A longitudinal study examined the association between interpersonal goals (selfimage and compassionate goals) and depression, anxiety, and stress symptoms. We propose that having self-image goals (trying to create and manage a positive image) may lead to psychological distress, while genuinely taking others' needs into account and caring for their welfare (compassionate goals) may promote psycholo

The Forms of Self-criticizing/Attacking and Self-reassuring Scale (FSCRS) is a self-report questionnaire that assesses the forms of self-criticism and self-reassurance. The aim of this study was to explore the latent structure of the FSCRS in nonclinical and clinical samples. Data from 381 participants from the general population and from 304 participants from clinical settings were subjected to c

Research has robustly shown that early negative parenting experiences are associated with psychopathology and self-criticism in adulthood. This study investigates recall of personal feelings of perceived threat and subordination in childhood and its relation to psychopathology. In addition, we explore the mediator role of self-criticism in this association. A sample of 193 subjects from the genera

Health applications have increasingly been used to improve physical, mental and social well-being. Chronic pain (CP) is defined as pain that lasts for a period of three months and causes sporadic or constant discomfort. In Portugal, the treatments for this type of pain are almost exclusively pharmacological and with known limited effects. Endowing patients with self-management skills, will help th

This study explores the impact of illness-related shame on the quality of social relationships and psychological health in chronic patients. We aimed to examine the roles of fear of receiving compassion from others and experiential avoidance as potential mediators of this relationship. Although some studies have demonstrated the negative impact of chronic illness-related shame on psychological fun

Binge eating disorder (BED) is associated with several psychological and medical problems, such as obesity. Approximately 30% of individuals seeking weight loss treatments present binge eating symptomatology. Moreover, current treatments for BED lack efficacy at follow-up assessments. Developing mindfulness and self-compassion seem to be beneficial in treating BED, although there is still room for

This paper explores indicators of practice quality of a brief compassion mind training (CMT) intervention and their impact on the development of an inner sense of one’s compassionate self (CS) and a range of self-report measures. Participants were randomly assigned to one of two conditions: compassionate mind training (CMT; n = 77) and wait-list control. Participants in the CMT condition practiced

The development of the compassionate self, associated with practices such as slow and deeper breathing, compassionate voice tones and facial expressions and compassionate focusing, is central to Compassion-Focused Therapy. This study explores the impact of a 2-week compassionate mind training (CMT) program on emotional, self-evaluative and psychopathology measures and on heart rate variability (HR

Empirical and clinical research suggests that some individuals find self-generating compassion and receiving compassion from others difficult and aversive. However, it is unclear how these fears of compassion are linked to early experiences and to psychopathological symptoms. This study explores the relationship between shame traumatic memories, centrality of shame memories, early memories of warm

Research demonstrates that highly self-critical individuals can respond negatively to the initial introduction of a range of therapeutic interventions. Yet touch as a form of therapeutic intervention in self-critical individuals has received limited prior investigation, despite documentation of its beneficial effects for well-being. Using the Forms of Self-Criticism/Self-Reassuring Scale, 15 high-

This study explores the efficacy of BEfree, a 12-session group intervention that integrates psychoeducation, mindfulness, compassion and value-based action, in a sample of overweight and obese women with binge eating disorder (N = 31). We used repeated measures analyses of variance and explored processes of change in binge eating and eating psychopathology. At post-intervention, participants decre

Objectives Imagery is known to be a powerful means of stimulating various physiological processes and is increasingly used within standard psychological therapies. Compassion-focused imagery (CFI) has been used to stimulate affiliative emotion in people with mental health problems. However, evidence suggests that self-critical individuals may have particular difficulties in this domain with single

Atomic layer deposition (ALD) is one of the backbones for today’s electronic device fabrication. A critical property of ALD is the layer-by-layer growth, which gives rise to the atomic-scale accuracy. However, the growth rate - or growth per cycle - can differ significantly depending on the type of system, molecules used, and several other experimental parameters. Typically, ALD growth rates are c

Tumor cells pose a challenge to the adaptive immune system, and its key cell types, T and B cells, have frequently been associated with an improved prognosis. The success of immune checkpoint blockade has confirmed the relevance of T cells. However, the role of B cells is increasingly recognized, and highlighted in this review. Recent data suggest that tumors contain a diverse set of B cells refle

Introduction: Understanding factors that associate with neonatal death may lead to strategies or interventions that can aid clinicians and inform families. Objective: The aim of the study was to develop an early prediction model of neonatal death in extremely low gestational age (ELGA,

Hybrid computational schemes combining the advantages of a method of moments formulation of a field integral equation and T-matrix method are developed in this article. The hybrid methods are particularly efficient when describing the interaction of electrically small complex objects and electrically large objects of canonical shapes such as spherical multilayered bodies where the T-matrix method

Background: Prediction tools that combine polygenic risk scores with clinical factors provide a new opportunity for improved prediction and prevention of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease, but the clinical utility of polygenic risk score has remained unclear. Methods: We collected a prospective cohort of 7342 individuals (64% women, mean age 56 years) and estimated their 10-year risk for athe

This paper looks at the gendered possibilities for participating in agricultural intensification in seven regions in Malawi, Zambia and Tanzania, using a longitudinal, regional, mixed methods approach combining household level data on land, labour and use of agricultural techniques for male and female farm managers as well as qualitative data collected from within male-headed households and commun

Background/aims Anterior segment ischaemia (ASI) is a rare but serious complication of strabismus surgery, which may be caused by damage to the anterior ciliary arteries that run along the rectus muscles. To avoid ASI, clinical praxis is to operate on a maximum of two rectus muscles at a time. The aim of this study was to perform a detailed study of the contribution of the four ocular rectus muscl