scholarly journals Characteristics of severe life events, attachment style, and depression – Using a new online approach

2019 ◽  
Vol 58 (4) ◽  
pp. 427-439 ◽  
Author(s):  
Antonia Bifulco ◽  
Lisa Kagan ◽  
Ruth Spence ◽  
Stephen Nunn ◽  
Deborah Bailey‐Rodriguez ◽  
...  

1983 ◽  
Vol 142 (2) ◽  
pp. 111-119 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elaine Murphy

SummaryThe paper describes a one year prospective study of 124 elderly depressed patients. Only one third of the group had a good outcome. Poor outcome was associated with severity of initial illness, those with depressive delusions having a particularly poor outcome. Outcome was also influenced by physical health problems and severe life events in the follow-up year. Social class differences in outcome were thought to be due to class differences in the experience of severe life events. There was no evidence that an intimate relationship protected against relapse in the face of continuing life stress.



2009 ◽  
Vol 24 (2) ◽  
pp. 429-437 ◽  
Author(s):  
A.S. Khashan ◽  
R. McNamee ◽  
K.M. Abel ◽  
P.B. Mortensen ◽  
L.C. Kenny ◽  
...  


2010 ◽  
Vol 117 (2-3) ◽  
pp. 270-271
Author(s):  
Christina Dalman ◽  
Susanne Wicks ◽  
Cecilia Magnusson ◽  
Lena Jörgensen ◽  
Johan Hallqvist


2016 ◽  
Vol 46 (12) ◽  
pp. 2617-2626 ◽  
Author(s):  
T. R. Nicholson ◽  
S. Aybek ◽  
T. Craig ◽  
T. Harris ◽  
W. Wojcik ◽  
...  

BackgroundPsychological models of conversion disorder (CD) traditionally assume that psychosocial stressors are identifiable around symptom onset. In the face of limited supportive evidence such models are being challenged.MethodForty-three motor CD patients, 28 depression patients and 28 healthy controls were assessed using the Life Events and Difficulties Schedule in the year before symptom onset. A novel ‘escape’ rating for events was developed to test the Freudian theory that physical symptoms of CD could provide escape from stressors, a form of ‘secondary gain’.ResultsCD patients had significantly more severe life events and ‘escape’ events than controls. In the month before symptom onset at least one severe event was identified in 56% of CD patients – significantly more than 21% of depression patients [odds ratio (OR) 4.63, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.56–13.70] and healthy controls (OR 5.81, 95% CI 1.86–18.2). In the same time period 53% of CD patients had at least one ‘high escape’ event – again significantly higher than 14% in depression patients (OR 6.90, 95% CI 2.05–23.6) and 0% in healthy controls. Previous sexual abuse was more commonly reported in CD than controls, and in one third of female patients was contextually relevant to life events at symptom onset. The majority (88%) of life events of potential aetiological relevance were not identified by routine clinical assessments. Nine per cent of CD patients had no identifiable severe life events.ConclusionsEvidence was found supporting the psychological model of CD, the Freudian notion of escape and the potential aetiological relevance of childhood traumas in some patients. Uncovering stressors of potential aetiological relevance requires thorough psychosocial evaluation.



2005 ◽  
Vol 58 (5) ◽  
pp. 459-467 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ari Väänänen ◽  
Jussi Vahtera ◽  
Jaana Pentti ◽  
Mika Kivimäki


2013 ◽  
Vol 26 (6) ◽  
pp. 347-355 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrea Jobst ◽  
Sandra Dehning ◽  
Simone Ruf ◽  
Tobias Notz ◽  
Anna Buchheim ◽  
...  

ObjectiveImpaired social functioning and autistic symptoms are characteristics of schizophrenia. The social hormones oxytocin (OT) and arginine-vasopressin (AVP) both modulate social interaction and therefore may be involved in the pathogenesis of schizophrenia. We investigated whether men with schizophrenia show altered OT and AVP levels compared with healthy controls (HC) and whether autism symptoms are associated with OT levels.MethodsForty-one men with non-acute schizophrenia and 45 matched HC were enroled. Schizophrenia was assessed with the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS). Blood samples were collected on 2 days, and plasma OT and AVP levels were measured by ELISA immunoassay.ResultsThe schizophrenia patients had significantly lower plasma OT levels than the HC; a similar trend was found for AVP. Plasma OT levels were associated with severe life events, fewer important attached persons, and a higher score on the PANSS negative scale; the most dominant PANSS items were ‘preoccupation’, ‘emotional withdrawal’, and ‘passive/apathetic social withdrawal’.ConclusionThese findings support an association between the social hormones OT and AVP and schizophrenia. We suggest that OT metabolism may be altered in schizophrenia, but other possible causes for decreased plasma OT levels in schizophrenia patients include decreased OT synthesis, mRNA expression, and translation. Especially the ‘autistic’ symptoms of schizophrenia seem to be closely linked to an altered metabolism of OT, the ‘attachment’ hormone.



2001 ◽  
Vol 178 (S40) ◽  
pp. s69-s71 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Goldberg

BackgroundTwin studies suggest that shared early family environment is of only minor importance in the aetiology of depression, most of the variance being attributable either to genetic or to individual ‘non-shared’ environmental factors.AimsTo examine the respective roles of personality and social experiences on the risk for common mental disorders, with special reference to depression.MethodAnalysis of preliminary findings from two large-scale British population surveys: (a) a multi-centre study of general practice patients, and (b) a study of working-class women in Manchester.Results(a) Persons recently separated from their partners have raised mean scores for psychological distress, but the relative excess is due entirely to persons with high ratings for introversion; (b) while severe life events were associated with physiological responses characteristic of depression, the probability of experiencing such life events varied between 0.2 monthly for low scorers and 1.5 monthly for high scorers on a vulnerability measure.ConclusionsSocial factors do appear to influence the prevalence of depression, but this effect is not independent of genetically determined vulnerability.



1995 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 99-104 ◽  
Author(s):  
Berit Rostad ◽  
Berit Schei ◽  
Geir Jacobsen


2008 ◽  
Vol 70 (6) ◽  
pp. 688-694 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ali S. Khashan ◽  
Roseanne McNamee ◽  
Kathryn M. Abel ◽  
Marianne G. Pedersen ◽  
Roger T. Webb ◽  
...  


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