An exploration of blood-based biomarkers of negative symptoms of psychosis in men

Negative symptoms in the context of psychosis are still poorly understood and diagnosed, which impairs the treatment efficacy of current therapies and patient's integration in society. In this study, we aimed to test hypothesis-based and exploratory associations of negative symptom domains, as defined by the Brief Negative Symptom Scale (BNSS), with hormonal and hematological variables, and, complementarily, with standard psychological/cognitive and psychopathological measures. Fifty-one male patients diagnosed with a psychotic disorder underwent a structured interview and blood collection. Standard Spearmen bivariate correlations were used for data analysis. We obtained evidence of hypothesis-based associations between specific negative symptoms and oxytocin, thyroid stimulating hormone levels and neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio; as well as novel and hypothesis-free associations with erythrocyte and lymphocyte count, mean corpuscular volume and red cell distribution width. Complementarily, we also obtained some validation of previous associations of negative symptoms with illness resolution, cognitive symptom severity and social performance, and a novel association with anger contagion. We hope our results can generate new hypotheses in psychosis research. Our work suggests further avenues in research on erythrocytic, inflammatory, thyroid and oxytocin-related markers and abnormalities in psychosis, especially in regards to specific negative symptoms, towards more precise and comprehensive etiological, diagnostic and therapeutic models.

A Russian Adaptation of the Emotional Contagion Scale

The aim of the work was to develop and test the Russian version of the Emotional Contagion Scale. A sample of 518 volunteers from the general population filled in this questionnaire. We examined the one-factor model (all the items), the two-factor model (positive/negative), and the five-factor model (love/happiness/fear/anger/sadness). To measure its construct validity, we asked different subsamples to complete questionnaires of empathy and sensation seeking. The coefficients of test-retest reliability, internal consistency, and validity were acceptable. Only the one-factor model showed acceptable properties by all psychometric criteria. We also observed the gender effect, that is women were more contagious, according to the total scale and all subscales.

Authentic and posed emotional vocalizations trigger distinct facial responses

The ability to recognize the emotions of others is a crucial skill. In the visual modality, sensorimotor mechanisms provide an important route for emotion recognition. Perceiving facial expressions often evokes activity in facial muscles and in motor and somatosensory systems, and this activity relates to performance in emotion tasks. It remains unclear whether and how similar mechanisms extend to audition. Here we examined facial electromyographic and electrodermal responses to nonverbal vocalizations that varied in emotional authenticity. Participants (N = 100) passively listened to laughs and cries that could reflect an authentic or a posed emotion. Bayesian mixed models indicated that listening to laughter evoked stronger facial responses than listening to crying. These responses were sensitive to emotional authenticity. Authentic laughs evoked more activity than posed laughs in the zygomaticus and orbicularis, muscles typically associated with positive affect. We also found that activity in the orbicularis and corrugator related to subjective evaluations in a subsequent authenticity perception task. Stronger responses in the orbicularis predicted higher perceived laughter authenticity. Stronger responses in the corrugator, a muscle associated with negative affect, predicted lower perceived laughter authenticity. Moreover, authentic laughs elicited stronger skin conductance responses than posed laughs. This arousal effect did not predict task performance, however. For crying, physiological responses were not associated with authenticity judgments. Altogether, these findings indicate that emotional authenticity affects peripheral nervous system responses to vocalizations. They also point to a role of sensorimotor mechanisms in the evaluation of authenticity in the auditory modality.

Examination of emotional contagion and social anxiety using novel video stimuli

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES

Socially anxious individuals often exhibit signs of anxiety that might elicit discomfort in others and negatively influence their interactions, due in part to emotional contagion. However, there is limited research examining the phenomenon of emotional contagion in social anxiety, which is the topic of the current study.

DESIGN AND METHODS

An experimental design was used in which undergraduate psychology students (N = 128) were assigned to either an experimental condition (watching a video of a socially anxious presenter) or a control condition (watching a video of a nonanxious presenter). Various measures were administered to assess social anxiety, emotional contagion, state anxiety, and related constructs.

RESULTS

After controlling for baseline anxiety levels, participants in the experimental condition reported significantly higher levels of anxiety during and immediately after watching the video compared to individuals in the control condition (multivariate analysis of covariance, analysis of variance). Similar results were found across both conditions in participants with higher levels of trait social anxiety and higher public speaking anxiety (moderated regression analyses).

CONCLUSIONS

The findings suggest that social anxiety may be emotionally contagious, and provides insight into the role that emotional contagion may play in the association between social anxiety and interpersonal functioning.

A Preliminary Study for Translation and Validation of the Korean Version of The Cognitive, Affective, and Somatic Empathy Scale in Young Adults

OBJECTIVE

The cognitive, Affective, and Somatic Empathy Scale (CASES) suggests novel three components structure of empathy. Although CASES developed to assess the trait empathy of both children and adult, the validation in adult sample is not yet conducted. This study developed Korean version of CASES (CASES-K) and examined the psychometric properties in young adult for first time.

METHODS

Confirmatory factor analysis was conducted to test whether the factor structure suggested in initial development study is valid in Korean young adult population. 350 young adults participated, and 44 of them also answered to other empathy scales for validation. The construct validity was ascertained through a series of correlational analysis with widely used trait empathy scales.

RESULTS

The result of confirmatory factor analysis supports the three-factor model of empathy consists of affective, cognitive and somatic facets. The construct validity was ascertained through a series of correlational analysis with widely used trait empathy scales. The result of correlational analysis supports the validity of CASES-K, and especially the separation of somatic empathy from affective empathy.

CONCLUSION

The current study provides the first evidence of the validity and utility of the CASES-K in young adult population. The result also supports the commonality of three factor structure of empathy in both East Asian and Caucasian, from the children to adults.

Susceptibility to others' emotions moderates immediate self-reported and biological stress responses to witnessing trauma

BACKGROUND

The peri-traumatic stress response is a strong predictor of symptom development after trauma exposure. Regarding witnessing trauma, the stress response might depend on the susceptibility to others' emotions (emotional contagion, EC). This study investigated whether EC moderates the immediate stress response using a trauma film paradigm.

METHODS

Ninety-five healthy participants were randomly exposed to a trauma or a neutral film. Perceived stressfulness of the film and pre-to post-film changes in self-reported anxiety, heart rate and saliva cortisol levels were assessed. EC towards negative and positive emotions was measured using the emotional contagion scale and its emotion-specific subscales.

RESULTS

Overall, the trauma film was perceived as distressing and elicited an increase in self-reported anxiety, heart rate and saliva cortisol levels relative to the neutral film. EC towards negative emotions was positively related to the perceived stressfulness of the film, increased anxiety and increased heart rate. The association with saliva cortisol levels was also in the expected direction, but not statistically significant. These associations were not found for EC towards positive emotions.

DISCUSSION

EC towards negative emotions may be an important predictor of trauma exposure outcomes. Further research should clarify its specific contribution in witnessing and undergoing trauma.

High emotional contagion and empathy are associated with enhanced detection of emotional authenticity in laughter

Nonverbal vocalisations such as laughter pervade social interactions, and the ability to accurately interpret them is an important skill. Previous research has probed the general mechanisms supporting vocal emotional processing, but the factors that determine individual differences in this ability remain poorly understood. Here, we ask whether the propensity to resonate with others' emotions-as measured by trait levels of emotional contagion and empathy-relates to the ability to perceive different types of laughter. We focus on emotional authenticity detection in spontaneous and voluntary laughs: spontaneous laughs reflect a less controlled and genuinely felt emotion, and voluntary laughs reflect a more deliberate communicative act (e.g., polite agreement). In total, 119 participants evaluated the authenticity and contagiousness of spontaneous and voluntary laughs and completed two self-report measures of resonance with others' emotions: the Emotional Contagion Scale and the Empathic Concern scale of the Interpersonal Reactivity Index. We found that higher scores on these measures predict enhanced ability to detect laughter authenticity. We further observed that perceived contagion responses during listening to laughter significantly relate to authenticity detection. These findings suggest that resonating with others' emotions provides a mechanism for processing complex aspects of vocal emotional information.

The Effects of Empathy, Emotional Intelligence and Psychopathy on Interpersonal Interactions

The current study investigated the relationships between empathy (emotional and cognitive), emotional intelligence, psychopathy, emotional contagion, and non-conscious behavioural mimicry (smiles and hand scratches), using self-report scales and a script-based interview session exhibiting nine non-verbal gestures, on a student sample. Past findings suggest a deficit of emotional but not cognitive empathy in psychopaths. Empirical research on non-conscious behavioural mimicry in psychopathy with reference to emotional intelligence is somewhat scarce; however it was proposed that individuals high in psychopathic traits would show reduced emotional mimicry based on the relation of empathy to mimicry. The study was quasi-experimental, involving individual assessment of 51 participants. Results suggest decreased emotional empathy at high levels of psychopathy and show that emotional intelligence moderates the relationship between psychopathy and non-conscious mimicry (smiles per minute). Social competence might be more predictive of effects of psychopathy on non-conscious mimicry.

Multidimensional versus unidimensional models of emotional contagion: the Emotional Contagion Scale in a Polish sample

<b>Background</b><br /> The Emotional Contagion Scale (ECS) measures individual differences in susceptibility to catching emotions expressed by others. Although initially the scale was reported to have a unidimensional structure, recent validation studies have suggested that the concept of emotional contagion is multidimensional. The aim of the study was therefore to test whether the structure of the ECS in a Polish sample corresponds with that observed for other non-English speaking populations.<br /> <br /> <b>Participants and procedure</b><br /> The scale, translated into Polish, was completed by 633 university students in four independent samples. To investigate the factor structure of the ECS, confirmatory factor analyses of five alternative models were conducted.<br /> <br /> <b>Results</b><br /> The results supported a multifaceted solution, which confirmed that susceptibility to emotional contagion may be differentiated not only across positive vs. negative states but also across discrete emotions. Moreover, the verification of internal consistency, test-retest reliability and construct validity of the Polish version indicated that its parameters are acceptable and comparable with the characteristics of other adaptations.<br /> <br /> <b>Conclusions</b><br /> The Polish ECS, together with other adaptations of the scale, shows that the construct developed in the United States can be successfully measured in other cultural contexts. Thus, the Polish version can be treated as a useful tool for measuring individual differences in susceptibility to emotional contagion.