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"Israelis -- Psychology"
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The importance of wings
Although she longs to be an all-American girl, Roxanne, a timid, Israeli-born thirteen-year-old who idolizes Wonder Woman, begins to see things differently when the supremely confident Liat, also from Israel, moves into the \"cursed house\" next door and they become friends.
Book
Empathy and Dis-Empathy in Political Conflict
There's a spectrum of intensity of empathy ranging from excessive empathy to extremely negative or dis-empathy. Empathy from the extreme positive or negative may serve various functions in daily living and particularly in politics. Variations in empathy in political conflict are discussed in relation to the Middle East and the interpersonal relations of Israelis. There are advantages as well as disadvantages in allowing oneself to empathize, as well as to withhold empathy. It's concluded that it would be of value for the Israelis, as well as nations to look at themselves in regard to special reactions to empathizing with others.
Journal Article
Symptom structure of PTSD and co-morbid depressive symptoms – a network analysis of combat veteran patients
Despite extensive research, symptom structure of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is highly debated. The network approach to psychopathology offers a novel method for understanding and conceptualizing PTSD. However, extant studies have mainly used small samples and self-report measures among sub-clinical populations, while also overlooking co-morbid depressive symptoms.
PTSD symptom network topology was estimated in a sample of 1489 treatment-seeking veteran patients based on a clinician-rated PTSD measure. Next, clinician-rated depressive symptoms were incorporated into the network to assess their influence on PTSD network structure. The PTSD-symptom network was then contrasted with the network of 306 trauma-exposed (TE) treatment-seeking patients not meeting full criteria for PTSD to assess corresponding network differences. Finally, a directed acyclic graph (DAG) was computed to estimate potential directionality among symptoms, including depressive symptoms and daily functioning.
The PTSD symptom network evidenced robust reliability. Flashbacks and getting emotionally upset by trauma reminders emerged as the most central nodes in the PTSD network, regardless of the inclusion of depressive symptoms. Distinct clustering emerged for PTSD and depressive symptoms within the comorbidity network. DAG analysis suggested a key triggering role for re-experiencing symptoms. Network topology in the PTSD sample was significantly distinct from that of the TE sample.
Flashbacks and psychological reactions to trauma reminders, along with their strong connections to other re-experiencing symptoms, have a pivotal role in the clinical presentation of combat-related PTSD among veterans. Depressive and posttraumatic symptoms constitute two separate diagnostic entities, but with meaningful between-disorder connections, suggesting two mutually-influential systems.
Journal Article
Childhood adversities and adult psychopathology in the WHO World Mental Health Surveys
Although significant associations of childhood adversities with adult mental disorders are widely documented, most studies focus on single childhood adversities predicting single disorders.
To examine joint associations of 12 childhood adversities with first onset of 20 DSM-IV disorders in World Mental Health (WMH) Surveys in 21 countries.
Nationally or regionally representative surveys of 51 945 adults assessed childhood adversities and lifetime DSM-IV disorders with the WHO Composite International Diagnostic Interview (CIDI).
Childhood adversities were highly prevalent and interrelated. Childhood adversities associated with maladaptive family functioning (e.g. parental mental illness, child abuse, neglect) were the strongest predictors of disorders. Co-occurring childhood adversities associated with maladaptive family functioning had significant subadditive predictive associations and little specificity across disorders. Childhood adversities account for 29.8% of all disorders across countries.
Childhood adversities have strong associations with all classes of disorders at all life-course stages in all groups of WMH countries. Long-term associations imply the existence of as-yet undetermined mediators.
Journal Article
Changes in the dynamic network structure of PTSD symptoms pre-to-post combat
Combat exposure is associated with elevated risk for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Despite considerable research on PTSD symptom clustering, it remains unknown how symptoms of PTSD re-organize following combat. Network analysis provides a powerful tool to examine such changes.
A network analysis approach was taken to examine how symptom networks change from pre- to post-combat using longitudinal prospective data from a cohort of infantry male soldiers (Mage = 18.8 years). PTSD symptoms measured using the PTSD Checklist (PCL) were assessed after 6 months of combat training but before deployment and again after 6 months of combat (Ns = 910 and 725 at pre-deployment and post-combat, respectively).
Stronger connectivity between PTSD symptoms was observed post-combat relative to pre-deployment (global strength values of the networks were 7.54 pre v. 7.92 post; S = .38, p < 0.05). Both the re-experiencing symptoms cluster (1.92 v. 2.12; S = .20, p < 0.03) and the avoidance symptoms cluster (2.61 v. 2.96; S = .35, p < 0.005) became more strongly inter-correlated post-combat. Centrality estimation analyses revealed that psychological reaction to triggers was central and linked the intrusion and avoidance sub-clusters at post-combat. The strength of associations between the arousal and reactivity symptoms cluster remained stable over time (1.85 v. 1.83; S = .02, p = .92).
Following combat, PTSD symptoms and particularly the re-experiencing and avoidance clusters become more strongly inter-correlated, indicating high centrality of trigger-reactivity symptoms.
Journal Article
Reduced emotion regulatory selection flexibility in post-traumatic stress disorder: converging performance-based evidence from two PTSD populations
Contemporary views of emotion dysregulation in post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) highlight reduced ability to flexibly select regulatory strategies according to differing situational demands. However, empirical evidence of reduced regulatory selection flexibility in PTSD is lacking. Multiple studies show that healthy individuals demonstrate regulatory selection flexibility manifested in selecting attentional disengagement regulatory strategies (e.g. distraction) in high-intensity emotional contexts and selecting engagement meaning change strategies (e.g. reappraisal) in low-intensity contexts. Accordingly, we hypothesized that PTSD populations will show reduced regulatory selection flexibility manifested in diminished increase in distraction (over reappraisal) preference as intensity increases from low to high intensity.
Study 1 compared student participants with high (
= 22) post-traumatic symptoms (PTS, meeting the clinical cutoff for PTSD) and participants with low (
= 22) post-traumatic symptoms. Study 2 compared PTSD diagnosed women (
= 31) due to childhood sexual abuse and matched non-clinical women (
= 31). In both studies, participants completed a well-established regulatory selection flexibility performance-based paradigm that involves selecting between distraction and reappraisal to regulate negative emotional words of low and high intensity.
Beyond demonstrating adequate psychometric properties, Study 1 confirmed that relative to the low PTS group, the high PTS group presented reduced regulatory selection flexibility (
= 0.01, ŋ²ₚ= 0.14). Study 2 critically extended findings of Study 1, in showing similar reduced regulatory selection flexibility in a diagnosed PTSD population, relative to a non-clinical population (
= 0.002, ŋ²ₚ= 0.114).
Two studies provide converging evidence for reduced emotion regulatory selection flexibility in two PTSD populations.
Journal Article
Oral microbiota signatures in post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) veterans
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) represents a global public health concern, affecting about 1 in 20 individuals. The symptoms of PTSD include intrusiveness (involuntary nightmares or flashbacks), avoidance of traumatic memories, negative alterations in cognition and mood (such as negative beliefs about oneself or social detachment), increased arousal and reactivity with irritable reckless behavior, concentration problems, and sleep disturbances. PTSD is also highly comorbid with anxiety, depression, and substance abuse. To advance the field from subjective, self-reported psychological measurements to objective molecular biomarkers while considering environmental influences, we examined a unique cohort of Israeli veterans who participated in the 1982 Lebanon war. Non-invasive oral 16S RNA sequencing was correlated with psychological phenotyping. Thus, a microbiota signature (i.e., decreased levels of the bacteria sp_HMT_914, 332 and 871 and Noxia) was correlated with PTSD severity, as exemplified by intrusiveness, arousal, and reactivity, as well as additional psychopathological symptoms, including anxiety, hostility, memory difficulties, and idiopathic pain. In contrast, education duration correlated with significantly increased levels of sp_HMT_871 and decreased levels of Bacteroidetes and Firmicutes, and presented an inverted correlation with adverse psychopathological measures. Air pollution was positively correlated with PTSD symptoms, psychopathological symptoms, and microbiota composition. Arousal and reactivity symptoms were correlated with reductions in transaldolase, an enzyme controlling a major cellular energy pathway, that potentially accelerates aging. In conclusion, the newly discovered bacterial signature, whether an outcome or a consequence of PTSD, could allow for objective soldier deployment and stratification according to decreases in sp_HMT_914, 332, 871, and Noxia levels, coupled with increases in Bacteroidetes levels. These findings also raise the possibility of microbiota pathway-related non-intrusive treatments for PTSD.
Journal Article
Self-compassion, self-coldness, and social support and their relationship with depression, anxiety, and PTSD symptoms following a massive terror attack: a prospective study
On 7 October 2023, Israel suffered a massive deadly terror attack with 1400 civilians murdered and 240 kidnapped. Recent studies have documented an increase in depression, anxiety, and posttraumatic symptoms in the aftermath of the attack. In the area of trauma, it has been shown that while some individuals are vulnerable to developing psychopathology following exposure to a traumatic event, the majority are not.
In the present prospective study, we examined the contributions of internal (self-compassion and self-coldness) and external (social support) resources to depression, anxiety, and posttraumatic symptoms among civilians following a massive terror attack.
A total of 250 participants - 126 females (50.4%) and 124 males (49.6%); 156 Jews (62.4%) and 94 Arabs (37.6%) - aged 21-60 (
= 41.7,
= 10.63) completed questionnaires at two time points: T1 was in September 2023 (3-4 weeks before the attack) and T2 was in February-March 2024 (19-20 weeks after the attack). Participants were assessed using the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (MSPSS), Self-Compassion Scale - Short Form (SCS-SF)
Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale-21 Items (DASS-21), and International Trauma Questionnaire (ITQ).
Self-compassion and social support were negatively associated with depression and anxiety, while self-coldness was positively associated with depression and anxiety. In addition, self-coldness uniquely contributed to the prediction of psychopathological outcomes, including the sense of threat symptoms cluster of posttraumatic stress disorder, beyond known risk factors.
Our study highlights the role of self-coldness as a vulnerability factor for civilians following a terror attack. It is important to view the distinct facets of self-compassion as a therapeutic target when building both intervention and prevention programs for people exposed directly and indirectly to trauma.
Journal Article
Dynamic networks of PTSD symptoms during conflict
Conceptualizing posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms as a dynamic system of causal elements could provide valuable insights into the way that PTSD develops and is maintained in traumatized individuals. We present the first study to apply a multilevel network model to produce an exploratory empirical conceptualization of dynamic networks of PTSD symptoms, using data collected during a period of conflict.
Intensive longitudinal assessment data were collected during the Israel-Gaza War in July-August 2014. The final sample (n = 96) comprised a general population sample of Israeli adult civilians exposed to rocket fire. Participants completed twice-daily reports of PTSD symptoms via smartphone for 30 days. We used a multilevel vector auto-regression model to produce contemporaneous and temporal networks, and a partial correlation network model to obtain a between-subjects network.
Multilevel network analysis found strong positive contemporaneous associations between hypervigilance and startle response, avoidance of thoughts and avoidance of reminders, and between flashbacks and emotional reactivity. The temporal network indicated the central role of startle response as a predictor of future PTSD symptomatology, together with restricted affect, blame, negative emotions, and avoidance of thoughts. There were some notable differences between the temporal and contemporaneous networks, including the presence of a number of negative associations, particularly from blame. The between-person network indicated flashbacks and emotional reactivity to be the most central symptoms.
This study suggests various symptoms that could potentially be driving the development of PTSD. We discuss clinical implications such as identifying particular symptoms as targets for interventions.
Journal Article