Arousal Scale Research Articles

Psychophysiological indicators of fatigue in soccer players: A systematic review

Summary The aim of this study was to determine the main methods used to analyse the soccer players movement during games. Data were collected at three databases (PubMed, Medline and SPORTDiscus) from 2010 to 2015, using the match terms: “perceived exertion” AND “fatigue” AND “soccer”. The data criteria inclusion considered articles with match terms in titles and abstracts; studies purposes assessed central or peripheral fatigue in soccer players; psychological, physiological or psychophysiological variables; research design as a descriptive or experimental models. Studies that evaluated children, adults and recreational soccer practitioners were excluded. The studies quality was assessed by three PhD professors using the PEDro scale. Twenty-two studies were initially located; following the application of the eligibility criteria, 11 studies were selected for our analysis. Data showed that the main methods used to determine psychophysiological fatigue in athletes were ergoespirometry, but mainly indirect methods to identify aerobic power. For anaerobic power, the studies used mainly indirect tests (sprint and jump test). The Profile of Mood States and Illinois Agility Test were used to identify mood states and agility, respectively. For psychophysiological assessments were used mainly perceived exertion scales (Borg 6–20 and CR-10), Felt Arousal Scale, Feeling Scale, Hooper's Index and the SFMS questionnaire for the detection of early signs of overtraining, while for metabolic assessments were used the heart rate identified by heart monitor and blood lactate identified by lactimeter. Thus, this study concludes that indirect and cheap methods were reported to identify fatigue and psychophysiological changes during soccer matches and training session.

Acute effects of resistance exercise in a depressed HIV sample: The exercise for people who are immunocompromised (EPIC) study

Depression is highly prevalent among people living with HIV (PLWH). It can negatively impact quality of life, medication adherence, and clinical progression of the disease. This study tested the effect of a single bout of bodyweight resistance exercise on affective valence and perceived activation (i.e., perceived fatigue) in PLWH with depressive symptoms. Using a within-subject design, 10 participants ages 33–61 with a Center for Epidemiologic Depression Scale (CES-D) score of ≥10 completed two 20-min randomized cross-over sessions separated by one week: (1) a 20-min bout of bodyweight resistance exercise; and (2) a 20-min informational video control. Affective valence and perceived activation were measured with the Feeling Scale and the Felt Arousal Scale, respectively. Both were administered at baseline, during exercise, immediately post, and after a 10-min delay. Changes were analyzed using repeated measures Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) with significance level set at 0.05. Significant differences over time were found in both affect (F = 2.63, p = 0.05) and perceived activation (F = 7.40, p < 0.001) between the two conditions, with greater improvements in resistance exercise compared to the control. The effect sizes were moderate for affect (η2 = 0.06) and large for perceived activation (η2 = 0.10). This is the first study to show that a single bout of bodyweight resistance exercise has positive effects on affect and perceived activation in PLWH who report having depressive symptoms. Future research exploring the practical utility of bodyweight resistance exercise for the management of negative mood states and depression-associated fatigue in this population is warranted.

Sleep-related cognitive processes, arousal, and emotion dysregulation in insomnia disorder: the role of insomnia-specific rumination

ObjectiveInsomnia-specific rumination has presented in subjects with insomnia. Research has identified hyperarousal as a key factor, with both trait and state components. It has been shown that emotion dysregulation also plays a role in insomnia. Hence, the aim was to investigate how insomnia rumination is associated with both trait- and state-dependent arousal and emotion dysregulation in insomnia. MethodsSixty-eight subjects with insomnia disorder (DSM-5) and 36 good sleepers were evaluated using: Insomnia Severity Index (ISI), Daytime Insomnia Symptom Response Scale (DISRS), Arousal Predisposition Scale (APS), Pre-sleep Arousal Scale (PSAS), and Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale (DERS). Univariate and multivariate regression analyses and mediation analyses were performed. ResultsSubjects with insomnia (F 41, mean age 50.2 ± 10) presented higher scores than good sleepers (F 22, mean age 49.7 ± 14) in all the scales (ISI, DISRS, APS, PSAS, DERS; p < 0.0001). Insomnia rumination was directly correlated with trait (APS, B = 0.22, p < 0.0001) pre-sleep state arousal (PSAS cognitive B = 0.22, p < 0.0001, PSAS somatic B = 0.24, p < 0.0001) and emotion dysregulation (B = 0.5, p = 0.03). It mediated the association between trait and pre-sleep state hyperarousal (Z = 3.3, p = 0.0008), the bidirectional association between cognitive and somatic arousal (p = 0.02), and the association between trait hyperarousal and emotion dysregulation (Z = 2.3, p = 0.04). ConclusionsIn insomnia, specific rumination is related to both trait predisposition to arousal and to state-dependent arousal. It is also related to emotion dyregulation. Insomnia-specific ruminative response style may modulate the complex association between trait- and state-dependent arousal factors and arousal and emotion regulation in insomnia. In this framework, a broad range of cognitive processes may be considered when dealing with subjects with insomnia: the use of rumination-oriented psychological strategies could be important.

Acute Affective Responses and Frontal Electroencephalographic Asymmetry to Prescribed and Self-selected Exercise.

Objective:Our goal was to compare affective responses and frontal electroencephalographic alpha asymmetry induced by prescribed exercise (PE) and self-selected exercise (SS). Method: Twenty active participants underwent a submaximal exercise test to estimate maximal oxygen consumption (VO2max). Participants enrolled a cross-over randomized study where each participant completed three conditions: PE (50%PVO2max), SS and Control. The electroencephalography was performed before and after exercise. The feeling scale, felt arousal scale and heart rate were recorded before, during and after each condition. The ratings of perceived exertion were recorded during and after each condition.Results: The heart rate and ratings of perceived exertion showed higher values in the PE and SS conditions compared to controls, with no differences between the PE and SS conditions. For the feeling scale, the SS presented higher values compared to the PE and Control conditions. The felt arousal scale presented higher values in the PE and SS conditions compared to control. There was no interaction between condition and moment, or main effect for condition and moment for frontal alpha asymmetry (InF4-InF3).Conclusion:The SS provided better affective responses compared to PE, thus can consider self-selected intensity as an appropriate option. In general, no frontal alpha asymmetry was seen due to an exercise intervention.

Developing a model of working with worry in emotion‐focused therapy: A discovery‐phase task analytic study

AbstractBackgroundGeneralised anxiety disorder (GAD) is an anxiety disorder characterised by excessive anxiety and worry. Worry is seen as a key‐defining feature of GAD. Several cognitive‐behavioural models of working with worry in GAD exist. More recently, there have been efforts to adapt emotion‐focused therapy (EFT) for GAD. This study focused on task analysis, observing therapist and client processes (using qualitative observations as well as observer‐used measures) in the clinically developed, two‐chair dialogue for worry (an intervention inspired by a similar EFT task of working with self‐criticism in depression).MethodA task analysis methodological approach was applied to 34 worry dialogues from eight clients. The worry dialogues were qualitatively analysed, focusing on therapist and client processes in the task and also using observer‐based measures such as Classification of Affective‐Meaning States, Client Emotion Arousal Scale and Client Emotion Productivity Scale.ResultsA tentative model of worry transformation using the two‐chair dialogue for worry is presented. The model consists of marker identification, enactment of the worry, deepening the toll of the worry, articulation of the need towards the worry and the worry softening or the client's standing up to the worry. The results also focus on the progression in the dialogues across the series of dialogues.ImplicationsThe model has an immediate practical application as it can inform therapists' actions when working with worry processes in GAD clients. Implications for future research are also discussed.

Subjective assessment of acute mountain sickness: investigating the relationship between the Lake Louise Self-Report, a visual analogue scale and psychological well-being scales.

PurposeThere is an ongoing discussion how to assess acute mountain sickness (AMS) in real life conditions. Next to more-item scales with a cut off like the Lake Louise Self-Report (LLS), some authors suggested to use visual analog scales (VAS) to assess AMS. This study tried to contribute to this question using VAS items used for the Subjective Ratings of Drug Effects, including an additional single item for AMS. Furthermore, we investigated if instruments developed to assess psychological well-being might predict AMS assessed via LLS or VAS.Methods32 (19 Female) adult persons with known AMS susceptibility filled in questionnaires (Feeling Scale, Felt Arousal Scale, Activation Deactivation Check List, LLS, VAS) at a height of 3650 m above sea level.ResultsCorrelation and regression analysis suggest a moderate to high relationship between the LLS score and the VAS items, including one VAS item asking for the severity of AMS, as well as psychological well-being.ConclusionIn conclusion, using VAS items to assess AMS can be a more precise alternative to questionnaires like LLS, for people knowledgeable with AMS. Furthermore, researchers should be aware that psychological well-being might be an important parameter influencing the assessment of AMS.

Trait- and pre-sleep-state-dependent arousal in insomnia disorders: what role may sleep reactivity and sleep-related metacognitions play? A pilot study

ObjectiveResearch into the cause of chronic insomnia has identified hyperarousal as a key factor, which is likely to have both trait and state components. Sleep-related cognition, metacognition, and sleep reactivity also play an important role in insomnia. Our aim was to investigate how these insomnia-related constructs are associated with trait predisposition and pre-sleep arousal in subjects with an insomnia disorder. MethodsFifty-three individuals with insomnia disorder (according to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5) (F = 33; 52 + 10)) and 30 healthy controls (F = 18; 51.8 + 12 years) were evaluated with a set of questionnaires, including the Ford Insomnia Response to Stress Test (FIRST), Metacognition Questionnaire – Insomnia (MCQI), Arousal Predisposition Scale (APS), and Pre-sleep Arousal Scale (PSAS). Statistical analyses included multiple regression to elucidate the independent determinants of APS and PSAS. ResultsParticipants with insomnia presented higher FIRST, MCQI, APS, PSAS scores (p-values <0.001) than healthy controls. In insomnia, APS and cognitive PSAS were best determined by MCQI (respectively, B = 0.09, p = 0.001, B = 0.08, p = 0.02), somatic PSAS by cognitive arousal (PSAS B = 0.35, p = 0.004) ConclusionsThis study suggests that in insomnia disorders, trait predisposition toward hyperarousal and pre-sleep-cognitive-state-dependent arousal may be closely related to sleep-related metacognitive processes. Sleep-related metacognitive processes may be associated with trait hyperarousal within the framework of a mutual relationship, and could, in turn, modulate cognitive pre-sleep-state arousal. A broad range of cognitive and metacognitive processes should be considered when dealing with subjects with insomnia.

Parent Report and Actigraphically Defined Sleep in Children with and without Developmental Coordination Disorder; Links with Fatigue and Sleepiness

Impaired sleep is associated with negative effects on quality of life and daytime functioning. Higher rates of sleep disturbance are reported in children with various developmental disorders. However, little is known about sleep in children with developmental coordination disorder (DCD), a condition characterized by everyday movement difficulties. Previously, in a preliminary study, we found higher rates of parent-reported sleep disturbance in children with DCD compared to controls. To examine sleep in DCD using objective measures and to examine links with daytime fatigue and sleepiness. Two groups (primary and secondary school-aged) of 15 children with DCD, plus matched controls, participated. Parent-reported child sleep was assessed using the Children's Sleep Habits Questionnaire and actigraphy provided an objective measure of sleep-wake patterns over 1 week (including weekdays and weekend). Pediatric restless legs syndrome (RLS) semi-structured diagnostic interview was conducted with each child and parent to capture symptoms of RLS. Aspects of self-rated child functioning were assessed with questionnaires (Pre-sleep Arousal Scale, Pediatric Daytime Sleepiness Scale, PedsQL Multidimensional Fatigue Scale) and mothers' reported thoughts about child sleep with the Maternal Cognitions about Infant Sleep Questionnaire. The DCD groups had greater parent-reported sleep disturbance. Actigraphy results suggested that for secondary aged children with DCD their sleep quality was impaired and there were differences in the timing of sleep compared to controls (including some differences in the variation between weekday and weekend sleep times). The actigraphy of the primary age group with DCD was unremarkable compared to controls. No child in the study met the criteria for RLS. Exploratory analyses suggested that daytime fatigue, aspects of pre-sleep arousal, and daytime sleepiness were reported as greater in the DCD groups and were particularly related to objective sleep parameters in the DCD groups. Maternal thoughts about sleep did not differ between the DCD and control groups. The nature and underlying cause of sleep disturbance and how it might be linked with aspects of daytime functioning in adolescents with DCD requires further research. Meanwhile, clinical awareness of the risk of atypical sleep patterns/sleep problems in DCD is important to ensure early identification and implementation of appropriate support.

Common modulation of limbic network activation underlies musical emotions as they unfold

Music is a powerful means for communicating emotions among individuals. Here we reveal that this continuous stream of affective information is commonly represented in the brains of different listeners and that particular musical attributes mediate this link. We examined participants' brain responses to two naturalistic musical pieces using functional Magnetic Resonance imaging (fMRI). Following scanning, as participants listened to the musical pieces for a second time, they continuously indicated their emotional experience on scales of valence and arousal. These continuous reports were used along with a detailed annotation of the musical features, to predict a novel index of Dynamic Common Activation (DCA) derived from ten large-scale data-driven functional networks. We found an association between the unfolding music-induced emotionality and the DCA modulation within a vast network of limbic regions. The limbic-DCA modulation further corresponded with continuous changes in two temporal musical features: beat-strength and tempo. Remarkably, this “collective limbic sensitivity” to temporal features was found to mediate the link between limbic-DCA and the reported emotionality. An additional association with the emotional experience was found in a left fronto-parietal network, but only among a sub-group of participants with a high level of musical experience (>5years). These findings may indicate two processing-levels underlying the unfolding of common music emotionality; (1) a widely shared core-affective process that is confined to a limbic network and mediated by temporal regularities in music and (2) an experience based process that is rooted in a left fronto-parietal network that may involve functioning of the ‘mirror-neuron system’.

Effects of Carbohydrate and Protein Supplementation on Mood, Affect and Discomfort Perception during Endurance Exercise

PURPOSE: To investigate the effect of carbohydrate and protein supplementation on mood, affect and discomfort perception during endurance exercise. METHODS:Ten well trained, healthy Chinese males (Age: 27.33±4.40 yr, height: 172.89±3.86 cm, weight: 63.50±5.12 kg, body fat percentage: 8.97±4.30 %, VO2max: 62.93±5.66 ml•kg-1•min-1) participated in the study with a double-blind counterbalance crossover design. Three types of nutritional treatments were implemented in three trials: 1) CHO+PRO: CHO-electrolyte solution (6.6% CHO, 26mg•L Na+, 8mg•L K+) with 24g whey protein isolate; 2) CHO-electrolyte solution (6.6% CHO, 26mg/L Na+, 8mg•L K+) with 24g sugar; 3) Sweetened electrolyte solution (26mg•L Na+, 8mg•L K+). All of the treatments were matched in sweetness with a zero-calorie sweetener and 5ml•kg was ingested before exercise and 2m•kg ingested every 15 minutes during exercise. The Chinese version of 24-item Brunel Mood Scale (BRUMS), Rating of Perceived Exertion (RPE), Pain intensity scale, Felt Arousal Scale (FAS) and Feeling Scale (FS) were applied in this study. Gas analysis was conducted every 30 minutes. Three-way ANOVA (time x treatment x stage) were applied for comparing the difference among treatments and time point. RESULTS:Blood glucose in CHO+PRO was higher than in the control group (5.35±0.81 vs. 4.45±1.03 mmol•L, P<0.05) at 90 min. RPE, FAS and pain intensity scale increased along with time; no difference was found among treatments. There was no difference among scores of dimensions in Depression, Anger, Confusion, Fatigue, Tension and Vigor among different time points of exercise. However, the score of Vigor dimension in CHO+CHO is higher than two other groups (2.10±2.07 vs. 4.10±1.52 vs.2.40±2.27, P<0.05). CONCLUSIONS:Exercise could induce a higher level of arousal, muscle pain and perceived exertion; however, pleasure-displeasure and the overall mood state were not affected. Ingestion of CHO+PRO drink did not induce stomach discomfort and overall mood disturbance during exercise, compared with CHO+CHO or placebo drink. In comparison with CHO+PRO, positive mood of Vigor could stay higher after ingesting an energy-matched amount of CHO in the present study.

Cancer Survivors Report Positive Affect during High-Intensity Group Based Exercise

PURPOSE: In rehabilitating populations, concerns arise with sustaining and adhering to popular group exercise programs of increased intensity due to the physically demanding requirements. Positive affect values like pleasure improve the likelihood of engaging in exercise behaviors. High-intensity functional training (HIFT) is a group-based exercise method of combined aerobic and resistance training functional exercises completed at relative high intensities. This study investigated effects of a HIFT program on cancer survivors’ perceptions of pleasure to predict efficacy and adherence. METHODS: Eight cancer survivors (53.5±5.0y, 75% female) participated in a 5-week, 3 days/week HIFT intervention, consisting of 12 workouts (WODS). For three pre-selected WODs, participants self-reported changes in mood/pleasure via the Feeling Scale (FS) from -5 (very bad) to +5 (very good); arousal via the Felt Arousal Scale (FAS) from 1 (very lowly) through 6 (very highly) aroused; and Rating of Perceived Exertion (RPE) via the Borg scale from 6 (resting) to 20 (maximal) at 6 times (after the warm-up, after ¼, ½, and ¾ of the WOD, immediately after the WOD, and after cool-down). Heart rate (HR) was assessed with Polar Pro-trainers throughout. Repeated measures ANOVA was used to examine within-measurement differences over time. Correlation analysis was used to compare RPE and HR for 2 exercise sessions. RESULTS: Average FS ratings ranged 1.3 to 3.4 indicating that mood remained positive throughout the session. Average RPE peaked immediately after the WOD and ranged from 6.9 to 15.5. Average predicted HRmax% for age was 80.2+/- 0.9 % throughout the WOD. There was main effect for changes in FAS over time, F(2,1)=16.0, p<.001, where the first measurement was significantly lower than all following measurements. There were significant main effects for changes in RPE, F(2,1)=43.2, p<.001, and HR, F(5,1)=74.8, p<.001, over time. Both were positively correlated, r=.97, p=.001 and had significantly greater values during the WOD than warm-up or cool-down. CONCLUSIONS: Improved FS during HIFT contrasts with previous research showing that pleasure decreases as physiological work demands reach high intensity. These data show that cancer survivors can sustain and even find high intensity exercise enjoyable.

중학생의 각성추구성향이 체육수업내적동기 및 체육교과태도에 미치는 영향

본 연구는 중학생의 각성추구성향이 체육수업내적동기 및 체육교과태도에 미치는 영향을 규명하고자 하였다. 이 연구에 참여한 연구대상은 중학생을 대상으로 표집하였다. 표집된 설문자료 중에서 335명의 자료를 토대로 분석하였다. 연구도구는 각성추구검사지, 체육수업내적동기 검사지, 체육교과태도 검사지를 이용하였다. 자료처리는 빈도분석, 상관분석, 신뢰도분석, 탐색적 요인분석, 중다회귀분석을 이용하여 분석하였다. 결과는 다음과 같다. 각성추구성향 중 신기함 추구만이 체육수업내적동기의 재미-노력과 유능감에 정적 영향을 주는 것으로 나타났다. 그리고 각성추구성향 중 신기함 추구는 체육교과태도에 정적 영향을 주는 반면에, 스릴 추구는 건강과 체력에만 부적 영향을 주는 것으로 나타났다. 또 체육수업내적동기의 재미-노력은 체육교과태도에 정적 영향을 주는 반면에, 유능감과 긴장은 부분적으로 영향을 주는 것으로 나타났다. 따라서 체육교과태도와 내적동기를 증진시키기 위해서는 학생들의 각성추구성향 중 신기함 추구를 높여 줄 수 있는 교수학습방안이 요구된다. Subjects consisting of 335 middle school students were analyzed using arousal seeking tendency scales to determine the effect on student's scores on scales for physical education intrinsic motivation and physical education attitude. The data were subjected to frequency analysis, correlation analysis, reliability analysis, exploratory factor analysis, and multiple regression analysis as statistical methods. The results were as follows. In the subscales of arousal seeking tendency, novelty seeking positively influenced interest, efforts, and competence. In the subscales of arousal seeking tendency, novelty seeking positively influenced physical education attitude, but thrill seeking negatively influenced health and fitness only. In the subscales of physical education intrinsic motivation, interest and efforts positively influenced physical education attitude, while both competence and tension partly influenced it. These findings indicate that improving both attitude and intrinsic motivation of middle school students toward physical education would require a method of teaching and learning that encourages students′ novelty seeking in the subscales of arousal seeking tendency.

Acute effects of outdoor physical activity on affect and psychological well-being in depressed patients – A preliminary study

IntroductionPhysical activity (PA) is well established in the treatment of people with depressive symptoms. Most of this activity is done in an indoor setting. There is growing evidence that PA outdoors shows larger positive effects on affective states than PA indoors. The aim of the present study was to compare the affective experience of an acute outdoor exercise bout with indoor and sedentary equivalents for individuals with clinical depression. Method14 in-patients with mild to moderate depression were recruited during treatment in a mental health center. In a within-subjects experimental study, all participants completed three 60-min sessions: a sedentary control condition (SC), an indoor PA condition (IC), and an outdoor PA condition (OC). Mood, valence and activation were assessed throughout each session using the Mood Survey Scale (MSS), Feeling Scale and Felt Arousal Scale. ResultsConcerning the MSS subscales, whilst patients in the SC exhibited minimal changes, significantly lower “excitement” scores and higher “activation” scores were reported following the OC. Affective activation also differed significantly between OC and IC. ConclusionA single outdoor exercise bout showed greater affective improvements compared to indoor and sedentary equivalents for self-reported excitement and activation. As patients felt more active, an outdoor setting might be useful in overcoming listlessness during depression treatment. Due to methodological limitations associated with the pragmatic nature of the trial, findings must be interpreted with caution. Further trials should focus on wider feasibility and acceptability of outdoor exercise in depressive patients.

Children’s Scales of Pleasure and Arousal

This article introduces the Children’s Scales of Pleasure and Arousal as instruments to enable children to provide judgments of emotions they witness or experience along the major dimensions of affect. In two studies (Study 1: N = 160, 3–11 years and adults; Study 2: N = 280, 3–5 years and adults), participants used the scales to indicate the levels of pleasure or arousal they perceived in stylized drawings of facial expressions, in photographs of facial expressions, or in emotion labels. All age groups used the Pleasure Scale reliably and accurately with all three types of stimuli. All used the Arousal Scale with stylized faces and with facial expressions, but only 5-year-olds did so for emotion labels.

What's Keeping Teenagers Up? Prebedtime Behaviors and Actigraphy-Assessed Sleep Over School and Vacation

PurposeTechnology-related behaviors (e.g., computer use) before bedtime (BT) have been associated with poorer and shorter sleep in adolescents; however, less is known about other behaviors in relation to sleep. This study characterized a range of behaviors in the hour before bed (i.e., pre-BT behaviors [PBBs]) and examined their relationship with sleep parameters during school and vacation periods (i.e., restricted and extended sleep opportunities, respectively). Mechanistic roles of chronotype and cognitive presleep arousal (PSAcog) were also examined. MethodsDuring the last week of a school term and throughout a 2-week vacation, 146 adolescents (47.26% male, age M ± standard deviation = 16.2 ± 1.0 years) from the general community completed daily sleep measure using actigraphy, self-report measures on PBBs and PSAcog (Presleep Arousal Scale) for both school and vacation periods, and chronotype (Morningness–Eveningness Questionnaire). ResultsAdolescents engaged in a variety of behaviors before bed. Notably, playing video games was associated with significantly later school and vacation BT and shorter school sleep duration (controlling for chronotype). During vacation, online social media was associated with significantly longer sleep onset latency, and this relationship was mediated by higher PSAcog. In contrast, on school nights, spending time with family was associated with significantly earlier BT and longer sleep duration. ConclusionsTechnology-related PBBs video games and online social media were risk factors for shorter and poorer sleep, whereas time with family was protective of sleep duration. In addressing sleep problems in adolescents, therapeutic procedures that target the potentially addictive nature of technology use and reduce PSAcog were implicated.

Effects of assisted aquatic movement and horseback riding therapies on emotion and brain activation in patients with cerebral palsy.

[Purpose] The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of assisted aquatic movement and horseback riding therapies on emotion and brain activation in patients with cerebral palsy. [Subjects and Methods] Thirty-two right-handed patients with cerebral palsy (18 male, 14 female) whose ages ranged from 8 to 48 years participated in this experiment. Their cerebral palsy levels ranged from 1 to 3. The participants were assigned to one of three groups according to the experimental conditions: an assisted aquatic movement therapy group, a horseback riding therapy group, or a control group. Electroencephalograms, the Feeling Scale and the Felt Arousal Scale were examined as dependent variables. [Results] Analysis of self-reported data demonstrated a significant positive improvement in the emotions of participants in the assisted aquatic movement therapy group in comparison with the control group. With regard to the electroencephalogram analysis, the results of this study showed increased alpha power in the assisted aquatic movement therapy group compared with the horseback riding and control groups. [Conclusion] The results of this study suggest that professionals can consider assisted aquatic movement therapy as an effective therapeutic intervention for the improvement of mental health and brain activation.

The exploratory power of sleep effort, dysfunctional beliefs, and arousal for insomnia severity and PSG determined sleep

Introduction Differences between subjective sleep perception and sleep determined by polysomnography (PSG) are prevalent in patients with primary insomnia, indicating that the two measures are partially independent. Objectives To identify individualized treatment strategies, it is important to understand the potentially different mechanisms influencing subjective and PSG determined sleep. Aims The aim of this study was to investigate to which extent sleep effort, dysfunctional beliefs and attitudes about sleep, and pre-sleep arousal are associated with subjective insomnia severity and PSG- determined sleep. Methods 47 patients with primary insomnia and 52 good sleeper controls underwent two nights of PSG and filled in the Glasgow Sleep Effort Scale, the Dysfunctional Beliefs and Attitudes about Sleep Scale, the Pre-Sleep Arousal Scale and the Insomnia Severity Index. Regression analyses adjusted for age, gender, depressive symptoms, and group status were conducted to investigate the impact of the three predictors on subjective insomnia severity and PSG- determined total sleep time. Results Subjective insomnia severity was positively associated with sleep effort. PSG determined total sleep time was negatively associated with somatic pre-sleep arousal and dysfunctional beliefs and attitudes about sleep. Conclusions The pattern of results suggests that subjective insomnia severity and PSG determined total sleep time are driven by different mechanisms. Being associated with subjective sleep disturbance, which defines the diagnosis of insomnia, the reduction of sleep effort appears to be an important therapeutic target for all patients. Somatic pre-sleep arousal and dysfunctional beliefscould be a target for patients who suffer from markedly reduced PSG determined total sleep time.

Emotional arousal in two drama therapy core processes: Dramatic embodiment and dramatic projection

This study explores emotional arousal in relation to dramatic projection (DP) and dramatic embodiment (DE). Video segments of drama therapy processes that included DP and DE were rated using the Client Emotional Arousal Scale – III (CEAS). Participant emotional arousal (EMO) was significantly higher for video segments with DP than for video segments without DP. Participant EMO was also significantly higher for video segments of DE than for video segments without DE. These results suggest that both DP and DE can facilitate client emotional arousal, bringing about sustained expression and potentially leading to the processing of emotion, which in turn can be therapeutic. Future research should continue to explore relationships between drama therapy core processes and other psychotherapy process variables involved in client change.

Relationship of daytime fatigue and hyperarousal in patients with primary insomnia

To study the relationship between daytime fatigue and hyperarousal in patients with primary insomnia. One hundred and sixty eighty patients with primary insomnia as research group and 149 healthy people as control group were recruited during November 2013 to December 2014 in the psychiatry department of the Third Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-sen University. The Hyperarousal Scale (HAS), Pre-Sleep Arousal Scale (PSAS), Fatigue scale-14 (FS-14) and a visual analogue scale (VAS) were used to evaluate the symptom of hyperarousal trait, pre-sleep arousal, daytime fatigue and self reported sleep quality respectively. The participants in research group had more severe symptoms of hyperarousal trait [(41.9±9.7) vs (27.6±7.0)], pre-sleep arousal [(42.0±7.3) vs (22.1±4.7)], daytime fatigue [(9.2±3.1) vs (3.0±0.7)] than those in control group. According the multiple linear regressions, the daytime fatigue in research group was positively related not only to sleep quality, but also to hyperarousal trait and pre-sleep arousal. Hyperarousal is an important factor which could affect the daytime fatigue in patients with primary insomnia and should be given more attention to.

Arousal Responses during Overnight Polysomnography and their Reproducibility in Healthy Young Adults.

Arousal intensity and heart rate (HR) response to arousal during polysomnography (PSG) vary considerably between patients with sleep disorders. Our objective was to determine the range of these arousal characteristics in healthy young adults and whether they are consistent on repeated testing. Post hoc analysis of 56 preexisting PSG files recorded from 28 healthy adults on 2 consecutive nights. Academic medical center and Research and Development Laboratory (YRT Limited, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada). Twenty-eight healthy young adults. None. Arousals were identified using an automatic system followed by manual editing. The intensity of arousals was scaled (between 0 and 9) using an automatic algorithm based on the change in the electroencephalography (EEG) signals' wavelet characteristics. 4,751 arousals in 28 pairs of PSGs (night 1 and night 2) were scaled. HR responses (ΔHR) to all arousals were determined and averaged at each arousal scale per file. Overall average arousal intensity ranged 3.0-7.1 in different subjects, and average ΔHR ranged 1.9-18.3 beats.min(-1). Heart rate response at a given arousal intensity, expressed as ΔHR at a moderate arousal scale of 5.0 (ΔHR5), ranged 4.1-18.1 beats.min(-1). There was a strong correlation between arousal intensity and ΔHR within each subject. More importantly, there were excellent intraclass correlations (ICC) between night 1 and night 2 results for all three variables (ICC = 0.72 for average intensity, 0.92 for average ΔHR4, and 0.91 for ΔHR5). Average arousal intensity and heart rate response to arousal are highly variable among healthy young adults and stable within individuals.