Mental Contamination Research Articles

Modulating disgust in mental contamination: Experimental evidence for the role of disgust

Background and objectivesDisgust has been associated with mental contamination (MC), although the evidence has hitherto been nonexperimental. Furthermore, strategies that can target both disgust and MC have not been well explored. We investigated the role of disgust in MC by inducing disgust via olfaction within the “dirty kiss” paradigm and conversely, to see if pairing pleasant olfactory stimulus during re-exposure, based on counterconditioning, can reduce MC. We also examined whether disgust constructs (propensity and sensitivity) and trait MC are associated with state MC arising from the “dirty kiss”. MethodsMC was first evoked using the “dirty kiss” paradigm, in which participants (N = 90) visualized receiving a non-consensual kiss from a physically dirty man (time 1). After a break, participants repeated the “dirty kiss” task in a room that was scented to smell either disgusting, pleasant or neutral (time 2). Participants completed measures of disgust and trait MC after the experiment. ResultsParticipants in the disgust condition reported increased feelings of dirtiness at time 2. Disgust propensity predicted feelings of dirtiness at time 1. Disgust sensitivity and trait MC were not associated with state MC indices. LimitationsThe use of a non-clinical female sample, extraneous factors during the break and contextual factors arising from room change at time 2 are some potential limitations. ConclusionsInduced disgust within a MC paradigm resulted in increased feelings of dirtiness, suggestive of disgust-based emotional reasoning. Pairing pleasant olfactory stimulus was not effective at attenuating MC or disgust.

Obsessive-compulsive symptom profiles in individuals exposed to interpersonal versus noninterpersonal trauma

Obsessive-compulsive (OC) symptoms have been associated with trauma exposure. Although no studies have specified relations between type of trauma and OC symptom presentations, this information may inform personalized care for this complex population. Thus, this study used profile analysis via multidimensional scaling to characterize typical OC symptom profiles in individuals exposed to interpersonal versus noninterpersonal traumas. Profiles were also correlated with self-reported disgust and mental contamination, which have been related to OC symptoms and interpersonal trauma in prior research. The interpersonal trauma group revealed two profiles: (1) Obsessing (high obsessing, low neutralizing), and (2) Ordering (high ordering, low obsessing). The noninterpersonal trauma group showed two profiles: (1) Hoarding/Ordering (high hoarding and ordering, low washing), and (2) Hoarding Only (high hoarding, low ordering). No significant correlations were found between OC profiles and disgust-related constructs. Clinical implications, limitations, and future directions are explored.

It's not so much about what you touch: Mental contamination mediates the relationship between feared self-perceptions and contact contamination

Contamination concerns are among the most common symptoms of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). Research has recently focused on mental contamination, defined as feelings of dirtiness and/or washing behaviour arising in the absence of direct contact with a contaminant. Mental contamination is highly prevalent; a substantial amount of washing behaviour related to contact contamination may actually be a manifestation of mental contamination. As such, washing may reflect an attempt to cleanse oneself of a feared corrupted self, rather than of any physical contaminant. Indeed, a recent treatment study found that reductions in feared self-perceptions also predicted reductions in contamination symptomatology; we propose that this link may be explained by mental contamination. We examined whether mental contamination, relative to established OCD belief domains, mediated the relationship between feared self-perceptions and contact contamination. In our sample of 626 undergraduate participants, feared self-perceptions significantly predicted contact contamination symptoms, with mental contamination and two OCD belief domains (perfectionism/intolerance of uncertainty, importance of/control over thoughts) as significant mediators. Importantly, mental contamination was the strongest mediator. These findings provide further evidence for the predictive power of vulnerable self-themes in OCD and highlight the important role of mental contamination in this relationship with regard to contamination symptoms.

Comorbidity, Parental Psychopathology, and Accommodation in the Treatment of Pediatric Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder: A Case Study

This article discusses the treatment of a young person with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) characterized primarily by symptoms of physical and mental contamination, as well as religious obsessions. The treatment was complicated by several factors that will be reviewed and addressed. First, this client had a comorbid diagnosis of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. Second, the young client's mother was also diagnosed with OCD and had a significantly anxious presentation. This impacted treatment in two primary ways. One important way treatment was complicated was that the client frequently attempted to manage her mother's emotions by underreporting her own distress at times. The other implication of the mother's diagnosis was that it became difficult to involve her in the treatment of her daughter and reduce her accommodation of her daughter's symptoms. The manner in which these complicating factors were addressed in the successful treatment of this client by adapting evidence-based practice will be presented as a guide for clinicians facing similar challenges.

The Association between Obsessive Compulsive Symptoms, Disgust Sensitivity, Mental Contamination and Sexual Satisfaction

The Association between Obsessive Compulsive Symptoms, Disgust Sensitivity, Mental Contamination and Sexual Satisfaction

Metacognitive Beliefs Predict Greater Mental Contamination Severity After an Evoking Source.

Mental contamination occurs when individuals experience feelings of internal dirtiness and distress in the absence of physical contact with a contaminant. Women who experience sexual trauma frequently report mental contamination. The self-regulatory executive function (S-REF) model proposes that metacognitive beliefs contribute to the appraisal and regulation of thinking, leading to expectations that metacognitive beliefs would predict greater mental contamination severity following an evoking source. Women who reported directly experiencing sexual trauma (N = 102) completed self-report measures of metacognitive beliefs and covariates during an online study session, and subsequently completed a task that evoked mental contamination during a follow-up in-person study session. Metacognitive beliefs surrounding the uncontrollability and danger of thoughts, cognitive confidence, and the need to control thoughts positively correlated with mental contamination severity following the evoking source. Metacognitive beliefs surrounding the uncontrollability and danger of thoughts predicted greater mental contamination severity following the evoking source in multivariate analyses that statistically controlled for baseline mental contamination severity, trait anxiety, and overlap among the metacognitive beliefs. The present results provide preliminary support for the S-REF model as a potential framework for conceptualizing mental contamination.

Posttraumatic Mental Contamination and the Interpersonal Psychological Theory of Suicide: Effects via DSM-5 PTSD Symptom Clusters.

Research has yet to establish a relationship between posttraumatic mental contamination and suicide risk, despite theoretical overlap. The present study examined relationships between posttraumatic mental contamination and suicide risk via posttraumatic stress symptom clusters and appraisals of perceived burdensomeness and thwarted belongingness. Trauma-exposed participants (N=183) completed measures of posttraumatic mental contamination, posttraumatic stress symptoms, thwarted belongingness, perceived burdensomeness, and suicide risk. Findings revealed significant indirect effects of posttraumatic mental contamination on suicide risk via all posttraumatic stress symptom clusters. Significant serial indirect effects of posttraumatic mental contamination on suicide risk were observed via posttraumatic avoidance and arousal/reactivity and, subsequently, via thwarted belongingness and perceived burdensomeness. Serial models via posttraumatic re-experiencing and negative cognitions/mood symptoms were nonsignificant. Results suggest that posttraumatic mental contamination may increase suicide risk via posttraumatic stress symptom severity, and maladaptive interpersonal appraisals may explain these links through distinct symptom pathways. Implications for posttraumatic suicide risk are discussed.

Different Disgust Domains Specifically Relate to Mental and Contact Contamination Fear in Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder: Evidence From a Path Analytic Model in an Italian Clinical Sample

Both contact contamination (CC) and mental contamination (MC) fears—which combined represent the most common manifestation of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)—have been widely associated with disgust propensity. However, extant research explored this relationship using measures assessing only pathogen-related disgust, not taking into account the potential role played by sexual and moral disgust, despite literature about MC suggesting that this might be particularly relevant. In Study 1, the psychometric properties of the Italian version of the Three Domains of Disgust Scale (TDDS) were assessed in a large Italian community sample. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses confirmed the three-factor structure of the TDDS. The scale also showed good internal consistency and construct validity. In Study 2, the differential patterns of relationships between CC and MC and the three disgust domains were explored in an Italian clinical OCD sample using a path analytic approach. The TDDS-Pathogen subscale was a unique predictor of CC while the TDDS-Sexual subscale was a unique predictor of MC, after controlling for anxiety and depression. Surprisingly, the TDDS-Moral subscale was not a predictor of either domain of contamination fear. Limitations and clinical implications are discussed.

A Structural Model of Relationship Between Disgust Propensity and Fear of Contamination: The Mediating Role of Mental Contamination

Background: Fear of contamination is one of the complex and powerful fears and is often seen in contamination/washing obsessive-compulsive disorder. Earlier researches have shown that this disorder is related to mental contamination and recent research showed that individuals with the fear of contamination are prone to experiencing disgust. Objectives: This study aimed to investigate the mediating role of mental contamination between disgust propensity and fear of contamination. Methods: The sample consisted of 391 students of Shahed University in Tehran city, Iran. The participants were selected by cluster sampling in November and December in 2015. The tools used were Disgust Propensity and Sensitivity Scale-Revised (DPSS-R), Vancouver Obsessional Compulsive Inventory-Mental Contamination Scale (VOCI-MC), and Padua Inventory (PI). The proposed model was examined by Structural Equation Modeling Modeling (SEM), using Amos-22 software. Baron and Kenny as well as bootstrap methods were used for the analysis of the role of mental contamination as a mediator in this relationship. Results: Goodness of fit indexes indicated that the proposed model had a good fit (GFI = 0.92, AGFI = 0.90, TLI = 0.93, CFI = 0.94 (all > 0.90), and RMSEA = 0.04 (CI (90%) = 0.04-.05). The results showed that disgust propensity caused the fear of contamination both directly (β = 0.35; SE = 0.05) and indirectly (β = 0.16; SE = 0.03) through mental contamination. Conclusion: The findings provided support for the proposed model and showed that disgust propensity played a role in increasing mental contamination which, in turn, leads to fear of contamination. As a result, it would seem that the assessment of disgust propensity and mental contamination is essential to treating the fear of contamination and washing behavior.

Wiping your conscience clean

The Macbeth effect is a proposed phenomenon, whereby feelings of immorality activate a desire to cleanse. Extensions of this theory suggest that cleansing alleviates immoral feelings, thus reducing the urge to engage in compensatory behaviors, such as volunteering. We examined the Macbeth effect and volunteerism in undergraduate students with high levels of obsessive-compulsive disorder contamination concerns ( n = 164). Participants underwent an immorality, anxiety, or neutral emotion-induction condition and subsequently cleansed their hands or performed a control task. For participants in the immorality condition, increased ratings of distress were associated with increased accessibility of cleansing words. Furthermore, individuals in the immorality condition who cleansed volunteered for significantly less time than those who did not cleanse. We discuss findings in relation to the literature on the Macbeth effect and mental contamination.

COGNITIVE DRILL THERAPY IN MENTAL CONTAMINATION: A CASE STUDY.

13May 2018 COGNITIVE DRILL THERAPY IN MENTAL CONTAMINATION: A CASE STUDY. Sumaiya Khan , Dinesh Singh Rathor and Rakesh Jain. Students MPhil. Clinical Psychology, Department of Clinical Psychology, Institute of Mental Health and Hospital, Agra, India. M.D., Associate Professor of Psychiatry, Department of Psychiatry, Institute of Mental Health and Hospital, Agra, India. Senior Clinical Psychologist, Department of Clinical Psychology, Institute of Mental Health and Hospital, Agra, India.

Mental Contamination in Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder: Associations With Contamination Symptoms and Treatment Response

The most common symptom of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is contamination fear. Feelings of contamination can be provoked through contact with a physical contaminant, referred to as contact contamination (CC), as well as in the absence of one, referred to as mental contamination (MC). Prior research indicates that CC and MC are distinct, and MC may interfere with treatment for CC. However, no study to date has examined how MC may be associated with responses to physical contaminants and treatment response for CC. This study examined the relationships between CC and MC in a sample of individuals with elevated contamination symptoms (N = 88), half of whom met diagnostic criteria for OCD. Participants engaged in three sessions of exposure and response prevention (ERP) for CC and completed self-report measures and behavioral tasks assessing CC and MC at pretreatment, posttreatment, and follow-up. As hypothesized, at pretreatment, MC was positively associated with reactivity to physical contaminants, even after participants washed their hands. ERP for CC was associated with unique changes in CC and MC across self-report and behavioral measures, and greater pretreatment MC predicted greater posttreatment CC, though this effect was evident in only one of two CC measures. Additionally, specificity analyses indicated changes in MC were independent of changes in disgust propensity, a related construct. Pretreatment disgust propensity also predicted treatment outcome, though the addition of pretreatment disgust propensity as a covariate reduced the relationship between pretreatment MC and posttreatment CC to nonsignificance. Results suggest MC plays an important role in the manifestation and treatment of CC symptoms and may represent a manifestation of disgust proneness. Theoretical and clinical implications are discussed.

Factor structure, reliability, and validity of the Japanese version of the Disgust Scale-Revised (DS-R-J)

The purpose of this study was to develop the Japanese version of the Disgust Scale-Revised (DS-R-J). The participants were 1063 Japanese people (mean age = 21.64, SD = 7.33, range = 18–77; 581 males and 482 females) and were separated into three different groups. Participants in samples 1 (n = 481) and 2 (n = 492) provided data for examining the factor structure and validity of the DS-R-J. They completed the DS-R-J as well as questionnaires assessing disgust propensity and sensitivity, anxiety sensitivity, state and trait anxiety, affective state, and obsessive-compulsive symptoms. Participants in sample 3 (n = 90) provided data for estimating the test–retest reliability of the DS-R-J. The exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses confirmed the three-factor structure involving core disgust, animal-reminder disgust, and physical and mental contamination disgust. Internal consistency and test–retest reliability were sufficient, and conceptual validity of the DS-R-J was also supported. The results show that the Japanese version of the DS-R-J is a reliable and valid measurement of disgust sensitivity.

Tolerance of negative emotion moderates the amplification of mental contamination following an evoking task: A randomized experimental study

Background and objectivesContamination is a near universal feeling, with mental contamination representing a contamination feeling in the absence of direct physical contact with a source. Extant research indicates that tolerance of negative emotion is important for understanding emotional reactions to images, thoughts, and memories, all of which are common sources of mental contamination. Extending research linking distress tolerance to mental contamination, this study examined if individual differences in the tolerance of negative emotion moderates the amplification of mental contamination following an evoking task. MethodUnselected participants completed a self-report measure of tolerance of negative emotion during an online session. They later attended an in-person session and were randomized to an experimental scenario group: betrayal (n = 49) or control (n = 49). Participants imagined themselves in a scenario, with the betrayal scenario designed to evoke mental contamination. Mental contamination was assessed by self-report before and after the scenario. ResultsThe betrayal, but not control, scenario caused an increase in mental contamination. Tolerance for negative emotion moderated the effect of group on mental contamination. Group differences in mental contamination evidenced at low, but not high, distress tolerance. LimitationsA novel experimental manipulation and an unselected sample were used. Future research could assess tolerance of negative emotion using a behavioral task. ConclusionsThese results indicate that tolerance of negative emotion may be important for understanding when individuals experience mental contamination.

Associations between mental contamination, disgust, and obsessive-compulsive symptoms in the context of trauma

Mental contamination (MC), feeling dirty in the absence of a physical contaminant, has been linked to the basic emotion of disgust. Both MC and disgust have been associated with posttraumatic stress (PTS) and obsessive-compulsive (OC) symptoms occurring separately as well as together. However, there is no consensus on the specific ways in which these constructs interact with each other, PTS, or OC symptoms. Thus, this study sought to specify the associations between self-reported MC, disgust constructs, and OC symptoms amongst 250 undergraduates endorsing lifetime traumatic events. Results showed MC to significantly predict OC symptom severity above and beyond the effects of disgust propensity (DP) and disgust sensitivity (DS), controlling for gender, general negative affect, and PTS symptom severity, in both the large trauma-exposed sample and a subgroup (n = 49) endorsing PTS symptoms approximating DSM-5 criteria. Further, DS significantly moderated the strength of the association between DP and MC, controlling for gender, negative affect, PTS symptoms, and OC symptoms, such that higher levels of DS strengthened the conditional effects of DP on MC. These findings suggest that MC predicts OC symptom severity amongst trauma-exposed individuals, and that the interaction of disgust constructs contributes to MC in this population.

Examining associations between thought-action fusion and state mental contamination following an in vivo thought induction task

Intrusive thoughts can evoke an internal cue of distress known as mental contamination and thought-action fusion (TAF) is a potentially important individual difference variable for understanding the experience of mental contamination following intrusive thoughts. A large sample of college students (N = 320) completed a thought-induction task to examine how (a) TAF relates to three indices of state mental contamination (dirtiness, number of perceived dirty body locations, urge to neutralize); (b) state mental contamination relates to in vivo TAF-relevant appraisals (morality, likelihood); and (c) TAF relates to the accessibility of cleansing-related concepts. TAF positively related to post-task dirtiness, number of perceived dirty locations, and the urge to neutralize. The three indices of state mental contamination positively related to in vivo morality and likelihood appraisals, with TAF positively relating to the accessibility of cleansing-related concepts. These relations generally remained intact while statistically controlling for pre-task dirtiness, religiosity, negative affect, disgust proneness, and obsessive-compulsive symptom severity. Differential relations between TAF and state mental contamination emerged when examining two separate TAF dimensions (moral, likelihood). Study results further indicate that TAF is relevant for understanding mental contamination and related phenomena experienced following intrusive thoughts.

Medication Nonadherence Secondary to Choking Phobia (Phagophobia) in an Adolescent with Significant Trauma History: Addressing the Issue of Mental Contamination

Medication Nonadherence Secondary to Choking Phobia (Phagophobia) in an Adolescent with Significant Trauma History: Addressing the Issue of Mental Contamination

The origins of mental contamination

BackgroundThe origins of mental contamination fears are unknown although this might enhance interventions. MethodThirty people with OCD and contamination fears were interviewed about direct, vicarious and informational learning routes to fear, especially mental contamination fears. Results29 reported contact contamination, 17 mental contamination and 6 morphing fears. Mental contamination fears started around 15.5 years (SD=7.8). Contact contamination preceded mental contamination in 9 cases, four described simultaneous onset, and two reported mental contamination first. Thirteen participants with mental contamination (76.5%) recalled a direct learning experience, often immoral acts. Three participants with mental contamination fears reported receiving threatening information. Of the 6 with morphing fears, three described a direct learning experience, three reported an occasion when they received threatening information, and one provided an example of a vicarious learning event. ConclusionContact contamination tends to precede mental contamination and is associated with specific incidents. Mental contamination precedents often involved immoral acts (direct learning) in which the person was the victim or perpetrator. In contrast contact contamination fears showed a more equal distribution of direct, vicarious and informational. This study is limited by a small sample size and retrospective method but provides an initial understanding of the origins of mental contamination.

The polluted mind: Understanding mental contamination as a transdiagnostic phenomenon

The transdiagnostic approach to conceptualizing anxiety disorders posits that (a) these conditions have more similarities than differences and (b) treatments for clinical anxiety are improved by greater understanding of mechanisms shared among the anxiety disorders. Accordingly, researchers have sought to examine psychological phenomena relevant to multiple anxiety-related conditions. One such phenomenon is mental contamination: the syndrome whereby an individual feels “dirty” or “impure” in the absence of direct contact with a contaminated stimulus. Despite theoretical and empirical support for the notion that mental contamination is related to multiple anxiety problems, mental contamination is most often studied in the context of obsessive-compulsive disorder only. The aim of the special issue is to highlight innovative research examining mental contamination as a potential transdiagnostic construct. Studies examining mental contamination in multiple contexts are presented in this special issue, which concludes with a summary and discussion of future research directions.

Mental contamination and trauma: Understanding posttraumatic stress, risky behaviors, and help-seeking attitudes

Research has linked mental contamination to symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). However, less research has examined how mental contamination relates to other factors observed among individuals with these symptoms. This study examined relationships among mental contamination, posttraumatic stress (PTS) symptoms, mood-dependent risky behaviors, and help-seeking attitudes among 232 trauma-exposed undergraduates. Participants completed self-report measures of mental contamination, contact contamination, PTS symptoms, mood-dependent risky behaviors, and help-seeking attitudes. While accounting for effects of contact contamination, biological sex, and unwanted sexual contact, results indicated mental contamination was positively linked to PTS symptoms. When accounting for PTS symptoms, mental contamination demonstrated a significant positive relationship with negative mood-dependent risky behaviors, and a trend-level positive relationship with positive mood-dependent risky behaviors. Mental contamination was indirectly linked to greater risky behaviors (negative and positive) through increased PTS symptoms. Mental contamination also demonstrated a positive indirect effect on help-seeking attitudes through increased PTS symptoms. Mental contamination exhibited a negative direct effect on help-seeking attitudes, suggesting mental contamination was associated with reduced help-seeking attitudes even after accounting for a positive association between PTS symptoms and help-seeking attitudes. These findings underscore the importance of understanding mental contamination in relation to trauma exposure and associated pathology.