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Aim: To evaluate and compare the social cognition in patients with schizophrenia, healthy first-degree relatives and controls, by studying the relationship between social cognition and nonsocial cognition, psychopathology, and other clinical and sociodemographic variables., Method: The total sample was comprised of patients diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia (N = 29), healthy first-degree relatives (N = 21) and controls (N = 28). All groups were assessed with an ad hoc questionnaire and a Social Cognition Scale, which assessed the domains: emotional processing, social perception and attributional style in a Spanish population. The patient group was also assessed with the Scale for the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale and the Mini-mental state examination. Statistical analyses were performed with SPSS version 15.0., Results: Patients scored significantly worse in all domains of social cognition assessed, compared with controls, and mastery attributional style, compared with relatives. The type of psychopathology correlated negatively and statistically significantly with different domains of social cognition: negative symptoms with emotional processing and attributional style, and positive symptoms with social perception. Basic cognition scores correlated positively and statistically significantly with the domains social perception and attributional style., Conclusion: Social cognition has become an interesting object of study, especially in how it relates to non-social cognition, psychopathology and global functioning of patients, bringing new elements to be considered in the early detection, comprehensive treatment and psychosocial rehabilitation of patients. Its conceptualization as trait variable, the consideration of the existence of a continuum between patients and relatives are plausible hypotheses that require further research., (Copyright © 2012 SEP y SEPB. Published by Elsevier Espana. All rights reserved.)

Background: Suicide attempt (SA) lethality is associated with heightened suicidal desires and social cognition deficits. Fearlessness about death (FAD) and hypomentalizing may play a role in SA and self-harm. Although studies have identified relationships between these constructs, this line of research is still limited. We aimed to explore the mediating role of FAD and mentalizing between suicidal ideation and both SA lethality and self-harm. Method: 1,371 suicide attempters (70.1% women; M = 40 years) from seven Spanish hospitals participated. We used the Fearlessness About Death (ACSS-FAD) subscale, the Reflective Functioning Questionnaire-8 (RFQ-8), and the Columbia Suicide Severity Rating Scale (CSSRS). We conducted serial multiple mediation analyses with suicidal ideation as exposure; FAD and mentalizing as mediators; SA lethality and self-harm as outcomes. Results: Indirect effects were found of suicidal ideation on self-harm (B = 0.08, CI = 0.03-0.15) and SA lethality mediated by FAD (B = 0.02, CI = 0.001-0.04); indirect effects of suicidal ideation on self-harm through mentalizing (B = 0.10, CI = 0.04-0.167), and total indirect effects between suicidal ideation and self-harm through FAD and mentalizing (B = 0.18, CI = 0.11-0.27). Conclusions: Interventions addressing mentalizing and FAD may help reduce SA lethality and self-harm risk. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Copyright of Voces y Silencios is the property of Universidad de los Andes and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Acta Colombiana de Psicologia is the property of Universidad Catolica de Colombia and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

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Adolescence is a sensitive period for the neurodevelopment of social cognition (SC), and adverse childhood experiences (ACE) can alter these processes. This study investigated the relationship between ACE and SC in 157 adolescents (66 females, 54 males) from a school in Bogota. The level of EAN was assessed through the Adverse Childhood Experiences Scale. SC was assessed with mentalization, morality and self-control tasks. In addition, behavioral problems were probed with a scale based on DSM IV-R criteria. The accumulation of ACE was related to alterations in SC in a sex-dependent manner. Specifically: (a) women with high ACEs presented lower accuracy in mental inferences and instrumental moral decisions; (b) men under similar conditions presented self-control problems; (c) exposure to armed conflict correlated with higher latency in moral decisions; and (d) men with ACE accumulation, moral decisions based on immediate rewards and low self-control showed more externalizing behaviors. The social implications of these findings for the design of evidence-based, sectorized psychosocial interventions are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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To interact in the social world, people make use of processes that contribute to understand relevant aspects and key indicators to interact effectively. These processes are framed within the construct of social cognition that integrates different processes within which the theory of mind is included. The theory of mind (ToM) is the competence of attributing minds to others and predicting and understanding their behaviors based on mental entities such as beliefs, desires and intentions. This process is made up of two aspects, one cognitive and the other affective or emotional. Cognitive ToM refers to the ability to make inferences about the desires, beliefs and intentions of other people, while affective ToM is related to the ability to infer the emotions of others. Taking this characteristic of dimensionality into account, researchers created a task called Yoni Task that attempts to assess both aspects of ToM with the use of mainly visuospatial stimuli administered to children, adolescents and adults. The aim of this study was to carry out linguistic adaptations and systematize the Yoni Task in an application by analyzing its psychometric properties in a pilot sample in order to contribute to the validation of the Yoni Task in Argentine context and assess different aspects of ToM in a systematic way and with low incidence of other cognitive processes. The tool was administered in a pilot test to 33 young adults between 20 and 40 years old, using a computerized version of the Yoni Task adapted to Argentine environment. To perform the data analysis given the size of the sample, the resampling technique called Bootstrap with simulation of 1000 cases was used. This technique allows, by generating a large number of random samples considering the real data available, to estimate the real distribution of the data and not a theoretical distribution based on assumptions that must be met. This method has been used in psychology and education but is not as widely used as it should be in these areas of social and human sciences because the data do not usually meet the parameters necessary to use parametric statistical tests. The reliability analysis showed a score of Cronbach's alpha of .896 on a total of 98 items, which describes a good internal consistency, and no variations were found if items were eliminated. The data show that Yoni Task in its Spanish version presents moderate correlations with the Eyes Test in both dimensions (cognitive and affective). Likewise, within the test, high correlations are observed between the cognitive and affective dimensions. This pattern is sustained when the Bootstrap is performed, considering that both tasks value similar processes (theory of mind). With regard to the computerization of the task and its implementation in the developed application, it can be anticipated that its use is simple and simple to administer by the evaluator. On the other hand, from the perspective of those evaluated, it does not generate fatigue and is simple to use; and although some users argued that at first the task seems simple and becomes more complex, requiring more attentional effort, they note that this is a product of the task itself and not of its computerization. It is important to highlight the importance of designing tasks that measure cognitive processes in a simple and systematic way, creating a bridge between psychology and the use of technologies, allowing greater accuracy in the measurement of processes from friendly environments for the person being studied evaluated. The systematization of an analogue test and the development of an application do not introduce defects in the methodology or affect unexpected results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction. Early intervention during childhood in patients with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) has been strongly advocated. As adolescence is reached, new, more complex social demands emerge. These demands require a therapeutic approach that has not been widely studied. The aim of this review is to examine and synthesize the existing literature on social cognition interventions in adolescence and lay the groundwork for future interventions. Methods. Searches were conducted in the PubMed, PsycINFO, and Web of Science databases up until April 20, 2023. Quantitative or qualitative research aimed at examining the influence of social cognition-focused interventions in the treatment of ASD in adolescence, in either English or Spanish language, was included. Quantitative and qualitative studies were evaluated using a modified version of the Newcastle-Ottawa Scale and the Critical Appraisals Skills Programme checklist, respectively. Results. Nineteen original studies that met the inclusion criteria were selected. The selected studies included a total of 916 patients. The average duration of the interventions was 13.28 weeks. They were categorized into group-based social skills interventions, experience-based interventions, and computer-mediated interventions. Conclusions. The scarcity of social cognition interventions specifically designed for adolescents with ASD is striking. The neuroplasticity window between puberty and the transition to adulthood provides an opportunity for structural and dynamic functional reorganization. Therefore, adolescence is a unique developmental stage that is amenable to specific interventions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Empathy is a skill that enables the identification with and interpretation of others' subjective experiences. The purpose of this study was to validate the Empathy Quotient (EQ) in adolescents in Mexico. A sample of 573 Mexican adolescent students (350 female and 223 male) with an age range of 12-19 years was employed (Mage= 14.8 years, SD= 1.96). An exploratory factor analysis (EFA) was carried out which identified two factors, one with 16 items associated with the affective dimension and one with 13 items related to the cognitive dimension (model fit indices: GFI= .984, RMSEA= .034, and RMSR= .072). To evaluate the resultant bifactor model, a confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was performed, showing good fit indexes (RMSEA= .020, RMSR= .045, CFI= .998, GFI= .988). Regarding internal consistency, we found a McDonald's x correlation coefficient of= .941 for the affective dimension and ?= .772 for the cognitive dimension, with p< .001. The validation of this empathy instrument will support its use as a clinical research assessment tool in Mexican adolescents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Deficits in information processing, sustained attention and social cognition have important implications for the daily functioning of people with schizophrenia. The present study analyzed the relationship between processing speed, sustained attention, social cognition, and functioning in clinically stable people with schizophrenia. Method: Ninety people with schizophrenia and 100 healthy controls completed a battery of measures to assess clinical symptoms, processing speed, sustained attention, social cognition, and functioning. GLMMs and SEM were used to assess the relationships between these variables. Results: People with schizophrenia had impaired performance in all cognitive outcomes compared to healthy controls. Processing speed and sustained attention, together in a latent variable, had a strong effect on functioning (Beta = 0.32; p < .05). However, social cognition had also a strong effect on functioning (Beta = 0.29; p <.001) in the mediation model, which exhibited better indices of fit than the model including neurocognition alone (e.g. RMSEAbasic = 0.131 and RMSEAmediator = 0.054). Conclusions: The mediating effect of social cognition on the relationship between processing speed, sustained attention, and functioning in people with schizophrenia suggests the importance of including both domains of neurocognition along with social cognition as treatment targets in rehabilitation interventions to optimize improvements in functioning in schizophrenia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bullying is a contemporary social phenomenon that impacts multiple social structures and contexts. This study aimed to establish the association between executive functions (EF) and social cognition in adolescents. A cross-sectional descriptive study with a sample of 109 subjects was selected by convenience sampling. Multinomial logistic regression was performed, finding that social cognition is a protective factor (OR: 0.17 IC 95% 0.05-0.59) (OR: 0.27 IC 95% 0.08-0.85) in the group of aggressors to controls; in addition, the group of victims to controls (OR: 0.15 IC 95% 0.05 - 0.42) (OR: 0.30 IC 95% (0.11-0.82). Thus, adequate social cognition is associated as a protective factor against bullying, and presenting deficits in EF is associated with a threefold increased risk of bullying. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Social cognition is a neurodynamic process that restructures and regulates a person's social behavior in function of time and space. In recent years, this construct has taken relevance regarding neuropsychological evaluations since it lays the foundations for the approach and forecast of a successful social adaptation in people with autistic condition. This article explores the life of Saya, a three year and ten months old child, whom reflects a slight autist condition. As the main study tool, a neuropsychological evaluation was carried out and focused on psychobiology. This evaluation included the social cognition, which analyzes four different systems: social perception, socio-affective, mental attribution and inferential and executive, in order to start her therapeutic process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Background: Experiences of negative social interactions and childhood trauma (CT) can lead to aberrant hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal functions. Poor theory of mind (ToM) ability is related to increased social stress levels; however, studies on the relationship between ToM and cortisol remain scarce. Objective: This study aimed to evaluate the relationship between ToM and the hair cortisol concentration (HCC) in healthy young adults considering the moderating role of CT. Method: A total of 206 healthy young adults were divided into two groups based on an experience of moderate-to-severe childhood trauma (CT+ and CT–). To determine whether CT moderated the relationship between ToM and HCC, moderation analysis was conducted controlling for age, sex, years of education, and scores of perceived stress, depression, and anxiety. Results: CT+ individuals reported higher subjective stress perception and depressive symptoms than CT– individuals, whereas anxiety-related symptoms, ToM, and HCC were not different between the groups. The experience of CT significantly moderated the relationship between ToM and HCC. The association between poorer ToM ability and higher HCC was significant only in CT+ group. Conclusion: CT is a moderator of the association between ToM and HCC, indicating the importance of CT in social cognition and the stress response. Impaired social cognition and childhood trauma (CT) is associated with cortisol secretion. Higher hair cortisol levels and poorer theory of mind (ToM) were associated in adults with CT. CT is a significant moderator of the link between ToM and hair cortisol levels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper is extracted from the research "Relationship between executive functions and social cognition with job performance in the Corporación Universitaria Minuto de Dios, seccional Bello" carried out in 2019. Social cognition as a fundamental part of higher cognitive processes and Person - Environment interaction is presented as a leading actor at work and in its manifestations, that is, the level of work performance is closely linked to social interaction skills. The article works with a population made up of university professors from the city of Medellín (Colombia) whose performance is variable but within the criteria accepted by that educational institution and who, in addition, do not present emotional alterations or mental illnesses categorized in the DSM -V. A series of tests are applied to this population that are detailed throughout the writing and a direct relationship between social cognition and performance is evidenced. This investigative work promises a great contribution to the improvement, not only of the performance of the teachers, but also of the quality of life of them and their families and the positioning and continuous improvement of the IES (Institutions of Higher Education). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Introduction People with schizophrenia have deficits in the ability to identify emotions. An area of important dysfunction is the understanding of affective prosody, which can limit communication and social functionality. The objective of this study is to compare emotional recognition through prosody between a group of people with schizophrenia versus a control group without pathology, through the Reading the Mind in the Voice - Spanish Version scale (RMV-SV). Method A group of people with clinically stable schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder was recruited (n = 62). They were compared with a control group (n = 63) in sociodemographic, clinical characteristics, intelligence quotient, and performance on RMV-SV scale. Results The case group presented lower scores on the RMV-SV, with statistically significant differences (p < .001) compared to controls. In 17/22 items of wrong answers, the statements contained negative emotions. The correlation was positive between RMV-SV and IQ. RMV-SV and PANSS, mainly the negative subscale, and age were inversely correlated. Conclusions The RMV-SV scale, validated in autism, allows detecting the alterations of prosodic recognition in Spanish in schizophrenia, postulating itself as an evaluating tool of this domain of social cognition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims: To identify the impact of ventromedial prefrontal cortex injury (vmpFC) on social cognition (SC) processes in a stroke patient in relation to a control group matched by age, gender, and schooling. Possible associations between post-injury behavior and impacted neuropsychological attributes of emotion recognition, Theory of Mind (tom), and empathy are discussed. Method: One male patient (n = 1) (58 years old) with stroke in right vmpFC and 10 healthy participants completed different screening, neuropsychological assessment, and SC tests as: Addenbrooke's Cognitive Examination-Revised; The Trail Making Test; Raven's Matrices; Faux Pas Test; Reading Mind in the Eyes Test, among others. Results: Due single cases are reported, p< .05 values of a tail were considered statistically significant in all comparisons. Correlations were found between damage in vmpFC and alterations in affective tom, working and retrograde memory, mood and relational alterations in the patient. Discrepancies were found with respect to other studies in relation to the laterality of the injury and the impact of cognitive and affective empathy that seems to be relatively intact. Conclusions: There is a need to clarify the role of affective tom after acquired brain injury (aBi) in vmpFC. A protocol is needed to assess and intervene in aspects of tom that would involve documenting strengths and deficits of tom: inter and intrapersonal after an aBi. Similarly, there is a need to address the lateralization of different domains of function in vmpFC and their relationship to affective tom. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by persistent challenges in social interaction, speech and nonverbal communication, and restricted/repetitive behaviors. The level varies depending on the impact and persistence of the symptoms in the person's daily life. Some level 3 cases have a full dependence on their caregivers, while level 1, the other side of the spectrum, includes what used to be known as Asperger's Syndrome (AS), who usually have a normal IQ and high language skills. The prevalence varies depending on the country and type of methodology for the estimation; at present it has been estimated that approximately 1 in 59 children presented this condition according to the study of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). In Colombia, a high prevalence of the disorder has been found: from 1/87 to 1/91 according to the screening instrument. The objective of this work is to determine the relationship between social cognition (SC), that focuses on how people process, store, and apply information about other people and social situations, and executive functioning (EF), that are skills we use every day to learn, work and manage daily life, in a sample of children with level 1 Autism Spectrum Disorder. An observational, cross-sectional, correlational analytical methodology was designed with two independent groups, ASD (n = 39) and control (n = 39) between 8 and 16 years of age, all of them enrolled in school. Both groups were assessed by neurodevelopmental experts to determine the presence or absence of ASD symptoms. For the components of the EF, the card classification subtests, regression digit span and phonological fluency of the Infant Neuropsychological Assessment (ENI) were used to evaluate the capacity for abstraction, the formation of concepts and the change of cognitive strategies in response to the changes that occur in environmental contingencies, as well as the initiation, efficient organization of verbal recovery, inhibition and self-monitoring. For the SC, the first and second order false beliefs were used to evaluate the ability of subjects to infer that someone has a belief that is different from their own and a third party; the Facial Expressions Test, to assess facial emotional recognition; and advanced tests such as Happé's Strange Stories, the Faux Pas test and Reading the mind in the eyes test to assess understanding of covert language, detection of lies or deception, and attribution of cognitive emotions through inference from beliefs or intentions of others. This study found that the SC test, Happé's strange stories and Reading the mind in the eyes test were able to discriminate both groups and confirm that ASD subjects have an alteration in emotional Theory of Mind. Although no differences were found in EF between the two groups, the hypothesis that there are alterations in EF in ASD is not rejected; on the contrary, the importance of carrying out a complete evaluation with sensitive instruments is emphasized, it suggests reviewing the evaluation of executive functioning to better delineate the interaction between EF and SC in ASD, expanding the measurement of EF of more emotional domain including some "hot" EF measures; outlining new strategies to understand the interaction between the cognitive and social domains, advancing neurocognitive intervention and prognosis in this syndrome. In future phases of this line of research, a better choice of instruments should be considered, including the Theory of Mind Inventory-2 (ToMi-2), a ques tionnaire filled out by caregivers that allows obtaining information on factors and domains evaluated by the applied tests that also has a pragmatic subscale. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this study was to validate the GEOPTE scale of social cognition for its use in patients diagnosed with schizophrenia in Latin American countries. The participants were 253 patients with a diagnosis of Schizophrenia and 253 main caregivers from mental health services in Bolivia, Chile and Peru. The psychometric properties of the GEOPTE scale were obtained through confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), CFA-multigroup, reliability coefficients and Pearson's correlation. The CFA showed the adequacy between the original theoretical factor structure and the one established in this validation study. The scale showed satisfactory reliability indicators, presented significant associations with the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) and showed only weak invariance according to gender. The GEOPTE scale has sufficient evidence of validity and reliability for its use in patients diagnosed with Schizophrenia in Latin American countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Social cognitive impairments, specifically in facial emotion processing and mental state attribution, are common in post-traumatic stress disorder. However few studies so far have examined whether social cognitive ability impacts on PTSD recovery. Objective: To examine whether baseline social cognitive abilities are associated with treatment outcomes following trauma-focused therapy for PTSD. Method: This is a cohort study that will relate treatment outcomes post-discharge to baseline measures of social cognition (five tasks: Emotion Odd-One-Out Task (Oddity), Reading the Mind in the Eyes Task (RMET), Social Shapes Test (SST), Spontaneous Theory of Mind Protocol (STOMP), and Reflective Functioning Questionnaire (RFQ-8)) in people starting a course of psychological therapy for PTSD (target N = 60). The primary outcome will be pre- to post-treatment change in PTSD symptom severity (assessed using the PTSD Checklist for DSM-5). Secondary outcomes include functional impairment (assessed using the Work and Social Adjustment Scale), drop-out rate, and analyses differentiating participants with DSM-5 PTSD and ICD-11 PTSD and CPTSD. Regression models will be used to examine associations between baseline social cognitive performance and outcome measures while adjusting for potential confounders. Two pilot studies informed the development of our study protocol. The first involved qualitative analysis of interviews with nine participants with lived experience of mental health problems to inform our research questions and study protocol. The second involved trialling social cognitive tasks on 20 non-clinical participants to refine our test battery. Discussion: This study will address a gap in the literature about whether abilities in social cognition in people living with PTSD are associated with treatment-related recovery. Impairments in social cognition are recognised in people with PTSD. Few studies have examined whether social cognitive ability is associated with recovery from PTSD. We present a study protocol, developed after pilot testing, to address this question. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Suicidal behavior is a priority objective of research and intervention in the world, because this public health problem generate consequences in the mental health of individuals, families and communities. Suicide prevention requires strengthening from the scientific knowledge of risk factors, which has been complex due to its etiological heterogeneity. However these limitations, contemporary explanatory models show the contribution of research in cognitive neuroscience, because they have allowed to elucidate promising findings for the study of neurocognitive markers of suicidal vulnerability. The development of research in this area is crucial in the Colombian context to apply theoretical models and evidence-based interventions to suicide prevention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Copyright of Perspectivas de la Comunicación is the property of Journal Perspectivas de la Comunicacion, PhD in Communication, University of La Frontera and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Introduction. Social Cognition (SC) impairment is part of the deficit syndrome of schizophrenia. The Observable Social Cognition: A Rating Scale (OSCARS) evaluates the perceived SC through an external reference informant. The aim of this paper is to analyze the psychometric properties of validity and reliability of its cross-cultural adaptation for the Spanish population. Methods. Observational and cross-sectional study in a sample of outpatients with schizophrenia (n = 109), selected by simple randomized sampling. Selected instruments: Hinting task, MATRICS cognitive consensus battery, clinical global impression scale (CGI-SCH) and specific data collection logbook. Results. Exploratory Factor Analysis identified a two-factor model, like the original version, that explains 59.02% of the total variance: social cognitive bias and social cognitive ability. As in the original version, no correlation results were found with other SC measures: Hinting task (r: - 0.085; p value = 0.382) or MSCEIT of the MATRICS (r: 0.015; p value 0.877). No specific correlations were observed with other neurocognitive domains. Cronbach's alpha coefficient was 0.82 (0.75 and 0.76, for each factor). The mean weighted kappa value was 0.43. Intraclass Correlation Coefficient score, 0.84 (95% CI: 0.76 - 0.88; p <0.001) Conclusions. These findings support the validity and the reliability of the cross-cultural adaptation of the OSCARS a tool to assess SC by a referent informant in individuals with schizophrenia with similar psychometric properties to the original version. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction. Social cognition is progressively acquired from childhood to early adulthood. Nevertheless there is a shortage of social cognition scales with normative data for Spanish children and adolescents. Social Attribution Task-Multiple Choice (SAT-MC) and its alternate version SAT-MC-II are social cognition instruments that measure mentalization skills in adults with psychosis. This study aimed to report psychometric characteristics and normative data of the Spanish version of SAT-MC and SAT-MC-II in a sample of minors. Methods. The sample included 511 children and adolescents, from 8 to 15 years old, that volunteered to participate in the study. SAT-MC and SAT-MC-II were translated into Spanish versions, resulting in Tarea de Atribución Social-Elección Múltiple I and II (TAS-EM-I and TAS-EM-II). Participants completed both scales in two different sessions in a two-week longitudinal study. The order of scales was counterbalanced across visits. Results. The internal consistency obtained was acceptable for TAS-EM (Cronbach's alpha=0.75) and good for TASEM- II (Cronbach's alpha= 0.80). Test-retest reliability showed a moderate correlation (r = 0.49; p< .001). Age positively correlated with TAS-EM-I (r = 0.40; p< .001) and TAS-EMII (r = 0.54; p< .001). Percentiles are reported for each age group from 8 to 15 years old. Discussion. The current normative data allow the study of social cognition development in Spanish children and adolescents. In accordance with previous literature, our results showed that social cognition performance improved from childhood to adolescence. Moreover, psychometric properties of SAT-MC resulted similar to the previous studies published in adults with schizophrenia and undergraduate students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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The research investigated whether the emotional burden of dementia caregivers is affected by the patients' social cognition deficits and neuropsychiatric symptoms. The study population comprises patients with dementia monitored by a Geriatric Service of a University Hospital at Fortaleza, Ceará, Brazil, and their caregivers. This is a cross-sectional study with a single collection of data. Data were obtained from 14 patients diagnosed with dementia and 14 caregivers. The scales used in this study were: Zarit Burden Interview Scale, Quality of Life Alzheimer Dementia, Clinical Dementia Rating Scale, and Neuropsychiatric Inventory. For the investigation of Social Cognition, the Hinting Task, ToM Stories and Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test scales were used. The mean age of the patients was 81.64; and all patients had relatives as caregivers. Caregivers had 68.5 of mean age, the majority of whom were women (92.8%). Most of them worked exclusively as a caregiver for the relative with dementia (71%). The scores of the social cognition scales were considered low when compared to previous studies. The scale with greater performance was the Hinting Task, with 61.15%, considerably higher than the percentage of correct answers from ToM Stories (32.1%) and RMET (32.4%). Patients with poorer performance in recognizing facial expressions, assessed by RMET, showed greater irritability (r = -0.829). The level of dependence and the degree of dementia were strongly correlated with caregiver burden (r = 0.931 and r = 0.635). Lower family income was related to a more disturbance in the caregiver's health due to the care of the family member (r = -0.805, p <0.001). The scales of social cognition showed that there is, in fact, a deficit among patients with dementia. Also, 57,1% of caregivers had moderate levels of emotional overload related to patient care. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Copyright of Epistemus. Journal of Music, Cognition & Culture Research is the property of Facultad de Psicologia Universidad Autonoma de Madrid and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Introduction: Impairments in Social Cognition (SC) in First Episode Psychosis (FEP) were reported exclusively using neurocognitive tests. Aim of this study is (1) to assess subjective experience of SC in FEP adolescent and young adults compared to non-FEP help-seeking peers, (2) to investigate any significant association of SC with psychopathology and functioning in FEP individuals; and (3) to monitor longitudinally the stability of SC after a 2-year follow-up period. Methods: Participants (141 FEP and 98 non-FEP), aged 13-35 years, completed the Comprehensive Assessment of At-Risk Mental States (CAARMS) and the GEOPTE scale of SC for psychosis. Within the FEP group, a multiple linear regression analysis (with GEOPTE total scores as independent variables and CAARMS dimension subscores as dependent variables) was also performed. Results: In comparison with non-FEP, FEP patients showed significantly higher GEOPTE SC scores. After both 12 and 24 months of follow-up, FEP subjects had a significant decrease in severity on GEOPTE SC subscore. In the FEP group, GEOPTE total scores showed significant positive correlations with negative symptoms and general psychopathology. Regression analysis results showed a significant contribution of subjective SC in predicting depression. Conclusions - SC deficits are prominent in FEP patients, where at baseline seems to be associated with negative symptoms and to predict clinical depression. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Question (1669-6581) is the property of Universidad Nacional de La Plata and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The objective is to evaluate the processes of social cognition related to mind theory and executive functions in religious leaders of three doctrines. The study is cross-sectional and comparative. The instruments used were the Test of the Gaze, the Test of Paw Meets or Intentional Social Errors of the original "Faux Pass" and the Empathy Quotient to evaluate social cognition and Mind Theory. The results show differences in cognitive processes and executive functions between doctrinal groups. It concludes about the importance of research for the understanding of cognitive processes in religious leaders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

When we first wrote Social Cognition (1984), social psychology's crisis critiqued methods, replicability, theory, and relevance. Social cognition research illustrates four phases of response to these challenges. First, the Cognitive Miser approach introduced methods less prone to experimenter or participant interference: looking time as attention, categorical memory for who said what. Next, the Motivated Tactician approach addressed replicability by identifying moderator variables, primarily goals and motivations. For example, interdependence (Fiske) and threat (Taylor) are prominent motivations in our respective research. The third wave, perceivers as Activated Actors, translated mental states to behavior, using theory-guided prediction. In intergroup bias, for example, Fiske's Stereotype Content Model predicts patterns of discriminatory behavior distinctive to each combination of stereotypic warmth and competence. Going beyond reported behavior, distinctive activations emerged in brain-imaging and muscle responses. In health psychology, Taylor's Positive Illusions theory predicts people cope with life-threatening illness by viewing the odds optimistically, the self positively, and possible control affirmatively. Again, the social cognitive processes interplay with psycho-physiology. Recently, social cognitive approaches have increasingly addressed inequality: health disparities, bias interventions, power dynamics, class effects, social morality, and intent inferences. Viewing perceivers as Inequality Enablers answers any remaining doubts about the field's continuing relevance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Most research on Theory of Mind (ToM) focuses on preschool years, with few studies targeting later years, especially in the national context. This study aimed to investigate evidence of the validity of a Theory of Mind Complex Task from the relationship with the external variables: age, type of school, and vocabulary. Ninetyeight children, aged between 6 and 9, from private and public schools participated. Results showed age and school effect, with better performance of children from private schools. There was a positive, significant, and moderate magnitude correlation with vocabulary. This study provides the first sources of evidence of task validity, indicating that age and type of school were relevant variables for ToM performance, and therefore should be considered in the elaboration of future norms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study aims at researching into the socio-cognitive differences between playing a collaborative video game and a violent video game. Specifically, it is interesting to identify the dissimilarities in the perception of mood, emotional immersion, and altruistic behavior, as well as the motivational factors related to playing video games that allow understanding the variations in these three dimensions. An experiment was carried out with 50 university students, 48 % women and an average age of 20.6 (SD = 1.83). As an analysis procedure, t-tests and hierarchical linear regression were used (stepwise method). Results reveal that playing one game or the other is associated with diverse socio-cognitive responses, especially on the emotional and motivational levels. These findings are relevant to comprehending the daily uses of these technologies. The violent video game was found to favor more positive moods, while the collaborative one induces greater emotional immersion. The psychological need for connection is also associated with the act of playing video games in shared contexts, regardless of the type. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background. Mentalization-based therapy (MBT), a manualized psychodynamically and developmentally oriented psychotherapy, has been proven effective in controlled studies in non-psychotic patients with severe mental disorders. Although MBT is currently being used to treat schizophrenia spectrum disorders (SSD), to date no prospective studies have evaluated outcomes and treatment-related adverse effects. Brief mentalization-based group psychotherapy (B-MBGT) is a 12-week program based on the explicit mentalizing techniques of MBT. The study was conducted at a day hospital (DH) and the main objective was to examine the feasibility of B-MBGT to treat patients with SSD. Method. Open study to assess the safety of B-MBGT in 72 patients who met DSM-IV criteria for schizophrenia, schizophreniform disorder, schizoaffective disorder, or unspecified psychotic disorder. All patients underwent both B-MBGT and Integrated Psychological Therapy (IPT). Consequently, a secondary aim was to compare these two therapies in terms of acceptance and subjective efficacy. Results. Adverse reactions were scarce and the most common of the reported ones, discomfort during the group treatment session, was considered mild in most cases. Compared to IPT, B-MBGT yielded significant higher scores on four subjective efficacy parameters. Conclusion. B-MBGT in DH is both feasible and safe in SSD patients and most patients in this study considered B-MBGT to be beneficial. Controlled studies are needed to determine the effectiveness of B-MBGT. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The theoretical developments within social cognition help us to understand how social interactions occur and which variables contribute to a good social adaptation. Within this field Theory of the mind and empathy are constructs that account for these processes of social adaptation but generate confusion within academic literature. This article delimitates the theory of the mind as a global comprehension of the social world that allows us to operate in it, whereas empathy refers to processes triggered at specific times destined to understand the emotional situations of other people. This work also presents a review describing, although not exhaustively, the different measurement instruments for both constructs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In psychology and philosophy of mind, the problem of knowledge of other minds is a field of rich disputes. Running counter to the perspectives of first- and third-person mental attribution, which assume that minds are opaque and that access to them is inferential, the second-person perspective postulates the existence of a non-representational way of knowing other minds, which is presumed to emerge within early communicative exchanges in the form of natural, basic, and direct emotional involvement. In this systematic review article, 57 philosophy or psychology manuscripts were selected with the aim of analyzing and comparing them. This study makes it possible to assess: (a) the current status of the second person perspective, (b) its main findings in developmental psychology and psychopathology, (c) the methodological discussions that stem from its assumption, and (d) a set of internal and external criticisms and questions formulated with respect to it. It is concluded that the second person perspective has a heuristic value and would be remarkably enriched if it carefully addressed the criticisms leveled against it. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: The processes related to social cognitions contribute as a traumatic and stressful event for some ethnic and minority groups, causing a series of psychic suffering in individuals. Social cognition considered stereotypes as characteristics of a group included in its mental representation. Objective: The study was conducted to analyze the negative stereotypes in two cultures with very different history and geopolitical context, especially how stereotypes are reflected in the cognitive component of prejudiced attitudes. Method: Four hundred fifty one (N=451) undergraduate students volunteered to take part in the study, the participants came from careers in the area of Social Sciences and Humanities in the non-probabilistic sample. After receiving the information, participants completed Negative Stereotype Index. A descriptive analysis and the T-test to know the differences between the perception and self-perception of the groups. Results: Show that negative stereotype traits in Poland and Brazil, found negative stereotypic traits attributed to an out-group resulted in more unfavorable evaluations than descriptions consisting of positive attributes. In both groups, and their antecedents were associated with negative out-group attitudes, however, is a more general and more important one. Conclusion: The findings found that expectations about the out-group and negative stereotypes occur in conjunction with other negative emotions, which intensify negative out-group attitudes. The assessment that the Poles made of the Germans was like that of the Brazilians of the Argentines or of a group of relatively higher status. That is, they considered the Germans as more arrogant, sincere and less modest. The different groups of people may dislike each other for similar reasons. Explanations are offered for the limitations of the study and proposal for future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study's main objective was to determine whether the five-step theory of mind scale is associated with responses to behavioural inhibition tasks. The data collected for this were the responses to the scale given by 65 Chilean children aged three to five from medium-low socioeconomic levels, and were derived from the changing locations, happy-sad Stroop, day-night and Dimensional Change Card Sort (DCCS) tasks they carried out. Results showed that there was a significant association between the five-step theory of mind scale and behavioural inhibition (r =.28) and behavioural inhibition with the false belief task (r =.31), controlling for age, sex and language. These data support the emergence model as the best model to describe the relationship between theory of mind and behavioural inhibition. Finally, the results are discussed and future lines of study in this subject are put forward. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There has been a growing interest in mentalization in clinical research given its relationship with normal and psychopathological functioning and its explanatory potential as a mechanism of psychotherapeutic change. This study uses the Reflective Functioning Scale (RFS) to identify and characterize mentalization manifestations in psychotherapeutic interaction. Method: the RFS was applied to a sample of relevant episodes — 44 sessions from five different psychotherapy processes carried out with adult patients who had different diagnoses. Results: we observed a higher probability of reflective functioning (RF) passages in relevant events than in neutral segments. There were no differences in the RF passages according to episode or actor type, but there were in RF Failures, which is more likely in patients and during rupture episodes. Discussion: although certain modifications are necessary, the RFS can be applied to clinical material, and it is a promising strategy for the study of mentalization within psychotherapy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Due to their characteristics, Alzheimer's dementia (AD) and fronto-temporal dementia (FTD) coincide, from a psychosocial perspective, in the direct and significant impact on the members of the social environment of those who experience them. Objective: to identify and describe the role of social support networks from the information available in the literature, emphasizing the caregiver and considering in them the processes of social cognition, only from conceptual analysis and empirical evidence available from previous research on these two types of dementia. Method: documentary and systematic review of investigations from specialized databases. Results: there were differences in the level of impact that both types of dementia have on the social support network, including the caregiver, depending on the type of dementia and on the availability of resources by the network. Likewise, it was observed that there is a documentary gap in the analysis about the participation of social cognition in the relationship between the members of the network and those suffering from any of these dementias. From this study, arise questions that suggest further description of these types of dementia should be made. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this paper is to offer a version of the so-called conversational hypothesis of the ontogenetic connection between language and mindreading (Harris 1996, 2005; Van Cleave and Gauker 2010; Hughes et al. 2006). After arguing against a particular way of understanding the hypothesis (the communicative view), I will start from the justificatory view in philosophy of social cognition (Andrews 2012; Hutto 2004; Zawidzki 2013) to make the case for the idea that the primary function of belief and desire attributions is to justify and normalize deviant patterns of behaviour. Following this framework, I elaborate upon the idea that development of folk psychological skills requires the subjects to engage in conversationally mediated joint and cooperative activities in order to acquire the conceptual capacity of ascribing propositional attitudes. After presenting the general version of the hypothesis, I present several testable sub-hypotheses and some psychological studies that give empirical plausibility to the hypothesis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]