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Cells Jul 2023Depression is a common neuropsychiatric disorder with long-term recurrent depressed mood, pain and despair, pessimism and anxiety, and even suicidal tendencies as the... (Review)
Review
Depression is a common neuropsychiatric disorder with long-term recurrent depressed mood, pain and despair, pessimism and anxiety, and even suicidal tendencies as the main symptoms. Depression usually induces or aggravates the development of other related diseases, such as sleep disorders and endocrine disorders. In today's society, the incidence of depression is increasing worldwide, and its pathogenesis is complex and generally believed to be related to genetic, psychological, environmental, and biological factors. Current studies have shown the key role of glial cells in the development of depression, and it is noteworthy that some recent evidence suggests that the development of depression may be closely related to viral infections, such as SARS-CoV-2, BoDV-1, ZIKV, HIV, and HHV6, which infect the organism and cause some degree of glial cells, such as astrocytes, oligodendrocytes, and microglia. This can affect the transmission of related proteins, neurotransmitters, and cytokines, which in turn leads to neuroinflammation and depression. Based on the close relationship between viruses and depression, this paper provides an in-depth analysis of the new mechanism of virus-induced depression, which is expected to provide a new perspective on the mechanism of depression and a new idea for the diagnosis of depression in the future.
Topics: Humans; Depression; Zika Virus Infection; COVID-19; SARS-CoV-2; Zika Virus; Neurons
PubMed: 37443801
DOI: 10.3390/cells12131767 -
Hormones and Behavior Mar 2024The cumulative negative effects of prolonged Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenal axis (HPA axis) activation are associated with several age-related diseases. Some...
The cumulative negative effects of prolonged Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenal axis (HPA axis) activation are associated with several age-related diseases. Some psychological traits such as optimism and pessimism have been shown to be related to both health and the stress response, although their relationship with the HPA axis is inconclusive. More stable HPA axis biomarkers, such as hair samples of cortisol (HC) and dehydroepiandrosterone (HDHEA), would help to clarify the association between these psychological traits and HPA axis functioning. The main aim of this study was to test the relationships between optimism and pessimism and chronic stress biomarkers measured in hair (HC and HDHEA). Additionally, a secondary objective was to explore sex differences in HC and HDHEA levels and their relationship with these psychological traits. We measured optimism, pessimism, and their combination (dispositional optimism) using the Life Orientation Test Revised (LOT-R) and chronic stress biomarkers (HC and HDHEA) in 119 healthy participants (46 men and 73 women) between 56 and 81 years old who belonged to a university program. Regression analyses controlling for perceived stress and BMI indicated that higher dispositional optimism was related to lower HC and HC:HDHEA (β = -0.256, p = .008 and β = -0.300, p = .002, respectively). More specifically, higher pessimism was related to higher HC (β = 0.235; p = .012) and HC:HDHEA (β = 0.240; p = .011), whereas higher optimism was associated with a lower HC:HDHEA(β = -0.205; p = .031). Moderation analyses showed no sex differences. To date, this is the first study to investigate the link between these traits and HC and HDHEA in older people. Our results confirm that positive and negative expectations about the future (i.e. optimism and pessimism) may play an important role in health due to their relationship with the HPA axis. They also strengthen the idea that the negative effects of pessimism have a greater weight than the protective effects of optimism in their relationship with HPA axis regulation.
Topics: Humans; Male; Female; Aged; Middle Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Hydrocortisone; Pessimism; Hypothalamo-Hypophyseal System; Pituitary-Adrenal System; Biomarkers; Hair; Dehydroepiandrosterone
PubMed: 38194858
DOI: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2023.105474 -
Journal of Affective Disorders Sep 2023Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a condition with poor treatment outcomes. Improved understanding of the aetiology can inform prevention and treatment approaches;... (Meta-Analysis)
Meta-Analysis Review
BACKGROUND
Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a condition with poor treatment outcomes. Improved understanding of the aetiology can inform prevention and treatment approaches; hence several studies have assessed early maladaptive schemas (EMSs) in OCD. This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to synthesise the evidence on relationships between the 18 EMSs and OCD.
METHODS
The study was conducted according to PRISMA guidelines and registered on PROSPERO (CRD42022329337). A systematic search of PubMed, PsycINFO, and CINAHL Complete was conducted on 4 June 2022. Studies in peer-reviewed journal articles were included if they assessed EMSs and OCD (diagnosis or symptom severity) in adults with a mean age of 18 years or older. Studies were excluded if they were not in English, did not include original quantitative data, or reported on case studies. Study details were tabulated and the meta-analysis findings were presented using forest plots. Methodological quality was assessed using the Appraisal tool for Cross-Sectional Studies (AXIS).
RESULTS
Based on 22 studies (pooled N = 3699), all 18 EMSs were positively correlated with OCD. The largest associations were with the dependence/incompetence (r = 0.40 95 % CI [0.32, 0.47]), vulnerability to harm or illness (r = 0.40 95 % CI [0.32, 0.48]), and negativity/pessimism schemas (r = 0.42 95 % CI [0.22, 0.58]).
LIMITATIONS
Several meta-analyses showed considerable heterogeneity and publication bias.
CONCLUSIONS
The findings suggest all EMSs, particularly those relating to disproportionate negative expectations and a perceived inability to cope, are implicated in OCD. Psychological prevention and treatment for OCD may benefit from targeting these schemas.
Topics: Adult; Humans; Adolescent; Cross-Sectional Studies; Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder; Treatment Outcome
PubMed: 37217101
DOI: 10.1016/j.jad.2023.05.053 -
Cognition Oct 2023Trait impressions about others are a fundamental tool to navigate the rich social environment and yet a unitary model of its organizational principles is still lacking....
Trait impressions about others are a fundamental tool to navigate the rich social environment and yet a unitary model of its organizational principles is still lacking. The statistical properties of impression formation observed in previous studies are akin to processes that govern information encoding and storage in memory, suggesting similar cognitive and computational mechanisms. Here, in 2,780 participants, impression formation has been formalized with a computational model representing three organizational principles of memory (temporal, semantic and valence-related). The model specifically captured two main patterns of impression formation: (1) a negative valence effect that makes negative impressions loom longer than positive ones; (2) an interaction effect between the temporal and valence content that endorses more negative impressions when negative information is met first. This work shows that mechanisms of information encoding, storage and retrieval interact in ways that explain biased impression formation about social partners, thereby providing quantitative evidence for those mechanisms in individuals' impressions of others' social qualities. We discuss the implications of these results for social impressions in different, real-world contexts, and suggest how the proposed model might be extended to capture other kinds of effects, from negativity bias and pessimism to social discrimination.
Topics: Humans; Social Perception; Attitude; Bias
PubMed: 37506516
DOI: 10.1016/j.cognition.2023.105550 -
Frontiers in Psychology 2023Positive and negative changes in outlook represent psychological changes that are the results of the cognitive processing of stressful and traumatic events by an...
BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES
Positive and negative changes in outlook represent psychological changes that are the results of the cognitive processing of stressful and traumatic events by an individual. The objectives of the study were (1) to determine the level of occurrence and types of positive and negative changes in connection with the COVID-19 pandemic among adults in Slovakia and (2) to study the role of personality factors such as hope (dispositional and perceived) and life orientation (optimism and pessimism) in the prediction of positive and negative changes in adults during the fourth pandemic wave.
METHODS
A Short Form of the Changes in Outlook Questionnaire (CiOQ-S), the Dispositional Hope Scale (DHS), the Perceived Hope Scale (PHS), and the Life Orientation Test (LOT-R) were administered. The research sample consisted of 102 participants, whose ages ranged from 20 to 65 years ( = 38.90, = 14.28). The research design was quantitative, exploratory, and confirmatory.
RESULTS
In total, 95% of participants reported positive changes related to COVID-19. Concurrently, up to 70% of these participants also reported negative changes from the impact of the pandemic. Only 25% of participants reported positive changes without noticing any negative perception of the consequences of the pandemic. Overall, 68% of participants reported negative changes related to COVID-19. Only 29% of participants reported negative changes without noticing any positive perception of the consequences of the pandemic. In total, up to 86% of participants agreed with experienced psychological changes (positive or negative) as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The high prevalence of positive changes along with the relatively high prevalence of negative changes related to the COVID-19 pandemic outline the question of whether reported positive changes represent real or illusory growth. Optimism and pessimism were found to be significant independent predictors of positive changes related to the COVID-19 pandemic. Hope was identified as a significant independent predictor of negative changes related to the COVID-19 pandemic.
PubMed: 37575434
DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1151027 -
Frontiers in Artificial Intelligence 2023We review and critically assess several issues arising from the potential -large-scale- implementation or deployment of Large Language Models (LLMs) in society. These...
We review and critically assess several issues arising from the potential -large-scale- implementation or deployment of Large Language Models (LLMs) in society. These include security, political, economic, cultural, and educational issues as well as issues concerning social biases, creativity, copyright, and freedom of speech. We argue, without a preconceived pessimism toward these tools, that they may bring about many benefits. However, we also call for a balance assessment of their downsides. While our work is only preliminary and certainly partial it nevertheless holds some value as one of the first exploratory attempts in the literature.
PubMed: 37396972
DOI: 10.3389/frai.2023.1130913 -
BMJ Open Quality Apr 2024The failed or partial implementation of clinical practices negatively impacts patient safety and increases systemic inefficiencies. Implementation of sepsis screening... (Review)
Review
INTRODUCTION
The failed or partial implementation of clinical practices negatively impacts patient safety and increases systemic inefficiencies. Implementation of sepsis screening guidelines has been undertaken in many settings with mixed results. Without a theoretical understanding of what leads to successful implementation, improving implementation will continue to be ad hoc or intuitive. This study proposes a programme theory for how and why the successful implementation of sepsis screening guidelines can occur.
METHODS
A rapid realist review was conducted to develop a focused programme theory for the implementation of sepsis screening guidelines. An independent two-reviewer approach was used to iteratively extract and synthesise context and mechanism data. Theoretical context-mechanism-outcome propositions were refined and validated by clinicians using a focus group and individual realist interviews. Implementation resources and clinical reasoning were differentiated in articulating mechanisms.
RESULTS
Eighteen articles were included in the rapid review. The theoretical domains framework was identified as the salient substantive theory informing the programme theory. The theory consisted of five main middle-range propositions. Three promoting mechanisms included positive belief about the benefits of the protocol, belief in the legitimacy of using the protocol and trust within the clinical team. Two inhibiting mechanisms included pessimism about the protocol being beneficial and pessimism about the team. Successful implementation was defined as achieving fidelity and sustained use of the intervention. Two intermediate outcomes, acceptability and feasibility of the intervention, and adoption, were necessary to achieve before successful implementation.
CONCLUSION
This rapid realist review synthesised key information from the literature and clinician feedback to develop a theory-based approach to clinical implementation of sepsis screening. The programme theory presents knowledge users with an outline of how and why clinical interventions lead to successful implementation and could be applied in other clinical areas to improve quality and safety.
Topics: Humans; Sepsis; Mass Screening
PubMed: 38684345
DOI: 10.1136/bmjoq-2023-002593 -
PLoS Computational Biology Dec 2023Positive and negative affective states are respectively associated with optimistic and pessimistic expectations regarding future reward. One mechanism that might...
Positive and negative affective states are respectively associated with optimistic and pessimistic expectations regarding future reward. One mechanism that might underlie these affect-related expectation biases is attention to positive- versus negative-valence features (e.g., attending to the positive reviews of a restaurant versus its expensive price). Here we tested the effects of experimentally induced positive and negative affect on feature-based attention in 120 participants completing a compound-generalization task with eye-tracking. We found that participants' reward expectations for novel compound stimuli were modulated in an affect-congruent way: positive affect induction increased reward expectations for compounds, whereas negative affect induction decreased reward expectations. Computational modelling and eye-tracking analyses each revealed that these effects were driven by affect-congruent changes in participants' allocation of attention to high- versus low-value features of compounds. These results provide mechanistic insight into a process by which affect produces biases in generalized reward expectations.
Topics: Humans; Motivation; Emotions; Pessimism; Generalization, Psychological; Reward
PubMed: 38127874
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pcbi.1011707 -
Knee Surgery, Sports Traumatology,... Sep 2023Personality traits, such as dispositional optimism and pessimism, have impact on a variety of health-related problems. Influence on outcome in total knee arthroplasty... (Clinical Trial)
Clinical Trial
PURPOSE
Personality traits, such as dispositional optimism and pessimism, have impact on a variety of health-related problems. Influence on outcome in total knee arthroplasty (TKA) could only be shown for other personality trait concepts, but not for dispositional optimism/pessimism. This study aims to examine the association of dispositional optimism/pessimism with pre-operative joint function and post-operative outcome in TKA.
METHODS
Data were acquired in a multicentre, cross-sectoral, prospective study (the PROMISE Trial). Patients were followed for 12 months post-operatively. Dispositional optimism/pessimism was measured pre-operatively via the revised Life Orientation Test (LOT-R), pre- and post-operative function was measured via the 12 Item Knee-osteoarthritis outcome Scores (KOOS-12). Log-linear regression models considering known confounders and t-test were carried out to show the association of LOT-R scores with pre- and post-operative KOOS-12 scores.
RESULTS
740 patients were analyzed. Optimistic LOT-R was significantly positively associated to the mean scores of KOOS-12 pre- and post-operative, while pessimistic LOT-R was significantly associated negatively (pre-operative: optimistic p = 0.001, pessimistic p = 0.001; post-operative optimistic: 3M p = 0.001, 6M p = 0.001, 12M p = 0.001; post-operative pessimistic: 3M p = 0.01, 6M p = 0.004, 12M p = 0.001).
CONCLUSION
Optimism was positively associated with pre-operative joint function and, more importantly, post-operative functional outcome in TKA, while pessimism was associated with the opposite. Assessing patients' general personality traits prior to surgery to identify pessimistic patients, hence being at risk for poor outcome in TKA, should be considered to react to the patients' special needs and possible pessimistic expectations, i.e., through a cognitive-behavioral intervention, to potentially increase optimism and hereby post-operative outcome in TKA.
LEVEL OF EVIDENCE
Prognostic Level III.
Topics: Humans; Arthroplasty, Replacement, Knee; Knee Joint; Personality; Pessimism; Prospective Studies
PubMed: 37147400
DOI: 10.1007/s00167-023-07434-8 -
Frontiers in Psychology 2023Cardiovascular reactivity refers to changes in blood pressure and heart rate in response to internal or external stimuli. Previous research has shown that excessively...
INTRODUCTION
Cardiovascular reactivity refers to changes in blood pressure and heart rate in response to internal or external stimuli. Previous research has shown that excessively high and low cardiovascular reactivity are associated with an increased risk of cardiac problems. Dispositional optimism has been associated with numerous health benefits, including better cardiovascular responses to stressors, and reduced mortality risk. Conversely, pessimism has been associated with negative health outcomes and worse cardiovascular reactivity to stress. Mood, comprising positive and negative affect, can significantly impact psychological adjustment and physical health. Therefore, it is important to consider mood as a potential confounding variable in the link between optimism and cardiovascular reactivity. The study hypothesized that optimism and pessimism would still influence cardiovascular reactivity even when mood variables were controlled for.
METHODS
A within-subjects correlational design with 107 young adult participants was used. Sociodemographic and clinical questionnaires were administered to collect information on participants' characteristics. The Dispositional Optimism Scale (LOT-R) and the Positive and Negative Affect Scale (PANAS) were used to assess participants' levels of optimism, pessimism, and mood. Measures of cardiovascular reactivity, including systolic blood pressure (SBP), diastolic blood pressure (DBP), and heart rate (HR), were taken during a stressor task (PASAT).
RESULTS
There is a moderate positive correlation between dispositional optimism and positive affect, while pessimism demonstrated a moderate positive association with negative affect. Linear regression analyses were conducted, controlling baseline reactivity variables, gender, and body mass index. The results showed that pessimism had a significant negative effect on SBP reactivity, suggesting that higher levels of pessimism decreased SBP response. Optimism had a significant positive effect on DBP reactivity, while pessimism had a significant negative effect.
DISCUSSION
Overall, these results suggest that dispositional optimism and pessimism are related to cardiovascular reactivity, even after controlling for positive and negative affect. Pessimism was associated with lower SBP reactivity, while both optimism and pessimism influenced DBP reactivity. These findings are consistent with previous research indicating that optimism enables more effective stress management during challenging events, whereas pessimism can serve as a risk factor, heightening the likelihood of experiencing future cardiac issued caused by blunted cardiovascular reactivity.
PubMed: 37908813
DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1233900