How we see the world: Inflexible interpretation updating as a predictor and moderator of PTSD symptoms in high-risk occupations.

Objective: The way we interpret information shapes our perception of reality. Predictive processing frameworks propose that the ability to update interpretations based on disconfirming information is key to recovery from potentially traumatic events (PTEs). However, direct evidence for this assumption is scarce and comes from studies using paradigms with low ecological validity.

Childhood maltreatment is linked to larger preferred interpersonal distances towards friends and strangers across the globe.

Childhood maltreatment (CM) is thought to be associated with altered responses to social stimuli and interpersonal signals. However, limited evidence exists that CM is linked to larger comfortable interpersonal distance (CID) - the physical distance humans prefer towards others during social interactions. However, no previous study has investigated this association in a comprehensive sample, yielding sufficient statistical power.

Does disconfirmatory evidence shape safety-and danger-related beliefs of trauma-exposed individuals?

Recent accounts of predictive processing in posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) suggest that trauma-exposed individuals struggle to update trauma-related hypotheses predicting danger, which may be involved in the etiology and maintenance of this disorder. Initial research supports this account, documenting an association between trauma-exposure, impaired expectation updating, and PTSD symptoms. Yet, no study to date has examined biased belief updating in PTSD using a scenario-based approach.

Interrelations of resilience factors and their incremental impact for mental health: insights from network modeling using a prospective study across seven timepoints.

Resilience can be viewed as trajectory of stable good mental health or the quick recovery of mental health during or after stressor exposure. Resilience factors (RFs) are psychological resources that buffer the potentially negative effects of stress on mental health. A problem of resilience research is the large number of conceptually overlapping RFs complicating their understanding.

Anhedonia mediates the relationships between childhood trauma and symptom severity of PTSD and depression, but not of social anxiety.

Background: Childhood trauma is a risk factor for developing multiple forms of psychopathology, including depression, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and social anxiety. Yet, the mechanisms linking childhood trauma and these psychopathologies remain less clear.

Objective: Here we examined whether anhedonia, a reduced ability to experience pleasure, may mediate the relationship between childhood trauma and symptom severity of depression, PTSD, and social anxiety.

Generation climate crisis, COVID-19, and Russia-Ukraine-War: global crises and mental health in adolescents.

Climate change, COVID-19, and the Russia-Ukraine War are some of the great challenges of our time. These global crises affect young people in a particularly vulnerable phase of their lives. The current study aimed to assess the impact of these crises on mental health (depression, anxiety, and health-related quality of life) in secondary school students in Germany.

To sleep or not to sleep, that is the question: A systematic review and meta-analysis on the effect of post-trauma sleep on intrusive memories of analog trauma.

Distressing intrusive memories of a traumatic event are one of the hallmark symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder. Thus, it is crucial to identify early interventions that prevent the occurrence of intrusive memories. Both, sleep and sleep deprivation have been discussed as such interventions, yet previous studies yielded contradicting effects.

Flexibility predicts chronic anxiety and depression during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic-A longitudinal investigation of mental health trajectories.

Objective: The COVID-19 pandemic is a significant stressor, potentially putting the well-being of the general population at risk. However, a significant proportion of the population exhibits resilience, raising questions regarding psychological constructs that could contribute to resilient coping. Studies indicate that flexibility, defined as the ability to adapt to changing contextual demands by employing various emotional, cognitive, and behavioral strategies, may significantly contribute to coping with long-term stressors such as COVID-19.

Cognitive flexibility moderates the efficacy of a visuospatial intervention following exposure to analog trauma.

Background And Objectives: Intrusive memories are the hallmark feature of Post-Traumatic-Stress-Disorder (PTSD). Recent studies show that a visuospatial intervention after viewing traumatic films reduces intrusive memories in healthy individuals. However, many individuals still exhibit high levels of symptoms following such an intervention, warranting continued investigation into specific characteristics moderating intervention effect.

The relationship between sense of coherence and mental health problems from childhood to young adulthood: A meta-analysis.

Background: Sense of coherence (SOC) as the key component of the salutogenesis framework is negatively correlated with mental health problems in adults but also in children and adolescents. Since SOC is conceptualized to develop and stabilize from childhood to young adulthood, these life phases are of critical importance for the salutogenesis concept. Individual studies examining SOC's link with mental health at younger ages yielded heterogeneous effect size estimates.

Psychopathology in mothers of children with pathogenic Copy Number Variants.

Background: Caring for children with pathogenic neurodevelopmental Copy Number Variants (CNVs) (ie, deletions and duplications of genetic material) can place a considerable burden on parents and their quality of life. Our study is the first to examine the frequency of psychiatric diagnoses in mothers of children with CNVs compared with the frequency of psychiatric problems in age-matched mothers from a large community study.

Methods: Case-control study.

COVID-19-related distress is associated with analogue PTSD symptoms after exposure to an analogue stressor.

The COVID-19 outbreak in early 2020 was associated with an immediate increase in mental health problems in a significant percentage of the general population. Therefore, it is crucial to investigate how the COVID-19 pandemic - as a psychosocial stressor - affected the aetiological processes of mental disorders. Previous research has shown that stress potentiates associative (fear) learning and analogue symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and that analogue PTSD symptoms can emerge in response to associative learning.

Adaptive responding to prolonged stress exposure: A binational study on the impact of flexibility on latent profiles of cognitive, emotional and behavioural responses to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The high level of uncertainty brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic has affected the general population's well-being and capacity for adaptive responding. Studies indicate that flexibility, defined as the ability to choose and employ a variety of emotional, cognitive and behavioural strategies in accordance with changing contextual demands, may significantly contribute to adaptive responding to long-term stressors such as COVID-19. In the current study, we aimed to investigate which facets of flexibility predict different latent profiles of adaptive responding to the COVID-19 pandemic in Israel and Germany.

The relationship between attachment to pets and mental health: the shared link via attachment to humans.

Background: Several studies have investigated the relationship between emotional attachment to pets and mental health with the majority of studies finding a negative relationship between emotional attachment to pets and mental health. Interestingly, attachment to pets differs from attachment to humans with studies showing that humans with an insecure attachment style form a particularly strong emotional attachment to their companion animals. Human attachment style is also related to mental health with secure attachment being associated with superior mental health.

The long-term buffering effect of sense of coherence on psychopathological symptoms during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic: A prospective observational study.

The COVID-19 pandemic is a major chronic stressor affecting all societies and almost all individuals. Consequently, research demonstrated a negative impact of COVID-19 on mental health in parts of the general population. However, not all people are affected equally thus making the identification of resilience factors modulating the pandemic's impact on mental health an important research agenda.

Leaving the door open: Trauma, updating, and the development of PTSD symptoms.

Humans try to make sense of the world using hypotheses that were formed by prior experiences. After trauma, these hypotheses can be exaggerated and resistant to change. This may result in difficulties to update expectations regarding the negative outcomes associated with traumatic stimuli.

Social Functioning in Individuals Affected by Childhood Maltreatment: Establishing a Research Agenda to Inform Interventions.

Childhood maltreatment (CM) is linked to impairments in various domains of social functioning. Here, we argue that it is critical to identify factors that underlie impaired social functioning as well as processes that mediate the beneficial health effects of positive relationships in individuals exposed to CM. Key research recommendations are presented, focusing on: (1) identifying attachment-related alterations in specific inter- and intrapersonal processes (e.

Longitudinal associations between hair cortisol, PTSD symptoms, and sleep disturbances in a sample of firefighters with duty-related trauma exposure.

Several studies have found evidence of altered cortisol levels in patients with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Based on these findings, it is assumed that these patients may show signs of cortisol dysregulation after trauma. Posttrauma cortisol levels are thus considered a potential biomarker of PTSD.

No distance is too far between friends: associations of comfortable interpersonal distance with PTSD and anxiety symptoms in Israeli firefighters.

Previous research indicates that PTSD patients may show alterations in interpersonal distance regulation (IDR). However, it is not clear whether altered IDR is correlated with psychopathology after trauma and whether attentional processes might be involved in these alterations. The current study investigated IDR and attentional processing in a sample of Israeli firefighters.

Wakefulness impairs selective consolidation of relevant trauma-associated memories resulting in more frequent intrusions.

Recent studies show that sleep reduces intrusive memories after analog trauma. This effect is assumed to be caused by sleep's impact on memory consolidation. However, the underlying processes of this phenomenon have not been uncovered.

Impact of COVID-19 on Public Mental Health and the Buffering Effect of a Sense of Coherence.

Introduction: It is claimed that the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has had a negative impact on mental health. However, to date, prospective studies are lacking. Moreover, it is important to identify which factors modulate the stress response to the pandemic.

Correlates of mental health in occupations at risk for traumatization: a cross-sectional study.

Background: Hospitals, police stations, and fire departments are highly demanding workplaces. Staff members are regularly exposed to various stressors including traumatic events. Correspondingly, several studies report high rates of mental health issues among these occupations.

Pre-rehabilitation sense of coherence as a predictor of symptom change after rehabilitation.

Sense of coherence (SOC) constitutes the key component of salutogenesis theory. It reflects individuals' confidence that their environment is comprehensible and manageable and that their lives are meaningful. Research demonstrates a strong cross-sectional relationship between SOC and mental health.

The Relationship between Dog Ownership, Psychopathological Symptoms and Health-Benefitting Factors in Occupations at Risk for Traumatization.

Individuals working in high-risk occupations (e.g., emergency staff) are exposed to high levels of occupational stress including traumatic events.