Exploring the relationship between psychological flexibility and self-report and task-based measures of cognitive flexibility

Author(s):  
Ashley Grant ◽  
Simon Cassidy
Author(s):  
Benita Wielgus ◽  
Witold Urban ◽  
Aleksandra Patriak ◽  
Łukasz Cichocki

Social distancing plays a leading role in controlling the spread of coronavirus. However, prolonged lockdown can lead to negative consequences in terms of mental health. The goal of the research is to examine the relationship between anxiety and general psychosomatic functioning during the COVID-19 pandemic; the impact of psychological flexibility and mindfulness is also considered. Variables were measured with self-report questionnaires and symptom checklists. The sample included 170 people (M = 27.79, SD = 8.16). Pearson’s correlation, stepwise regression, and path analysis were conducted. The results showed a significant positive relationship between state anxiety and somatic and psychological responses to the pandemic. Path analysis revealed that mindfulness had a direct negative impact on and decreased the level of state anxiety (b = −0.22, p = 0.002), whereas psychological flexibility influenced the variable indirectly (b = 0.23, p = 0.002) by enhancing psychosomatic functioning (b = −0.64, p < 0.001). Psychological flexibility and mindfulness may mediate the development of mental disorders and facilitate achieving overall wellbeing. The study points to the usefulness of mindfulness practice as a form of self-help with anxiety symptoms; this is crucial during the pandemic because contact with clients is restricted.


2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Annemaree Carroll ◽  
Ashley York ◽  
Sam Fynes-Clinton ◽  
Emma Sanders-O'Connor ◽  
Libby Flynn ◽  
...  

Quality interventions addressing the important issue of teacher stress and burnout have shown promising outcomes for participating teachers in terms of decreased distress, improved well-being and increased commitment to their jobs. Less is known however about whether such interventions also benefit students. The present study investigated the downstream effects for a completer sample of 226 primary and high school students after their teachers (n = 17) completed one of two 8-week stress reduction interventions. The relationships between change in teacher self-reported distress and burnout after completing the interventions, and change in students' self-reported well-being, academic self-perceptions, and perceptions of classroom environment were explored. A secondary aim of this study was to assess whether changes in teachers' cognitive flexibility mediated the relationship between teacher and student self-report outcomes. Results of correlational and multi-level mediation analyses showed that changes to teachers' self-reported distress and burnout affected multiple facets of students' well-being and the academic environment. Specifically, reductions in teachers' self-reported distress and burnout were related to students' improved perceptions of their teachers' support in the classroom. Reductions in teachers' personal and work-related burnout correlated with greater increases of academic self-perception in students. Contrary to predictions, cognitive flexibility in teachers did not mediate the relationship between these student and teacher measures. These findings indicate important downstream benefits for students and highlight the broader value of stress-reduction and well-being programs for teachers.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dominik Kraft ◽  
Lena Rademacher ◽  
Cindy Eckart ◽  
Christian Fiebach

Cognitive flexibility – the ability to adjust one ́s behavior to changing environmental demands – is crucial for controlled behavior. However, the term ‘cognitive flexibility’ is used heterogeneously, and associations between cognitive flexibility and other facets of flexible behavior have only rarely been studied systematically. To resolve some of these conceptual uncertainties, we directly compared cognitive flexibility (cue-instructed switching between two affectively neutral tasks), affective flexibility (switching between a neutral and an affective task using emotional stimuli), and feedback-based flexibility (non-cued, feedback-dependent switching between two neutral tasks). Three experimental paradigms were established that share as many procedural features (in terms of stimuli and/or task rules) as possible and administered in a pre-registered study plan (N=100). Correlation analyses revealed significant associations between the efficiency of cognitive and affective task switching (response time switch costs). Feedback-based flexibility (measured as mean number of errors after rule reversals) did not correlate with task switching efficiency in the other paradigms, but selectively with the effectiveness of affective switching (error rate costs when switching from neutral to emotion task). While preregistered confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) provided no clear evidence for a shared factor underlying the efficiency of switching in all three domains of flexibility, an exploratory CFA suggested commonalities regarding switching effectiveness (accuracy-based switch costs). We propose shared mechanisms controlling the efficiency of cue-dependent task switching across domains, while the relationship to feedback-based flexibility may depend on mechanisms controlling switching effectiveness. Our results call for a more stringent conceptual differentiation between different variants of psychological flexibility.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yi Sheng Wong ◽  
Adrian R. Willoughby ◽  
Liana Machado

Despite that previous studies have investigated mind wandering using task-switching paradigms, the association between the tendency to mind wander and cognitive flexibility remains largely unexplored. The present study investigated the relationship between self-reported spontaneous mind-wandering tendencies and task-switching performance in young adults. Seventy-nine university students performed a forced task-switching and a voluntary task-switching paradigm and then completed a battery of questionnaires. The results showed that compared to participants with lower spontaneous mind-wandering tendencies, participants with higher spontaneous mind-wandering tendencies demonstrated better performance (evidenced by smaller switch cost reaction times) in the forced task-switching paradigm despite indicating more mind wandering during task performance. Performance on the voluntary task-switching paradigm, on the other hand, did not differ between the two groups. The findings in the forced task-switching paradigm indicate a link between mind wandering and cognitive flexibility, thus providing initial evidence in favor of a role for switching in mind wandering.


2019 ◽  
Vol 28 (2) ◽  
pp. 274-284 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elizabeth Convery ◽  
Gitte Keidser ◽  
Louise Hickson ◽  
Carly Meyer

Purpose Hearing loss self-management refers to the knowledge and skills people use to manage the effects of hearing loss on all aspects of their daily lives. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between self-reported hearing loss self-management and hearing aid benefit and satisfaction. Method Thirty-seven adults with hearing loss, all of whom were current users of bilateral hearing aids, participated in this observational study. The participants completed self-report inventories probing their hearing loss self-management and hearing aid benefit and satisfaction. Correlation analysis was used to investigate the relationship between individual domains of hearing loss self-management and hearing aid benefit and satisfaction. Results Participants who reported better self-management of the effects of their hearing loss on their emotional well-being and social participation were more likely to report less aided listening difficulty in noisy and reverberant environments and greater satisfaction with the effect of their hearing aids on their self-image. Participants who reported better self-management in the areas of adhering to treatment, participating in shared decision making, accessing services and resources, attending appointments, and monitoring for changes in their hearing and functional status were more likely to report greater satisfaction with the sound quality and performance of their hearing aids. Conclusion Study findings highlight the potential for using information about a patient's hearing loss self-management in different domains as part of clinical decision making and management planning.


Author(s):  
Marc Allroggen ◽  
Peter Rehmann ◽  
Eva Schürch ◽  
Carolyn C. Morf ◽  
Michael Kölch

Abstract.Narcissism is seen as a multidimensional construct that consists of two manifestations: grandiose and vulnerable narcissism. In order to define these two manifestations, their relationship to personality factors has increasingly become of interest. However, so far no studies have considered the relationship between different phenotypes of narcissism and personality factors in adolescents. Method: In a cross-sectional study, we examine a group of adolescents (n = 98; average age 16.77 years; 23.5 % female) with regard to the relationship between Big Five personality factors and pathological narcissism using self-report instruments. This group is compared to a group of young adults (n = 38; average age 19.69 years; 25.6 % female). Results: Grandiose narcissism is primarily related to low Agreeableness and Extraversion, vulnerable narcissism to Neuroticism. We do not find differences between adolescents and young adults concerning the relationship between grandiose and vulnerable narcissism and personality traits. Discussion: Vulnerable and grandiose narcissism can be well differentiated in adolescents, and the pattern does not show substantial differences compared to young adults.


Crisis ◽  
2011 ◽  
Vol 32 (5) ◽  
pp. 272-279 ◽  
Author(s):  
Allison S. Christian ◽  
Kristen M. McCabe

Background: Deliberate self-harm (DSH) occurs with high frequency among clinical and nonclinical youth populations. Although depression has been consistently linked with the behavior, not all depressed individuals engage in DSH. Aims: The current study examined maladaptive coping strategies (i.e., self-blame, distancing, and self-isolation) as mediators between depression and DSH among undergraduate students. Methods: 202 students from undergraduate psychology courses at a private university in Southern California (77.7% women) completed anonymous self-report measures. Results: A hierarchical regression model found no differences in DSH history across demographic variables. Among coping variables, self-isolation alone was significantly related to DSH. A full meditational model was supported: Depressive symptoms were significantly related to DSH, but adding self-isolation to the model rendered the relationship nonsignificant. Limitations: The cross-sectional study design prevents determination of whether a casual relation exists between self-isolation and DSH, and obscures the direction of that relationship. Conclusions: Results suggest targeting self-isolation as a means of DSH prevention and intervention among nonclinical, youth populations.


Crisis ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 40 (6) ◽  
pp. 413-421 ◽  
Author(s):  
Megan L. Rogers ◽  
Thomas E. Joiner

Abstract. Background: Acute suicidal affective disturbance (ASAD) has been proposed as a suicide-specific entity that confers risk for imminent suicidal behavior. Preliminary evidence suggests that ASAD is associated with suicidal behavior beyond a number of factors; however, no study to date has examined potential moderating variables.  Aims: The present study tested the hypotheses that physical pain persistence would moderate the relationship between ASAD and (1) lifetime suicide attempts and (2) attempt lethality. Method: Students ( N = 167) with a history of suicidality completed self-report measures assessing the lifetime worst-point ASAD episode and the presence of a lifetime suicide attempt, a clinical interview about attempt lethality, and a physical pain tolerance task. Results: Physical pain persistence was a significant moderator of the association between ASAD and lifetime suicide attempts ( B = 0.00001, SE = 0.000004, p = .032), such that the relationship between ASAD and suicide attempts strengthened at increasing levels of pain persistence. The interaction between ASAD and pain persistence in relation to attempt lethality was nonsignificant ( B = 0.000004, SE = 0.00001, p = .765). Limitations: This study included a cross-sectional/retrospective analysis of worst-point ASAD symptoms, current physical pain perception, and lifetime suicide attempts. Conclusion: ASAD may confer risk for suicidal behavior most strongly at higher levels of pain persistence, whereas ASAD and pain perception do not influence attempt lethality.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document