Diego Sarracino

Maternal depression and attachment: the evaluation of mother-child interactions during feeding practice.

Internal working models (IWMs) of attachment can moderate the effect of maternal depression on mother–child interactions and child development. Clinical depression pre-dating birthgiving has been found to predict incoherent and less sensitive caregiving. Dysfunctional patterns observed, included interactive modes linked to feeding behaviors which may interfere with hunger–satiation, biological rhythms, and the establishment of children’s autonomy and individuation. Feeding interactions between depressed mothers and their children seem to be characterized by repetitive interactive failures: children refuse food through oppositional behavior or negativity. The aim of this study was to investigate parenting skills in the context of feeding in mothers with major depression from the point of view of attachment theory. This perspective emphasizes parents’ emotion, relational and affective history and personal resources. The sample consisted of 60 mother–child dyads. Mothers were divided into two groups: 30 with Major Depression and 30 without disorders. Children’s age ranged between 12 and 36 months The measures employed were the Adult Attachment Interview and the Scale for the Evaluation of Alimentary Interactions between Mothers and Children. Insecure attachment prevailed in mothers with major depression, with differences on the Subjective Experience and State of Mind Scales. Groups also differed in maternal sensitivity, degrees of interactive conflicts and negative affective states, all of which can hinder the development of adequate interactive patterns during feeding. The results suggest that IWMs can constitute an indicator for the evaluation of the relational quality of the dyad and that evaluations of dyadic interactions should be considered when programming interventions.

Anxiety control and metacognitive beliefs mediate the relationship between inflated responsibility and obsessive compulsive symptoms

Research has indicated that beliefs about inflated responsibility, beliefs about perceived control over anxiety-related events and reactions (anxiety control) and metacognitive beliefs about the need to control thoughts are associated with obsessive compulsive symptoms. In the current study we tested a mediation model of the interactions between these variables in predicting obsessive compulsive symptoms. Thirty-seven individuals with obsessive compulsive disorder and 31 controls completed the following self-report instruments: the Responsibility Attitude Scale, the Anxiety Control Scale, the Beliefs about Need to Control Thoughts sub-scale of the Metacognitions Questionnaire 30, and the Padua Inventory. Mann-Whitney U tests revealed that participants in the clinical group scored significantly higher than those in the non-clinical group on all variables. In the mediation model we found that the relationship between beliefs about inflated responsibility and obsessive compulsive symptoms was fully mediated by anxiety control and beliefs about the need to control thoughts. These findings provide support for the significant role played by beliefs about control in predicting the severity of obsessive compulsive symptoms.

Childhood Traumatic Experiences and Dissociative Phenomena in Eating Disorders: Level and Association with the Severity of Binge Eating Symptoms

ABSTRACT The aim of the current study is to evaluate the presence of childhood trauma, psychoform, and somatoform dissociation in eating disorders (ED). Eighty-six ED outpatients participated in this study, 20 of them were diagnosed with restrictive anorexia (AN-R), 10 of them with anorexia nervosa binge-purging subtypes (AN-B), 25 with bulimia nervosa (BN), and 31 with binge eating disorder (BED). They were matched by sex and age with a control group consisting of 86 healthy subjects (HC). Traumatic experiences were assessed by means of the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ), psychological, and somatoform dissociation, respectively, by means of the Dissociative Experience Scale (DES-II) and Somatoform Dissociation Questionnaire (SDQ-20), and binge eating symptoms by means of Binge Eating Scale (BES). ED subjects showed higher levels of childhood trauma, and both psychoform and somatoform dissociation compared to HC subjects. ED patients showed higher levels of childhood trauma compared to the HC group. No significant differences were shown between ED subgroups with respect to all forms of childhood trauma. BN and AN-B subgroups showed higher levels of both psychological and somatoform dissociation. Dissociation and childhood trauma predicted the severity of binge eating symptoms. Our results confirm previous studies in the same field.

Attachment, social value orientation, sensation seeking, and bullying in early adolescence

In this study, bullying is examined in light of the “prosocial security hypothesis”— i.e., the hypothesis that insecure attachment, with temperamental dispositions such as sensation seeking, may foster individualistic, competitive value orientations and problem behaviors. A group of 375 Italian students (53% female; Mean age = 12.58, SD = 1.08) completed anonymous questionnaires regarding attachment security, social values, sensation seeking, and bullying behaviors. Path analysis showed that attachment to mother was negatively associated with bullying of others, both directly and through the mediating role of conservative socially oriented values, while attachment to father was directly associated with victimization. Sensation seeking predicted bullying of others and victimization both directly and through the mediating role of conservative socially oriented values. Adolescents’ gender affected how attachment moderated the relationship between sensation seeking and problem behavior.

L' intervista microanalitica nell'esplorazione della costellazione materna

RIASSUNTO: Obiettivo: Il presente studio si propone di indagare la prevalenza e l’evoluzione delle rap presentazioni riguardanti il bambino e dei temi della costellazione materna di donne in gravidanza, utiliz zando la procedura dell’Intervista Microanalitica. Metodo: Hanno partecipato allo studio 162 donne in gra vidanza, suddivise in tre sottogruppi, in base al periodo di gestazione ( 7 mesi). Le par tecipanti sono state intervistate impiegando la tecnica della “Breakfast Interview”, una particolare forma di Intervista Microanalitica. I resoconti dettagliati delle interviste sono stati sottoposti al giudizio di due valu tatori indipendenti, che rilevavano la presenza dei temi della costellazione materna utilizzando rating sca les a tre livelli (MIPS). Risultati e conclusioni: I risultati hanno evidenziato che le donne in gravidanza ri portavano punteggi significativamente maggiori in quasi tutte le subscale MIPS rispetto al gruppo delle ma dri. Sembra inoltre confermata l’ipotesi di un “picco” intorno al settimo mese, nella quantita e qualita delle rappresentazioni materne riguardo al bambino e nella salienza dei temi della costellazione materna. PAROLE CHIAVE: Costellazione materna, rappresentazioni in gravidanza, intervista microanalitica.

Trauma and dissociation in obese patients with and without binge eating disorder: A case – control study

Abstract The aim of the current study is to evaluate the presence of childhood trauma, psychological and somatoform dissociation in obese (OB) and overweight patients with and without binge eating disorder (BED). In total, 34 patients with BED diagnosis were compared with a sex, age and social class matched sample of 34 OB patients without diagnosis of BED and with a control sample consisting of 34 healthy people (NC) with normal weight. Traumatic experiences were assessed by means of the Traumatic Experiences Checklist. Psychoform and somatoform dissociation were assessed respectively by means of the Dissociation Questionnaire and Somatoform Dissociation Questionnaire. BED patients reported significantly more childhood traumatic experiences, psychological and somatoform dissociation, compared to OB patients and NC sample. Moreover, OB patients showed more traumatic experiences compared to the NC sample. BED patients showed higher levels of childhood neglect and emotional abuse compared to the OB patients and NC sample. No significant differences were shown between OB patients and NC subjects with respect to level of psychological and somatoform dissociation. Our results confirm the necessity of evaluating emotional abuse and neglect in adults with BED, and the importance of assessing psychoform and somatoform dissociation in these patients. Tailored treatment strategies based on trauma and dissociation may improve outcomes among patients with BED and a history of childhood trauma.

La costellazione materna in gravidanza:sviluppo del Motherhood Constellation Inventory (MCI)

Il presente studio si propone di elaborare un questionario self-report sulla costellazione materna in gravidanza (Motherhood Constellation Inventory, MCI) e di valutarne le caratteristiche psicometriche. Metodo: Hanno partecipato allo studio 257 donne italiane in attesa di un figlio, a cui e stata somministrata una batteria comprendente il MCI, un foglio informativo, la Maternal-Fetal Attachment Scale (MFAS), la Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (MSPSS), lo State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI-Y) e la Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS). Risultati: Il MCI ha mostrato buone proprieta psicometriche in termini di affidabilita e validita. I quattro fattori estratti mostrano una struttura fattoriale semplice, e corrispondono concettualmente ai quattro temi della costellazione materna. Tutte le scale correlano con l’attaccamento madre-feto e (a eccezione della relazionalita primaria) con ansia di stato, di tratto e depressione. Inoltre, le analisi di regressione hanno evidenziato che il MCI, nel suo complesso, ha un potere predittivo maggiore del MFAS sulle scale legate all’ansia e alla depressione. Conclusioni: Il MCI si propone come utile e pratico strumento di screening e prevenzione delle rappresentazioni disfunzionali in gravidanza e dei disturbi precoci della relazione madre-bambino.