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Results for “Repression-Sensitization”

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At least 127 records · Page 7Linked to original sources
PubMed1989

Trait anxiety and coping style as predictors of pre-operative anxiety.

A situationally specific measure of trait anxiety based on the Endler model was a better predictor of pre-operative state anxiety than the STAI trait anxiety scale in 54 patients undergoing colonoscopy. Lower self-reported pre-operative anxiety was found for (a) repressors, who report low trait anxiety and high defensiveness on the Marlowe-Crown scale, than for (b) truly low anxious patients, who report low trait anxiety and low defensiveness.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed1978

Arousal response predictions derived from ego psychology.

The purpose of this study was to examine the prediction from ego psychology that excessive stress leads to either a struggling or distancing response. Male subjects, preselected on the R-S scale, were exposed to an explicit pornographic movie in the presence of a female confederate. Skin conductance levels, self-report data, and a work association test with double entendre words were the dependent measures. The results indicated that subjects struggle rather than distance themselves when confronted with apparently stressful stimuli.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed1989

Repressive coping style and anxiety in stressful dental surgery.

Elevated state-anxiety prior to oral surgery is common and is associated with increased post-operative pain. This paper presents a psychological model of predicting elevated anxiety prior to dental surgery. Elevated anxiety and intraoperative stress can be predicted by measuring trait-anxiety. However, prediction may be improved by using a situationally specific measure of trait-anxiety, and by taking the patient's coping style into account. Thirty-nine patients undergoing wisdom-tooth extraction took part in the study. The Corah Dental Anxiety Scale was a better predictor of pre-operative anxiety than the STAI trait-anxiety scale. Coping style was measured by means of the Marlowe-Crowne Social Desirability Scale in conjunction with scores on trait-anxiety to define three coping style groups: sensitizers (high-anxious), truly low-anxious, and repressors who verbally deny anxiety. Two oral surgeons rated patient intra-operative state on 100 mm visual analogue scales. These ratings indicate that 'repressors' exhibit significantly more stress responses than the truly low-anxious group, in spite of similar (low) trait-anxiety scores. It is concluded that a situationally specific measure of trait-anxiety is the most appropriate predictor of differential state-anxiety elevations prior to oral surgery. Repressive coping style may be a confounding factor, in terms of predicting elevated anxiety, since some people verbally deny being anxious but express it behaviourally.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1992

The relationship between individual differences in defensive style and concept formation.

The relationship between defensive style and concept formation with aggressive and neutral stimuli was investigated. Very strong relationships were found between the use of avoidant and repressive defenses and the number of errors made in acquiring and utilizing an aggressive concept. This relationship was not found for the neutral concept. The results suggest the importance of directing attention to the relevant stimulus dimension in efficient concept formation. Insofar as defensive style involves a particular way of deploying attention (e.g. avoidance of a particular content) and insofar as the affective nature of the stimulus material lends itself to the elicitation of defensive reactions, individual differences in defensive style can serve as a robust predictor of efficiency of concept formation.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1986

Influence of alexithymic characteristics on physiological and subjective stress responses in normal individuals.

Individual differences in response to stress have been linked to the development of stress-related disorders through the presence of a dissociation between physiological and subjective stress responses. It has been suggested that the presence of alexithymic characteristics may constitute a new source of individual response differences and thereby contribute to the development of a stress-related disorder. However, it is also possible that the presence of alexithymic characteristics is simply a new name for a preexisting construct. The present study examined subjective and physiological stress response patterns in normal individuals with high or low presence of alexithymic characteristics, and the relationship between alexithymia and potentially equivalent constructs. The results revealed that the presence of alexithymic characteristics is independent of repression, trait anxiety, and social desirability. As well, high alexithymics appear to manifest high levels of sympathetic activity, and a dissociation between subjective and physiological stress responses. These results are discussed in terms of the potential contribution of alexithymic characteristics to the development of stress-related disorders.

Adult↗
PubMed1978

Simple, effective treatment of agoraphobia.

For effective treatment of agoraphobia both patient and therapist must understand the mechanisms of sensitization and self-desensitization. Rather than aiming to adapt to difficult situations, to achieve desensitization by suggestions, or to avoid panic, the agoraphobe must learn to pass through panic and to rid oneself of drug dependency. This method of self-desensitization will, as a rule, achieve results quickly and does not necessarily depend upon finding the cause of the original sensitization.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed1987

Personality correlates of positive identity and relationship involvement in gay men.

Six personality variables (social anxiety, trait anxiety, locus of control, sensitization, depression, and self concept) were correlated with variables relevant to a positive gay identity (degree of communication about sexual preference and degree of comfort being gay) and to relationship involvement (being in a gay relationship, number of months in a gay relationship, and living with a partner) in a volunteer, nonclinical sample of 51 gay males. Men who informed others of their sexual preference were low on trait anxiety, sensitization, and depression and high on self concept. Men comfortable with their gay identity were low on social anxiety, sensitization, and depression and high on self concept. Men involved in long-term relationships were low in trait anxiety, had an internal locus of control, and were low in depression. Men living with a partner had a higher self concept than men not living with a partner. Results are discussed in terms of previous studies of gay male relationships.

Adult↗
PubMed1989

Education of patients undergoing coronary angioplasty: factors affecting learning during a structured educational program.

A structured educational program for patients undergoing coronary angioplasty was designed and administered to 97 patients undergoing their first procedure. Knowledge, coping style, social support, health locus of control, IQ, and demographic and medical factors were assessed before the procedure. Risk factor knowledge, anxiety, and medical status were assessed before discharge, and at 6 months and 2 years after angioplasty. Total knowledge mean score for all patients was higher at discharge (p less than 0.05). There was no significant difference between knowledge scores at baseline and at either 6 months or 2 years. Analyses revealed that patients with a repressive coping style learned less during hospitalization (p less than 0.05). No factors predicted retention of knowledge at 6 months or 2 years. These results indicate that a structured educational approach may have beneficial effects on immediate knowledge gain, although these results are not sustained. Coping assessment may provide information valuable for understanding differences in knowledge retention.

Adult↗
PubMed1986

A unified biosocial theory of personality and its role in the development of anxiety states.

A general theory of heritable personality traits and their neurobiological basis is described. Three independent dimensions of personality are defined and related to heritable variation in patterns of response to specific types of environmental stimuli: 'novelty seeking' is due to a heritable tendency toward frequent exploratory activity and intense excitement in response to novel stimuli; 'harm avoidance' is due to a heritable tendency to respond intensely to aversive stimuli and to learn to avoid punishment, novelty, and non-reward passively; and 'reward dependence' is due to a heritable tendency to respond intensely to reward and succorance and to learn to maintain rewarded behavior. Evidence suggests that variation in each dimension is strongly correlated with activity in a specific central monoaminergic pathway: novelty seeking with low basal dopaminergic activity, harm avoidance with high serotonergic activity, and reward dependence with low basal noradrenergic activity. These neurobiological dimensions interact to give rise to integrated patterns of differential responses to punishment, reward, and novelty. The combination of high novelty seeking, high reward dependence, and low harm avoidance (histrionic personality) or the combination of high harm avoidance, low reward dependence, and low novelty seeking (obsessional personality) are each associated with information-processing patterns that lead to unreliable discrimination of safe and dangerous situations and hence to chronic anxiety. In individuals with high novelty seeking, chronic anxiety is characterized by global uneasiness or alarm without specific premonitory cues, frequent bodily pains due to low pain and sensation thresholds, low sedation threshold, and slow fatigability. In contrast, in individuals with high harm avoidance, chronic anxiety is characterized by frequent anticipatory worries based on specific cues, high pain and sedation thresholds, and easy fatigability. In response to frustrative non-reward, individuals with high reward dependence are susceptible to compensatory noradrenergic hyperactivity and hence acute or recurrent states of agitated dysphoria associated with reward-seeking behaviors such as overeating and increased sexual activity. Specific predictions are made about normal personality development as well as the development and familial aggregation of anxiety, somatoform, depressive and personality disorders. These predictions are compared with available information, and recommendations are made for future research.

Animals↗