Predicting Cognitive and Social Consequences of Emotional Episodes: The Contribution of Emotional Intensity, the Five Factor Model, and Alexithymia

Emotional events are followed by recurrent thoughts (rumination) and talking about the event (social sharing of emotion). Factors that can account for variations in these consequences were examined (emotional intensity, the Five Factor Model, and two factors of alexithymia). In two samples, participants reported the most negative emotional event of recent months and in one sample also reported the most positive one. Results indicated that emotional intensity predicted social sharing and rumination, while neuroticism was positively related to intrusive thoughts about negative events and extraversion to rumination and social sharing about positive events. Difficulty describing feelings was negatively related to social sharing for negative events and reduced fantasy to rumination for positive events.     

情绪调节理论：心理健康角度的考察

以情绪调节与心理健康的关系为切入口,对情绪调节理论进行了阐述：早期精神分析理论,把情绪调节看作被动防御机制,情绪调节困难导致心理问题;情境观把情绪调节看作为应对情绪情境即时的心理反应,策略使用情况与心理健康相关;过程观认为情绪调节在情绪发生过程中展开,不同阶段所采用的调节策略与心理健康相关,后又把调节过程扩展到情绪恢复到正常状态所持续时间,时间与心理健康相关;结构观认为情绪调节结构的差异影响心理健康     

Emotion Dysregulation in Comorbid Posttraumatic Stress Disorder and Substance Use Disorders: A Narrative Review

Co-occurrence of substance use disorders (SUDs) and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is extremely common and is associated with elevated dropout and relapse rates. Given that PTSD/SUD co-occurrence rates among veterans have been found to be as high as 55?75%, it is important to identify mechanisms that may affect the interplay of both disorders. Emotion dysregulation (ED) presents a candidate mechanism that may underlie poor treatment response in co-occurring PTSD/SUD. This article proposes a transdiagnostic emotion regulation framework that considers ED conceptualized as a combination of low ability to tolerate emotional distress (low distress tolerance) and difficulties in the goal-directed use of emotion regulation strategies as a key risk factor in co-occurring PTSD/SUD. The authors review empirical findings from self-report and laboratory-based studies of ED in PTSD. They describe psychological explanations of the emotion-substance relationship and review studies documenting ED in SUDs and in co-occurring PTSD/SUD. The literature on ED in PTSD/SUD suggests that (a) patients with PTSD may resort to substances to cope with trauma-related symptoms due to ED, and (b) ED may maintain SUD symptoms and interfere with psychological treatment. Longitudinal studies on bidirectional relationships between ED and substance use in PTSD are needed, particularly research examining the course of ED in PTSD patients who use substances versus those who do not.     

The role of illness perceptions in the attachment-related process of affect regulation

Abstract

Based on the predictions of the attachment theory and the Common Sense Model of illness perceptions, the current study focused on the role played by illness perceptions in explaining the path linking attachment orientations to negative affect during recovery from cardiac illness. We predicted two putative mechanisms: (1) illness perceptions would mediate the direct association between attachment-related insecurity (especially attachment anxiety) and levels of distress at follow-up and (2) illness perceptions would interact with attachment orientations (attachment avoidance in particular) in explaining patients' distress. The sample consisted of 111 male patients admitted to the Cardiac Care Unit of the Meir Medical Center, located in the central region of Israel. Patients completed a measure of attachment orientations during hospitalization (baseline). One month later, patients' illness perceptions were measured. Patients' depression and anxiety symptoms were measured at baseline and at the six-month follow-up. The associations between attachment-related anxiety and anxiety symptoms at follow-up were fully mediated by illness perceptions. Attachment-related avoidance was found to interact with illness perceptions in the prediction of depressive symptoms at follow-up. The findings shed light on the possible dynamics among personality, cognitive appraisals, and affect regulation efforts when coping with illness.     

补偿他人还是保护自己?内疚与羞耻情绪对合作行为的影响差异

作为两种常见且易被混淆的自我意识情绪, 诸多研究者对内疚和羞耻的产生前因及影响后效进行研究, 尤其是近年来的研究逐渐关注两者对合作行为的影响。我们通过对已有研究进行梳理发现, 内疚和羞耻对合作行为的影响及其机制存在差异, 内疚的影响更为稳定及具有普适性, 羞耻的影响具有复杂性和多样性, 更容易受到其他因素的影响。内疚和羞耻对合作行为的不同影响可从动机机制和调节机制两方面进行解释。首先, 动机机制包括内疚对他人的补偿、修复动机以及羞耻对自我的保护、修复动机。内疚对他人的补偿、修复动机主要体现在维护社会互动中的公平; 弥补对他人造成的伤害, 降低自己和他人的痛苦; 修复人际关系, 重新获得他人或自己的接纳与认同。羞耻对自我的保护、修复动机主要体现在释放消极的情绪状态; 维护积极的自我形象和声誉, 修复自我; 保护自我, 防止后续伤害及不良后果。总体而言, 内疚者关注过失行为及后果, 侧重于对受害他人的补偿或对与他人关系的修复, 而羞耻者关注整体自我的受损, 侧重于对自我的保护和对自己社会形象的修复, 基于此, 我们在前人研究的基础上构建了内疚与羞耻影响合作行为的动机机制对比模型图。其次, 调节机制涉及到个体因素和情境因素的调节作用, 其中个体因素包括认知因素、社会价值取向、自我控制能力、情绪特质和情绪状态, 情境因素包括暴露情境和掩蔽情境、实验情境和日常情境、相关情境和不相关情境。具体而言, 内疚对合作行为的影响的较少受情境的限制, 而羞耻受情境因素限制较多, 在暴露情境、相关情境中更能促进合作行为的产生, 而在掩蔽情境、不相关情境中, 羞耻较难影响个体的合作抉择, 且无论是实验室情境还是日常情境, 内疚似乎都比羞耻更易影响合作。最后, 鉴于内疚与羞耻的诱发和测量方法的有效性仍需检验, 两种情绪对合作行为影响的过程机制和生理机制仍不明晰, 个体因素影响的研究尚不充足以及跨文化研究较为缺乏, 未来研究可以从内疚和羞耻诱发与测量方法的有效性, 情绪作用发生的内在过程和生理机制, 情绪影响的个体和文化差异这几方面进行扩展和深挖。     

情绪体验影响估算策略运用的认知与脑机制

揭示情绪体验影响个体完成各种认知任务的认知神经机制是研究者关注的热点问题。以往研究主要采用问卷法和行为实验, 集中考察了焦虑对估算策略运用的影响, 但这种影响潜在的脑机制尚不清楚, 对焦虑以外的情绪体验与估算策略运用之间关系的研究也极其缺乏, 而情绪调节对估算策略运用影响方面的研究基本处于空白。本研究将采用面孔表情图片作为情绪刺激材料, 结合事件相关电位(event related potential, ERP)技术, 采用启动范式, 尝试从外显和内隐两个角度, 考察不同效价的情绪体验在估算策略运用过程中所起的作用, 进而揭示情绪调节影响估算策略执行的时间动态特征和大脑激活模式。这将有助于充分认识情绪体验影响估算策略运用的认知与脑机制, 为更好的优化估算策略运用效果提供实证依据。     

Mindfulness predicts less texting while driving among young adults: Examining attention- and emotion-regulation motives as potential mediators

Many young adult drivers read and send text messages while driving despite clear safety risks. Understanding predictors of texting-while-driving may help to indentify relevant targets for interventions to reduce this dangerous behavior. The present study examined whether individual differences in mindfulness are associated with texting-while-driving in a sample of young-adult drivers. Using path analysis, we tested whether this relationship would be mediated by the degree to which individuals use text-messaging as a means of reducing unpleasant emotions (emotion-regulation motives) and the degree to which individuals limit texting in order to focus on present-moment experiences (attention-regulation motives). Individuals lower in mindfulness reported more frequent texting-while-driving and this relationship appeared to be mediated primarily by emotion-regulation motives. Results may help inform the development of mindfulness-based interventions to prevent texting-while-driving.     

Hyperactivity in Children: A Focus on Genetic Research and Psychological Theories

Hyperactivity has attracted a large amount of research interest in recent years. Here we review developments in genetic research and in research testing psychological theories of the condition. Family, adoptee and twin studies indicate a strong role for genetic factors in the etiology of hyperactivity. Evidence is emerging also from molecular genetic studies, implicating specific genes that may be involved. At the level of cognitive functioning, a divided, focused or sustained attention deficit does not seem to be a core deficit in hyperactivity. Although children with hyperactivity often perform poorly on certain executive function tasks, there is disagreement about the interpretation of these findings. The association reported in some studies between a slow inhibitory process and hyperactivity may reflect a generally slow, variable in speed and inaccurate pattern of responding. Hypotheses about psychological mechanisms such as state regulation or delay aversion provide alternative, and particularly encouraging, interpretations of the findings. We discuss the possible integration of the two lines of research—those of genetic research and research on psychological mechanisms.     

外倾和神经质对情绪的影响

采用心理生理实验法和问卷法检验人格特质对情绪的影响。结果：高外倾的正情绪增强型调节多,正情绪也多;高神经质的负情绪增强型调节多,负情绪也多。厌恶情绪过程中,外倾的R-R间期增加大,躯体活动变化弱,快乐增加大,兴趣增加少;神经质的FT增加大,恐惧增强多。调节过程中,高外倾的FT增加大;神经质的FT增加弱,表情行为强度增强大。结论：外倾和神经质对厌恶情绪及其调节过程的情绪成分变化起复杂作用,配合其调节方式习惯,使各特质具有特别的情绪特点。     

激活右腹外侧前额叶提高抑郁症患者对社会疼痛的情绪调节能力：一项TMS研究

负性人际交往经历和负性社会事件是抑郁症的重要诱导因素, 而社会功能受损是抑郁症患者的重要特征之一, 患者通常表现出对社会疼痛的情绪失调。为了提高抑郁症患者在负性社交情境中或面对负性社会事件时的情绪调节能力, 本研究采用经颅磁刺激技术(transcranial magnetic stimulation, TMS), 考察抑郁症患者在腹外侧前额叶(the ventrolateral prefrontal cortex, VLPFC)被激活后其情绪调节能力的改变。结果表明, 当右侧VLPFC被TMS激活且患者采用认知重评策略调节情绪时, 实验组患者(n = 64)比对照组患者(n = 63)在社会排斥情境下报告了更弱的负性情绪体验, 这说明激活右侧VLPFC可以有效提高患者对社会疼痛的外显性情绪调节能力。本研究是采用TMS提高抑郁症患者情绪调节能力的首次尝试, 实验发现不但支持了VLPFC与认知重评策略的因果关系, 还为临床改善抑郁症等社会功能障碍患者的情绪调节能力提供了明确的神经治疗靶点。后续研究还需探讨多疗程TMS刺激方案、改变社会疼痛的诱发方式、对比左右侧VLPFC的治疗效果、尝试使用其他的情绪调节策略, 进一步验证本研究的结论, 优化TMS治疗方案。