor model was demonstrated in split-sample CFA replications (ns=600). Multiple-group CFAs indicated that the measurement properties of the PSWQ were invariant in male and female patients. In addition to their direct relevance to the psychometrics of the PSWQ, the results are discussed in regard to methodological considerations for using factor analytic methods in the evaluation of psychological tests.     

Cognitive behaviour therapy of acute stress disorder: a four-year follow-up

The aim of this study was to index the long-term benefits of early provision of cognitive behavior therapy to trauma survivors with acute stress disorder. Civilian trauma survivors (n = 80) with acute stress disorder were randomly allocated to either cognitive behavior therapy (CBT) or supportive counseling (SC) - 69 completed treatment, and 41 were assessed four years post-treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) with the Clinician Administered PTSD Scale. Two CBT patients (8%) and four SC patients (25%) met PTSD criteria at four-year follow-up. Patients who received CBT reported less intense PTSD symptoms, and particularly less frequent and less avoidance symptoms, than patients who received SC. These findings suggest that early provision of CBT in the initial month after trauma has long-term benefits for people who are at risk of developing PTSD.     

Anxiety and selective attention in obsessive-compulsive disorder

Recently, there has been increasing evidence for information-processing deficits in individuals with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). While impairments in selective attention have been identified to be central to the symptomatology of OCD, the role that situational anxiety plays in attentional processes has not been fully explored. Previous research findings were limited to tasks containing anxiety-relevant materials, only permitting for the evaluation of the impact of anxiety on simultaneous cognitive processing. Furthermore, it has not yet been determined whether the impact of anxiety is limited to selective attention or is indicative of a more general cognitive impairment. This study was designed to examine the role that situational anxiety plays in selective attention impairments. OCD participants and controls were presented with an anxiety producing statement and a neutral statement, followed by the Stroop Task. Results indicated that situational anxiety plays a significant role in the performance of tasks that require selective attention in OCD. A significant deterioration was detected in performance on selective attention tasks for the OCD participants after confronting anxiety-provoking scenarios, as compared to neutral scenarios. Anxiety did not impair performance on simple reading tasks. Possible explanations are discussed.     

Treatment of pharmacotherapy-refractory posttraumatic stress disorder among Cambodian refugees: a pilot study of combination treatment with cognitive-behavior therapy vs sertraline alone

Cambodian refugees with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) represent a cohort in severe need of treatment, but little information is available to guide treatment choices. We selected a sample of pharmacotherapy-refractory individuals to test the efficacy of combination treatment with sertraline and cognitive-behavior therapy (CBT) for treating PTSD. Participants in this pilot study were ten Khmer-speaking women who had been at a mean age of 22-26 years during the Pol Pot period (1975-1979). These patients were randomly assigned to either sertraline alone or combined treatment. We found that combined treatment offered additional benefit in the range of medium to large effect sizes for PTSD and associated symptoms. Our findings indicate that substantial gains can be achieved by adding CBT to pharmacotherapy for PTSD, and that a program of CBT emphasizing information, exposure, and cognitive-restructuring can be successfully modified for Khmer-speaking refugees.     

The Meta-Cognitive Beliefs Questionnaire: development of a measure of obsessional beliefs

A 67 item self-report questionnaire called the Meta-Cognitive Beliefs Questionnaire (MCBQ) was developed to assess endorsement of beliefs about the importance of control and negative consequences associated with unwanted, ego-dystonic intrusive thoughts, images and impulses. The MCBQ and a battery of questionnaires that assessed symptoms and cognitions of worry, obsessive-compulsive disorder, anxiety, and depression were administered to large samples of undergraduate students. Beliefs about control of intrusive thoughts and perceived negative consequences due to uncontrolled mental intrusions had a unique significant relationship with obsessions, and to a lesser extent, worry. These findings are consistent with current cognitive behavioral theories that suggest an important role for meta-cognitive beliefs in the pathogenesis of obsessions.     

Anger-associated panic attacks in Cambodian refugees with PTSD; a multiple baseline examination of clinical data

Despite the increasing recognition of the importance of anger as a key aspect of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), the presence of anger-induced panic attacks has been understudied in traumatized groups. The present investigation determines the prevalence of anger-associated panic attacks among Cambodian refugees suffering from PTSD. Specific characteristics of these episodes that were examined included frequency, symptoms, and cognitions (in particular, fear of death from bodily dysfunction). In a survey of 100 Khmer patients suffering PTSD, 58% reported anger-associated panic attacks in the last month. These attacks occurred at a mean rate of 6.2 attacks a month and were characterized by extreme arousal and in 81% of these cases, fears of death due to bodily dysfunction during the anger-induced panic. Mechanisms for this high rate of fear of death during anger arousal are discussed with a focus on culture-specific catastrophic cognitions.     

The "what" and "where" of object representations in infancy

Four-month-olds' memory for surface feature and location information was tested following brief occlusions. When the target objects were images of female faces or monochromatic asterisks infants showed increased looking times following a change in identity or color but not following a change in location or combinations of feature and location information. When the target objects were images of manipulable toys, the infants showed increased looking times following a change in location but not identity or the binding of location and identity information. This evidence is consistent with the idea that young infants are unable to maintain the information processed separately in both the dorsal and ventral visual streams during occlusions. Our results suggest that it is the target's affordance for action that determines whether the dorsal or ventral information is selectively maintained during occlusion.     

Sequential evaluation of behavioral treatments and methylphenidate dosage for children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder

We used a sequential approach to evaluate the relative and combined effects of different types of behavioral treatments, as well as dosage of methylphenidate (MPH), on the disruptive behavior of 3 students who had been diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. Results showed that individualized behavioral treatments produced decreases in disruptive behavior equivalent to MPH for all 3 participants and demonstrated the need to evaluate behavioral treatments and medication dosage on an individual basis.     

On Alternative Geometries,Arithmetics, and Logics; a Tribute to Łukasiewicz

The paper discusses the similarity between geometry, arithmetic, and logic, specifically with respect to the question of whether applied theories of each may be revised. It argues that they can - even when the revised logic is a paraconsistent one, or the revised arithmetic is an inconsistent one. Indeed, in the case of logic, it argues that logic is not only revisable, but, during its history, it has been revised. The paper also discusses Quine's well known argument against the possibility of logical deviancy.