Mesut Yavuz

Recognition of emotional facial expressions and broad autism phenotype in parents of children diagnosed with autistic spectrum disorder

OBJECTIVE Research findings debate about features of broad autism phenotype. In this study, we tested whether parents of children with autism have problems recognizing emotional facial expression and the contribution of such an impairment to the broad phenotype of autism. METHOD Seventy-two parents of children with autistic spectrum disorder and 38 parents of control group participated in the study. Broad autism features was measured with Autism Quotient (AQ). Recognition of Emotional Face Expression Test was assessed with the Emotion Recognition Test, consisting a set of photographs from Ekman & Friesens. RESULTS In a two-tailed analysis of variance of AQ, there was a significant difference for social skills (F(1, 106)=6.095; p<.05). Analyses of variance revealed significant difference in the recognition of happy, surprised and neutral expressions (F(1, 106)=4.068, p=.046; F(1, 106)=4.068, p=.046; F(1, 106)=6.064, p=.016). CONCLUSION According to our findings, social impairment could be considered a characteristic feature of BAP. ASD parents had difficulty recognizing neutral expressions, suggesting that ASD parents may have impaired recognition of ambiguous expressions as do autistic children.

Doğuştan Görme Engeli Olan Çocuk ve Ergenlerde Bağlanma Özellikleri ve Davranışsal Sorunlar

INTRODUCTION This study aimed to assess the behavioral problems and the attachment characteristics of children and adolescents with congenital blindness (CB). METHOD Forty children and adolescents aged 11-14 years with CB were included as the case group. Forty healthy children and adolescents who were matched for age, gender, and socioeconomic status with the case group served as the comparison group. Behavioral problems were assessed by the Child Behavior Checklist for ages 4-18 (CBCL 4/18). Attachment characteristics were assessed via the Short Form of Inventory of Parent and Peer Attachment (s-IPPA). RESULTS The case group had lower CBCL total problems scores as well as anxiety/depression, withdrawal/depression, and attention problems subscales scores with respect to the comparison group. There were no significant differences between the two groups in s-IPPA scores. CONCLUSION Children and adolescents with CB did not differ from the comparison group in terms of attachment, whereas, they had lower scores on behavioral problems than the comparison group. Although previous studies indicate that children and adolescents with CB may be at the risk of insecure attachment, our study suggested that adaptive mechanisms of their families together with professional help from specialized teachers and services provided by schools for children and adolescents with CB may play compensatory roles.

The relationships between problematic internet use, alexithymia levels and attachment characteristics in a sample of adolescents in a high school, Turkey

Abstract The aim of this study is to investigate the relationships between attachment characteristics, alexithymia and problematic internet use (PIU) in adolescents. The study was performed on 444 high school students (66% female and 34% male). Internet Addiction Test (IAT), Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-20) and Short Form of the Inventory of Parent and Peer Attachment (s-IPPA) scales were used. The adolescents who scored ≥50 on IAT were considered as the PIU group and <50 were considered as control group. There was a moderate positive relationship between TAS-20 and IAT scores (r = .441), and a moderate negative relationship between TAS-20 and s-IPPA scores (r = −.392), and a negative weak relationship between IAT and s-IPPA scores (r = −.208). S-IPPA scores were significantly lower in the PIU group compared to the controls (p < .001). TAS-20 scores of the PIU group were significantly higher compared to the controls (p < .05). Logistic regression analysis indicated that s-IPPA scores and TAS-20 significantly predict the PIU development (p < .05). The results indicate that alexithymia increases the risk of PIU and higher attachment quality is a protective factor for both alexithymia and PIU. These results suggest that it is important to focus on the insecure attachment patterns and alexithymic characteristics when studying adolescents with PIU.

Adolescent mental health, attachment characteristics, and unexplained chest pain: a case–control study

ABSTRACT OBJECTIVES: Psychological factors may be the underlying causes in unexplained chest pain (UCP). Chest pain symptom may influence the emotional status and peer relationships of the children and adolescents negatively. However, the number of studies focussing on the aetiology and consequences of the adolescent UCP are still limited. The aim of this study is to investigate the relationships among psychological problems, attachment characteristics, and the UCP in a group of adolescents. METHODS: Seventy-three adolescents with UCP and seventy-one healthy adolescents were included in the study. The adolescents completed the short form of Inventory of Parent and Peer Attachment (s-IPPA), and Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ), while their parents completed the parental form of the SDQ. RESULTS: Contrary to expectations, there was no significant interaction between total parental attachment levels and UCP in the adolescents with UCP. There were significant correlations between the attachment problems and total difficulties score of SDQ. Binary logistic regression analysis revealed that higher emotional and conduct problems and lower pro-social characteristics predict the UCP in adolescents, significantly. CONCLUSIONS: The results suggested that emotional/behavioural problems and lower pro-social behaviour scores are associated with UCP. However, further studies are needed for better understanding about the relationships between the UCP and attachment quality.

Investigating the relationships between alexithymia characteristics, meta-cognitive features and mental problems in high school students in Istanbul

Objective: To evaluate the relationships between alexithymic personality traits and meta-cognitive problems, and psychological and behavioral problems associated with alexithymia in adolescents. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted on 570 high school students (58% female, n=331; 42% male, n=239) in five high schools in Istanbul. Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-20), Meta-Cognition Questionnaire for Children and Adolescent (MCQ-C) and Strength and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) were used. The parents were asked to complete Socio-demographic Questionnaire. Statistical analysis was performed with SPSS 24 program and statistical significance level was set at p