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During the last decades, Experience Sampling Methodology (ESM) has been widely used in the field of psychopathology research to increase our understanding of the processes involved. This self-report daily assessment technique might be a satisfactory tool in the context of clinical trials assessing the effect of psychological interventions, however the empirical literature on the application of ESM assessing changes associated with clinical interventions is still scarce. The aim of this study was to examine the usefulness of ESM in assessing changes in wellbeing after a multi-component Positive Psychology Intervention for people with paranoid tendencies. 73 individuals receiving individual psychotherapy at a University Clinic, and that had high scores in paranoid thinking, were offered group intervention to improve their well-being. The pre-post evaluation entailed an ESM protocol with a time-contingent design that included ten randomized time assessments per day during one week before and after the group intervention. A total of 54 participants completed the ESM procedure and the intervention and were thus, included in the analysis. Our findings provide evidence of the feasibility and viability of using ESM when conducting clinical trials. In particular, the ESM identified significant effects of the treatment in positive variables such as well-being, self-esteem, positive affect, and feeling close to others in daily life. ESM seems a promising methodology that is able to accurately monitor the momentary changes in clinical trial outcomes., Author(s): Regina Espinosa [sup.1] , Carmen Valiente [sup.2] , Alba Contreras [sup.2] , Almudena Trucharte [sup.2] , Borja Paredes [sup.3] , Vanesa Peinado [sup.2] Author Affiliations: (1) grid.449750.b, 0000 0004 [...]

Healthcare workers exposed to emergencies and chronic stressors are at high risk of developing mental health problems. This review synthesized existing studies of group psychological therapy to reduce distress symptoms in healthcare workers (i.e., as complex and heterogeneous emotional states, characterized by the presence of symptoms associated with post‐traumatic stress disorder, burnout, anxiety, depression and moral injury). Searches were conducted using PRISMA guidelines and databases such as PubMed, PsycINFO, Medline and Web of Science, along with manual searches of reference lists of relevant articles. The search returned a total of 1071 randomized trials, of which 23 met the inclusion criteria. Of the total studies, nine were mindfulness interventions, seven were cognitive behavioural programmes, one was a programme based on acceptance and commitment therapy, one was an EMDR protocol and two focused on systemic and art therapy. Most studies aimed to reduce burnout, anxiety and depression; only three focused on post‐traumatic stress disorder, and no studies were found that addressed moral injury. The results suggested that group interventions could be an effective tool to improve the mental health of healthcare workers and reduce their symptoms of distress, although many of the studies have methodological deficiencies. Limitations and future directions are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The International Classification of Diseases has recently defined Prolonged Grief Disorder (PGD) with symptoms such as longing, worry, and intense emotional pain that exceed sociocultural norms more than 6 months after the loss. This study aims to (a) estimate the prevalence of this new diagnostic category, (b) identify its sociodemographic and loss‐related predictors, and (c) assess the co‐occurrence of PGD with other psychological disorders and substance abuse. A large representative sample of Spanish adults (N = 1498) participated. Several multivariate binary logistic regression and multivariate logistic regression models were used. Results showed a 9.95% prevalence in the total sample. Catholic beliefs were a positive predictor, while higher income and more time since loss significantly decreased the odds of PGD. PGD significantly increased the likelihood of anxiety, depression, somatisation, post‐traumatic stress disorder, loneliness and substance use. Our study contributes to assessing the multicultural PGD validity, as our results from a large representative sample are comparable to those in other countries with the PGDS. Our findings have direct implications for the assessment and treatment of bereavement, identifying for practitioners variables that make individuals more vulnerable to PGD. Results highlighted the high co‐occurrence of PGD with other psychological illnesses and increased drug use. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Commonly identified patterns of psychological distress in response to adverse events are characterized by resilience (i.e., little to no distress), delayed (i.e., distress that increases over time), recovery (i.e., distress followed by a gradual decrease over time), and sustained (i.e., distress remaining stable over time). This study aimed to examine these response patterns during the COVID‐19 pandemic. Anxiety and depressive symptom data collected across four European countries over the first year of the pandemic were analyzed (N = 3,594). Participants were first categorized into groups based on the four described patterns. Network connectivity and symptom clustering were then estimated for each group and compared. Two thirds (63.6%) of the sample displayed a resilience pattern. The sustained distress network (16.3%) showed higher connectivity than the recovery network (10.0%) group, p =.031; however, the resilient network showed higher connectivity than the delayed network (10.1%) group, p =.016. Regarding symptom clustering, more clusters emerged in the recovery network (i.e., three) than the sustained network (i.e., two). These results replicate findings that resilience was the most common mental health pattern over the first pandemic year. Moreover, they suggest that high network connectivity may be indicative of a stable mental health response over time, whereas fewer clusters may be indicative of a sustained distress pattern. Although exploratory, the network perspective provides a useful tool for examining the complexity of psychological responses to adverse events and, if replicated, could be useful in identifying indicators of protection against or vulnerability to future psychological distress. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Methods Results Discussion Despite the widespread acceptance of the concept of jumping to conclusions (JTC), recent studies have found no relationship between paranoia and draws to decision (DTD), while results regarding the stimuli salience are contradictory. Additionally, JTC and overconfidence bias are generally encountered together. This study aims to 1) analyse the effect of stimuli salience on JTC and decision confidence, 2) examine the JTC presence and its association with schizophrenia spectrum disorder, and 3) explore the relationship between symptomatology, specifically paranoia, DTD, decision confidence, and Theory of Mind (ToM).One hundred and thirty-six individuals (Mage 43.21) diagnosed with Severe Psychiatric Conditions (SPC; Schizophrenia, Affective, and Personality disorders) performed two digitised probabilistic tasks with neutral and salient stimuli, measuring decision confidence, and completed the Symptom Checklist 90-R and the Eyes test.Salience had no significant effect on DTD or decision confidence. 40.4% of participants presented JTC bias, and schizophrenia diagnosis was not a predictor of it. Paranoia was associated with decision confidence but not with DTD or ToM, while DTD was related to ToM.Findings highlight that JTC and response confidence are valuable targets in treating SPC. Implications for future research on the relevance of the JTC measuring method are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

"Research on severe psychiatric conditions has primarily focused on deficits and symptoms, while there is limited understanding about the underlying factors that contribute to the life satisfaction (LS) of patients who suffer from such conditions. The presence of positive affect has an important role in the LS in the general population. Its presence activates personal resources that facilitate the achievement of their life purposes. However, these associations have not yet been evaluated in people affected by a severe psychiatric condition. The main aim of this study was to explore, using structural equation modeling, the role of different hedonic and eudaimonic well-being dimensions as predictors of LS in schizophrenia spectrum disorders. A total of 149 adult participants with schizophrenia spectrum disorders were assessed about their LS, hedonic well-being (i.e., positive affect, openness to the future) and eudaimonic well-being (i.e., social support, self-compassion, and strengths). Results indicate that self-compassion, caring and self-control strengths and social support mediate the relationship between hedonic well-being and LS. These findings help understand the mechanisms involved in LS in this population and shed light on the design of future interventions aimed at promoting a more satisfying life for them". [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]