Systematic Review of Socio-Emotional Values Within Organizations

The theory of separation assumes, with provocation, that an organization cannot reconcile profits and social function. Organizations can reconcile these two, apparently contrasting, missions, by considering emotions, especially moral emotions, to create a genuine motivation for focusing on goals beyond simple economic earnings and protecting organizations or groups of people from dysfunctional attitudes and behaviors, as well as considering the important role of the stakeholder accountability. Using the PRISMA method, we created a review of records using keywords relating to a socio-emotional value within organizations, with a particular focus on the last 20 years. We used the SCOPUS database and, after removing irrelevant records, we used the VOSviewer tool to create a cluster map of different areas in this topic. Some records cite the socio-emotional value that is related to organizational and employee suffering, while other articles consider it a positive factor that improves performance and prevents problems in organizations.

Cognitive Models of Loneliness in Women in Early and Middle Adulthood

The problem of loneliness is caused by a disunity and alienation of modern society, dissatisfaction with the basic social needs for acceptance and support. The fact that the subjective feeling of loneliness does not coincide with the real degree of social isolation determines the need to study the cognitive aspects. The aim of this study is to show the role of cognitive structures in loneliness in women. A survey of 144 women aged 26-55 years was conducted. Using the UCLA Loneliness Scale and the Differential Loneliness Experience Questionnaire, loneliness was measured as a global experience, positive and negative attitudes towards it. Cognitive models were studied using the Dysfunctional Attitude Scale, Young Schema Questionnaire, the author’s questionnaire that reveals cultural myths and gender stereotypes about loneliness. A comparative analysis of the groups showed no differences in the perception of loneliness among women with different family situations; it also does not depend on having children and their number. Age was found to be a significant determinant of perceptions of loneliness and family circumstances. Cognitive models influence women’s loneliness to a greater extent than family situation. The publication describes correlations between perceived loneliness and individual dysfunctional attitudes, and builds regression models of predictors of loneliness in different age groups. The study shows the prevalence of cultural stereotypes about the need for marriage and motherhood, and a special female vulnerability in relationships. The construct “tolerance to loneliness” is proposed and described, which reveals the positive potential of this experience for self-knowledge and self-development.

Validity and Reliability of the Japanese Version of the Cognitive Scale for Functional Bowel Disorders

BackgroundThe Cognitive Scale for Functional Bowel Disorders (CS-FBD) is a useful measure to assess maladaptive cognition, and focuses on how functional bowel disorders relate to negative thoughts, perfectionism, and social desirability. This study aimed to confirm the reliability and validity of the Japanese version of the CS-FBD (CS-FBD-J). MethodsParticipants comprised 192 students (20.2±3.0 years) and 22 outpatients diagnosed with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) (38.0±13.0 years). There were 76 students who met the diagnostic criteria for IBS, and two students who received treatment for IBS. Participants completed questionnaires containing the CS-FBD-J, IBS Severity Index (IBS-SI), Visceral Sensitivity Index (VSI), 24-item Dysfunctional Attitudes Scale (DAS-24), and Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS).ResultsOur factor analysis revealed that the CS-FBD-J had a unidimensional factor structure, and that the factor loadings for 2 out of the 25 items were less than 0.4. After excluding the two items from the analysis, a single factor of the 23-item version accounted for 45.85% of the total variance. The CS-FBD-J scores had significant moderate correlations with the IBS-SI (r = 0.492~0.574) and VSI (r = 0.531~ 0.557) scores in the IBS group and the control group. Correlation between the DAS-24 and the CS-FBD-J was not significant (r = 0.179 ~ 0.191). Although the CS-FBD-J in the IBS group was significantly correlated with HADS-anxiety (r = 0.450) and depression scores (r = 0.357), their intercorrelations in the control group were not significant (r = 0.150 ~ 0.167). In the score comparison of the CS-FBD-J between the IBS patient group, non-patient IBS group (students with IBS except two who received treatment), and control group, there were significant group effects in the CS-FBD-J (IBS patient > non-patient IBS > control). The internal consistencies of the CS-FBD-J were high (α = 0.95). The item-total correlation analysis for the CS-FBD-J showed that the correlations between each item and the total score were significant.ConclusionThis study confirmed the reliability and validity of the 23-item version of the CS-FBS with the deletion of two items with low factor loadings.

Stress events and Changes in Dysfunctional Attitudes and Automatic Thoughts Following Recovery from Depression in Inpatient Psychotherapy: Mediation Analyses with Longitudinal Data

Background Stressful event exposure, dysfunctional attitudes (DA), negative automatic thoughts (NAT), and declining positive automatic thoughts (PAT) have been associated with depressive relapse/recurrence. Few studies have investigated the course of these variables and their relevance for relapse/recurrence in remitted depression. Methods Following successful inpatient treatment, in 39 remitted depressive patients, stressful events, DA, NAT, PAT, and depressive relapse/recurrence were assessed five times during a 16-month follow-up. Data were analyzed with mixed effect models, and mediation effects were tested. Results Stressful events after discharge correlated with depressive relapse/recurrence. This association was mainly mediated by a stress-related decline of PAT within four months post discharge. Patients’ DA were relatively stable during the observation period and did not depend on stressful events, indicating DA as a risk trait for depressive relapse/recurrence. Mediation analyses revealed that independent of stress, DA were linked to depressive relapse/recurrence through more NAT. Conclusion Our findings suggest stressful events evoke relapse/recurrence in remitted depression through rapid deterioration of PAT after discharge from inpatient therapy. DA are expressed through NAT which additionally contribute to higher risk of depressive relapse/recurrence. Consequently, maintenance therapy requires techniques to promote the maintenance of PAT, and to effectively restructure DA and NAT.

The relationship between personality traits and dysfunctional attitudes of medical staff in the pandemic period

In recent years, the study of medical employees’ mental health has become an important debated topic in the literature around the world, but little information is available on the extent to which social, psychological, and organizational factors affect the degree of exhaustion, leading to behavioral changes. The pandemic period that has affected (negatively impacted) the whole world in the last year, represented even more a degree of stress for the medical staff, who imminently and directly confronted the biological enemy. Medical employees are frequently exposed to both physical and mental risks. Shocking events and the likelihood of failure encountered during the work schedule can cause mental changes and an emotional imbalance.

Childhood Maltreatment Predicts Specific Types of Dysfunctional Attitudes in Participants With and Without Depression

Background: Studies have shown a strong association between childhood maltreatment (CM) and major depressive disorder (MDD). Dysfunctional attitudes (DAs) play a crucial role in the development of MDD. In this study, we aimed to investigate whether (1) DAs are associated with CM, (2) specific CM types predict specific types of DAs, and (3) higher childhood trauma counts (CTCs) predict more DAs.Methods: One hundred seventy-one MDD participants and 156 healthy controls (HCs) were enrolled for the study. CM was assessed retrospectively with the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire. DAs were evaluated using the Chinese version of the Dysfunctional Attitude Scale–Form A (C-DAS-A). A series of analyses, including multiple analyses of covariance and hierarchical regression analyses, were used in this study to examine the hypotheses.Results: The proportion of CM was 60.2% in the MDD group and 44.2% in the HC group. The 2 × 2 analysis of covariance results showed no interaction effect between CM and MDD on C-DAS-A total score. When the factor scores replaced the C-DAS-A total score, a similar trend was observed. Within the MDD group, emotional abuse (EA) predicted two forms of DAs: self-determination type and overall DAs; physical neglect (PN) was predictive of attraction and repulsion-type DAs. Higher childhood trauma counts significantly predicted more types of DAs in the MDD group.Conclusion: DAs are a trait feature of CM. EA and PN predict specific types of DAs in MDD patients. Higher CTCs predict more DAs in MDD patients.

Depression in the Mirror: Depression Severity and Its Link to Negative Judgments of Symptoms

Background and Objectives: Depressive states represent a normal and physiological response to the experience of loss. However, it is possible to identify some elements that allow distinguishing physiological depressive states from pathological ones. Over the years, research has confirmed that a stable tendency to negative self-evaluation is a transdiagnostic factor that triggers and amplifies dysfunctional emotional reactivity, thus contributing to the shift from normal to pathological reaction. In this sense, the secondary problem, or meta-emotional problem, referring to the negative evaluation of one's depressive state and the consequent dysfunctional attempts to solve it, seems to play an important role. The aim of the present study is to investigate how dysfunctional beliefs and the evaluations of depressive symptoms (meta-emotional problems) are related to depression severity.Methods: We asked to a community sample to focus on the depressive symptoms they regard as most distressful and evaluate them through specific questionnaires. One-hundred and eighty nine participants were asked to complete a set of questionnaires: (1) the Meta-Emotional Problem Questionnaire; (2) the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale; (3) the Beck Depression Inventory; (4) the Dysfunctional Attitude Scale-24 in order to investigate the relation between dysfunctional beliefs, meta-emotional problems, and depressive symptoms severity.Results: Our results show that higher levels of depression are associated both to more pervasive dysfunctional attitudes and increased evaluation of meta-emotional problem. In addition, we conduct a regression analysis to disentangle the impact of the two different measures of depressive symptoms (i.e., BDI-II and CES-D) with two explanatory variables (dysfunctional attitudes and meta-emotional problem). Results show that meta-emotional problem remains a significant and robust predictor of the severity of depressive symptomatology, while dysfunctional beliefs has a rather weak and non-significant relation with the criterion. In other words, meta-emotional problem consistently explains the higher variance of depressive symptoms than dysfunctional beliefs. In conclusion, our study shows a clear link between meta-emotional problem and depression severity. This is relevant for clinical practice, as it highlights the importance of specifically targeting beliefs about the depressive condition in cognitive-behavioral treatment of depression, since they represent crucial factors maintaining depressive symptomatologies.

Long-term efficacy of metacognitive therapy and cognitive behaviour therapy for depression

Objective: To examine the two-year outcomes for depression, anxiety, cognitive and global social functioning after cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) and metacognitive therapy (MCT) for depression. Method: Participants were 31 adults with a diagnosis of major depressive disorder in a randomised pilot study comparing MCT and CBT. Therapy modality differences in change in depression and anxiety symptoms, dysfunctional attitudes, metacognitions, rumination, worry and global social functioning were examined at the two-year follow-up for those who completed therapy. Results: Significant improvements, with large effect sizes, were evident for all outcome variables. There were no significant differences in outcome between CBT and MCT. The greatest change over time occurred for depression and anxiety. Large changes were evident for metacognitions, rumination, dysfunctional attitudes, worry and global social functioning. Sixty-seven percent had not experienced a major depression and had been well during all of the past year, prior to the follow-up assessment. Conclusion: The finding at end treatment, of no modality specific differences, was also evident at two-year follow-up. Although CBT and MCT targeted depression, improvements were much wider, and although CBT and MCT take different approaches, both therapies produced positive change over time across all cognitive variables. CBT and MCT provide treatment options, that not only improve the longer-term outcome of depression, but also result in improvements in anxiety, global social functioning and cognitive status.