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Emotional regularity is the degree to which a person maintains and returns to a set of emotional states over time. The present investigation examined associations between emotional regularity and extant emotion measures as well as psychologically relevant dimensions of personality, health, and real-world occupational outcomes. Participants included 598 U.S. adults who provided daily experience sampling reports on their emotional states for approximately two months. Results suggest that emotional regularity was related to, but distinct from, well-established measures of emotion including emotional intensity, variability, covariation, inertia, granularity, and emodiversity. Furthermore, emotional regularity significantly predicted measures of personality, psychological health, and occupational outcomes even when accounting for extant emotion measures and sociodemographic covariates. Finally, it explained modest (7.5%) improvement (in terms of cross-validated RSq.) over baseline models containing emotional intensity, variability, and sociodemographic covariates. These findings suggest that emotional regularity may provide an important indicator of healthy emotional functioning and may be a promising area for further scientific discovery.

Aim We aimed to examine the cross-sectional and longitudinal associations between sleep and work-related impaired cognitive and emotional functioning in police employees. Methods This study included 410 participants (52% men) employed in a police district in Norway at baseline, of which 50% also participated in the study at 6 months later follow-up. The questionnaires included items measuring work schedule, sleep length, insomnia, as well as impaired cognitive and emotional functioning at work. Results The results showed that insomnia was related to impaired work-related emotional functioning measured at baseline, and to impaired cognitive functioning measured at both baseline and follow-up. Sleep length and rotating shift work were not associated with future decline in cognitive or emotional functioning. Conclusion Our study indicates that the relationship between insomnia and emotional functioning at work may be transient, whereas insomnia can be related to both immediate and future impaired cognitive functioning. Replication of the findings in larger samples is advised. The findings call for an emphasis on the prevention and treatment of sleep problems among police employees as a mean of maintaining and improving cognitive and emotional functioning at work, and thereby reducing the risk for impaired performance and negative health and safety outcomes.

Cancer treatments are expected to improve the quality of life of the patients. Thus the comparison of the quality of life before and after treatment is important to be present. Several dimensions are used in measuring the quality of life, i.e., global quality of life, physical functioning, role functioning, emotional functioning, cognitive functioning, and social functioning. We applied meta-analysis to identify the comparison based on the included study material from Google Scholar. The duration in measuring the quality of life after treatment is at least two months. The treatments included in this study are chemotherapy, radiotherapy, and surgery. There are 12 suitable study materials from 1150 available articles. The models used are a random-effects model since there exists heterogeneity between studies for all variables. In general, the quality of life of patients after treatment has increased, which is indicated by the negative mean difference estimation for all variables. However, the improvement of the quality of life in the dimensions of role functioning and cognitive functioning is not significant. Meanwhile, in the other four dimensions, the improvement was significant. Thus, cancer treatments are able to improve the patient's quality of life in the long term.

Developmental Dyslexia (DD) significantly interferes with academic, personal, social and emotional functioning. Nevertheless, established therapeutic options are still scarce. Research has begun to emerge studying the potential action of transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) for ameliorating reading. However, there are still open questions regarding the most suitable tDCS protocol in young with DD. The current study tested the effectiveness of a short, intensive and multi-session tDCS protocol and presented preliminary data from a randomized sham-controlled crossover trial. Twenty-seven children and adolescents with DD were randomly assigned to active tDCS or sham tDCS. Active tDCS group received five daily-consecutive sessions of left anodal/right cathodal set at 1mA for 20min over parieto-occipital regions. Reading measures, including text, high frequency word, low frequency word and non-word lists, were recorded before, immediately after the treatment and 1-week later. We found that only the active tDCS group ameliorated non-word reading speed immediately after and 1-week later the end of the treatment compared to the baseline. Some suggestions for the development of future tDCS protocols in children and adolescents with DD are given.

Introduction: The study examined age-related differences between young and older adults’ emotional and psychological experience as well as cognitive functioning throughout different phases of the COVID-19 pandemic in Italy.Materials and Methods: Participants were interviewed by phone when confined at home during the national lockdown (T1-May 2020; N = 138 young adults; N = 119 older adults) and after the first wave of contagions, when restrictions were discarded (T2-September 2020; N = 52 young adults; N = 59 older adults). A sub-sample also participated in a third assessment (T3-December 2020). Participants completed questionnaires assessing their emotional and psychological functioning (i.e., positive and negative affect, perceived social and emotional loneliness, resilience) along with memory tasks (Backward Digit Span task and words list recall).Results: Although individuals reported less positive and more negative emotions during the lockdown than at T2, results showed that older adults displayed overall fewer negative emotions and greater resilience than young adults. The latter were those who reported feeling more emotionally lonely when compared to their older counterpart during the lockdown than afterward. Older adults’ advantage in emotional and psychological functioning was also confirmed 7 months after the national lockdown. Only age-related differences in favor of young adults for the memory tasks were found. The measures of interest were also susceptible to mood and/or concerns of COVID-19 effects.Discussion: These findings further highlight the age-related advantage of older adults managing the emotional and psychological experience even when facing an unexpected, prolonged, and unpredictable, stressful life event such as the COVID-19 pandemic.

Objective: Up to 30% of pediatric patients with Crohn's disease (CD) require surgery. The aim of the study was to evaluate long-term health-related quality of life (HRQoL) outcome in children with CD who have had ileocolonic resection.Materials and methods: This was a retrospective cross-sectional study on all pediatric patients who had undergone surgery for CD between January 2015 and December 2017 in the Pediatric Surgery and Gastroenterology Units of the University Hospital of Messina. Surgical treatment was represented by laparoscopic ileocecal resection with latero-lateral anastomosis. Patients were asked to fill in a modified version of the IMPACT III questionnaire made up of 15 closed questions before and after surgery. The questionnaire was scored on a five-point scale with 5 reporting “not a problem” and 1 “a very severe problem.” The total score ranged from 15 (worst HRQoL) to 75 (best HRQoL). Frequency of relapses, reoperations, complications during follow-up, and postoperative bowel function were also studied.Results: Data were obtained in 10 patients (9 males), who underwent surgery at a median age of 13.5 years (range 13–18), after a median post-diagnosis period of 2.5 years (range 0–8). Preoperative scores were low in all 4 domains of the questionnaire. Postoperatively, HRQoL measures improved significantly (p < 0.05) about symptoms, school attendance, social and emotional functioning. Overall, nearly all patients were completely satisfied with the surgical outcome.Conclusions: HRQoL is low in CD children referred for possible operation, and surgery may positively affect the overall HRQoL. Collecting HRQoL data provides insight into the impact of treatment on children health status.

International audience; The fine-tuned interplay between the brain and the body underlies the adaptive ability to respond appropriately in the changing environment. Mindfulness Disposition (MD) has been associated with efficient emotional functioning because of a better ability to feel engaged by information from the body and to notice subtle changes. This interoceptive ability is considered to shape the ability to respond to external stimuli, especially olfaction. However, few studies have evaluated the relationships between interoception and exteroception according to MD. We conducted an exploratory study among 76 healthy subjects for first investigating whether MD is associated with better exteroception and second for describing the causal interactions network between mindfulness, interoception, emotion, and subjective and objective olfaction assessments. Results found that a high level of MD defined by clustering exhibited best scores in positive emotions, interoception, and extra sensors' acuity. The causal network approach showed that the interactions between the interoception subscales differed according to the MD profiles. Moreover, interoception awareness is strongly connected with both the MD and the hedonic value of odors. Then, differences according to MD might provide arguments for a more mindful attention style toward interoceptive cues in relation to available exteroceptive information. This interaction might underlie positive health.

Dissertação de Mestrado Integrado em Psicologia apresentada à Faculdade de Psicologia e de Ciências da Educação O jogo, enquanto construto patológico, deriva da interação mal adaptativa entre fatores individuais, estruturais e situacionais, expressando-se na incapacidade do indivíduo de suprimir o impulso de jogar, gerando constante ansiedade para satisfazer essa necessidade. Dada a prevalência do jogo patológico na população e da escassez de estudos realizados em Portugal, destaca-se a necessidade de aprofundar o conhecimento sobre o mesmo. Este estudo visa, assim, verificar a relação entre as memórias de infância, o funcionamento emocional (considerando os níveis de impulsividade e a vinculação no adulto) e os comportamentos de jogo.Para tal, recorreu-se a uma metodologia quantitativa operacionalizada por meio de questionários, nomeadamente Questionário sociodemográfico, Escala de Memórias Precoces de Calor e Afeto (EMWSS), Escala de Dificuldades na Regulação Emocional (EDRE), Escala de Impulsividade de Barratt (BIS-11), Escala de Vinculação no Adulto (EVA) e South Oaks Gambling Screen (SOGS). A recolha de dados foi conduzida com 133 participantes, 58 do sexo masculino e 75 do sexo feminino.A análise de dados permitiu caracterizar os comportamentos de jogo dos participantes como tendencialmente offline, com baixa frequência, indiferença na altura do dia em que jogam, preferência por estarem sozinhos aquando da prática e especialmente recorrendo ao euromilhões e a apostas desportivas. Aproximadamente 37% dos participantes perfizeram os critérios associados à categorização de jogadores de risco e cerca de 8% de jogadores patológicos. Os resultados do presente estudo permitiram ainda constatar evidências de uma relação entre as memórias de infância e os comportamentos de jogo, sendo que as memórias de infância mais negativas estão associadas a comportamentos de jogo mais severos. Finalmente, foi possível constatar uma relação entre determinadas dimensões do funcionamento emocional e os comportamentos de jogo, nomeadamente quanto à impulsividade motora e ao não planeamento, ainda que a divergência do sentido da relação sinalize a necessidade de investigação adicional. Gaming behavior, as a pathological construct, derives from the poorly adaptive interaction between individual, structural and situational factors, expressing itself in the individual's inability to suppress the urge to play, generating constant anxiety to satisfy this need.Given the prevalence of pathological gambling in the population, the need to deepen knowledge about it is highlighted. Thus, this study aims to verify the relationship between childhood memories, emotional functioning (considering the levels of impulsivity and attachment in adults) and game behaviors.To this end, we used a quantitative methodology operated through questionnaires, namely Sociodemographic Questionnaire, Scale of Early Memories of Heat and Affection (EMWSS), Scale of Difficulties in Emotional Regulation (EDRE), Barratt's Impulsivity Scale (BIS- 11), Adult Binding Scale (EVA) and South Oaks Gambling Screen (SOGS). Data collection was conducted with 133 participants, 58 male and 75 female.Data analysis enabled us to characterize the participants' game behaviors as tendentially strictly offline, with low frequency, indifference at the time of the day when they play, preference for being alone when practicing and especially resorting to euromilhões and sports betting. Approximately 37% of the participants fulfilled the criteria associated with the categorization of risk players and about 8% of pathological players. The results of the present study also provided evidence of a relationship between childhood memories and game behaviors, with the most negative childhood memories being associated with more severe game behaviors. Finally, it was possible to verify a relationship between certain dimensions of emotional functioning and game behaviors, namely in terms of motor impulsiveness and non-planning, even though the divergence in the meaning of the relationship signals the need for further investigation.

Aims We report on the first prospective series of patient-reported quality of life (QoL) following stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) for primary kidney cancer. Materials and methods Patients were treated on a multi-institutional prospective cohort study with 30–42 Gy SBRT in three or five fractions. QoL assessments were carried out using the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire Core-15 Palliative (EORTC-QLQ-C15-PAL), the Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-Kidney Symptom Index-19 (FACT FKSI-19) and the EuroQol-5D-3L tools at baseline, 1 week, and 1, 3 and 6 months post-treatment. QoL over time was analysed using linear mixed modelling, pairwise and anchor-based analyses. Results Twenty-eight patients were included. No significant reduction in any QoL metric was observed on repeated measures. However, a trend to reduced EORTC global QoL and fatigue was observed at 1 week, with improvement over time in other symptom scores such as pain, appetite and nausea. On pairwise analysis, there were statistically significant reductions in global QoL at 1 week (with subsequent recovery) and dyspnoea at 6 months post-SBRT. Trends to improved pain, appetite and nausea were observed following SBRT. Less than half of patients reported stable or better EORTC global QoL at 1 week. For all other QoL and symptom scales, most patients had reported stable or better scores at all times, with a slight proportional improvement in emotional functioning, nausea, fatigue, pain and appetite, and a slight worsening of physical functioning and dyspnoea over time. Conclusions SBRT results in well-preserved QoL in the weeks to months following treatment for primary kidney cancer.

Interoceptive processes emanating from baroreceptor signals support emotional functioning. Previous research suggests a unique link to fear: fearful faces, presented in synchrony with systolic baroreceptor firing draw more attention and are rated as more intense than those presented at diastole. This study examines whether this effect is unique to fearful faces or can be observed in other emotional faces. Participants (n=71) completed an emotional visual search task (VST) in which fearful, happy, disgust and sad faces were presented during systolic and diastolic phases of the cardiac cycle. Visual search accuracy and emotion detection accuracy and latency were recorded, followed by a subjective intensity task. A series of interactions between emotion and cardiac phase were observed. Visual search accuracy for happy and disgust faces was greater at systole than diastole; the opposite was found for fearful faces. Fearful and happy faces were perceived as more intense at systole. Previous research proposed that cardiac signaling has specific effects on the attention and intensity ratings for fearful faces. Results from the present tasks suggest these effects are more generalized and raise the possibility that interoceptive signals amplify emotional superiority effects dependent on the task employed.

Objective To examine longitudinal changes and predictors of depression and anxiety 2 years following resective epilepsy surgery, compared to no surgery, in children with drug-resistant epilepsy (DRE). Method This multicenter cohort study involved 128 children and adolescents with DRE (48 surgical, 80 nonsurgical; 8–18 years) who completed self-report measures of depression and anxiety at baseline and follow-up (6-month, 1-year, 2-year). Child demographic (age, sex, IQ) and seizure (age at onset, duration, frequency, site and side) variables were collected. Results Linear mixed-effects models controlling for age at enrolment found a time by treatment by seizure outcome interaction for depression. A negative linear trend across time (reduction in symptoms) was found for surgical patients, irrespective of seizure outcome. In contrast, the linear trend differed depending on seizure outcome in nonsurgical patients; a negative trend was found for those with continued seizures, whereas a positive trend (increase in symptoms) was found for those who achieved seizure freedom. Only a main effect of time was found for anxiety indicating a reduction in symptoms across patient groups. Multivariate regressions failed to find baseline predictors of depression or anxiety at 2-year follow-up in surgical patients. Older age, not baseline anxiety or depression, predicted greater symptoms of anxiety and depression at 2-year follow-up in nonsurgical patients. Conclusion Children with DRE reported improvement in anxiety and depression, irrespective of whether they achieve seizure control, across the 2 years following surgery. In contrast, children with DRE who did not undergo surgery, but achieved seizure freedom, reported worsening of depressive symptoms, which may indicate difficulty adjusting to life without seizures and highlight the potential need for ongoing medical and psychosocial follow-up and support.

Introduction To evaluate the clinical therapeutic response of PSMA targeted radioligand therapy with 177Lu-PSMA-617 in patients with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer. The current study analyzed disease-related quality of life (QoL) in patients undergoing PSMA therapy with a special focus on the association with simultaneous PSA response. Methods Thirty patients (age range 50–87 years, median 73.5 years) undergoing 177Lu-PSMA-617 therapy from 2014 to 2016 at our institution were included in this pilot study. Health-related QoL was assessed by EORTC QLQ-C30 questionnaire filled in at baseline and two months after initializing the PSMA-therapy. The treatment response was evaluated under three categories with regard to changes in (a) global health status and other functional scales, (b) disease-related symptoms, and (c) effects of PSA values. Results Most patients underwent three treatment cycles (n = 12); at least 2 cycles (n = 6) or at most 8 cycles (n = 1) were performed. Out of 30 cases, PSA response after the first cycle was observed in 73 % (n = 22). Compared to baseline, QoL was significantly improved at 2-month follow-up revealing increase in global health status (p = 0.025), role functioning (p = 0.017) and emotional functioning (0.010), and decrease in pain (p = 0.033). Global health status variation can be explained up to 20.5 % by response in PSA (p = 0.012), this improved with PSA reduction. Conclusion PSMA radioligand therapy seems to be an effective treatment option of metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer patients as it improves their QoL in terms of increasing global health and mitigation of disease-related pain.

OBJECTIVES Crohn disease (CD) can affect patient's quality of life (QOL) with physical, social, and psychological impacts. This study aimed to investigate the QOL of children with CD and its relationship with patient and disease characteristics. METHODS Children ages from 10 to 17 years with diagnosed CD for more than 6 months were eligible to this cross-sectional study conducted in 35 French pediatric centers. QOL was assessed by the IMPACT-III questionnaire. Patient and disease characteristics were collected. RESULTS A total of 218 children (42% of girls) were included at a median age of 14 years (interquartile range [IQR]: 13--16). Median duration of CD was 3.2 years (IQR: 1.7-5.1) and 63% of children were in clinical remission assessed by wPCDAI. Total IMPACT-III score was 62.8 (±11.0). The lowest score was in "emotional functioning" subdomain (mean: 42.8 ± 11.2). Clinical remission was the main independent factor associated with QOL of children with CD (5.74 points higher compared with those "with active disease", 95% confidence interval [CI] 2.77--8.70, P

Background: Children and adolescents with cancer are at risk of a poor health-related quality of life. Exercise interventions to enhance movement may be a valid strategy for managing some symptoms, including fatigue. Methods: Forty-four consecutive patients (20 females; aged 5-21 years old, median 15.5 years), without any contraindications significantly limiting their movements were invited to join an in-hospital 6-week supervised exercise program, and asked afterwards to complete the PedsQL-4.0 quality of life Generic Core Scales and the PedsQL Multidimensional Fatigue Scale. The program consisted of personalized workout sessions of aerobic, resistance and flexibility exercises. The results obtained on the scales were compared between patients who engaged in the exercise program (GYM group, n=21) and those who did not (No-GYM, n=23), with the aim of examining the different dimensions of health-related quality of life (physical, emotional, cognitive, social) and fatigue (general, sleep/rest, cognitive) comparing the two groups. Results: For 43 of 44 patients, being diagnosed with cancer initially prompted a drop-out from previous physical exercise or sports routines despite no contraindications to their continuation. After 6 weeks, the scores for patients in the GYM group showed a statistically significant better perceived emotional functioning, and a possible indication of improved social functioning compared with the No-GYM group. Conclusion: These findings suggest that to exercise improves the satisfaction of children and adolescents with cancer with their physical, mental and social functioning. It is worth further investigating the value of systematically including exercise workouts in their routine cancer practices.

BACKGROUND: People differ in their affective styles, which refers to habitual use of emotion regulation (ER) strategies. Previous research has shown that mental health is associated with an individual’s adaptive flexibility of emotion regulation strategies rather than any one particular ER strategy. METHODS: The present study employed a person-centered approach using latent profile analyses to distinguish patients with generalized anxiety disorder based on their responses on an affective styles measure. RESULTS: Results of the latent profile analysis supported a three-class solution. Class 1 (26% of participants) identified individuals with the lowest scores of each affective style; class 2 (10%) included individuals with the highest scores of each style; and class 3 (64%) consisted of individuals who scored in the mid-range of each affective style. Greater ER flexibility was associated with better emotional functioning and quality of life. CONCLUSIONS: Patients with GAD differ in ER flexibility. The vast majority of patients appear to have only moderate or low ER flexibility. Those individuals with high ER flexibility show a greater quality of life and less emotional distress.

Background Alcohol misuse continues to be a significant public health problem. Understanding the factors that may contribute to the harmful progression in drinking is an important aspect of public health. Previous research has shown that affect regulation is associated with problematic alcohol use. Additionally, emotion instability has been found as a predictor of alcohol-related problems and may be linked to reinforcement mechanisms. Methods The current study examined positive mood, negative mood, and mood instability in real time across drinking and nondrinking days utilizing ecological momentary assessment (EMA). Current drinkers (n = 74) were recruited for a 21-day EMA study. Participants completed up to 10 random assessments of positive mood, negative mood, and alcohol use per day. Mood instability was assessed as the squared difference in current mood from mood in the previous assessment. Data were analyzed using piecewise multilevel regression to examine mood trajectories across drinking and nondrinking days. Results Positive emotion across the day was higher on drinking days than nondrinking days and continued to increase after drinking initiation. In contrast, negative emotion across the day was lower on drinking days than nondrinking days and continued to decrease after drinking initiation. Emotional functioning was stable across the day on nondrinking days. However, on drinking days there was a steady increase in emotional instability leading up to drinking initiation, followed by a rapid stabilization after initiation. Conclusions This study highlights the potentially reinforcing impact of alcohol via emotional stability. Overall, these findings highlight the importance of mood dynamics when examining the reinforcing effects of alcohol consumption.

Objective To test the impact of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID) pandemic on the emotions, behavior, and wellness behaviors of first-year college students. Method A total of 675 first-year university students completed a full assessment of behavioral and emotional functioning at the beginning of the spring semester 2020. Of these, 576 completed the same assessment at the end of the spring semester, 600 completed at least 1 item from a COVID-related survey after the onset of COVID pandemic, and 485 completed nightly surveys of mood and wellness behaviors on a regular basis before and after the onset of the COVID crisis. Results Externalizing problems (mean = −0.19, 95% CI = −0.06 to 0.33, p = .004) and attention problems (mean = −0.60, 95% CI = −0.40 to 0.80, p < .001) increased after the onset of COVID, but not internalizing symptoms (mean = 0.18, 95% CI = −0.1 to 0.38, p = .06). Students who were enrolled in a campus wellness program were less affected by COVID in terms of internalizing symptoms (β = 0.40, SE = 0.21, p = .055) and attention problems (β = 0.59, SE = 0.21, p = .005) than those who were not in the wellness program. Nightly surveys of both mood (β = −0.10, SE = 0.03, p = .003) and daily wellness behaviors (β = −0.06, SE = 0.03, p = .036), but not stress (β = 0.02, SE = 0.03, p = .58), were negatively affected by the COVID crisis. The overall magnitude of these COVID-related changes were modest but persistent across the rest of the semester and different from patterns observed in a prior year. Conclusion COVID and associated educational/governmental mitigation strategies had a modest but persistent impact on mood and wellness behaviors of first-year university students. Colleges should prepare to address the continued mental health impacts of the pandemic.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Emotion can be seen as the organizing process that coordinates response systems to deal effectively with challenges and opportunities. Synchronous change in subjective and physiological reactivity is regarded as an indication of this organizing process. Synchrony is expected to increase with the intensity of emotional stimuli. Conversely, adaptive emotional functioning could be indicated by progressive synchrony upon increasing demands, and the magnitude of synchrony could be an indication of progress during therapy.METHODS: We examined whether synchronous change in subjective and physiological reactivity over repeated exposures increased from watching a flight video through simulated flight to actual flight, and whether the magnitude of synchronous change predicted favourable short- and long-term treatment outcome within a group of 77 aviophobic participants during CBT.RESULTS: Results did not show a relationship between the intensity of the phobic stimuli and the magnitude of synchronous change in subjective and physiological reactivity. Moreover, synchronous change across both response systems did not predict treatment outcome.LIMITATIONS: By design this study had no control group. Additional treatment or life events between end of treatment and 3-year follow-up were not assessed.CONCLUSION: The results provide only weak support for the functionalistic view that successful treatment of anxiety disorders is indicated by synchronous change in reactivity across emotional response systems. The relationship between these systems is likely to be affected by many intervening variables including higher order cognitive processes.

Introduction: Cystic fibrosis (CF) is an autosomal recessive disease that affects many organ systems, most notably the pulmonary and gastrointestinal systems. Through genome-wide association studies, multiple genetic regions modifying CF-related pulmonary and gastrointestinal symptoms have been identified, but translation of these findings to clinical benefit remains elusive. Symptom variation in CF patients has been associated with changes in health-related quality of life (HRQOL), but the relationship between CF symptom-modifying genetic loci and HRQOL has not been explored. The purpose of this study was to determine whether two previously identified genetic modifiers of CF-related pathology also modify the subscales of HRQOL. Methods: HRQOL and genotype data were obtained and analyzed. Linear regressions were used to examine the amount of variance in HRQOL subscales that could be explained by genotype for each modifier locus. Results: A significant regression equation was found between genotype for rs5952223, a variant near chrXq22-q23, and emotional functioning in a sample of 129 CF patients. Discussion: These data suggest that genotype for this single-nucleotide polymorphism is associated with emotional functioning in CF patients and highlight this genetic region as a potential therapeutic target, irrespective of CF transmembrane conductance regulator genotype.

Although the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends not to heavily rely on screen media devices to regulate children's distress, many parents often resort to this regulatory strategy. However, little is known about the long-term implications of using this strategy for children's emotional functioning. To address this issue, this study examined the longitudinal links between the use of media to regulate distress and children's negative emotionality (NE) during toddlerhood, a period in which children strongly rely on external regulation. We also examined whether children with initially high NE were more sensitive to the effects of this regulatory strategy on subsequent NE. Participants were 207 mothers who completed questionnaires assessing child NE, use of media to regulate distress, child screen time, and demographic covariates at 2 time points: 18 months (T1) and 26 months (T2) of children's age. Use of media to regulate child distress at T1 did not directly predict child NE at T2, and vice versa. However, there was a significant interaction between child NE and use of media to regulate distress at T1 in predicting NE at T2. Simple slopes analysis indicated that maternal use of media to regulate distress was positively related to increases in children's NE, but only for children with initially low NE, and not for children with initially high NE. Our findings can inform family-based prevention initiatives that may be delivered in community pediatric settings, aiming at promoting thoughtful use of media in young children's everyday lives.

The role of gender, race, and socioeconomic status in outcomes and satisfaction are reflected in patient-reported outcomes using measurement tools representing outcome domains. These domains include pain relief, physical and emotional functioning, adverse events, participant disposition, and patient satisfaction. Measurement tools exist for each of the outcomes in both acute and chronic pain. Patients with lower economic status have greater difficulty accessing care, are involved less in shared decision-making process, and are less satisfied with their care. Blacks, Hispanics, and Asians also have increased difficulty in accessing good quality care. Women have inferior outcomes after medical and surgical interventions.

"The IBD Classroom in Nature" is an initiative that combines training and leisure activities in an ideal environment where families and patients can interact with each other. The objective of the present study was to quantify the effect that "The IBD Classroom in Nature" had on the health-related quality-of-life of patients with Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). We conducted a prospective, analytical study with a pre-post design to demonstrate the impact on health-related quality-of-life (measured with the IMPACT-III questionnaire) of 3 days together in the context of The IBD Classroom in Nature. The study included 13 patients with IBD with a mean age of 12.3 years (interquartile range 11.9-14.5). After "The IBD Classroom in Nature" there was an improvement in the IMPACT-III score with significant improvements in the emotional functioning and body image domains. The present study objectively shows the beneficial effect of group activities focused on the most diverse aspects of their disease.

Respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA) has been extensively investigated as a marker of adaptive emotional functioning in both children and adults, with studies linking RSA to temperamental dimensions such as positive affect and extraversion. However, few studies have examined the extent to which relations between RSA and temperament characteristics vary across ethnicity in childhood. We examined relations between respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA) and temperament dimensions (Activity Level, Task Orientation, and Affect-Extraversion) and the moderating role of ethnicity among preschoolers. Chinese- American (n = 28

Aim: Evaluate quality of life (QoL) in patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer treated with second or third line nab-paclitaxel ± durvalumab. Patients & methods: Longitudinal QoL was assessed using Lung Cancer Symptom Scale, EuroQoL Five-Dimensions Five-Levels and European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire 30-item core. Results: QoL was generally stable through eight treatment cycles (both arms). Clinically meaningful improvement from baseline was noted in Lung Cancer Symptom Scale (overall constitutional score and three-item index [nab-paclitaxel + durvalumab]) and European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire 30-item core (global health status/QoL and emotional functioning [both arms] and pain [nab-paclitaxel + durvalumab]) analyses. EuroQoL Five-Dimensions Five-Levels domains were stable/improved or completely resolved at least once in 19–56% and 9–51% of patients, respectively. Conclusion: While QoL trends were promising, additional data are required to support these regimens in this setting.

Data from neurological and radiological research show an abnormal neurological development in patients treated for hypoplastic left heart syndrome. Thus, the aim of this study was to survey the quality of life scores in comparison with healthy children and children with other heart diseases (mild, moderate, and severe heart defects, heart defects in total). Children with hypoplastic left heart syndrome (aged 6.3–16.9 years) under compulsory education requirements, who were treated at the Children’s Heart Center Linz between 1997 and 2009 (n = 74), were surveyed. Totally, 41 children and 44 parents were examined prospectively by psychologists according to Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory, a health-related quality of life measurement. The results of the self-assessments of health-related quality of life on a scale of 1–100 showed a wide range, from a minimum of 5.00 (social functioning) to a maximum of 100 (physical health-related summary scores, emotional functioning, school functioning), with a total score of 98.44. The parents’ assessments (proxy) were quite similar, showing a range from 10 (social functioning) up to 100. Adolescent hypoplastic left heart syndrome patients rated themselves on the same level as healthy youths and youths with different heart diseases. The results show that patients with hypoplastic left heart syndrome aged 6–16 years can be successfully supported and assisted in their psychosocial development even if they show low varying physical and psychosocial parameters. The finding that adolescent hypoplastic left heart syndrome patients estimated themselves similar to healthy individuals suggests that they learnt to cope with a severe heart defect.

Sleep disturbance is common among children with sickle cell disease (SCD) and is related to neurocognitive difficulties. However, research on sleep disturbances and related variables among adults with SCD is extremely limited. The present study examined the relationship between sleep, executive functioning, and emotional functioning among 62 adults (29 females; M age = 32 years, SD = 7.79) with SCD preparing to undergo a stem cell transplant. Participants were administered a neurocognitive evaluation that included objective and subjective measures of executive functioning, and they completed PROMIS self-report measures of anxiety, depression, and pain intensity. Results showed that about 17% of participants endorsed clinically significant sleep disruptions, while 16.1% and 8% endorsed clinically significant symptoms of anxiety and depression, respectively. Sleep disturbance in these adults was not significantly correlated with objective or subjective measures of executive functioning. Moreover, anxiety, but not depression, was a significant mediator between self-reported sleep difficulties and both objective and subjective measures of executive functioning while controlling for pain intensity. Future research on sleep interventions will be essential for ameliorating the effects of sleep disturbance on executive functioning and anxiety among adults with SCD.

Introduction Abdominal wall herniation (AWH) is an increasing problem for patients, surgeons, and healthcare providers. Surgical-site specific outcomes, such as infection, recurrence, and mesh explantation, are improving; however, successful repair still exposes the patient to what is often a complex major operation aimed at improving quality of life. Quality-of-life (QOL) outcomes, such as aesthetics, pain, and physical and emotional functioning, are less often and less well reported. We reviewed QOL tools currently available to evaluate their suitability. Methods A systematic review of the literature in compliance with PRISMA guidelines was performed between 1st January 1990 and 1st May 2019. English language studies using validated quality-of-life assessment tool, whereby outcomes using this tool could be assessed were included. Results Heterogeneity in the QOL tool used for reporting outcome was evident throughout the articles reviewed. AWH disease-specific tools, hernia-specific tools, and generic tools were used throughout the literature with no obviously preferred or dominant method identified. Conclusion Despite increasing acknowledgement of the need to evaluate QOL in patients with AWH, no tool has become dominant in this field. Assessment, therefore, of the impact of certain interventions or techniques on quality of life remains difficult and will continue to do so until an adequate standardised outcome measurement tool is available.

Although acute aerobic exercise benefits different aspects of emotional functioning, it is unclear how exercise influences the processing of emotional stimuli and which brain mechanisms support this relationship. We assessed the influence of acute aerobic exercise on valence biases (preferential processing of negative/positive pictures) by performing source reconstructions of participants’ brain activity after they viewed emotional scenes. Twenty-four healthy participants (12 women) were tested in a randomized and counterbalanced design that consisted of three experimental protocols, each lasting 30 min: low-intensity exercise (Low-Int); moderate-intensity exercise (Mod-Int); and a seated rest condition (REST). After each of the protocols, participants viewed negative and positive pictures, during which event-related magnetic fields were recorded. Analyses revealed that exercise strongly impacted the valence processing of emotional scenes within a widely distributed left hemispheric spatio-temporal cluster between 190 and 310 ms after picture onset. Brain activity in this cluster showed that a negativity bias at REST (negative > positive picture processing) diminished after the Low-Int condition (positive = negative) and even reversed to a positivity bias after the Mod-Int condition (positive > negative). Thus, acute aerobic exercise of low and moderate intensities induces a positivity bias which is reflected in early, automatic processes.

In this work, we propose an interdisciplinary chaos analysis of emotion dysregulation (ED) and emotional vulnerability in adults. One of the main goals was the assessment of incongruences that occur in the evaluation of one&rsquo, s own emotional dysregulation mechanisms in the presence of an extremely weak stimulus (Butterfly Effect). Thus, we considered a &ldquo, flavor&rdquo, of the Lyapunov Function method based on the assumption that the effort of answering to the test is itself a small perturbation. In this context, we calculated the &ldquo, instability coefficient&rdquo, &Delta, defined as the Euclidean distance between the pairs of vectors that include similar and reverted items of a test. The relationship between &Delta, ED, and emotional characteristics as quality (positive/negative) and type (trait/state) was highlighted. We hypothesized that a higher level of &Delta, should be significantly related with a higher ED and with the type and the quality of emotions. The results suggest that &Delta, is significantly correlated with trait emotions (positively with negative emotions, and negatively with positive ones) and with ED. Moreover, &Delta, significantly predicts ED in adults. Thus, we consider that this approach is promising with respect to the evolution of emotional mechanisms across time. The presence of an initial instability to a weak perturbation might predict future abnormal emotional functioning, which could put at risk the mental or psychosomatic systems.

Background Alexithymia is a personality construct characterised by difficulty in identifying and describing one's emotions. We investigated whether people with alexithymia, who struggle with emotion-processing abilities, have diminished emotion-related social cognitive competencies, where social cognition encompasses the set of abilities that allows one to navigate one's social environment. Methods We assessed alexithymia and four components of social cognition: recognition of others’ emotions, representation of others’ affective and cognitive mental states, empathy, and regulation of one's own feelings. We investigated whether alexithymia could significantly predict each of these components, beyond the effect of other individual difference variables (i.e., anxiety/depressive symptoms), which have been previously associated with both social cognition and alexithymia. Two hundred six participants were recruited. Multiple hierarchical regression analyses were performed to assess the possible relationships between alexithymia and social cognition skills. Results Alexithymia significantly predicted emotion recognition, empathy, and emotional regulation, even after controlling for the effect of potentially competing factors (i.e., anxiety/depressive symptoms). Alexithymia did not predict representation of others’ affective and cognitive mental states. Limitations The present study adopted a cross-sectional design, which does not permit us to draw firm conclusions about the causality of the emergent relationships. Conclusions These data provide support for the argument that recognising others’ emotions and feelings relies on the ability to identify correctly one's own feelings. Our results also indicate the importance of taking into consideration individual differences in levels of alexithymia when investigating social cognition in non-clinical populations, as alexithymia appears to be clearly related to social cognitive functioning.

This chapter discusses the relationship between attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and trauma in adolescents. Trauma is conceptualized as a frightening, violent, or dangerous event that poses a threat to an individual’s bodily integrity or life. Exposure to traumatic events can impact adolescent development, contributing to emotional distress and difficulties with regulation; adolescents who have been exposed to trauma may exhibit symptoms that are classically seen in youth with ADHD. It is important, therefore, to arrive at an accurate diagnostic impression of adolescents who are presenting with inattention and regulation difficulties. Clinicians are advised to evaluate for the potential contribution of trauma when diagnosing ADHD in adolescents. Arriving at a clear diagnostic understanding of an adolescent’s presenting concerns has significant implications for the treatment of these youth. Adolescents with trauma histories who present with symptoms of ADHD require multifaceted interventions which target their emotional functioning as well as behavioral presentation.

A first important notion is the realization that students’ social and emotional functioning has a long tradition in education. Good working attitudes and good behavior have always been important areas on which students were monitored. In didactic analysis, taxonomies of educational objectives were designed for the affective, next to the cognitive domain. What has changed is that the reservation with which the non-cognitive domains used to be treated, because of privacy concerns and fear of indoctrination, seems to have disappeared and is being replaced by very deliberate attempts to stimulate social-emotional learning and promote social emotional outcomes, even beyond the school context.

This paper presents research into the social, emotional, and academic functioning of gifted students in the classroom. An outline is provided of the theoretical foundations of the problem, starting with its definition and presentation of giftedness models. It then discusses the functioning of gifted students in the perspective of other authors. This study aims to examine the performance of a gifted student in a class in the selected state primary school, based on the perception of teachers, parents and the child in question. The study uses the qualitative strategy and the interpretational approach. Gifted students (six cases) were nominated by their form teachers. Empirical data collected during free-form and unstructured interviews were subjected to a qualitative analysis. By arranging the data from interviews with parents, teachers, and gifted students themselves, a picture was constructed of their functioning. To do that, metaphorical categories of gifted students were separately created for each scope (social, emotional, academic). The study analyses the performance of gifted students and compares them to theoretical assumptions.

The capacity of music to engage auditory, cognitive, motor, and emotional functions across cortical and subcortical brain regions and the relative preservation of music in the aging and degenerating brain makes music a promising tool both in supporting healthy neurocognitive aging and maintaining better emotional well-being, cognitive functioning, and communication and social interaction in different stages of dementia. As the incidence and prevalence of aging-related neurological illnesses is rapidly increasing, it is important to develop music-based interventions that make use of self- or caregiver-implemented musical leisure activities and that are enjoyable and effective in the everyday care of the persons with dementia. This chapter reviews recent experimental evidence on the emotional and cognitive effects of musical leisure activities in healthy older adults and in persons with dementia and their caregivers. The chapter also discusses which factors are crucial for the efficacy of music in different stages of dementia.

Data availability statement: The data that support the findings of this study are openly available in the Open Science Framework at https://doi.org/10.17605/OSF.IO/BHDEK. Copyright © 2020 The Authors. It has long been known that premature birth and/or low birthweight can lead to general difficulties in cognitive and emotional functioning throughout childhood. However, the influence of these factors on more specific processes has seldom been addressed, despite their potential to account for wide individual differences in performance that often appear innate. Here, we examined the influence of gestation and birthweight on adults’ face perception and face memory skills. Performance on both sub-processes was predicted by birthweight and birthweight-for-gestation, but not gestation alone. Evidence was also found for the domain-specificity of these effects: No perinatal measure correlated with performance on object perception or memory tasks, but they were related to the size of the face inversion effect on the perceptual test. This evidence indicates a novel, very early influence on individual differences in face recognition ability, which persists into adulthood, influences face-processing strategy itself, and may be domain-specific.

Social cognition includes the ability to represent other people's intentions and beliefs, and the ability to share and recognise the emotions of others. Here, the main aim was to assess the possible presence of sex differences across four aspects of social cognition: (1) recognition of dynamic facial expressions; (2) representation of other people's mental states (both affective and cognitive Theory of Mind, ToM); (3) empathy; (4) identification and regulation of one's own emotions. Measures assessing social cognition were administrated to two hundred ten participants equally divided between men and women. Results showed no significant sex differences in affective and cognitive ToM, in the recognition of emotional facial expressions (with the exception of anger: women were more accurate than men), and in the ability to identify and regulate one's own emotions. A different result was found for empathy, with women reporting higher scores than men. No significant differences between women during follicular vs. luteal phase of menstrual cycle for all the social cognition measures were found. These results are discussed in light of the existing literature. To our knowledge, this study represents one of the few attempts to analyse in a single work sex differences across multiple areas of social cognition.

Objective: Vaccine hesitancy has been identified as one of the major contributors to child under-vaccination. Research indicates that some hesitant parents’ mistrust extends to specific conspiracy ideation, but research on vaccine conspiracy beliefs is still scarce. Our objective was to explore factors contributing to parental vaccine conspiracy beliefs and actual vaccine uptake in children. Design: A cross-sectional correlational design with a non-probabilistic sample of 823 volunteer participants surveyed online. Main outcome measures: We focussed on the contributions of the analytically rational and experientially intuitive thinking styles, as well as measures of emotional functioning, namely optimism and emotions towards vaccination, to vaccine conspiracy beliefs and vaccine uptake as outcomes. Results: The obtained results showed that greater vaccine conspiracy beliefs were associated with stronger unpleasant emotions towards vaccination and greater experientially intuitive thinking, as well as lower levels of education. Furthermore, unpleasant emotions towards vaccination and intuitive thinking were associated with vaccine refusal. Conclusion: These findings confirm the primary importance of emotions, along with the propensity towards intuitive thinking, in the context of vaccine conspiracy beliefs and refusal, supporting the notion that parents’ avoidance is guided by their affect. These results have direct implications for addressing vaccine hesitancy within public campaigns and policies.

Treatment of Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) may need to occur prior to addressing symptoms of anxiety for children with co-occurring disorders, especially if ADHD symptoms are interfering with functioning at school and at home. Treating executive functions deficits, so that the child can complete course work, is an example of intervening to treat ADHD symptoms. Interventions that address ADHD symptoms so the child can focus or pay attention, and therefore learn anxiety management strategies, may improve behavioral functioning. Treating anxiety through education, graded exposure, and teaching anxiety management strategies (e.g., relaxation) may reduce worries and improve emotional functioning. Reducing occurrence of risky behaviors (related to ADHD) and improving emotional regulation also may be essential interventions. Involving parents in treatment to help the child pay attention and learn strategies was a hallmark of many interventions. It is not yet clear whether having ADHD and anxiety results in further deficits in functioning compared to having ADHD alone, and further research is needed in this area.

Introduction: Existing resources to support adolescents with acquired brain injury (ABI) in transition from school to the ‘adult world’ are variable. This study evaluated an intervention using a coaching approach to support adolescents during this transition phase.Method: The study design was a parallel-group randomised controlled trial (RCT). Participants (n= 43) aged 14–19 years were randomised to intervention (n= 21) or no-intervention control (n= 21) conditions. The intervention group received six coaching sessions over an average of 22 weeks. Outcome measures evaluated changes reported by the adolescent (satisfaction, emotional functioning and hope) and their parent (participation, behaviour and support needs).Results: Relative to baseline, there was no significant improvement for those in the intervention group in comparison to the control group on any of the outcome measures.Conclusion: The results of this RCT do not support coaching as an intervention for adolescents with ABI.

Background: Infertility has been recognized as a stressful clinical condition, significantly affecting couples’ emotional functioning. Objective: To investigate the relationship between coping/attachment styles and infertility-specific distress (ISD) in infertile participants. Materials and Methods: A total number of 240 infertile participants (120 women and 120 men) who attend the Outpatient Infertility Clinic in Sari, Iran between February and October 2017 were selected using the convenience sampling method. Data were collected using a questionnaire addressing sociodemographic variables. In addition, coping and attachment styles were evaluated via the Coping Strategies Questionnaire and the Revised Adult Attachment Scale by Collins and Read (1990); respectively. Ultimately, the Infertility Distress Scale was used to assess ISD. Results: The mean ISD score was 42.53 ± 9.63. Secure and insecure attachment styles were observed in 37.9% and 62.1% of the cases, respectively. There was a significant difference among ISD and different groups of attachment styles (p = 0.001) and emotion-focused coping style (p = 0.021). However, no significant relationship was found between problem-focused coping style and ISD (p = 0.985). Conclusion: Considering the relationship between coping/attachment styles and ISD, it was recommended to implement stress prevention and coping education within the framework of coping/attachment theories for infertile individuals. Key words: Infertility, Attachment, Copying, Distress.

BACKGROUND Many children suffering from chronic headache and migraine present with comorbid functional disability, including physical, social, emotional, and academic activities. For children severely impaired by headache, intensive interdisciplinary pain rehabilitation treatment (IIPT) can improve functioning. However, there are limited data evaluating children's response to rehabilitation across several time points. OBJECTIVE This study aims to evaluate the trajectory of recovery for children undergoing IIPT for chronic headache, as well as to examine the proposed assumption that physical and psychosocial functioning improves prior to a reported reduction in pain. METHODS A retrospective analysis of patient-reported outcomes in a clinical database of 135 children admitted to an IIPT program between the years 2008 and 2014 was analyzed. Available data across 5 separate time points (up to 1-year post-discharge) were reviewed. RESULTS One hundred and thirty-five children of mean age 15.2 (SD = 2.2) and 74% female provided data for review. Linear mixed model demonstrated a statistically significant improvement in pain-specific measures of functioning, including daily functioning (change estimate = -14.53) emotional functioning (change estimate = -14.63), family functioning (change estimate = -5.78), and school absences (change estimate = -11.47) over a 12-month period (all P's ≤ .01). A more general measure of quality of life improved during the program, based upon child (change estimate = +10.07) and parent report (change estimate = +15.31); although these gains did not continue to improve post-discharge. As expected, although children did not report a reduction in pain during rehabilitation (change estimate = +0.07), they did report a significant drop in perceived pain in the 12 months following discharge from the program (change estimate = -2.12, P ≤ .01). CONCLUSIONS Children with chronic headache and migraine who are severely functionally impaired demonstrated linear improvement in pain-specific patient-reported outcomes over time; however, there remains a need for improved methodology in analyzing response to IIPT programs.