Anne Scherer

Making sense of what you sense: Disentangling interoceptive awareness, sensibility and accuracy

Garfinkel and Critchley (2013) recently proposed a three level model of interoception. Only few studies, however, have empirically tested this theoretical model thus far. The present study aimed at investigating (1) the central assumptions of this model, i.e. that Accuracy, Sensibility and Awareness are distinguishable facets of interoception and that Interoceptive Accuracy is the basic level of interoception, and (2) whether cardiovascular activation (as indexed by heart rate) is differentially related to the three facets of interoception. Analyses were conducted on a total sample of N=159 healthy participants (118 female [74.2%]; mean age=23.9years, SD=3.3, range=19-45) who performed either the heartbeat tracking task, the heartbeat discrimination task or both. The results suggest that Accuracy, Sensibility and Awareness are empirically distinct facets of interoception, showing no correlation when based on heartbeat tracking, but moderate correlations when based on heartbeat discrimination. The assumption that Interoceptive Accuracy is the basic level of interoception could only be partially confirmed. Instead, we conclude that the level of objective physiological states should be considered as the most basic level of interoceptive signal processing.

Measuring decentering in self-reports: Psychometric properties of the Experiences Questionnaire in a German sample

Abstract Decentering is described as referring to ones current mental experiences from an objective perspective. This study presents a psychometric evaluation of a German version of the Experiences Questionnaire (EQ-D), a self-report instrument designed to measure decentering. Confirmatory factor analysis on a sample of 506 university students indicates acceptable-to-good model fit (χ 2=58.3; TLI=.92; CFI=.95; RMSEA=.067) for a second-order factor Overall Decentering comprising the two first-order factors Accepting Self-Perception and Distanced Perspective. Preliminary evidence for the validity of the EQ-D was demonstrated via negative correlations with measures of depression and depressive rumination. The present results stress the multidimensional nature of decentering and provide important suggestions for future research on how to investigate and operationalize the decentering construct.

Does cognitive behavior therapy alter emotion regulation in inpatients with a depressive disorder

Introduction Emotion regulation plays an important role in the development and treatment of depression. The present study investigated whether the emotion regulation strategies, expressive suppression (ES) and cognitive reappraisal (CR) change in the course of cognitive behavior therapy (CBT) of depressive inpatients. Furthermore, it also examined whether changes in CR and ES correlated with positive treatment outcomes. Methods Forty-four inpatients from a psychotherapeutic hospital who suffered from a depressive disorder (mean age =36.4 years, standard deviation =13.4 years; 63.6% female) filled in the Emotion Regulation Questionnaire and the Beck Depression Inventory at admission and discharge. To detect changes in emotion regulation, and depression across treatment, data were analyzed using multivariate analyses of variance (MANOVA) for repeated measures, effect sizes, and Spearman correlations. A P-value of ≤0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results Depression severity (F[1]=10.42, P=0.003; η2=0.22) and CR (F[1]=4.71, P=0.04; η2=0.11) changed significantly across CBT treatment. ES remained virtually stable. Post-treatment scores of CR were also positively correlated with reduction in depressive symptoms across treatment (ρ=0.30, P=0.05). Conclusion The results suggest that CBT affects emotion regulation in depressive inpatients only for CR and that higher post-treatment scores in CR were related to greater reduction in depressive symptoms across treatment.

The negative affect repair questionnaire: factor analysis and psychometric evaluation in three samples.

BackgroundNegative affect and difficulties in its regulation have been connected to several adverse psychological consequences. While several questionnaires exist, it would be important to have a theory-based measure that includes clinically relevant items and shows good psychometric properties in healthy and patient samples. This study aims at developing such a questionnaire, combining the two Gross [1] scales Reappraisal and Suppression with an additional response-focused scale called Externalizing Behavioral Strategies covering clinically relevant items.MethodsThe samples consisted of 684 students (mean age = 23.3, SD = 3.5; 53.6% female) and 369 persons with mixed mental disorders (mean age = 36.0 SD = 14.6; 71.2% female). Items for the questionnaire were derived from existing questionnaires and additional items were formulated based on suggestions by clinical experts. All items start with “When I don’t feel well, in order to feel better…”. Participants rated how frequently they used each strategy on a 5-point Likert scale. Confirmatory Factor Analyses were conducted to verify the factor structure in two separate student samples and a clinical sample. Group comparisons and correlations with other questionnaires were calculated to ensure validity.ResultsAfter modification, the CFA showed good model fit in all three samples. Reliability scores (Cronbach’s α) for the three NARQ scales ranged between .71 and .80. Comparisons between students and persons with mental disorders showed the postulated relationships, as did comparisons between male and female students and persons with or without Borderline Personality Disorder. Correlations with other questionnaires suggest the NARQ’s construct validity.ConclusionsThe results indicate that the NARQ is a psychometrically sound and reliable measure with practical use for therapy planning and tracking of treatment outcome across time. We advocate the integration of the new response-focused strategy in the Gross’s model of emotion regulation.

Emotion suppression, not reappraisal, predicts psychotherapy outcome.

Abstract Objectives: The aim of this study was to identify whether trait emotion regulation strategies predict successful or unsuccessful psychotherapy outcomes in cognitive behaviour therapy. Methods: Three emotion regulation strategies (reappraisal, suppression, and externalizing behaviour) were assessed in 358 in- and outpatients. Patients were then grouped by therapy outcome. Emotion regulation strategies and confounding variables were entered as predictors in multinomial logistic regression analyses. Results: Emotion suppression, but not reappraisal, was found to predict therapy outcomes for in- and outpatients, with patients high in suppression experiencing worse outcomes. Externalizing behaviour was only relevant in inpatient treatment. Conclusions: High suppression might be detrimental to psychotherapy outcome and should be assessed early on. Further research should investigate the influence of suppression on the mechanisms that facilitate change in psychotherapy.