Understanding Adolescent Mental Health in the COVID-19 Era: A Psychodynamic Approach.

Objective: This cross-sectional, case-control study aimed to explore the psychodynamic characteristics that influenced adolescents' mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Methods: Personality structure impairments, psychodynamic conflicts, defense styles, and mental health issues were examined using the OPD-Structure- and Conflict-Questionnaires, the Defense Style Questionnaire, and the Patient Health Questionnaire in adolescents before ( = 288) and after ( = 451) the COVID-19 pandemic in Germany.

Results: Adolescents with mental health issues exhibited greater impairments in personality structure, more immature defense styles, and higher levels of psychodynamic conflicts both before and after the pandemic onset.

[Associations between Personality Structure, Psychodynamic Conflicts and Defense Styles in Adolescents with Mental Health Problems].

Objectives: An exploration of the interrelationships between central psychodynamic constructs in adolescents with mental health problems was conducted.

Methods: 230 adolescents (Mage=18.0±1.

Operationalized Psychodynamic Diagnostic of Adolescents in Light of the New ICD-11 Model of Personality Functioning: Personality Structure, Psychodynamic Conflicts, and Mental Health Problems.

The International Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems, 11th Revision introduced a fully dimensional approach to personality disorders which conceptionally converges with the long-standing psychodynamic understanding of psychopathology through underlying intra- and interpersonal impairments. In this study, the diagnostic contributions of the two psychodynamic concepts of personality structure and psychodynamic conflicts were investigated through the comparison of self-report data of 189 adolescents with mental health problems and 321 mentally healthy controls. The study results reveal that adolescents with mental health problems show significantly higher impairments in all four domains of personality structure and significantly higher levels of several psychodynamic conflicts.

Differences and similarities in personality functioning across different types of eating disorders.

Objective: The classification of anorexia nervosa (AN) into subtypes is relevant due to their different symptomatology. However, subtypes (restricting type: AN-R; purging type: AN-P) differ also in terms of their personality functioning. Knowledge about these differences would allow for better treatment stratification.

An Empirical Investigation of Psychodynamic Conflicts in Stable Couples.

Previous investigations have shown that stressful and pathological developments in couple relationships can be psychodynamically explained by rigid unconscious couple collusions. This manuscript presents and discusses the findings of a pilot study in which the psychodynamic conflicts of stable and "functioning" couples were empirically explored. We studied 116 couples (N = 232) who were currently married or in a steady relationship, had at least one child together, and showed signs of mental disorders.

Defense Mechanisms Reloaded in the Light of Impaired Personality Functioning: An Attempt of Clarification and Simplification Resulting in the DSQ-22-A for Adolescents.

With the upcoming ICD-11, the diagnostic guidelines for personality disorders will change fundamentally to a dimensional severity concept, including the evaluation of several domains of personality functioning. Moreover, the lifetime perspective will allow this diagnosis even in early adolescence, providing the opportunity for early detection and intervention. In psychodynamic understanding, defense mechanisms are considered to be a part of the "personality structure", which is one axis in the related diagnostic system (OPD) and showed great similarities to the concept of personality functioning.

[Associations Between Personality Structure, Unconscious Conflicts, and Defense Styles in Adolescence].

According to the Operationalized Psychodynamic Diagnosis in Childhood and Adolescence, associations between personality structure, unconscious conflicts, and defense styles are postulated. So far, an empirical investigation of these associations in mentally healthy adolescents is missing. The present study aims to contribute to the understanding of unconscious conflicts as well as the unconscious defense of conflicts by elucidating intrapersonal factors within a normative sample.

Body mass index and self-reported body image in German adolescents.

Background: Despite knowledge about eating disorder symptoms in children and adolescents in the general population, relatively little is known about self-reported and sex-specific eating-disorder-related psychopathology, as well as its specific correlates.

Methods: 880 German school-attending adolescents (15.4 ± 2.

Applying Item Response Theory to the OPD Structure Questionnaire: Identification of a Unidimensional Core Construct and Feasibility of Computer Adaptive Testing.

Recent developments in the dimensional assessment of personality functioning have made the implementation of latent measurement models increasingly attractive. In this study, we applied item response theory (IRT) to a well-established personality functioning instrument (the OPD Structure Questionnaire) to identify a unidimensional latent trait and to evaluate the feasibility of computer adaptive testing (CAT). We hypothesized that the use of IRT could reduce the test burden - compared to a fixed short form - while maintaining high precision over a wide range of the latent trait.

[Parental evaluation of behavioral problems in children with developmental language disorder].

Parental evaluation of behavioral problems in children with developmental language disorder Children with developmental language disorder (DLD) often suffer from problems in everyday communication and react with social withdrawal or oppositional behavior. In light of the lack of studies in preschool children regarding this topic, the present study analyzes the occurrence of behavioral problems in children with DLD aged 4;0 to 5;11 years. Furthermore, we assessed differences in parental perception regarding their child's behavior.

[Effects of Bilingualism on Cognitive Functions in Early Childhood].

Effects of Bilingualism on Cognitive Functions in Early Childhood Studies have revealed advantages in cognitive functions among children with bilingualism. In this study we investigate cognitive functions in monolingual and bilingual preschool children taking socioeconomic status into account. The study population consists of 40 monolingual (German) children (M = 5.

Psychiatric Disorders and Personality Styles in Mothers of Female Adolescent Patients with Eating Disorders.

Objective: To provide further insight into the presently poorly understood role of familial psychopathology in the development of eating disorders (ED).

Method: The present study assesses psychiatric and personality disorders listed on Axis I and II of the DSM-IV in 27 mothers of adolescent patients with anorexia (AN mothers) and 14 bulimia nervosa (BN mothers) as well as 22 mentally healthy girls (CG mothers) on a categorical level. Furthermore, we conducted a dimensional diagnostic regarding personality styles and personality traits.

Cognitive functions in preschool children with specific language impairment.

Objective: A growing body of research has focused on executive functions in children with specific language impairment (SLI). However, results show limited convergence, particularly in preschool age. The current neuropsychological study compared performance of cognitive functions focused on executive components and working memory in preschool children with SLI to typically developing controls.

Cognitive Function in Adolescent Patients with Anorexia Nervosa and Unipolar Affective Disorders.

Studies have shown impairments in cognitive function among adult patients with anorexia nervosa (AN) and affective disorders (AD). The association between cognitive dysfunctions, AN and AD as well as the specificity for these psychiatric diagnoses remains unclear. Therefore, we examined cognitive flexibility and processing speed in 47 female adolescent patients with AN, 21 female adolescent patients with unipolar affective disorders and 48 female healthy adolescents.

The role of impulsivity, inattention and comorbid ADHD in patients with bulimia nervosa.

Introduction: Little is known about the contribution of impulsivity, inattention and comorbid attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in the development and maintenance of bulimia nervosa (BN). In particular, their specific contribution to disordered eating symptoms and whether they have additive effects to the general psychopathological burden remains unclear.

Methods: Fifty-seven female patients seeking treatment for BN and 40 healthy controls completed diagnostic questionnaires and interviews that investigated: a) ADHD, b) impulsivity, c) eating disorders and d) general psychopathology.

Cognitive flexibility and Agouti-related protein in adolescent patients with anorexia nervosa.

Introduction: Cognitive flexibility and the flexible learning and relearning of stimulus-reward-associations are important for decision-making and goal-directed behavior. Studies on patients with anorexia nervosa (AN) have shown difficulties in cognitive functions associated with malnutrition and extreme underweight. However, to date we find a lack of neuropsychological studies on cognitive flexibility among adolescent patients with AN.