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Copyright of Journal of Social Sciences Institute / Sosyal Bilimler Enstitüsü Dergisi is the property of Bingol University / Rectorate 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.)

Cities are highly featured complex settlements. In these areas, the population is growing rapidly and there are various problems depending on the characteristics of urban daily living. One of the problems in increase is crime which is behavior that disrupts the social order. Accordingly, the risk of exposure to crime increases. This situation adversely affects the security image of the residents. This study reveals the image of urban security from the perspective of Balıkesir University senior students. The study data were obtained through quantative survey analaysis. The data were evaluated in SPSS program; more frequency analysis was done. As a result, it is seen that the image of city security is not mostly positive. Perceived as safe during the day, the city is not safe at night. Although there are neighborhoods in the city that have an unsafe perception, their number is not too many. Secluded places and times in Balıkesir make students uneasy. Students are most disturbed by drug addicts and drunkards in the city. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Interoceptive awareness (IA) is defined as an ability to accurately perceive interoceptive processes, which comprise receiving, processing, and integrating body-relevant signals together with external stimuli. Interoceptive processes affect the motivated approach or avoidance behavior toward stimuli. Alcohol and other substances have effects on the autonomic system that result in altered interoceptive processes. Individuals who have disturbed IA may be at a higher risk of addiction because they are not able to utilize sufficiently body-relevant signals to guide their decision-making. The hypothesis that IA in alcohol-addicted patients would be affected and that the disturbed IA would be associated with alcohol craving was tested in this study. Methods: The study was conducted with 55 patients diagnosed with alcohol addiction according to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition, Text Revision (DSM-IV-TR) criteria and who had been sober for at least two weeks and 52 non-addicted healthy controls. IA measurements were performed using the heartbeat perception performance method, which determines participants' awareness of their own heartbeat by comparing the number of subjectively perceived heartbeats with an objective heart rate measure recorded with ECG during four separate intervals. In addition, the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT), Penn Alcohol Craving Scale (PACS), and Obsessive Compulsive Drinking Scale (OCDS) were performed on the alcohol-addicted patient group. Results: IA scores were significantly lower in the alcohol-addicted patients than the control subjects. IA scores of alcohol-addicted patients were negatively correlated with the levels of alcohol craving sensations according to the PACS results. Conclusion: Our results corroborate the suggestion that IA in alcohol-addicted patients would be affected and that poor IA would be associated with alcohol craving and could be a maintaining factor for drinking behavior. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), is a liver disease, that occur in non alcohol users, with same histological features of alcoholic liver disease. The increased importance of NAFLD is depends on its close relation of current problems such as Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus and hyperlipidemia, and its high prevalence as %20-30, in Europe and Middle East. NAFLD has a wide spectrum from simple steatozis (SS), liver cell damage, non alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) with inflammation to high stage fibrosis, and cirrhosis. Hepathocellular cancer and liver failure might develop in cirrhosis patients. Biopsy is gold standard for NAFLD diagnosis; differentiate from SS and NASH and defining NASH stages. Nutrition regulations and slow and continuous weight loss with regular exercises is still best treatment method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Alcohol dependence doesn't develop in all individuals consuming alcohol; therefore risk factors for dependence, its etiology, and the bases of the urge to drink alcohol should be investigated. As hormones have different functions in the body, they have been among the subjects of research to determine these factors. Especially the hormones affecting food intake could be thought to have relationship with alcohol consumption. The aim of this study was to investigate whether the hormones affecting food intake play a role in alcohol dependence. Method: Twenty-one patients were included in the study. All patients were referred to and hospitalized in the Department of Psychiatry, Trakya University School of Medicine. They were clinically evaluated and diagnosed with alcohol dependence according to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders-Fourth Edition DSM-IV) criteria. Fasting blood samples were collected at 08:00 AM on the first day of hospitalization, which was also the day the patients gave up drinking (day 0), and then on the following 1st, 7th, and 28th days to measure ghrelin, leptin, and prolactin levels. Twenty one healthy volunteers (20 males, 1 female), who had not consumed any alcohol for at least ten days and did not meet the criteria for alcohol dependence based on the DSM-IV, were included in this study. Blood samples were collected from the control group for determination of levels of ghrelin, leptin, and prolactin. Results: There were no significant differences between the alcohol dependent patient group and the healthy control group regarding leptin, ghrelin or prolactin levels. Additionally, there were no significant differences between the leptin and prolactin levels on day 0, 1, 7, and 28 in the patient group. A statistically significant decrease was found in ghrelin levels of alcohol dependent patients between the days of 0 and 28 and between the days of 1 and 28. Conclusions: Because of the decline in the ghrelin levels on day 28 compared to day 0 and 1, there is a need for further studies on alcohol dependent patients. The evaluation of more prolonged sobriety days may also be useful. This study did not support the hypothesis that leptin, ghrelin, and prolactin levels are a biological indicator for alcohol dependence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: The present study aimed to assess the existence and relation with impulsivity-related characteristics of impulsivity in patients with Alcohol Abuse (AA). Methods: The study was carried out in the Erenköy Training and Research Hospital for Psychiatric and Neurological Diseases. All consecutive patients gave written informed consent. The subjects were evaluated by using the Turkish version of the Barratt Impulsivity Scale-11 (T-BIS-11), Eysenck Personality Questionnaire Revised-Abbreviated Form, Aggressions Questionnaire, Spielberger State-Trait Anger Expression Inventory and sociodemographic data form. Results: Patients with AA had higher impulsivity, aggression and anger scores than controls. Impulsiveness showed positive correlations with all the impulsivity-related scales. Discussion and Conclusion: Patients with AA have shown problems of impulsivity, aggression and anger. These findings also depend on relation with each others. Impulsiveness among alcohol abusers needs further evaluation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: In this study, the relationship of alcohol craving with posttraumatic stress disorder and severity of general psychopathology in male alcohol dependent inpatients were determined. Method: The study was conducted with hospitalized patients between July 2007- February 2008 in Bakirkoy State Hospital for Mental Health and Neurological Disorders, Alcohol and Drug Research, Treatment and Education Center (AMATEM) in Istanbul. One hundred and three inpatients diagnosed as having alcohol dependence were included in the study. They were given a socio-demographic form, Clinician Administered Post Traumatic Stress Disorder Scale (CAPS), PENN Alcohol Craving Scale (PACS), the Symptom Checklist-Revised (SCL-90) and Michigan Alcohol Screening Test (MAST). Results: The PACS total score showed high positive correlations with SCL-90 general symptom index and somatization and obsession subscales of SCL-90, whereas it was modestly correlated with the other subscales of SCL-90 and mildly correlated with MAST. Total craving score and each item other than the 4th item (resistance) were higher among those with lifetime PTSD. The Obsession subscale was the only predictor of craving score in the linear regression model and univariate analyses, when PTSD was taken as the fixed variable. Discussion: Although alcohol craving was related with TSSB and general psychopathology, the only predictor of craving was the severity of obsessive symptoms among the other psychopathologies. This finding supports the general view that craving is overlapped with obsessive compulsive symptoms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Object: The Stages of Change Readiness and Treatment Eagerness Scale (SOCRATES), is a 19-item self-rating scale developed by Miller and Tonigan (1996) for screening motivation and readiness to change dirinking - related behavior. Factorial analyses showed that it contains 3 factors called: (1) Recognition (Re), (2) Ambivalence (Am) and (3) Taking steps (Ts). In the aim of this study, the reliability and validity and factorial structure of the Turkish translation of the SOCRATES were determined. Method: The study was conducted with hospitalized patients between January and July 2006 in Bakirkoy State Hospital for Mental Health and Neurological Disorders, AMATEM (Alcohol and Drug Research, Treatment and Education Center) in Istanbul. One seventy one inpatients diagnosed as having "Alcohol Use Disorder" were included in the study. They were given sociodemographic form, SOCRATES, the Treatment Motivation Questioneer (TMQ) and Michigan Alcohol Screaning Test (MAST). The internal consistency of the Turkish version of SOCRATES was evaluated by the Cronbach's Alpha test, and for validity investigation the TMQ is used. Results: Turkish version of the scale with 16 item solution was found to be compatible with original scale. In alcohol dependents the internal consistency coefficient (Cronbach's alpha) was 0.77 for Re scale, 0.74 for Am scale, 0.78 for Ts and 0.85 for SOCRATES. For each of the items, the corrected item-total correlation values were higher than 0.48 and significant in the degree of p<0.001. Three subscales, total score of the SOCRATES and TMQ were correlated significant in the degree of p<0.001. Discussion: Results which were obtained in this study suggests that the Turkish version of the SOCRATES could be used as reliable and valid for alcohol dependent in patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: This study was done for assessing psychodrama's effectiveness on group psychotherapy of alcohol /drug addicts in AMATEM Bakirköy State Hospital for Mental & Neurological Diseases. Method: Psychodrama tecniques were used in group psychotherapy. Patients were assessed with SCS (Social Comparison Scale); SAS (Submissive Acts Scale); STAEI (State-Trait Anger Expression inventory; TAS (Toronto Alexithymia Scale) at the beginning and end of the 28 days therapy program. These scales were chosen because of those parameters had been related with relapse and also were problematical emotional, behavior areas in addicts. Results: SAS scale's scores differences at the beginning and end of the therapy were statistically significant. SCS's & STAEI's anger toward one's self subscale's differences were nearly statistically significant. In TAS scale the number of people diagnosed as alexithymic were reduced and also before and after tests mean scores were also diminished. In group therapy of alcohol/drug addicts using psychodrama techniques in traditional verbal method; psychotherapy's power had been increased and also accelerated. Conclusion: Our hypothesis was by using this method; subject's inability to cope with their fears would be lessened; some submissive behaviours acting in social situations would be changed; perceptional self schemas would be changed in positive way end also anger degree and expression of it would been changed positively. Our results ware supported this hypothesis in our study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: It is aimed to determine the discriminating personality characteristics of patients with alcohol use disorders compared to healthy control subjects. Method: Cloninger's Temperament and Character Inventory (TCI) was employed to the patients with a diagnosis of alcohol use disorder meeting the DSM-IV criteria (n = 31) and their personality profiles were compared with age and gender matched non-psychiatric healthy control subjects (n = 31). Results: Patients with alcohol use disorder were characterized by higher rates of novelty-seeking, and harm avoidance. Patients scored lower on reward dependence, persistence, self-directedness, and cooperation. The differences in novelty-seeking, harm avoidance, persistence and self-directedness between patients and control group were found to be statistically significant. Self-directedness was the most important discriminative variable in the dicriminatire function analysis. Conclusion: Higher novelty-seeking is related to Impulsivity, and is considered to be important at the onset of drug taking, behavior. High harm avoidance is related to shyness, social inhibition, fear of uncertainity, and pessimistic worry in anticipation of problems. These negative feelings may be comforted by alcohol, whereas heavy alcohol use may lead to dependence. Individuals with low persistence tend to give up easily when faced with frustration. Lower self-directedness was reported as indicating a higher probability of personality disorder. Determining personality profile among patients with alcohol use disorders may be useful in employing different treatment approaches and evaluating the treatment outcome. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Family therapy has an important place in the treatment of alcohol dependence. Integration of family members into treatment has been found to facilitate the recovery process on the part of the patient. During this process, family members learn to deal effectively with negative feelings such as guilt, shame, and anger. In addition to this, they develop an understanding of effective ways of helping the patient taking into consideration the concept of co-dependence. In recent years, it has been observed that active involvement of family members in the treatment of alcohol dependence has a significant effect on bringing the patient into treatment as it has on facilitating the recovery process. Different family intervention methods had been developed in alcohol dependence. In this article, one of these which is named Unilateral Family Therapy, has been reviewed in terms of its theory and application. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Alcohol consumption has increased among adolescents in concordance with problems related to school, friends and family environment, and also as a result of their curiosity. Since alcohol intoxication cases increase in emergency services, pediatrician's knowledge of clinical and metabolic complications is getting more important. We present here 4 cases to underline the classical approach to alcohol intoxication. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]