Background
The use of new technologies is growing, and some authors have suggested that frequent use might hide a non‐chemical addiction (i.e., technological addiction). Over the last 5 years, ...several studies investigating the role of metacognitions in technological addictions have been published. We aim to provide the first systematic review focused on this topic, by updating the initial evidence highlighted by a previous systematic review on metacognitions across addictive behaviours (Hamonniere & Varescon, 2018).
Methods
Electronic literature databases (Pubmed, PsychINFO, SCOPUS and Web of Science) were searched to identify studies that examined the relationship between metacognitions and four different technological addictions (Internet Gaming Disorder, IGD; problematic Internet use, PIU; problematic smartphone use, PSU; and problematic social networking sites use, PSNSU).
Results
We found 13 empirical studies published between 2018 and 2021. Positive low to moderate cross‐sectional associations between the four technological addictions and both generic and specific metacognitions were found, in accordance with the metacognitive model of addictive behaviours. Positive beliefs about worry, negative beliefs about thoughts concerning uncontrollability and danger, beliefs about the need to control thoughts and a lack of cognitive confidence were associated with IGD, PIU, PSU and PSNSU.
Conclusions
The absence of longitudinal studies prevents us from providing definitive answers about the role of metacognitions in technological addictions. Despite this limitation, interventions that target metacognitions could be beneficial for people presenting with technological addictions.
Abstract Problematic Internet use (PIU), which has become a global social issue, can be broadly conceptualized as an inability to control one's use of the Internet which leads to negative ...consequences in daily life. The aim of this paper is to give a brief overview of the gradually evolving body of literature on PIU. This shows that the definitions and diagnostic criteria that have been proposed, and the assessment tools that have been developed, stress similarities between PIU, addictive behaviours and impulse-control disorders. Disagreements regarding diagnostic criteria and the lack of large epidemiological studies have resulted in difficulties in establishing the prevalence of PIU in the general population. Studies suggest high comorbidity rates between PIU and numerous psychiatric disorders highlighting the importance of focusing on comorbidity in treatment. There is growing evidence that genetic, personality and individual differences in automatic and controlled aspects of self-regulation may promote the development of PIU. Pharmacological and psychotherapeutic treatments specific to PIU have received limited testing in large, rigorous studies however preliminary evidence suggests that both psychotropic medications (Escitalopram, Naltrexone and Methylphenidate) and cognitive behaviour therapy may have some utility in the treatment of PIU. More research is needed on areas which remain unclear and contribute to the prognosis of PIU, in particular the temporal relationships between psychiatric disorder and PIU, mechanisms of comorbidity and the more subtle psychological changes that occur through Internet use.
Since Italian liver allocation policy was last revised (in 2012), relevant critical issues and conceptual advances have emerged, calling for significant improvements. We report the results of a ...national consensus conference process, promoted by the Italian College of Liver Transplant Surgeons (for the Italian Society for Organ Transplantation) and the Italian Association for the Study of the Liver, to review the best indicators for orienting organ allocation policies based on principles of urgency, utility, and transplant benefit in the light of current scientific evidence. MELD exceptions and hepatocellular carcinoma were analyzed to construct a transplantation priority algorithm, given the inequity of a purely MELD‐based system for governing organ allocation. Working groups of transplant surgeons and hepatologists prepared a list of statements for each topic, scoring their quality of evidence and strength of recommendation using the Centers for Disease Control grading system. A jury of Italian transplant surgeons, hepatologists, intensivists, infectious disease specialists, epidemiologists, representatives of patients’ associations and organ‐sharing organizations, transplant coordinators, and ethicists voted on and validated the proposed statements. After carefully reviewing the statements, a critical proposal for revising Italy's current liver allocation policy was prepared jointly by transplant surgeons and hepatologists.
The authors present a critical proposal for the implementation of the current liver allocation policy in Italy developed following the results of a national Consensus Conference process aimed to revise, on the basis of scientific evidence, the best indicators for guiding organ allocation policies in the urgency, utility, and benefit models. See the editorial from Berg on page 2537.
Alcohol Use Disorder (AUD) is a debilitating condition with serious adverse effects on health and psycho-social functioning. The most effective psychological treatments for AUD show moderate efficacy ...and return to dysregulated alcohol use after treatment is still common. The aim of the present study was to evaluate Metacognitive Therapy (MCT) as applied to AUD. Five patients were treated using a non-concurrent multiple baseline design with follow-up at 3- and 6-months time points. Each patient received 12 one-hour sessions of MCT. Following MCT all patients demonstrated large and clinically meaningful reductions in weekly alcohol use and number of binge drinking episodes that were upheld at follow-up in almost all cases. Metacognitive beliefs, as secondary outcome, also changed substantially. The findings from this study offer preliminary evidence of positive effects associated with MCT in AUD and support the need for a definitive trial of MCT in addictive behaviors.
Abstract
Cognitive control is a core feature of several mental disorders. A recent account poses that health problems may derive from proactive forms of cognitive control that maintain stress ...representation over time. The working hypothesis of the present study is that psychological distress is caused by the tendency to select a particular maladaptive self-regulation strategy over time, namely perseverative thinking, rather than by transient stimulus–response patterns. To test this hypothesis, we asked 84 women to carry out a battery of standardized questionnaires regarding their tendency to undertake perseverative thinking and their level of psychological distress, followed by cognitive tasks measuring the tendency to use proactive versus reactive control modality and disinhibition. Through a series of mediation analyses, we demonstrate that the tendency to use proactive control correlates with psychological distress and that this relation is mediated by perseverative thinking. Moreover, we show that the relation between low inhibitory control and psychological stress is more strongly mediated by perseverative thinking than impulsiveness, a classical construct that focuses on more transient reactions to stimuli. The present results underline the importance of considering psychological distress as the consequence of a maladaptive way of applying control over time, rather than the result of a general deficit in cognitive control abilities.
The accurate definition of 3-D crustal structures and, in primis, the Moho depth, are the most important requirement for seismological, geophysical and geodynamic modelling in complex tectonic ...regions. In such areas, like the Mediterranean region, various active and passive seismic experiments are performed, locally reveal information on Moho depth, average and gradient crustal V
p
velocity and average V
p
/V
s
velocity ratios. Until now, the most reliable information on crustal structures stems from controlled-source seismology experiments. In most parts of the Alpine region, a relatively large number of controlled-source seismology information are available though the overall coverage in the central Mediterranean area is still sparse due to high costs of such experiments. Thus, results from other seismic methodologies, such as local earthquake tomography, receiver functions and ambient noise tomography can be used to complement the controlled-source seismology information to increase coverage and thus the quality of 3-D crustal models. In this paper, we introduce a methodology to directly combine controlled-source seismology and receiver functions information relying on the strengths of each method and in relation to quantitative uncertainty estimates for all data to derive a well resolved Moho map for Italy. To obtain a homogeneous elaboration of controlled-source seismology and receiver functions results, we introduce a new classification/weighting scheme based on uncertainty assessment for receiver functions data. In order to tune the receiver functions information quality, we compare local receiver functions Moho depths and uncertainties with a recently derived well-resolved local earthquake tomography-derived Moho map and with controlled-source seismology information. We find an excellent correlation in the Moho information obtained by these three methodologies in Italy. In the final step, we interpolate the controlled-source seismology and receiver functions information to derive the map of Moho topography in Italy and surrounding regions. Our results show high-frequency undulation in the Moho topography of three different Moho interfaces, the European, the Adriatic-Ionian, and the Liguria-Corsica-Sardinia-Tyrrhenia, reflecting the complexity of geodynamical evolution.
ABSTRACT Introduction This study explored the possible mediating role of emotion dysregulation in the association between perfectionism and eating psychopathology symptoms. Method One hundred ...forty‐two outpatients with eating disorders (EDs) were enrolled. Perfectionism, emotion dysregulation, ED psychopathology, anxious and depressive symptoms were assessed. Correlation, mediation and 95% bias corrected and accelerated (BCa CI) bootstrapped analyses were run. Results Emotion dysregulation was found to mediate the association between concern over mistakes perfectionism and restraint (indirect effect: 0.093, BCa CI: 0.001–0.02, adjusted R 2 = 0.3324, p < 0.001), shape concern (indirect effect: 0.0130, BCa CI: 0.004–0.03, adjusted R 2 = p < 0.001) and weight concern (indirect effect: 0.0142, BCa CI: 0.004–0.03, adjusted R 2 = 0.2986, p < 0.001). Conclusion Among ED outpatients, emotion dysregulation may be involved in the association between concern over mistakes perfectionism and persistence of eating psychopathology symptoms. Emotion dysregulation could be considered as possible therapeutic target to reduce the persistence, and severity, of eating psychopathology symptoms among ED patients with concern over mistakes perfectionism.
AbstractThis study aimed at determining whether motives and/or maladaptive cognitions would predict levels of Internet Gaming Disorder independently of negative affect and problematic Internet use. ...Seventy-nine Internet gamers completed the following questionnaires: Ten-Item Internet Gaming Disorder Test, Problematic Internet Use Questionnaire Short Form, Depression Anxiety and Stress Scale 21, Motives for Online Gaming Questionnaire, and Maladaptive Gaming-Related Cognitions Scale. Results showed that all variables were positively and significantly correlated with levels of Internet Gaming Disorder with the exception of motives relating to recreation. Furthermore, a hierarchical linear regression analysis showed that motives relating to coping and skills development and maladaptive cognitions relating to overvaluing of game rewards were the only significant predictors of levels of Internet Gaming Disorder when controlling for negative affect and problematic Internet use. The implications of these findings are discussed.
Low self-esteem is a feature of several mental health disorders that has been directly treated with Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT). The aim of our study was to determine the efficacy of ...interventions for improving low self-esteem in adults by utilizing the model outlined in Fennell (1997; 1998; 1999). A literature search identified 8 studies that met the inclusion criteria of CBT-based interventions for low self-esteem using this model, 7 of which were used in a quantitative synthesis. These studies included weekly group and individual sessions and one-day workshop formats. Summary effect sizes of 1.12 and 0.34 at post-treatment were observed, with low levels of heterogeneity, for weekly sessions and one-day workshops, respectively. Comparable results were found for the reduction of depressive symptoms. Results suggest that CBT-based interventions may be efficacious for treating individuals with low self-esteem, according to changes in self-report measures; however, it is unclear whether these interventions are dissimilar to those aimed at reducing depression.
The classic phenotype of Fabry disease, X-linked α-galactosidase A (α-Gal A) deficiency, has an estimated incidence of ∼1 in 50,000 males. The recent recognition of later-onset variants suggested ...that this treatable lysosomal disease is more frequent. To determine the disease incidence, we undertook newborn screening by assaying the α-Gal A activity in blood spots from 37,104 consecutive Italian male neonates. Enzyme-deficient infants were retested, and “doubly screened-positive” infants and their relatives were diagnostically confirmed by enzyme and mutation analyses. Twelve (0.03%) neonates had deficient α-Gal A activities and specific mutations, including four novel missense mutations (M51I, E66G, A73V, and R118C), three missense mutations (F113L, A143T, and N215S) identified previously in later-onset patients, and one splicing defect (IVS5
+1G→T) reported in a patient with the classic phenotype. Molecular modeling and in vitro overexpression of the missense mutations demonstrated structures and residual activities, which were rescued/enhanced by an α-Gal A–specific pharmacologic chaperone, consistent with mutations that cause the later-onset phenotype. Family studies revealed undiagnosed Fabry disease in affected individuals. In this population, the incidence of α-Gal A deficiency was 1 in ∼3,100, with an 11:1 ratio of patients with the later-onset:classic phenotypes. If only known disease-causing mutations were included, the incidence would be 1 in ∼4,600, with a 7:1 ratio of patients with the later-onset:classic phenotypes. These results suggest that the later-onset phenotype of Fabry disease is underdiagnosed among males with cardiac, cerebrovascular, and/or renal disease. Recognition of these patients would permit family screening and earlier therapeutic intervention. However, the higher incidence of the later-onset phenotype in patients raises ethical issues related to when screening should be performed—in the neonatal period or at early maturity, perhaps in conjunction with screening for other treatable adult-onset disorders.
PDF
