Bruno Baldaro

Adult attachment style and alexithymia

Abstract The focus of the present study was to investigate the relationship between adult attachment behaviour and alexithymia. Adult attachment behaviour and alexithymic characteristics were assessed using questionnaire methods. In a single session, 301 University students completed an Italian version of the Attachment Style Questionnaire (ASQ) and the Italian version of the 20-Item Toronto Alexithymia Scale. Moderate positive correlations were found among TAS total score and several ASQ subscales such as the Discomfort with Closeness (0.35), the Relationships as Secondary (0.38) and the Need for Approval (0.41). On the other hand, TAS total score and the Confidence subscale of the ASQ showed a moderate negative correlation (−0.45). These results provide interesting cues. Possible hypothetical explanations of this association are discussed. Further longitudinal researches are needed to better investigate the relationship between the sociocultural environment, deficiencies in mother–child relationship and the ease of confidence in intimacy in adulthood.

Watching emotional movies: Affective reactions and gender differences

Previous studies have found that unpleasant film clips depicting mutilated bodies or injuries evoke a sustained heart rate deceleration which has been interpreted as reflecting a stimulus-specific aversive response or as increased orienting and attentional processing that varies with stimulus significance. Few studies, however, have examined cardiac changes during the viewing of high arousal pleasant films. To clarify this issue, the present study assessed evaluative, facial and autonomic reactions in both men and women during the viewing of highly arousing pleasant, as well as unpleasant, films. Results indicated a similar skin conductance increase and heart rate deceleration which were greater than those observed during the viewing of a neutral film. Compared to men, women rated both films as less pleasant and rated the unpleasant film as more arousing. The present findings suggest that sustained exposure to pleasant and unpleasant stimuli elicit similar cardiac orienting when stimuli are equated for subjective report of emotional arousal.

Alexithymia in female patients with eating disorders

Previous studies indicate that patients with eating disorders have alexithymic characteristics, as revealed by the Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS). The aim of the present study was to investigate the role of negative affect (anxiety and depression) in the relationship between eating disorders and alexithymia. In addition, we have evaluated whether the relationship between negative affect and alexithymia varies according to the type of eating disorder (anorexia and bulimia). Eighteen female patients and 16 female patients who met the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders-Fourth Edition (DSM-IV) diagnostic criteria for restrictive anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa, respectively, and 18 healthy female controls matched by age and education were submitted to Beck Depression Inventory and Spielberger State-Trait Anxiety Inventory to assess depression and anxiety and the Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-20) and the Bermond Vorst Alexithymia Questionnaire (BVAQ) to evaluate alexithymic characteristics. The findings indicated that, although anorexic and bulimic patients showed higher alexithymia scores compared to controls, this result could be mainly related to negative affect. In fact, taking negative affect into account, anorexic and bulimic patients did not show higher TAS-20 and BVAQ scores compared to controls. The only variable useful to discriminate among anorexics, bulimics and controls is the perceived inability to experience emotional feelings, which is higher in anorexic patients compared to the other two groups.

Emotional perception and neuroendocrine changes

The present study was designed to investigate the neuroendocrine modifications during affective states. In particular, we investigate if the pleasantness of the stimuli has a different effect on neuroendocrine responses. To address this issue, we compared the effects of pleasant, neutral, and unpleasant pictures on catecholamine, adrenocorticotrophic hormone (ACTH), cortisol, and prolactin plasma levels. Ten male participants were submitted to three experimental sessions, each on one of the three experimental days, a week apart in a counterbalanced order. Although in the subjective arousal rating, pleasant (erotic pictures) and unpleasant stimuli (pictures of mutilated bodies) receive the same high score, a different neuroendocrine pattern was obtained: unpleasant stimuli elicited a decrease in prolactin concentration and increases in noradrenaline, cortisol, and ACTH levels, whereas pleasant slide set viewing induced an increase in prolactin levels. The results suggest that the neuroendocrine system responds selectively to affective motivationally relevant pictures.

Neuroendocrine responses to experimentally-induced emotions among abstinent opioid-dependent subjects

The present study investigated neuroendocrine and cardiovascular changes during experimentally-induced affective states in abstinent heroin-dependent subjects and healthy controls. The procedure for eliciting emotions in all subjects used pleasant and unpleasant stimuli that did not differ in subjective arousal properties. We investigated whether the valence of the stimuli differentially affected neuroendocrine responses by comparing neutral, pleasant and unpleasant pictures on heart rate (HR), systolic (SBP) and diastolic blood pressure (DBP), methyl-OH-phenyl-glycol (MHPG), norepinephrine (NE), epinephrine (EPI), adrenocorticotrophic hormone (ACTH) and cortisol (CORT) plasma levels. Twelve abstinent heroin-dependent subjects, in comparison with 12 control subjects, were submitted to three experimental sessions, each on one of three experimental days a week apart, in counterbalanced order: day 1=unpleasant pictures, day 2=pleasant pictures, day 3=neutral pictures. In the rating of subjective arousal pleasant and unpleasant stimuli received the same high score in comparison with neutral stimuli; a different cardiovascular and neuroendocrine pattern was obtained in healthy subjects: unpleasant stimuli elicited increases in HR, SBP, MHPG, NE, ACTH, CORT, whereas neutral and pleasant stimuli did not induce any significant response in hormonal levels. In contrast, in heroin addicts, despite increased perceptions of unpleasantness, HR, SBP, MHPG and NE levels did not increase after disliked stimuli; these subjects also reported increased arousal during exposure to neutral stimuli. In comparison with controls, addicted individuals showed higher CORT and ACTH basal levels, and a consequent lack of response to unpleasant stimuli. The results indicate that neuroendocrine and cardiovascular systems respond selectively to affective, motivationally relevant stimuli, and that substance use disorders may be associated with dysregulation of emotion-processing mechanisms.

Deficit in the discrimination of nonverbal emotions in children with obesity and their mothers

OBJECTIVE: Referring to the alexithymia construct and Bruchs clinical observations, this study investigated the ability to decode nonverbal signs of emotion in obese boys and girls, and their mothers.METHOD: A group of 10 boys and 11 girls with obesity and their mothers, and a control group were tested. Both mothers and children were asked to recognize a set of 32 brief film sequences interpreted by four actors expressing four emotions (anger, sadness, fear, happiness) with two intensity levels. Each sequence was presented first without sound, second without video, and finally with video and sound.RESULTS: As expected, boys and girls suffering from obesity and their mothers showed a reduced ability to decode visual and verbal signs of emotion compared to the control group.DISCUSSION: This result may be interpreted in accordance with the alexithymia construct, and suggests the importance of developing therapeutic strategies to face alexithymic characteristics in obese children and their mothers.

FIVE-YEAR FOLLOW-UP OF COSMETIC RHINOPLASTY

The psychological impact of rhinoplasty for aesthetic reasons on psychological well-being is controversial. The aim of the present study is to assess short- and long-term psychological changes in patients who underwent rhinoplasty. Seventy-nine patients, without traumatic lesions, who presented for cosmetic surgery, completed the MPI scales for Neuroticism and Extroversion and the IPAT scale for Anxiety, 3 months before and 6 months and 5 years after surgery. Results showed a significant decrease of anxiety and neuroticism in both postoperative evaluations and an increase on the Extroversion scale only at the 6-month follow-up. Psychological distress persisted in most patients after the operation.

Short-term outcome of rhinoplasty for medical or cosmetic indication.

Psychological effects of rhinoplastic operations were evaluated in male and female patients who had sought surgical correction because of psychological distress caused by the appearance of the nose or because of a medical referral to correct functional disorders. Seventy-two patients selected by gender and operation motivation were asked to fill out the MPI and the IPAT Anxiety scale 2-3 months before and 8 months after the operation. Results at follow-up highlighted a significant decrease of the mean Neuroticism and Anxiety scores and an increase in Extroversion scores in the group as a whole. The psychological benefits gained by the female patients were greater than those of the males. Patients whose motivation was exclusively aesthetic were, overall, more psychologically distressed than those with a functional motivation.

Maternal attitudes and attachment styles in mothers of obese children

This study evaluated categories of attachment style and the maternal attitude toward educational role in a sample of 30 mothers of obese children and a control group of 80 mothers of children of normal weight. All mothers completed the 1994 Attachment Style Questionnaire and the 1958 Parental Attitude Research Instrument. 30 mothers (M age 37.4 yr., range 31 to 54 years; M yr. of education 11.6, range 5 to 18 years) of obese children (range 30 to 60% above normal weight) and a control group of 80 mothers (M age 37.1 yr., range 29 to 52 years; M yr. of schooling 11.4, range 5 to 18 years) of children with normal weight were contacted at the primary school attended by their children and joined the project voluntarily. Age and number of years of education were not significantly different between the two groups of women. There was a significant prevalence of the Insecure Attachment Style in the group of mothers with obese children (66.6%) as compared to the control group of mothers of children of normal weight (38.5%) and significantly higher scores on 6 subscales of the Parental Attitude Research Instrument of Obese compared to Nonobese children. These data indicate that obese childrens mothers tend to make the family their exclusive centre of interest. They also tend to dedicate themselves to their children with possessiveness and hyperprotection. They seem to have an insistent requirement of idealisation of their own role as parent and reward expectations that confirm the efficiency of the care they provide their children. Consequently, these findings suggest that in addition to dietetic treatment, it may be important to include a psychological intervention, which involves the mother and aims to modify the relational dynamics between the mother and her obese child.

Facial Expressions of Emotions: Recognition Accuracy and Affective Reactions During Late Childhood

ABSTRACT The present study examined the development of recognition ability and affective reactions to emotional facial expressions in a large sample of school-aged children (n = 504, ages 8–11 years of age). Specifically, the study aimed to investigate if changes in the emotion recognition ability and the affective reactions associated with the viewing of facial expressions occur during late childhood. Moreover, because small but robust gender differences during late-childhood have been proposed, the effects of gender on the development of emotion recognition and affective responses were examined. The results showed an overall increase in emotional face recognition ability from 8 to 11 years of age, particularly for neutral and sad expressions. However, the increase in sadness recognition was primarily due to the development of this recognition in boys. Moreover, our results indicate different developmental trends in males and females regarding the recognition of disgust. Last, developmental changes in affective reactions to emotional facial expressions were found. Whereas recognition ability increased over the developmental time period studied, affective reactions elicited by facial expressions were characterized by a decrease in arousal over the course of late childhood.