Depression and insomnia are prevalent disorders which are often found to occur comorbidly. Compared to suffering from one disorder alone, a comorbidity is related to a higher symptom burden and...Show moreDepression and insomnia are prevalent disorders which are often found to occur comorbidly. Compared to suffering from one disorder alone, a comorbidity is related to a higher symptom burden and reduced treatment success. Still, only a number of studies focus on the psychological risk factors for the onset and maintenance of depression and insomnia. This study hypothesized that high levels of perfectionism and rumination can predict an increase in depressive symptoms and sleep disturbances. In a sample of 69 healthy university students, an online survey with a series of self-report questionnaires was administered. The study confirmed the already established finding of a comorbidity between depressive symptoms and sleep disturbances. Regarding the main hypotheses of this study, multiple regression analyses yielded that rumination significantly predicts depressive symptoms as well as sleep disturbances, while perfectionism was not a significant predictor of an increase in depressive symptoms and sleep disturbances. Existing literature suggests that this could be either explained by 1) the mediating effect of rumination between perfectionism and sleep disturbances or depressive symptoms and that 2) maladaptive, but not adaptive, perfectionism has detrimental effects on mood and sleep. Future research should investigate these hypotheses and additionally examining whether other factors, for instance worry or stress, might be relevant in predicting depressive symptoms and sleep disturbances. Further knowledge about the mechanisms behind the comorbidity between depression and insomnia is relevant in order to improve existing treatment approaches as well as establish prevention measures which target these risk factors.Show less
Research master thesis | Psychology (research) (MSc)
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BACKGROUND: Childhood emotional maltreatment (CEM) has been identified as a considerable threat to adaptive child development. Emotion regulation is commonly impaired in victims of CEM, which can...Show moreBACKGROUND: Childhood emotional maltreatment (CEM) has been identified as a considerable threat to adaptive child development. Emotion regulation is commonly impaired in victims of CEM, which can adversely impact broader socio-emotional functioning, such as the quality of child-parent interactions in adolescence. The current study examines to what extent maladaptive emotion regulation strategies (i.e., catastrophizing and rumination) mediate the association between experienced CEM and the quality of child-parent interactions as perceived by the adolescent. METHOD: The healthy control group of the larger RE-PAIR study (‘Unravelling the Impact of Emotional Maltreatment on the Developing Brain’) was included, incorporating adolescents (N = 80, age 11 to17) and their parents (N (Mothers) = 80, N (Fathers) = 76). Adolescent participants performed a reminiscence task with each parent and consecutively filled in a questionnaire to assess perceived parental interaction and communication behaviors during the task. CEM and emotion regulation were assessed through online versions of a Childhood Trauma Questionnaire and a Cognitive Emotion Regulation Questionnaire. RESULTS: Two underlying factors were formulated after performing Principal Component Analyses (PCAs) on the perceived behavior per parent, namely ‘perceived general satisfaction with the interaction’ and ‘perceived criticism’. CEM did not predict either formulated outcome, for parents together and mothers separately. However, CEM had a negative effect on perceived general satisfaction, (F(1,64) = 6.175, b = -.502, p = .016) and a positive effect on perceived criticism, (F(1,64) = 6.612, b = .127, p = .012) by the adolescent during the interaction with their father. No mediation effects were found for either catastrophizing or rumination. DISCUSSION: Suggestions for future research include comparisons between different childhood maltreatment and to assess emotion dysregulation on multiple levels of functioning.Show less
BACKGROUND: Cortical correlates to heart rate variability (HRV) are assumed to involve interconnectivity between single brain areas and large-scale brain networks (LSN) in the extended...Show moreBACKGROUND: Cortical correlates to heart rate variability (HRV) are assumed to involve interconnectivity between single brain areas and large-scale brain networks (LSN) in the extended neurovascular integration model (NVI). Among those are the CEN and the DMN from the triple network model (TNM) and the anterior insula (AI) and the dorsal anterior cingulate cortex (DACC). This study aimed to test if AI and DACC are involved as the SN in FC patterns that correlate to HRV. Second, it was tested if LSN show FC patterns in accordance with the TNM during experimental tasks. METHODS: 27 female participants (18- 35 years) took part in this cross-sectional fMRI study. Experimentally induced FC patterns of the three LSN with HRV as a covariate were used for the statistical model. RESULTS: As hypothesised, the CEN showed significantly more intrinsic FC during the WMT which was associated with HRV. Further, there was an association between HRV and the FC between the CEN and AI/ACC, respectively. Against the hypothesis, an involvement of the full SN could not be confirmed. The results concerning the DMN disconfirm the hypothesis of an increased FC during the rumination condition. Lastly, a trend was visible for lower HRV during the WMT compared to the rumination condition, but this difference did not reach the significance level. CONCLUSION: The present results confirm the AI and ACC as autonomous brain regions involved in FC patterns associated with HRV. This confirmation of the NVI opposes the unexpectedly high FC pattern of the DMN during the WMT, which points to explanatory gaps in the external validity of the model and the role of LSN vs. single brain regions as associates of HRV.Show less
