Evolución de la tendencia de búsqueda en España de los términos “Ansiedad”, “Depresión” y “Suicidio” entre 2019 y 2022: Antes, durante y después de la pandemia por COVID-19 / Evolution of the search trend in Spain for the terms “Anxiety”, “Depression” and “Suicide” between 2019 and 2022: Before, during and after the COVID-19 pandemic

Introducción: La pandemia por COVID-19 ha incrementado la prevalencia de la ansiedad, la depresión y el suicidio en la mayoría de los países. La utilización de herramientas como Google Trends ha mostrado su eficacia en el seguimiento de diferentes enfermedades y trastornos mentales, con la posibilidad de mejorar la respuesta sanitaria. En esta investigación se analizó la evolución de las tendencias de búsqueda de los términos “Ansiedad”, “Depresión” y “Suicidio” en las comunidades autónomas españolas entre 2019 y 2022. Método: Se utilizó la herramienta Google Trends para la obtención del Volumen Relativo de Búsqueda (VRB). Resultados: El VRB para “Ansiedad” se incrementó en 2020 y se mantuvo estable y moderado hasta 2022, mientras que para “Depresión” se mostró un incremento solo en 2022. Por otro lado, el VRB para “Suicidio” se redujo progresivamente de 2019 a 2022. Las comunidades que mostraron mayores niveles en VRB para “Ansiedad” y “Depresión” fueron Asturias y Aragón, que partían en 2019 con niveles altos que mantuvieron en los años posteriores. Mientras que Extremadura fue la comunidad que mayor progresión mostró, llegando a 2022 con niveles altos en ansiedad y depresión. Respecto al “Suicidio”, Castilla y León, Cantabria, Murcia y Andalucía, fueron las comunidades que tuvieron mayor VRB, si bien todas las comunidades mostraron disminuciones progresivas de 2019 a 2022. Conclusiones: Estudios que analicen las tendencias de búsqueda podrían ser útiles en determinadas situaciones de emergencia, facilitando la implementación de intervenciones preventivas y adaptadas a cada comunidad, que podrían atenuar el impacto sobre la salud mental.(AU)

Introduction: The COVID-19 pandemic has increased the prevalence of anxiety, depression and suicide in most countries. The use of tools such as Google Trends has shown to be effective in monitoring different mental illnesses and disorders, with the potential to improve the health response. In this research we analyse the evolution of search trends for the terms “Anxiety”, “Depression” and “Suicide” in the Spanish autonomous communities between 2019 and 2022. Method: We used the Google Trends tool to obtain the Relative Search Volume (RSV). Results: The RSV of “Anxiety” increased in 2020 and remained stable and moderate until 2022, while “Depression” showed an increase only in 2022. On the other hand, the RSV of “Suicide” decreased progressively from 2019 to 2022. The communities that showed the highest levels of RSV for “Anxiety” and “Depression” were Asturias and Aragon, which started in 2019 with high levels that they maintained in the following years. While Extremadura was the community that showed the greatest progression, arriving in 2022 with high levels of anxiety and depression. Regarding “Suicide”, Castilla and León, Cantabria, Murcia and Andalusia, were the Communities with the highest RSV, although all communities showed progressive decreases from 2019 to 2022. Conclusions: Studies that analyse search trends could be useful in certain emergency situations, facilitating the implementation of preventive interventions adapted to each community, which could mitigate the impact on mental health.(AU)

Analysis of attentional biases in anxiety using 24 facial priming sequences.

The processing of emotional facial expressions helps people to adjust to the physical and social environment. Furthermore, mental disorders such as anxiety have been linked to attentional biases in the processing of this type of information. Nevertheless, there are still contradictory results that might be due to the methodology used and to individual differences in the manifestation of anxiety. Our research goal was to use 24 facial priming sequences to analyse attentional biases in the detection of facial expressions of fear, considering the levels and the ways in which individuals express anxiety. With higher levels of cognitive anxiety and general trait anxiety, those sequences that began in the upper half (vs. lower half) elicited a speedier response in the detection of fear. The results are discussed within the context of other techniques and disorders that prompt a deficit in the processing of facial information.

Role of Surprise in the Discrimination of the Facial Expression of Fear.

The facilitating role of the facial expression of surprise in the discrimination of the facial expression of fear was analyzed. The sample consisted of 202 subjects that undertook a forced-choice test in which they had to decide as quickly as possible whether the facial expression displayed on-screen was one of fear, anger or happiness. Variations were made to the prime expression (neutral expression, or one of surprise); the target expression (facial expression of fear, anger or happiness), and the prime duration (50 ms, 150 ms or 250 ms). The results revealed shorter reaction times in the response to the expression of fear when the prime expression was one of surprise, with a prime duration of 50 ms (p = .009) and 150 ms (p = .001), compared to when the prime expression was a neutral one. By contrast, the reaction times were longer in the discrimination of an expression of fear when the prime expression was one of surprise with a prime duration of 250 ms (p < .0001), compared to when the prime expression was a neutral one. This pattern of results was obtained solely in the discrimination of the expression of fear. The discussion focuses on these findings and the possible functional continuity between surprise and fear.

Role of surprise in the discrimination of the facial expression of fear

The facilitating role of the facial expression of surprise in the discrimination of the facial expression of fear was analyzed. The sample consisted of 202 subjects that undertook a forced-choice test in which they had to decide as quickly as possible whether the facial expression displayed on-screen was one of fear, anger or happiness. Variations were made to the prime expression (neutral expression, or one of surprise); the target expression (facial expression of fear, anger or happiness), and the prime duration (50 ms, 150 ms or 250 ms). The results revealed shorter reaction times in the response to the expression of fear when the prime expression was one of surprise, with a prime duration of 50 ms (p = .009) and 150 ms (p = .001), compared to when the prime expression was a neutral one. By contrast, the reaction times were longer in the discrimination of an expression of fear when the prime expression was one of surprise with a prime duration of 250 ms (p < .0001), compared to when the prime expression was a neutral one. This pattern of results was obtained solely in the discrimination of the expression of fear. The discussion focuses on these findings and the possible functional continuity between surprise and fear (AU)

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The Effect of Mortality Salience and Type of Life on Personality Evaluation.

Mortality salience, or awareness of the inevitability of one's own death, generates a state of anxiety that triggers a defense mechanism for the control of thinking that affects different human activities and psychological processes. This study aims to analyze the effect of mortality salience on the formation of impressions. The sample comprised 135 women who made inferences about a woman's personality from information about her life (type of life, LT: positive, negative), provided through five words, all positive or negative, that appeared surrounding a photograph, together with a sixth word that indicated whether she was "dead" or "alive" at the time (mortality manipulation, MM: dead, alive). The results pointed to a more negative assessment of life (Dead M - Alive M = -1.16, SE = .236, p < .001), emotional stability (Dead M - Alive M = -1.13, SE = .431, p = .010), and responsibility (Dead M - Alive M = -1.14, SE = .423, p = .008) only when the participants had access to negative information about the person assessed, and she was known to be dead. We discuss the results within the framework of Terror Management Theory, and analyze the different effects that the manipulation of mortality has on the formation of impressions depending on the type of information available.

The timely expression of coherence helps cause the right impression / Expresar coherencia en el momento preciso beneficia a la impresión causada

An analysis was conducted on the modulating role that the emotional coherence between verbal and non-verbal information plays on the formation of impressions. The study involved 301 subjects who made inferences on a woman’s personality based on verbal information on her life (positive, negative), the emotional coherence between verbal and nonverbal information (coherent, neutral, incoherent), and the type of coding, referring to the moment when the verbal and non-verbal information was presented to them (simultaneously, separately). The results showed that when the information is positive, coherent and the coding has been made separately, the person is perceived to be more stable, pleasant and sociable. The results are discussed, along with their implications for the adaptive processes present in natural contexts

Se analizó el papel modulador de la coherencia emocional entre la información verbal y no verbal en la formación de impresiones. Participaron 301 sujetos que realizaron inferencias sobre la personalidad de una mujer a partir de información verbal sobre su vida (positiva, negativa), la coherencia emocional entre la información verbal y no verbal (coherente, neutral, incoherente) y el tipo de codificación, referida al momento en el que se les presentó la información verbal y no verbal (simultánea, separada). Los resultados mostraron que cuando la información es positiva, coherente y la codificación se ha realizado por separado, se considera más estable, amable y sociable a la persona percibida. Se discuten los resultados y su implicación en los procesos adaptativos presentes en los contextos naturales

Papel de la experiencia en la neurología de la expresión facial de las emociones / The role of experience in the neurology of facial expression of emotions

Introduction. Facial expression of emotion has an important social function that facilitates interaction between people. This process has a neurological basis, which is not isolated from the context, or the experience of the interaction between people in that context. Yet, to date, the impact that experience has on the perception of emotions is not completely understood. Aims. To discuss the role of experience in the recognition of facial expression of emotions and to analyze the biases towards emotional perception. Development. The maturation of the structures that support the ability to recognize emotion goes through a sensitive period during adolescence, where experience may have greater impact on emotional recognition. Experiences of abuse, neglect, war, and stress generate a bias towards expressions of anger and sadness. Similarly, positive experiences generate a bias towards the expression of happiness. Conclusions. Only when people are able to use the facial expression of emotions as a channel for understanding an expression, will they be able to interact appropriately with their environment. This environment, in turn, will lead to experiences that modulate this capacity. Therefore, it is a self-regulatory process that can be directed through the implementation of intervention programs on emotional aspects (AU)

Introducción. La expresión facial de las emociones tiene una función social importante que facilita la interacción entre las personas. Este proceso tiene una base neurológica, que no se aísla del contexto ni de la experiencia acumulada por la interacción entre las personas en dicho contexto. Sin embargo, hasta la fecha, no se conocen con claridad los efectos de la experiencia sobre la percepción de las emociones. Objetivos. Discutir qué función desempeña la experiencia en el reconocimiento de la expresión facial de las emociones y analizar los sesgos que las experiencias negativas y positivas podrían tener sobre la percepción emocional. Desarrollo. La maduración de las estructuras que soportan la capacidad para reconocer la emoción pasa por un período sensible durante la adolescencia, donde la experiencia adquirida puede tener mayor impacto sobre el reconocimiento emocional. Experiencias de abuso, maltrato, abandono, guerras o estrés generan un sesgo hacia las expresiones de ira y tristeza. De igual manera, las experiencias positivas dan lugar a un sesgo hacia la expresión de alegría. Conclusiones. Sólo cuando las personas son capaces de utilizar la expresión facial de las emociones como un canal de comprensión y expresión interaccionarán de manera adecuada con su entorno. Este entorno, a su vez, dará lugar a experiencias que modulan dicha capacidad. Por lo tanto, es un proceso autorregulatorio que puede ser dirigido a través de la implementación de programas de intervención sobre los aspectos emocionales (AU)

[The role of experience in the neurology of facial expression of emotions]. / Papel de la experiencia en la neurología de la expresión facial de las emociones.

INTRODUCTION: Facial expression of emotion has an important social function that facilitates interaction between people. This process has a neurological basis, which is not isolated from the context, or the experience of the interaction between people in that context. Yet, to date, the impact that experience has on the perception of emotions is not completely understood. AIMS: To discuss the role of experience in the recognition of facial expression of emotions and to analyze the biases towards emotional perception. DEVELOPMENT: The maturation of the structures that support the ability to recognize emotion goes through a sensitive period during adolescence, where experience may have greater impact on emotional recognition. Experiences of abuse, neglect, war, and stress generate a bias towards expressions of anger and sadness. Similarly, positive experiences generate a bias towards the expression of happiness. CONCLUSIONS: Only when people are able to use the facial expression of emotions as a channel for understanding an expression, will they be able to interact appropriately with their environment. This environment, in turn, will lead to experiences that modulate this capacity. Therefore, it is a self-regulatory process that can be directed through the implementation of intervention programs on emotional aspects.

TITLE: Papel de la experiencia en la neurologia de la expresion facial de las emociones.Introduccion. La expresion facial de las emociones tiene una funcion social importante que facilita la interaccion entre las personas. Este proceso tiene una base neurologica, que no se aisla del contexto ni de la experiencia acumulada por la interaccion entre las personas en dicho contexto. Sin embargo, hasta la fecha, no se conocen con claridad los efectos de la experiencia sobre la percepcion de las emociones. Objetivos. Discutir que funcion desempeña la experiencia en el reconocimiento de la expresion facial de las emociones y analizar los sesgos que las experiencias negativas y positivas podrian tener sobre la percepcion emocional. Desarrollo. La maduracion de las estructuras que soportan la capacidad para reconocer la emocion pasa por un periodo sensible durante la adolescencia, donde la experiencia adquirida puede tener mayor impacto sobre el reconocimiento emocional. Experiencias de abuso, maltrato, abandono, guerras o estres generan un sesgo hacia las expresiones de ira y tristeza. De igual manera, las experiencias positivas dan lugar a un sesgo hacia la expresion de alegria. Conclusiones. Solo cuando las personas son capaces de utilizar la expresion facial de las emociones como un canal de comprension y expresion interaccionaran de manera adecuada con su entorno. Este entorno, a su vez, dara lugar a experiencias que modulan dicha capacidad. Por lo tanto, es un proceso autorregulatorio que puede ser dirigido a traves de la implementacion de programas de intervencion sobre los aspectos emocionales.

Diferencias en el Reconocimiento de las Emociones en Niños de 6 a 11 Años / Differences in Emotions Recognition in Children 6 to 11 Years Olds

La capacidad para reconocer las emociones es un factor necesario para la normal adaptación del niño al medio social y educativo; además de permitir la detección de trastornos como el autismo, la ansiedad y la depresión en etapas tempranas del desarrollo. Con el objetivo de comprender este proceso se realizó un experimento en el que participaron 47 niños distribuidos en tres grupos de edad (6-7, 8-9. 10-11 años), que visualizaron fotografías de expresiones faciales y corporales de alegría, tristeza, ira y miedo. Se les pidió que reconocieran la emoción expresada a partir de etiquetas relativas a estas emociones básicas y representadas con emoticonos. Los resultados mostraron un mejor reconocimiento de las expresiones faciales y corporales de miedo en los niños de 8-11 años respecto a los de 6-7 años (p < .01, r > .50). Por otro lado, se mostraron diferencias significativas (p < .01, r > .50), en el reconocimiento de las expresiones faciales de ira respecto a las corporales de ira, entre los niños de 6-7 años y los de 8-11 años. Mientras los niños de 6-7 años discriminan mejor la expresión facial de ira que la corporal, estas diferencias se invirtieron en los niños de 8-11 años. De los resultados obtenidos se puede concluir que el reconocimiento de las expresiones emocionales de ira y miedo es un importante indicador del adecuado desarrollo del niño. Educar en el reconocimiento de estas emociones a partir de la edad de 7 años, podría facilitar una mejor regulación emocional, con un efecto beneficioso sobre el rendimiento académico del niño.

The ability to recognize emotions is necessary for the normal child's adjustment to the social and educational environment, and to identify disorders including autism, anxiety and depression in the early stages of development. An experiment was performed to understanding this process. The participants were 47 children distributed in three groups (6-7, 8-9. 10-11 years). Children had to see pictures of facial and corporal expressions of happiness, sadness, anger and fear. Participants were than asked to say if they recognized the facial and corporal expressed emotion, from a labels related to these basic emotions and represented by emoticons. The results showed enhanced recognition of facial and corporal expressions of fear in children of 8-11 years olds compared to those of 6-7 years olds (p < .01, r > .50). On the other hand, the result showed significant differences (p < .01, r > .50), between children of 6-7 and 8-11 years olds, in the recognition of facial expressions of anger than the corporal expressions of anger. Children of 6-7 years olds showed enhanced recognition of facial expression of anger than corporal expression of anger. These differences were reversed in children of 8-11 years olds. One may conclude that anger and fear facial expressions recognition is an important indicator of the proper development of children. Emotional learning from 7 years olds, will ensure better emotional regulation, and a beneficial effect on the child's performance in school.

Speech in Alzheimer's disease: can temporal and acoustic parameters discriminate dementia?

AIMS: The study explores how speech measures may be linked to language profiles in participants with Alzheimer's disease (AD) and how these profiles could distinguish AD from changes associated with normal aging. METHODS: We analysed simple sentences spoken by older adults with and without AD. Spectrographic analysis of temporal and acoustic characteristics was carried out using the Praat software. RESULTS: We found that measures of speech, such as variations in the percentage of voice breaks, number of periods of voice, number of voice breaks, shimmer (amplitude perturbation quotient), and noise-to-harmonics ratio, characterise people with AD with an accuracy of 84.8%. DISCUSSION: These measures offer a sensitive method of assessing spontaneous speech output in AD, and they discriminate well between people with AD and healthy older adults. This method of evaluation is a promising tool for AD diagnosis and prognosis, and it could be used as a dependent measure in clinical trials.

Efectividad de una intervención preoperatoria de enfermería sobre el control de la ansiedad de los pacientes quirúrgicos / Effectiveness of pre-operative education in reducing anxiety in surgical patients

Objetivo. Evaluar la efectividad de una entrevista prequirúrgica estructurada llevada a cabo por las enfermeras de quirófano 1 hora antes de entrar los pacientes al quirófano en relación a la disminución de la ansiedad preoperatoria de los pacientes, y establecer el perfil de los pacientes que se pueden beneficiar de ella en relación a la edad, sexo e intervención quirúrgica a realizar. Material y métodos. Ensayo clínico aleatorizado simple ciego, realizado con una muestra de 335 pacientes programados para intervenciones quirúrgicas en dos hospitales comarcales: Hospital Alto Deba y en el Hospital de Mendaro. Se comparó la alternativa de utilizar una intervención informativa estructurada (grupo ensayo) con la situación actual en la que no se lleva a cabo ninguna intervención (grupo control). La eficacia del procedimiento fue recogida mediante el cuestionario de autoevaluación STAI ansiedad-estado. En el tratamiento estadístico de los datos se utilizó el estadístico chi-cuadrado en el caso de los factores y la t de Student para la igualdad de medias en el de variables continuas. Resultados. El impacto de la intervención sobre las medidas de la ansiedad estado y ansiedad rasgo se mostró como no significativo estadísticamente a pesar de que la media de la ansiedad estado era ligeramente más baja en el grupo de intervención (18,96) que en el control (20,03). Cabe destacar la mayor ansiedad de estado de las mujeres intervenidas en la especialidad de ginecología frente a los demás intervenidos. En el caso de la ansiedad rasgo se observa que un nivel de ASA mayor de 2 supone una mayor ansiedad; además, el consumo de psicofármacos también está relacionado con un mayor nivel de ansiedad de rasgo. Conclusión. El preoperatorio inmediato puede no ser el mejor momento para la realización de la visita ya que no facilita que su efecto sea ansiolítico (AU)

Objective To evaluate the effectiveness of a structured pre-operative interview conducted by operating room nurses in order to reduce the pre-operative anxiety of patients, and to determine the profile of patients who can benefit from it. Material and Methods A randomised double-blind and prospective trial was conducted on a sample of 335 patients scheduled for surgery in two regional hospitals in the Basque Region of Spain, Alto Deba Hospital and Mendaro Hospital. We compared the alternative of using a structured briefing (test group) with the current situation without any formal intervention (control group). The effectiveness of the procedure was determined using the STAI state anxiety self-assessment questionnaire. The Chi-squared statistic was used to assess the differences in factors and the Student t-test for comparison of means in the continuous variables. Results The impact of the intervention on measures of state anxiety and trait anxiety was found to be not statistically significant, although the mean state anxiety state was slightly lower in the intervention group (18.96) than in the controls (20.03). Women undergoing surgery in the specialty of gynaecology showed the higher state anxiety compared with other specialties. As regards trait anxiety a higher ASA level is associated with higher anxiety. Furthermore, the consumption of psychotropic drugs is also related to a higher level of trait anxiety. Conclusion The preoperative visit can be helpful when patients are selected according to specific characteristics: by type of anaesthesia, gender, or type of surgery. There may also be beneficial effects when preoperative education is tailored according to patient‘s anxiety risk. The time immediately before surgery may not be the best time for conducting the visit, as this may make the patients more anxious (AU)

[Effectiveness of pre-operative education in reducing anxiety in surgical patients]. / Efectividad de una intervención preoperatoria de enfermería sobre el control de la ansiedad de los pacientes quirúrgicos.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the effectiveness of a structured pre-operative interview conducted by operating room nurses in order to reduce the pre-operative anxiety of patients, and to determine the profile of patients who can benefit from it. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A randomised double-blind and prospective trial was conducted on a sample of 335 patients scheduled for surgery in two regional hospitals in the Basque Region of Spain, Alto Deba Hospital and Mendaro Hospital. We compared the alternative of using a structured briefing (test group) with the current situation without any formal intervention (control group). The effectiveness of the procedure was determined using the STAI state anxiety self-assessment questionnaire. The Chi-squared statistic was used to assess the differences in factors and the Student t-test for comparison of means in the continuous variables. RESULTS: The impact of the intervention on measures of state anxiety and trait anxiety was found to be not statistically significant, although the mean state anxiety state was slightly lower in the intervention group (18.96) than in the controls (20.03). Women undergoing surgery in the specialty of gynaecology showed the higher state anxiety compared with other specialties. As regards trait anxiety a higher ASA level is associated with higher anxiety. Furthermore, the consumption of psychotropic drugs is also related to a higher level of trait anxiety. CONCLUSION: The preoperative visit can be helpful when patients are selected according to specific characteristics: by type of anaesthesia, gender, or type of surgery. There may also be beneficial effects when preoperative education is tailored according to patient's anxiety risk. The time immediately before surgery may not be the best time for conducting the visit, as this may make the patients more anxious.

¿Son relevantes los procesos volitivos y de autorreflexión en los programas de reducción de peso? / Are relevant self-reflection and volition process in lose weight programs?

El sobrepeso se ha convertido en uno de los problemas de salud más importantes en el último siglo, no sólo por el deterioro en la calidad de vida de las personas que lo sufren, también por su relación con enfermedades como la diabetes, las cardiopatías y el cáncer. Desarrollo. La mayoría de los tratamientos están orientados a mantener el equilibrio entre el ingreso (dieta) y el gasto (actividad física) energético, mientras los factores psicológicos, y en menor grado los sociodemográficos, no reciben la importancia que merecen por su papel en la etiología y desarrollo de este problema de salud. Objetivo. Analizar y reflexionar, a través de la literatura científica presente en los últimos años, sobre la necesidad de educar y entrenar en dos procesos centrales e inductores de la pérdida de peso, como son la autorreflexión y la volición, muy relacionados con el correcto desarrollo psicológico de las personas. Conclusiones. La focalización en los aspectos volitivos y autorreflexivos de la conducta en personas con sobrepeso podría mejorar la efectividad del tratamiento por la estrecha relación que mantienen con la motivación ("querer adelgazar") y el autoconcepto ("imagen de uno mismo"), procesos éstos que se han mostrado importantes en la reducción de peso.

Overweight has become one of the most important health problems in the last hundred years, not only owing to the deterioration in quality of life of the persons suffering from it, but also because of its relation to diseases such as diabetes, heart disease and cancer. Development. Most treatments are oriented towards maintaining a balance between intake (diet) and expenditure of energy (physical activity), whereas psychological, and to a lesser degree, socio-demographic, factors do not receive they attention they deserve for their role in the etiology and development of this health problem. Objective. To analyze and reflect, based on the most recent scientific literature, about the need to educate and train individuals in two central process that induce weight loss: self-reflection and volition, very closely related to correct psychological development. Conclusions. Focusing on volitional and self-reflexive aspects of behavior in persons who are overweight could improve the effectiveness of treatment owing to the close relation between motivation ("wanting to lose weight") and self-concept ("one's image of oneself"), processes that have been shown to be important in weight reduction.

The impact of poly drug use on several prospective memory measures in a sample of university students / Impacto del policonsumo de drogas sobre varias medidas de memoria prospectiva en una muestra de estudiantes universitarios

The prolonged consumption of drugs has been associated with neuropsychological and cognitive deficits. The most important deficits are associated with executive functions and memory problems, specifically with prospective memory (PM). This type of memory plays a central role in our daily life. However, there is a lack of studies on the effects of poly drug consumption on prospective memory. In this study we aim to discover to what extent the length and amount of estimated consumption of alcohol, tobacco, cannabis and tranquilizers predicts the scores of self-reported prospective memory, and the scores on two objective tasks designed for this study. Measures included a Spanish version of the UEL Recreational Drug Use Questionnaire and the Prospective Memory Questionnaire, both with objective scores on two experimental tasks. The sample was composed of 164 participants (145 females and 19 males) aged 19- 36 (M = 19.85, SD = 2.21). Stepwise regression analysis showed that years of cannabis consumption explained 13% of self-reported long term PM deficits. Years of alcohol consumption explained 18.4% of total variance of self-rated internally-cued PM deficits. Years of alcohol consumption and estimated amount of alcohol together predicted 30.2% of variance of objective event-based PM tasks. The estimated amount of tobacco and tranquilizers consumption predicted 33.7% of the time-based PM task.

El consumo prolongado de drogas se ha asociado a déficit neuropsicológicos y cognitivos. Los déficits más importantes están asociados con las funciones ejecutivas y los problemas de memoria, y en concreto con la memoria prospectiva (MP). Este tipo de memoria juega un papel central en nuestra vida diaria. Sin embargo, faltan estudios sobre los efectos del policonsumo de drogas en la MP. En este estudio pretendemos conocer en qué medida los años desde el inicio de su consumo y la cantidad de consumo estimada de alcohol, tabaco, cannabis y tranquilizantes predicen las puntuaciones autoinformadas de memoria prospectiva y las puntuaciones objetivas en dos tareas experimentales diseñadas por nosotros. Entre las medidas se incluyeron una versión en español del UEL Recreational Drug Use Questionnaire, el Prospective Memory Questionnaire, junto con las puntuaciones objetivas en dos tareas experimentales. La muestra estuvo compuesta por 164 participantes (145 mujeres y 19 varones) con edades comprendidas entre los 19 y 36 años (M: 19.85 años, DE: 2.21). Los análisis de regresión por pasos mostraron que los años de consumo de cannabis explican un 13% de los problemas autoinformados de MP a largo plazo medidos con el PMQ. En el caso de los problemas autoinformados de MP con pistas internas, son los años de consumo de alcohol los que mayor porcentaje de la varianza explican (18.4%). Respecto a las tareas objetivas de MP, los años de consumo de alcohol y la cantidad estimada de alcohol predicen el 30.2% de la varianza de la tarea prospectiva de eventos. El 33.7% de la tarea de MP de tiempo era predicha por la cantidad estimada de consumo de tranquilizantes y de tabaco.

Toma de decisiones en la anorexia nerviosa / No disponible

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The effect of personality variables in the prediction of the execution of different prospective memory tasks in the laboratory.

The study of prospective memory (ProM), the remembering of the delayed execution of intentions, has been growing in recent years, and we know quite a bit about the cognitive variables that affect it. But the performance of a task depends on personality variables as well as on cognitive ones, and the role of personality variables in ProM has only been partially studied, the results being less conclusive. We sought to address two main objectives: (1) to quantify the joint influence of cognitive and personality variables on three ProM tasks in the laboratory (two based on events and the other on time), and (2) to identify the personality profiles of those who perform well in these three ProM tasks as opposed to those who do not. The cognitive and personality variables were evaluated with two sessions of 157 participants. The 16 PF-5 was applied (Cattell, Cattell & Cattell, 1993) and other cognitive variables were measured. With the data obtained, we ran several regression analyses to determine how some cognitive variables (sustained attention, verbal fluency, interference, retrospective memory, selective attention) and personality factors (tested using the 16 PF-5) can help to explain the variance in the performance of prospective memory tasks. Our results show that the contribution of personality predictor variables is moderate and smaller than that of the cognitive variables for predicting the execution of ProM tasks in the laboratory. Furthermore the intervention of the personality variables differs depending on the ProM tasks used. Global self-control and rule-consciousness were the personality variables that contributed the most in the prediction of the scores in the ProM tasks that were used.

Motivational versus volitional mediation of passivity in institutionalized older people.

The relationship between perceived loss of control and passivity in social activities in a non-handicapped institutionalized elderly population was assessed. Perceived loss of control was assessed from three different types of expectancies: low action-outcome expectancies, high situation-outcome expectancies, and low efficacy expectancies. Passivity scores were reported by the staff. The effect of these three types of expectancies on passivity was analyzed in terms of motivation and volition, which were treated as mediating variables. Overall analysis of the structural equations, as well as partial hierarchical regression analyses, showed that efficacy expectancies were good predictors of passivity, but this was not the case for the action-outcome and situation-outcome expectancies. These results lend more support to a volitional rather than to a motivational interpretation of the effect of control on passivity. The implications of these results for intervention and for a differentiated conception of expectancies are discussed.