Validation of a brief version of the Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale with a Spanish speaking population (DERS-S SF) / Validación de una versión breve de la Escala de Dificultades en la Regulación Emocional con población hispanohablante (DERS-S SF)

Abstract Emotion regulation refers to all the processes involved in adapting to relatively strong emotional episodes, and specifically to identifying, differentiating and monitoring intense emotional states in order to cope with stressful situations. Difficulties in regulating emotions are associated with problems such as depression, anxiety and maladaptive behaviors. The DERS (Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale) is the most complete tool for measuring difficulties with emotion regulation. Several brief versions of this scale in English are described in the literature, but no a brief Spanish version has been found. The purpose of this study is to validate a brief version of the DERS in Spanish. The DERS tool was used with a Spanish speaking population (n=351, inhabitants of Cartagena, Colombia, 56% were woman, Mage 39 years, SD = 14.98) who responded the 5-point Likert scale. The brief version (18 items) was validated using confirmatory factor analysis (X2 / df = 1.19, CFI= .99, TLI = .99, RMSEA=.02). However, neither the reliability nor the stability of the awareness dimension was confirmed. This point and other results are examined on the light of extant literature.

Resumen La regulación de las emociones se refiere a todos los procesos involucrados en la adaptación a episodios emocionales relativamente fuertes y, específicamente, en la identificación, diferenciación y seguimiento de estados emocionales intensos para hacer frente a situaciones estresantes. Las dificultades para regular las emociones están asociadas con problemas como la depresión, la ansiedad y los comportamientos desadaptativos. La Escala de Dificultades en la Regulación de las Emociones (DERS) es la herramienta más completa para medir las dificultades con la regulación de las emociones. En la literatura se describen varias versiones breves de esta escala en inglés, pero no se ha encontrado una versión breve en español. El propósito de este estudio es validar una versión breve del DERS en español. Se utilizó la herramienta DERS con una población hispanohablante (n = 351, habitantes de Cartagena, Colombia, 56% eran mujeres, Medad 39 años, DE = 14,98) que respondió la escala Likert de 5 puntos. La versión breve (18 ítems) se validó mediante análisis factorial confirmatorio (X2 / df = 1.19, CFI= .99, TLI = .99, RMSEA=.02). Sin embargo, no se confirmó ni la fiabilidad ni la estabilidad de la dimensión de conciencia. Este punto y otros resultados se examinan a la luz de la literatura existente.

Maintenance of parasympathetic inhibition following emotional induction in patients with restrictive type anorexia nervosa.

This study aimed to explore changes in heart rate variability (HRV), a proxy for parasympathetic activity characterizing emotion regulation processes before, during and after negative emotional induction in patients suffering from restrictive type anorexia nervosa (AN-RT). We compared two methods of HRV analysis, the Fast Fourier Transform high frequency (FFT-HF) and a specific HRV high frequency analysis technique, namely, the wavelet transform HRV (WT-HRV). A sample of 16 inpatients with AN-RT was compared to 24 control participants. Heart rate (HR) was continuously recorded for 5 min before the beginning of the video until 5 min after the video. The participants answered questionnaires concerning their eating behaviors, mood disorders and difficulties in emotion regulation. During the entire procedure, the FFT-HF in patients was lower than that in controls. Using the WT-HRV, the patients did not differ from the controls at baseline, and only the controls showed a decrease during emotional induction. After the video, the WT-HRV in patients began to decrease during the first 2 min of emotional recovery although the WT-HRV in controls was already increased. These results highlighted the disturbances in the physiological dynamics of emotion regulation processes in patients with AN-RT.

Emotional differentiation and parental bonding in inpatients suffering from eating disorders.

OBJECTIVES: This study aimed (1) to determine whether inpatients with eating disorders (EDs) have difficulty differentiating their emotions and being aware of the emotions of others; (2) to investigate the link between actual skills in emotional awareness and the sense of self-efficacy concerning these skills; and (3) to assess the impact of the quality of parental bonding on patients' levels of emotional awareness. METHODS: A sample of 44 inpatients with EDs, including a subgroup of 25 patients with restricting type anorexia nervosa (AR) and a subgroup of 19 patients with purging symptoms (PUR), were compared with 37 controls. All participants completed measures on emotional awareness (using the Level of Emotional Awareness Scale [LEAS]), alexithymia (using the Toronto Alexithymia Scale-20 [TAS-20]), and parental bonding (using the Parental Bonding Inventory). RESULTS: Inpatients with EDs reported difficulties in identifying and describing their feelings when using the self-report questionnaire (TAS-20). However, using a performance-based instrument (LEAS), inpatients with ED exhibited no deficits in differentiating their emotional states, although AR patients experienced difficulties when differentiating the emotional states of others. Moreover, there was no significant association between the TAS-20 and the LEAS scores, suggesting that the two measurements provide insight into different aspects of emotional processing. Regression analyses showed that maternal care had a positive influence on emotional awareness in the AR subgroup, whereas maternal overprotection had a negative influence on emotional awareness in PUR subgroup. CONCLUSIONS: Inpatients with EDs do not present with deficits in personal emotional awareness despite their self-perception. AR patients showed deficits in the emotional awareness of others. In patients with EDs, perceived maternal bonding influenced the development of emotional awareness, and this influence was dependent on the type of ED. Psychotherapies that focus on maternal bonding and emotional communication within the family unit may enhance emotional awareness in patients with anorexia or subclinical eating pathologies as an alternative.

Impact of emotional awareness and parental bonding on emotional eating in obese women.

This study aimed to: (1) determine whether obese women have deficits in emotional awareness and more frequently use emotional eating to regulate their emotions, (2) assess the impact of emotional awareness on the use of emotional eating, and (3) explore the impact of parental bonding on patient level of emotional awareness. A sample of 94 obese women was compared with 56 control participants. All participants answered questionnaires concerning their eating habits (Dutch Emotional Behavior Questionnaire), emotional awareness (Level of Emotional Awareness Scale) and parental bonding (Parental Bonding Inventory). Obese women exhibited deficits in emotional awareness and used emotional eating as an emotion regulation strategy more often than controls. Regression analyses showed that paternal and maternal overprotection negatively influenced obese patients' levels of emotional awareness and that emotional awareness positively influenced their emotional eating.