Journal of clinical psychology
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The overlap of symptoms associated with anxiety and depressive disorders hinders their differentiation using self-report scales. The aim of this study was to develop purified versions of the Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI) and the Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II) that encompass only items highly specific to anxiety and depression, respectively. ⋯ Anxiety and depression seem to be inherently linked and, thus, the high comorbidity of anxiety and depressive disorders seems to be not a function of the same types of symptoms being reported for each disorder. Nevertheless, purified BAI and BDI-II scales might be useful for separating the effects of interventions on anxiety and depressive symptoms.
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A clinically informative behavioral literature on chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) and fibromyalgia (FM) has emerged over the past decade. The purpose of this article is to (a) define these conditions and their less severe counterparts, i.e., unexplained chronic fatigue (UCF) and chronic widespread pain; (b) briefly review the behavioral theory and intervention literature on CFS and FM; and (c) describe a user-friendly clinical model of assessment and intervention for these illnesses. The assessments described will facilitate understanding of the somewhat unusual and puzzling somatic presentations that characterize these patients. Using an individualized cognitive-behavioral approach the mental health clinician can offer significant help to these often stigmatized and medically underserved patients.
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We describe the development and initial psychometric properties of a 24-item self-report measure, the University of Texas at San Antonio Future Disposition Inventory (UTSA FDI). This instrument is designed to evaluate future related thoughts and feelings that are associated with suicide-related risk behaviors: positive focus, suicide orientation, and negative focus. The items were generated by clinical and nonclinical samples. ⋯ Scale reliability estimates were good (all rho's>or=.80) in both studies. Known-groups validation analyses showed that scores on each scale were useful in differentiating the responses of the study groups. Correlates for the scales were identified when scores on measures of suicide-related risk and general psychological symptoms were included as validation self-report instruments.
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We conducted two studies to examine the psychometric properties of the Body Investment Scale (BIS; Orbach & Mikulincer, 1998) in U. S. adolescent samples. The BIS was designed to assess bodily experiences that are associated with suicide-related behaviors. ⋯ In Study 2, results of the CFA with data from adolescent psychiatric inpatients (N=205; 101 boys, 104 girls) provided additional support for the four-factor solution. In addition, results of the receiver operating characteristic and logistic regression analyses showed that scores on the Body Feelings and Body Protection scales were most useful in differentiating the responses of suicidal and nonsuicidal adolescents, all Cohen's d values >.30. The study also examined associations between scores on the BIS scales and the validation self-report measures of hopelessness, suicide-related behavior, and reasons for living.
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Twenty-seven adult survivors of childhood sexual abuse participated in a pilot study comprising an 8-week mindfulness meditation-based stress reduction (MBSR) program and daily home practice of mindfulness skills. Three refresher classes were provided through final follow-up at 24 weeks. Assessments of depressive symptoms, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), anxiety, and mindfulness, were conducted at baseline, 4, 8, and 24 weeks. ⋯ Of three PTSD symptom criteria, symptoms of avoidance/numbing were most greatly reduced. Compliance to class attendance and home practice was high, with the intervention proving safe and acceptable to participants. These results warrant further investigation of the MBSR approach in a randomized, controlled trial in this patient population.