Development of a 12-Word Version of a Verbal Learning Test for Persian-Speaking Older Adults: Reliability, Construct Validity, and Normative Standards.

OBJECTIVE: As people enter old age, they develop diseases, challenges, and cognitive and behavioral deficits that are associated with decreased abilities. Memory abilities and deficiencies and impaired models can be assessed using neuropsychological instruments, and a rehabilitation program can be developed based on the individuals' memory deficits. The present cross-sectional research aims to develop a new test (henceforth known as the Persian Verbal Learning Test, or PVLT) that is appropriate for Persian-speaking older adults. METHODS: For normative data, we administered PVLT to a group of 374 Persian-speaking healthy older adults consisting of both genders (190 women and 184 men) who were aged 60-89 years old. To determine reliability and validity, we evaluated neurologically healthy older adults and analyzed the results using intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) and Pearson's correlation coefficient. RESULTS: The present findings showed that age, education, and gender significantly affect subtests of the PVLT. In the evaluation of reliability, significant positive correlations were observed between the variables of the PVLT in the standard/standard form. Furthermore, moderate correlations were observed between PVLT variables (immediate recall, short-delay recall, long-delay recall, and recognition), and the Immediate and Delayed Logical Memory subtests of Wechsler Memory Scale-Revised (WMS-R). However, subtests of the PVLT also showed significantly positive correlations with MoCA and non-verbal variables of WMS-R. CONCLUSION: According to the results of this study and given the good psychometric properties obtained, PVLT can potentially be used as a more appropriate tool than the SVLT for Persian-speaking older adults.

How might cancer patients experience existential guilt? A qualitative research.

OBJECTIVES: Existential guilt is a deep and multidimensional concept that is correlated with concepts, such as in/authenticity, existential anxiety, decisiveness, and personal and social responsibility. The aim of the present study is to investigate the experience of existential guilt among cancer patients. METHODS: The present research was conducted with a qualitative method with a content analysis design. A purposeful sampling method was used to select the participants and the sampling procedure went on until we reached data saturation. Data were obtained using semi-structured interviews with the participants. RESULTS: From a total of 18 interviews, 94 codes related to existential guilt were obtained. After the analysis, three main concepts were extracted: (1) incompleteness, (2) passivity, and (3) feelings of harm to self and others. Each of these had a number of subcategories. SIGNIFICANCE OF RESULTS: The participants of the present research were found to experience existential guilt in different ways. The research showed that it is necessary to find the sources of existential guilt in order that effective therapeutic attention can be given cancer patients.

The Challenges of Caring for an Adult Child with Schizophrenia in the Family: An Analysis of the Lived Experiences of Older Parents.

The present study aimed to investigate the lived experiences of older parents regarding the challenges in caring for adult children with schizophrenia. The current study was conducted on 16 parental (mother or father) caregivers of adult children with schizophrenia using a descriptive phenomenological qualitative approach and Colaizzi's seven-step method. This study follows the Qualitative Research Checklist (COREQ). The findings showed that the parent caregivers' experiences could be classified into two main themes: "burden of care" and "Negative attitude and inefficient performance." The former consisted of three sub-themes including "disrupted social and family interactions," "helplessness and inefficient support," and "challenges of the healthcare system," while the latter had two sub-themes including "Negative attitude and inefficient performance of the caregivers" and "Negative attitude and inefficient performance of families and society." Older parents have to tolerate a significant burden of care due to their age and physical conditions. Improving the knowledge of specialists, the government's redoubled efforts in multifaceted support for patients and caregivers, creating an integrated team of specialists, and accepting and improving public attitudes against stigma and obvious discrimination in society as important priorities in improving the condition of caregivers and patients with schizophrenia were considered.

Pragmatic abilities in children with neurodevelopmental disorders: development of Pragmatic Abilities Questionnaire based on the Rasch rating scale model.

BACKGROUND: Pragmatic abilities includes a set of skills that could vary by culture and which are absolutely essential for social communication. These abilities can be impaired in many children with neurodevelopmental disorders and may lead to educational and psychological difficulties. Assessing pragmatic abilities requires valid and reliable instruments that should be developed with cultural differences in mind. PURPOSE: This paper reports on the development of a new instrument for measuring and evaluating pragmatic abilities in children with neurodevelopmental disorders. METHODS AND PARTICIPANTS: The questionnaire items were generated based on a literature review on the theoretical basis of pragmatic abilities, the available pragmatic assessment instruments, interviews with experts and the mothers of children with neurodevelopmental disorders and the observation of their interaction with children based on the pragmatic protocol. Item selection and reliability and validity assessment for the instrument were carried out based on the Rasch rating scale model analysis. The Pragmatic Abilities Questionnaire (PAQ) was completed by the mothers of 185 normally-developing children and the mothers of 120 children with neurodevelopmental disorders, including Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), Specific Language Impairment (SLI), Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and Social (Pragmatic) Communication Disorder (SPCD). RESULTS: The initial pool of 119 items, reflecting the characteristics of pragmatic abilities, was first reduced to 80 after a review by ten experts, and then further reduced to 40 using the Rasch analysis for removing the misfitting items. The final PAQ had a person measure reliability of 0.97 with a separation of 6.03 and an item measure reliability of 0.99. The remaining items formed the questionnaire and measured a single construct, which explained 63.8% of the variance. CONCLUSION: The 40 items of the PAQ appear to construe a psychometrically-sound measure of pragmatic abilities.

Models of suicide in elderly: a protocol for a systematic review.

INTRODUCTION: The rates of suicide in the elderly population are generally higher than other age groups. Models of suicide that explain the phenomenon of suicide in later life may have research, clinical and educational implications for the field of ageing. The primary purpose of this systematic review is to identify and review existing models of suicide that have a particular focus on the elderly. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: The authors intend reviewing the findings of observational studies including cohort studies, cross-sectional studies, case-control studies, and qualitative studies such as grounded theory designs which are published in Google Scholar, Scopus, PsycINFO, PubMed, Web of Science, Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews and research-related journals. Models of suicide which specifically describe, explain and predict late life suicides will be included. Therapeutic, interventional and rehabilitation models, as well as models related to assisted suicide, will be excluded. The EndNote software will be employed for data management. Two independent reviewers will extract data. Methodological quality and the risk of bias of quantitative studies will be assessed using the Newcastle-Ottawa Scale and the Newcastle-Ottawa Scale adapted for cross-sectional studies, while that of qualitative studies will be assessed using the Critical Appraisal Skills Programme and the evaluative criteria of credibility, transferability, dependability and confirmability. The final report will present a range of models of suicide with a list of different subgroups. ETHICS AND PUBLICATION: There are no predictable ethical issues related to this study. The findings will be published in prestigious journals and presented at international and national conferences. PROSPERO REGISTRATION NUMBER: CRD42017070982.

The Role of Sexual Behaviors in the Relapse Process in Iranian Methamphetamine Users: A Qualitative Study.

BACKGROUND: The awareness of sexual experiences could be an effective factor in preventing high-risk sexual behavior pertaining to relapse during the recovery period of substances. This research explored the role of sexual behaviors among Iranian methamphetamine (MA) users in relapse process. METHODS: The study was conducted with a qualitative approach using content analysis method. 28 participants were selected through purposeful and theoretical sampling. Data were collected based on face-to-face, in-depth, semi-structured interviews based on open-ended questions. Interviews continued until the data saturation had occurred. All interviews were examined in four stages of codes, sub-categories, categories and themes according to the content analysis of explanations and descriptions of sexual behaviors. FINDINGS: Two main themes were emerged from the analysis of interviews, including extreme pleasure seeking (including the main categories of sexual tunnel vision and sexual totalitarianism) and comprehended threat (including the main categories of internal conflict and external disorganization) as well as 10 subcategories. CONCLUSION: The results indicated that sexual behaviors played an important role in relapse process among Iranian MA users and needed to be considered and managed properly in the planning of prevention, treatment, and rehabilitation.

Efficacy of Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy on Quality of Life of Mothers of Children with Cerebral Palsy.

OBJECTIVE: The findings demonstrated that parents of children with cerebral palsy experience elevated levels of distress, depression, anxiety, posttraumatic stress symptom and subjective symptom of stress and low quality of life. Effective interventions targeting relapse have the potential to dramatically reduce the point prevalence of this condition. Many studies have shown that Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) is an intervention that has shown efficacy in improving quality of life. In this study, the effect of Mindfulness -Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) on increasing quality of life in mothers of children with cerebral palsy has been examined. METHOD: Three mothers of CP children with low scores on quality of life in WHOQOL-BREF inventory participated in this single- case study. RESULTS: Findings revealed that the MBCT program elevated quality of life of the participants. The improvement quotient for quality of life of each participant was good . CONCLUSION: The results have implication for efficacy of mindfulness for improvement of psychosocial life of families of children with cerebral palsy.

Reduction of deterministic thinking among cancer patients as a new method to increase psychosocial adjustments.

BACKGROUND: Deterministic thinking is one of the major cognitive distortions. This type of thinking ignores any possibility in making a conclusion about events. Any consequence of an event may be thought as: 2×2= 4. Equality is a dominant factor among all conclusions of this kind of distortion. Distortion emerges in cognitive rigidity in the mind and could be the source of all distortions. Cognitive rigidity is a main reason for depression and other psychosocial maladjustments. METHODS: Challenging distortion was discussed as a new method for improving psychological conditions of cancer patients. Adapting the cultural base of the method, distortion is explained as a destructive factor which ruins the balance of fear and hope, the two important signs of faith in Islamic perspective. RESULTS: The consequence of challenging distortion to reduce depression and anxiety has been explained based on the Islamic Culture. CONCLUSION: For the first time, in this study, it was proposed that how this method can be used in the treatment of psychological disorders of cancer patients.