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- Attachment, feeling, and feeding: Associations between caregivers' attachment, emotional and feeding responsiveness, and Children's food consumptionPublication . Santos, Ana F.; Fernandes, Carla; Fernandes, Marília; Bost, Kelly K.; Veríssimo, ManuelaA substantial body of literature links attachment to childhood obesity. However, research on the mechanisms underlying this association is scarce. The present study aimed to test four serial indirect path models to examine whether caregivers’ insecure attachment is related to children’s food consumption, through its influence on emotional and feeding responsiveness. A total of 352 caregivers of preschool children reported on their attachment orientation, emotional responses to their children’s distress, feeding practices, and their children’s food consumption. Results showed that caregivers with higher levels of attachment avoidance and anxiety were more likely to use unsupportive emotional responses to children’s distress, which predicted the increased use of unresponsive feeding practices, and consequently children’s higher sugary and fatty/salty food consumption. Higher levels of attachment avoidance were also associated with children’s lower fruit and vegetable consumption through lower use of supportive emotional responses and responsive feeding practices, while higher levels of attachment anxiety were associated with children’s lower fruit and vegetable consumption only by lower use of responsive feeding practices. These findings suggest that the influence of insecure attachment on caregivers’ emotion regulation may contribute to the use of specific feeding practices that, in turn, affect children’s food intake and may have implications for obesity risk.
- Genetic susceptibility to the environment moderates the impact of childhood experiences on psychotic, depressive, and anxiety dimensionsPublication . Barrantes-Vidal, Neus; Torrecilla, Pilar; Mas-Bermejo, Patricia; Papiol, Sergi; Bakermans-Kranenburg, Marian J.; Kwapil, Thomas R.; Rosa, AraceliBackground and Hypothesis: Consistent with diathesisstress models, psychosis research has focused on genetic moderation of adverse environmental exposures. In contrast, the Differential Susceptibility (DS) model suggests that the same genetic variants that increase risk-inducing effects of adverse experiences also enhance beneficial effects from positive experiences. This study examined whether individuals with high genetic susceptibility to the environment showed differential psychotic-like and affective reactivity in response to positive and negative events in daily life. Study Design: Experience sampling methodology assessed context (positive and stressful) and momentary levels of paranoia, psychotic-like experiences (PLE), and positive (PA) and negative affect (NA) in 217 non-clinical adults oversampled for schizotypy. Linear mixed models examined whether Polygenic Risk Scores of Environmental Sensitivity (PRS-ES) moderated the impact of current context on subsequent experiences. Study Results: PRS-ES moderated positive, but not stressful, context on subsequent levels of momentary paranoia, NA, and PA, but not PLE. Genetic and environmental (G × E) interactions indicated diathesis-stress at lower thresholds of PRS-ES, but a DS model at the highest threshold of the PRS-ES. Participants with elevated PRS-ES showed increased paranoia and NA and decreased PA in subsequent assessments when reporting low levels of positive situations, but also decreased paranoia and NA and increased PA when rating contexts as positive. Conclusions: Findings support the influence of genetic sensitivity to the environment on psychotic-like and affective reactivity in daily life, particularly in response to positive contexts. This highlights the transdiagnostic protective role of positive experiences and informs ecological momentary interventions.
- Components of multiple health behaviour change interventions for patients with chronic conditions: A systematic review and meta-regression of randomized trialsPublication . Silva, Carolina C.; Presseau, Justin; Allenb, Zack van; Dinsmore, John; Schenk, Paulina; Moreto, Maiara; Marques, Marta M.Interventions addressing more than one health behaviour at a time could be an efficient way of intervening to manage chronic conditions. Within a systematic review of multiple health behaviour change (MBHC) interventions, we identified key components of interventions in patients with chronic conditions, assessed how they are linked to theory, behaviour change techniques implemented, and evaluated their impact on intervention effectiveness. Studies were identified by systematically searching five electronic databases. Subgroup analyses and metaregressions were conducted to analyse the association between intervention components and behavioural changes. In total, 61 studies were included spanning different chronic conditions (e.g., cardiovascular conditions, type 2 diabetes). Most interventions sought to change behaviours simultaneously (72%), often targeting the ‘physical activity, diet and smoking’ cluster of behaviours (33%), and were not theory informed (55%). A total of 36 behaviour change techniques were identified, most commonly goal setting behaviour and self-monitoring of behaviour. Subgroup analyses indicated that MHBC interventions delivered entirely face-to-face might not be as effective for physical activity outcomes, and not using goal setting (behaviour) might be more effective for smoking cessation outcomes. Metaregressions indicated that a longer intervention duration may work best to achieve better physical activity outcomes. This review provides a comprehensive understanding of interventions and contributes to the field of MHBC by facilitating data-driven insights for future optimisation and dissemination.
- Time and routines organization in early childhood education andcare: Participation, opportunities, and constraintsPublication . Pereira, Mónica; Santos, Natalie Nóbrega; Brito, Ana Teresa; Mata, Lourdes; MataThis study aimed to identify those who are involved in time management inearly childhood education and care contexts and to understand the inten-tions underlying time and routine organization. Focus groups were carriedout with 20 educators from the public and private sectors. The contentanalysis of these interviews suggested that educators, children, and themanagement/coordinators of the educational centers participate differentlyin time organization decisions, seeking to respond to children’s needs.However, these time management decisions are often carried out accordingto adults’ agendas, with imposed schedules that create constraints in orga-nizing routines that respond to children’s interests, especially if there are nonegotiations among the agents responsible for time and routine organiza-tion. The results highlight the need to introduce greater intentionality andparticipation during time organization decision-making in the context ofearly education
- Protective and stress factors for psychological distress: A comparative analysis of LGB and non-LGB older adultsPublication . Ribeiro-Gonçalves, José Alberto; Pereira, Dora; DoraObjectives: Population ageing raises major public health and psychosocial challenges. Particularly, lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) older people may face increased vulnerabilities and marginalization when compared to their non-LGB (heterosexual) counterparts, which may entail more risks for their mental health. The aim of this study was to comparatively evaluate the levels of protective – social support, spirituality, and resilience and stress factors – loneliness and ageism – among LGB and nonLGB older adults, and their impact on psychological distress (PD). Method: A sample of 647 people aged 60years or older (M=66.01; SD = 4.93) was collected, 368 non-LGB and 279 LGB. Participation was carried out through an online survey in Portugal. Results: LGB older adults had lower scores on all protective factors, except on social support from friends, and higher levels on all stress factors, except on hostile ageism, compared to non-LGB older adults. Further, resilience and loneliness were the main predictors of PD regardless of the sexual orientation. Stress factors explained the levels of PD over and above the effects of protective factors, both among LGB and non-LGB older adults. Conclusion: Psychological distress in aging presents different protective and stressful factors according to the sexual orientation of older adults. More comparative studies are suggested in the intersection between ageing and sexual orientation.
- Genetic differences in reactivity to the environment impact psychotic-like and affective reactivity in daily life neusPublication . Barrantes-Vidal, Neus; Torrecilla, Pilar; Mas-Bermejo, Patricia; Papiol, Sergi; Bakermans-Kranenburg, Marian J.; Rosa, Araceli; Kwapi, Thomas R.Background and Hypothesis: Consistent with diathesisstress models, psychosis research has focused on genetic moderation of adverse environmental exposures. In contrast, the Differential Susceptibility (DS) model suggests that the same genetic variants that increase risk-inducing effects of adverse experiences also enhance benefcial effects from positive experiences. This study examined whether individuals with high genetic susceptibility to the environment showed differential psychotic-like and affective reactivity in response to positive and negative events in daily life. Study Design: Experience sampling methodology assessed context (positive and stressful) and momentary levels of paranoia, psychotic-like experiences (PLE), and positive (PA) and negative affect (NA) in 217 non-clinical adults oversampled for schizotypy. Linear mixed models examined whether Polygenic Risk Scores of Environmental Sensitivity (PRS-ES) moderated the impact of current context on subsequent experiences. Study Results: PRS-ES moderated positive, but not stressful, context on subsequent levels of momentary paranoia, NA, and PA, but not PLE. Genetic and environmental (G × E) interactions indicated diathesis-stress at lower thresholds of PRS-ES, but a DS model at the highest threshold of the PRS-ES. Participants with elevated PRS-ES showed increased paranoia and NA and decreased PA in subsequent assessments when reporting low levels of positive situations, but also decreased paranoia and NA and increased PA when rating contexts as positive. Conclusions: Findings support the infuence of genetic sensitivity to the environment on psychotic-like and affective reactivity in daily life, particularly in response to positive contexts. This highlights the transdiagnostic protective role of positive experiences and informs ecological momentary interventions.
- Does deliberate practice surpass didactic training in learning empathy skills? A randomized controlled studyPublication . Larsson, Johannes; Werthén, David; Carlsson, Jan; Salim, Osame; Davidsson, Edvin; Vaz, Alexandre; Sousa, Daniel; Norberg, JoakimA large body of research identifies therapist expressed empathy as one of the most important predictors of psychotherapy outcome. Deliberate practice (DP) is an effective method to improve skills in many fields. We asked if DP also can be used to enhance the skill of expressing empathy. Objective: The aim was to compare the efficacy of DP to didactical learning methods (DLM) in enhancing the skill of empathic expression in students. Method: A repeated measures randomized controlled group design was used. Novice students (N ¼ 36) from psychologist-, medicine-, social work-, and nursing programs received two training sessions of either DP (n ¼ 21) or DLM (n ¼ 15). Participants’ skills in empathic expression were assessed with the Measure of Expressed Empathy (MEE) on three occasions: before the first, between, and after the last training session. Results: Participants in the DP-group showed improved empathic expression, whereas participants in the DLM-group did not. Conclusions: These findings suggest that DP is an effective training method for therapeutic skills such as empathic expression and holds implications for the future development of educational practices to incorporate active skill training methods.
- The impact of positive childhood experiences: A systematic review focused on children and adolescentsPublication . Sousa, Marta; Machado, Ana Beatriz; Pinheiro, Marina; Pereira, Bárbara; Caridade, Sónia; Almeida, Telma Catarina; Cruz, Ana Rita; Cunha, OlgaChildhood and adolescence are crucial stages of life, characterized by significant changes that profoundly influence overall development. While positive childhood experiences (PCEs) can help mitigate the effects of adverse events during these formative years, they have not been as thoroughly researched. Then, this systematic review aims to address this gap by organizing the existing literature on PCEs and examining their impact on both positive and negative outcomes in children and adolescents. A search through databases such as B-On, PsycINFO, PubMed, SCOPUS, and Scielo, as well as supplementary searches, identified 30 studies that met the inclusion criteria. The results indicate that most studies were published in the last 4 years, primarily in the USA, and focused on community populations with mixed samples. In addition, the results reveal that among children and adolescents, higher levels of PCEs were associated with better mental health outcomes (e.g., reduced depressive symptoms, anxiety, self-harm, substance use, and suicidal ideation), improved psychosocial outcomes (e.g., enhanced adult functioning and future orientation), better academic achievement (e.g., reduced absenteeism and fewer academic difficulties), and some improvements in physical health (e.g., reduced chronic pain). However, the relationship between PCEs and behavioral outcomes showed mixed results. Strengthening efforts to promote PCEs and resources that support child and adolescent resilience is crucial. Further research involving diverse samples is needed to gain a deeper understanding of the role of PCEs.
- Neural mechanisms of learned suppression uncovered by probing the hidden attentional priority mapPublication . Huang, C; van Moorselaar, D; Foster, J.; Donk, M.; Theeuwes, JAttentional capture by an irrelevant salient distractor is attenuated when the distractor appears more frequently in one location, suggesting learned suppression of that location. However, it remains unclear whether suppression is proactive (before attention is directed) or reactive (after attention is allocated). Here, we investigated this using a ‘pinging’ technique to probe the attentional distribution before search onset. In an EEG experiment, participants searched for a shape singleton while ignoring a color singleton distractor at a high-probability location. To reveal the hidden attentional priority map, participants also performed a continuous recall spatial memory task, with a neutral placeholder display presented before search onset. Behaviorally, search was more efficient when the distractor appeared at the high-probability location. Inverted encoding analysis of EEG data showed tuning profiles that decayed during memory maintenance but were revived by the placeholder display. Notably, tuning was most pronounced at the to-be-suppressed location, suggesting initial spatial selection followed by suppression. These findings suggest that learned distractor suppression is a reactive process, providing new insights into learned spatial distractor suppression mechanisms.
- From healthy play to gaming disorder: Psychological profiles from emotional regulation and motivational factorsPublication . Castro, Cátia Martins e; Neto, David DiasBackground and Aims: The widespread popularity of video games eflects their appeal to meet fundamental needs. This study aims to investigate the psychological factors of gaming use, identifying profiles ranging from healthy to gaming disorder. Methods: In this ross-sectional study, 5,222 participants were surveyed. This ternational sample included adolescents and adults (16–69 years, M 5 25.6 years, SD 5 6.44), 48.66% men (n 5 2,541; M 5 26.4, SD 5 7.03), 42.32% women (n 5 2,210; M 5 25.1, SD 5 5.78), and 9.02% non-binary individuals (n 5 471; M 5 23.3, SD 5 5.23), spanning from casual gamers to esports rofessional players. Latent Profile Analysis (LPA) was employed to dentify distinct psychological profiles. The profile indicators included emotional regulation and motivations for playing video games. The profile correlates analysed included gaming disorder symptoms, time spent gaming and sociodemographics. Results: The LPA revealed four profiles labelled as avoidant (20.16%), engaged (38.95%), relational (26.01%), and dysregulated (15.78%). Results suggested that the dysregulated profile had the most emotional regulation difficulties, a low level of general motivation, and less interest in recreational aming, presenting the highest risk for gaming disorder. Discussion and Conclusions: This study’s findings present the first profiles incompassing key detailed psychological factors affecting gamers’ behaviour across all game genres, considering three genders. These profiles can aid researchers and clinicians in developing further research on targeted prevention and intervention programs tailored to each profile’s characteristics to promote healthy gaming habits and mitigate the risks and harm associated with gaming disorder.