Personal growth initiative across the life span: a systematic review protocol of quantitative studies using the Personal Growth Initiative Scale-II.

Background: Personal Growth Initiative (PGI) a multi-dimensional construct, conceptualised as a skill set that helps individuals to intentionally grow is considered an important construct throughout the life span. Coping with the challenges, transitions, experiences and stressors of life requires an active growth orientation. In previous empirical research, the construct has been measured by either the PGIS-I or PGIS-II, of which only the latter takes account of the theoretically established multi-dimensionality of the construct.

Longitudinal measurement invariance of the Working Alliance Inventory - Short form across coaching sessions.

Background: Throughout the psychotherapeutic and coaching literature, the client-therapist or coach-coachee working alliance has been highlighted as key force driving positive outcome. The Working Alliance Inventory Short form (WAI-S) for coaching charts the quality of working alliance throughout coaching sessions and is broadly applied in coaching research. Due to a shortfall in research on psychometric properties of the WAI-S, the purpose of this study was to examine (a) if the theorized three-factor structure of the 12-item WAI-S forms a solid representation of the dimensions of working alliance in coaching, and (b) longitudinal measurement invariance (LMI) of the WAI-S.

Prospective associations between working alliance, basic psychological need satisfaction, and coaching outcome indicators: a two-wave survey study among 181 Dutch coaching clients.

Background: The coach-coachee working alliance and coachee motivation seem important factors for achieving positive coaching results. Self-determination theory, specifically basic psychological need theory, has been proposed as a relevant framework for understanding these relationships. The current longitudinal survey study therefore investigates prospective associations between coachees' appraisal of the working alliance, basic psychological need satisfaction, and the coaching outcome indicators goal attainment, wellbeing, absence of psychopathology, and personal growth initiative.

Staying connected in old age: associations between bonding social capital, loneliness and well-being and the value of digital media.

Objectives: We examined associations between age, bonding social capital (BSC), loneliness and psychological, social and emotional well-being in old age. As in theory digital media can support both preservation of and access to someone's social capital, we also explored associations between the use of WhatsApp, social network sites (SNS) and Internet applications and respectively BSC and loneliness.

Method: In this cross-sectional study a sample of 349 older adults ( = 70y-93y; =74.

Companion Animals as Buffer against the Impact of Stress on Affect: An Experience Sampling Study.

Companion animals have been identified as a unique source of social support and as contributors to mental wellbeing. This study uses the Experience Sampling Method to test whether this effect is due to stress-buffering. A total of 159 dog and cat owners responded to a series of randomly scheduled questionnaires on their smartphones.

Optimism and Mental Health in Adolescence: a Prospective Validation Study of the Dutch Life-Orientation Test-Revised (LOT-R-A) for Adolescents.

The study aimed to examine the psychometric properties of the Dutch Life Orientation Test-Revised for Adolescents (LOT-R-A), a self-report questionnaire assessing dispositional optimism, and to evaluate the two-factor structure (optimism, pessimism). The LOT-R-A and the questionnaires measuring well-being (MHC-SF-A) and psychological problems (SDQ) were completed by 459 Dutch adolescents (178 boys and 281 girls) between the ages of 11 and 18 years at baseline and 281 adolescents at a four-week follow-up. The results confirmed the two-factor structure (optimism, pessimism) of the LOT-R-A.

Gratitude and loneliness in adults over 40 years: examining the role of psychological flexibility and engaged living.

Objectives: The aim of the present study was to investigate the association between trait gratitude and loneliness in a Dutch population sample of adults over 40 years. In addition, the mediating role of psychological flexibility and engaged living between trait gratitude and loneliness was assessed.

Method: A total sample of 163 adults of which 65 men (40%) and 98 women (60%) between 41 and 92 years ( = 66, = 12) participated in this study.

The association between specific activity components and depression in nursing home residents: the importance of the social component.

Objectives: To longitudinally explore the association between activities and depressive symptoms of nursing home (NH) residents, taking into account that each activity may contain multiple components (physical, creative, social, cognitive, and musical).

Method: Study with a baseline and two follow-ups (four and eight months). Participants were forty physically frail residents of four NHs in the Netherlands.

Bonding personal social capital as an ingredient for positive aging and mental well-being. A study among a sample of Dutch elderly.

Objectives: The current study aims to add to the limited empirical research of possible benefits of personal social capital for the well-being of elderly. A validated personal social capital scale, measuring both and social capital in a general population, was adjusted to fit the characteristics of the social environment of elderly, to explore the association between social capital and well-being of elderly, as well as the mediating role of loneliness.

Method: A sample of 328 Dutch adults, varying in age from 65 to 90 years ( = 72.

Cultural differences in positive psychotic experiences assessed with the Community Assessment of Psychic Experiences-42 (CAPE-42): a comparison of student populations in the Netherlands, Nigeria and Norway.

Background: Previous studies have suggested that culture impacts the experience of psychosis. The current study set out to extend these findings by examining cultural variation in subclinical positive psychotic experiences in students from The Netherlands, Nigeria, and Norway. Positive psychotic experiences were hypothesized to (i) be more frequently endorsed by, and (ii) cause less distress in Nigerian vs.

An fMRI study into emotional processing in Parkinson's disease: Does increased medial prefrontal activation compensate for striatal dysfunction?

Background: Apart from a progressive decline of motor functions, Parkinson's disease (PD) is also characterized by non-motor symptoms, including disturbed processing of emotions. This study aims at assessing emotional processing and its neurobiological correlates in PD with the focus on how medicated Parkinson patients may achieve normal emotional responsiveness despite basal ganglia dysfunction.

Methods: Nineteen medicated patients with mild to moderate PD (without dementia or depression) and 19 matched healthy controls passively viewed positive, negative, and neutral pictures in an event-related blood oxygen level-dependent functional magnetic resonance imaging study (BOLD-fMRI).

"Keep your brain fit!" Effectiveness of a psychoeducational intervention on cognitive functioning in healthy adults: A randomised controlled trial.

A psychoeducational intervention (Keep your brain fit!) was designed for the middle-aged and older working population. The intervention focuses on increasing knowledge and awareness about cognitive ageing and teaching strategies to cope with cognitive changes. The primary aim of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of the e-health intervention in terms of subjective cognitive functioning.

Cognitive interventions in healthy older adults and people with mild cognitive impairment: a systematic review.

Given that the research area of cognitive intervention studies in the aging population is growing rapidly, it is important to review and gauge more recent intervention studies, in order to determine the evidence for the effectiveness of cognitive interventions. The purpose of the present review was to update the recent systematic reviews of Papp et al. (2009) and Martin et al.

Validation of diagnostic criteria for apathy in Parkinson's disease.

Background: Apathy is a common neuropsychiatric syndrome in Parkinson's Disease (PD) that affects quality of life. Research into apathy has been hampered by a lack of broadly accepted diagnostic criteria. Recently, diagnostic criteria for apathy in neuropsychiatric disorders have been proposed, which to date have not been validated in PD.

Neuroanatomical correlates of apathy in Parkinson's disease: A magnetic resonance imaging study using voxel-based morphometry.

Apathy is generally defined as a disorder of motivation and is considered one of the most common neuropsychiatric disturbances in Parkinson's disease (PD). Only few studies addressed the neuroanatomical correlates of apathy in PD. The aim of this article was to determine the structural correlates of apathy in PD patients.

Assessment of depression in Parkinson's disease: the contribution of somatic symptoms to the clinimetric performance of the Hamilton and Montgomery-Asberg rating scales.

Objective: To assess the influence of somatic symptoms of the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAMD) and Montgomery-Asberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS) on the clinimetric performance of these scales in patients with Parkinson's disease (PD).

Methods: A total of 224 patients underwent a protocolized mental status examination, consisting of the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV depressive disorder (SCID-D), as well as the HAMD and MADRS. Sensitivity, specificity, positive, and negative predictive values for a range of cut-off scores were calculated for both rating scales and for modified versions of these scales in which all somatic items were eliminated.

A systematic review of prevalence studies of depression in Parkinson's disease.

Prevalence rates of depressive disorders in Parkinson's disease (PD) vary widely across studies, ranging from 2.7% to more than 90%. The aim of this systematic review was to calculate average prevalences of depressive disorders taking into account the different settings and different diagnostic approaches of studies.