Biomedical subjects

T Luchetta

Publications and source records attributed to T Luchetta.

9 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2003

Psychometric evaluation of the Chicago Multiscale Depression Inventory in multiple sclerosis patients.

OBJECTIVE: The Chicago Multiscale Depression Inventory (CMDI), a comprehensive self-report measure of depression, has proven useful in the assessment of patients with chronic medical conditions. The objective of this study was to determine the validity of the CMDI in multiple sclerosis (MS) patients and explore the nature of depressive symptoms reported by people with MS. METHOD: Using a combined classical and modern psychometric approach, the factor structure of responses in MS patients was compared with that of a normative sample to confirm meaningful subtypes of depression in MS (mood, depressive cognition, and vegetative symptoms). Patient groups also were compared by disease severity to evaluate differences in depression associated with differences in disease severity. RESULTS: The results supported the factor structures of the measure, which was internally consistent, reliable, and factorially valid. Some items function differently in MS patients when compared with depressed patients and normals, offering a further opportunity to understand the unique clinical aspects of depression in people with MS compared with those without a concurrent physical illness. CONCLUSIONS: Use of the CMDI to assess separate dimensions of depression may help to clarify the complex interrelationships among aspects of depression and health-related behavior.

Adult↗

PubMed1999

Adult and geriatric normative data and validation of the profile of mood states.

The Profile of Mood States (POMS; McNair, Lorr, & Droppleman) is widely used to assess mood states. However, the utility of the POMS has been restricted by the lack of normative data from the general population. We report on our adult (N = 400) and geriatric (N = 170) POMS standardization samples. Both groups were age-, gender-, and race-stratified according to 1990 census data. We also report on convergent and discriminant validity of POMS scales, using a multitrait, multimethod paradigm.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1998

The development, standardization, and initial validation of the Chicago Multiscale Depression Inventory.

Current self-report depression scales may overestimate depression symptoms in medical patients by including items measuring symptoms inherent to many medical conditions. They may therefore reflect a patient's medical rather than psychological state. We present the Chicago Multiscale Depression Inventory (CMDI), a factorially derived self-report depression scale that includes Mood, Evaluative, and Vegetative subscales. The CMDI and its subscales were designed to be used separately or combined; we posit that the nonvegetative CMDI subscales are the most accurate means of examining depression in medical patients. In this study we outline the development, standardization, and initial validation of the CMDI, a multistep process that required a total sample of 1,062 adults. We show the CMDI and each of its subscales to be internally consistent, reliable, and valid. Confirmatory factor analysis supports the CMDI factor structure. Finally, we report standardization scores for each of the CMDI scales, derived from an age-, race- and gender-stratified standardization sample of 420 adults.

Adult↗

PubMed1997

Executive functions in multiple sclerosis: an analysis of temporal ordering, semantic encoding, and planning abilities.

Previous studies have consistently demonstrated impairments in conceptual reasoning and set-shifting abilities in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS). Other executive functions have been less frequently examined. We compared 44 MS patients and 48 demographically matched controls on a temporal-ordering and semantic-encoding task and on a test of planning (Tower of Hanoi). Compared with controls, MS patients experienced deficient semantic encoding and planning but unimpaired temporal-order memory. For both tasks, post hoc analyses indicated that chronic-progressive MS patients contributed most to the group differences. A combination of poor planning and slowed information-processing speed was hypothesized to have contributed to MS patients' impaired Tower of Hanoi performance. Further research is needed to explore the possible relationship between semantic-encoding and planning deficits in MS and social and occupational disabilities.

Cues↗

PubMed1995

Mood disturbance versus other symptoms of depression in multiple sclerosis.

We administered the Multiscale Depression Inventory (MDI) and the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) to 84 multiple sclerosis (MS) patients, 101 patients diagnosed with major depression and 87 nonmedical, nonpsychiatric controls. The MDI consists of three separate depression scales measuring mood, vegetative, and evaluative symptoms. We found that: (a) MS patients did not significantly differ from the controls in mood symptoms, (b) the depression prevalence rate in MS patients was significantly lower when measured by the mood scale (17.7%) than by the BDI (30.5%) or MDI total score (26.6%), and (c) MS patients showed significantly less mood disturbance than a non-MS comparison group matched on BDI measured depression severity. We suggest that the inclusion of nonmood symptoms in self-report depression scales may artificially raise both prevalence rates and severity ratings of MS related depression and that the most valid measure of depression in MS is mood disturbance.

Adult↗

PubMed1995

Parental and work role salience, everyday problems, and distress: a prospective analysis of specific vulnerability among multiple-role women.

Hierarchical multiple regression analyses were used to model psychological distress and physical complaints among 106 working mothers experiencing chronic stressors. Moderator variables included parental and occupational role value and commitment as measured by the Life Role Salience Scales. Both concurrent and prospective relationships were examined by means of a two-wave longitudinal design. A specific vulnerability model was tested by aggregating stressors according to role domains and matching stress variables to role salience variables. The psychological salience of social role occupation was hypothesized to intensify the impact of role-related stressors. Multiple regression analyses partially supported a specific vulnerability model. Parental role commitment and occupational role value significantly interacted with corresponding role-related stressors in predicting prospective health outcomes.

Adult↗

PubMed1992

Sex bias in psychological research. Progress or complacency?

A total of 4,952 articles published in 1970, 1975, 1980, 1985, and 1990 in the areas of developmental, clinical, physiological, and social psychology were reviewed for the purpose of assessing various indicators of sexism in human psychological research. Significant changes in sex of first author, sex of participants, sexist language, and inappropriate generalization indicated that sexism has clearly diminished in the past two decades. Despite these improvements, however, the data revealed continued evidence of discriminatory practices, suggesting that efforts to eliminate sexism must be strengthened if psychology is to be a nonsexist discipline.

Female↗

PubMed1989

The mediating effects of psychophysiological reactivity and recovery on the relationship between environmental stress and illness.

The present study investigated the association between psychophysiological reactivity and recovery and physical and psychological symptoms both directly and interactively with environmental stress. Symptoms, environmental stress, and psychophysiological reactivity to and recovery from a laboratory stressor were measured in 50 subjects. As in previous research, the results indicated a significant relationship between environmental stress and symptoms of illness. Although the data did not support a direct relationship between psychophysiological activity and illness, support for a buffering effect was found. Those individuals with greater physiological arousal to or slower recovery from a laboratory stressor exhibited a stronger relationship between environmental stress and symptoms than those who were less reactive or faster to recover. Implications of these results were discussed in the context of theoretical models relating stress and illness.

Arousal↗

PubMed1989

Perimenstrual symptoms: relationships with chronic stress and selected lifestyle variables.

Of primary interest in the present study was the assessment of the association between several contextual factors, including chronic stress, exercise, alcohol, nicotine, and caffeine intake, and the self-report of perimenstrual symptoms. Two hundred and eleven women completed questionnaires designed to assess chronic stress, perimenstrual symptoms, and physical health. The results indicated that stress accounted for a significant amount of the variance in perimenstrual symptoms. Stress, however, accounted for a substantially greater amount of variance in scores on a general health measure than in self-reports of perimenstrual symptoms. Of those lifestyle variables assessed, only duration of current level of strenuous exercise was associated with perimenstrual symptoms to a meaningful extent.

Adolescent↗