The Effects of Urban Living Conditions on Subjective Well-Being: The Case of German Foreign Service Employees.

Unlabelled: In an increasingly urbanized world, understanding the determinants of urban well-being will continue to grow in importance. Although the effects of different indicators of living conditions on well-being have been widely studied individually, little is known about their relative impact when examined jointly. In this study, we use a unique multi-source dataset that allows us to investigate the effect and relative importance of a variety of subjectively and objectively assessed aspects of urban living conditions on the subjective well-being (SWB) of German Foreign Service expatriates.

Hair and stress: A pilot study of hair and cytokine balance alteration in healthy young women under major exam stress.

Mouse models show that experimental stress mimicking prolonged life-stress exposure enhances neurogenic inflammation, induces adaptive immunity cytokine-imbalance characterized by a shift to Type 1 T-helper cell cytokines and increases apoptosis of epithelial cells. This affects hair growth in otherwise healthy animals. In this study, we investigate whether a prolonged naturalistic life-stress exposure affects cytokine balance and hair parameters in healthy humans.

Evaluation of Computerized Adaptive Tests (CATs) for longitudinal monitoring of depression, anxiety, and stress reactions.

Background: Computerized adaptive testing (CAT) based on Item Response Theory, (IRT) offers an efficient way for accurate measurement of patient reported outcomes. The efficiency lies within a minimal response burden and a high measurement precision over a broad measurement range. The objective of the study was to evaluate and compare the responsiveness of CATs measuring anxiety, depression, and stress reaction to standard static self-assessment tools.

Impact of cross-calibration methods on the interpretation of a treatment comparison study using 2 depression scales.

Background: Many questionnaires assessing depressive symptoms are available. Most of these questionnaires are constructed based on classical test theory, making comparisons of individual scores difficult. Item response theory (IRT) allows the comparison of scores from different instruments.

Psychometric Properties of the German Narcissism Inventory 90 (NI-90) in a clinical and non-clinical sample of adolescents: a comparative study.

Background: The Narcissism Inventory (NI) is a frequently used German inventory for measuring narcissism in clinical settings; an additional short version (NI-90) also exists. Psychometric properties of the NI-90 scales were examined in clinical and non-clinical adolescent samples.

Methods: Two adolescent samples were assessed with the NI-90: a non-clinical sample (n = 439, mean age ± SD = 15.

How to compare scores from different depression scales: equating the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ) and the ICD-10-Symptom Rating (ISR) using Item Response Theory.

A wide range of questionnaires for measuring depression are available. Item Response Theory models can help to evaluate the questionnaires exceeding the boundaries of Classical Test Theory and provide an opportunity to equate the questionnaires. In this study after checking for unidimensionality, a General Partial Credit Model was applied to data from two different depression scales [Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) and ICD-10-Symptom Rating (ISR)] obtained in clinical settings from a consecutive sample, including 4517 observations from a total of 2999 inpatients and outpatients of a psychosomatic clinic.

[Retest-reliability and sensitivity to change of the ICD-10-Symptom-Rating (ISR) in different samples].

Assessment of the retest-reliability and sensitivity to change of the ICD-10-Symptom-Rating (ISR) is provided. The ISR was filled out repeatedly by a non-clinical as well as different samples of psychosomatic patients. Between the two measurements either no or an integrated psychosomatic treatment took place.

Development and factorial validation of a short version of the narcissism inventory (NI-20).

Background: Narcissism is seen as a normal but heterogeneously formed personality variable, ranging from 'grandiosity-exhibitionism' to 'vulnerability-sensitivity'. This article reports the development and factorial validation of a short version of a narcissism inventory.

Sampling And Methods: The sample includes data of 4,509 consecutive psychosomatic inpatients.

Subjective theories of illness and clinical and psychological outcomes in patients with irritable bowel syndrome.

Objectives: Patients' ideas about the nature, cause, and treatment of their illnesses are part of the complex process of coping with illness. To date, limited research on subjective theories of illness in patients with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) has been performed. The aim of the study was to investigate patients' subjective theories of illness and how these are related to clinical and psychological outcome criteria, in particular IBS symptom severity and quality of life.

[Factor structure and psychometric properties of the ICD-10-Symptom-Rating (ISR) in samples of psychosomatic patients].

The ICD-10-Symptom-Rating (ISR) is a self-rating questionnaire for patients. According to its conceptualization, the instrument was developed to closely represent the syndrome structure of the ICD-10 while assessing the extent of psychological distress an individual suffers from. The results of different factor analyses testing the postulated syndrome structure as well as item and scale characteristics are reported here.

Evaluation of a computer-adaptive test for the assessment of depression (D-CAT) in clinical application.

In the past, a German Computerized Adaptive Test, based on Item Response Theory (IRT), was developed for purposes of assessing the construct depression [Computer-adaptive test for depression (D-CAT)]. This study aims at testing the feasibility and validity of the real computer-adaptive application.The D-CAT, supplied by a bank of 64 items, was administered on personal digital assistants (PDAs) to 423 consecutive patients suffering from psychosomatic and other medical conditions (78 with depression).

Functioning and validity of a Computerized Adaptive Test to measure anxiety (A-CAT).

Background: The aim of this study was to evaluate the Computerized Adaptive Test to measure anxiety (A-CAT), a patient-reported outcome questionnaire that uses computerized adaptive testing to measure anxiety.

Methods: The A-CAT builds on an item bank of 50 items that has been built using conventional item analyses and item response theory analyses. The A-CAT was administered on Personal Digital Assistants to n=357 patients diagnosed and treated at the department of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, Charité Berlin, Germany.

An evaluation of patient-reported outcomes found computerized adaptive testing was efficient in assessing stress perception.

Objectives: This study aimed to develop and evaluate a first computerized adaptive test (CAT) for the measurement of stress perception (Stress-CAT), in terms of the two dimensions: exposure to stress and stress reaction.

Study Design And Setting: Item response theory modeling was performed using a two-parameter model (Generalized Partial Credit Model). The evaluation of the Stress-CAT comprised a simulation study and real clinical application.

Correlation between immune and neuronal parameters and stress perception in allergic asthmatics.

Background: Asthma is a chronic disease defined by airway inflammation, increased airway hyperresponsiveness and episodes of airway obstruction. Although there are abundant clinical and experimental data showing that stress may worsen asthma, the mechanisms linking stress to asthma are not well understood. By inducing a pro-inflammatory cytokine milieu, stress might enhance airway inflammation in bronchial asthma.

Contribution to the construct validity of the Perceived Stress Questionnaire from a population-based survey.

Objective: Detailed evidence for the construct validity of stress questionnaires has been repeatedly demanded. This study aimed to investigate the construct validity of the Perceived Stress Questionnaire (PSQ) in the context of a transactional view of stress.

Methods: The examination was based on the PSQ and on standardized quality of life and personality questionnaires.

Development and evaluation of a computer adaptive test for 'Anxiety' (Anxiety-CAT).

Within the framework of item response theory (IRT), we developed a German version of an item bank, as well as a software application that can be employed to measure anxiety by means of a computer adaptive test (CAT). A sample of n = 2348 psychiatric and psychosomatic patients answered a set of up to 13 standardized questionnaires. 81 items drawn from these questionnaires were considered pertinent to the anxiety construct.

Frequency of ICD-10 factitious disorder: survey of senior hospital consultants and physicians in private practice.

The authors surveyed physicians for frequency estimates of factitious disorder among their patients. Twenty-six physicians in independent practice and 83 senior hospital consultants in internal medicine, surgery, neurology, and dermatology participated. They completed a questionnaire including the estimated 1-year prevalence of factitious disorder among their patients.

[Evaluation of the effectiveness of psychosomatic in-patient treatment on the basis of subjective and objective criteria].

Objectives: The effectiveness of psychosomatic in-patient treatment was evaluated using patients' subjective health ratings and objective data provided by health insurance companies. Associations between subjective and objective criteria were investigated.

Methods: 318 patients participated in the study.

[Standardized diagnosing: computer-assisted (CIDI) diagnoses compared to clinically-judged diagnoses in a psychosomatic setting].

Background: Within the past two decades, there has been an increasing trend towards the use of empirically-based, standardized instruments to diagnose mental disorders. The purpose of this study was to investigate the congruence between clinically-derived and standardized computerized diagnoses using the Composite International Diagnostic Interview (CIDI) in a psychosomatic setting.

Patients And Methods: N = 230 inpatients treated at the Department of Psychosomatic Medicine, Charité Berlin, were diagnosed for mental disorders by experienced clinicians and by the CIDI according to the diagnostic criteria of ICD-10 and DSM-IV.

Development of a computer-adaptive test for depression (D-CAT).

Depression is one of the most prevalent mental health problems and measuring depressive symptoms becomes increasingly important in science as well as medical practice. Computer Adaptive Tests (CAT) based on the Item Response Theory (IRT) promise to enhance measurement precision and reduce respondent's burden. Our aim was to develop a CAT application to measure depressive symptoms.

Autodestructive syndromes.

Background: The phenomenon 'autodestructive behaviour' is becoming an increasingly serious disease and cost factor in a wide range of medical fields. The present paper presents a survey of the literature on autodestructive behaviour, excluding psychotic, substance-induced or organic brain disorders. Starting out with a conceptual overview, the paper goes on to look into the epidemiology of autodestructive behaviour and the forms in which it manifests itself.

Patients with haematological malignancies show a restricted body image focusing on function and emotion.

The diagnosis of cancer threatens the psychological and bodily integrity. Based on this assumption, we aimed to explore how newly diagnosed patients cope with special regard to the body image (BI). In total, 40 patients (32 haematological malignancies) were assessed by questionnaires on mood, complaints, self-regulation and quality of life (QOL).