Kristin Mitte

Meta-analysis of cognitive-behavioral treatments for generalized anxiety disorder: a comparison with pharmacotherapy.

The efficacy of (cognitive) behavioral therapy ([C]BT) for generalized anxiety disorder was investigated and compared with the efficacy of pharmacological therapy using meta-analytic techniques. A total of 65 (C)BT studies and pharmacological studies were included. (C)BT was more effective than control conditions. The results of the comparison between (C)BT and pharmacotherapy varied according to the meta-analytic methods used. Conclusions about differences in efficacy between therapy approaches are limited when all available studies are included owing to a number of factors that influence effect sizes. When only those studies that directly compared both therapies were included in the analysis, there were no significant differences in efficacy. Attrition rates were lower for (C)BT, indicating that it is better tolerated by patients.

Memory Bias for Threatening Information in Anxiety and Anxiety Disorders: A Meta-Analytic Review.

Although some theories suggest that anxious individuals selectively remember threatening stimuli, findings remain contradictory despite a considerable amount of research. A quantitative integration of 165 studies with 9,046 participants (clinical and nonclinical samples) examined whether a memory bias exists and which moderator variables influence its magnitude. Implicit memory bias was investigated in lexical decision/stimulus identification and word-stem completion paradigms; explicit memory bias was investigated in recognition and recall paradigms. Overall, effect sizes showed no significant impact of anxiety on implicit memory and recognition. Analyses indicated a memory bias for recall, whose magnitude depended on experimental study procedures like the encoding procedure or retention interval. Anxiety influenced recollection of previous experiences; anxious individuals favored threat-related information. Across all paradigms, clinical status was not significantly linked to effect sizes, indicating no qualitative difference in information processing between anxiety patients and high-anxious persons. The large discrepancy between study effects in recall and recognition indicates that future research is needed to identify moderator variables for avoidant and preferred remembering.

The costs of repression: a meta-analysis on the relation between repressive coping and somatic diseases.

OBJECTIVE When Freud introduced the term repression, he stated its pathogenic potential. Since then, this notion was adapted and continued to date. Surprisingly, there is no attempt to synthesize research on the effect of repressive coping on somatic diseases quantitatively. The current study closes this gap and examines the association between repressive coping as operationalized by Weinberger, Schwartz, and Davidson (1979) and the incidence of cancer, cardiovascular diseases, asthma, and diabetes by applying meta-analytic techniques. METHOD An extensive literature search identified 22 studies that met all inclusion criteria and assessed a total of 6,775 participants. The study set was analyzed both as a whole sample (k = 22 studies) and disease-specific (k = 2-10 studies; no study found for diabetes). RESULTS The results of the meta-analysis indicate a higher risk for repressive copers to suffer from one of the investigated diseases, especially cancer (logOdds after diagnosis: 0.41; 95% confidence interval, 0.09-0.73, p = .012) and hypertension (logOdds: 0.59; 95% confidence interval, 0.32-0.86, p < .0001). After application of a continuity correction due to a missing control group the results for coronary heart disease imply an increased risk for nonrepressors to be affected. Results for cardiovascular diseases in general, heart attack, and asthma did not reach significance. CONCLUSIONS The current meta-analysis revealed significant associations between repressive coping, cancer, and cardiovascular diseases, especially hypertension. These results add to the notion of repressive coping as a consequence of cancer as well as to its important role for the issue of hypertension.

A German Validation of the UPPS Impulsive Behavior Scale

The present research broadens the understanding of the multidimensional nature of impulsivity by investigating the validity of a German adaptation of the UPPS scale of impulsivity (Whiteside & Lynam, 2001). Two studies utilizing paper-pencil and computerized administration replicated the internal structure of the UPPS, provided evidence for convergent and discriminant validity utilizing self- and peer-reports, demonstrated incremental validity for the UPPS scale over the respective personality facets, and investigated the relationships between self-reported impulsivity and behavioral measures including perceptual speed and response latencies. Taken together, results not only confirm the reliability and validity of the German UPPS scale but also prove its benefit in predicting relevant criteria beyond well-established personality questionnaires. Significant but weak correlations with behavioral measures of cognitive aspects of impulsivity were particularly observed for (lack of) Premeditation and (lack of)...

The Relationship‐specific Interpretation Bias Mediates the Link between Neuroticism and Satisfaction in Couples

Neuroticism has repeatedly been shown to be a predictor of relationship dissatisfaction in couples. The aim of the current research was to uncover the underlying cognitive processes of this robust effect. We focused on anxiety as one aspect of neuroticism that is associated with different kinds of cognitive biases. On the basis of the assumption that biased information processing will also affect specific interpersonal contexts such as romantic relationships, it was expected that the tendency to interpret ambiguous partner and relationship scenarios in a rather negative way would work as a potential mediator. In Study 1, parallel forms of a new measure to capture the relationship–specific interpretation bias (RIB) were developed (N = 182). In Study 2, the proposed meditational role of the RIB was investigated in a dyadic sample of 210 couples. Dyadic analysis using the Actor–Partner Interdependence Mediation Model showed mediation of the interpretation bias even when the general interpretation bias and attachment styles were controlled. Results support the assumption that biased relationship–specific interpretations are one important mechanism for how neuroticism exerts its negative influence on relationship satisfaction. We conclude that personality–congruent cognitive processing may not only have individual consequences but also affect overall couple functioning. Copyright

Tell me who you are, and I will tell you how you feel?

Surprisingly little is known about the suggested mediator role of emotional intelligence and mood‐regulation regarding the relationship between personality and subjective well‐being. Three independent samples were administered to investigate whether EI and mood‐regulation served as mediators for subjective well‐being beyond personality. Using structural equation modelling, the authors demonstrated the superior role of extraversion and neuroticism in explaining satisfaction with life, happiness, positive and negative affect. Consistent mediation effects were found for the trait meta‐mood of repair. Contrary to expectations, the remaining variables (attention, clarity, self‐efficacy of affect regulation) did not mediate the relationship between personality and well‐being; neither did they show substantial incremental validity in explaining variance in SWB. Results are discussed with regard to methodological issues and practical implications. Copyright

Trait-disgust vs. fear of contamination and the judgmental bias of contamination concerns

Mechanisms by which trait-disgust, i.e. relatively stable individual differences in disgust proneness, affects anxious psychopathology are not well understood. A possible pathway might be the impact of trait-disgust on cognitive processes, which are involved in the anxiety disorders. The present study extends findings on interpretational and attentional bias by investigating the judgmental bias. Based on theories on disgust, it was assumed that trait-disgust is related to predictions of catching a disease. The present study examined the likelihood of becoming ill, the probability of avoidance behaviour, and the urge to wash in relation to disgust-sensitivity, disgust propensity, fear of contamination, and general anxiety using real-life scenarios. Results suggest that disgust-sensitivity makes a unique contribution to a judgmental bias additionally to fear of contamination and even when controlling general anxiety. Future research concerning the causal direction of this bias is warranted.

Measuring State Disgust

The aim of the present analysis was to develop and evaluate a state disgust questionnaire (Ekel-State-Fragebogen, ESF) in German, considering three student sample studies. Twenty-six items were constructed using information drawn from literature research and from the self-report of subjects after an induction of disgust. In Study 1, the questionnaire was given to 160 subjects after disgust induced by a film sequence and in a second session without induction. Study 2 had an experimental design where disgust or positive mood was induced by scents (60 subjects), followed by a state disgust measurement. Study 3, a repeated measure design, involved 102 subjects in whom disgust, fear, and neutral mood were induced by film sequences. Data from all three studies supported a one-factor solution. The ESF showed the highest means in disgust conditions. The correlations of the ESF with state anxiety (STAI State) ranged from .68 to .79, with trait disgust from .42 to .48 in disgust conditions, and with trait anxiety f...

Recent Decreases in Specific Interpretation Biases Predict Decreases in Neuroticism: Evidence From a Longitudinal Study With Young Adult Couples

Engaging in a romantic relationship represents one important life experience in young adulthood that has been shown to catalyze age-related decrease in neuroticism (Neyer & Lehnart, 2007). The current research builds directly on this finding by investigating one process that underlies the partnership effect. We focused on the relationship-specific interpretation bias (RIB; Finn, Mitte, & Neyer, 2013), which is the tendency to interpret ambiguous partner and relationship scenarios in a negative way. It was expected that the RIB decreases within relationships in young adulthood and that this decrease in turn predicts long-term declines in neuroticism. A sample of 245 young adult romantic couples was assessed four times across 9 months. Actor and partner effects of changes in the RIB on changes in neuroticism were analyzed using a dyadic dual change model. Recent time-to-time decreases in the RIB predicted ones own (actor effect) decline in neuroticism across 9 months. Similarly, there was a trend for a partner effect. We conclude that changes in biased relationship-specific interpretations reflect one unique process that contributes to the understanding of romantic relationship effects on personality development.

Seeing through the eyes of anxious individuals: An investigation of anxiety-related interpretations of emotional expressions

The interpretation of emotional states is necessary for successful social communication. Often individuals interpret emotional expressions intuitively and without full cognitive awareness. The aim of the present study was to test whether anxiety would influence affect interpretation in the manner suggested by interpretation bias—the tendency to interpret ambiguous cues in a threatening way. Interpretation of social cues was assessed with the similarity rating task (simtask) in two studies (n1 = 116, n2 = 76). The similarity ratings were analysed with a multidimensional scaling (MDS) approach, and the effects of anxiety on the interpretation of emotional expressions were analysed with multilevel modelling. The results of both studies showed evidence for an anxiety-related interpretation bias. High-anxious individuals tended to interpret milder threats as more negative than low-anxious individuals did. The consequences for anxiety research are discussed.