Xavier Bornas | Universitat de les Illes Balears (original) (raw)

Papers by Xavier Bornas

Una de les principals critiques cap els qui, en Psicologia, investiguen amb animals té el seu eix... more Una de les principals critiques cap els qui, en Psicologia, investiguen amb animals té el seu eix en la dificultat que suposa extrapolar els resultats obtinguts a l'esp6cie humana. Deixant de banda posicions radicals que neguen la validesa de la recerca amb animals al.legant diferencies essencials (?) entre l'home i els altres organismes, són molts els qui critiquen no la investigació en si sinó més aviat l'extrapolacio pura i simple dels coneixements que proporciona. El problema no 6, evidentment, nou. Des de posicions que van

The International Journal of Behavioral Consultation and Therapy, 2008

This review introduces the state of the art in computer-assisted treatment for behavioural disord... more This review introduces the state of the art in computer-assisted treatment for behavioural disorders. The core of the paper is devoted to describe one of these interventions providing computerassisted exposure for flight phobia treatment, the Computer-Assisted Fear of Flying Treatment (CAFFT). The rationale, contents and structure of the CAFFT are presented and data on the efficacy and clinical utility of CAFFT are also provided. Key words: Computer-assisted treatments; brief cognitive-behavioural treatments; specific phobia; flight phobia New information and communication technologies, especially computers, have opened up unforeseen possibilities in conducting psychological interventions, e.g., they have made it easier for the general population to access treatment and for clinical researchers to interpret studies, control nonspecific variables and compile data (McMinn, 1998; Norton, Asmundson, Cox, & Norton, 2000). This article refers to second generation technological advances with clinical impact (McMinn, 1998) i.e., computer-assisted treatments (CAT), with special attention to its application to flight phobia Types of computer-assisted treatment Since the late 1980s different types of CAT have been developed for treatment of a wide range of clinical problems. Moreover, the use of personal computers and software that facilitate their use have become widespread during this period. The emergence of CAT as an intervention strategy is also related to developments in clinical psychology: on the one hand, the ideal nature of cognitive-behavioural procedures in programming computerized treatments (their structured, systematic nature and focus on specific conducts (Newman, Consoli, & Taylor, 1997) and on the other, the efforts to streamlining existing effective cognitive-behavioral treatments to make them more efficient, cost-effective, and affordable (Hazlett-Stevens & Craske, 2002). The most common way to enhance the efficiency has been to reduce the number of sessions of existing treatment protocols and make them briefer. CAT are another way to attempt to improve the efficiency of existing treatments. Regarding contents, there are three basic kinds of CAT programs, aside from those that increasingly make use of the Internet (e.g., Schneider, Mataix-Cols, Marks, & Bachofen, 2005): (a) computerized versions of self-help programs or patient manuals for self-applied treatments with minimal therapeutic contact, (b) telephone-administered treatment programs with interactive voice response systems and finally, (c) treatments that use computers to reproduce the natural setting in which patients display problematic behaviors (e.g. virtual reality treatments). It should be noted that in some cases, regardless of CAT type, computerized treatment is the only intervention modality, whereas in others it is used to complement treatments that include face-to-face therapeutic contact. In the section below a brief review of the main features of CAT programs and its applications is presented.

Society for Information Technology & Teacher Education International Conference, 1996

Nonlinear dynamics, psychology, and life sciences, 2020

An inverted U-shaped pattern in heart rate (HR) and a U-shaped pattern in heart rate variability ... more An inverted U-shaped pattern in heart rate (HR) and a U-shaped pattern in heart rate variability (HRV) are easily recognizable when individuals experience any acute stressor. How cardiac complexity (scaling and entropy) changes under acute stress is not well known. Psychologically, emotion regulation (ER) style is likely to influence the individual's specific behavioral response when affronting stress. This study tested whether adolescents with distinct ER styles would show different patterns of linear and nonlinear cardiac changes under stressful conditions. We predicted less autonomic flexibility for adolescents with a highly negative emotional regulation (HNER) style (n = 10) than for those adolescents with a highly positive emotional regulation (HPER) style (n=10). Further, associations between linear and nonlinear measures during each condition were examined for each group. Repeated measures ANOVAs revealed that HR and HRV changed according to the predicted pattern. Higuchi...

International Journal of Clinical and Health Psychology, 2001

Journal of Affective Disorders, 2019

Background: Anxiety disorders frequently have an onset during adolescence, which when left untrea... more Background: Anxiety disorders frequently have an onset during adolescence, which when left untreated could lead to a chronic course and outcome. This study aimed to examine the way in which a cognitive behaviour therapy-based programme (Super Skills for Lifeadolescent version; SSL-A) could change the course of anxiety symptoms through adolescent's behavioural performance and cardiac function. Method: Sixty-one adolescents at risk of developing an anxiety disorder (45.30% boys; M = 13.76 years, SD = 0.32) were randomly assigned to either the intervention (IG), placebo (PG), or waitlist group (WG). Adolescents in the IG participated in SSL-A over an 8-week period. Adolescents in the PG participated in an 8-session school-work programme. Adolescents in the WG did not receive any intervention. Anxiety symptoms were assessed every six months, twice before intervention, as well as at postand six months after the intervention. Participants in the IG additionally underwent a stressful task to assess behavioural performance and cardiac adjustment. Results: Adolescents in the IG significantly reported lower levels of social phobia and generalised anxiety symptoms at the follow-up assessment compared to the adolescents in the PG and the WG. They also showed a significant improvement in vocal quality and lower discomfort during a stressful task at post-intervention, and showed attenuated cardiac recovery indexes, in terms of sample entropy. Limitations: The study has a small sample size. Conclusion: SSL-A changed natural course of anxiety symptoms, as shown by a significant reduction in social phobia and generalised anxiety symptoms, and a significant improvement in behaviour and physiological (cardiac) function during a stressful situation.

Child Psychiatry & Human Development, 2019

This study aimed: (1) to identify heterogeneous trajectories of anxiety symptoms in early adolesc... more This study aimed: (1) to identify heterogeneous trajectories of anxiety symptoms in early adolescence; (2) to analyze the relationships between risk factors and identified trajectories; (3) to study the association between anxiety symptom trajectories and depression symptom course. Anxiety and depressive symptoms of 825 participants (44.40% boys; mean initial age = 13.01, SD = 0.56) was assessed every 6 months over an 18-month period. Trajectory identification relied on latentvariable approach. As a result, 2-4 trajectories were identified for social phobia (SP), generalized anxiety (GA) and panic symptoms, revealing at least a low-symptom course and a trajectory of elevated symptoms (at-risk trajectory). Being girl and sibling cohabitation were related to at-risk trajectories, and a course of low effortful control and heightened negative affectivity. Finally, SP and GA symptoms were related to heightened depressive symptom courses. Relevant implications towards tailored prevention and intervention are highlighted to promote a healthy development across adolescence.

International Journal of Clinical and Health Psychology, 2017

Background/Objective: Two predictions derived from a recently introduced model of psychotherapy o... more Background/Objective: Two predictions derived from a recently introduced model of psychotherapy outcome were tested, assuming the dynamical relationship between the individual's emotional trajectory and the force of intervention necessary to change this trajectory: (a) only a high intensity treatment would succeed to lower the increasing trajectory of anxiety, and (b) high as well as low intensity treatments would equivalently lower the non-increasing trajectory of anxiety. Methods: Seventy-four adolescents (58.40% girls; M = 14.65 years, SD = 0.53) were randomly assigned to a high intensity treatment condition, a low intensity treatment condition, or a waiting list condition. Results: Only the high intensity treatment reduced the anxiety when participants showed an increasing trajectory (p < .01). None of the treatments reduced anxiety when a previously non-increasing trajectory was shown. Conclusions: These findings support the theoretical predictions and underscore the need to consider not only how severe the anxiety is but also the time course of anxiety in applied treatment settings.

International Journal of Clinical and Health Psychology, 2016

Background/Objective: Anxiety symptoms in adolescence have been found to be associated with heart... more Background/Objective: Anxiety symptoms in adolescence have been found to be associated with heart rate variability (HRV) linear features, but more basic properties of the cardiac system remain unexplored. This study focused on the fractal nature of 90 minute-long interbeat fluctuations from 24 adolescents with high anxiety and 26 with low anxiety to (a) evaluate if allometric scaling exponents and linear HRV measures allow for distinction between groups, and (b) assess the associations between these measures and sensitivity to punishment (SP), a temperamental characteristic strongly correlated with anxiety. Method: Cardiac functioning was recorded and allometric exponents and vagally mediated HRV as indexed by the high frequency (HF) band power were calculated. Results: While the exponents from the high anxiety group were significantly higher than those from low anxiety participants (p < .05), just marginal differences were found for the HF measure (p = .057). Furthermore, exponents were positively correlated with SP scores and several anxiety scale scores, but no more correlations were found. Conclusions: These results show that beyond parasympathetic functioning, basic properties of the cardiac system may be altered in young, anxious adolescents. These properties, therefore, can provide useful information for assessing adolescents at risk of anxiety disorders.

Developmental Psychobiology, 2020

Half of all lifetime mental health disorders emerge in childhood (Kessler et al., 2007) and conti... more Half of all lifetime mental health disorders emerge in childhood (Kessler et al., 2007) and continue to develop through developmental stages. The transition from childhood to adulthood is a stressful developmental period during which anxiety problems are the most common mental health disorders, with a lifetime prevalence ranging from 15% to 30% (Essau, Conradt, & Petermann, 2002; Merikangas et al., 2010). Unfortunately, despite the notable negative impact of anxiety disorders on functioning at the social, emotional, and academic level, and their huge socioeconomic costs, their etiology remains unclear (Beidel & Alfano, 2011). From the moment of a child's birth, their emotional and physiological responses will be influenced by their parents through dyadic interactions that occur thousands of times during their development (Patterson, Dishion, & Bank, 1984). Quality interactions have been shown to foster secure parent-child attachment and to contribute to a child's social, cognitive, and emotional development over the years (Harrist & Waugh, 2002; Saint-Georges et al., 2013). In contrast, poor interactions have been associated with the emergence of problematic child behaviors (e.g., Landy & Menna, 2001). Research into developmental and social psychology indicates that the presence of non-verbal synchrony in dyadic interactions is associated with higher quality relationships, conformity, and more

Nonlinear dynamics, psychology, and life sciences, 2019

This paper introduces a new measure to evaluate heart output from a dynamical systems approach. T... more This paper introduces a new measure to evaluate heart output from a dynamical systems approach. The measure is based on the time delay technique for two-dimensional state space reconstruction from time series of interbeat intervals. The system's trajectories within this space are depicted and the mean distance, as well as the total and maximum distances travelled by the system, are calculated in pixels. Preliminary data from adolescents with highly positive emotional regulation (HPER) style (n=10) and adolescents with highly negative (HNER) style (n=10) who underwent a protocol of stress induction show the usefulness of the new metrics to distinguish the dynamical behavior of the heart systems from these groups. Repeated measures ANOVAs revealed that changes in all three distances across conditions (baseline, anticipation of stress, exposure to stress, and recovery) were significant in the HPER group but not in the HNER group. As to the physiological meaning of the new measure a...

Behavioral Sciences

Growing evidence supports the hypothesis that temperamental traits are not static throughout adol... more Growing evidence supports the hypothesis that temperamental traits are not static throughout adolescence. The known links between both reactive and regulatory temperament and anxiety symptoms should be investigated bearing this hypothesis in mind. This study collected self-reported data on behavioral inhibition system (BIS) sensitivity, attentional control (AC), and anxiety symptomatology, from 296 adolescents (64.2% girls; M = 12.96 years at the first assessment, SD = 0.47) every six months, four times over eighteen months. The relationships between temperament factors (AC and BIS sensitivity), considered longitudinally (by means of their trajectories) and anxiety symptoms were investigated using Multigroup Latent Growth Modeling (MLGM), as well as the mediating effect of sex on trajectories and anxiety. BIS sensitivity decreased over time and showed differential patterns across sexes. AC remained relatively stable and we found no sex influence on its trajectory. On the other hand,...

Physiological systems need to be flexible in order to adapt to a changing environment. Negative e... more Physiological systems need to be flexible in order to adapt to a changing environment. Negative events, however, induce flexibility reductions that seem necessary for coping purposes. To date, studies have measured linear variability and entropy in heart output, but none have examined the scaling properties of the cardiac system when individuals deal with stressful everyday events. This study was aimed at testing the hypothesis that the complexity of the cardiac dynamics is diminished when individuals face negative events in real life. Cardiac variability (linear) and complexity (nonlinear), as well as discomfort and effectiveness of event-related emotion regulation (EER) were ecologically examined in N = 65 adolescents (Mage = 14.80 years; SDage = 0.86; 55.38% girls). Repeated Measures MANOVAs revealed higher heart rate (HR) and lower cardiac complexity (higher long-term scaling exponent, p = .029; lower Fractal Dimension FD, p = .030; and lower Sample Entropy, p = .001) during EER...

Nonlinear dynamics, psychology, and life sciences, 2020

This paper aimed to (a) validate a novel technique that quantifies the length of the trajectories... more This paper aimed to (a) validate a novel technique that quantifies the length of the trajectories the cardiac system follows within a two-dimensional state-space, and (b) test its usefulness to better understand how cognitive emotion regulation (CER) style is associated with cardiac output. A positive CER style was assessed in a sample of healthy adolescents (n = 57), and mean and total distances, in addition to heart rate variability (HRV) measures and cardiac entropy (SampEn), were calculated during a conflict discussion with the adolescents' mothers. Associations between distances and HRV measures in time and frequency-domains and SampEn were examined to better understand the physiological meaning of distances; further, whether a positive CER style would predict distances, HRV, and SampEn. Correlation analysis revealed that associations of distances with time-domain HRV measures were stronger than associations with frequency-domain HRV measures, while correlations between dis...

Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews, 2016

This meta-analysis aimed at gathering and summarising the findings on nonlinear biomarkers in the... more This meta-analysis aimed at gathering and summarising the findings on nonlinear biomarkers in the field of emotional disorders under the hypothesis that diseased systems show lowered complexity and hence less flexibility to adjust daily contexts. Scientific manuscripts from 1970 to 2014 were reviewed, 58 articles were analysed, and independent meta-analyses on anxiety disorders, bipolar disorders, and depressive disorders were conducted. Results revealed that anxious patients exhibited lower complexity than controls (p&amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;0.05) despite panic patients showed more irregular respiratory activity. Inconclusive results were found for bipolar patients but pointed to higher randomness when suffering manic episodes. Finally, depressed patients showed a loss of complexity in the cardiac system and a loss of orderliness (despite a higher complexity) in brain and stress-related hormonal systems. As a conclusion, our findings highlight that either a loss of complexity or a loss of ordered complexity characterise the physiological systems of patients with emotional disorders. Several considerations for complexity, its related measurements, and suggestions for further research are discussed.

Psychotherapy Research, 2006

Abstract Computer-assisted treatments have proven to be effective in the treatment of several anx... more Abstract Computer-assisted treatments have proven to be effective in the treatment of several anxiety disorders and depression, but the role of exposure remains unclear. This study compares the efficacy of a computer-assisted exposure treatment (CAE) with a brief ...

Una de les principals critiques cap els qui, en Psicologia, investiguen amb animals té el seu eix... more Una de les principals critiques cap els qui, en Psicologia, investiguen amb animals té el seu eix en la dificultat que suposa extrapolar els resultats obtinguts a l'esp6cie humana. Deixant de banda posicions radicals que neguen la validesa de la recerca amb animals al.legant diferencies essencials (?) entre l'home i els altres organismes, són molts els qui critiquen no la investigació en si sinó més aviat l'extrapolacio pura i simple dels coneixements que proporciona. El problema no 6, evidentment, nou. Des de posicions que van

The International Journal of Behavioral Consultation and Therapy, 2008

This review introduces the state of the art in computer-assisted treatment for behavioural disord... more This review introduces the state of the art in computer-assisted treatment for behavioural disorders. The core of the paper is devoted to describe one of these interventions providing computerassisted exposure for flight phobia treatment, the Computer-Assisted Fear of Flying Treatment (CAFFT). The rationale, contents and structure of the CAFFT are presented and data on the efficacy and clinical utility of CAFFT are also provided. Key words: Computer-assisted treatments; brief cognitive-behavioural treatments; specific phobia; flight phobia New information and communication technologies, especially computers, have opened up unforeseen possibilities in conducting psychological interventions, e.g., they have made it easier for the general population to access treatment and for clinical researchers to interpret studies, control nonspecific variables and compile data (McMinn, 1998; Norton, Asmundson, Cox, & Norton, 2000). This article refers to second generation technological advances with clinical impact (McMinn, 1998) i.e., computer-assisted treatments (CAT), with special attention to its application to flight phobia Types of computer-assisted treatment Since the late 1980s different types of CAT have been developed for treatment of a wide range of clinical problems. Moreover, the use of personal computers and software that facilitate their use have become widespread during this period. The emergence of CAT as an intervention strategy is also related to developments in clinical psychology: on the one hand, the ideal nature of cognitive-behavioural procedures in programming computerized treatments (their structured, systematic nature and focus on specific conducts (Newman, Consoli, & Taylor, 1997) and on the other, the efforts to streamlining existing effective cognitive-behavioral treatments to make them more efficient, cost-effective, and affordable (Hazlett-Stevens & Craske, 2002). The most common way to enhance the efficiency has been to reduce the number of sessions of existing treatment protocols and make them briefer. CAT are another way to attempt to improve the efficiency of existing treatments. Regarding contents, there are three basic kinds of CAT programs, aside from those that increasingly make use of the Internet (e.g., Schneider, Mataix-Cols, Marks, & Bachofen, 2005): (a) computerized versions of self-help programs or patient manuals for self-applied treatments with minimal therapeutic contact, (b) telephone-administered treatment programs with interactive voice response systems and finally, (c) treatments that use computers to reproduce the natural setting in which patients display problematic behaviors (e.g. virtual reality treatments). It should be noted that in some cases, regardless of CAT type, computerized treatment is the only intervention modality, whereas in others it is used to complement treatments that include face-to-face therapeutic contact. In the section below a brief review of the main features of CAT programs and its applications is presented.

Society for Information Technology & Teacher Education International Conference, 1996

Nonlinear dynamics, psychology, and life sciences, 2020

An inverted U-shaped pattern in heart rate (HR) and a U-shaped pattern in heart rate variability ... more An inverted U-shaped pattern in heart rate (HR) and a U-shaped pattern in heart rate variability (HRV) are easily recognizable when individuals experience any acute stressor. How cardiac complexity (scaling and entropy) changes under acute stress is not well known. Psychologically, emotion regulation (ER) style is likely to influence the individual's specific behavioral response when affronting stress. This study tested whether adolescents with distinct ER styles would show different patterns of linear and nonlinear cardiac changes under stressful conditions. We predicted less autonomic flexibility for adolescents with a highly negative emotional regulation (HNER) style (n = 10) than for those adolescents with a highly positive emotional regulation (HPER) style (n=10). Further, associations between linear and nonlinear measures during each condition were examined for each group. Repeated measures ANOVAs revealed that HR and HRV changed according to the predicted pattern. Higuchi...

International Journal of Clinical and Health Psychology, 2001

Journal of Affective Disorders, 2019

Background: Anxiety disorders frequently have an onset during adolescence, which when left untrea... more Background: Anxiety disorders frequently have an onset during adolescence, which when left untreated could lead to a chronic course and outcome. This study aimed to examine the way in which a cognitive behaviour therapy-based programme (Super Skills for Lifeadolescent version; SSL-A) could change the course of anxiety symptoms through adolescent's behavioural performance and cardiac function. Method: Sixty-one adolescents at risk of developing an anxiety disorder (45.30% boys; M = 13.76 years, SD = 0.32) were randomly assigned to either the intervention (IG), placebo (PG), or waitlist group (WG). Adolescents in the IG participated in SSL-A over an 8-week period. Adolescents in the PG participated in an 8-session school-work programme. Adolescents in the WG did not receive any intervention. Anxiety symptoms were assessed every six months, twice before intervention, as well as at postand six months after the intervention. Participants in the IG additionally underwent a stressful task to assess behavioural performance and cardiac adjustment. Results: Adolescents in the IG significantly reported lower levels of social phobia and generalised anxiety symptoms at the follow-up assessment compared to the adolescents in the PG and the WG. They also showed a significant improvement in vocal quality and lower discomfort during a stressful task at post-intervention, and showed attenuated cardiac recovery indexes, in terms of sample entropy. Limitations: The study has a small sample size. Conclusion: SSL-A changed natural course of anxiety symptoms, as shown by a significant reduction in social phobia and generalised anxiety symptoms, and a significant improvement in behaviour and physiological (cardiac) function during a stressful situation.

Child Psychiatry & Human Development, 2019

This study aimed: (1) to identify heterogeneous trajectories of anxiety symptoms in early adolesc... more This study aimed: (1) to identify heterogeneous trajectories of anxiety symptoms in early adolescence; (2) to analyze the relationships between risk factors and identified trajectories; (3) to study the association between anxiety symptom trajectories and depression symptom course. Anxiety and depressive symptoms of 825 participants (44.40% boys; mean initial age = 13.01, SD = 0.56) was assessed every 6 months over an 18-month period. Trajectory identification relied on latentvariable approach. As a result, 2-4 trajectories were identified for social phobia (SP), generalized anxiety (GA) and panic symptoms, revealing at least a low-symptom course and a trajectory of elevated symptoms (at-risk trajectory). Being girl and sibling cohabitation were related to at-risk trajectories, and a course of low effortful control and heightened negative affectivity. Finally, SP and GA symptoms were related to heightened depressive symptom courses. Relevant implications towards tailored prevention and intervention are highlighted to promote a healthy development across adolescence.

International Journal of Clinical and Health Psychology, 2017

Background/Objective: Two predictions derived from a recently introduced model of psychotherapy o... more Background/Objective: Two predictions derived from a recently introduced model of psychotherapy outcome were tested, assuming the dynamical relationship between the individual's emotional trajectory and the force of intervention necessary to change this trajectory: (a) only a high intensity treatment would succeed to lower the increasing trajectory of anxiety, and (b) high as well as low intensity treatments would equivalently lower the non-increasing trajectory of anxiety. Methods: Seventy-four adolescents (58.40% girls; M = 14.65 years, SD = 0.53) were randomly assigned to a high intensity treatment condition, a low intensity treatment condition, or a waiting list condition. Results: Only the high intensity treatment reduced the anxiety when participants showed an increasing trajectory (p < .01). None of the treatments reduced anxiety when a previously non-increasing trajectory was shown. Conclusions: These findings support the theoretical predictions and underscore the need to consider not only how severe the anxiety is but also the time course of anxiety in applied treatment settings.

International Journal of Clinical and Health Psychology, 2016

Background/Objective: Anxiety symptoms in adolescence have been found to be associated with heart... more Background/Objective: Anxiety symptoms in adolescence have been found to be associated with heart rate variability (HRV) linear features, but more basic properties of the cardiac system remain unexplored. This study focused on the fractal nature of 90 minute-long interbeat fluctuations from 24 adolescents with high anxiety and 26 with low anxiety to (a) evaluate if allometric scaling exponents and linear HRV measures allow for distinction between groups, and (b) assess the associations between these measures and sensitivity to punishment (SP), a temperamental characteristic strongly correlated with anxiety. Method: Cardiac functioning was recorded and allometric exponents and vagally mediated HRV as indexed by the high frequency (HF) band power were calculated. Results: While the exponents from the high anxiety group were significantly higher than those from low anxiety participants (p < .05), just marginal differences were found for the HF measure (p = .057). Furthermore, exponents were positively correlated with SP scores and several anxiety scale scores, but no more correlations were found. Conclusions: These results show that beyond parasympathetic functioning, basic properties of the cardiac system may be altered in young, anxious adolescents. These properties, therefore, can provide useful information for assessing adolescents at risk of anxiety disorders.

Developmental Psychobiology, 2020

Half of all lifetime mental health disorders emerge in childhood (Kessler et al., 2007) and conti... more Half of all lifetime mental health disorders emerge in childhood (Kessler et al., 2007) and continue to develop through developmental stages. The transition from childhood to adulthood is a stressful developmental period during which anxiety problems are the most common mental health disorders, with a lifetime prevalence ranging from 15% to 30% (Essau, Conradt, & Petermann, 2002; Merikangas et al., 2010). Unfortunately, despite the notable negative impact of anxiety disorders on functioning at the social, emotional, and academic level, and their huge socioeconomic costs, their etiology remains unclear (Beidel & Alfano, 2011). From the moment of a child's birth, their emotional and physiological responses will be influenced by their parents through dyadic interactions that occur thousands of times during their development (Patterson, Dishion, & Bank, 1984). Quality interactions have been shown to foster secure parent-child attachment and to contribute to a child's social, cognitive, and emotional development over the years (Harrist & Waugh, 2002; Saint-Georges et al., 2013). In contrast, poor interactions have been associated with the emergence of problematic child behaviors (e.g., Landy & Menna, 2001). Research into developmental and social psychology indicates that the presence of non-verbal synchrony in dyadic interactions is associated with higher quality relationships, conformity, and more

Nonlinear dynamics, psychology, and life sciences, 2019

This paper introduces a new measure to evaluate heart output from a dynamical systems approach. T... more This paper introduces a new measure to evaluate heart output from a dynamical systems approach. The measure is based on the time delay technique for two-dimensional state space reconstruction from time series of interbeat intervals. The system's trajectories within this space are depicted and the mean distance, as well as the total and maximum distances travelled by the system, are calculated in pixels. Preliminary data from adolescents with highly positive emotional regulation (HPER) style (n=10) and adolescents with highly negative (HNER) style (n=10) who underwent a protocol of stress induction show the usefulness of the new metrics to distinguish the dynamical behavior of the heart systems from these groups. Repeated measures ANOVAs revealed that changes in all three distances across conditions (baseline, anticipation of stress, exposure to stress, and recovery) were significant in the HPER group but not in the HNER group. As to the physiological meaning of the new measure a...

Behavioral Sciences

Growing evidence supports the hypothesis that temperamental traits are not static throughout adol... more Growing evidence supports the hypothesis that temperamental traits are not static throughout adolescence. The known links between both reactive and regulatory temperament and anxiety symptoms should be investigated bearing this hypothesis in mind. This study collected self-reported data on behavioral inhibition system (BIS) sensitivity, attentional control (AC), and anxiety symptomatology, from 296 adolescents (64.2% girls; M = 12.96 years at the first assessment, SD = 0.47) every six months, four times over eighteen months. The relationships between temperament factors (AC and BIS sensitivity), considered longitudinally (by means of their trajectories) and anxiety symptoms were investigated using Multigroup Latent Growth Modeling (MLGM), as well as the mediating effect of sex on trajectories and anxiety. BIS sensitivity decreased over time and showed differential patterns across sexes. AC remained relatively stable and we found no sex influence on its trajectory. On the other hand,...

Physiological systems need to be flexible in order to adapt to a changing environment. Negative e... more Physiological systems need to be flexible in order to adapt to a changing environment. Negative events, however, induce flexibility reductions that seem necessary for coping purposes. To date, studies have measured linear variability and entropy in heart output, but none have examined the scaling properties of the cardiac system when individuals deal with stressful everyday events. This study was aimed at testing the hypothesis that the complexity of the cardiac dynamics is diminished when individuals face negative events in real life. Cardiac variability (linear) and complexity (nonlinear), as well as discomfort and effectiveness of event-related emotion regulation (EER) were ecologically examined in N = 65 adolescents (Mage = 14.80 years; SDage = 0.86; 55.38% girls). Repeated Measures MANOVAs revealed higher heart rate (HR) and lower cardiac complexity (higher long-term scaling exponent, p = .029; lower Fractal Dimension FD, p = .030; and lower Sample Entropy, p = .001) during EER...

Nonlinear dynamics, psychology, and life sciences, 2020

This paper aimed to (a) validate a novel technique that quantifies the length of the trajectories... more This paper aimed to (a) validate a novel technique that quantifies the length of the trajectories the cardiac system follows within a two-dimensional state-space, and (b) test its usefulness to better understand how cognitive emotion regulation (CER) style is associated with cardiac output. A positive CER style was assessed in a sample of healthy adolescents (n = 57), and mean and total distances, in addition to heart rate variability (HRV) measures and cardiac entropy (SampEn), were calculated during a conflict discussion with the adolescents' mothers. Associations between distances and HRV measures in time and frequency-domains and SampEn were examined to better understand the physiological meaning of distances; further, whether a positive CER style would predict distances, HRV, and SampEn. Correlation analysis revealed that associations of distances with time-domain HRV measures were stronger than associations with frequency-domain HRV measures, while correlations between dis...

Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews, 2016

This meta-analysis aimed at gathering and summarising the findings on nonlinear biomarkers in the... more This meta-analysis aimed at gathering and summarising the findings on nonlinear biomarkers in the field of emotional disorders under the hypothesis that diseased systems show lowered complexity and hence less flexibility to adjust daily contexts. Scientific manuscripts from 1970 to 2014 were reviewed, 58 articles were analysed, and independent meta-analyses on anxiety disorders, bipolar disorders, and depressive disorders were conducted. Results revealed that anxious patients exhibited lower complexity than controls (p&amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;0.05) despite panic patients showed more irregular respiratory activity. Inconclusive results were found for bipolar patients but pointed to higher randomness when suffering manic episodes. Finally, depressed patients showed a loss of complexity in the cardiac system and a loss of orderliness (despite a higher complexity) in brain and stress-related hormonal systems. As a conclusion, our findings highlight that either a loss of complexity or a loss of ordered complexity characterise the physiological systems of patients with emotional disorders. Several considerations for complexity, its related measurements, and suggestions for further research are discussed.

Psychotherapy Research, 2006

Abstract Computer-assisted treatments have proven to be effective in the treatment of several anx... more Abstract Computer-assisted treatments have proven to be effective in the treatment of several anxiety disorders and depression, but the role of exposure remains unclear. This study compares the efficacy of a computer-assisted exposure treatment (CAE) with a brief ...

Partiendo del modelo de autorregulación presentado en "El desarrollo de la autonomía personal" (B... more Partiendo del modelo de autorregulación presentado en "El desarrollo de la autonomía personal" (Bornas, 1994) este libro facilita al lector las herramientas necesarias para que pueda utilizar las técnicas de Autocontrol y conseguir la mejora de aquellos problemas relacionados con los hábitos y los estilos de vida desadaptativos.