Factor structure of the French version of the Hypomanic Personality Scale (HPS) in non-clinical young adults

Impact of hypomanic personality traits on brain functional connectivity during a dynamic theory-of-mind task

Hypomanic personality traits are present in the general population and represent a risk factor for developing bipolar disorder. This personality style, notably its social component, is linked to difficulties in theory of mind (i.e., ability to infer mental states). Exploring the neural correlates of mental states' inference in individuals with these personality traits can provide meaningful insights into the development of bipolar disorder. The aim of the present study was therefore to investigate the potential impact of hypomanic traits on brain activation and task-based connectivity strength during a dynamic theory of mind task in a nonclinical population. A total of 52 nonclinical participants were recruited, and hypomanic traits were assessed with the Hypomanic Personality Scale. The severity of hypomanic traits was positively associated with right middle and inferior frontal gyri activations (in high vs. low inference in nonemotional condition and emotion vs. no emotion in high inference, respectively). It was also associated with stronger connectivity between the salience network (i.e., bilateral putamen and pallidum) and bilateral superior temporal gyri (high inference in nonemotional condition), and between cerebellar and temporal areas (high inference in emotional condition). These changes may either reflect adaptations or differential processing, and further studies are therefore mandatory.

Neuroanatomical and functional substrates of the hypomanic personality trait and its prediction on aggression

Hypomanic personality manifests a close link with several psychiatric disorders and its abnormality is a risk indicator for developing bipolar disorders. We systematically investigated the potential neuroanatomical and functional substrates underlying hypomanic personality trait (HPT) and its sub-dimensions (i.e., Social Vitality, Mood Volatility, and Excitement) combined with structural and functional imaging data as well as their corresponding brain networks in a large non-clinical sample across two studies (n = 464). Behaviorally, HPT, specifically Mood Volatility and Excitement, was positively associated with aggressive behaviors in both studies. Structurally, sex-specific morphological characteristics were further observed in the motor and top-down control networks especially for Mood Volatility, although HPT was generally positively associated with grey matter volumes (GMVs) in the prefrontal, temporal, visual, and limbic systems. Functionally, brain activations related to immediate or delayed losses were found to predict individual variability in HPT, specifically Social Vitality and Excitement, on the motor and prefrontal-parietal cortices. Topologically, connectome-based prediction model analysis further revealed the predictive role of individual-level morphological and resting-state functional connectivity on HPT and its sub-dimensions, although it did not reveal any links with general brain topological properties. GMVs in the temporal, limbic (e.g., amygdala), and visual cortices mediated the effects of HPT on behavioral aggression. These findings suggest that the imbalance between motor and control circuits may be critical for HPT and provide novel insights into the neuroanatomical, functional, and topological mechanisms underlying the specific temperament and its impacts on aggression.

A critical examination of multidimensionality within the Hypomanic Personality Scale

BACKGROUND

The Hypomanic Personality Scale (HPS) assesses bipolar spectrum psychopathology and risk for bipolar disorders. Despite the developers' intent to create a scale that provides a unitary score, several studies have examined whether the HPS has a multidimensional structure. These models have been unable to identify a replicable multidimensional structure, with models varying from fairly similar to entirely dissimilar, and have suffered from theoretical and methodological concerns.

PROCEDURES

We therefore examined the multidimensional structure of the HPS in a large undergraduate and adult sample (n = 5002).

MAIN FINDINGS

We failed to reproduce factors with equal congruence to those of previously published models.

PRINCIPLE CONCLUSIONS

We concluded that the HPS lacks factorial validity in previous research as a multidimensional measure of bipolar spectrum psychopathology. We further recommend the creation of a novel multidimensional assessment of bipolar spectrum psychopathology developed from a theoretically driven, comprehensive model, rather than examining a multidimensional model of a pre-existing measure, such as the HPS.

Influence of Psychological Vulnerability Factors for Bipolar Disorders on a Semantic Mediated Priming Task

Hypomanic personality, hyperthymic temperament and irritable temperament are considered as psychological vulnerability factors to bipolar disorders. Semantic memory is impaired in bipolar patients. Spreading activation is among the probable candidates for accounting this impairment. The aim of this study was to assess spreading activation according to vulnerability factors continuum to determine whether it could be a factor of vulnerability to bipolar disorders. A sample of 61 healthy volunteers was recruited. Spreading activation was assessed by semantic mediated priming implemented in a double lexical decision task. Results shown that semantic mediated priming was negatively associated to hyperthymic temperament and irritable temperament. Impairment in semantic memory, and more specifically spreading activation, appear to be a cognitive factor of vulnerability to bipolar disorders. Our results can contribute to a better understanding of semantic impairment in vulnerable population and in bipolar disorder.

Vulnerability to bipolar disorder is linked to sleep and sleepiness

Sleep impairments are a hallmark of acute bipolar disorder (BD) episodes and are present even in the euthymic state. Studying healthy subjects who are vulnerable to BD can improve our understanding of whether sleep impairment is a predisposing factor. Therefore, we investigated whether vulnerability to BD, dimensionally assessed by the hypomanic personality scale (HPS), is associated with sleep disturbances in healthy subjects. We analyzed participants from a population-based cohort who had completed the HPS and had either a 7-day actigraphy recording or a Pittsburgh sleep quality index (PSQI) assessment. In addition, subjects had to be free of confounding diseases or medications. This resulted in 771 subjects for actigraphy and 1766 for PSQI analyses. We found strong evidence that higher HPS scores are associated with greater intraindividual sleep variability, more disturbed sleep and more daytime sleepiness. In addition, factor analyses revealed that core hypomanic features were especially associated with self-reported sleep impairments. Results support the assumption of disturbed sleep as a possibly predisposing factor for BD and suggest sleep improvement as a potential early prevention target.

Validation of the Hypomanic Personality Scale (HPS) in Iranian adolescents

BACKGROUND

The main purpose of the current study was to examine the psychometric properties of the Hypomanic Personality Scale (HPS) in Iranian adolescents.

METHODS

A number of 805 high school and freshman students answered the HPS, the Hypomania scale of the MMPI-2, the Borderline Traits Questionnaire (STB) and the Schizotypal Personality Questionnaire-Brief. Data were analysed using explanatory factor analysis, Pearson correlation coefficient as well as independent t-test.

RESULTS

Principal component analysis led to the extraction of two factors namely mood volatility/excitement and social vitality. Convergent validity coefficients were equal to 0.71, 0.57 and 0.74 for the total scale, mood volatility/excitement and social vitality subscales respectively. Test-retest reliability of the total scale and its subscales were equal to 0.61, 0.67 and 0.57 respectively. Internal consistency and the split-half reliability of the total scale and the two subscales showed the same coefficients. The results showed that the female group gained higher scores on the total scale and the social vitality subscale.

DISCUSSION

The results supported the multi-dimensional structure and psychometric properties of the HPS among Iranian adolescents.

CONCLUSIONS

The findings of this study confirm the use of HPS as a valid scale in investigating hypomanic characteristics, particularly among Iranian adolescents. © 2018 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Neural Correlates of Semantic Inhibition in Relation to Hypomanic Traits: An fMRI Study

OBJECTIVES

Language modifications are a core feature of mania, but little is known about the semantic mechanisms behind these disturbances. The aim of the present study was thus to identify deficits in semantic inhibition and their respective neural activation patterns in a sample of individuals assessed for hypomanic personality traits.

METHODS

Thirty-six young adults with no neurological or psychiatric diagnoses were assessed for hypomanic personality traits with the Hypomanic Personality Scale (HPS) and underwent an fMRI task of semantic ambiguity resolution.

RESULTS

Regression analyses revealed a positive association between the HPS score and activity in the left superior frontal gyrus, left inferior parietal lobule, and anterior cingulate gyrus during semantic ambiguity resolution.

CONCLUSION

We found a link between HPS scores and brain areas that are part of the cognitive control loop and semantic memory network during language processing in a nonclinical sample of individuals. The hyperactivation of these regions may reflect a compensatory neural response in a population with greater vulnerability to BD.

Modulation of the N400 component in relation to hypomanic personality traits in a word meaning ambiguity resolution task

AIM

High levels of hypomanic personality traits have been associated with an increased risk of developing bipolar disorder (BD). Changes in semantic content, impaired verbal associations, abnormal prosody, and abnormal speed of language are core features of BD, and are thought to be related to semantic processing abnormalities. In the present study, we used event-related potentials to investigate the relation between semantic processing (N400 component) and hypomanic personality traits.

METHODS

We assessed 65 healthy young adults on the Hypomanic Personality Scale (HPS). Event-related potentials were recorded during a semantic ambiguity resolution task exploring semantic ambiguity (polysemous word ending a sentence) and congruency (target word semantically related to the sentence).

RESULTS

As expected, semantic ambiguity and congruency both elicited an N400 effect across our sample. Correlation analyses showed a significant positive relationship between the Social Vitality subscore of the HPS and N400 modulation in the frontal region of interest in the incongruent unambiguous condition, and in the frontocentral region of interest in the incongruent ambiguous condition.

CONCLUSION

We found differences in semantic processing (i.e., detection of incongruence and semantic inhibition) in individuals with higher Social Vitality subscores. In the light of the literature, we discuss the notion that a semantic processing impairment could be a potential marker of vulnerability to BD, and one that needs to be explored further in this clinical population.