Despite the lack of studies and the methodological limitations of the existing ones Theory of Mind seems to play a role in drug use conditions, which requires further investigation.

The recognition of facial emotions plays an important role in establishing social interactions through nonverbal communication. This is particularly true during childhood because language skills are not yet fully developed. Nevertheless, few studies have focused on facial emotion processing in children. Moreover, studies that have addressed this issue commonly have the major limitation of using only adult facial stimuli, and stimulus sets with children’s faces are rare. The present study sought to fill this gap by developing the Child Emotions Picture Set (CEPS). The CEPS is a database of the facial emotions of 17 children who posed or naturally expressed 6 basic emotions. A panel of expert judges rated each picture. The set is split into 3 age groups (6–7 years old, 8–9 years old, and 10–11 years old) and includes 225 photos of boys and girls who display facial expressions of happiness, sadness, anger, fear, disgust, and surprise at 3 different intensities (low, medium, and high) plus neutrality. This work contributes to the scientific field by constructing a set of child facial stimuli that is intended for use in further research on emotional processing in children. Additionally, the database may allow future studies on the mechanisms that are involved in processing facial emotions across childhood and investigating effects associated with psychiatric disorders.

A Psicoterapia Cognitivo-Comportamental (TCC) tem sido considerada a terapia de escolha para o tratamento do Transtorno de Estresse Agudo (TEA), sendo empregada como forma de prevenção ao Transtorno de Estresse Pós-Traumático (TEPT). No entanto, não há um consenso sobre as estratégias mais eficazes dentro desta abordagem. O presente artigo teve por objetivo identificar, por meio de uma revisão sistemática de estudos clínicos controlados, as estratégias que apresentam maior eficácia dentro da abordagem cognitivo-comportamental. Foram consultadas as bases de dados Scielo, LILACS, MedLine/PubMed, Web of Science e PsychInfo em Junho de 2012. Foram inicialmente identificados 1103 estudos. Após a adoção dos critérios de exclusão, cinco estudos foram incluídos no processo de revisão. A partir dos estudos encontrados e da análise destes, conclui-se que a terapia de exposição apresenta resultados promissores para tratamento do TEA. A revisão indicou ainda a necessidade de estudos com melhor qualidade metodológica e amostras mais abrangentes.

No abstract

No abstract

Concern for the well-being of medical professionals has increased considering the high rates of depression and suicidal ideation observed among medical students and residents. However, the causes of such psychological distress among health professionals are still unknown. One possibility is that such negative outcomes arise from individual differences in how clinicians respond to the emotional states of their patients: while some tend respond with empathy (feeling what others feel), others tend respond with compassion (caring about what others feel). The aim of this study is to investigate the hypothesis that empathy is related to higher levels of burnout and affective symptoms, while compassion is related to lower levels of these outcomes. We surveyed 464 undergraduate students and professionals in medicine (34.3%), psychology (47%) and nursing (18.8%), 79.7% female, with a median age of 23.3. The survey included the concern and perspective taking subscales from the Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI); empathy and behavioral contagion from the Empathy Index (EI); the depression, anxiety, and anger subscales from PROMIS; and the Medical Student Well-Being Index (MSWBI). Empathy was associated with higher symptoms of burnout, depression, anxiety and anger; while higher levels of compassion were associated with lower levels of these outcomes. Our findings provide new evidence that the well-being of medical professionals might be affected differently depending on socio-emotional traits relevant to emotional connection.

Objective: The causes of high rates of psychological distress among health professionals and students are largely unknown. Health professionals respond to those who are in distress with empathy (feeling what others feel) or compassion (caring about what others feel). This study aims to investigate whether empathy and compassion are distinct traits and how both traits are associated with negative affect (burnout, depression, anxiety and anger symptoms) in undergraduate students and professionals in medicine, psychology and nursing. Methods: A sample of 464 students and professionals filled out an online protocol with a sociodemographic data questionnaire and self-report questionnaires covering the variables of interest. Results: The findings indicate that empathy is associated with higher negative affect, while compassion is associate with lower negative affect, which suggests that they are different traits. Conclusion: Our findings provide new evidence that the well-being of health professionals might be affected differently depending on socioemotional traits relevant to emotional connection.