Sarah A Myers | The New School (original) (raw)

Papers by Sarah A Myers

Research paper thumbnail of Relationships Between Self-Leadership, Psychological Symptoms, and Self-Related Thought in an Undergraduate Sample

S elf-leadership was developed as a tool for clients to moderate their own psychiatric symptoms w... more S elf-leadership was developed as a tool for clients to moderate their own psychiatric symptoms within Internal Family Systems (IFS) therapy (Schwartz, 2013). IFS therapy defines the self as the central leader and moderator of psychiatric symptoms, whereas self-leadership refers to the ability to comfort, regulate, and improve one's psychiatric symptoms by achieving a state of mindfulness and nonjudgmental awareness. Similar to a family dynamic, parts of a personality may cause conflict and extremes in the family system of a person's inner psyche, and the self cultivates cooperation within the internal ecosystem so as to be a caregiver to traumatized, sad, or resentful parts that result from psychiatric symptoms. The purpose of the present study was to investigate ABSTRACT. The concept of self-leadership was developed in the 1980s as an integral component of Internal Family Systems therapy (IFS). According to IFS, a self-led person can more effectively manage stress and difficult life events. These enhanced coping abilities associated with self-leadership are thought to reduce symptoms of psychiatric disorders. Several studies have investigated self-leadership in connection with workplace behavior, psychological health, and physical health. Few studies have examined the relationship between self-leadership and psychological symptoms in a community sample. Another important question is whether self-leadership is related to other established measures of self-related thought. In the current study, adult undergraduate participants (n = 166) completed self-report measures assessing psychological symptoms and self-related thought. We predicted that there would be a relationship between (H1) self-leadership and fewer psychological symptoms and (H2) self-leadership and lower levels of negative self-reference, but higher positive self-regard. Our findings revealed significant negative relationships between self-leadership and symptoms of depression (p < .001, f 2 = .55), posttraumatic stress disorder (p < .05, f 2 = .03), and social anxiety (p < .001, f 2 = .21). Enhanced self-leadership was also associated with distinct correlations with measures of negative versus positive aspects of self-related cognition. Specifically, self-leadership was associated with lower levels of self-rumination (p = .005, f 2 = .05) and negative self-related responses (p = .002, f 2 = .06), but greater levels of self-reflection (p < .001, f 2 = .12) and positive self-related responses (p = .021, f 2 = .03). These findings provide novel empirical support for a relationship between self-leadership, symptoms of psychological conditions, and measures of self-related thought.

Research paper thumbnail of Relationships Between Self-Leadership, Psychological Symptoms, and Self-Related Thought in an Undergraduate Sample

S elf-leadership was developed as a tool for clients to moderate their own psychiatric symptoms w... more S elf-leadership was developed as a tool for clients to moderate their own psychiatric symptoms within Internal Family Systems (IFS) therapy (Schwartz, 2013). IFS therapy defines the self as the central leader and moderator of psychiatric symptoms, whereas self-leadership refers to the ability to comfort, regulate, and improve one's psychiatric symptoms by achieving a state of mindfulness and nonjudgmental awareness. Similar to a family dynamic, parts of a personality may cause conflict and extremes in the family system of a person's inner psyche, and the self cultivates cooperation within the internal ecosystem so as to be a caregiver to traumatized, sad, or resentful parts that result from psychiatric symptoms. The purpose of the present study was to investigate ABSTRACT. The concept of self-leadership was developed in the 1980s as an integral component of Internal Family Systems therapy (IFS). According to IFS, a self-led person can more effectively manage stress and difficult life events. These enhanced coping abilities associated with self-leadership are thought to reduce symptoms of psychiatric disorders. Several studies have investigated self-leadership in connection with workplace behavior, psychological health, and physical health. Few studies have examined the relationship between self-leadership and psychological symptoms in a community sample. Another important question is whether self-leadership is related to other established measures of self-related thought. In the current study, adult undergraduate participants (n = 166) completed self-report measures assessing psychological symptoms and self-related thought. We predicted that there would be a relationship between (H1) self-leadership and fewer psychological symptoms and (H2) self-leadership and lower levels of negative self-reference, but higher positive self-regard. Our findings revealed significant negative relationships between self-leadership and symptoms of depression (p < .001, f 2 = .55), posttraumatic stress disorder (p < .05, f 2 = .03), and social anxiety (p < .001, f 2 = .21). Enhanced self-leadership was also associated with distinct correlations with measures of negative versus positive aspects of self-related cognition. Specifically, self-leadership was associated with lower levels of self-rumination (p = .005, f 2 = .05) and negative self-related responses (p = .002, f 2 = .06), but greater levels of self-reflection (p < .001, f 2 = .12) and positive self-related responses (p = .021, f 2 = .03). These findings provide novel empirical support for a relationship between self-leadership, symptoms of psychological conditions, and measures of self-related thought.