The Empowerment & Boundaries Assessment (EBA) is a 25-item self-report instrument designed to assess boundary-setting and empowerment across emotional, behavioral, cognitive, and social domains in victims of narcissistic abuse. This study presents the standardization of the EBA, including reliability and validity analyses. A sample of 320 adult participants (210 men, 110 women) who self-identified as having experienced narcissistic abuse in intimate relationships completed the EBA, along with established psychological measures including the Depression Anxiety Stress Scales (DASS-21) and a structured personality disorder assessment. Results demonstrated high internal consistency (Cronbach’s α = .92), good test–retest reliability over four weeks (r = .87), and strong construct validity through factor analysis confirming four boundary domains. Convergent validity was supported by significant correlations with emotional distress (negative correlations with depression, anxiety, and stress) and discriminant validity was established by low overlap with unrelated constructs (e.g., social desirability). The EBA performed comparably to widely used tools such as the DASS-21 and IPDE, while filling a unique niche in measuring boundary functioning specific to narcissistic abuse survivors. The findings support the EBA as a reliable and valid tool for both clinical and research purposes.
This narrative review on current literature on parenting is focused primarily on the emotions and behaviors of the parents. The emotions include marital satisfaction, mentalization, stress, depression, and burnout. The behaviors include conflict during parent-child interactions, phubbing by parents and parents’ controlling, authoritarian and harsh parenting behavior. The negative outcomes for youth include smartphone addiction, depressive symptoms, externalizing and internalizing behaviors. Most of the data were reported by parents of children. Only a few studies were focused on adolescents or parents of adolescents. Methodological limitations of this literature include parent retrospective reports with potential recall bias and cross-sectional data, limiting any conclusions about directionality.
I find, based on intuitively observing myself and other people, that the best kind of creative insight, inspiration, and productive performance, in any field of endeavor, comes from communing deeply with other life presences, in heartfelt, open-minded, responsively caring, empathic attunement with them.
Psychotropic medications are commonly prescribed to adolescents with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD), despite limited disorder-specific evidence and the increased vulnerability of this group to adverse and paradoxical reactions. Inspired by presentations and debates at the International Conference on FASD, organized by the Santa Casa- Health Department of the Pontifical Delegation of Loreto-Italy (Dipartimento Sanitario “Santa Casa” della Delegazione Pontificia di Loreto), this article emphasizes the need for clearer, ethically grounded tapering strategies. Patterns of polypharmacy, inconsistent clinical responses, and iatrogenic effects underscore the urgency of creating structured tapering guidelines and protocols based on developmental, relational, and cultural factors. Drawing on clinical experience in Italy and the United States—including work within Native American communities where structural inequities amplify the consequences of pharmacological overreliance—the article presents a tapering model that integrates neurodevelopmental vulnerability, environmental stability, relational continuity, and cultural context. Tapering is reframed as a therapeutic process aimed at restoring autonomy, reducing exposure to unnecessary medications, and strengthening the individual’s relational and cultural resources. The discussion emphasizes the importance of understanding behavioral changes from a neurodevelopmental perspective, fostering collaboration among caregivers, educators, and community resources, and addressing systemic pressures that contribute to medication overuse. The article concludes by stressing the need for long-term pilot studies to evaluate the practicality and impact of this framework in different settings. Such research will be essential for refining tapering strategies that are aligned with current neurodevelopmental stages, ethical standards, and community-based psychosocial and recovery models.
In this narrative review, summaries are given of research published in 2024 on internet addiction in adults. The papers are focused on the prevalence of internet addiction, negative effects, comorbidities, predictors/risk factors, mechanisms and buffers. The prevalence of internet addiction ranged from 21-76% across cultures as well as within and across professions and by severity. The negative effects included depression, pain, and sleep problems. The comorbidities include anxiety, PTSD and ADHD. The predictors/risk factors can be categorized as personality characteristics, family problems, fear of missing out, and emotional disorders. The potential underlying biological mechanisms for internet addiction include dysfunction in multiple regions of the brain and the serotonin and dopamine neurotransmitter systems. The buffers include being married and belonging to an extended family. Surprisingly, online photography was the only intervention that appeared in this current literature. Methodological limitations include most of the studies being cross-sectional and the samples being almost exclusively young adults.
This narrative review summarizes current research published in 2024 on aging and death anxiety. The prevalence has ranged from 20 to 33% based on the severity of the experience. Aging and death anxiety have been noted to have negative effects including a reduction in work passion, psychological and spiritual well-being and well-being and resilience as well as poor health, anxiety, PTSD, depression and suicidality. Predictors/ risk factors include female gender, loneliness, climate change anxiety, anxiety in general, depression and chronic health conditions. Buffers for aging and death anxiety include having meaning in life, religiosity and taking psychedelics. Interventions include both psychological therapies (cognitive behavioral therapy, rational emotive therapy and dialectical behavior therapy) and alternative therapies (Reiki and tai chi). Some of the methodological limitations include the questionable reliability of online surveys with old adults, the wide variety of scales used to assess aging and death anxiety and the absence of physiological and biochemical measures that might suggest potential underlying biological mechanisms for aging and death anxiety.
Caregivers experienced significant psychological strain during the COVID-19 pandemic, with increased reports of anxiety, depression, and anger. While resilience has been identified as a protective factor, the mechanisms through which it influences emotional outcomes remain unclear. This study explored whether caregiver stress mediates the relationship between resilience and emotional distress. To test a mediation model in which caregiver stress transmits the effects of resilience to emotional distress outcomes—specifically anxiety, depression, and anger. Data were drawn from a national archival survey of 1,920 participants. A subsample of 249 U.S.-based adult caregivers who provided data on resilience, stress, and emotional distress measures was analyzed. Resilience was assessed with the Brief Resilience Scale, caregiver stress with the Kingston Caregiver Stress Scale, and emotional distress with PROMIS short forms. Mediation analyses were conducted using Hayes’ PROCESS macro (Model 4), with gender, race, and healthcare occupation as covariates. Resilience significantly predicted lower caregiver stress (p < .001), and stress significantly predicted higher levels of anxiety, depression, and anger (p < .001). Indirect effects were significant in all three models, indicating that caregiver stress partially mediated the relationship between resilience and each emotional distress outcome (p < .001). Resilience appears to influence emotional well-being in caregivers not only directly, but also indirectly by shaping the subjective experience of stress. These findings suggest that interventions to support caregiver mental health should target both stress management and resilience-building.
Who would have thought that a time would come when the term EBM (Evidence-Based Medicine) would be nudged out of the medical vocabulary and be replaced with OBS outcomes-based systems in Autism?
Objective: This study aims to identify key aspects of psychosocial risks within the construction industry. Methodology: A documentary review approach was utilized, analyzing reports and profiles from urban real estate projects in the construction sector. The primary evaluation tool was a comprehensive battery of instruments for assessing psychosocial risk factors. This suite evaluates work environment indicators such as job demands, social support, job control, role clarity, interpersonal relationships, and work-life balance through interviews, observation guides, questionnaires, and diagnostic tools aimed at improving working conditions. Results: The study outlines the most suitable methodology for assessing psychosocial risks in construction firms, emphasizing the importance of using scientifically validated tools.
One of the primary goals of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Programs is to increase representation of minority groups in the workplace and educational environment. Another goal is to gain a better understanding of the values, preferences, and cultural traits of different populations in order to improve work relationships. Recently there has been a significant amount of resistance to the implementation of DEI programs to the point that many organizations (including healthcare) have cancelled or curtailed their DEI initiatives. What they fail to recognize is how this can have a negative impact on care relationships that affect patient outcomes of care.
ackground: Suicide is still a biologically mystery process that can cause high rate of human mortality (1.3%) worldwide. The complex risk factors for behavioral or ideational change have great healthcare consequences and huge socioeconomic burden worldwide. Situation and knowledge: Influenced by complex risk factors, clinical suicide prevention and treatment progress needs ever-changing disease diagnosis and supportive biotechnology. Bridging the gap between molecular knowledge and suicide behaviors has great medical or pharmaceutical importance. Medical knowledge between east and west is compared and integrated. Recent results: Fortunately, an accelerate of neurobiology and psychopharmacology advances makes suicide treatment and intervention growing practical and manageable. Neural-psychiatric evidence and association profoundly impacts on the outcomes and efficacy of suicide prevention and therapeutics. The complex nature of human suicide (a hybrid and overlapping for genetics, epigenetics, transcriptome, proteomics, metabolomics data) is well discovered in different types of psychiatric diseases and outlook of neurobiology (brain anatomy, chemistry and functionality). Discussion: Immediate medical success (molecular targeting and curative therapies) in the clinic will be based on high-quality pharmaceutical study and biomedical progresses (achieving long-lasting and low toxic drugs or biotherapies). Certainly, a great deal of neurobiological and neuropsychiatry treatment study can create new hope for clinical strategies and paradigms for human suicide. Conclusion: Next generation of clinical suicide prediction, pharmacology and therapeutic landscapes will be developed in the near future.
Coping with our intensely passionate emotions and desires can be like riding a wild horse, or being inundated by a turbulent river, overflowing its banks, producing havoc for us, and for others around us. We become driven by demanding, insatiable, energies that have a counterproductive, disruptive, impact on our lives. As suggested by Rakesh Sethi.
This study examined whether individuals' definitions of infidelity differ based on perspective —evaluating their own behaviors versus their partner's identical behaviors — to test for the presence of self-serving bias in infidelity judgments. A nationally representative sample of 205 participants completed an online survey through Qualtrics. Participants were randomly assigned to evaluate potentially unfaithful behaviors from either a self-perspective ("You are exchanging inappropriate texts") or partner-perspective ("Your partner is exchanging inappropriate texts"). Behaviors were categorized into five factors through principal components analysis: active cheating, infatuation, social activities, fantasy, and discussion of sex life. Ratings were made on a 7-point scale from "definitely not cheating" to "definitely cheating." Independent-samples t-tests revealed significant perspective differences for three behavioral categories. As hypothesized, participants judged themselves more leniently than their partners for active cheating (p < .05) and social activities (p < .05). Unexpectedly, participants rated their own inappropriate discussion of sex life more severely than their partner's identical behavior (p < .001). No perspective differences emerged for infatuation or fantasy behaviors. Sex differences were found for active cheating and fantasy factors, with females rating behaviors as more unfaithful than males, but biological sex did not interact with perspective effects. Results provide mixed support for self-serving bias in infidelity judgments, suggesting that perspective-taking effects vary by behavior type. The reversal for discussing sex life may reflect unique concerns about violating partner privacy. These findings highlight the importance of explicit communication about relationship boundaries and have implications for couples therapy interventions addressing infidelity-related issues.
Inspiration in medicine often fades with advancing age. Valued teachers disappear. Intense clinical practice fosters isolation. Long hours monopolize our time. The repetitive patterns of illness blunt the sense of discovery and dull the edge of motivation. Professional satisfaction may not compensate for a waning sense of wonder. Often we are in need of inspiration. Sometimes it is not clear where to turn.
This narrative review includes brief summaries of the five most common emotional behavioral disorders including oppositional defiant disorder (ODD), intermittent explosive disorder (IED), conduct disorder (CD), disruptive mood dysregulation disorder (DMDD) and social (pragmatic) communication disorder (SCD). ODD risk factors/ predictors were self-regulation problems, social difficulties, internet gaming, suicidal ideation and physical health problems. Neural synchrony was a potential underlying biological mechanism. IED risk factors/ predictors were self-regulation problems, emotional dysregulation, callous-unemotional traits and suicide attempts. The amygdala and the orbital frontal cortex were studied as potential underlying biological mechanisms. CD risk factors/predictors include callous-unemotional traits, social anxiety, approach-avoidance behavior, grandiose-manipulative and daring-impulsive traits. Potential underlying biological mechanisms include low surface area in 26 brain regions and cortical thinning as well as less volume of the amygdala, nucleus accumbens, thalamus and hippocampus. DMDD risk factors/predictors include lower competence and social skills. Low heart rate variability was studied as a potential underlying biological mechanism. SCD was said to have verbal and nonverbal limitations as risk factors/predictors. Methodological limitations of this literature include the similar diagnostic criteria used for the different disorders, the lack of comparisons between the different disorders, and the infrequent mechanism and intervention studies.
Neuroeconomics explains the integration of the triune brain levels by general risk-willingness on a dimension from Extravert via Conscientious to Neurotic. Socio-economics (SE) synthesises general behavior by the 3P parameters (Prosperity, People and Planet). Searching databases maximizes each of the 3P by the following interventions: Growth in GDP per capita for future maximization PROSPERITY. UBI at the level of relative poverty to minimize poverty for ordinary PEOPLE. Subsidies to non-fossil energy and green agriculture for protection of the PLANET. SE is too complex for direct dissemination to lay users! However, preliminary guest-lectures to teachers in Public Administration at a business school, confirm that such indirect dissemination to democratic politicians is possible by teachers in Public Administration or Economics.
The pervasive administration of psychiatric medications within Italy’s custodial institutions has evolved into a normalized yet ethically questionable practice, which remains clearly under examined in both clinical policy and public discourse. As global scrutiny intensifies around the long-term effects of psychotropic agents-including metabolic, neurological, and cognitive sequelae—their use in Italian prisons increasingly reflects institutional convenience and inertia rather than therapeutic necessity. This phenomenon is particularly pronounced for immigrant detainees, who endure multiple vulnerabilities stemming from linguistic isolation, cultural misdiagnosis, and systemic marginalization. Extensive scientific literature underscores the risks associated with prolonged and off-label use of medications such as antipsychotics and benzodiazepines, mainly when prescribed without rigorous oversight or individualized care. Within correctional environments, these substances are frequently utilized as tools of behavioral management-prioritizing sedation over engagement, and containment over rehabilitation. This author argues that the misuse of psychiatric medications in Italy’s detention facilities is not just clinical negligence but a deeper structural and ethical violation. Using epidemiological data, investigative reporting, and clinical vignettes, the analysis reveals how pharmacological practices in detention settings mirror broader patterns of neglect and institutional coercion. The effects are significant, including iatrogenic injury, the erosion of clinical ethics, and the violation of civil liberties. Urgent reform is necessary. Such reform must include more effective independent oversight, culturally responsive and trauma-informed care, expanded access to non-drug treatments, and full integration of custodial psychiatric services into Italy’s national healthcare system. Without these key changes, psychiatry risks becoming part of a control system rather than fulfilling its healing role. This article urges clinicians, policymakers, and human rights advocates to address this overlooked crisis and to reimagine mental health care in custodial settings as both a clinical duty and a moral obligation.
The journey of psychotherapy is a collaborative exploration of behavior, mind, and emotions, an interpersonal endeavor that, when successful, can lead to profound and lasting change. While numerous therapeutic modalities exist, a growing body of evidence and clinical wisdom points to five fundamental pillars that underpin effective treatment: a strong therapeutic rapport, the thoughtful application of variation in techniques or processes, the strategic use of repetition, the cultivation of mindful awareness, and taking action in line with one’s values.
This narrative review briefly summarizes studies in current literature (2024-2025) on the five most common emotional mood disorders including depression, generalized anxiety disorder, panic disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder and obsessive-compulsive disorder. These studies are primarily focused on potential underlying biological mechanisms and interventions. These disorders are often comorbid likely because some of the underlying mechanisms and interventions are shared by the different disorders. These include reduced functional connectivity in different regions of the brain as a mechanism and transcranial brain stimulation and cognitive behavioral therapy as interventions. Methodological limitations of this literature include the frequent sampling of patients as opposed to community samples, the broad age range of the groups, the questionably reliable self-report data and the lack of randomized controlled groups for the interventions.
Research on relationships that appears in the 2024- 2025 literature is primarily based on self-report data on relationship satisfaction, risk factors for relationship dissolution and buffers for relationships. Relationship satisfaction characteristics include their being continuous, predictable, dependable, trusted and featuring a power balance between partners. Mindfulness, negotiating and sacrificing are other attributes of relationships that have been recently researched. The risks for relationship dissolution include being female and single. Other risk factors include having several concerns about the relationship, neuroticism, loneliness and engaging in excessive social media use. Surprisingly, buffers for relationships include social media use as well as digital connectivity and online dating. Methodological limitations of this literature include the infrequent specificity of the types of relationships and the lack of studies on positive effects of relationships.
