The Looming Maladaptive Style Questionnaire: Measurement invariance and relations to anxiety and depression across 10 countries.

The Looming Maladaptive Style Questionnaire (LMSQ) is a self-report measure designed to assess the looming cognitive style, a tendency to interpret threats as rapidly approaching and increasing in magnitude. To date, no systematic evaluation on the psychometric properties of the LMSQ across diverse cultural contexts has been done. In the present research, the measurement invariance of the LMSQ test scores was examined in 10 countries (N=4000). Confirmatory factor analysis suggested that a two-factor model (i.e., physical looming and social looming) fitted the data well across countries. Partial measurement invariance was established for the LMSQ scores across the countries whereas full measurement invariance was achieved across gender. Meta-analytic structural equation modeling was applied to examine the unique contributions of the two looming factors to anxiety and depression symptoms. Results indicated that the test scores underlying two looming factors were crucial and valid predictors of symptoms. The LMSQ shows promise as a measure with cross-cultural generalizability and opens new avenues for its use in diverse cultural settings.

The utility of BDI-II in assessment of pre- and postpartum depression symptoms and their relation to labor pain.

BACKGROUND: It is argued that the total Beck Depression Inventory II (BDI-II) score likely overestimates depression in pregnant women given the overlap between depressive and somatic symptoms during pregnancy. The aim of this study was to explore the structure and the intensity of depression symptoms during pregnancy and two months postpartum. In populations with high incidence of somatic complaints (i.e. chronic pain sufferers) depression is also often related to higher pain intensity. Therefore, the relationships between depression symptoms and expected, perceived and recalled labor pain were also examined. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: 60 healthy primiparas enrolled the study. BDI-II as measure of depression was completed during the late stage of pregnancy and two months postpartum. Assessments of maximum and average labor pain were completed in three different time periods (before - expected labor pain, during/immediately after labor - perceived labor pain, and one month postpartum - recalled labor pain). RESULTS: Depression symptoms measured two months postpartum were significantly lower than the ones measured during the late stage of pregnancy (t=8.377, df=49, p<0.01). During the late stage of pregnancy, BDI-II items with highest mean scores were those measuring somatic symptoms of depression. Depression measured during the late stage of pregnancy correlated significantly with maximum labor pain expectancies (r=0.41, p<0.01). CONCLUSION: The use of standardized questionnaires with a high rate of somatic items such as BDI-II may not be the best solution when screening for mood disorders in pregnant women. Levels of depression share a significant relationship with maximum labor pain expectancies only.

Anxiety sensitivity and anxiety as correlates of expected, experienced and recalled labor pain.

There has been a good deal of research on the role of anxiety sensitivity in pain perception, but only recently have investigators begun to assess its role in labor pain. The aim of this study was to investigate the nature of this relationship as well as the relationship of state and trait anxiety with labor pain. Assessments of maximum and average labor pain were completed in three different time periods (before, during and immediately after labor, and 1 month postpartum). Anxiety and anxiety sensitivity measures were completed during the late stage of pregnancy. A total of 46 primiparous healthy pregnant women, carrying a single child, participated in the study. State anxiety correlated significantly with maximum (r?=?0.352, p?