Feten Fekih-Romdhane

Razi Hospital · Department of Psychiatry Ibn Omrane

Meta-analytic results have revealed a significant influence of stress on a wide array of psychological and behavioral markers, underscoring its considerable clinical importance. Providing a simple and cost-effective tool assessing stress for the Arabic-speaking population would be immensely beneficial. Therefore, our research objective was to exami...

Background: There is evidence indicating that an important proportion of young people at ultra-high risk (UHR) for psychosis do consult in primary care, but their identification may be hindered by multiple factors, such as primary care physicians (PCPs)’ limited skills and perceived stigma toward the condition. This study aimed to investigate attit...

Background: The Short Boredom Proneness Scale (SBPS) is a common tool for assessing individuals’ inclination toward Boredom. The Arabic version of the SBPS has not been validated despite the language being spoken by over 420 million people worldwide. Therefore, this study aims to translate the SBPS into Arabic and prove its psychometric properties...

Background Although the positive association between impairments in metacognitive capacity and negative symptoms in people with schizophrenia spectrum disorders is widely evidenced in the literature, the explaining mechanisms of this association are still less known and poorly understood. This study aims to bridge this knowledge gap by testing the...

Background: Due to the elevated global prevalence of its consumption, and the detrimental health effects it can have, caffeine use disorder (CUD) should receive a great deal of attention from clinicians and the research community in Arab countries as an area of concern. To help advance the field, this study aimed to translate the Caffeine Use Disor...

Background: Since October 2023, the humanitarian crisis in Gaza has dramatically escalated and food insecurity (FI) has rapidly deteriorated. In the face of such situation, it has been recommended that accurate information on FI should be integrated in emergency reporting systems in order to better target and assess the impact of humanitarian aid....

Objective Our aim in this study is to assess the psychometric properties of the Arabic version of the Shitsu-Taikan-Sho (Alexisomia) Scale (Ar-STSS) in a sample of Lebanese adults. Methods Data for this cross-sectional study was gathered using a Google form link. A sample of 758 Lebanese adults (61.2% females, mean age of 30.27 ± 13.80 years) compl...

Background: Over the past decades, the Eating Attitude Test (EAT) has been well-recognized and widely used in clinical practice. However, only little psychometric information is available on the EAT for researchers and clinicians who deal with patients with schizophrenia, and it is still unclear whether the scale could fulfill measurement needs and...

Background: Research on anxiety in patients with schizophrenia of Arab origin is surprisingly scarce, particularly given that expressions of both psychotic disorders and anxiety disorders can be largely shaped by cultural factors. This study proposes to complement previous research by exploring the psychometric characteristics of an Arabic translat...

Background The current study examined the psychometric properties of an Arabic translation of the Adolescent Distress-Eustress Scale (ADES) in Saudi Arabia. It assessed the factorial structure through a confirmatory factor analysis, composite reliability through Cronbach alpha and McDonald’s omega scores, gender invariance, and convergent validity...

Background: Parental stress significantly impacts the well-being of families, and necessitates culturally sensitive tools for its assessment. The Parental Stress Scale, widely used in diverse cultural settings, lacks a validated Arabic version suitable for the Lebanese context, where unique sociopolitical and economic factors might influence parent...

Background: Despite its obvious relevance for clinical practice and research, it is surprising that yet no hope measure is available for use among Arabic-speaking populations, especially those most vulnerable who have been going through major humanitarian crises. This paper proposed to provide novel insights into psychometric information on hope sc...

Background Although the co-occurrence of psychotic experiences (PEs) and psychological distress symptoms is growingly recognized in several previous studies, there is still a lack of literature, which clearly outlines how these two psychopathological entities affect each other over time. This study is intended to add to the literature by examining:...

Background: High worldwide estimates of depression and suicidality in patients diagnosed with schizophrenia highlight the importance of understanding their associated factors for designing targeted interventions that can both improve distress symptoms and reduce suicide risk in this vulnerable population. In this regard, our study aims to assess th...

Background Dysmenorrhea, characterized by painful menstrual cramps, significantly impacts the well-being of women globally. Despite its prevalence and adverse effects, dysmenorrhea is often underdiagnosed and inadequately treated. This study aims to validate the Arabic version of the Working ability, Location, Intensity, Days of pain, and Dysmenorr...

Background Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) patients encounter many obstacles that affect their physical and psychological well-being. The primary objective of the present study was to investigate potential correlates of optimism/pessimism in a sample of patients with CKD, including socio-demographics, body appreciation and disordered eating symptoms....

Background No Arabic validated scale is available to date to measure AI literacy. The current study aimed to evaluate the psychometric properties of a first Arabic translation of the Artificial Intelligence Literacy Scale (AILS) among university students from four Arab countries (i.e. Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Morocco and Palestine). Methods Online c...

Background: Feelings of unsafety, including fear of crime, uncertainty, or insecurity, can negatively impact individuals by reducing psychological well-being and worsening health. Validating a simple and cost-effective tool to assess the general feeling of unsafety in the Arabic-speaking population, primarily residing in the Middle-East and North-A...

Background Postpartum psychosis (PP) is a psychological emergency requiring rapid intervention, hospitalization and psychiatric management. However, PP has been neglected in the postpartum literature. Understanding the detrimental consequences of childhood trauma across mother’s life span is crucial to prevent this serious condition. The study’s ob...

Background: The lack of sound measures to assess mentalising in Arabic-speaking adults is a significant gap that can substantially constrain understanding of the expression and difficulties in the mentalising processes across the lifespan in the Arab world, and of the cross-cultural. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the psychometric prope...

Introduction Psychotic experiences (PE) and disordered eating (DE) are frequently observed among the general population, especially in childhood and adolescence. However, the relationship between the two groups of disorders is still unclear. Objectives To explore the hypothesis that the pathways from PEs to DE are mediated by body-image disturbanc...

Introduction Sexual dysfunctions related to psychotropic drugs are among the most distressing adverse effects and can lead to non-adherence to treatment. Objectives To elucidate the mechanisms of psychotropic-induced sexual dysfunctions and to suggest strategies for their management. Methods Literature review based on the keywords “psychotropics,...

Introduction G6PD is essential for the production of NADPH, which is a cofactor for many enzymes involved in antioxidant defense and neurotransmitter synthesis. A deficiency in this enzyme could lead to increased oxidative stress, impaired neurotransmitter and immune function. The latter have been implicated in the pathophysiology of schizophrenia....

Background: Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) is a highly prevalent psychological disorder with a frequent distribution among the general population and in primary care configurations. GAD-5 is one of the many present scales with little research on, but has the potential to orient clinical decisions due to its unique features. Validating a simple...

Background Due to the elevated global prevalence of its consumption, and the detrimental health effects it can have, CUD should receive a great deal of attention from clinicians and the research community in Arab countries as an area of concern. To help advance the field, this study aimed to translate the Caffeine Use Disorder Questionnaire (CUDQ)...

Background Acknowledging the increasing worry over climate change and its psychological effects, the aim of this research is to clarify the dynamics between religiosity, climate anxiety and death anxiety, seeking to figure out the way religiosity mitigates the psychological effects of existential anxieties and climate related anxiety. Methods Usin...

Objectives To test the hypothesis that resilience has a mediating effect on the association between work fatigue and psychological distress. Methods A cross-sectional survey was conducted online in eight countries in 2021: Brazil, Lebanon, Nigeria, Pakistan, Poland, Qatar, Serbia, and Tunisia. A total of 1094 healthcare professionals specialized i...

Background: Research suggests that some people believe excessive happiness can lead to negative consequences, based on cultural beliefs and empirical evidence. The fear of Happiness Scale (FHS) was developed to assess people aversion toward happiness. This study aims to assess the psychometric properties of the Arabic version of the FHS in a sample...

Background: Public health experts currently agree that heated tobacco products (HTPs) pose a significant health risk for their consumers. The same concentrations and speed of delivery of nicotine found for HTPs and conventional combustion cigarettes make it necessary to consider the addictiveness of HTPs, and provide precise diagnostic instruments...

Background: Distress tolerance, defined as the capacity to endure and manage negative emotional states, is an important construct in comprehending various psychological conditions, including anxiety, depression, and substance use disorders. The Distress Tolerance Scale (DTS) and its Short Form (DTS-SF) are widely used tools for measuring distress t...

Background The Nightmare Distress Questionnaire (NDQ), known and commonly used for its adequate psychometric properties, is the most widely used instrument for the measurement of nightmare distress. This study aimed to assess the psychometric properties of a newly translated Arabic version of the Nightmare Distress Questionnaire (NDQ-AV). Methods...

Background Anxiety and depression are psychiatric disorders that often coexist and share some features. Developing a simple and cost-effective tool to assess anxiety and depression in the Arabic-speaking population, predominantly residing in low- and middle-income nations where research can be arduous, would be immensely beneficial. The study aimed...

Background Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder is a chronic and debilitating mental health condition characterized by intrusive thoughts and repetitive behaviors. The Obsessive Beliefs Questionnaire-9 is a concise tool designed to assess the dysfunctional beliefs central to OCD. This study aimed to translate, adapt, and validate the OBQ-9 for use in Arab...

Background The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between Problematic Internet Use (PIU), emotional states of stress, anxiety and depression, and the practice of physical activity among Tunisian students. Methods Cross-sectional data were collected from 976 university students aged 20.76 ± 1.63 years (46.8% female). They filled...

Objectives This study aimed to assess fear of AI in relation with optimism and pessimism, along with the mediating effect of dark future Methods This cross-sectional study was conducted between June and December 2023, and enrolled 1849 participants from four Arab countries: Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Morocco, and Palestine. Results The results of the...

Background The importance of sleep has become increasingly recognized in geriatric research. There is a growing body of evidence that links poor sleep with numerous adverse health outcomes in older adults. As a result, assessing sleep quality and patterns in later life has become essential for accurately diagnosing and effectively treating sleep pr...

Background Although the concept of the embodied sense of self (ESS) has attracted considerable interest from researchers around the world over the past years, research in this field is yet to be initiated in Arab countries. To address this gap, and owing to the important role the ESS construct plays in psychopathology, this study proposes to adapt...

Background: Impulsivity is associated with serious detrimental consequences on physical, mental, behavioral and social aspects of health among patients with psychosis. The present prospective 12-month follow-up study aimed to determine the prevalence of highly impulsive individuals among Ultra High Risk (UHR) patients, how impulsivity evolves over...

Background The Arab world is one of the global regions the most directly concerned by, and suffering from climate change’s adverse consequences. As such, there appears to be a strong need for an understanding of how Arab people may emotionally respond to climate change. Providing valid and reliable measures of climate change anxiety (CCA) can help...

Background: The Lebanese ongoing crisis has exposed big challenges for the education system, including low teachers’ salaries and their desire to leave their jobs. Identifying key contributing factors to teacher turnover intention may help policymakers develop and implement appropriate and informed retention strategies aiming at preserving the stru...

Background Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a critical issue in the Arab world, exacerbated by the region's socioeconomic challenges and patriarchal societal structures. There is a pressing need for validated tools to measure abuse accurately among Arab-speaking women. This study aims to validate an Arabic translation of the Composite Abuse Scale...

Background There is a growing acknowledgment within the scientific community of the importance of preferences for routines (PR) in structuring the daily lives of older adults, as it reliably can serve as either a coping mechanism or contribute to emotional, cognitive, and functional vulnerabilities in its indeclinable form. Therefore, it is crucial...

Introduction The present study evaluated the psychometric properties of the Arabic translation of the Mukbang Addiction Scale (MAS) among Arabic-speaking adults from the general population. Specifically, it aimed to assess the factorial structure through a confirmatory factor analysis, determine the composite reliability through Cronbach alpha and...

The interplay between insomnia and PTSD symptoms remains misunderstood, and seems to be influenced by other factors like individual resilience. Our study examined the moderating role of resilience in the relationship between insomnia and PTSD symptoms among a sample of Lebanese adolescents, in the aftermath of the 2023 earthquake. This cross sectio...

Background: The present study aimed to investigate the psychometric properties of an Arabic version of the Affective Lability Scale in its short form (ALS-18) within an Arabic-speaking sample. Particularly, the concurrent validity, sex invariance and factorial structure were examined. Methods: The total sample of this cross-sectional study consiste...

Background Physical comparison may be a factor in body dissatisfaction and related issues, like eating disorders and depression. The Physical Appearance Comparison Scale-Revised (PACS-R) is a scale developed to assess the frequency of physical comparison. Because there is no validated scale for body comparison in Arabic, this study aims to address...

Background: The urge to be valued and to value others is known as mattering, and it is essential to children, adolescents, and college students' development of psychological health and wellbeing. Even with its significance, a lot of teenagers believe they are insignificant to their community. This study's objective was to examine, among a sample of...

Background No instrument could be considered and recommended as the gold standard assessment method for empathy based on desirable validity and reliability indices. Recently, two new measures were developed to address previous gaps in measuring empathy, i.e. the Pictorial Empathy Test (PET) to assess affective empathic reactions and the Single Item...

Background: Although the positive association between impairments in metacognitive capacity and negative symptoms in people with schizophrenia spectrum disorders is widely evidenced in the literature, the explaining mechanisms of this association are still less known and poorly understood. This study aims to bridge this knowledge gap by testing the...

Background Through the years, studying negative behaviors of the worldwide population seized the spotlight from many researchers who focused on building scales in order the measure the level of worries, fear and even depression of such stressed individuals. By definition, “Future anxiety” (FA) is fueled by negative thoughts leading to intense fear...

Background No Arabic-language version of the Observable Social Cognition Rating Scale (OSCARS) has been made available that allows to properly and specifically assess the social cognition (SC) construct in Arabic-speaking populations, and inform the development and evaluation of strategies aimed at improving clinical and functional outcomes. Beside...

Background Divergent cultural contexts and norms shape perceptions of elder abuse and neglect in Western and Arab societies. The psychometric properties of instruments measuring elder neglect and abuse in Arabic have not been previously examined. Validating these instruments can enhance the consistency of elder neglect and abuse (NA) prevalence est...

Background: This investigation was undertaken to scrutinize the psychometric qualities of the Arabic Older People's Quality of Life-Brief (OPQOL-brief) scale. Method: A suitable sample of 539 Arabic-speaking older Egyptians—of whom 50.3% were female and 60.7% were aged 65-75 years—were included in the cross-sectional examination. Results: Confirmat...

Background: The field of autism research in adults has not yet emerged in Arab countries, which is in part due to the lack of valid, reliable autism measures. The objectives of this study were to assess the psychometric properties of the abridged version of the autism-spectrum quotient (AQ-28) in a sample of non-clinical Arabic-speaking adults. Met...

Background: To our knowledge, there is currently no valid instrument available in the Arabic language to measure the social pain construct. In addition, we could find no previous studies that evaluated social pain in Arabic-speaking individuals of Arab origin. This is a clear gap, especially given the evidence that emotional responses to social rej...

Background: Academic self-efficacy (ASE), the belief in one's ability to succeed in academic tasks, plays a crucial role in student motivation, learning, and performance. Reliable measurement of this construct is essential for identifying students' strengths and areas for improvement. This study aims to translate and validate the Academic Self-Effi...

Background In the context of persistent wars and conflicts worldwide, the impact of acute, excessive and constant exposure to media coverage of such events on mental health outcomes becomes a serious problem for public health, and requires therefore urgent investigation to inform an effective prevention and management response. The objective of the...

Studies examining the relationship between locus of control (LoC; i.e., the extent to which individuals believe they have control over their lives) and psychotic symptoms in both clinical and non-clinical samples did not take cannabis use into account. Understanding the role of cannabis in this relationship is important to inform prevention efforts...

Background The objective of this study is to examine the factor structure, reliability, and validity of the Arabic adaptation of the Child and Adolescents Mindfulness Measure (CAMM) within a sample of Lebanese adolescents. Methods In this cross-sectional study, 793 adolescents were recruited to participate by completing the translated Arabic versi...

Background: The Short Boredom Proneness Scale (SBPS) is a common tool for assessing individuals’ inclination toward Boredom. The Arabic version of the SBPS has not been validated despite the language being spoken by over 420 million people worldwide. Therefore, this study aims to translate the SBPS into Arabic and prove its psychometric properties...

Background Despite the extensive literature on the association between perfectionism and disordered eating (DE), only scant attention has been given to the underlying processes that may mediate this relationship. The present study aimed to contribute to existing literature by investigating the direct and indirect relations between perfectionism and...

Background: While self-report questionnaires measuring psychotic experiences (PEs) in community individuals have recently been made available in the Arabic language, their length may be a barrier to PEs assessment in settings in lower-to-middle income Arab countries, that often operate under severe resources constraints. The purpose of the present...

Background: A significant gap currently exists in the availability of reliable and scientifically rigorous measures for evaluating resilience among older Arabic-speaking populations. The primary objective of this study was to assess the psychometric properties of an Arabic adaptation of the 15-item Resilience Scale of Older Adults (RSOA) in a sampl...

Background The utility of the World Health Organization Wellbeing Index (WHO-5) as rapid screening tool for depression has not yet been researched in the context of schizophrenia. The goals of this study were twofold: (1) to test the psychometric properties of the WHO-5 in a sample of Arabic-speaking patients with schizophrenia from Lebanon, with p...

Background Resilience plays a crucial role in mental health promotion and prevention, and was shown to be more represented in individuals who exhibit high levels of extraversion, openness, agreeableness, and conscientiousness. However, there is a lack of studies that comprehensively investigate the association between personality traits and resilie...

Background Purpose in life is recognized as a protective factor linked to an individual’s ability to thrive, supporting positive youth development and overall psychological well-being. The main goal of our study is to translate and validate the Claremont Purpose Scale (CPS) into the Arabic language, expanding its usefulness and contributing to a be...