Vincenzo Caretti

Traumatic experiences, alexithymia, and Internet addiction symptoms among late adolescents: A moderated mediation analysis.

The association between traumatic experiences, alexithymia, and substance abuse is well established. Less is known about the role of traumatic experiences and alexithymia in the onset and maintenance of Internet-related disorders. In the present study, self-report measures on traumatic experiences, alexithymia, and problematic Internet use were administered to 358 high school students (57% females) aged 18-19years old, to test whether alexithymic traits mediated the relationship between traumatic experiences and Internet addiction symptoms, and whether gender moderated the proposed mediation in the sample. While partial mediation occurred in the entire sample, gender directly affected the relationship between the investigated constructs: Internet addiction symptoms were independently related to traumatic experiences among males, and to alexithymic traits among females. Therefore, the results of this study suggest that trauma memories among males, and problems with affect regulation among females, may increase the risk of problematic Internet use during late adolescence. Such findings might have relevant implications to inform any treatment plan for late adolescent students who are overinvolved with online activities, pointing out that tailored approaches to their problems and difficulties are particularly needed in clinical practice.

Interpersonal and Affective Traits of Psychopathy in Child Sexual Abusers: Evidence from a Pilot Study Sample of Italian Offenders

It has been demonstrated that psychopathy is a crucial construct for the understanding of criminal and violent behavior. However, research on psychopathic traits among child sexual abusers is still scant. In this study, the Psychopathy Checklist–Revised was used to assess psychopathy in a group of 87 Italian, male inmates who were convicted of violent crimes. Child sexual abusers (N = 23) scored higher on the Psychopathy Checklist–Revised interpersonal-affective factor compared to participants who did not perpetrate child sexual abuse. Notably, child sexual abusers showed a very high average score on the Psychopathy Checklist–Revised affective dimension; furthermore, they showed high scores on the two Psychopathy Checklist–Revised items excluded from its two factors–four facets structure (i.e., the items denoting devaluation of intimate relationships). The results of this study may positively inform the development of treatment strategies for child sexual abusers.

Trauma-Related Dissociation Is Linked With Maladaptive Personality Functioning

Background: Extensive research has demonstrated the positive associations among the exposure to traumatic experiences, the levels of dissociation, and the severity of psychiatric symptoms in adults. However, it has been hypothesized in clinical literature that an excessive activation of the dissociative processes following multiple traumatic experiences may jeopardize the psychological and behavioral functioning of the individuals, fostering higher levels of maladaptive personality functioning. Methods: The study involved 322 adult volunteers from Italy. Participants completed measures on traumatic experiences, dissociation, and maladaptive personality traits. Results: The number of traumatic experiences reported by participants were positively associated with dissociation scores and maladaptive personality scores. Mediation analyses showed that dissociation acted as a partial mediator in the relationship between traumatic experiences and overall maladaptive personality functioning. Regression curve analyses showed that the positive association between maladaptive personality functioning and dissociation was stronger among participants with higher exposure to traumatic experiences. Conclusion: Exposure to multiple traumatic experiences may increase the risk for an excessive activation of the dissociative processes, which in turn may generate severe impairments in multiple domains of personality functioning.

Impulsivity, alexithymia and dissociation among pathological gamblers in different therapeutic settings: A multisample comparison study.

Since many psychopathological traits seem to be related to Gambling Disorder (GD), impulsivity, alexithymia and dissociation could play a central role in gambling behaviors, particularly in pathological gambling. We test this hypothesis in four distinct samples of gamblers, three undergoing different types of treatments and a control group. The study sample consists of 204 subjects (males 87.3%, mean age=47.75 years, SD=12.08) divided into four groups: (1) 59 subjects belonging to an Outpatients Treatment Program in the National Health System (NHS); (2) 60 subjects of an Outpatients Self-Help Group Program; (3) 35 subjects belonging to a Residential Treatment Program (Inpatients Program); and (4) 50 subjects without gambling problems (Control Group). Results show a positive relationship between gambling behaviors, impulsivity and alexithymia, and a negligible link between gambling behaviors and dissociation. Findings also display the presence of higher levels of all these features in pathological gamblers with higher scores on the SOGS, and particularly, in participants attending a Residential Treatment Program (Inpatients Program). This study confirms the hypothesis of the presence of higher levels of impulsivity, alexithymia and dissociation in pathological gamblers with a greater severity and seems to indicate a significant importance of impulsivity and alexithymia in predicting gambling behaviors.

Psychopathological features in a sample of substance-abusing individuals with criminal history: Towards a definition of a personality prototype of an ‘Addict with Criminal Conduct’

BACKGROUND The relationship between substance use disorders and criminal activity is strong, and one that is not easily resolved in the criminal justice system. A better understanding of personality traits among substance misusers who commit offences could support better treatment efforts. AIMS The aim of this study is to explore associations between the psychopathology of people addicted to substances who have also committed crimes. METHODS We recruited 263 substance-dependent individuals (80% male, 20% female) from a cohort of people attending regional community services in Italy. They all completed an extensive evaluation of their current mental health and personality traits. Their official criminal records were obtained, and the psychopathology of those who had a criminal record compared with those who did not. RESULTS The criminal group was more likely to perceive the external world as hostile and to consider others as responsible for their own problems and difficulties; in addition, substance-dependent individuals with criminal records showed more personality traits within the psychopathy range and fewer in the dependent personality range than the substance abusers who had never committed crimes. CONCLUSIONS These findings allow us to hypothesise that substance abusers who also have criminal convictions may have a specific personality profile. If further research were to confirm this, then it could have important implications for identifying people for particular treatment pathways and developing more effective treatments. Copyright

Il ruolo del trauma infantile nell’insorgenza del Binge Eating Disorder

Le esperienze di maltrattamento durante l’infanzia rappresentano degli eventi traumatici che possono portare allo sviluppo di disturbi internalizzanti e/o esternalizzanti in eta adulta. La presente ricerca indaga la presenza di esperienze traumatiche e di rappresentazioni di attaccamento di tipo insicuro in un gruppo di 40 donne con Binge Eating Disorder (BED). I risultati evidenziano che la maggior parte dei soggetti ha vissuto esperienze traumatiche di maltrattamento durante l’infanzia e presenta una rappresentazione di attaccamento di tipo insicuro. La difficolta nei processi di regolazione emotiva dei soggetti con BED sembrerebbe condurli all’utilizzo del cibo come regolatore dei propri stati emotivi negativi, in assenza di capacita autoregolative.

La diagnosi differenziale nella valutazione della psicopatia e del comportamento violento

La psicopatia e un disturbo di personalita definito dalla presenza di tratti e comportamenti che hanno un impatto negativo sugli individui e sulla societa, tra cui egocentrismo patologico, fascino superficiale, senso di se grandioso, bisogno di stimoli, uso patologico di menzogne e manipolazione, mancanza di rimorso e di senso di colpa, insensibilita, mancanza di empatia, impulsivita, irresponsabilita, tendenza alla criminalita. Sebbene il concetto di psicopatia sia da secoli discusso nella letteratura psichiatrica, la mancanza di una specifica categorizzazione nosografica nei manuali diagnostici, nonche l’erronea sovrapposizione con altri disturbi clinici (ad es., il disturbo antisociale di personalita, o il disturbo narcisistico di personalita nelle sue varianti maggiormente primitive e maligne), hanno contribuito a creare una certa confusione riguardo all’utilizzo appropriato di tale termine. In questo contributo, le caratteristiche della personalita psicopatica vengono confrontate con quelle di altri disturbi di personalita, allo scopo di chiarire quegli aspetti psicopatologici e comportamentali peculiari della psicopatia che consentono di effettuare una diagnosi differenziale rispetto ad altri disturbi psichiatrici. La distinzione tra psicopatia e altri disturbi risulta infatti necessaria, considerato che i soggetti psicopatici sollevano problematiche particolarmente complesse sul piano sociale, dell’assessment clinico e dell’eventuale trattamento, molto diverse da quelle poste da altre categorie diagnostiche con le quali la psicopatia potrebbe essere erroneamente confusa.