An Inventory of Affective Tolerance

The two dimensions of personality, extraversion (E) and neuroticism (N) as measured by the Eysenck Personality Inventory (EPI), were tested for their social desirability response set and their independence. Results from a collegiate sample (N = 282) show that E and N scales were susceptible to social desirability response bias for males and females, respectively. This bias could not be overcome by eliminating Ss who reported higher scores on the lie scale included in the EPI. The dimensionality of the two scales for the male Ss is questionable.     

Using online social media,Facebook, in screening for major depressive disorder among college students

This study explored the feasibility of using Internet social networking media in an online program for Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) screening and psychoeducation targeting college students. A Facebook advertisement targeted students at five colleges in the United States to complete a mental health research survey that screened for MDD using the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9). Students who screened positive for MDD were offered an eightweek follow-up survey. Of the 259 students who consented to participate in the study, 26.7% screened positive for MDD, while only 14.2% were receiving treatment. The use of Facebook to advertise for online screening for MDD required very little start-up time, and the average cost was $11.45 per subject recruited. It is feasible to use online, commercially available social networking media such as Facebook for online screening for MDD among college students. However, conducting online screening and offering treatment resources alone did not increase treatment rate in this population.     

Resilience as the ability to bounce back from stress: A neglected personal resource?

The purpose of this study was to examine resilience, as the ability to bounce back from stress, in predicting health-related measures when controlling for other positive characteristics and resources. We assessed resilience, optimism, social support, mood clarity, spirituality, purpose in life, and health-related measures in two large undergraduate samples. In Study 1, resilience was related to both health-related measures (less negative affect and more positive affect) when controlling for demographics and other positive characteristics. In Study 2, resilience was related to all four health-related measures (less negative affect, more positive affect, less physical symptoms, and less perceived stress) when controlling for the other variables. None of the other positive characteristics were related to more than three of the six possible health-related measures when controlling for the other variables. Resilience, as the ability to bounce back, may be an important personal resource to examine in future studies and target in interventions.     

How do humility prototypes affect the association between perceptions of spouse’s humility and depressive symptoms and couple conflict?

ABSTRACT

Relational humility (RH) is associated with positive outcomes (e.g., fewer depressive symptoms; less couple conflict). Traditional conceptualizations of RH rely on other-report measures, but do not account for how one’s perception of another’s humility relates to one’s RH prototype (i.e., one’s expectations of how humble others, such as a spouse, should be). The current study (N = 69 couples; mean age = 30.80 years; 71% white) analyzed the effect of RH prototypes on the association between participants’ perception of their spouse’s RH and their reports of depressive symptoms and couple conflict. RH prototype was tested as both a moderator and a mediator to these associations. Actor-partner independence moderation and mediation models indicated that RH prototype functions as a moderator in the association between perceived spousal RH and both depressive symptoms and couple conflict, wherein greater discrepancies between spousal RH and RH prototype was associated with more depressive symptoms and conflict.     

The energization of health-behavior change: Examining the associations among autonomous self-regulation,subjective vitality,depressive symptoms,and tobacco abstinence

Most research on the psychological correlates of smoking behavior has focused on negative indices of wellness, but findings are mixed, contradictory, controversial, and, thus, inconclusive. This study, guided by self-determination theory, examined both positive (viz., vitality) and negative (viz., depressive symptoms) indices of psychological health as predictors of long-term tobacco abstinence in the context of a randomized clinical trial. It also examined autonomous self-regulation and cigarette use as predictors of psychological health. Results supported the proposed conditional indirect effect model in which change in cigarette use mediated the relation of change in autonomous self-regulation for smoking cessation to change in vitality, and this indirect effect was moderated by treatment condition. Further, change in vitality predicted long-term tobacco abstinence. Results for depressive symptoms were largely null. Discussion focuses on the importance of considering positive indices of psychological health for understanding the psychological correlates of smoking behavior.     

Posttraumatic Stress Symptoms,Aggression, and Substance Use Coping among Young Adults

This study examined how the symptom clusters of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) were related to substance use and self-reported aggression in a college sample. There were 358 participants (ages 18–24) who completed surveys to assess PTSD symptoms, substance use as coping, and aggression. Hierarchical regressions tested for the effects of PTSD symptoms (total symptoms as well as cluster symptoms) on self-reported aggression, along with the main and interaction effects of substance use coping on these relationships. The hyperarousal cluster of PTSD was the only group of symptoms significantly related to aggression. There was an interaction between avoidance symptoms and substance use coping on aggression such that under conditions of high substance use coping, aggression increased regardless of avoidance symptoms; however, the relationship between avoidance and aggression was stronger under conditions of low substance use coping, with greater aggression as avoidance symptoms and low substance use coping increased.     

Childhood Maltreatment,Adult Attachment,and Depression as Predictors of Parental Self-Efficacy in At-Risk Mothers

Childhood abuse and neglect can have far-reaching effects on adult relationships, mental health, and parenting. This study examined relations between maltreatment types, anxious and avoidant adult attachment, maternal depression, and parental self-efficacy in a community sample of 76 at-risk mothers. After controlling for other forms of maltreatment, emotional abuse uniquely predicted higher levels of anxious attachment and maternal depression. Structural equation modeling revealed that childhood maltreatment predicted lower parental self-efficacy through indirect pathways involving anxious attachment and depression. Specifically, maltreatment's influence on maternal depression was mediated by attachment anxiety, while its influence on parental self-efficacy was mediated by depressive symptoms. Results are discussed in terms of attachment theory and ways in which parental self-efficacy contributes to adaptive caregiving behavior.     

Intergenerational Transmission of Trauma: The Mediating Role of Parenting Styles on Toddlers' DSM-Related Symptoms

Although the intergenerational transmission of trauma has been well documented, the pathways by which trauma symptoms are passed between parents and children remain unclear. This study examined the mediating role of parenting styles in the transmission of maternal trauma to children. Participants were a sample of 105 mothers of toddlers (18–30 months old). Mothers who had experienced interpersonal trauma were more likely to have an authoritarian parenting style, including verbal hostility, physical coercion, and low nurturance. Verbal hostility especially predicted more prevalent and increasing toddler symptoms associated with affective, hyperactive, and oppositional defiant disorders. Thus, the verbal hostility component of authoritarian parenting could serve as a major intergenerational pathway between maternal trauma and early child symptoms.     

Effects of cultural themes in psychotic symptoms on the diagnosis of schizophrenia in African Americans

Cultural themes focusing on race-related issues and religiosity were identified via content analysis in the delusions and hallucinations of a sample of 118 African American psychiatric patients. The purpose of the study was to determine whether cultural themes in psychotic symptoms influence the diagnosis from different sources (i.e., chart, SCID, and best estimate) of schizophrenia for Black patients. It was hypothesized that the best estimate diagnoses of cultural experts would diagnose schizophrenia in African Americans more frequently when they exhibit race-related themes in their psychotic symptoms. It was also hypothesized that diagnosis of the paranoid subtype would yield a stronger difference among the sources than the broader category of schizophrenia. The results did not support the hypotheses. Implications for understanding the relationship between culture and psychosis among African Americans are discussed.     

Religious doubt,financial strain,and depressive symptoms among older Mexican Americans

A number of studies suggest that various positive aspects of religion help older people cope more effectively with stress. However, the literature further indicates that religion may have negative as well as positive influences in the stress process. This suggests that instead of enhancing coping efforts, religion may also exacerbate the effects of stress. The purpose of this study was to see if one negative aspect of religion (i.e., religious doubt) exacerbates the effects of financial strain on depressive symptoms among older Mexican Americans. A nationwide survey of 1005 older Mexican Americans was conducted. The findings suggest that the effects of financial strain on depressive symptoms are stronger for older Mexican Americans who have more doubts about religion. This study aims to contribute to the literature by assessing the negative aspects of religion with data provided by an ethnic group that has been largely overlooked in the literature.