Personality factors associated with psychological distress in testicular cancer survivors

The aim of this study was to investigate symptoms of anxiety and depression in testicular cancer survivors (TCSs) and to identify personality traits associated with psychological distress in these patients by means of the MMPI (Hathaway & McKinley, 1943). A total of 50 TCSs and 50 age-adjusted healthy men participated in the study, and we used the following self-report instruments: Montgomery-Asberg Depression Rating Scale (Montgomery & Asberg, 1979), Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale (Hamilton, 1959, 1969), Spielberger's State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (Spielberger, 1970, 2005), and the MMPI. TCSs displayed higher rates on all psychopathology scales studied compared to controls, but the majority of the patients' scores were within the "normal range," indicating rather mild psychological distress. TCSs' MMPI profiles showed higher rates on Scales 1, 3, 6, and 9 compared to controls; and within the TCSs sample, symptoms of depression were most closely associated with Scales 3 and 5. Similarly, anxiety symptoms were mainly associated with Scale 3. These findings indicate that TCSs present mild symptoms of psychological distress, mainly anxiety and depressive symptoms, suggesting that careful assessment and consultation in TC patients is essential to help them deal with distress after treatment and to minimize possible risk factors.     

“P300” and memory: Individual differences in the von Restorff effect

Event-related brain potentials (ERPs) were elicited by words in a free recall paradigm that included a novel item. The P300 component of the ERP is elicited by novel, task-relevant events, and we tested the hypothesis that P300 is a manifestation of the cognitive processing invoked during “context updating.” If the degree to which current representations in working memory need revision is related to P300 amplitude, then the P300 elicited by a given item should be related to the ability to recall that item on a subsequent test. Forty lists were presented to 12 subjects in each of two sessions. The lists were 15 words long, and 1 word, in position 6 through 10, was “isolated” by changing its size. Most subjects recalled these isolated words more often than other words in the same positions (von Restorff effect), and these words also elicited larger P300s than other words. Analysis of variance on the component scores from a principal components analysis revealed that words recalled had a larger amplitude P300 (on initial presentation) than words not recalled. Striking individual differences emerged, and there were strong relationships between the von Restorff effect, overall recall performance, mnemonic strategies, and the association between components of the ERP and recall performance. The overall recall performance of subjects who reported simple (rote) mnemonic strategies was low, but they showed a high von Restorff effect. For these subjects the amplitude of the P300 elicited by words during initial presentation predicted later recall. In contrast, subjects who reported complex mnemonic strategies remembered a high percentage of words and did not show a von Restorff effect. For these subjects P300 did not predict later recall, although a later “slow wave” component of the ERP did. The initial response to isolated items was the same for all subjects (a large P300), and all subjects recognized the isolates faster than other words in a recognition test given at the end of each session. The subjects in whom P300 did not predict recall reported mnemonic strategies that involved organizing the material. These strategies continue long after the time period reflected by P300 (600 msec). Because they were so effective they may have overshadowed the relationship between P300 and recall, which is based on the initial encoding of an event. Our interpretations were further confirmed and clarified from data obtained in a final grand recall and in the recognition test.     

Evidence of Poor Planning in Children with Attention Deficits

This study examined the planning performance of children with attention deficits, and also investigated the possible interactions between inattention and anxiety in the performance of executive function tasks. A group of 98 children (grades 4 and 6), derived from an initial group of 550, were assigned to an attention difficulties group (AD) and a control group (n = 49 each) based on their scores on a variety of cognitive attention measures and teacher scales of attention and hyperactivity. The two groups were matched on age, gender, parental education, non-verbal and verbal ability. They were compared on Crack-the-Code (C-t-C) action-planning task, embedded and ambiguous figures and Theory of Mind tasks. Analyses indicated that the failure of AD children on cognitive performance measures is linked to planning impairments. The co-occurrence of anxiety, in turn, did not interact with inattention to affect planning performance differentially. Implications of these findings for the current discussion about the cognitive and emotional processes underlying impaired performance among children with attention deficits on executive control tasks are discussed.     

The Orthodox Diaspora

This paper discusses the decisions of the Holy and Great Council of the Orthodox Church in June 2016 that offered the Orthodox diaspora throughout the world the opportunity on many levels to act and develop activities to promote Orthodox witness, faith, and life. The issue of diaspora is very important for the church on account of the dynamic presence of the Orthodox faith and witness within large heterodox, non-Christian, and diversified multicultural populations. The diaspora, after the Holy and Great Synod of the Orthodox Church, has in front of it an open door that no one can shut. Hence the diaspora is always in a movement of outreach for the sowing of the seed of truth to those who are far away and to those who are near: always with the mighty assistance of the merciful and philanthropic God.     

Personality Factors Associated With Psychological Distress in Testicular Cancer Survivors

The aim of this study was to investigate symptoms of anxiety and depression in testicular cancer survivors (TCSs) and to identify personality traits associated with psychological distress in these patients by means of the MMPI (Hathaway &; McKinley, 1943 Hathaway, S. R. and McKinley, J. C. 1943. The Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory, Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press.  [Google Scholar]). A total of 50 TCSs and 50 age-adjusted healthy men participated in the study, and we used the following self-report instruments: Montgomery–Asberg Depression Rating Scale (Montgomery &; Asberg, 1979 Montgomery, S. and Åsberg, M. 1979. A new depression scale designed to be sensitive to change. British Journal of Psychiatry, 134: 382–389. [Crossref], [PubMed], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]), Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale (Hamilton, 1959 Hamilton, M. 1959. The assessment of anxiety states by rating. British Journal of Medical Psychology, 32: 50–55. [Crossref], [PubMed], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar], 1969 Hamilton, M. 1969. Diagnosis and rating of anxiety. British Journal of Psychiatry, 3: 76–79.  [Google Scholar]), Spielberger's State–Trait Anxiety Inventory (Spielberger, 1970 Spielberger, C. D. 1970. “Anxiety as an emotional state”. In Anxiety: Current trends in theory and research, Edited by: Spielberger, C. New York: Academic.  [Google Scholar], 2005 Spielberger, C. D. 2005. State–Trait Anxiety Inventory for adults, Redwood City, CA: Mind Garden.  [Google Scholar]), and the MMPI. TCSs displayed higher rates on all psychopathology scales studied compared to controls, but the majority of the patients' scores were within the “normal range,” indicating rather mild psychological distress. TCSs' MMPI profiles showed higher rates on Scales 1, 3, 6, and 9 compared to controls; and within the TCSs sample, symptoms of depression were most closely associated with Scales 3 and 5. Similarly, anxiety symptoms were mainly associated with Scale 3. These findings indicate that TCSs present mild symptoms of psychological distress, mainly anxiety and depressive symptoms, suggesting that careful assessment and consultation in TC patients is essential to help them deal with distress after treatment and to minimize possible risk factors.