A trait emotional intelligence perspective on schema modes.

Schema modes (or modes) are a key concept in the theory underlying schema therapy. Modes have rarely been related to established models of personality traits. The present study thus investigates the associations between trait emotional intelligence (TEI) and 14 modes, and tests a global TEI-mode factors-general psychological distress mediation model. The study draws on self-report data from 173 inpatients from a German clinic for psychosomatic medicine. Global TEI correlated positively with both healthy modes (happy child and healthy adult) and negatively with 10 maladaptive modes. When modes were regressed on the four TEI factors, six (emotionality), five (well-being), four (sociability), and four (self-control) significant partial effects on 10 modes emerged. In the parallel mediation model, the mode factors internalization and compulsivity fully mediated the global TEI-general psychological distress link. Implications of the results for the integration of modes with traits in general and with TEI in particular as well as implications of low TEI as a transdiagnostic feature of personality malfunctioning are discussed.

Mindfulness to regulate emotions: The Mindfulness and Emotional Intelligence Program (PINEP) and its adaptation to a virtual learning platform.

The present study examines the effect of the Mindfulness and Emotional Intelligence Program (PINEP), adapted to the virtual learning platform Moodle where participants receive Mindfulness training in 12 sessions lasting an hour and a half. The sample consists of 89 people, assigned randomly to a control group on the waiting list and to an experimental group that undertakes the training. The results indicate that the participants who completed PINEP showed improvement in the variables of health, empathy and mindfulness, in comparison with the participants of the group on the waiting list.

Modulating affective experience and emotional intelligence with loving kindness meditation and transcranial direct current stimulation: A pilot study.

Positive emotional perceptions and healthy emotional intelligence (EI) are important for social functioning. In this study, we investigated whether loving kindness meditation (LKM) combined with anodal transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) would facilitate improvements in EI and changes in affective experience of visual stimuli. LKM has been shown to increase positive emotional experiences and we hypothesized that tDCS could enhance these effects. Eighty-seven undergraduates were randomly assigned to 30 minutes of LKM or a relaxation control recording with anodal tDCS applied to the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (left dlPFC) or right temporoparietal junction (right TPJ) at 0.1 or 2.0 milliamps. The primary outcomes were self-reported affect ratings of images from the International Affective Picture System and EI as measured by the Mayer, Salovey and Caruso Emotional Intelligence Test. Results indicated no effects of training on EI, and no main effects of LKM, electrode placement, or tDCS current strength on affect ratings. There was a significant interaction of electrode placement by meditation condition (p = 0.001), such that those assigned to LKM and right TPJ tDCS, regardless of current strength, rated neutral and positive images more positively after training. Results suggest that LKM may enhance positive affective experience.

Neural mechanisms of emotion regulation and their role in endocrine and immune functioning: A review with implications for treatment of affective disorders.

In the past century, medical progress has helped increase life expectancy and improve health outcomes more generally. Despite this progress, psychiatric disorders-especially affective disorders including depressive and anxiety disorders-are quite common and have been linked to dysfunction in endocrine and immune systems. In this review, we discuss neurobiological correlates of emotion regulation strategies and their effects on mental and physical health. Some of these correlates, namely sub-regions of prefrontal cortex, also play a key regulatory role in autonomic, endocrine, and immunological processes. Given this functional overlap, we propose a novel neuro-immuno-affective framework that targets improving emotion regulation, in order to: (1) reduce negative affect associated with depressive and/or anxiety disorders; and (2) alter endocrine and immune system functioning (e.g., reduce inflammation)-via changes in activity within (and connectivity between) brain systems that support (successful) emotion regulation. We conclude by arguing that such a framework can be adapted for psychiatric treatment protocols that holistically incorporate neural and immunological biomarkers to promote mental and physical health.

Low-grade inflammation decreases emotion recognition - Evidence from the vaccination model of inflammation.

The ability to adequately interpret the mental state of another person is key to complex human social interaction. Recent evidence suggests that this ability, considered a hallmark of 'theory of mind' (ToM), becomes impaired by inflammation. However, extant supportive empirical evidence is based on experiments that induce not only inflammation but also induce discomfort and sickness, factors that could also account for temporary social impairment. Hence, an experimental inflammation manipulation was applied that avoided this confound, isolating effects of inflammation and social interaction. Forty healthy male participants (mean age = 25, SD = 5 years) participated in this double-blind placebo-controlled crossover trial. Inflammation was induced using Salmonella Typhi vaccination (0.025 mg; Typhim Vi, Sanofi Pasteur, UK); saline-injection was used as a control. About 6 h 30 m after injection in each condition, participants completed the Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test (RMET), a validated test for assessing how well the mental states of others can be inferred through observation of the eyes region of the face. Vaccination induced systemic inflammation, elevating IL-6 by +419% (p < .001), without fever, sickness symptoms (e.g., nausea, light-headedness), or mood changes (all p's > .21). Importantly, compared to placebo, vaccination significantly reduced RMET accuracy (p < .05). RMET stimuli selected on valence (positive, negative, neutral) provided no evidence of a selective impact of treatment. By utilizing an inflammation-induction procedure that avoided concurrent sicknesses or symptoms in a double-blinded design, the present study provides further support for the hypothesis that immune activation impairs ToM. Such impairment may provide a mechanistic link explaining social-cognitive deficits in psychopathologies that exhibit low-grade inflammation, such as major depression.

Developing professional caregivers' empathy and emotional competencies through mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR): results of two proof-of-concept studies.

OBJECTIVES: To assess the feasibility and acceptability of a mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR)-based intervention and determine if the intervention is associated with a significant signal on empathy and emotional competencies. DESIGN: Two pre-post proof-of-concept studies. SETTING: Participants were recruited at the University of Montreal's Psychology Department (Study 1) and the CHU Sainte-Justine Department of Hematology-Oncology (Study 2). PARTICIPANTS: Study 1: 12 students completed the 8-week programme (mean age 24, range 18-34). Study 2: 25 professionals completed the 8-week programme (mean age 48, range 27-63). INTERVENTION: Standard MBSR programme including 8-week mindfulness programme consisting of 8 consecutive weekly 2-hour sessions and a full-day silent retreat. OUTCOMES MEASURES: Mindfulness as measured by the Mindful Attention Awareness Scale; empathy as measured by the Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI)'s Perspective Taking and Empathic Concern subscales; identification of one's own emotions and those of others as measured by the Profile of Emotional Competence (PEC)'s Identify my Emotions and Identify Others' Emotions subscales; emotional acceptance as measured by the Acceptance and Action Questionnaire-II (AAQ-II) and the Emotion Regulation Scale (ERQ)'s Expressive Suppression subscale; and recognition of emotions in others as measured by the Geneva Emotion Recognition Test (GERT). RESULTS: In both studies, retention rates (80%-81%) were acceptable. Participants who completed the programme improved on all measures except the PEC's Identify Others' Emotions and the IRI's Empathic Concern (Cohen's d median=0.92, range 45-1.72). In Study 2, favourable effects associated with the programme were maintained over 3 months on the PEC's Identify my Emotions, the AAQ-II, the ERQ's Expressive Suppression and the GERT. CONCLUSIONS: The programme was feasible and acceptable. It was associated with a significant signal on the following outcomes: perspective taking, the identification of one's own emotions and emotional acceptance, thus, justifying moving towards efficacy trials using these outcomes.

Impact of the mindful emotional intelligence program on emotional regulationm in college students

The present study tests the effectiveness of the Mindful Emotional Intelligence Program (PINEP) that appeared from the fusion of two concepts; emotional intelligence and mindfulness. The program was given as training to 136 college students during a two-month period. The purpose of the study was to determine the impact of (PINEP) and to know how students regulate their emotions. Student emotional behavior was evaluated before and after the PINEP program was carried out using self-report measures selected for their reliability. These were, burnout, engagement, neuroticism, extroversion, emotional regulation, and empathy. The results showed moderate significant differences (Cohen’s d) in the dimension of extroversion, burnout, engagement, refocus on planning, positive reappraisal, putting into perspective and empathy. The outcome pointed toward favorable changes in relation with the program PINEP as the students showed significant changes in the way they regulated their emotions after the training (AU)

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Outcomes of MBSR or MBSR-based interventions in health care providers: A systematic review with a focus on empathy and emotional competencies.

BACKGROUND: Emotional competencies are extremely important for healthcare providers exposed to patients' suffering. The effect of mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) has been studied in this population. However, it is unclear whether capacities identified as core for care are modified favourably by this intervention. OBJECTIVES: (1) To identify outcomes in studies on the effect of MBSR in healthcare providers. (2) To evaluate the impact of MBSR on these outcomes. (3) To assess current knowledge on whether capacities central to care are positively impacted by MBSR: empathy, identification of one's own emotions, identification of other's emotions and emotional acceptance. METHODS: We performed a systematic review on interventional studies published up to 2015 evaluating the effect of MBSR in healthcare professionals. A subset of studies including empathy and emotional competencies was assessed for bias following current methodological standards. RESULTS: Thirty nine studies were identified. 14/39 studies measured empathy or some form of emotional competence in healthcare providers. Evidence regarding the effects of MBSR in professionals suggests this intervention is associated with improvements in burnout, stress, anxiety and depression. Improvements in empathy are also suggested but no clear evidence is currently available on emotional competencies. CONCLUSIONS: High quality evidence is available on the effect of MBSR on professionals' mental health. However, while some emotional competencies have been identified as being of major importance for high quality care, they are still scarcely studied. Studying these outcomes is important, as it may help explain how mindfulness contributes to professionals' mental health and thus help develop targeted interventions.

¿Pueden el coaching, la inteligencia emocional y la programación neurolingüística (PNL) aportar herramientas útiles para potenciar la autoeficacia en la deshabituación del tabaquismo? La visión de los profesionales / ¿Can coaching, emotional intelligence and neurolingustic programming (NLP) provide useful tools to strengthen self-efficacy in smoking cessation? The view of the professionals

Se trata de un estudio que describe la utilidad que da un grupo de profesionales de medicina y enfermería a la formación en coaching, inteligencia emocional y PNL (programación neurolingüística) como herramientas para potenciar la autoeficacia de los pacientes sometidos a tratamiento para su tabaquismo. Objetivos. El objetivo principal de este trabajo es conocer el perfil y opinión de los profesionales que muestran interés hacia ese tipo de formación. Material y métodos. Se ha diseñado un curso de formación acreditado con 10 horas ofertado en dos ediciones. Se ha recogido una muestra de 55 alumnos que han completado de manera anónima un cuestionario específicamente diseñado a este efecto. Resultados. El 71% de los alumnos pertenecen al grupo profesional de enfermería, en el 80% son mujeres y el rango de edad más numeroso está entre 41-50 años. Los conocimientos adquiridos sobre el concepto de autoeficacia han sido muy altos ya que 34 de los 55 participantes respondió correctamente el 100% del cuestionario y ninguno falló más de 3 preguntas sobre 10. El 100% señaló su acuerdo con puntuación ≥ 8 puntos sobre 10 que 'En la deshabituación del tabaquismo es importante entrenar al paciente para que mejoren sus recursos relacionados con la autoeficacia' y el 94% señaló su acuerdo con ≥ 8 puntos sobre 10 que 'El coaching puede ser una buena herramienta para el incremento de la autoeficacia en nuestros pacientes'. Conclusiones. La formación en torno al concepto de autoeficacia resulta bien valorada por los profesionales y es rentable en términos de aprovechamiento. El coaching, la inteligencia emocional y la PNL (programación neurolingüística) pueden resultar buenas herramientas para ello (AU)

This is a study that describes the utility provided by training in coaching, emotional intelligence and NLP (neurolinguistic programming) to medical and nursing professionals as tools to strengthen self-efficacy of the patients subjected to smoking cessation treatment. Objectives. The primary objective of this work is to know the profile and opinion of the professionals who demonstrate interest in this type of training. Material and methods. A training course accredited with 10 hours offered in two editions has been designed. A sample of 55 students who have completed anonymously a questionnaire specifically designed to this effect was collected. Results. A total of 71% of the students belong to the professional group of nursing, 80% being women whose most numerous age range goes from 41-50 years. The knowledge acquired on the concept of self-efficacy was very high since 34 of the 55 participants correctly responded to 100% of the questionnaire and none incorrectly answered more than 3 questions out of 10. One hundred percent indicated their agreement with the score ≥ 8 points out of 10 that 'In smoking cessation, it is important to train the patient to improve their resources related with self-efficacy' and 94% indicted their agreement with ≥ 8 points out of 10 that 'Coaching can be a good tool to increase the self-efficacy in our patients.' Conclusions. Training regarding the concept of self-efficacy is well-evaluated by the professionals and is profitable in terms of utilization. Coaching, emotional intelligence and NLP (neurolinguistic programming) may be good tools for it (AU)

Beyond borderline personality disorder: the mindful brain.

Numerous studies have showed an improvement in symptoms characteristic of borderline personality disorder (BPD) when mindfulness-based interventions were integrated into the daily lives of individuals with BPD. Although these studies have examined the etiology and diagnostic prognosis of BPD, and have discussed the use of mindfulness-based treatments, few researchers have attempted to interpret the neuroscientific findings, which have showed an increase in gray matter in key areas of the brain in clients with BPD who engaged in mindfulness practice. Some clients who had originally met a minimum of five of the DSM-IV-TR diagnostic criteria for BPD no longer did so upon engaging in mindfulness-based treatment. This article highlights the efficacy of mindfulness-based interventions with an emphasis on meditation, which leads to overall better psychological functioning in clients with BPD in three key areas: impulsivity, emotional irregularity, and relationship instability.

Improvement in social deficits in autism spectrum disorders using a theatre-based, peer-mediated intervention.

Social Emotional NeuroScience Endocrinology Theatre is a novel intervention program aimed at improving reciprocal social interaction in youth with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) using behavioral strategies and theatrical techniques in a peer-mediated model. Previous research using a 3-month model showed improvement in face perception, social interaction, and reductions in stress. The current study assessed a 2-week summer camp model. Typically developing peers were trained and paired with ASD youth (8-17 years). Social perception and interaction skills were measured before and after treatment using neuropsychological and parental measures. Behavioral coding by reliable, independent raters was conducted within the treatment context (theatre) and outside the setting (playground). Salivary cortisol levels to assess physiological arousal were measured across contexts (home, theatre, and playground). A pretest-posttest design for within-group comparisons was used, and prespecified pairwise comparisons were achieved using a nonparametric Wilcoxon signed-rank test. Significant differences were observed in face processing, social awareness, and social cognition (P < 0.05). Duration of interaction with familiar peers increased significantly over the course of treatment (P < 0.05), while engagement with novel peers outside the treatment setting remained stable. Cortisol levels rose on the first day of camp compared with home values yet declined by the end of treatment and further reduced during posttreatment play with peers. Results corroborate previous findings that the peer-mediated theatre program contributes to improvement in core social deficits in ASD using a short-term, summer camp treatment model. Future studies will explore treatment length and peer familiarity to optimize and generalize gains.

[Perception of emotions in speech. A review of psychological and physiological research].

The article is a review of the general concepts and approaches in research of recognition of emotions in speech: psychological concepts, principles and methods of study and physiological data in studies on animals and human. The concepts of emotional intelligence (ability to understand and recognize emotions of other people and to understand and regulate personal emotions), emotional hearing (ability to recognize emotions in speech) are discussed, general review of the paradigms is presented. The research of brain mechanisms of speech emotions differentiation is based on the study of local injuries and dysfunctions, along with the study on healthy subjects.

Incremental validity of proactive personality over the big five for predicting job performance of software engineers in an innovative context / Validez añadida de la personalidad proactiva sobre los «Cinco Grandes» para predecir el desempeño en el puesto de ingenieros de software en un contexto innovador

This study examined the incremental validity of proactive personality for predicting overall job performance over the Big Five in the context of an innovative software engineering job. Proactive personality and the Big Five were measured in a sample of 243 engineers and overall job performance was assessed through supervisor ratings in a sub-sample of 95 of these engineers. Results showed that even though proactive personality represents a valid and important predictor of performance it does not show a relevant increment on the prediction yielded by extraversion, openness, conscientiousness, emotional stability and organizational tenure. Implications for the relevancy and practical value of proactive personality for personnel selection are discussed(AU)

Este estudio examina la validez añadida de la personalidad proactiva sobre los «cinco grandes» para predecir el desempeño en el trabajo en el contexto de un puesto de trabajo de ingeniero de software. La personalidad proactiva y los «cinco grandes» fueron medidos en una muestra de 243 ingenieros y el desempeño global fue evaluado mediante valoraciones del supervisor en una sub-muestra de 95 de estos ingenieros. Los resultados mostraron que aun cuando la personalidad proactiva representa un importante y válido predictor del desempeño no muestra un incremento relevante en la predicción producida por la extraversión, apertura, conciencia, estabilidad emocional y antigüedad en el puesto. Se discuten las implicaciones, la relevancia y el valor práctico de la personalidad proactiva para la selección de personal(AU)

Degree of proximity in the construction of social representations: the case of intelligence

The present article is devoted to the empirical endeavor of studying the effect of the degree of proximity, defined by specific socio-educational insertions, on the organization of social representations of intelligence. A questionnaire was answered by a sample of 752 participants belonging to five different social categories with different degrees of proximity and knowledge about intelligence: mothers, fathers, mother-teachers and non-parent students (psychology and science students). The questionnaire included different topics, namely concerning the concept of intelligence, its development and the effectiveness of teaching procedures. Results show that the principles organizing the contents of representations are linked to the personal involvement in intelligence, on which subjects more or less implied take different positions. esults produced suggest, therefore, that the content of representations is directly linked to the activation of social roles and the salience of the object, reflecting the functional character that the organization of representations has to specific social dynamics (AU)

El presente artículo está dedicado a la tarea empírica de estudiar el efecto del grado de proximidad, definido por las inserciones socio-educativas específicas, en la organización de las representaciones sociales de la inteligencia. Un cuestionario fue respondido por una muestra de 752 participantes pertenecientes a cinco categorías sociales diferentes, con diferentes grados de proximidad y conocimiento sobre inteligencia: madres, padres, madre-profesoras y estudiantes sin hijos (estudiantes de psicología y de ciencias). En el cuestionario se incluyeron temas diferentes, principalmente en lo que respecta al concepto de inteligencia, su desarrollo y la eficacia de los procedimientos de enseñanza. Los resultados muestran que los principios que organizan los contenidos de las representaciones están vinculados a la participación personal en relación con la inteligencia, en la cual individuos más o menos relacionados adquieren diferentes roles. Por lo tanto, los resultados obtenidos sugieren que el contenido de las representaciones está directamente conectado con la activación de los roles sociales y la relevancia del objeto, reflejando el carácter funcional que la organización de las representaciones tiene para las dinámicas sociales específicas (AU)

Emotional intelligence and electro-dermal activity.

Emotional intelligence (EI) is a promising concept in our understanding of emotional regulation, related behaviors and pathologies. However, research linking EI to underlying physiological and biological structure and responses is meager. This study explored potential associations of EI with electro-dermal activity (EDA) responses to emotionally arousing visual stimuli. It was hypothesized that higher levels of EI will associate with more efficient emotional regulation as reflected by EDA. Eighty-four healthy participants were exposed to stimuli consisting of a series of 12 images designed to evoke positive or negative emotional responses, presented in a counterbalanced order. A self-report questionnaire and a computer based test of EI were administered along with a demographic questionnaire. EDA measures were taken during the exposure to the above stimuli using BIOPACK MP150. EI test scores (Beta = .35, .32; p < .001) and age (Beta = -.24, -.31; p < .03) associated with EDA delta (stimulus response-baseline) scores, while the self-report measure of EI and other demographics (e.g., gender. ethnicity) did not show any associations with the outcome measures. The results support the relevance of the concept to our understanding of emotional responses and regulation. The findings are briefly discussed within the context of underlying mechanisms of EI as well as measure validity and relevance.

Falseamiento y validez de las medidas de personalidad en contextos académicos / Faking and validity of personality measures in academic contexts

El falseamiento es la distorsión de las repuestas a un cuestionario por parte de los evaluados. En este artículo se examina el efecto del falseamiento, inducido en un contexto de laboratorio, sobre la validez de criterio y de constructo de un cuestionario de personalidad basado en el modelo de los Cinco Grandes Factores. Así mismo, se examina el efecto que la estrategia de advertencia, uno de los métodos que se utilizan para evitar el falseamiento, pueda tener sobre la validez del cuestionario. Los resultados indican una disminución de la capacidad predictiva del test, tanto en la condición de falseamiento, como en la de advertencia. La estructura factorial resulta, así mismo, ligeramente afectada. Las implicaciones de los resultados para la investigación y la práctica profesional son examinadas y discutidas(AU)

Faking is the distortion of responses to a questionnaire by the assessees. This study examines the effect of faking, induced in a laboratory setting, on the criterion and construct validity of a personality questionnaire based on the Five Factor Model. It also examines the effect that the strategy of warning, one of the methods used to avoid faking, may have on the validity of the questionnaire. The results indicate a decrement in the predictive ability of the test, both in faking and warning conditions. The factor structure is also slightly affected. The implications of the results for research and practice are examined and discussed(AU)

Association of trait emotional intelligence and individual fMRI-activation patterns during the perception of social signals from voice and face.

Multimodal integration of nonverbal social signals is essential for successful social interaction. Previous studies have implicated the posterior superior temporal sulcus (pSTS) in the perception of social signals such as nonverbal emotional signals as well as in social cognitive functions like mentalizing/theory of mind. In the present study, we evaluated the relationships between trait emotional intelligence (EI) and fMRI activation patterns in individual subjects during the multimodal perception of nonverbal emotional signals from voice and face. Trait EI was linked to hemodynamic responses in the right pSTS, an area which also exhibits a distinct sensitivity to human voices and faces. Within all other regions known to subserve the perceptual audiovisual integration of human social signals (i.e., amygdala, fusiform gyrus, thalamus), no such linked responses were observed. This functional difference in the network for the audiovisual perception of human social signals indicates a specific contribution of the pSTS as a possible interface between the perception of social information and social cognition.