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Objectives: The Internet has become one of the most common sources people use to search for health-related information, a behavior rapidly increased during the novel Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). The present study aimed to investigate behavioral patterns in the online health-related searches and Cyberchondria (CYB) during the COVID-19 pandemic time, in order to explore socio-demographic and psychopathological factors related to CYB. Methods: During the third wave of the COVID-19 pandemic in Italy, a cross-sectional online survey collected the main socio-demographic variables and habits related to Internet use of 572 participants. CYB was measured by the Cyberchondria Severity Scale-Short Version and different psychopathological factors were measured by specific questionnaires: the Coronavirus Anxiety Scale, the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, the Short Health Anxiety Inventory, the Meta-Cognitions about Health Questionnaire, the Internet Addiction Test, the Maudsley Obsessional-Compulsive Questionnaire-Short Version, the Rosenberg's Self-Esteem Scale, and the WHO Quality of Life-BREF. Descriptives, non-parametric ANOVAs, and Spearman correlations were performed. Results: In the present sample, the Internet was the main source participants used to search for health-related information and nearly one-third increased this habit during the pandemic. Higher expression of CYB emerged in females, in younger participants, in students, and in those suffering from a physical/psychiatric illness. CYB showed a positive correlation with different phenomenology of anxiety (i.e., anxiety about COVID-19, health anxiety, general anxiety, metacognitive believes about anxiety) and with depression, obsessive-compulsive symptoms, and problematic usage of the Internet. Conversely, quality of life and self-esteem showed a negative correlation with CYB. Conclusion: During the COVID-19 pandemic, the use of the Internet for health-related information and CYB contribute to the psychological stress affecting individuals and society. Delineating subjects more vulnerable to CYB and associated psychopathological factors will help to elaborate operational indications for prevention and psychological support.

A number of studies shows the role of emotions in psycho-educational processes during childhood, as well as the importance of emotional variables in social interactions in school context. One of the major contributions to emotional domains in childhood is the model of Emotional Competence (EC) developed by Saarni. EC, which includes one's self, one's moral disposition, and one's developmental history, is crucial to children’s ability to interact and form relationships with others, and develops from 3 to 6 years of age. In Italy, there is a growing interest towards affective education in schools. However, it is rather difficult to identify common operationalization and intervention protocols. The aim of this study is to test a psycho-educational intervention fostering the development of EC (expression, understanding and regulation of emotions) in pre-scholars. The Test of Emotion Comprehension (TEC), a nonverbal and cross-cultural tool, provides a global index of emotion comprehension in children aged from 3 to 11, assessing nine domains of emotional understanding (e.g., the recognition of emotions, possibility of emotional regulation; having mixed emotions). This instrument was administered individually to 55 children (32 female) aged between 4 and 6 years (M = 4.4, SD = .71), recruited in three different public schools involved in a three-months psycho-educational intervention based on storytelling and drama. The TEC was administrated before the intervention started and after its conclusion. Results of repeated measure ANOVA show an improvement of TEC scores from baseline to 3 months (F = 48.43, p < .000; Mt1 = 3.61 and Mt2 = 4.49), with no differences between boys and girls (interaction time x sex: F = .32, p = n.s.). As for practical implications, the present study points out that early psycho-educational programs, based on storytelling and drama, may have the potential to exert a positive influence on kindergarten children’s Emotional Competence.

Introduction. Despite the extensive literature, the gender differences in eating disorders (ED) have been poorly investigated. Most of the studies, in fact, have been conducted so far on female samples, emphasizing the misleading belief that such disorders are of exclusive relevance of women. Aim. The review aim at highlighting as this preconception is still widespread among the male patients and the clinicians and as it represents an impediment to a correct diagnosis and a proper treatment planning. Method. Included studies were selected in the scientific literature published between January 2007 and December 2017 through the main databases, combining the words: “males”, “eating disorder”, “anorexia nervosa”, “bulimia nervosa”, “binge eating disorder”. Results. Fifty-four studies have been selected in accordance with the followed methodological criteria. Discussion. Only recently, the attention of researchers have been also focused on male population: many differences between genders have emerged in prevalence, onset, phenomenology, diagnosis, comorbidity and outcomes of ED. The studies on risk factors have also pointed out significant differences between males and females, especially in relation to the different weight exerted by psychological variables involved in the aetiology of eating disorders. Conclusions. Compared with a little knowledge of ED in the male population, it is important to widespread the comprehension taking into account the gender perspective. The attention must be paid particularly to critical developmental periods, such as puberty and adolescence, where early detection and prevention of these disorders is of greatest importance, inside a conceptual framework which considers the mutual influence between biological and psychological vulnerability, and sociocultural factors.

Developed originally by Goodenough (1926), the Draw-A-Person test (DAP) is a projective drawing task that is often used in psychological assessments of children to develop hypotheses about the subject’s cognitive, developmental, and emotional functioning, as well as personality style. Given the link between the child's graphic activity and the expression of emotions, this work focuses on the DAP test as an expressive area intrinsically linked to both personality and emotions, as described by the trait Emotional Intelligence (EI) model (Petrides et al., 2007). Scholars has shown a link between trait EI (a constellation of emotional self-perceptions located at the lower levels of personality) and psychological health in adults, as well as in children, together with a strong association of the construct with expression of emotions which is crucial to experience and to the expression of behavior and thoughts, and it may be well-represented by children drawings. We assume that trait EI can be a reliable predictor of emotional expression revealed by the DAP test, over and above personality traits, as measured by the Big Five Questionnaire for Children (Barbaranelli et al., 2002). A self-report form to assess trait EI, a personality questionnaire and the DAP test were administered to a sample of 82 Italian children (51.2% females; Mage = 8.11; SD = 0.35). Data from hierarchical regression analysis support the hypothesis and suggest a predictive significant effect of trait EI on emotional indicators in children’s drawings (β = .36, p < .05). Moreover, the effect of the Big Five decreased and was no more significant when trait EI was entered into the model. Future investigations should replicate these results in larger samples and in cross-cultural settings, as children's drawings are partially reflective of their culture. Notwithstanding these limitations, our results may have practical implications particularly with respect to programs and policies addressing the prevention of emotional distress in children.

La Psicoanalisi e la Gruppoanalisi hanno messo in evidenza come l’apparato psichico del bambino si costruisca essenzialmente in relazione all’ambiente sociale e familiare. Il default di tale processo porta alla costruzione di una identità fragile e di conseguenza a una relazione dove l’Altro può rappresentare una incognita potenzialmente minacciosa e la dimensione della ‘tolleranza’ ne risulta pesantemente coartata. Attraverso alcune vignette cliniche si evidenzia come il piccolo gruppo terapeutico favorisca il raggiungimento di una identità più consapevole e nel contempo più solidale e tollerante.

Introduction: Analytical Psychodrama has shown the potential for obtaining positive change in group members and is reputed by practitioners as an effective form of psychotherapy. Despite this, the lack of empirical validation for its multifarious interventions has contributed to its low visibility amongst contemporary psychotherapy approaches. The main aim of the present study was to explore whether the analytical psychodrama offered by the Counselling Center of the University of Bologna to college students with anxiety-depressive disorders was useful to decrease symptomatology and increase well-being. Method: Thirty patients (22 females) from 20 to 26 years old (mean age 22.33 ± 1.75) with anxiety-depressive disorders took part to the study and completed one year of analytical psychodrama. Participants fulfilled the Italian validation of Clinical Outcomes in Routine Evaluation – Outcome Measure (CORE-OM, Evans, 2002; Palmieri et al., 2009) questionnaire before and at the end of the group psychotherapy (40 sessions, one a week). Results: Comparing pre and post-treatment CORE-OM mean scores, paired t-test analyses showed a statistically significant reduction on clinical outcomes scores. Specifically, the results revealed the usefulness of the treatment in terms of symptoms decrease and patients’ improvement in subjective well-being. Conclusion: Our preliminary findings suggested that analytical psychodrama is a suitable treatment for college students, as it actually reduces young adults’ anxiety-depressive symptoms. These results contribute to a poorly covered topic on the validity of analytical psychodrama interventions and encourage research regarding the specific psychotherapeutic effects of this method.

The main aim of this study is to investigate the influence of dissociative experiences and alcohol/drugs dependence on Internet addiction. From a clinical point of view Internet addiction, an excessive or poorly controlled preoccupation, urges, and/or behaviors regarding Internet use, lead to emotional and social problems in several life domains. Moreover, the increased prevalence of Internet addiction among adolescents and young adults is cause of concerns. Data was collected on 441 undergraduate students (285 female), aging from 18 to 36, using an assessment self-reporting set consisting of the Young’s Internet Addiction Test, the Leeds Dependence Questionnaire and the Dissociative Experience Scale. Results converging for the three psychological phenomena involved are interrelated, corroborating the hypothesis of the search for an altered state of consciousness as their common underlying mechanism. Findings show that the tendency to escape from reality, through dissociation and substance abuse, are risk factors for Internet addiction in youngsters. The implications of these results are discussed in a preventive and clinical perspective., Mediterranean Journal of Clinical Psychology, Vol 5, No 1 (2017)