Undesirable Thoughts Research Articles

THE INFLUENCE OF ANTHROPONYMS (PERSPECTIVES FROM PSYCHIATRISTS AND PSYCHOLOGISTS IN THE LATE 19TH TO EARLY 20TH CENTURY)

The aim of this scientific research is to analyze the contributions of psychiatrists and psychologists from the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries who focused on cases of obsessive attraction or uncontrollable fear related to personal names. The study examines the emotional reactions caused by personal names and surnames, as well as the influence of names on the behavior of individuals. The research focuses on anthroponyms as fundamental components of the naming system, exploring their impact on various aspects of individuals’ lives based on the cases described in the scientific works of psychiatrists and psychologists from that time period. Through an analysis of the counseling practices of late nineteenth-century psychiatrists, anthroponyms were reevaluated as subjects of irrational passion (onomatomania) or fear (onomatophobia). Undesirable thoughts related to names were believed to significantly affect the daily lives of patients during that era, although contemporary colleagues express doubts regarding this potential influence of anthroponyms. Subsequent studies documented intriguing connections between personal names and the behavior of their bearers: some individuals emulated the qualities associated with their names, while others sought to erase their anthroponyms from memory entirely. The research explores topics such as intentional transformations of anthroponyms to solve professional or personal problems, motives of namers influencing their choices for baby names, and the mechanisms behind forgetting personal names. This new perspective highlights how certain names can evoke powerful associations that influence various aspects of an individual’s life and can be used as tools of manipulation in communication, conveying respect or disrespect for the bearer. Additionally, psychologists have attempted to address the question of a possible correlation between a person’s name and their personal characteristics. Based on cases of unconscious name influence on behavior, it was proposed three categories where such influence is most notable: general influence on character and behavior, professional sphere, and personal relationships.

Antiandrogenic treatment of obsessive compulsive neurosis: A case review

IntroductionObsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a mental disorder in which patients who suffer from it have repetitive and undesirable thoughts, feelings, ideas, sensations (obsessions) and behaviors that drive them to do something over and over again (compulsions).Often the person tries to get rid of the obsessive thoughts through compulsions, but this only provides short-term relief. Not carrying out the obsessive rituals can cause enormous anxiety and suffering.ObjectivesTo describe a 23-year-old male patient, who suffers from anxiety and mood symptoms, reacts to ego-dystonic obsessive ideas and sexual content, of months of evolution, and who manages to calm down through compulsive masturbation or watching sexual videos on the internet. All this clinic negatively interferes with their quality of life, asking the patient for medical help to calm these ideas.MethodsWe carried out a review in Pubmed with the terms Antiandrogens and TOC, in order to make a better description of the clinical case.ResultsAfter several treatment attempts (Sertraline, Paroxetine, Clomipramine, Clomipramine + SSRI), reaching maximum doses according to clinical guidelines, and with poor therapeutic response, it was decided to discuss the case with the endocrinology department of our hospital, deciding to start treatment with antiandrogens, in order to alleviate the persistent intrusive ideas of a sexual nature. The administration of antiandrogens in men can cause a decrease or increase in the development or involution of secondary sexual characteristics in men, reducing the activity or function of accessory sexual organs, and hyposexuality, with decreased sexual desire or libido.After several weeks, there was improvement in the obsessive symptoms with a decrease in compulsive rituals. However, after the 3rd mo, some symptoms reappeared, but not with the same severity and intensity as before treatment. In addition, we cannot ignore the adverse effects that have occurred, such as involution of secondary sexual characteristics. However, and taking into account the negative repercussion that this clinic had on the patient’s quality of life, the benefit obtained exceeded the risk, having noted clear improvement with this therapy, and maintaining evolutionary controls by both psychiatry and endocrinology.ConclusionsPatients suffering from obsessive-compulsive disorder can be effectively treated with anti-androgenic pharmacological agents with various modes of action. The most effective group of such agents is the long-acting analogues of the gonadotropin-releasing hormone. The objective of this review is to elucidate the possibility of using such powerful anti-androgenic agents in the treatment of obsessive-compulsive disorder.Disclosure of InterestNone Declared

The Prevalence of OCD Like Symptoms Among UAE Residents During COVID-19 Pandemic

AimsObsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a psychiatric disorder characterised by repetitive, undesirable thoughts or acts. With the pandemic being on the rise, public health authorities have urged people to take proper health measures, specifically around hand washing and social distancing. It is hypothesised that such sudden change would cause excessive hygiene habits in people predisposed to OCD. Our study aimed to measure how COVID-19 pandemic affected the prevalence of OCD-like symptoms among the UAE population. Furthermore, we explored the correlation between these symptoms and demographic factors.MethodsThis was a quantitative cross-sectional study that used an online survey platform to collect responses from male and female adult UAE residents (aged between 18 and 60 years). The self-administered questionnaire included Yale-Brown Obsessive compulsive scale (YBCOS) to test the severity of obsessions and compulsions, in addition to demographic questions. People with a previous diagnosis of obsessive-compulsive disorder were excluded. Data were analysed using SPSS 23. A bivariate analysis to examine the correlation between the severity of the reported symptoms and sociodemographic characteristics, age, and ethnicity was conducted. A p-value <0.05 was considered statistically significant.ResultsA total of 343 questionnaires were completed and used for analysis; 244 of which were females and 99 were males. 63.5% of females had no symptoms of OCD, 24.6% had mild symptoms, 9% had moderate symptoms, 2.5% had severe symptoms, and 0.4% had extreme OCD symptoms. In males, 75.8% had no OCD symptoms, 18.2% had mild OCD, 6.1% had moderate OCD, and 0% had severe or extreme OCD. A significant correlation was found between the Emirate of residence and the severity of OCD-like-symptoms (P = 0.042). The most significant scores of OCD symptoms were in Sharjah, with 10 people out of 108 displaying moderate to extreme symptoms, Abu Dhabi with 9 out of 115 and Fujairah with 7 out of 56. Level of education, occupation and age had no significant role in the exhibition of the symptoms.ConclusionTo our knowledge this is the first study to investigate the prevalence of OCD-like symptoms within the UAE residents during COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of potential clinical significance of OCD are high, especially in females compared to the global prevalence studies prior to COVID-19, although a within-subject comparison is not possible. Further research is warranted to investigate the long-term effect of COVID-19 on OCD-like and other neuropsychiatric symptoms and elucidate possible mechanisms.

Brain Waves Characteristics in Individuals with Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder: A Preliminary Study

Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a mental illness causing patients to suffer from recurring undesirable thoughts (obsessions) conducting to do affairs repetitively (compulsions). Brain signals recorded by Electroencephalogram (EEG) can be analyzed in order to present a diagnostic procedure considering the localization approach. In this study, the signals acquired by EEG have been recorded from three groups; two case groups; patients with severe obsessive symptoms and patients with severe compulsive symptoms, and one healthy control group. Brain signal processing techniques have been applied on the signals emitted from frontal and parieto-occipital regions to discover the features leading to the best discrimination between case groups and healthy controls. In this regard, after preprocessing, the features of time and frequency domains presenting the significant meaningful relation were nominated for classification by linear discrimination analysis (LDA). Although the parieto-occipital region performed better in the diagnosis for both obsessive and compulsive groups, the features gained from the frontal cortex resulted in better discrimination for only the compulsive group. In addition, time domain features had a more significant influence in diagnosis rather than frequency domain for both case groups. The study presented particular characteristics of brain signals in two dimensions of OCD in specific brain regions leading to more accurate presurgical assessments in the studies between the affected brain regions and behavioral issues.

Case Report on Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder

Introduction: Obsessive-compulsive disorder is an anxiety disorder in which people have recurrent,undesirable thoughts, ideas or sensations (obsessions) that make them feel compelled to go and dosomething (compulsion) repeatedly. Repetitive habits, such as washing hands, inspecting items or bathing,can substantially interfere with the everyday routines and social experiences of a individual.Symptoms: Behavioral changes like hyperactivity, impulsivity, repetitive movement, perfectionism andsocial isolation. Mood changes likes anxiety, anger and apprehension. Psychological changes like sleepdisturbance, fear, repeatedly going over thoughts and narcissism.Investigation: Hb% - 13 mg/dl; Glucose plasma random – 86 mg%; Serum Globulin– 3.2gm %; serumProtein- 7gm %; HIV, HCV, HBsAg, VDRL, all of these tests were negative.Surgical Management: Patient have no past surgical history.Medical Management: Patient was treated with Ativan (Lorazepam) 3mg q6hr per oral and Therapies likeAversion therapy and Group Psychotherapy was also used.Nursing Management: Assess for physical, psychological and social data. Aware for Impact of obsessionsand compulsions on physical health, mood, self-esteem and natural capacity to cope. Remember that thedefense mechanisms used, the nature or structure of the feeling, the suicidal risk, the capacity to work andthe space accessible for social support services.Conclusion: Patient was admitted to AVBRH and was diagnosed to have Obsessive-compulsive disorder.The got appropriate treatment and therapy and his condition has improved well.

Reliability and Validity of the Implicit Relational Assessment Procedure (IRAP) as a Measure of Change Agenda

This research examined the reliability and validity of the Change Agenda Implicit Relational Assessment Procedure (CA-IRAP). Change agendas that lead people to think that “reducing or removing undesirable thoughts and feelings will solve problems and lead to a more successful life” are considered unworkable in acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT). For acceptance-based interventions to succeed, relinquishing change agendas is important. However, currently available methods for measuring these types of change agendas are limited to explicit measures, which are vulnerable to distortion from social desirability and demand characteristics. The authors attempted to measure change agendas using the IRAP. A total of 131 undergraduate and graduate students (40 male, 91 female; mean age = 21.93, SD = 3.19) participated. First, we examined the CA-IRAP’s discriminant validity in relation to explicit measures such as the Acceptance and Action Questionnaire-II in 83 participants who were able to pass the CA-IRAP. The correlations between the CA-IRAP and the explicit measures were low, confirming the discriminant validity of the CA-IRAP. Second, we examined the predictive validity of the CA-IRAP. Nineteen respondents had learned ACT and 34 respondents had never learned ACT. Non-ACT learners’ CA-IRAP scores were higher than those of ACT learners, which confirmed the CA-IRAP’s predictive validity. Finally, we examined the CA-IRAP’s test–retest reliability, which was confirmed across some CA-IRAP trial types. In conclusion, the authors submit that the CA-IRAP has strong potential as a valid instrument for measuring the relative strength of relational responses around change agendas while controlling for variables such as demand characteristics.

AUTHORITATIVE STATUS/DESIGNATION AND ITS ESSENTIALS IN THE LIGHT OF ISLAMIC SHARIAH

It is fact that teachings and rulings of Islam are forever and it gives widespread path to entire humanity to lead a flourish, prosper and pleasant life belonging to any area or field of nature if implement in a proper manner according to Almighty Allah’s wills and in conformity with Prophetic sayings and practices, consequently provide human beings a clear and smooth platform, free of disputes and disorders in one way or other. This is the miracle of Religion Islam only and other religions are free of this spirit at all. The introduced concept about the status is to enjoy the fruits of power and utilize the authority directly or indirectly to accomplish the self-interests and benefits as a result this negative perception, society full of discriminative attitudes and approaches that gives rise to a number of distinct disputes and clashes. Such situation not only disheartens the layman about the justice but also craft adverse, undesirable thoughts in the minds. Contrary to this, the Islamic teachings are very clear and different from contemporary perceptions about the status. The status or designation is the symbol of sense of responsibility and public accountability rather to enjoy the power in Islamic law. Keeping in view the cited above picture, it is very essential to gage, and analyze the Designation/status in the light of Islamic principles. The present study investigates different aspects and dimensions of it to portray the right picture in front of public with special emphasis to eradicate the wrong perception and misuse of power in the light of Shariah.

SP0023 Putting Knowledge into Practice: Psychological Barriers

Individuals living with chronic health conditions are often advised to adopt healthier lifestyles, including improving their nutrition. What is often disregarded by health professionals is that information-giving is often insufficient...

社交不安傾向者の回避行動に対するCreative Hopelessnessの効果

Creative Hopelessness is intended to decrease the client’s motivation to control the unpleasant thoughts and emotion in Acceptance and Commitment Therapy. The main aim of this study is to investigate the effects of the Creative Hopelessness on the subjective measures of believability and motivation of Change Agenda. Change Agenda is the rules expressed in the following lines: if I could control undesirable thoughts and emotion, I could solve the problem. Undergraduate students (N=35) with high social avoidance tendency were randomly assigned to Creative Hopelessness group, Control group, or Placebo group. Creative Hopelessness group received a psychological education about the futility of making efforts to control unwanted thoughts and feelings. Control group received a psychological education to increase the motivation to control the unpleasant thoughts and emotion. Placebo group received a psychological education of the general clinical psychology about anxiety. The reduction of believability and motivation of Change Agenda following the intervention were found only in the Creative Hopelessness group.

Perseverative negative cognitive processes are associated with depression in people with long-term conditions

Perseverative negative cognitive processes, such as worry, suppression and avoidance of undesirable thoughts, have been linked to persistence and relapse of depression. Such processes could account for poor treatment response though they have received little research attention in people with long-term conditions (LTCs). We conducted a cross-sectional study to investigate the associations of perseverative negative cognitive processes with depression among medical outpatients with LTCs. In 190 patients, we recorded levels of depression (Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale), worry (Penn State Worry Questionnaire), suppression (White Bear Suppression Inventory) and avoidance of undesirable thoughts (Acceptance and Action Questionnaire). Associations between these constructs were assessed using linear correlation and logistic regression. Both depression (32%) and anxiety (40%) were common in patients recruited. After controlling for demographic and medical confounders, subjects in the top tertile of worry, suppression and avoidance of undesirable thoughts were 20 (95% CIs, 6.6-58.3), 10 (95% CIs, 3.5-25.9) and 22 (95% CIs, 6.0-80.0) times more likely to have possible depression compared to those in the lowest tertile. Prospective research is required to investigate causal relationships between these constructs, and to assess the potential of psychological interventions that target these processes to improve outcomes in patients with LTCs.

Experiential avoidance in idiographic, autobiographical memories: Construct validity and links to social anxiety, depressive, and anger symptoms

Experiential avoidance, or attempts to alter or avoid undesirable thoughts and feelings, has been theorized to be relevant to the development of emotional disturbances, particularly anxiety problems. Prior work has relied on two methodologies: global self-report measures or laboratory manipulations. To better understand links between experiential avoidance and emotional disturbances, we measured experiential avoidance in the context of prominent anxious autobiographical events. Trained raters coded events for emotionality and reliance on experiential avoidance. Our interest was whether experiential avoidance could be measured as a memory characteristic and how it relates to social anxiety, depressive, and anger symptoms. As evidence of construct validity, experiential avoidance ratings were related to more intense negative emotions and coping difficulties during anxious events, memory vividness, and emotion suppression tendencies. Experiential avoidance was positively related to social anxiety and depressive symptoms and predicted an increase in social anxiety over a 3-month period; findings could not be attributed to the emotionality of memories. In contrast, no relations were found with inward or outward expressions of anger, or longitudinal change in depressive or anger symptoms. Results suggest that experiential avoidance is an important dimension of people's life narratives and particularly relevant to social anxiety problems.

Effects of suppressing neutral and obsession-like thoughts in normal subjects: beyond frequency

Recent cognitive-behavioral theories on obsessive–compulsive disorder (OCD) show that deliberate attempts to suppress intrusive and undesirable thoughts lie at the genesis of clinical obsessions. In this paper the results of an experimental study on the suppression of neutral and obsession-like thoughts in normal subjects are presented. Eighty-seven university students performed in three experimental periods: (1) base-line monitoring, (2) experimental instruction, and (3) monitoring. For each of these periods, the frequency of the occurrence of a “white bear” thought or a personally relevant intrusive thought was registered. Half of the subjects received instructions to suppress the target-thought in period 2, and the other half were instructed to only monitor the target-thought in each of the experimental periods. Several measures were also obtained before and after the experiment: annoyance caused by the intrusion, suppression effort, subjective success, and evaluative appraisals of the target-thought. The results showed neither immediate nor delayed frequency increases of the target thought. However, evidence was found that deliberate thought suppression efforts, regardless of their content, had greater negative consequences than did non suppression. These results are discussed in relation to the recent cognitive proposals about OCD.

Effects of suppressing neutral and obsession-like thoughts in normal subjects: beyond frequency

Recent cognitive-behavioral theories on obsessive–compulsive disorder (OCD) show that deliberate attempts to suppress intrusive and undesirable thoughts lie at the genesis of clinical obsessions. In this paper the results of an experimental study on the suppression of neutral and obsession-like thoughts in normal subjects are presented. Eighty-seven university students performed in three experimental periods: (1) base-line monitoring, (2) experimental instruction, and (3) monitoring. For each of these periods, the frequency of the occurrence of a “white bear” thought or a personally relevant intrusive thought was registered. Half of the subjects received instructions to suppress the target-thought in period 2, and the other half were instructed to only monitor the target-thought in each of the experimental periods. Several measures were also obtained before and after the experiment: annoyance caused by the intrusion, suppression effort, subjective success, and evaluative appraisals of the target-thought. The results showed neither immediate nor delayed frequency increases of the target thought. However, evidence was found that deliberate thought suppression efforts, regardless of their content, had greater negative consequences than did non suppression. These results are discussed in relation to the recent cognitive proposals about OCD.

Efectos de la supresión de pensamientos neutros y pensamientos intrusos análogos a las obsesiones en sujetos normales

Recent cognitive-behavioral theories on obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) show that deliberate attempts to suppress intrusive and undesirable thoughts lie at the genesis of clinical obsessions. In this paper the results of an experimental study on the suppression of neutral and obsession-like thoughts in normal subjects are presented. Thirty-eight university students performed in three experimental periods: 1) base-line monitoring, 2) experimental instruction, and 3) monitoring. For each of these periods, the frequency of the occurrence of a “white bear” thought or a personally relevant intrusive thought was registered. Half of the subjects received instructions to suppress the target-thought in period 2, and the other half were instructed to only monitor the target-thought in each of the experimental periods. The results show that none of the experimental groups increased the frequency of their target-thought in relation to the baseline. However, the between-groups comparisons revealed that the suppress/intrusive group registered more intrusions in period 3 than the non-suppress/intrusive group. These data suggest the existence of a rebound effect for intrusive thoughts, whereas this effect was not observed when using neutral thoughts.

Working with projective identification in couples.

Couples therapists spend considerable time focused on the recurring patterns of anger and misunderstanding that occur in their sessions. These patterns usually represent projective identification sequences in which one partner disavows disturbing thoughts and feelings, and, instead, unconsciously induces similar thoughts and feelings in the other partner by behaving in such a way as to stimulate them. Conflict and misunderstanding surround the partners' shared efforts to avoid identifying with the undesirable thoughts and feelings. The underlying problem is each individual's inability to contain the disturbing material and provide holding for the other partner. This article offers a technique for interrupting the process and helping each partner to identify with and contain the disturbing material.

Obsessive-compulsive disorder. How primary care physicians can help.

Obsessive-compulsive disorder is common but not always recognized and treated. Obsessions are recurrent undesirable thoughts or images; compulsions are recurrent undesirable actions. Behavior psychotherapy can be very helpful in controlling compulsions, whereas clomipramine (Anafranil) or fluoxetine (Prozac) therapy can relieve both obsessions and compulsions. Given an understanding of the disorder and its treatment, primary care physicians can, in most cases, effectively diagnose and manage this debilitating condition. Those who do not wish to initiate treatment should refer patients to a mental health professional, as should those who attempt treatment but meet with an unresponsive case.

The Perseverance of Beliefs: Conceptual Perspectives and Research Developments

“Belief perseverance” describes the individual's biased response to information in order to maintain an existing belief or conception. One line of research has focused on perseverance in the presence of discrediting evidence. Another emphasis has concerned the assimilation of information that is related to the initial belief in a more equivocal manner. Perseverance may reflect an individual's emotional investment in a given position and a resulting need to process information in order to avoid dissonant or self-disparaging thoughts. A more general theme in the literature is that perseverance involves a cognitive strategy of endorsing or soliciting confirming evidence but reacting more critically toward or even reacting disconfirming or inconsistent information. One conceptual account that has received considerable support is that the individual engages in a causal explanation of a given behavioral outcome that strengthens an initial belief or premise and results in perseverance even when the premise is subsequently contested. There is also evidence that people search for and recollect information that is consistent with an existing belief or impression. Behavioral confirmation in the manner of a self-fulfilling prophecy has been shown in a number of investigations. For a number of reasons, therefore, the individual is likely to experience far more support for an existing belief than may objectively exist in the available data. Illustrations of perseverance are described in contexts as diverse as the persistence of undesirable thoughts or behavioral patterns, the ramifications of jurors being overly influenced by discredited eyewitnesses, the consequences of false accusations in the media, the stability of liking and disliking responses toward others, the strategic avoidance of diagnostic behaviors in the area of self-handicapping, and the negative effects of deception in research. Research on perseverance represents a promising integration of certain clinical problem areas (e.g., depression and chronic gambling) and conceptual analyses of biases in social perception.