Psychometric Analysis of Two Brief Versions of the CERQ in the Argentinean Population: CERQ-18 and CERQ-27.

Background: Emotion Regulation (ER) involves any explicit or implicit process that may alter the emotion felt, its duration and expression, and is a transdiagnostic factor of vulnerability involved in the etiology and maintenance of different emotional disorders. The Cognitive Emotion Regulation Questionnaire (CERQ) assesses nine cognitive strategies involved in ER and is a valuable tool. Its popularity and wide use led to the development of two abbreviated versions: a version with 18 items (two items per factor) and a 27-item version (three items per factor). Objective: To analyze the psychometric properties of both versions in the Argentinean population. Design: The research design was instrumental. The factor structure of the CERQ-18 and CERQ-27 as well as the reliability of the scores and the construct of each dimension were evaluated. In addition, we gathered validity evidence for its relationship with other variables by associating the CERQ scores with Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale (DERS) scores. Results: The CERQ-18 presented more consistent evidence regarding its internal structure (adequate fit indices and factor loadings of moderate magnitude) and reliability. Given that the association of the two versions with the DERS is similar, we recommend that the 18-item version be used. Conclusion: The CERQ-18 has quite similar psychometric properties to the CERQ-27 in the general population of Argentina and the findings contribute to an understanding of its internal structure.

PsicAP transdiagnostic protocol of group cognitive-behavioral training for emotional disorders in Dominican Republic: a randomized controlled trial protocol.

Emotional disorders (ED) such as anxiety, depression and somatization are extremely prevalent disorders that can affect an individual's quality of life and functionality. Primary Health Care (PHC) is the first place to identify most patients with these conditions. Mental health services in the Dominican Republic, as well as in Latin America and the Caribbean in general, are unable to provide appropriate care for most people with mental disorders. Using evidence-based treatment protocols is also crucial to make progress in helping people with ED. The PsicAP project is a group intervention that uses a transdiagnostic approach and is grounded in cognitive-behavioral techniques. The program is implemented in 7 group sessions, each lasting for one and a half hours. The program has been shown to be effective in reducing clinical symptoms, dysfunction, and in improving quality of life. It is also a non-time-intensive, low-cost treatment that is helpful for addressing EDs in a PHC context. The objective is to bring psychological treatments into PHC facilities of Dominican Republic, making them more accessible for a larger amount of the population.

Psychometric Properties of an Instrument to Assess the Barriers to Antiretroviral Treatment Adherence among the Argentinian Population / Propiedades psicométricas de un instrumento de evaluación de barreras para la adherencia al tratamiento antirretroviral en población argentina / Propriedades psicométricas de um instrumento para avaliar as barreiras à adesão ao tratamento antirretroviral na população argentina

Aim: To adapt and validate an existing instrument to assess the barriers to antiretroviral treatment adherence among individuals with hiv in Córdoba, Argentina. Materials and methods: The final sample population included 180 Argentinian people. The mean age of the participants was 40.61 (sd = 12.032) years and 82.8% were men. Various internal structure and reliability and validity studies with other variables were conducted on the study population (n = 180). Results: The results of confirmatory factor analysis were consistent with the factorial structure of the original study. However, to achieve this, items that had low factorial loads and were redundant had to be eliminated. Coefficient ω values of .833 on the Information sub-scale, .759 on the Motivation subscale, and .888 on the Behavioral Skills subscale were obtained. Significant correlations were determined between the results of adherence and barriers to treatment. Conclusion: The results suggest that the instrument can be used to assess the barriers to antiretroviral treatment adherence in Córdoba, Argentina. Although further research is warranted, these results are promising.

adaptar y validar un instrumento para evaluar barreras a la adherencia antirretroviral en personas que conviven con el vih en Córdoba (Argentina). Materiales y métodos: la muestra final incluyó 180 participantes argentinos. La media de edad fue de 40.61 (de = 12.032) y el 82.8 % fueron hombres. Sobre la muestra (n = 180) se efectuaron estudios de estructura interna, confiabilidad y validez con otras variables. Resultados: el análisis factorial confirmatorio arrojó resultados congruentes con la estructura factorial del estudio original, aunque para ello fue necesario eliminar ciertos ítems que presentaban bajas cargas factoriales y que pueden ser representados por otros ítems, debido a información redundante. Se obtuvieron coeficientes ω = 0.833 en la subescala información; ω = 0.759 en la subescala motivación, y ω = 0.888 en la subescala habilidades comportamentales. Se encontraron correlaciones significativas entre los resultados de adherencia al tratamiento y barreras al tratamiento. Conclusión: aunque se requieren de mayores investigaciones, los resultados son promisorios, sugieren que el instrumento puede usarse para evaluar barreras de la adherencia al tratamiento antirretroviral en Córdoba.

adaptar e validar um instrumento de barreiras à adesão anti-retroviral em pessoas vivendo com hivem Córdoba, Argentina. Materiais e métodos: A amostra final incluiu 180 participantes argentinos. A idade média era de 40,61 anos (sd = 12,032) e 82,8% eram homens. Com a amostra (n = 180) foram realizados estudos de estrutura interna, confiabilidade e validade com outras variáveis. Resultados: a análise fatorial confirma-tória apresentou resultados adequados com a estrutura fatorial do estudo original, embora para isso tenha sido necessário eliminar alguns itens que apresentavam baixas cargas fatoriais e poderiam ser representados por outros itens devido a informações redundantes. Os coeficientes ω = 0,833 foram obtidos na subescala informação; ω = 0,759 na subescala motivação, y ω = 0,888 na subescala competências comportamentais. Correlações significativas foram encontradas entre os resultados do adherencia al tratamiento e do barreiras à adesão ao tratamento. Conclusão: embora mais pesquisas sejam necessárias, os resultados são promissores, sugerindo que o instrumento pode ser usado para avaliar as barreiras à adesão ao tratamento anti-retroviral em Córdoba, Argentina.

Design and validation of virtual environments for the treatment of cleaning obsessive-compulsive disorder.

During the coronavirus outbreak, it was noted that pre-existing psychological illnesses worsened, and numerous research indicate that those with contamination-related obsessions and cleaning compulsions (C-OCD) may be more affected. Virtual Reality (VR) and other immersive technologies have shown to be effective for the treatment of disorders related to anxiety, thus showing their potential to transform OCD treatment by means of integrating virtual elements. VR exposure has shown benefits compared to live or imagined exposure, however, to be effective it must be able to elicit high emotional arousal in users. Based on this, the present work aimed to develop different virtual environments scenarios and evaluate their efficacy in generating an emotional response in people with C-OCD symptoms. Based on the literature review, two virtual scenarios were created (dirty public bathroom and unhygienic kitchen). Subsequently, two groups were then constituted: C-OCD group (n = 20, aged between 18 and 48 years) characterized by an obtained score of more than 13 points (cut-point) in the Yale-Brown Scale for Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (Y-BOCS) and by showing C-OCD symptoms when doing the structured interview (SCID-I), and a control group (n = 20, aged between 18 and 56 years), all participants were residents of the Dominican Republic. Exposure to the virtual environments generated high levels of state and subjective anxiety in both groups, although significantly higher in the C-OCD group. The results obtained indicate that the VR scenarios developed are suitable for eliciting emotional responses and, consequently, that they can be used to complement the treatment of C-OCD.

Psychometric properties of the survey work-home interaction nijmegen in Argentinian population.

Frictions between work and family life have increased during the COVID-19 pandemic, causing negative consequences on the mental health and quality of life of workers. Without validated instruments, it is not possible to determine the impact of Work-Family and Family-Work conflict. To date, no studies have been conducted to provide evidence of the validity and reliability of The Survey Work-Home Interaction Nijmegen (SWING; 22 items) in the population of Argentine workers. The SWING was administered to 611 Argentine workers of both sexes (73.6% female) aged between 18 and 70 years (M = 35.33; SD = 9.16) selected from a non-probabilistic accidental sampling. The confirmatory factor analysis showed satisfactory fit indices of the original four-factor model (χ2 = 647.073, gl = 203, CFI = 0.93, GFI = 0.92, NFI = 0.90, TLI = 0.92, RMSEA = 0.05, SRMR = 0.05, AIC = 557.9, BIC = 821.5). The level of reliability was acceptable (α between 0.68 and 0.86, ω = 0.79-0.89). The relationships of the subscale scores with the engagement and burnout variables were as expected according to previous studies. Having an instrument adequately adapted to the population of Argentine workers facilitates the development of studies aimed at evaluating the role of W-F or F-W interactions and their implications for health and productivity.

Contribution of Academic Satisfaction Judgments to Subjective Well-Being.

The role of academic satisfaction (AS) on persistence and successful academic behavior has been the focus of research for decades. Nevertheless, driven by positive educational psychology, subjective well-being has been highlighted as another central feature in the academic path of students. Studies aimed at identifying the variables that contribute to explain different aspects of academic performance have been widely investigated, although studies aimed at identifying the determinants of subjective well-being are still limited. The present paper examined the contribution of AS judgments on subjective well-being (SWB). To this end, it was hypothesized that SWB levels depend on the balance between positive/negative emotions and life satisfaction judgments. Furthermore, it was stipulated that AS has an indirect contribution on SWB, through life satisfaction, whereas the balance of emotions influences both AS judgments and life satisfaction. Using an analysis strategy based on structural equation modeling, the results indicated that the model fitted satisfactorily, explaining 32% of the variance of SWB. Particularly, it was observed that AS judgments contributed to life satisfaction judgments (ß = 0.34). Although no direct contribution of AS on SWB was reported, a total contribution partially mediated by life satisfaction judgments was revealed (total ß = 0.19). These findings support the importance of academic satisfaction judgments, not only because of their importance in academic terms, but also because of their impact on university students' subjective well-being and health.

Análisis psicométrico del Cuestionario de ción Conductual de las Emociones en universitarios peruanos / Psychometric analysis of the Behavioral Regulation of Emotions Questionnaire in Peruvian university students

Resumen La presente investigación tuvo como objetivo traducir e identificar las propiedades psicométricas del Behavioral Emotion Regulation Questionnaire (BERQ) en 315 universitarios de Lima, Perú, entre los 16 y 44 años (M edad = 21.31; DE edad = 3.39; 59.7 % hombres). Para la evaluación se aplicó el BERQ y el Inventario Multicultural de Depresión Estado Rasgo (IMÜDER), y las evidencias de validez de la estructura interna se obtuvieron por medio de un análisis factorial confirmatorio y un modelamiento exploratorio de ecuaciones estructurales, mientras que las evidencias de validez en relación con otras variables se obtuvieron a través de un análisis de regresión lineal. Los resultados indican que la estructura pentafactorial se replica en la muestra peruana, que las estrategias adaptativas predicen significativamente el eutrés, y que las estrategias desadaptativas predicen el distrés; además, los valores de confiabilidad fueron aceptables. Al final se discuten aspectos teóricos y prácticos de los hallazgos y la importancia de continuar brindando evidencia para su utilización en diferentes poblaciones y contextos, teniendo en cuenta que esta la primera vez que se analiza una versión en español del BERQ.

Abstract The present study aimed to translate and identify the psychometric properties of the Behavioral Emotion Regulation Questionnaire (BERQ) in 315 university students from Lima, Peru, aged 16 to 44 years (Mage = 21.31; SD = 3.39; 59.7% male). The BERQ and the Multicultural Inventory of Trait State Depression (IMUDER) were administered for the assessment. Evidence of internal structure validity was obtained through confirmatory factor analysis and exploratory structural equation modeling, while evidence of validity in relation to other variables was obtained through linear regression analysis. The results indicate that the pentafactorial structure is replicated in the Peruvian sample; that adaptive strategies significantly predict eutres, and that maladaptive strategies predict distress; in addition, reliability values were acceptable. At the end, theoretical and practical aspects of the findings and the importance of continuing to provide evidence for its use in different populations and contexts are discussed, taking into account that this is the first time that a Spanish version of the BERQ has been analyzed.

A Mini-Review of Work Stress and Mindfulness: A Neuropsychological Point of View.

Work stress is consistently linked with the deterioration of cognitive and mental health, limitations in everyday workplace performance, and an increased risk of developing diseases. A common thread binding these consequences appears to be stress-associated alterations in neuropsychological functions and affective domains, especially those reliant on hippocampal, prefrontal, and amygdala brain area. Although research broadly supports the claim that the practice of mindfulness meditation for the reduction of the consequences of stress and the promotion of health exert positive effects on workplaces, the precise neuropsychological benefits of Mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs) in the context of organizations remain elusive. In this review, we will analyze the impairments imposed by stress on the brain areas and functions and the benefits of MBIs from a neuropsychological point of view. This is significant since there is a centrality of cognitive functions in core processes necessary for work achievements, such as emotion regulation, problem-solving, and learning. The promotion of wellbeing is a responsibility shared between workers and organizations. Developing healthy environments allows workers to exercise greater control over their work, face work challenges, work productively and develop their talent.

A nationwide cross-sectional study of workers' mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic: Impact of changes in working conditions, financial hardships, psychological detachment from work and work-family interface.

BACKGROUND: The COVID-19 disease has changed people's work and income. While recent evidence has documented the adverse impact of these changes on mental health outcomes, most research is focused on frontline healthcare workers and the reported association between income loss and mental health comes from high-income countries. In this study we examine the impact of changes in working conditions and income loss related to the COVID-19 lockdown on workers' mental health in Argentina. We also explore the role of psychological detachment from work and work-family interaction in mental health. METHODS: A total of 1049 participants aged between 18 and 65 who were working before the national lockdown in March 2020 were recruited using a national random telephone survey. Work conditions included: working at the usual workplace during the pandemic, working from home with flexible or fixed schedules, and being unemployed or unable to work due to the pandemic. Measures of financial hardship included income loss and self-reported financial problems related to the outbreak. Work-family interface included measures of work-family conflict (WFC) and family-work conflict (FWC). Mental health outcomes included burnout, life satisfaction, anxiety and depressive symptoms. Data were collected in October 2020. RESULTS: Home-based telework under fixed schedules and unemployment impact negatively on mental health. Income loss and particularly self-reported financial problems were also associated with deterioration of mental health. More than half of the participants reported financial problems, and those who became unemployed during the pandemic experienced more often financial problems. Finally, psychological detachment from work positively influenced mental health; WFC and FWC were found to negatively impact on mental health. CONCLUSIONS: Countries' policies should focus on supporting workers facing economic hardships and unemployment to ameliorate the COVID-19' negative impact on mental health. Organisations can protect employees' mental health by actively encouraging psychological detachment from work and by help managing work-family interface. Longitudinal studies are needed to more thoroughly assess the long-term impact of the COVID-19-related changes in work and economic turndown on mental health issues.

Focusing on cybersickness: pervasiveness, latent trajectories, susceptibility, and effects on the virtual reality experience.

Although virtual reality (VR) usage has become widespread in the last decade, its adoption has been hampered by experiences of user discomfort known as cybersickness. The present study, in line with the "2020 cybersickness R&D agenda", sought to provide a broad examination of the cybersickness phenomenon, assessing its pervasiveness, latent trajectories, impacts on the VR experience, and predictor variables. The study was composed of 92 participants living in the Dominican Republic with ages ranging from 18 to 52 years (M = 26.22), who experienced a 10-min VR immersion in two environments designed for psychotherapy. The results indicated that cybersickness was pervasive, with 65.2% of the participants experiencing it, and 23.9% severely. Additionally, the latent trajectories of cybersickness were positive and curvilinear, with large heterogeneity across individuals. Cybersickness also had a substantive negative impact on the user experience and the intentions to adopt the VR technology. Finally, motion sickness susceptibility, cognitive stress, and recent headaches uniquely predicted greater severity of cybersickness, while age was negatively related. These combined results highlight the critical role that cybersickness plays on the VR experience and underscore the importance of finding solutions to the problems, such as technological advancements or special usage protocols for the more susceptible individuals. Supplementary Information: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s10055-022-00636-4.

COVID-19 pandemic and health worker stress: The mediating effect of emotional regulation.

BACKGROUND/INTRODUCTION: Psychological and physical well-being of health personnel has been significantly affected by COVID-19. Work overload and continuous exposure to positive COVID-19 cases have caused them fatigue, stress, anxiety, insomnia and other detriments. This research aims: 1) to analyze whether the use of cognitive reevaluation and emotional suppression strategies decreases and increases, respectively, stress levels of health personnel; 2) to quantify the impact of contact with patients with COVID-19 on stress levels of medical staff. METHOD: Emotion regulation strategies (cognitive reevaluation and emotional expression) and stress levels were evaluated in 155 Dominican physicians who were treating people infected with COVID-19 at the moment of the study (67.9% women and 32.1% men; mean age = 34.89; SD = 9.26). In addition, a questionnaire created by the researchers quantified the impact that contact with those infected had on their stress levels. RESULTS: Contact with patients with COVID-19 predicts increased use of emotion suppression strategies, although is not associated with the use of cognitive reevaluation. These findings lead to an even greater increase in stress on health care providers. CONCLUSIONS: Contextual contingencies demand immediate responses and may not allow health personnel to use cognitive re-evaluation strategies, leaning more towards emotion suppression. However, findings regarding high levels of stress require the implementation of intervention programs focused on the promotion of more functional emotion regulation strategies. Such programs may reduce current stress and prevent post-traumatic symptoms.

Using Constrained Factor Mixture Analysis to Validate Mixed-Worded Psychological Scales: The Case of the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale in the Dominican Republic.

A common method to collect information in the behavioral and health sciences is the self-report. However, the validity of self-reports is frequently threatened by response biases, particularly those associated with inconsistent responses to positively and negatively worded items of the same dimension, known as wording effects. Modeling strategies based on confirmatory factor analysis have traditionally been used to account for this response bias, but they have recently become under scrutiny due to their incorrect assumption of population homogeneity, inability to recover uncontaminated person scores or preserve structural validities, and their inherent ambiguity. Recently, two constrained factor mixture analysis (FMA) models have been proposed by Arias et al. (2020) and Steinmann et al. (2021) that can be used to identify and screen inconsistent response profiles. While these methods have shown promise, tests of their performance have been limited and they have not been directly compared. Thus the objective of the current study was to assess and compare their performance with data from the Dominican Republic of the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale (N = 632). Additionally, as this scale had not yet been studied for this population, another objective was to show how using constrained FMAs could help in the validation of mixed-worded scales. The results indicated that removing the inconsistent respondents identified by both FMAs (≈8%) reduced the amount of wording effects in the database. However, whereas the Steinmann et al. method only cleaned the data partially, the Arias et al. (2020) method was able to remove the great majority of the wording effects variance. Based on the screened data with the Arias et al. method, we evaluated the psychometric properties of the RSES for the Dominican population, and the results indicated that the scores had good validity and reliability properties. Given these findings, we recommend that researchers incorporate constrained FMAs into their toolbox and consider using them to screen out inconsistent respondents to mixed-worded scales.

Design and Validation of Augmented Reality Stimuli for the Treatment of Cleaning Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder.

Fear to contamination is an easy-to-provoke, intense, hard-to-control, and extraordinarily persistent fear. A worsening of preexisting psychiatric disorders was observed during the COVID-19 (coronavirus disease 2019) outbreak, and several studies suggest that those with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) may be more affected than any other group of people. In the face of worsening OCD symptoms, there is a need for mental health professionals to provide the support needed not only to treat patients who still report symptoms, but also to improve relapse prevention. In this line, it is recommended to improve alternative strategies such as online consultations and digital psychiatry. The aim of this study is to develop augmented reality (AR) stimuli that are clinically relevant for patients with cleaning OCD and assess their efficiency to obtain emotionally significant responses. Four AR stimuli were developed: a plastic bag full of garbage, a piece of bread with mold, a dirty sports shoe, and a piece of rotten meat. All stimuli were shown to a clinical group (17 patients with cleaning OCD) and a control group (11 patients without OCD). Relevant results were the design of the AR stimuli. These stimuli were validated with the statistical difference in perceived anxiety in the meat stimuli between the clinical and control groups. Nevertheless, when looking at effect sizes, all stimuli present effect sizes from small (plastic bag) to large (meat), with both shoe and bread between small and medium effect sizes. These results are a valuable support for the clinical use of these AR stimuli in the treatment of cleaning OCD.

A narrative review of emotion regulation process in stress and recovery phases.

The difficulty in studying the relationship between stress and emotional regulation is due to the need to contemplate a dynamic perspective that analyzes the moderating role of stress. In fact, stress involves different phases or stages, and the neurocognitive processes involved in emotion regulation differ significantly between these phases. The period of anticipation of stressful events can be fundamental to understand the process of stress regulation; however, surprisingly few works have analyzed the differential activation of brain networks involved in cognitive regulation during the phases of stress and recovery. Taking this into consideration, within this study we propose to analyze in an integrated way the psychological and neurobiological processes during the phase of stress and recovery, with the aim of improving our understanding of the mechanisms that underlie successful and unsuccessful stress regulation. We consider that from the present review we contribute to achieve a better understanding of the mechanisms underlying successful and unsuccessful stress regulation would contribute to the improvement of prevention and treatment interventions for mental disorders.

A modern network approach to revisiting the Positive and Negative Affective Schedule (PANAS) construct validity.

INTRODUCTION: The factor structure of the Positive and Negative Affective Schedule (PANAS) is still a topic of debate. There are several reasons why using Exploratory Graph Analysis (EGA) for scale validation is advantageous and can help understand and resolve conflicting results in the factor analytic literature. OBJECTIVE: The main objective of the present study was to advance the knowledge regarding the factor structure underlying the PANAS scores by utilizing the different functionalities of the EGA method. EGA was used to (1) estimate the dimensionality of the PANAS scores, (2) establish the stability of the dimensionality estimate and of the item assignments into the dimensions, and (3) assess the impact of potential redundancies across item pairs on the dimensionality and structure of the PANAS scores. METHOD: This assessment was carried out across two studies that included two large samples of participants. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: In sum, the results are consistent with a two-factor oblique structure.

Work-Related Mental Health Issues in Graduate Student Population.

The scientific and educational community is becoming increasingly aware of the impact of current academic working conditions on graduate students' mental health and how this is affecting scientific progress and ultimately society as a whole. Our study aimed to shed light on the work-related mental health issues affecting graduate students, providing a comprehensive research work including psychological and biological assessment. Our findings showed that a sizeable number of graduate student present anxiety, depression, or high burnout and that the time spent in academia plays an important role. The graduate student population displayed a specific work-related mental health issues profile with an altered hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis and low levels of work engagement. Finally, graduate students were equally stressed, with less work engagement, and more anxious and depressed than general workers.

Validación del inventario de pensamientos negativos en respuesta al dolor en población argentina con cefaleas primarias / Validation of the inventory of negative thoughts in response to pain in the argentine population with primary headaches

Resumen: Procesos cognitivos tales como pensamientos negativos son importantes moduladores de la experiencia de dolor. El Inventario de Pensamientos Negativos en Respuesta al Dolor (INTRP) es una herramienta que permite evaluar los pensamientos automáticos negativos asociados a la experiencia dolorosa. El presente trabajo se enfoca en la validación del INTRP en población argentina. Se testearon varios modelos previos, llegando al mejor ajuste el modelo de cinco factores: 1) autoverbalizaciones negativas, 2) pensamientos negativos de apoyo social, 3) pensamientos de discapacidad, 5) pensamientos de falta de control y 5) pensamientos de autoinculpación. Este modelo posee la misma estructura factorial que la hallada en la versión española, el cual posee un nivel mayor de especificidad en la detección de cogniciones asociadas al dolor. Se puede concluir que el INTRP es una herramienta confiable para su uso en el ámbito clínico que permita enfocar la terapia psicológica de argentinos con cefaleas.

Abstract: Cognitive processes such as negative thoughts are important modulators of the pain experience. The Inventory of Negative Thoughts in Response to Pain (INTRP) is a tool that allows evaluating negative automatic thoughts associated with the painful experience. The present work focuses on the validation of the INTRP in the Argentine population. Several previous models were tested, reaching the best fit of the five-factor model: 1) negative self-verbalizations, 2) negative thoughts of social support, 3) thoughts of disability, 5) thoughts of lack of control and 5) thoughts of self-blame. This model has the same factor structure as that found in the Spanish version, which has a higher level of specificity in detecting cognitions associated with pain. It can be concluded that the INTRP is a reliable tool for use in the clinical setting that allows to focus the psychological therapy of Argentines with headaches.

Affective comorbidity in patients with hypertension: a case-control study on adults in the Dominican Republic / Comorbilidad afectiva en personas con hipertensión arterial: un estudio de caso-control en adultos dominicanos

Abstract Research on the relationship between hypertension and variables linked to negative affectivity has given rise to divergent findings and differing interpretations. The main objective of this paper was therefore to shed light on the issue by analyzing measures of depression, anxiety and anger in adults suffering from hypertension (HTN). Based on a case-control design, a group of individuals suffering from HTN (n=50) was compared with a control group of the same number of cases, age and sex. In general, the HTN Group showed higher levels of depression in its somatic dimension and of trait anger in its temperament dimension. Individuals with HTN presented symptoms of irritability and loss of energy (depressive-somatic symptoms) and propensity to anger easily (temperament anger symptoms). It has been demonstrated in preceding researches that addressing these comorbid psychological factors is of importance in increase adherence to medical treatment in patients who have been diagnosed with hypertension or similar pathologies.

Resumen En la literatura científica se encuentra un gran número de controversias y resultados dispares a la hora de explicar la relación entre la hipertensión arterial y algunas variables vinculadas a la afectividad negativa, como la depresión, la ansiedad y la ira. Teniendo esto en cuenta, en la presente investigación se planteó como objetivo principal analizar medidas de ansiedad, depresión e ira en personas adultas que padecen de hipertensión arterial (HTA). A partir de un diseño de caso-control, se contrastaron dos grupos, uno conformado por personas con HTA (n = 50) y otro de control equiparado en número de casos, edad y sexo. A nivel general, el grupo de HTA mostró mayores niveles de depresión -en su dimensión somática- y de ira-rasgo -en su dimensión de temperamento-. Asimismo, las personas con HTA presentaron síntomas de irritabilidad y pérdida de energía -síntomas depresivo-somáticos-, además de que tendían a enojarse con facilidad o rápidamente -síntomas de temperamento de ira-. El abordaje de estos factores psicológicos comórbidos resulta de relevancia dado que en estudios precedentes ha demostrado aumentar la adherencia al tratamiento médico en pacientes que han sido diagnosticados con hipertensión o patologías similares.

Validity and Reliability of the Attitudes toward Traffic Safety Scale in Argentina.

The main objective of this research was to investigate the psychometric properties of a Spanish-language version of the Attitudes toward Traffic Safety Scale (ATTS) for the assessment of risky driving attitudes among Spanish-speaking populations. Five hundred and fifty-eight drivers from Argentina participated in the study. Confirmatory factor analysis supported the ATTS three-factor structure: Attitude towards violations and speeding, attitude towards the careless driving of others and attitude towards drinking and driving, χ2(87) = 205.91, p < .001; χ2/df = 2.36; GFI = .94; CFI = .93; TLI = .91; RMSEA = .05; 90% CI [.04, .06]. A model with one higher-order factor (overall attitude toward risky driving) also fits the data. Reliability estimates were acceptable for the total scale (α = .81) and for all subscales (with α values ranging from .74 to .84), and concurrent validity was supported by theoretically expected correlations with self-reported risky driving behavior (r ranging from .27 to .45, ps < .01). Subsequent comparison between zero-order correlation and partial correlation (controlling for Driver Impression Management) between ATTS subscales and self-reported risky driving behavior revealed minor or no effects of social desirability bias. Implications for road safety intervention are discussed.