The association between adverse childhood experiences and personality,emotions and affect: Does number and type of experiences matter?

BackgroundThere is strong evidence that adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) negatively impact mental health. However, the association between ACEs and personality, emotions and affect are poorly understood. Therefore, we examined the association between composite ACE score and ACE type and personality, emotions and positive and negative affect.MethodsThree waves of data from the Midlife Development in the United States (MIDUS) study were used. ACE was the primary independent correlate. Covariates included demographic variables and survey wave. Outcome variables included generativity, personality traits (agreeableness, conscientiousness, extraversion, neuroticism, openness, agency), and affect (positive, negative). Statistical analyses included 3 approaches: (1) treatment of ACE as dichotomous, (2) ordinal composite of ACE score, and (3) three individual ACE type components to assess the association between ACE and psychological constructs.ResultsOf 6323 adults in the sample, 53% were female, and 56% had a past ACE. In the adjusted analyses, dichotomized ACE was significantly associated with neuroticism (β = 0.10; 95% CI 0.07, 0.13) and conscientiousness (β = −0.03; 95% CI −0.05, −0.01). All ACE scores were significantly and positively associated with neuroticism and negatively associated with conscientiousness. Abuse was significantly associated with neuroticism (β = 0.20; 95% CI 0.16, 0.24), openness (β = 0.08; 95% CI 0.05, 0.11), conscientiousness (β = −0.05; 95% CI −0.08, −0.02), and agency (β = 0.06; 95% CI 0.02, 0.10). All ACE categories, except financial strain, were significantly associated with affect.ConclusionACEs are significantly associated with personality, emotions, and affect, with greater effect seen at higher ACE scores and with ACE abuse type, which helps support the cumulative risk hypothesis and our study hypothesis. There is a need for continued research to understand the mechanistic processes and the directionality of the association between ACEs, emotions, and behaviors to help continue to drive biopsychosocial interventions.     

Infants' interactions with professional caregivers at 3 and 6 months of age: a longitudinal study

This study longitudinally investigated the quality and stability of 64 infants’ interactions with their professional caregivers in child care centers at 3 and 6 months of age, i.e., across the first 3 months after they entered child care. It was also examined whether the infants’ negative emotionality (as rated by the mother) predicted the quality of the caregiver–infant interaction. The interactive behavior of the professional caregivers (sensitivity, cooperation) and the infants (responsiveness, involvement) was rated from videotapes recorded in three different caregiving situations, lasting about 25 min in total. In contrast to our expectation, the quality of the caregiver–infant interaction did not significantly increase across the first 3 months in child care. As expected, significant rank order stability was found for the quality of the caregivers’ behavior over time. Also in accordance with our expectations, infants with higher negative emotionality scores experienced less sensitivity and cooperation in interactions with their primary professional caregivers at both ages.     

Internalizing Symptoms and Affective Reactivity in Relation to the Severity of Aggression in Clinically Referred,Behavior-Disordered Children

We examined the affective correlates of aggression in children referred to a partial hospitalization program for the treatment of behavior disorders who did not have a mood or anxiety disorder. Parent and teacher ratings of the children’s impulsivity, internalizing symptoms, affective reactivity, and aggression were examined for their interrelationships and then entered into regression analyses to predict the child’s level of aggression in the home, at school, and in the treatment program. Intercorrelations among three affective reactivity factors were modest. Both internalizing symptoms and affective reactivity contributed to aggression severity beyond impulsivity and demographics. Only child irritability predicted treatment program aggression. Because of their potential role in understanding children’s behavioral disturbances, internalizing symptoms and negative emotionality merit careful assessment and treatment in treatment programs serving hard-to-manage children with behavior disorders.     

Adorno and Heidegger on language and the inexpressible

I argue that the reflections on language in Adorno and Heidegger have their common root in a modernist problematic that dissected experience into ordinary experience, and transfiguring experiences that are beyond the capacity for expression of our language. I argue that Adorno’s solution to this problem is the more resolutely “modernist” one, in that Adorno is more rigorous about preserving the distinction between what can be said, and what strives for expression in language. After outlining the definitive statement of this problematic in Nietzsche’s early epistemological writings, I outline Heidegger’s solution and subsequently Adorno’s critique of Heidegger. Finally, I argue that situating Adorno within the modernist problem of language and expression is crucial for making sense of his philosophy as a form of critical theory.

Negative thoughts in depression: A study in Iran

The cognitive theory of depression proposes significant relations between negative thoughts and depression. Evidence for the model has been widely observed in Western countries. However, despite the high prevalence of depression in the Middle East (ME), there has been limited research that has evaluated the cognitive profiles of people living in this region, and especially in non-Arab countries like Iran. The current research examined these relationships in Iran. Convenience sampling was used to recruit 80 depressed and 80 non-depressed individuals via advertising in clinics and public areas, respectively. Depression status was checked with a structured interview, the Major Depressive Disorder subscale of the Psychiatric Diagnostic Screening Questionnaire, and the Beck Depression Inventory-II. All participants completed the Automatic Thoughts Questionnaire-Negative to examine the frequency of negative automatic thoughts. Unlike other results from Arab countries, depressed participants indicated significantly more negative thoughts towards self and future compared with the non-depressed group. The results of the present study are consistent with the negativity hypothesis of the cognitive theory of depression. Further research is needed in the in ME, to investigate other hypotheses of this theory in this region. Strengths and limitations of the present study are discussed.     

Job emotions and job cognitions as determinants of job satisfaction: The moderating role of individual differences in need for affect

Research has shown that job satisfaction is determined by both cognitions about the job and affect at work. However, findings from basic and applied attitude research suggest that the extent to which attitudes are based on affective and cognitive information is contingent on stable individual differences, in particular need for affect. Based on current conceptualizations of job satisfaction as an attitude toward the job, we hypothesized that job satisfaction depends more on affect and less on cognitions, the higher a person's need for affect is. To test these hypotheses, we conducted two correlational studies (N = 194 university employees; N = 134 employees from various organizations) as well as an experimental study (N = 191 university employees) in which the salience of positive versus negative job cognitions was varied. Results supported our hypotheses. We discuss theoretical and practical implications of these differences in affective and cognitive underpinnings of job satisfaction.     

Which personality traits are associated with cognitions related to problematic Internet use?

The effects of the Big Five personality traits on cognitions regarding problematic Internet use (PIU) have not been studied. The present paper aims to evaluate the effects of personality traits on cognitions regarding PIU that are classified as loneliness/depression, diminished impulse control, distraction and social control. Additionally, the mediator effect of the Big Five personality traits on the relationship between time spent online and cognitions regarding PIU was tested in a sample of 494 Turkish university students. Hierarchical regression analysis results reveal that controlling the effects of socio‐demographic variables and time spent online, higher neuroticism and lower conscientiousness were related to cognitions regarding PIU. Moreover, results of structural equation modelling indicate that the relationship between time spent online and cognitions regarding PIU was independently mediated by extraversion, openness and agreeableness. Examining the role of all of the Big Five personality traits (especially neuroticism and conscientiousness) on PIU will increase understanding in further studies.     

Personality,counterfactual thinking,and negative emotional reactivity

ObjectivesPeople differ substantially in their emotional responses to negative stimuli. Separate lines of research have reported that individual differences and mental simulations contribute to emotional symptoms. Here, we explore the independent and interrelated contribution of personality traits and counterfactual thoughts to the intensity, duration, and overproduction of negative emotions.MethodA sample of mixed-level athletes (n = 243) completed questionnaire assessments in relation to their most recent unsuccessful competition.ResultsWe found that personality dimensions (extraversion, neuroticism, and openness) relate to the direction and magnitude of person counterfactuals. We also found that personality dimensions (neuroticism, extraversion, openness, and agreeableness) and the direction of counterfactual thoughts (upward or downward) relate to the intensity, duration, and/or overproduction of negative emotions. Lastly, we found that personality and counterfactual thoughts had independent rather than interrelated contributions to the experience of unpleasant emotions.ConclusionsThese findings carry important theoretical and practical implications with regard to identifying individuals susceptible to experiencing elevated emotional symptoms in response to short-term stressors.     

A holistic perspective on career development in UK female soccer players: A negative case analysis

ObjectivesThe purpose of this study was to examine career experiences of UK-based female youth soccer players from a holistic perspective with a view to producing a grounded theory of factors contributing to career/talent development and transitions in UK youth female soccer.MethodologyA Grounded Theory methodology (Corbin & Strauss, 2008) was used. Negative case (Denzin, 1989) former female soccer players (N = 13), their best friend (N = 13), soccer coaches (N = 4), and teachers (N = 8) took part in semi-structured interviews about factors associated with talent development and career transitions in female youth soccer.ResultsMultiple social agents (players, team-mates, peers, teachers, parents and siblings) need to optimally interact to ensure that an optimal talent development and learning environment is created. This will provide a supportive holistic talent development environment, lead to adaptive player-level changes, and a greater chance of successful athletic and dual career development.ConclusionsThis study presents a rich understanding of the dual careers of players who did not make it in female soccer. By considering their perspectives alongside of a range of important social agents, we have been able to construct a substantive grounded theory of factors contributing to career/talent development and transitions in UK youth female soccer. As a result, these findings may contribute to policy and practice development in UK female youth soccer.     

Social anxiety and adolescence: Interpretation bias in an Italian Sample

Interpretation bias, namely the tendency to systematically assign a negative meaning to ambiguous social situations, has been extensively studied in adult populations, while in adolescents it has received little attention. We aimed to address this gap by analyzing the three components of interpretation bias (negative interpretations, positive interpretations, belief in negative interpretations) in Italian adolescents aged between 14 and 17, comparing two groups: high (n = 32) and average (n = 33) social anxiety. The participants filled Social Phobia Inventory (SPIN), Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS), and Adolescents’ Interpretation and Belief Questionnaire (AIBQ). We found that the bias is specific to social anxiety (not due to the presence of negative mood) and present only in social situations. Instead, contrary to the hypothesis, Italian adolescents with high social anxiety have both negative bias and absence of the positive bias. Hence, preventive interventions should focus not only on the reduction of negative interpretations. They should also reinforce positive interpretations and target belief in negative interpretations. Based on these considerations, we gave some suggestions to improve the tasks of the Cognitive Bias Modification addressed to adolescents. Finally, belief in negative interpretations and the relationship between negative and positive interpretations in social anxiety deserve further study, both in adolescents and in adults.