There is evidence that anxiety sensitivity (AS) plays a role in the maintenance of smoking, yet t... more There is evidence that anxiety sensitivity (AS) plays a role in the maintenance of smoking, yet there is little understanding of how AS interplays with other affective symptomatology variables that are also related to smoking, such as dysphoria. Therefore, the current cross-sectional study evaluated the interactive effects of AS and dysphoria on emotion regulatory cognitions, including smoking negative affect reduction expectancies, perceived barriers for cessation, and smoking-specific experiential avoidance. A total of 448 adult treatment-seeking daily smokers, who responded to study advertisements, were recruited to participate in a smoking cessation treatment trial (47.8% female; Mage = 37.2, SD = 13.5). The current study utilized self-report baseline data from trial participants. After accounting for covariates, simple slope analyses revealed that AS was positively related to negative affect reduction expectancies (β = .03, p = .01), perceived barriers to cessation (β = .22, p = .002), and smoking avoidance and inflexibility (β = .07, p = .04), among smokers with lower (vs. higher) levels of dysphoria. The current findings suggest that higher levels of dysphoria may mitigate the relation between AS and emotion regulatory cognitions of smoking. The current findings highlight the unique and additive clinical relevance of AS and dysphoria regarding emotion regulatory smoking cognitions that may impede quit success. (Am J Addict 2016;25:267-274).
Changes to the diagnostic criteria for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in the fifth edition ... more Changes to the diagnostic criteria for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in the fifth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5) create a need for valid and reliable updated assessment tools. This study examined key psychometric properties (e.g., internal consistency, test-retest reliability, interrater reliability, and convergent and discriminant validity) of the PTSD Symptom Scale Interview for DSM-5 (PSSI-5), a modified version of the PSS-I (PTSD Symptom Scale)-Interview Version for the DSM-IV. Participants were 242 urban community residents, veterans, and college undergraduates, recruited from 3 study sites, who had experienced a DSM-5 Criterion A traumatic event. The PSSI-5 demonstrated good internal consistency (α = .89) and test-retest reliability (r = .87), as well as excellent interrater reliability for the total severity score (intraclass correlation = .98) and interrater agreement for PTSD diagnosis (κ = .84). The PSSI-5 also demonstrated convergent validity with 3 measures of PTSD (i.e., Clinician-Administered PTSD Scale for DSM-5, Posttraumatic Diagnostic Scale for DSM-5, and PTSD Checklist-Specific Version; all rs > .72) and discriminant validity with the Beck Depression Inventory-II and the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory-Trait scale. Receiver operating characteristic analysis yielded a cutoff score of 23 for identifying a probable PTSD diagnosis. Together, these findings indicate that the PSSI-5 is a valid and reliable instrument for assessing PTSD diagnosis and severity. (PsycINFO Database Record
The aim of this study was to evaluate the psychometric properties of the Posttraumatic Diagnostic... more The aim of this study was to evaluate the psychometric properties of the Posttraumatic Diagnostic Scale for DSM-5 (PDS-5), a self-report measure of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) based on diagnostic criteria of the fifth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. Participants were 242 urban community residents, veterans, and college undergraduates recruited from 3 study sites who had experienced a DSM-5 Criterion A traumatic experience. The PDS-5 demonstrated excellent internal consistency (α = .95) and test-retest reliability (r = .90) and good convergent validity with the PTSD Checklist-Specific Version (r = .90) and the PTSD Symptom Scale-Interview Version for DSM-5 (PSSI-5; r = .85). The PDS-5 also showed good discriminant validity with the Beck Depression Inventory-II and the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory-Trait scale (all ZH > 3.05, ps < .01). There was 78% agreement between the PDS-5 and the PSSI-5. Receiver operating characteristic analysis yielded a cutoff score of 28 for identifying a probable PTSD diagnosis. The PDS-5 is a valid and reliable measure of DSM-5 PTSD symptomatology. (PsycINFO Database Record
Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) is associated with synaptic plasticity, which is crucial... more Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) is associated with synaptic plasticity, which is crucial for long-term learning and memory. Some studies suggest that people suffering from anxiety disorders show reduced BDNF relative to healthy controls. Lower BDNF is associated with impaired learning, cognitive deficits, and poor exposure-based treatment outcomes. A series of studies with rats showed that exercise elevates BDNF and enhances fear extinction. However, this strategy has not been tested in humans. In this pilot study, we randomized participants (N = 9, 8 females, MAge = 34) with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) to (a) prolonged exposure alone (PE) or (b) prolonged exposure+exercise (PE+E). Participants randomized to the PE+E condition completed a 30-minute bout of moderate-intensity treadmill exercise (70% of age-predicted HRmax) prior to each PE session. Consistent with prediction, the PE+E group showed a greater improvement in PTSD symptoms (d = 2.65) and elevated BDNF (d = 1.08) relative to the PE only condition. This pilot study provides initial support for further investigation into exercise augmented exposure therapy.
There is evidence that anxiety sensitivity (AS) plays a role in the maintenance of smoking, yet t... more There is evidence that anxiety sensitivity (AS) plays a role in the maintenance of smoking, yet there is little understanding of how AS interplays with other affective symptomatology variables that are also related to smoking, such as dysphoria. Therefore, the current cross-sectional study evaluated the interactive effects of AS and dysphoria on emotion regulatory cognitions, including smoking negative affect reduction expectancies, perceived barriers for cessation, and smoking-specific experiential avoidance. A total of 448 adult treatment-seeking daily smokers, who responded to study advertisements, were recruited to participate in a smoking cessation treatment trial (47.8% female; Mage = 37.2, SD = 13.5). The current study utilized self-report baseline data from trial participants. After accounting for covariates, simple slope analyses revealed that AS was positively related to negative affect reduction expectancies (β = .03, p = .01), perceived barriers to cessation (β = .22, p = .002), and smoking avoidance and inflexibility (β = .07, p = .04), among smokers with lower (vs. higher) levels of dysphoria. The current findings suggest that higher levels of dysphoria may mitigate the relation between AS and emotion regulatory cognitions of smoking. The current findings highlight the unique and additive clinical relevance of AS and dysphoria regarding emotion regulatory smoking cognitions that may impede quit success. (Am J Addict 2016;25:267-274).
Changes to the diagnostic criteria for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in the fifth edition ... more Changes to the diagnostic criteria for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in the fifth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5) create a need for valid and reliable updated assessment tools. This study examined key psychometric properties (e.g., internal consistency, test-retest reliability, interrater reliability, and convergent and discriminant validity) of the PTSD Symptom Scale Interview for DSM-5 (PSSI-5), a modified version of the PSS-I (PTSD Symptom Scale)-Interview Version for the DSM-IV. Participants were 242 urban community residents, veterans, and college undergraduates, recruited from 3 study sites, who had experienced a DSM-5 Criterion A traumatic event. The PSSI-5 demonstrated good internal consistency (α = .89) and test-retest reliability (r = .87), as well as excellent interrater reliability for the total severity score (intraclass correlation = .98) and interrater agreement for PTSD diagnosis (κ = .84). The PSSI-5 also demonstrated convergent validity with 3 measures of PTSD (i.e., Clinician-Administered PTSD Scale for DSM-5, Posttraumatic Diagnostic Scale for DSM-5, and PTSD Checklist-Specific Version; all rs > .72) and discriminant validity with the Beck Depression Inventory-II and the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory-Trait scale. Receiver operating characteristic analysis yielded a cutoff score of 23 for identifying a probable PTSD diagnosis. Together, these findings indicate that the PSSI-5 is a valid and reliable instrument for assessing PTSD diagnosis and severity. (PsycINFO Database Record
The aim of this study was to evaluate the psychometric properties of the Posttraumatic Diagnostic... more The aim of this study was to evaluate the psychometric properties of the Posttraumatic Diagnostic Scale for DSM-5 (PDS-5), a self-report measure of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) based on diagnostic criteria of the fifth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. Participants were 242 urban community residents, veterans, and college undergraduates recruited from 3 study sites who had experienced a DSM-5 Criterion A traumatic experience. The PDS-5 demonstrated excellent internal consistency (α = .95) and test-retest reliability (r = .90) and good convergent validity with the PTSD Checklist-Specific Version (r = .90) and the PTSD Symptom Scale-Interview Version for DSM-5 (PSSI-5; r = .85). The PDS-5 also showed good discriminant validity with the Beck Depression Inventory-II and the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory-Trait scale (all ZH > 3.05, ps < .01). There was 78% agreement between the PDS-5 and the PSSI-5. Receiver operating characteristic analysis yielded a cutoff score of 28 for identifying a probable PTSD diagnosis. The PDS-5 is a valid and reliable measure of DSM-5 PTSD symptomatology. (PsycINFO Database Record
Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) is associated with synaptic plasticity, which is crucial... more Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) is associated with synaptic plasticity, which is crucial for long-term learning and memory. Some studies suggest that people suffering from anxiety disorders show reduced BDNF relative to healthy controls. Lower BDNF is associated with impaired learning, cognitive deficits, and poor exposure-based treatment outcomes. A series of studies with rats showed that exercise elevates BDNF and enhances fear extinction. However, this strategy has not been tested in humans. In this pilot study, we randomized participants (N = 9, 8 females, MAge = 34) with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) to (a) prolonged exposure alone (PE) or (b) prolonged exposure+exercise (PE+E). Participants randomized to the PE+E condition completed a 30-minute bout of moderate-intensity treadmill exercise (70% of age-predicted HRmax) prior to each PE session. Consistent with prediction, the PE+E group showed a greater improvement in PTSD symptoms (d = 2.65) and elevated BDNF (d = 1.08) relative to the PE only condition. This pilot study provides initial support for further investigation into exercise augmented exposure therapy.
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