Self-criticism Research Articles

State of the art of the literature on definitions of self-criticism: a meta-review.

Several authors have developed important theoretical models on an important transdiagnostic factor in psychopathology: self-criticism (SC). Currently, there are substantial variations in the theoretical definition of SC. The lack of awareness of similarities and differences between models may in turn impact the comparison between empirical results, limiting their clinical implications. The purpose of this study was to identify current trends in the field of SC and to explore whether these were approached and shaped by different conceptualizations of SC. Core components of the most influential models of SC were identified. A meta-review was conducted searching for systematic reviews and/or meta-analyses in the following databases: PsycINFO, PsycARTICLES, MEDLINE, Scopus, Web of Science, and PubMed (all years up to 28 April 2023). Contributions were heterogeneous with respect to the definition of SC and the theoretical framework. Almost all systematic reviews poorly addressed the multidimensionality of SC. In addition, discrepancies between the definitions of SC provided and their operationalizations emerged. The lack of dialogue between the different theoretical perspectives emerged from key contributions in the field of SC. Potential research questions to answer to stimulate this dialogue are proposed.

Exposure to Criticism Modulates Left but Not Right Amygdala Functional Connectivity in Healthy Adolescents: Individual Influences of Perceived and Self-Criticism.

Background: Frequent exposure to criticism is a known risk factor for various adult psychiatric disorders. Adolescents may be even more vulnerable to (parental) criticism, as their imbalanced brain maturation makes them prone to stronger mood changes and less effective emotional regulation. Identifying which adolescent subgroups are more vulnerable than others could be of great clinical relevance. Perceived criticism (PC) and self-criticism (SC), two related but distinct traits, could well be crucial vulnerability factors.Hypotheses: After exposure to criticism during fMRI scanning, rapid changes in amygdalar functional connectivity (FC) with other brain areas involved in emotion regulation and social cognitive processing will occur. These changes will depend on trait moderators, such as the adolescents' proneness to (a) perceive others as critical of them (PC) or (b) perceive themselves positively or negatively (SC).Methods: Sixty-four healthy 14–17-year-olds were exposed to a series of auditory comments. Changes in mood states were assessed based on the Profile of Mood States (POMS) prior to and after exposure to these segments. Pre- and post-experiment FC of the left and right amygdalae with other brain areas were also measured. Correlates between FC changes and psychometric measures—including the perceived criticism measure (PCM) and self-perception profile for adolescents (SPPA)—were assessed.Results: First, after being criticized, FC increases of the left amygdala seed region with brain areas related to sustained emotional processing were found, but no right amygdalar FC changes. Second, there was a significant positive partial correlation between individual PCM scores and FC changes between the left amygdala seed region and the left precuneus and left superior parietal cortex, both part of the default mode network.Conclusion: Exposure to criticism resulted in a rapid negative mood change accompanied by an increase in FC between the left amygdala and regions known to be involved in sustained emotional processing, but no right amygdalar FC changes. Furthermore, higher PC but not SC was correlated with stronger left amygdalar FC increases with these regions, suggesting an elevated vulnerability for disturbed emotional processing, as observed in mood disorders, in healthy adolescents with higher PCM scores.

Assessing self-criticism and self-reassurance: Examining psychometric properties and clinical usefulness of the Short-Form of the Forms of Self-Criticizing/Attacking & Self-Reassuring Scale (FSCRS-SF) in Spanish sample.

The Forms of Self-Criticizing/Attacking and Self-Reassuring Scale (FSCRS) was designed to measure self-criticism (SC) through Inadequate Self (IS) and Hated Self (HS) factors, as well as self-reassurance (RS). However, its long and short forms have yet to be validated in the Spanish Population. The present study examines the psychometric properties of the short form (FSCRS-SF) and its clinical usefulness in a sample of 576 adult individuals, 77 with psychiatric disorders and 499 without. Non-clinical participants were split according to their previous experience with meditation (active meditators, n = 133; non-active meditators, n = 41; and non-meditators, n = 325) and differences between these subgroups were explored. Additionally, a subsample of 20 non-clinical participants took part in a mindfulness- and compassion- based intervention (MCBI) to assess the usefulness of the scale as an outcome measure. Results confirmed the original three-factorial structure, good internal consistency, acceptable test-retest reliability, and a pattern of correlations consistent with previous literature. Regarding differences between groups, the clinical subsample showed significant higher SC and lower RS levels than non-clinical participants and active meditators had significant lower IS and higher RS levels than non-meditators. Participants who participated in the MCBI showed significant RS improvement and a decrease in IS and HS levels. Moreover, a hierarchical multiple regression showed that RS made a significant predictive contribution to distress at three months’ time. In conclusion, results show that the Spanish version of the FSCRS-SF is a reliable and valid measure of SC and RS in non-clinical populations and an adequate instrument to detect changes after MCBIs.

Flexibilidad en el afrontamiento del estrés y fortalezas personales en estudiantes universitarios

Las altas y heterogéneas demandas que ha de afrontar el estudiantado universitario en su día a día han acrecentado en los últimos años el interés de la investigación por el estudio de la flexibilidad en el afrontamiento como recurso eficaz para la consecución de un funcionamiento psicológico adaptativo. Desde este planteamiento, el presente trabajo analizó la relación entre la utilización flexible de diferentes estrategias de afrontamiento del estrés y las fortalezas personales, erigidas en competencias psicológicas esenciales para la consecución de una vida plena, satisfactoria y feliz. Participaron 401 estudiantes de la Universidade da Coruña (España). Mediante un análisis de perfiles latentes (LPA) se identificaron dos perfiles diferenciados de afrontamiento: un perfil de baja flexibilidad en el afrontamiento (preferencia por estrategias de autocrítica y retirada social) y un perfil de alta flexibilidad en el afrontamiento (preferencia por estrategias de resolución de problemas, reestructuración cognitiva, expresión emocional y apoyo social). Este último grupo evidenció niveles significativamente más elevados de fortalezas personales que el grupo de afrontamiento improductivo. De conformidad con estos hallazgos, las intervenciones psicoeducativas dirigidas a la adquisición y utilización estratégica de diferentes recursos aproximativos de afrontamiento podrían constituir una vía eficaz para favorecer el desarrollo de las fortalezas personales en el estudiantado universitario.

Bullying y estilos de afrontamiento en víctimas de una institución educativa, Colombia

El objetivo de este estudio fue identificar los tipos de bullying y los estilos de afrontamiento en estudiantes víctimas de una institución educativa de la ciudad de Ibagué. El estudio fue de tipo descriptivo y diseño no experimental, se contó con la participación de 20 estudiantes con edades entre los 10 y 14 años, los instrumentos para esta investigación fueron el cuestionario de datos sociodemográficos, el inventario de estrategias de afrontamiento y el test de acoso y violencia escolar (AVE), los resultados muestran que los tipos de violencia más recurrentes son la violencia física, verbal y la exclusión social. La estrategia de afrontamiento que emplean las víctimas son el pensamiento desiderativo, la autocrítica y la retirada social.

Tony Hoagland and Self-Criticism

Tony Hoagland and Self-Criticism

Self-Criticism and Self-Compassion: A Mindfulness Approach

Self-criticism is a core feature of multiple mood and anxiety disorders, sometimes persists even after effective treatment of other features of these

Stress Less, Live Better: 5 Simple Steps to Ease Anxiety, Worry, and Self-Criticism

Stress Less, Live Better: 5 Simple Steps to Ease Anxiety, Worry, and Self-Criticism

Influence of Socially-Prescribed Perfectionism on Social anxiety and Depression in Academic High School Students: Mediation Effects of Self-focused Attention and Self-Criticism

Influence of Socially-Prescribed Perfectionism on Social anxiety and Depression in Academic High School Students: Mediation Effects of Self-focused Attention and Self-Criticism

My experience in biostatistical advice, self-criticism and some suggestions.

My experience in biostatistical advice, self-criticism and some suggestions.

Mindfulness as an Alternative for Supporting University Student Mental Health: Cognitive-Emotional and Depressive Self-Criticism Measures

Increases in university-based mental health problems require alternative mental health programs, applicable to students with elevated psychological risks due to personality traits. This study examined the cognitive-emotional outcomes of a university mindfulness meditation (MM) program and their relationship with Self-Criticism (SC), a personality factor linked to depressive vulnerability. University students (n = 71) were assessed at baseline with the Depressive Experiences Questionnaire (DEQ), a measure of depressive personality traits, and two outcome measures: Profile of Mood States (POMS) and Anxiety Sensitivity Index (ASI). Students attending the MM program were reassessed for outcomes at 3 follow up assessments over 2 semesters. Repeated measures analyses of variance revealed improved within-subjects effects with large or very large effect sizes for the subsample that completed the MM program (n = 18) on the POMS Tension-Anxiety, POMS Depression, POMS Fatigue, and Anxiety Sensitivity Index. Multiple linear regression using self-criticism as a predictor of change in depressed mood revealed that higher self-criticism predicted greater reductions in POMS Depression. This study provides evidence for MM-related cognitive-emotional benefits, suggesting that students with elevated self-critical traits may derive exceptional benefits evident in greater reductions of depressed mood.

‘Not good enough:’ Exploring self-criticism's role as a mediator between childhood emotional abuse & adult binge eating

Empirical studies have identified emotional abuse in childhood (CEA) as a risk factor with long-term implications for psychological problems. Indeed, recent studies indicate it is more prevalent than behavioral forms of abuse, (i.e. childhood sexual and physical abuse) and the childhood trauma most clearly associated with subsequent eating pathology in adulthood. However, relatively little is understood about the mechanisms linking these distal experiences. This study explores three psychological mechanisms – self-criticism (SC), depression and anxiety symptoms – as plausible mediators that may account for the relationship between CEA and binge eating (BE) among adult women. Detailed telephone interviews conducted with a community-based sample of 498 adult women (mean age 44) assess BE, CEA and SC along with the most frequently researched psychological variables, anxiety and depression. Regression analyses reveal that BE is partially explained by CEA along with the three mediators. Bootstrapping analysis, which compares multiple mediators within a single model using thousands of repeated random sampling observations from the data set, reveals a striking finding: SC is the only psychological variable that makes a significant contribution to explaining BE severity. The unique role of punitive self-evaluations vis-à-vis binge eating warrants additional research and, in the interim, that clinicians consider broadening treatment interventions accordingly.

Depression, Cognitive Distortion and Health among College Students

College years, though expected to be the most fun period in a student's life, many students do not have a smooth sail. The relationship problems encountered at that stage append to the stress experienced due to transition from school to college and complex psychological histories. Such complexities may often lead to distortions in thinking and in most severe form lead to depression and poor health. The current study explored the relationship between depression, cognitive distortions and general health among college students. The sample consisted of 125 undergraduate college students (62 boys and 63 girls) studying in different colleges in Chennai and aged between 18 to 20 years. The participants responded to the items on Depression taken from the Depression and the Anxiety Scale (Newcomer et al), Cognitive Distortion Scale (Briere) and General Health Questionnaire (Goldberg). Correlational analysis showed that general health was positively related to dimensions of cognitive distortion and depression. Girls were found to be more depressed and high in self-criticism as when compared to the boys. Girls have more problems in their general health as when compared to the boys. Regression analysis revealed that depression predicts general health. The results of the study draws the attention of researchers and practitioners in the discipline of psychology to explore the various causal factors for depression during late adolescence and to provide appropriate psychological interventions so that they are able to face the future challenges. Interventions to enhance the assertiveness and to change the dysfunctional thinking associated with helplessness among girls are crucial.

Influence of bundle nursing on self-concept among rectal cancer patients with permanent colostomy

Objective To explore the bundle nursing impacting on self concept among rectal cancer patients with permanent colostomy, and provide evidence for clinical health education and psychological nursing for patients with permanent colostomy. Methods A total of 100 permanent colostomy patients admitted and measured by self-concept scale and them received bundle nursing. After 4 weeks intervention, the self-concept scale was used again. We compared the change of self-concept in each dimensions before and after interventions and analyzed by SPSS 17.0, and t test for group comparison. Results Through nursing bundle intervention, the each dimensions of self-concept in rectal cancer patients with permanent colostomy improve except self-criticism decreased, including self-identity, self-satisfaction, self-behavior, self-physiology, self-ethic, self-psychology, self-family, and self-society (t=10.12, 9.02, 7.82, 6.98, 7.37, 6.18, 8.34, 7.16, 7.40, respectively; P<0.01). Conclusions Bundle nursing contributes to self-concept level of rectal cancer patients with permanent, and enhances the level of psychological health and quality of life effectively. Key words: Rectal tumor; Colostomy; Self-concept; Bundle nursing

Chronic Stress and Attenuated Improvement in Depression Over 1 Year: The Moderating Role of Perfectionism

This study of depressed outpatients (N=47) examined self-criticism (SC) and personal standards (PS) dimensions of perfectionism as moderators of the relation between chronic stress and depression over 1year. Participants completed personality measures (SC, PS, neuroticism, conscientiousness) at baseline (Time 1), a chronic stress interview 6months later (Time 2), and self-report and interviewer-rated depression measures at Time 1, Time 2, and 1year after baseline (Time 3). Hierarchical multiple regression analyses of moderator effects demonstrated that patients with higher SC or PS and higher achievement-related chronic stress had higher levels of both self- and interviewer-rated depressive symptoms at Time 3 relative to those of other patients, adjusting for the effects of Time 1 and Time 2 depression scores. SC also interacted with interpersonal chronic stress to predict attenuated improvement in both self- and interviewer-rated depression at Time 3. The broader traits of neuroticism and conscientiousness did not interact with chronic stress to predict depression at Time 3. Our results highlight the importance of targeting perfectionists’ dysfunctional characteristics (e.g., contingent self-worth, coping, interpersonal functioning) that perpetuate a chronic sense of hopelessness in the context of chronic stress in order to produce a better treatment response for these individuals.

Editor's note: Science's self‐criticism makes the enterprise stronger

Editor's note: Science's self‐criticism makes the enterprise stronger

Facilitators and Inhibitors of Host-Guest Understanding: The case of Lazise (Italy)

Past research related to host-guest relations has been heavily influenced by the host-guest paradigm, a binary concept assuming a reciprocal relationship among two clearly distinct communities. Recently scholars have questioned the validity of this notion in a contemporary context, but have not widely succeeded in showing what facilitates/inhibits host-guest understanding. Lazise, a popular holiday destination on the shores Lake Garda/Italy is the case study taken in order to identify and understand facilitators/inhibitors of host-guest understanding through an interpretive approach. The study has resulted in identifying three core themes which facilitate host-guest relations in the context of Lazise, namely romanticization of local lifestyle, self-criticism and perceived authenticity of local culture. Furthermore, two inhibitors for host-guest understanding have been identified, namely lack of cultural sensitivity, and open display of sexual encounters between locals and tourists. The findings are useful for tourism policymakers in Lazise and elsewhere, while a further academic step towards a better understanding of host-guest relations is offered.

The study on self psychology condition of the patient with postnatal depression

Objective To explore the self psychology condition of the patient with postnatal depression, in order to provide inter-vention basis for clinical nursing.Methods A total of 120 patients with postnatal depression were screeed out by EPDS as study group, 120 cases healthy lying-in women were selected as the control group, the scores of TSCS in two groups were compared.Results Excep the score of self-criticism factor of TSCS in study group was higher than that in control group （P〈0.01）, the score of the others each factor of TSCS in study group were lower than those in control group （ P〈0.01） .Conclusions The self-assessment of the patient with postnatal depression was lower, they showed negative self concepts, their psychology health was not good, the clinical nursing workers should payed close attention to the psychology of them. Key words: Postnatal depression; Self-concept; Psychological heath; Research

Correlation between depression-related personality dimensions and personality traits and its effects on depression

Objective To explore the correlation between the higher-order personality dimension(neuroticism) and the lower-order personality traits(alexithymia, dependence, self-criticism, perfectionism) in the sample of university students, and explore the effect of the higher-order personality dimension and lower-order personality traits to depression in the same sample. Methods A convenient sample of 563 university students from the two Universities College in Hunan province.These students were assessed with Center for Epidemiological Studies-Depression Scale(CES-D), Depressive Experiences Questionnaire(DEQ), The twenty-item Toronto Alexithymia Scales(TAS-20), Frost multidimensional perfectionism scale(FMPS) and neuroticism subscale in EPQ. Results (1)There were significant relationships between the total score of CES-D, each depressive symptoms and 10 personality factors, such as neuroticism, doubts about action and so on(The coefficients ranged from 0.105 to 0.569, P<0.05 or P<0.01). (2)Factor analysis and multiple linear regression on the neurotic showed that doubts about action, concerned over mistakes, difficulties identifying feelings(DIF), difficulties describing feelings(DDF), dependency, self-criticism and neuroticism belonged to the factor 1(the factor load coefficients ranged from 0.574 to 0.775). (3)Neuroticism can explained 32.3% variance of depression(Radj2=0.323), after 6 personality factors entered the regression equation, such as difficulties describing feelings(DDF), parental criticism and so on, the explained variance of depression increased to 43.2%(Radj2=0.432). Conclusion There are overlapping and interaction between personality traits which include self-criticism, dependency, difficulties describing feelings(DDF), difficulties identifying feelings(DIF), concerned over the mistakes and neuroticism personality dimensions. The depressed affect are effectively predicted by neuroticism which is a effectively predict factor of depression, personality traits included self-criticism, dependency, alexithymia and malajustment perfectionism have a gain function of depression base on the Neuroticism. Key words: Depression; Personality dimension; Personality traits; Alexithymia

Di Vittorio, the CGIL, and the Communist Party between Labour Plan and «Cassa per il Mezzogiorno»

This essay reconstructs the attitudes of CGIL leader Giuseppe Di Vittorio in favour of the institution and politics of the Cassa per il Mezzogiorno. In particular, it analyses Di Vittorio's support for the industrialisation plan for Southern Italy produced by Pasquale Saraceno and SVIMEZ in the Congress organized by the Cassa per il Mezzogiorno in late 1953. These statements by the CGIL leader were criticized and condemned by PCI leadership, and by Giorgio Amendola and Mario Alicata in particular. Giuseppe Di Vittorio was thus forced to issue dramatic self-criticism.