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Publications (119)
Prisoners constitute a group at suicide risk, showing higher relative rates of suicides than the general population. However, there is limited knowledge about the characteristics of those who die by suicide in Italian prisons. Based on the total sample of suicides of the Institute of Forensic Medicine of Milan (1993–2022), suicides in prison ( N =...
Shame may be a transdiagnostic marker of psychopathology and might potentially have a negative impact on treatment outcome. This scoping review maps the empirical literature on shame and psychotherapy, with a focus on individual therapy. Searching the terms shame and psychotherapy in PubMed and PsycInfo, we identified 2,520 unique records. After sc...
The COVID-19 pandemic has negatively impacted adults’ mental health around the world. Various studies highlighted the role of sociodemographic risk factors, including age, gender, and level of education, in increasing this impact. Although insecure attachment styles are considered a vulnerability factor for psychopathology and difficulties in copin...
Background:
Suicide constitutes a significant global health concern. Joiner's interpersonal-psychological theory of suicide focuses on three variables: Thwarted Belongingness (TB), Perceived Burdensomeness (PB) and Acquired Capability for Suicide.
Methods:
A sample of 90 psychiatric patients, comprising outpatients, inpatients and individuals re...
La pandemia da Coronavirus (Covid-19) ha richiesto l’adattamento di pazienti e psicoterapeuti a un’evoluzione del tradizionale setting “in presenza” alla videoterapia (VT). La VT ha visto una progressiva diffusione prima come passaggio obbligato e, poi, come nuova modalità alternativa o integrabile. L’obiettivo di questo lavoro è indagare il grado...
BACKGROUND
The literature investigating changes in biomarkers after internet-based psychological and mental health interventions is not yet extensively inquired.
OBJECTIVE
This rapid systematic review aims to provide a synthesis of literature examining the effects of internet-based psychological interventions on biomarkers.
METHODS
This review wa...
Background
Internet-based psychological interventions provide accessible care to a wide range of users, overcoming some obstacles—such as distance, costs, and safety—that might discourage seeking help for mental issues. It is well known that psychological treatments and programs affect the body, as well as the mind, producing physiological changes...
In the frame of the interpersonal psychological theory of suicide (IPTS), Interpersonal Needs Questionnaire (INQ-15) assesses thwarted belongingness (TB) and perceived burdensomeness (PB), related to suicidal ideation (SI); Acquired Capability for Suicide Scale–Fearlessness About Death (ACSS-FAD) measures this component which contributes to lethal...
Introduction: Both variable- and person-centered approaches identify grandiose and vulnerable themes in pathological narcissism (PN). However, person-centered results rely on cross-sectional data, preventing identification of subtypes of individuals through transitory self-states. Methods: We perform a cluster analysis on the joint trajectory of da...
Introduction
Suicidal behavior is a global public health problem. Among the most investigated theories for the explanation of suicide there is the interpersonal-psychological theory of suicide (IPTS) by Thomas E. Joiner. IPTS focuses on 3 variables related to lethal suicide attempt: thwarted belongingness, perceived burdensomeness and acquired capa...
Introduction
The peculiar requests of postgraduate teaching could affect the students’ lives, predisposing them to mental disorders and suicide risk (e.g. Abreu et al., 2021). The Interpersonal Psychological Theory of Suicide (IPTS) (Joiner, 2005) is a model that has proved useful in explaining this risk.
Objectives
We analyzed risk factors associ...
The young adult can experience psychological difficulties related to the delicate phase of life he/she is going through. Many of them show psychological difficulties but only a small portion receive the needed care. In this regard, internet-based interventions represent an important resource.
MindBlooming is a seven-week intervention delivered thro...
Background:
Suicide methods chosen by victims are particularly critical in suicide risk research. To differentiate suicide deaths, it is usual to categorize them as violent and nonviolent depending on the detrimental method chosen by the victims. Caustic ingestion, for example, is traditionally considered as a nonviolent suicide method. It results...
Tools for assessing object relations (ORs) are fundamental for psychodynamic theory, research, and practice. ORs play an important role in diagnostic and therapeutic processes, helping therapists to better understand and manage complex relational functioning in their patients. The clinical relevance of OR is also recognized by the first criterion o...
The "Healthcare workers' wellbeing [Benessere Operatori]" project is an exploratory longitudinal study assessing healthcare workers' mental health at three different time points over a 14-month period during the COVID-19 pandemic. We collected socio-demographic and work-related information and assessed the perceived social support, coping strategie...
La presente ricerca si configura come uno studio pilota all'interno di 5 strutture psichiatriche: due CPA (comunità protetta ad alta intensità assistenziale e media intensità riabilitativa), due CRA (comunità protetta ad alta intensità riabilitativa e ad alta intensità assistenziale) e un Centro Diurno (CD), di natura esplorativa, che ha l'obiettiv...
Background:
The COVID-19 pandemic has been postulated to account for inflated rates of either suicides or homicides. Nonetheless, results are discordant, in particular concerning suicide. We aimed to perform a retrospective analysis of suicides and homicides in the region of Lombardy, Northern Italy (districts of Milan and Monza Brianza), the Ital...
Pathological narcissism implies a fragile self-view. The psychological effects of ego-relevant events in people high in pathological narcissism, however, are still uncertain. The study examined the effects of pathological narcissism on psychological reactions to ego-relevant events occurring in private or public settings. Participants (N = 410) com...
Objective:
Evidence suggests that pathological narcissism impacts psychotherapy process and outcome. This study investigates whether traits of pathological narcissism account for distinctiveness (construal) of patients' interpersonal perceptions in treatment settings.
Methods:
Patients enrolled in psychological/psychotherapeutic treatment (N = 1...
The authors investigate whether and how borderline and pathological narcissistic traits differ in their associations with trait and state rejection sensitivity, and with affective reactions to experiences of social rejection occurring in daily life. Community adults (N = 189) completed baseline measures of rejection sensitivity, borderline personal...
Introduction
Background: Existing evidence poses low self-esteem as a risk factor for both suicidal ideation (SI) and suicide attempts (SAs) in the general population.
Objectives
The present study assesses the relationship between self-esteem level and SI/SA, considering across the lifespan. Two separate meta-analyses, one for SI and the other for...
Introduction
The Interpersonal Needs Questionnaire (INQ-15) and the Acquired Capability for Suicide Scale - Fearlessness About Death (ACSS-FAD) have been introduced to evaluate the theoretical constructs posit by Joiner’s Interpersonal Psychological Theory of Suicide (IPTS).
Objectives
The present study aimed to evaluate the psychometric propertie...
Introduction
This work represents the continuation of the studies presented in two e-posters during the EPA 2021 conference (De Filippi et al., 2021; Rignanese et al., 2021), which addressed the physical pain-suicidality association (k=44 studies).
Objectives
The aim of this meta-analysis is to provide an update of those studies, integrating data...
Introduction
Available meta-analytic evidence suggests an increased risk of suicide among cancer patients, although most of the reports focused on the sole suicide death (SD) outcome and they are usually hampered by significant between-study heterogeneity.
Objectives
The present meta-analysis aimed at assessing the prevalence and risk rates of SD,...
Background
Predicted increases in suicide were not generally observed in the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the picture may be changing and patterns might vary across demographic groups. We aimed to provide a timely, granular picture of the pandemic's impact on suicides globally.
Methods
We identified suicide data from official pu...
Dysfunctional eating attitudes and behaviors are very common among women. Recent findings suggest that these attitudes are linked to traits of pathological narcissism. However, mechanisms underlying this association need to be elucidated. We investigated the relationship between traits of pathological narcissism and dysfunctional eating attitudes a...
The Pathological Narcissism Inventory (PNI) is extensively used in recent empirical literature on pathological narcissism. However, most studies using the PNI are community-based, and no studies have used the PNI to investigate narcissistic presentations in personality disordered patients. This study investigates measurement invariance of the PNI i...
Introduction:
Prevalence of suicidal thoughts and behaviours is higher among patients with borderline personality disorder than the general population. However, evidence concerning the role of specific borderline symptoms for predicting suicide-related outcomes is lacking and no systematic review/meta-analysis (SR/MA) investigated this topic. Our...
Background:
COVID-19 forced healthcare workers to work in unprecedented and critical circumstances, exacerbating already-problematic and stressful working conditions. The "Healthcare workers' wellbeing (Benessere Operatori)" project aimed at identifying psychological and personal factors, influencing individuals' responses to the COVID-19 pandemic...
Many suicidal people do not receive professional assistance due to economic problems, the desire to autonomously solve the problem, or the stigma. Internet and Mobile-based Interventions (IMIs) can overcome many of these obstacles, offering flexible and accessible interventions. We conducted a narrative literature review about the characteristics o...
Despite the widespread prevalence of mental health problems, most psychological distress remains untreated. Internet-based psychological interventions can be an essential tool for increasing treatment availability and accessibility. The main objective of the MindBlooming project is to design and implement an innovative Internet-based multi-approach...
Introduction:
Among the most investigated theories explaining suicidal behavior there are the interpersonal-psychological theory of suicide (IPTS) by Thomas E. Joiner and the one focused on the construct of psychological pain (or psychache, or mental pain).
Objective:
Since it remains unclear whether these two different theories correlate with e...
The PFQ-2 is a brief and widely used questionnaire assessing shame- and maladaptive guilt-proneness. As empirical literature suggests cultural differences in self-conscious emotions, the present study aimed at validating the PFQ-2 in an Italian community sample (N = 367; 258 females; M age = 33.67). In particular, we investigated the factor structu...
Suicide is a public health problem having important consequences also for people who survive to the suicide of a loved one - the suicide loss survivors. Since suicide bereavement can have a lasting and significant psychosocial impact on the bereaved individuals, psychosocial treatments are needed (postvention). Many countries have included postvent...
COVID-19 pandemic involved several psychosocial consequences. We aimed at monitoring the mental health of Italian adults during the lockdown imposed by the government. We present here results from the baseline assessment of the “EmotionalThermometer [TermometroEmotivo] project on a sample of 1548 Italian adults. We assessed the socio-demographic co...
Background: Suicide outcomes in cancer patients represent a major public health concern. We performed an umbrella review (UR) including all systematic reviews (SRs) and meta-analyses (MAs) published on the association between cancer and suicide outcomes.
Methods: Eligible studies were searched in the main scientific databases up to January 23rd, 20...
Suicide is a major cause of death in Eating Disorders (EDs) and particularly in anorexia nervosa (AN). The aim of the present mini-review was to summarize the literature focusing on the interpersonal-psychological theory of suicide (IPTS) by Thomas E. Joiner, as applied to explain suicidal risk in EDs. PubMed database was used to search articles fo...
Emerging adulthood is a turning point in the life cycle with regard mental health. To assess psychological distress and attachment styles 688 university students of which 370 requested a counselling support responded to Symptom Checklist 90 Revised and Attachment Style Questionnaire. Counselling attending students (vs counselling non-attending stud...
During the last year, the COVID-19 outbreak put all the healthcare workers around the world at risk of physical and psychological sequelae. The general purpose of the present study was to assess the mental health of Italian healthcare workers during the COVID-19 outbreak and to identify high-risk groups. Here, we present results from the baseline a...
Adolescence is a crucial period for the development of personality and its dysfunctions. In this regard, it is essential to evaluate the nature and degree of maladaptive personality functioning. However, measures currently available present some limitations, mainly being adaptations from adult’s tailored instruments and length. Moreover, no instrum...
Purpose of Review
We report evidence on the negative psychological effects of pandemics in people with personality disorders (PDs) and on the role of personality pathology in compliance with mitigation-related behaviors. Considering the paucity of studies, after a description of the main features of PDs, on the basis of the current literature on pa...
The study examined the effectiveness of a brief psychodynamic counseling intervention on psychological distress and general life satisfaction in a sample of 124 students by comparing pre- and posttreatment data. The authors also tested the moderating role of pretreatment attachment styles. Results showed that most participants (57%) can be classifi...
Background
Due to the high pressure they sustain, family members of substance users are thought to experience negative consequences in mental and physical health. This scoping review provided a comprehensive overview on the mental and physical health of adult Affected Family Members (AFMs).
Method
We searched in-journal English articles in PubMed,...
Purpose of review:
We aim to provide quantitative evidence on the psychological impact of epidemic/pandemic outbreaks (i.e., SARS, MERS, COVID-19, ebola, and influenza A) on healthcare workers (HCWs).
Recent findings:
Forty-four studies are included in this review. Between 11 and 73.4% of HCWs, mainly including physicians, nurses, and auxiliary...
The Alternative Model for Personality Disorders states that personality pathology involves significant impairment in personality functioning that can be assessed using the Level of Personality Functioning Scale (LPFS). However, the ability of the LPFS to capture impairments typical of personality pathology, rather than of general psychopathology, i...
This study investigated the association between narcissism and shame, considering different measures of narcissism, different levels of analysis, and different situational conditions. Nonclinical participants (N = 196) completed baseline measures, followed by daily questionnaires for 28 days. Multilevel models indicated that trait and daily vulnera...
During the last decades, empirical interest in narcissism has steeply increased, leading to controversial findings. Its investigation has been conducted predominantly with self-report measures, which could distort empirical findings on narcissism and its correlates due to narcissists’ need to maintain a positive and inflated self-view. In the prese...
Research on personality in adolescence underlined the importance of adopting a dimensional approach to personality pathology rather than a categorical one. In this regard, the association between maladaptive versions of personality traits and pathological outcomes has been studied, neglecting the study of the severity of personality functioning. Th...
We argue that clinical information related to an object-relations model of personality pathology can be used by untrained and clinically inexperienced students to rate personality-disordered patients on the Level of Personality Functioning Scale (LPFS). To do so, 73 clinically inexperienced undergraduate students were asked to assess personality fu...
There is ongoing debate about the structure of pathological narcissism. Adopting a network approach, we investigate the core features of pathological narcissism and the nature of traits interconnections in a community sample (N= 944), considering also the effect of personality structure. Results suggest that grandiose fantasies, contingent self-est...
Narcissistic pathology is a topic of great interest for both researchers and clinicians nowadays. A growing body of research has investigated pathological narcissism to understand its nature and to reach a comprehensive definition of such personality pathology. We revised empirical and theoretical literature on pathological narcissism to show how i...
Empirical literature has shown that narcissism is often associated with limited empathy, but the mechanism underlying this association is still unclear. The present study investigated the role of identity instability as a mediator of the relationship between narcissistic traits and empathic capabilities. Narcissistic traits, identity instability, a...
Objective: Whilst the relationship between narcissism and emotion regulation is a topic of great interest, little is known about the nature of this association. The aim of the present study is to clarify the relationship of both grandiose and vulnerable narcissism with difficulties in emotion regulation, controlling for the effect of borderline per...
Currently, researchers and clinicians are conducting a wide-ranging reflection on personality disorders
(PDs): significant aspects on this topic are the need to delineate the core domains that define personality
pathology, as well as the demand to formulate a clinically relevant description of PDs. Within a dimensional
perspective, given the eviden...
Background and Objectives. Since significant differences have been reported, we estimated agreement between DSM-5 and DSM-IV criteria for alcohol use disorder (AUD).
Methods. We assessed 327 outpatients (mean age: 45.2 ± 13.4) with depressive or anxiety disorders.
Results. Absolute differences in prevalence rates between DSM-5 and DSM-IV AUD ranged...
Background. There is a lack of studies testing accuracy of fast screening methods for alcohol use disorder in mental health settings. We aimed at estimating clinical utility of a standard single-item test for case finding and screening of DSM-5 alcohol use disorder among individuals suffering from anxiety and mood disorders.
Methods. We recruited a...
Carriers of BRCA mutations (BRCA1 and BRCA2) have a higher risk for breast and ovarian cancer. Although cancer genetic testing is an effective instrument for cancer prevention, little is known about the psychological impact it may have on its users. The aim of the present study is to investigate the effect of coping strategies on the prediction of...
This study aims at investigating factors associated with early dropout in dual diagnosis patients, considering socio-demographic, diagnostic and personality structure variables. We hypothesized that the personality structure of the patient will show stronger associations with dropout, as compared to descriptive variables. Forty-seven patients conse...
Objective: Although the relationship between Substance Use Disorders (SUDs) and emotion regulation is a topic of great scientific interest, little is still known about the nature of this association. The aim of the present study is to clarify which specific difficulties in emotion regulation describe SUD inpatients, studying whether this relationsh...
This work aims to further validate the object-relations-based model of personality pathology assessment, evaluating the psychometric properties of the Italian version of the Inventory of Personality Organization (IPO), a self-report instrument for the assessment of personality organization according to O. Kernberg's model of personality pathology....
Body dissatisfaction is recognized as a robust risk factor for eating disorders. Despite over 80% of college men are body dissatisfied, not all men report several levels of eating disorder symptoms. In this study, we examined poor impulse control, social anxiety and internalization of media ideals as potential moderators. Data collected from 405 co...
The Drive for Muscularity Scale and Male Body Dissatisfaction Scale were developed for use with men and correspond to measures of drive for thinness and body dissatisfaction in women. The psychometric properties of these measures were evaluated in a sample of 655 Italian men, who completed other 11 measures also. Both scales demonstrated excellent...
Background
Although dual diagnosis has been a topic of great scientific interest for a long time, few studies have investigated the personality traits that characterise patients suffering from Substance Use Disorders and co-occurring Personality Disorders through a dimensional approach. The present study aimed to evaluate structural personality pro...
Background
Nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI) is used to cope with negative affect states. We investigated the association between impulsivity and this affect-regulation process.Method
Affect states associated with NSSI and impulsivity traits were evaluated in 30 Italian adolescent self-injurers (63.3% female, mean age = 16.63, SD = 0.56).ResultsNonsui...
The study aims to compare psychometric properties and clinical utility of Kennedy Axis V (K Axis) and 12-items version of the World Health Organization Disability Assessment Schedule 2.0 (WHODAS 2.0), a comparable version of the 36-items one included in DSM-5, comparing them with other significant instruments for the assessment of personality. A sa...
Introduction
Prospective studies have supported the validity of Vochs and colleagues’ three-factor interactive etiologic model of bulimic symptomatology (BS) among female undergraduates.
Objectives
Given the comparable rate of binge eating between young adult men and women, we sought to examine for the first time the validity and sensitivity of th...
Introduction
Studies conducted with American and Australian samples of pre-adolescents and adolescent girls support the tenets of Stice and colleagues’ dual-pathway (DP) model. The DP model is a cohesive framework for understanding how sociocultural pressures are translated into behavioural and negative affect risk factors potentially promoting bin...
Aim:
The aim of this study is to analyze the relationship between attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms in childhood and early-adolescence and the development of dysfunctional eating habits later in life. The sample under investigation is composed of 217 adolescents (males: 30.9%; mean age: 17.1 ± 0.88 ys; range: 16-19 ys) volun...
Introduction: although from 96 to 100% of individuals with eating disorders (EDs) reported insecure attachment, the specific mechanisms by which each adult insecure attachment dimension affects ED symptomatology remain to date unknown and unexplored. This study examined maladaptive perfectionism (i.e., personal standards, doubts about actions, and...
Introduction: the dual pathway model of Stice proposed a mediational sequence that link body dissatisfaction to lack of control over eating through dietary restraint and negative affect. Recently van Strien and colleagues extended the negative affect pathway of the original dual pathway model by adding two additional intervening variables: interoce...
Objective:
Dysfunctional view of or negative attitude toward the body may facilitate deliberate self-harm (DSH) because the body is experienced as a hated object. Objectification theory posits that the growing objectification of the body in Western media (i.e. the experience of being viewed and/or treated by others as merely a body, with beauty hig...
Objective: The effectiveness of post-surgical weight loss in improv-ing body image disturbance, self-esteem and psychological well-being in morbidly obese patients, remains to date unclear. The current preliminary study intends to investigate pre and post-operative changes in psychological well-being, self-esteem and body image. Methods: 125 patien...
Introduction
Based on clinical impressions personality disorders (PDs) and psychiatric disorders characterized by body image disorder (BID) have been suggested to be relatively common in cosmetic surgery settings and closely associated with patient's post-operative dissatisfaction despite technically satisfactory surgical results, leading to proble...