Enrico Benelli

Emotional and cognitive processing of narratives and individual appraisal styles: recruitment of cognitive control networks vs. modulation of deactivations

Research in psychotherapy has shown that the frequency of use of specific classes of words (such as terms with emotional valence) in descriptions of scenes of affective relevance is a possible indicator of psychological affective functioning. Using functional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), we investigated the neural correlates of these linguistic markers in narrative texts depicting core aspects of emotional experience in human interaction, and their modulation by individual differences in the propensity to use these markers. Emotional words activated both lateral and medial aspects of the prefrontal cortex, as in previous studies of instructed emotion regulation and in consistence with recruitment of effortful control processes. However, individual differences in the spontaneous use of emotional terms in characterizing the stimulus material were prevalently associated with modulation of the signal in the perigenual cortex, in the retrosplenial cortex and precuneus, and the anterior insula/ventrolateral prefrontal cortex. Modulation of signal by the presence of these textual markers or individual differences mostly involved areas deactivated by the main task, thus further differentiating neural correlates of these appraisal styles from those associated with effortful control. These findings are discussed in the context of reports in the literature of modulations of deactivations, which suggest their importance in orienting attention and generation of response in the presence of emotional information. These findings suggest that deactivations may play a functional role in emotional appraisal and may contribute to characterizing different appraisal styles.

Hermeneutic single case efficacy design: A systematic review of published research and current standards

This article systematically reviews the methodological characteristics of Hermeneutic Single Case Efficacy Design (HSCED) studies published in peer-reviewed journals. HSCED provides researchers with a flexible and viable alternative to both between-groups and within-subject experimental designs. This article includes a description of the evolution of the methodology distinctive to HSCED; a discussion of results of HSCED studies considered within a framework of contemporary standards and guidelines for systematic case study research; a presentation of recommendations for key characteristics (e.g., diagnosis, hermeneutic analysis, adjudication procedure). Overall, the aim is provide researchers and reviewers with a resource for conducting and evaluating HSCED research. The results of a systematic review of 13 studies suggests that published HSCED research meets contemporary criteria for systematic case study research. Hermeneutic analysis and adjudication emerged as areas of HSCED practice characterized by a diversity of procedures. Although consensus exists along key dimensions of HSCED, there remains a need for further evaluation of adjudication procedures and reporting standards.

Impact on children of a parent with ALS: a case-control study

Background: Numerous studies have explored how patients and their caregivers cope with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), but the literature completely lacks research on the psychological impact of the disease on patients’ children. The aim of our study was to investigate the emotional and psychological impact of a parent with ALS on school-age children and adolescents in terms of problem behavior, adjustment, and personality characteristics. Methods: The study involved 23 children (mean age = 10.62 years, six females) with a parent suffering from ALS, and both their parents. Children were matched for age, gender, and birth-order with a control group of children with healthy parents. They were administered the Youth Self Report (YSR) questionnaire and the Rorschach Comprehensive System, and their healthy parent completed the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL). Results: Findings clearly showed that, compared with controls, children with a parent who had ALS had several clinically significant adverse emotional and behavioral consequences, with emotional and behavioral problems, internalizing problems, anxiety and depressive symptoms. Children of a parent with ALS scored higher than controls for the Total Problems, Internalizing Problems, Anxious/Depressed and Withdrawn/Depressed scales in the YSR. A relevant percentage of children fell within the clinical range (42.9%) and borderline range (28.6%) for Internalizing Problems. The Rorschach CS confirmed the substantial impact of ALS in a parent on their offspring in terms of internalizing behavior and depression, with adjustment difficulties, psychological pain, and thought problems. Conclusion: Our findings indicate that school-aged children and adolescents with a parent who has ALS are vulnerable and carry a substantially higher risk of internalizing behavior, depressive symptoms, and reactive problems than children with healthy parents. Families affected may need support to cope with such an overwhelming disease.

Attachment-security prime effect on skin-conductance synchronization in psychotherapists: An empirical study.

Physiological synchronization (PS) is a phenomenon of simultaneous activity between two persons’ physiological signals. It has been associated with empathy, shared affectivity, and efficacious therapeutic relationships. The aim of the present study was to explore the possible connections between PS and the attachment system, seeking preliminary evidence of this link by means of an experimental manipulation of the sense of attachment security in psychotherapists according to a protocol by Mikulincer and Shaver (2001), which has been proven to elicit empathetic behavior. We compared the synchronization of skin-conductance signals in brief psychological interviews between 18 psychodynamic therapists and 18 healthy volunteers. A sense of attachment-security priming was administered to half of the therapists, whereas the other half received a positive-affect control prime. Lag analysis was performed to investigate the “leading” or “following” attitudes of the participants in the two conditions. Mixed-model regressions and evidence-ratio model comparisons were used to investigate the effects of the manipulation on PS. Therapist attachment anxiety and avoidance traits were considered covariates. The attachment-security prime showed a significant effect on PS lag dynamics, but not on overall PS amount. Lag analysis showed that the therapists in the attachment-security condition were significantly more prone to assume a leading attitude in the physiological coupling than the therapists in the control condition. Therapist attachment anxiety and avoidance had no apparent effect. Our result paves the way for further exploration of the clinical relationship from a physiological standpoint.