The relationship between activity and pain in patients 6 months after lumbar disc surgery: Do pain-related coping modes act as moderator variables?

BACKGROUND: In LBP patients, the relationship between pain and physical activity remains unclear. Whereas a negative relationship between pain and self-reported physical activity was found, this relation disappeared in the case of overt behavioral data (e.g., accelerometer). Cognitive-behavioral models of the development of chronic pain suggest subgroups with signs of physical underuse and overuse. AIMS: To examine if patients with pain-related adaptive, endurance and fear-avoidance coping differ in pain, self-reported physical function and overt physical activity 6 months after disc surgery. METHODS: 24 patients completed questionnaires (Von Korff chronic pain grade (CPG), Kiel pain inventory (KPI), Funktionsfragebogen Hannover-Rücken FFbH-R) and underwent an 8-h accelerometer assessment in their daily life (physical activity level (PAL), number of constant postures (CP)). The KPI differed between adaptive coping (AC) (N=9), fear avoidance coping (FAC) (N=1) and endurance coping (EC) (N=14). RESULTS: In the whole group, pain intensity was negative related to self-reported physical activity whereas PAL and CP displayed no correlation with pain. EC patients showed significantly higher pain scores and lower self-reported physical functioning compared to AC but the same level of PAL and furthermore, a significantly higher number of CPs in daily life. The visual inspection of the FAC patient revealed also high pain, low physical functioning and low overt physical activity. CONCLUSIONS: The assessment of pain-related coping modes yielded an important differentiation between subgroups of LBP patients 6 months after surgery. Endurance copers displayed signs of overuse in their daily behavior in spite of pain than adaptive copers. The one fear avoidance coper tends to do less physical activity in the sense of underuse.     

Play interview therapy: Its history,theory and practice — A fifty year retrospective account

The method of the play interview offers the fearful child an opportunity to express himself by speaking for a series of dolls representing siblings, parents, teachers or himself. It is not the child who is aggressive, fearful, jealous or desires the parent's affection, but the doll. In this manner, the child learns to make connections between his fears and his unacceptable bad thoughts, feelings or wishes. Improvement occurs after several play interviews.This article is dedicated to Dr. Leo Kanner (1894–1981), former Director of the Children's Psychiatric Service of the Johns Hopkins HospitalLecture given to the Division of Child Psychiatry, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, 600 North Wolfe Street, Baltimore, Md, 21205, on September 6, 1988.     

Individual Differences in Plasma Catecholamine and Corticosterone Stress Responses of Wild-Type Rats: Relationship With Aggression

Plasma noradrenaline (NA), adrenaline (A), and corticosterone (CS) responses to social and nonsocial stressors were studied in male members of a strain of wild-type rats, widely differing in their level of aggression. The aggressiveness was preliminarily established by measuring the latency time to attack (ALT) a male intruder in a standard resident-intruder test. Animals were then provided with a jugular vein cannula for blood sampling during stress exposure. Implanted rats were randomly assigned to 3 experimental treatments: social stress (defeat experience, SD), nonsocial stress (presentation of a shock-prod, SP) and control (animals undisturbed in their home cages, CTR). A significant correlation was found between ALT and the amount of time spent in burying the probe in SP rats: the more aggressive the animal, the higher the rate of burying behavior. SD induced a much stronger effect on plasma NA, A, and CS concentrations than SP. A significant negative correlation was found between ALT scores and values of the area under the response time curve for NA and A, in both SD and SP situations: the more aggressive the animal, the higher the catecholaminergic reactivity to the stressors. On the contrary, no evidence of a correlation between aggressiveness and plasma corticosterone responses was found, neither in SD nor in SP rats. These findings in an unselected strain of wild-type rats confirmed that an aggressive/active coping strategy is associated with a high sympathetic-adrenomedullary activation and support the concept of individual differentiation in coping styles as a coherent set of behavioral and neuroendocrine characteristics.     

Chicks from a high and low feather pecking line of laying hens differ in apomorphine sensitivity

Proactive rodents show a larger behavioral response to apomorphine (APO) than reactive copers, suggesting a more sensitive DA system in proactive individuals. Previously, chicks from a high feather pecking (HFP) and low feather pecking line (LFP) have been suggested to display a proactive and reactive coping strategy, respectively. Therefore, at approximately 4 weeks of age, the behavior of 48 LFP and 48 HFP chicks in response to an APO injection was studied using an open field. Another objective of the present study was to determine whether behavioral variation (in an open field) between HFP and LFP birds, after APO injection, is also reflected by variation of D(1) and D(2) receptor densities in the brain. Receptor binding capacities were assessed by measuring specific binding of tritiated D(1) and D(2) receptor ligands in different regions of the brain of control HFP and LFP chicks. In the present study, it is shown that indeed HFP chicks display a more enhanced behavioral response to acute APO treatment (0.5 mg/kg BW) than LFP birds in an open field. This difference was not reflected by variation of D(1) and D(2) receptor densities in the brain between both lines.     

Psychopathy and Physiological Activity In a Mixed-Motive Game Situation

Heart rate (HR) and skin conductance (SC) were recorded while 17 psychopathic (P) and 17 nonpsychopathic (NP) inmates (referred to as A) were engaged in a mixed-motive game situation with another S (referred to as B). On each trial A had to choose the intensity of shock to be delivered to himself and to B. B then was given a chance to retaliate, although his choices were actually overridden by the experimenter. A 10 sec tone (CS) preceded delivery of shock to each S. There were no differences between Groups P and NP in the intensity of shock chosen for themselves and for the other (B) Ss. Compared with Group NP, Group P gave small unconditioned skin conductance (SC) responses to shock directly received and to shocks delivered to the other S. There were no differences between groups in the unconditioned HR response to either direct shock (acceleration) or to shocks delivered to the other S (slight deceleration). Group P gave small electrodermal orienting responses (ORs) and anticipatory responses (ARs) to the CS preceding shock to self and shock to other; Group NP gave relatively large ORs and ARs to the CS preceding shock to self, and small ones prior to shock to other. Both Groups gave a biphasic conditioned HR response–acceleration followed by deceleration; each component was larger in Group P than in Group NP, and the acceleratory component in Group P appeared on the first trial. The electrodermal data were consistent with the view that psychopaths experience little fear arousal prior to reception of aversive stimuli by themselves or by others. It was suggested that the anticipatory HR responses of the psychopathic Ss were part of an adaptive response that helped them to cope with stress.     

军校部队生与地方生人格、应对方式及心理健康研究

目的 了解军校部队生与地方生的心理健康、人格和应对方式等情况,为加强大学生心理健康教育提供依据.方法 采用症状自评量表、艾森克个性问卷、简易应对方式问卷,对临床本科的部队生与地方生进行测评分析.结果 部队生心理健康状况总体上好于地方生,躯体化、人际敏感、抑郁、焦虑等轻于地方生,性格相对外向,且处事相对稳重,应对方式以积极成熟的为主,统计学检验P＜0.05或P＜0.01.结论 军人的责任感与自豪感有助于部队生的心理健康,而对军事化管理出现思想上的错误认识是地方生心理问题产生的主要原因.     

Influence of shock-induced fighting and social factors on pituitary-adrenal activity, prolactin and catecholamine synthesizing enzymes in rats

The present experiment investigated changes in pituitary-adrenal activity, prolactin and catecholamine synthesizing enzymes in rats exposed to electric shocks in pairs or individually, in comparison to animals receiving no shock and tested in pairs or alone. Pairs of rats repeatedly exposed to electric shocks displayed a lower activation of the pituitary-adrenal system but a stronger activation of the sympathetic-adrenal medullary system than rats shocked individually. There was no differential release of prolactin according to the social setting in which shock occurred. Social factors by themselves influenced plasma corticosterone levels but not plasma levels of ACTH and prolactin nor catecholamine synthesis. The results are discussed in relation to the postulated beneficial effects of fighting on physiological activation produced by electric shock.     

中小学教师心理控制源、应付方式与自我和谐的关系

目的考察中小学教师自我和谐、心理控制源、应付方式的状况及其关系。方法使用自我和谐量表、内控性、有势力的他人及机遇量表、应付方式问卷对200名中小学教师进行调查。结果①教师整体上倾向内控,使用最多的应付方式是解决问题,最少的是自责;②任教地点、职务、职称、学历不同的教师自我和谐、应付方式有显著差异,年龄、教龄、任班主任年限、自评心理健康水平、生活压力、工作满意度与心理控制源、应付方式、自我和谐的不同维度相关显著;③机遇和幻想对自我和谐有正向预测作用,内控、解决问题、求助对自我和谐有负向预测作用。结论自我和谐可以作为衡量心理健康水平的一个标志,中小学教师心理控制源与应付方式对自我和谐有重要影响。     

中学生焦虑与其相关影响因素的综合研究

目的：综合探讨中学生焦虑状况与其相关影响因素的关系。方法：采用中学生焦虑量表、青少年生活事件量表、艾森克人格问卷、中学生父母教养方式量表和应对量表对558名中学生进行问卷调查。结果：(1)中学生整体的焦虑处于轻度水平，52．6％的学生存在不同程度的焦虑问题，男女生在焦虑水平上不存在较为明显的性别差异，年级差异在焦虑水平上表现也不明显。(2)中学生焦虑与生活事件、父母教养方式、人格和应对方式各因子均有十分显著的相关关系，进一步的回归分析结果表明有八个因素对焦虑的预测作用十分明显，具体为不良情绪应对、学习压力、神经质、父放任型教养方式、人际压力、母过分保护和干涉、解决问题和精神质。结论：中学生中存在较为明显的焦虑问题，多个因素对焦虑有预测作用。