Background: Functioning and treatment outcome of persons with a major depressive disorder (MDD) is not only impacted by comorbid anxiety disorders, but also by comorbid anxiety symptoms not...Show moreBackground: Functioning and treatment outcome of persons with a major depressive disorder (MDD) is not only impacted by comorbid anxiety disorders, but also by comorbid anxiety symptoms not fulfilling the DSM-criteria for an anxiety disorders. Previous findings suggest that MDD in older age may differ in symptom profile with respect to anxiety symptomatology, with higher rates of anxiety in older age. However, findings remain inconsistent. Considering its clinical relevance further insight into symptom profiles of depression with anxiety symptomatology across the lifespan is needed. This study examined if and to what extent anxiety symptomatology in persons with MDD differs across age groups in the general population, as research in the general population is largely lacking and previous research mostly refers to clinical samples. Method: Data were derived from a large, general population cohort study, the Netherlands Mental Health Survey and Incidence Study-2 (NEMESIS-2). Selected were 365 subjects (aged 21-72 years) with a MDD episode, of any duration, during three years prior to baseline (e.g. a 3-year MDD). To analyse impact of age on symptom profile, logistic regression analyses were conducted examining the association between age and presence of symptoms, including MDD and anxiety symptoms, using items derived from the Composite International Diagnostic Interview 3.0 (CIDI 3.0). Results: Overall, logistic regression analyses did not yield significant results with regard to a different association of symptomatology in older persons with MDD, as compared to younger age. Only older age was more strongly associated with feeling anxious (OR = 2.20; 95% CI = 1.22– 3.97) in comparison to younger age. Conclusion: In general, anxiety symptomatology in depressed persons does not differ across the lifespan. However, we demonstrated that feeling anxious has been found to increase over the lifespan. Since this more anxious presentation in older depressed persons may blur the underlying MDD, attention from clinicians is required to be aware that depression in later-life can present itself with more anxious feelings.Show less
This study explores the effects of multidimensional empathy, specifically perspective taking and empathic concern in gifted early adolescents. This research was initiated in order to study whether...Show moreThis study explores the effects of multidimensional empathy, specifically perspective taking and empathic concern in gifted early adolescents. This research was initiated in order to study whether gifted early adolescents would develop higher perspective taking and empathic concern levels based on their cognitive abilities compared to non-gifted early adolescents, such that a higher score on empathic concern and perspective taking in the Interpersonal Reactivity Index was expected for gifted early adolescents. A sample of 41 gifted (n=27) and non-gifted (n=15) aged 9 to 12 participated. No significant differences were found on empathic concern and perspective taking for gifted early adolescents compared to non-gifted early adolescents which leads to the conclusion that gifted and non-gifted early adolescents may be more similar then previously depicted in research.Show less
In this study, we studied the possible impact of shame on trust, in the context of situations of poverty. It is known that people living in poverty feel shame, but what the impact is on trust, for...Show moreIn this study, we studied the possible impact of shame on trust, in the context of situations of poverty. It is known that people living in poverty feel shame, but what the impact is on trust, for instance when seeking help, is not well studied. We tried to manipulate 120 female participants into feeling either public shame, private shame, and nothing in particular (baseline condition). This was done by letting the participant in the first two conditions do a very difficult math- and language test, next to a confederate who clearly outperformed them. After the manipulation, a Trust Game was done. We expected that feeling shame caused them to score lower on the trust game and thus have less trust in others. Significant differences were found between shame scores of the public shame and the baseline conditions and between the private shame group and the baseline condition. However, no significant differences were found between the trust scores of the three conditions. This is notable because other studies show that beliefs about how one is perceived by others affects trust. This study provides important information on what feelings of shame can be evoked by counselors, and on the impact on clients’ ability to trust others. Future studies could further explore the mechanism behind this relationship, improving the limitations that were encountered in the present study.Show less
In times of rapid change, like what the world is currently going through, certain organizational circumstances might facilitate adapting to novel situations, especially in complex organizations...Show moreIn times of rapid change, like what the world is currently going through, certain organizational circumstances might facilitate adapting to novel situations, especially in complex organizations like health care. Health care workers having an innovative mindset might be one of these circumstances. Further, this mindset and health care workers’ innovative work behaviours (IWB) might be facilitated by the existence of psychological safety within their work teams. However, to understand the relationship between psychological safety and IWB and to be able to induce it, it is crucial to understand what dynamics underlie this relationship. In this study, the relationship between psychological safety and IWB, and whether this relationship was mediated by tacit and/or explicit knowledge sharing, were investigated. The sample consisted of 182 health care workers (120 females, 62 males, Mage = 36.25) and they were recruited through Amazon’s Mechanical Turk platform. Participants filled out an online questionnaire consisting of 36 questions about psychological safety, tacit and explicit knowledge sharing, and IWB within their work teams. Results indicated that while explicit knowledge sharing had an indirect effect on the relationship between psychological safety and innovative work behaviours, indicating mediation, tacit knowledge sharing did not have a significant indirect effect. The cognitive effort involved in sharing knowledge is discussed as a potential reason why a mediating effect was not observed for tacit knowledge sharing. Recommendations for further research and the limitations of the current study are discussed.Show less
Research master thesis | Psychology (research) (MSc)
closed access
As the negative consequences of debts are substantial, it is important that indebted people seek and accept help. However, people in debt are often reluctant to contact the creditor and identify...Show moreAs the negative consequences of debts are substantial, it is important that indebted people seek and accept help. However, people in debt are often reluctant to contact the creditor and identify shame as a barrier. Moreover, they experience a lack of acknowledgement when communicating with creditors. Given the human need for acknowledgement and the suggestion that acknowledgement can reduce shame, the current study examined the effect of acknowledgement on indebted people’s willingness to contact the creditor and explored the role of financial shame. To this end, 206 native English-speaking people with current or past debts completed an online experiment in which they read either a standard creditor letter or a creditor letter in which the creditor acknowledged the situation of the person in debt. Willingness to contact the creditor and financial shame did not differ between participants who read a creditor letter in which their situations were acknowledged and those whose read a standard creditor letter. However, higher financial shame was associated with lower willingness to contact. We conclude that acknowledging indebted people’s situations is not enough to increase their willingness to contact the creditor. Future research could test other ways to address and reduce the financial shame.Show less
Objective: In addition to the well-known motor symptoms, Parkinson’s disease (PD) patients also frequently experience disabling non-motor symptoms, such as impulse control disorders (ICDs). The...Show moreObjective: In addition to the well-known motor symptoms, Parkinson’s disease (PD) patients also frequently experience disabling non-motor symptoms, such as impulse control disorders (ICDs). The present study aimed to assess the predictive value of depression and anxiety, and the interaction of these factors with dopaminergic replacement therapy (DRT), for ICD development in de novo PD patients. Methods: Using the Parkinson’s Progression Markers Initiative database, a total of 334 de novo PD patients with a negative ICD screen at baseline (assessed with the Questionnaire for Impulsive‐ Compulsive Disorders short form QUIP-S) were included in the present study. Baseline depression and anxiety were measured by the Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS-15) and the State-Trait-Anxiety Inventory (STAI-Y), respectively. The outcome measures were ICD presence (a positive QUIP-S score) at follow-up visits, and ICD onset duration (time in months from baseline until ICD development). Binominal logistic regression and multiple regression analyses were performed to assess predictors for ICD presence and duration until ICD onset, respectively. Results: In total, 149 participants (44.6%) developed an ICD and the time of ICD onset was on average 34.54 months (SD=24.74) after baseline. Baseline STAI-Y scores were a significant predictor of ICD presence at follow-up visits, and higher scores were associated with an increased likelihood of developing an ICD (OR=1.02, 95% CI 1.00,1.05, p=.036). The first DRT type also significantly predicted ICD incidence, and dopamine agonists were associated with 2.34 higher odds (95% CI 1.45,3.86, p=.001) of developing an ICD, compared to levodopa or other medication types. Both effects were not confounded by age, gender or UPDRS motor score. GDS-15 scores and the interaction terms GDS-15 x DRT type and STAI-Y x DRT type did not significantly predict ICD presence (all ps>.299). None of the investigated factors significantly predicted ICD onset duration (all ps>.091). Implications: The finding that increased anxiety levels in de novo PD patients represent an ICD risk factor highlights the need for early and routine based anxiety screening in these patients. Additionally, clinicians should carefully consider the first choice of DRT, given that patients who received dopamine agonists as their first medication type encountered an increased ICD risk.Show less
Research master thesis | Psychology (research) (MSc)
closed access
Pregnancy leads to volumetric reductions in brain regions involved in Theory of Mind (ToM) tasks. These volumetric reductions appear to be an expression of the woman’s brain preparing itself for...Show morePregnancy leads to volumetric reductions in brain regions involved in Theory of Mind (ToM) tasks. These volumetric reductions appear to be an expression of the woman’s brain preparing itself for motherhood and caregiving. Yet, how pregnancy affects ToM abilities is still largely unknown. The present study investigated how pregnancy affects ToM in primiparous women (i.e., woman who is bearing a first offspring) and whether these changes are predictive of maternal sensitivity. ToM abilities, as assessed through total accuracy scores on the Reading the Mind in the Eyes Task (RMET), were not enhanced at post-pregnancy, compared to pre-pregnancy (H1). Neither did we observe a stronger enhancement in RMET child format performance compared to RMET-adult performance over the course of pregnancy (H2). Moreover, changes in ToM abilities across pregnancy was not a significant predictor of maternal sensitivity at one year postpartum (H3). In conclusion, ToM abilities, as assessed via RMET, did not change over de course of pregnancy. We speculated that the incongruence between our hypotheses and results could potentially be attributed to suboptimal operationalization of ToM abilities. For future studies it may be relevant to include ToM measures that focus more directly on the affective aspect of ToM.Show less
Objective: Multiple sclerosis (MS) is the most common neurodegenerative disease among young adults, of which 40-70% of the patients suffer from cognitive impairment. Currently, there is no...Show moreObjective: Multiple sclerosis (MS) is the most common neurodegenerative disease among young adults, of which 40-70% of the patients suffer from cognitive impairment. Currently, there is no biomarker predicting the cognitive status of MS patients. This study performed a principal component analysis in order to find a disease pattern that can aid in the differentiation of cognitive impairment in MS. Methods: A principal component analysis (PCA) was performed to create a disease pattern based on differences in whole-brain voxel intensities of conventional MRI sequences (T1, T2, and T2- FLAIR) and magnetization transfer (MT)-based MRI of 15 cognitively preserved MS patients (MSCP), 15 impaired patients (MS-CI) and 15 controls. A leave-one-out approach was used to validate the disease patterns between different cognitive performance statuses. Results: None of the conventional MRI sequences nor MT-based MRI were able to find a significant disease pattern for separating MS patients on cognitive status. The frontal cortex, periventricular zone, longitudinal fasciculus, thalamus and brainstem were more severely affected in cognitive impaired MS patients, although significance was not reached. Conclusion: Although the brain patterns created with both conventional MRI sequences and MTbased MRI sequences for evaluating cognitive performance in MS were not significant, the PCA is still a promising technique, when a larger sample size can be included.Show less
Introduction. It has been argued that avoidance behaviour and anhedonia are possible predictors of developing depression in youth with high levels of social anxiety. Method. A community sample of...Show moreIntroduction. It has been argued that avoidance behaviour and anhedonia are possible predictors of developing depression in youth with high levels of social anxiety. Method. A community sample of 237 participants (age 9 - 17 years) participated in the present longitudinal study. During three waves, (over a period of three years) levels of social anxiety, avoidance behaviour, anhedonia and depression were collected using self-report questionnaires. Results. Mediation analyses show that high levels of social anxiety in youth predict an increase of depressive symptoms over time. This was fully mediated by avoidance. However, when controlling for initial depression levels the relation between social anxiety and later depression was no longer significant, though avoidance remained a full mediator. Anhedonia was not a significant mediator in the link between social anxiety and depression. Discussion. It has been argued that socially anxious youth tend to avoid social situations which leads to a relative increase of depression over time. However, socially anxious youth do not experience more anhedonia, while youth with high levels of anhedonia are at risk of developing depression. A recommendation for future research concerns another, better, sequential model to conduct this area. Finally, limitations of the study and therefor suggestions for future research involve a larger and more varied sample as well as including more methods to avoid subjectivity.Show less
