Background and aim: Although literature suggests that quality of life (QoL) in women with substance use disorders (SUDs) is lower than in men, it remains unknown whether this 1) applies to SUD...Show moreBackground and aim: Although literature suggests that quality of life (QoL) in women with substance use disorders (SUDs) is lower than in men, it remains unknown whether this 1) applies to SUD patients with psychiatric comorbidities in the Netherlands; and 2) whether there is a gender difference in QoL gain during treatment. This study therefore aimed to compare QoL (gain) between genders. Because research linked mood problems to worse QoL and substance usage in women, it was also the aim to compare genders in the association between (change in) mood problems and (change in) QoL. Methods: The longitudinal design involved data of day-patient treatments between 2018-2020. Sixty nine females and one hundred and thirty males with SUDs and comorbidities were assessed, using the EQ-5D-3L and the ICECAP-A. Analysis of variance and moderation analyses were performed with multiple imputation, controlling for treatment group. Results: At pretest, QoL in women was significantly lower when compared to men. There was no significant gender difference concerning gain in QoL, as well as regarding the association between mood problems and QoL at pretest and posttest. Conclusions: Women with SUDs and comorbidities experience lower QoL than men, a gender gap that is less profound in the normal population. Stigma and adverse life conditions arguably play a role. There is no evidence that men and women profit differently from treatment. In any case, mood problems, trauma experiences and meaningful activities could be considered more in future studies, as their association with QoL seems to be critical.Show less
Worldwide, an increase in cases and severity of domestic violence (DV) has been reported as a result of the 2019 Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) pandemic. As one’s language can provide inferences...Show moreWorldwide, an increase in cases and severity of domestic violence (DV) has been reported as a result of the 2019 Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) pandemic. As one’s language can provide inferences about one’s mental health, this study analyzed word use in a DV online support group, aiming to investigate the COVID-19 pandemic’s impact on the mental health of DV victims. As social support and leisure activities might mitigate the consequences of DV on one’s mental health, their role as protective factors was examined. 5856 posts were collected from a DV support group and from two comparison groups on the social media platform Reddit. Confirmatory analysis was conducted following a registered pre-analysis plan. The results show that DV victims used significantly more linguistic indicators of depression than individuals in the comparison groups. However, linguistic indicators of depression did not increase significantly with the onset of COVID-19. Negative emotion words showed a weak negative correlation with words referring to social support (rho = - .110) and leisure activities (rho = -.137). Similarly, pre-occupation with COVID-19 was associated with using more negative emotion words (rho = .148). Exploratory analysis revealed that mid-pandemic, daily posting frequency in the DV support group was 22% higher than pre-pandemic. It is concluded that DV victims show more linguistic indicators of depression than comparison groups and that these characteristics are stable over time. Further, one’s concern with COVID-19 could contribute to negative emotions, whereas social support and leisure activities could function to some degree as protective factors for victims of DVShow less
Domestic violence is a highly prevalent form of violation of human rights. Victims often exhibit trauma symptoms and/or suffer from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). Identifying individuals at...Show moreDomestic violence is a highly prevalent form of violation of human rights. Victims often exhibit trauma symptoms and/or suffer from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). Identifying individuals at risk for PTSD can sometimes be difficult, yet it is the key in ensuring prevention of later treatment. The solution might be recognition of early trauma-specific symptoms that are predictors of PTSD and can be detectable through spontaneous narratives. Under extreme stressors individuals experience even more distress, which can amplify pre existing trauma symptoms. This study investigated the linguistic characteristics of trauma specific symptoms over two periods – before Covid-19 and during Covid-19 in a domestic violence (DV) victims’ group and a control group. The sample consisted of a total 4413 Subreddit posts that were analyzed using the software Language Inquiry and Word Count. The following categories were investigated: word count, cognitive processes, 1st person singular pronoun, positive emotions, and death. A MANOVA analysis showed that the linguistic markers of trauma were stronger in the victims group compared to control. Victims had longer narratives that included more 1st person singular pronouns, and fewer cognition words and fewer positive emotion words. However, the markers did not differ over the two time periods. The results indicate that victims exhibit stronger trauma-specific discourse compared to control. Unlike self-reports, linguistic analysis of natural word use is free from response bias, a problem often encountered by clinicians. Analysis of linguistic characteristics of spontaneously written material can contribute to early detection of trauma symptoms and prevention of PTSD.Show less
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is one of the most prevalent psychiatric disorders emerging due to impaired memory consolidation and negative appraisal of trauma. Word use has shown to...Show morePost-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is one of the most prevalent psychiatric disorders emerging due to impaired memory consolidation and negative appraisal of trauma. Word use has shown to reflect these symptoms in victims describing their experience through natural expressive writing. Domestic violence (DV) is a high-risk factor for developing PTSD that has increased sharply worldwide with the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. This paper aimed at investigating if there is an increase in linguistic markers of PTSD (high negative emotions; high emotional distancing; low cognitive processing) in people experiencing DV and whether this is intensified through the COVID-19 pandemic. Further, it was examined whether PTSD linguistic markers correlate with decreased social support words. Overall, 5880 text posts were obtained for analysis from three reddit forums. First person DV experiencer posts from r/domesticviolence subreddit were used as experimental group and two neutral subreddits (r/changymview & r/femalefashionadvice) functioned as control groups. DV victims showed significantly higher use of negative emotions than both control groups (r = -.45; r = -.76), higher use of emotional distancing than r/changemyview control group (r = - .14) and lower cognitive processing than r/femalefashionadvice control group (r = -. 3). An increase during the COVID 19 pandemic was not found. Contrary to our hypothesis, social support words showed an increase in DV users but correlated with cognitive processing and negative emotions. Gender differences in word use and intensity of trauma exposure may be investigated over time for further insight.Show less
Mental well-being has been shown to be reflected by several different linguistic markers, such as emotion words, temporal orientation, and insight words. Here, we investigated the effect of the...Show moreMental well-being has been shown to be reflected by several different linguistic markers, such as emotion words, temporal orientation, and insight words. Here, we investigated the effect of the COVID-19 stressor on the word use of those suffering from psychopathology and their healthy controls in a longitudinal design. 1556 blog posts written between February and June 2019 and the same period of time in 2020 were analyzed. In both the clinical and the control group, emotional negativity (d = -0.18), a focus on the present (d = -0.31), and use of insight words (d = -0.15) increased with the appearance of the COVID-19 stressor. Focus on the past decreased in the clinical group (d = 0.32). In the clinical group, the use of insight words was associated with emotional negativity and a focus on the present during the pandemic. In the control group, the use of insight words was additionally associated with a focus on the past and the future. Overall, these findings suggest that those suffering from psychopathology are no more vulnerable to the pandemic’s consequences on mental health than their healthy controls, as reflected in their word use. Yet, since word use on online platforms does not seem to reflect actual well-being very accurately, and considering that our sample was relatively homogenous in terms of mental disorders presented, gender, and age, these results should be interpreted with caution. Future research should replicate our findings with more valid measures of mental well-being and in a more diverse sample.Show less
Background: Despite increasing evidence for the effectiveness of Serious Games (SG), research and the implementation of such digital measures in mental health care lags behind. Insights into...Show moreBackground: Despite increasing evidence for the effectiveness of Serious Games (SG), research and the implementation of such digital measures in mental health care lags behind. Insights into attitudes and their influencing factors for professionals and clients of mental health care are assumed to facilitate the implementation and development of SG. Objective: This study aimed to gain a greater understanding of the attitudes of professionals and clients of mental health care towards SG and factors that influence (media usage, gaming experience) and moderate that relationship (age, gender). Method: A cross-sectional online survey with a quantitative study design was conducted with professionals (N = 166) and (former) clients of mental health care (N = 154). Two independent samples t-tests were conducted to study the influence of media usage and gaming experience on attitude towards SG, whereas four ANCOVAs were applied to examine the moderating effects of age and gender. Results: Media usage and gaming experience did not significantly influence the attitude towards SG in both samples. Also, age and gender did not significantly moderate the studied relationship. Conclusion: The factors media usage and gaming experience and the moderators age and gender do not contribute to a greater understanding of the attitude towards SG. Following these variables cannot facilitate the implementation and development of SG in mental health care. Based on the chosen sampling and measurement methods, the collected data was not considered representative of the studied population and statistical analysis were conducted with reduced power.Show less
Background: Serious games for mental health purposes is a young but rapidly growing concept, however, implementation in clinical practice lags behind. Knowing the characteristics and attitudes of...Show moreBackground: Serious games for mental health purposes is a young but rapidly growing concept, however, implementation in clinical practice lags behind. Knowing the characteristics and attitudes of the users, mental health professionals, will aid in seeking the optimal design and more efficient implementation. Objective: We wanted to gain more insight on what professionals want from the games, and if knowledge about games or practicing different therapeutic modalities is related to attitude on serious games. Method: We surveyed 123 MPHs via a cross-sectional online survey about technology usage, gaming knowledge, and attitudes towards serious games. Data were analysed using a t-test, chi-square test, exploratory factor analysis, and an ANOVA. Results: The results showed that overall interest to implement serious games with their own clients was high (75.6%), and perceived benefits outweighed perceived disadvantages, but current implementation rate was very low (.8%). The biggest reason for not wanting to use serious games was lack of knowledge (14.6%). Knowledge about gaming was significantly positively correlated to overall attitude, and with willingness to implement. There was no significant relationship between any specific therapeutic modality and the overall attitude towards serious games, which contradicts results from previous studies. Conclusion: Knowledge about games increases the attitude and willingness to try serious games with clients. Most mental health professionals reported to have beginner knowledge, thus educating them about (serious) gaming could help with implementation and adherence. More research is needed to map out why the professionals who are interested have not yet tried serious games. User-centred design (UCD) should be widely implemented when developing serious games for mental health purposes.Show less
