María J. Blanca

Subjective Sleep Quality and hormonal modulation in long-term yoga practitioners

Yoga represents a fascinating mind-body approach, wherein body movements (asana), breathing exercises (pranayama) and meditation are integrated into a single multidimensional practice. Numerous beneficial mental and physical effects have been classically ascribed to this holistic ancient method. The purpose of the present study has been to examine the effects of long-term yoga practice on Subjective Sleep Quality (SSQ) and on several hormonal parameters of the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis. Twenty-six subjects (16 experimental and 10 controls) were recruited to be part of the study. Experimental subjects were regular yoga practitioners with a minimum of 3 years of practice. Blood samples for the quantification of adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH), cortisol and dehydroepiandrosterone sulphate (DHEA-S) were drawn from all subjects. Likewise, the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) was employed to assess SSQ. As statistical analysis, Mann-Whitney U-test was performed. The yoga group displayed lower PSQI scores and higher blood cortisol levels than control subjects. Therefore, it can be concluded that long-term yoga practice is associated with significant psycho-biological differences, including better sleep quality as well as a modulatory action on the levels of cortisol. These preliminary results suggest interesting clinical implications which should be further researched.

New empirical evidence of the validity of the Chronic Pain Acceptance Questionnaire: The differential influence of activity engagement and pain willingness on adjustment to chronic pain

OBJECTIVE The aims of this study were to examine the internal structure of the Spanish version of the Chronic Pain Acceptance Questionnaire and present new empirical evidence regarding its validity. DESIGN AND METHODS A sample of 315 chronic pain patients attending a pain clinic completed a battery of instruments to assess pain acceptance, general psychological acceptance, depression, anxiety, pain intensity, functional impairment, and current functioning. RESULTS Confirmatory factor analysis supported the validity of a 20-item version with two subscales corresponding to two independent factors: Activity Engagement and Pain Willingness. Structural Equation Modelling showed that the association between pain intensity and anxiety and depression was fully mediated by Activity Engagement which partially mediated the association between pain intensity and functioning. Pain Willingness partially mediated the influence of pain intensity on functional impairment. CONCLUSIONS These findings indicate the differential influence of both components on adjustment to chronic pain.

Serum Cytokines, Mood and Sleep after a Qigong Program Is Qigong an Effective Psychobiological Tool?

Qigong is an ancient Chinese psychosomatic exercise that integrates movement, breathing and meditation into a single multifaceted practice. The present study was designed to assess the effects of qigong practice on serum cytokines, mood and subjective sleep quality. Experimental participants underwent a qigong training program for one month. Blood samples for the quantification of TNF-α and IFN-γ, and several instruments to assess anxiety and depression symptoms as well as SSQ, were obtained before and after the program. Our findings revealed that while the practice of qigong for one month did not alter serum cytokines, it enhanced psychological well-being, including sleep duration.

Using the linear mixed model to analyze nonnormal data distributions in longitudinal designs

Using a Monte Carlo simulation and the Kenward–Roger (KR) correction for degrees of freedom, in this article we analyzed the application of the linear mixed model (LMM) to a mixed repeated measures design. The LMM was first used to select the covariance structure with three types of data distribution: normal, exponential, and log-normal. This showed that, with homogeneous between-groups covariance and when the distribution was normal, the covariance structure with the best fit was the unstructured population matrix. However, with heterogeneous between-groups covariance and when the pairing between covariance matrices and group sizes was null, the best fit was shown by the between-subjects heterogeneous unstructured population matrix, which was the case for all of the distributions analyzed. By contrast, with positive or negative pairings, the within-subjects and between-subjects heterogeneous first-order autoregressive structure produced the best fit. In the second stage of the study, the robustness of the LMM was tested. This showed that the KR method provided adequate control of Type I error rates for the time effect with normally distributed data. However, as skewness increased—as occurs, for example, in the log-normal distribution—the robustness of KR was null, especially when the assumption of sphericity was violated. As regards the influence of kurtosis, the analysis showed that the degree of robustness increased in line with the amount of kurtosis.

Psychological values as protective factors against sexist attitudes in preadolescents

BACKGROUND Sexist attitudes are one of the factors that justify domestic violence. Positive psychology can provide keys to prevent sexist violence at an early age. Psychological values are a group of psychological strengths in a persons development. They provide important clues for the prevention of gender-based violence. METHOD This study presents an assessment of two groups of variables, sexist attitudes and beliefs and psychological values, in a sample of 449 (213 boys and 236 girls) preadolescents from various schools (mean age: 12). We analyze the relationship between these variables. We used the Values in Action Inventory (VIA-Y), the Questionnaire of Attitudes towards Diversity and Violence (CADV) and the Ambivalent Sexism Inventory (ASI). RESULTS The results show that sexism variables are related to each other and negatively to the psychological values in boys and girls. CONCLUSIONS We discuss the importance of prevention programs being appropriately developed and, probably, different programs for each sex.

MULTIAXIAL EVALUATION OF VIOLENT CRIMINALS

A multiaxial assessment and personality evaluation was performed on a group of 70 people (65 men and 5 women) who were recently incarcerated in Málaga, Spain for having committed violent crimes, such as murder and sex-based violence. Analysis of scores on the MCMI indicated that there were chiefly two clearly differentiated personality profiles related to two personality disorders present in the group, the antisocial and the dependent personality disorder with compulsive traits. The “antisocial-psychotic group” presented a clear relation with clinical syndromes, specifically alcohol and drug abuse with delusional disorder, and they had committed a higher proportion of murders. On the Big Five Questionnaire, the “dependent-compulsive group” scored higher than average on Emotional Stability and Agreeableness, whereas the antisocial-psychotic group scored lower than average on Emotional Stability. These findings are in accord with those of Megargee, who concluded that violent criminals can be divided into two categories, the undercontrolled (antisocial) and the overcontrolled (dependent).

The effect of skewness and kurtosis on the robustness of linear mixed models.

This study analyzes the robustness of the linear mixed model (LMM) with the Kenward–Roger (KR) procedure to violations of normality and sphericity when used in split-plot designs with small sample sizes. Specifically, it explores the independent effect of skewness and kurtosis on KR robustness for the values of skewness and kurtosis coefficients that are most frequently found in psychological and educational research data. To this end, a Monte Carlo simulation study was designed, considering a split-plot design with three levels of the between-subjects grouping factor and four levels of the within-subjects factor. Robustness is assessed in terms of the probability of type I error. The results showed that (1) the robustness of the KR procedure does not differ as a function of the violation or satisfaction of the sphericity assumption when small samples are used; (2) the LMM with KR can be a good option for analyzing total sample sizes of 45 or larger when their distributions are normal, slightly or moderately skewed, and with different degrees of kurtosis violation; (3) the effect of skewness on the robustness of the LMM with KR is greater than the corresponding effect of kurtosis for common values; and (4) when data are not normal and the total sample size is 30, the procedure is not robust. Alternative analyses should be performed when the total sample size is 30.

Wheelchair navigation with an audio-cued, two-class motor imagery-based brain-computer interface system

Driving a real wheelchair by means of a brain-computer interface (BCI) system must be a reliable option for locked-in patients. Such navigation should also be autonomous, i.e., not depending on a ground chart. In this work we test the feasibility of driving a customized robotic wheelchair with a BCI system that our group has used in previous studies with virtual and real mobile robots. The results obtained from a sample of three healthy naïve participants suggest that it is an effective option, which could ultimately provide locked-in patients with greater autonomy and quality of life.

Assessment of an Educational Program for Adolescents About Organ Donation and Transplantation

The aim of this study is to determine the effectiveness of an educational program in 157 students with a mean age of 15.36 years at three schools in Malaga. The program included the evaluation of two tests before and after four sessions in an intervention group as compared with a control group. The educational program on organ donation and transplantation led to very positive changes, raising the level of awareness and the number of persons prepared to donate their organs and those of their relatives, as well as the number of participants who discussed the matter at home. Finally, evaluation of this experience showed that inclusion of education about organ donation and transplantation in secondary education can be considered positive.

Daily stressors in school-age children: a multilevel approach.

This study uses hierarchical or multilevel modeling to identify variables that contribute to daily stressors in a population of schoolchildren. Four hierarchical levels with several predictive variables were considered: student (age, sex, social adaptation of the student, number of life events and chronic stressors experienced, and educational level of the father and mother), class (number of students per class), school (type of school), and province (number of inhabitants per province). Participants were 6,078 students from primary years 3-6 in the region of Andalusia (Spain). After conducting a multilevel regression analysis, the final fitted model was a random intercept and random slope model (at the school level) for the variable age, with the fixed factors being the variables social adaptation, life events and chronic stressors, and the educational level of the father and mother. This model yielded a specific profile of daily stressors in childhood: children with the highest levels of daily stressors are younger, present aggressive or inhibited behavior, have experienced more life events and chronic stressors, and have parents who did not complete their primary education. The results provide relevant information for the design of psychoeducational interventions in relation to childrens daily stressors.