scholarly journals Indices of association between anxiety and mindfulness: a guide for future mindfulness studies

2019 ◽  
Vol 2 ◽  
Author(s):  
Satish Jaiswal ◽  
Neil G. Muggleton ◽  
Chi-Hung Juan ◽  
Wei-Kuang Liang

Abstract Mindfulness and anxiety are often linked as inversely related traits and there have been several theoretical and mediational models proposed suggesting such a relationship between these two traits. The current review report offers an account of self-report measures, behavioral, electrophysiological, hemodynamic, and biological studies, which provide converging evidence for an inverse relationship between mindfulness and anxiety. To our knowledge, there are no comprehensive accounts of empirical evidence that investigate this relationship. After reviewing several empirical studies, we propose a schematic model, where a stressor can trigger the activation of amygdala which activates the hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal (HPA) pathway. This hyperactive HPA axis leads to a cascade of psychological, behavioral, electrophysiological, immunological, endocrine, and genetic reactions in the body, primarily mediated by a sympathetic pathway. Conversely, mindfulness protects from deleterious effects of these triggered reactions by downregulating the HPA axis activity via a parasympathetic pathway. Finally, we propose a model suggesting a comprehensive scheme through which mindfulness and anxiety may interact through emotion regulation. It is recommended that future mindfulness intervention studies should examine a broad spectrum of measurement indices where possible, keeping logistic feasibility in mind and look at mindfulness in conjunction with anxiety rather than independently.

2014 ◽  
Vol 46 (20) ◽  
pp. 766-778 ◽  
Author(s):  
Panteleimon D. Mavroudis ◽  
Siobhan A. Corbett ◽  
Steven E. Calvano ◽  
Ioannis P. Androulakis

In this work we propose a semimechanistic model that describes the photic signal transduction to the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis that ultimately regulates the synchronization of peripheral clock genes (PCGs). Our HPA axis model predicts that photic stimulation induces a type-1 phase response curve to cortisol's profile with increased cortisol sensitivity to light exposure in its rising phase, as well as the shortening of cortisol's period as constant light increases (Aschoff's first rule). Furthermore, our model provides insight into cortisol's phase and amplitude dependence on photoperiods and reveals that cortisol maintains highest amplitude variability when it is entrained by a balanced schedule of light and dark periods. Importantly, by incorporating the links between HPA axis and PCGs we were able to investigate how cortisol secretion impacts the entrainment of a population of peripheral cells and show that disrupted light schedules, leading to blunted cortisol secretion, fail to synchronize a population of PCGs which further signifies the loss of circadian rhythmicity in the periphery of the body.


2008 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robina Khan ◽  
Katja Bertsch ◽  
Ewald Naumann ◽  
Menno R. Kruk ◽  
Patrick Britz ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Hpa Axis ◽  

2004 ◽  
Vol 36 (05) ◽  
Author(s):  
D Eser ◽  
P Zwanzger ◽  
S Aicher ◽  
C Schüle ◽  
TC Baghai ◽  
...  

2020 ◽  
Vol 32 (S1) ◽  
pp. 180-180
Author(s):  
Philippe Landreville ◽  
Alexandra Champagne ◽  
Patrick Gosselin

Background.The Geriatric Anxiety Inventory (GAI) is a widely used self-report measure of anxiety symptoms in older adults. Much research has been conducted on the psychometric properties of the GAI in various populations and using different language versions. Previous reviews of this literature have examined only a small proportion of studies in light of the body of research currently available and have not evaluated the methodological quality of this research. We conducted a systematic review of the psychometric properties of the GAI.Method.Relevant studies (N = 30) were retrieved through a search of electronic databases (Pubmed, PsycINFO, CINAHL, EMBASE and Google Scholar) and a hand search. The methodological quality of the included studies was assessed by two independent reviewers using the ‘‘COnsensusbased Standards for the selection of health status Measurement INstruments’’ (COSMIN) checklist.Results.Based on the COSMIN checklist, internal consistency and test reliability were mostly rated as poorly assessed (62.1% and 70% of studies, respectively) and quality of studies examining structural validity was mostly fair (60% of studies). The GAI showed adequate internal consistency and test-retest reliability. Convergent validity indices were highest with measures of generalized anxiety and lowest with instruments that include somatic symptoms. A substantial overlap with measures of depression was reported. While there was no consensus on the factorial structure of the GAI, several studies found it to be unidimensional.Conclusions.The GAI presents satisfactory psychometric properties. However, future efforts should aim to achieve a higher degree of methodological quality.


2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Evan Suzman ◽  
Zachary J. Williams ◽  
Jacob I. Feldman ◽  
Michelle Failla ◽  
Carissa J. Cascio ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Individuals on the autism spectrum are reported to display alterations in interoception, the sense of the internal state of the body. The Interoception Sensory Questionnaire (ISQ) is a 20-item self-report measure of interoception specifically intended to measure this construct in autistic people. The psychometrics of the ISQ, however, have not previously been evaluated in a large sample of autistic individuals. Methods Using confirmatory factor analysis, we evaluated the latent structure of the ISQ in a large online sample of adults on the autism spectrum and found that the unidimensional model fit the data poorly. Using misspecification analysis to identify areas of local misfit and item response theory to investigate the appropriateness of the seven-point response scale, we removed redundant items and collapsed the response options to put forth a novel eight-item, five-response choice ISQ. Results The revised, five-response choice ISQ (ISQ-8) showed much improved fit while maintaining high internal reliability. Differential item functioning (DIF) analyses indicated that the items of the ISQ-8 were answered in comparable ways by autistic adolescents and adults and across multiple other sociodemographic groups. Limitations Our results were limited by the fact that we did not collect data for typically developing controls, preventing the analysis of DIF by diagnostic status. Additionally, while this study proposes a new 5-response scale for the ISQ-8, our data were not collected using this method; thus, the psychometric properties for the revised version of this instrument require further investigation. Conclusion The ISQ-8 shows promise as a reliable and valid measure of interoception in adolescents and adults on the autism spectrum, but additional work is needed to examine its psychometrics in this population. A free online score calculator has been created to facilitate the use of ISQ-8 latent trait scores for further studies of autistic adolescents and adults (available at https://asdmeasures.shinyapps.io/ISQ_score/).


2011 ◽  
Vol 42 (4) ◽  
pp. 819-828 ◽  
Author(s):  
E. Eshkevari ◽  
E. Rieger ◽  
M. R. Longo ◽  
P. Haggard ◽  
J. Treasure

BackgroundThe rubber hand illusion (RHI) has been widely used to investigate the bodily self in healthy individuals. The aim of the present study was to extend the use of the RHI to examine the bodily self in eating disorders (EDs).MethodThe RHI and self-report measures of ED psychopathology [the Eating Disorder Inventory – 3 (EDI-3) subscales of Drive for Thinness, Bulimia, Body Dissatisfaction, Interoceptive Deficits, and Emotional Dysregulation; the 21-item Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale (DASS-21); and the Self-Objectification Questionnaire (SOQ)] were administered to 78 individuals with an ED and 61 healthy controls.ResultsIndividuals with an ED experienced the RHI significantly more strongly than healthy controls on both perceptual (i.e. proprioceptive drift) and subjective (i.e. self-report questionnaire) measures. Furthermore, both the subjective experience of the RHI and associated proprioceptive biases were correlated with ED psychopathology. Approximately 23% of the variance for embodiment of the fake hand was accounted for by ED psychopathology, with interoceptive deficits and self-objectification significant predictors of embodiment.ConclusionsThese results indicate that the bodily self is more plastic in people with an ED. These findings may shed light on both aetiological and maintenance factors involved in EDs, particularly visual processing of the body, interoceptive deficits, and self-objectification.


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