Objective We aimed to study the effectiveness of CBT for sleep difficulties in patients with chronic fatigue syndrome/myalgic encephalitis (CFS/ME). Method We conducted a retrospective cohort study at the Persistent Physical Symptoms Research and Treatment Unit, Maudsley Hospital, between 2014 and 2019. The primary outcome was sleep quality and other sleep parameters assessed by the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI). The secondary assessments comprised the Chalder Fatigue Questionnaire (CFS), the Work and Social Adjustment Scale (WSAS), and the Short-Form Health Survey (SF-36). The data were gathered at baseline, discharge, and follow-up periods (3, 6, and 12 months). A paired samples t-test, repeated measures ANOVAs, and the Friedman Test were used to determine the effectiveness of CBT. A linear mixed model was employed to evaluate the effect size of CBT. Results From all 217 participants (71.4% female; mean age = 39.42 ± 12.32 years), 85.7% experienced poor sleep quality. The associated factors of poor sleep quality at baseline included primary education/secondary education/vocational qualification (OR adj = 3.74, 95% CI [1.03, 13.64], p = .046), CFS score (OR adj = 1.08, 95% CI [1.02, 1.15], p = .015), SF-36 score (OR adj = 0.98, 95% CI [0.96, 0.99], p = .015), WSAS score (OR adj = 1.06, 95% CI [1.02, 1.11], p = .004) and HADS-A score (OR adj = 0.80, 95% CI [0.69, 0.93], p = .004). CBT had a substantial positive effect on sleep parameters, fatigue, and physical functioning over a 12-month follow-up period ( p < .05). Conclusion CBT had a significant positive effect on the sleep parameters. This effect persisted during a 12-month follow-up period. The results suggest CBT is an effective treatment for CFS/ME patients with sleep problems.
Objectives The present study examines the role of Working Memory (WM), as a cognitive system of limited storage—processing resources, in complex sentence comprehension by typically developing children in both the verbal and non-verbal domain. In particular, the study compares non-verbal and verbal measures of WM in regard to their contribution to complex sentence comprehension. Methods Participants were 169 children aged 8 to 12 years, native speakers of Greek. A self-paced reading task was used to assess the comprehension of syntactically complex sentences. The sentences tested were object-relatives. Non-verbal short-term memory (nvSTM) and non-verbal working memory (nvWM) was measured by corsi blocks forward and corsi blocks backward, respectively. Forward digit span was used for the measurement of verbal short-term memory (vSTM) and backward digit span for the assessment of verbal working memory (vWM). Results Results showed that the only significant predictor of children’s comprehension was backward digit span. Conclusions Findings suggest an important role of vWM in the comprehension of syntactically complex structures, lending support to the view that language comprehension is underpinned by a domain-specific cognitive system specialized to verbal processing.
Objectives This study investigates whether exposure to thin-ideal body images, commonly encountered on social networking sites (SNSs), leads to increased body dissatisfaction, body-related anxiety, and self-disgust among young women. While previous research has established a link between SNS use and body dissatisfaction, the role of self-disgust in this context remains underexplored. Methods A total of 59 healthy young women ( M age = 24.49, SD = 3.66) with a normal BMI ( M = 22.38, SD = 3.27) participated. Exclusion criteria included current or past eating disorders, psychopathology, or psychiatric medication use. Participants completed pre- and post-exposure measures of body satisfaction (S-BISS), body-related anxiety (PASTAS), and self-disgust (VAS) after viewing 15 thin-ideal images. A non-parametric Wilcoxon signed-rank test was used due to non-normal data distribution. Results Participants showed a significant decrease in body satisfaction ( z = -3.017, p = .003). Self-disgust significantly increased for the stomach ( z = -2.197, p = .028) and hips ( z = -2.622, p = .009). Significant increases in body anxiety were observed for the waist ( z = -2.352, p = .019), buttocks ( z = -2.000, p = .046), muscular tone ( z = -2.668, p = .008), and perceived overweight ( z = -3.273, p = .001). No significant changes were found for thighs or legs. Conclusions Consistent with sociocultural/objectification literature, thin-ideal exposure elicited immediate increases in dissatisfaction and anxiety and extended prior work by documenting state self-disgust as a plausible affective response. These findings underscore the need for media literacy interventions and further exploration of emotional mechanisms in body image disturbance. Generalizability is limited by the all-female and the single-session pre–post design without an active control. Effects should be interpreted as upper-bound estimates of immediate reactivity.
Objectives The Iowa Gambling Task (IGT) is a widely used measure of decision-making that mimics real-life situations involving uncertainty and reward. While prior research has separately explored the roles of cognitive functions (e.g., intelligence) and non-cognitive factors (e.g., emotion regulation), few have examined their combined and relative influence. This study aimed to clarify how cognitive abilities and emotion regulation difficulties contribute to decision-making under ambiguity and risk, as assessed by the IGT. Methods Fifty healthy adults completed a modified version of the IGT, a battery of cognitive tasks measuring planning, attention, and working memory, and the Japanese version of the Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale (J-DERS). Zero-order and partial correlations as well as hierarchical regression analyses were conducted. Results Zero-order correlations indicated significant positive associations between advantageous IGT performance and both working memory and attention. These associations remained significant after controlling J-DERS scores in partial correlations. However, hierarchical regression analyses revealed that neither cognitive abilities nor emotion regulation difficulties significantly predicted overall IGT performance. Contrary to expectations, emotion regulation difficulties were not significantly related to risky choices, suggesting a weaker role than previously attributed to emotional intelligence. Conclusions The findings suggest that cognitive functions, particularly attentional control, are more strongly associated with advantageous decision-making, especially during later stages of the task. These findings underscore the primacy of cognitive functions in implicit decision-making. Study limitations include a small sample size and a lack of neurophysiological data, highlighting the need for future studies with neuroimaging and larger samples.
Academic procrastination undermines students’ academic performance and psychological well-being. This study investigated key psychological and cognitive factors associated with procrastination, including personality traits, need for achievement, inattention, hyperactivity, and social media addiction. A total of 464 Italian university students completed validated self-report questionnaires; a subsample of 80 participants also completed cognitive tasks assessing attention, inhibitory control, and working memory. Predictors of procrastination were examined using multiple regression and a path analysis model (structural equation modeling). Exploratory statistical indirect-effect analyses were also conducted; given the cross-sectional design, these were interpreted as associational rather than causal. Procrastination was negatively associated with conscientiousness and need for achievement, and positively associated with inattention, hyperactivity, and problematic social media use, with inattention emerging as the strongest statistical correlate. Importantly, the integration of self-report and objective performance data revealed that high procrastinators showed poorer executive functioning. These findings highlight the combined role of personal and cognitive factors in academic procrastination. Interventions aimed at enhancing attentional control and strengthening need for achievement may help reduce procrastination and improve students’ academic outcomes and well-being.
