Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®
- Discipline
- File Type
Articles 1 - 8 of 8
Full-Text Articles in Clinical Psychology
Age-Related Differences In The Association Between Stereotypic Behaviour And Salivary Cortisol In Young Males With An Autism Spectrum Disorder, Vicki Bitsika, Christopher Sharpley, Linda Agnew, Nicholas Andronicos
Age-Related Differences In The Association Between Stereotypic Behaviour And Salivary Cortisol In Young Males With An Autism Spectrum Disorder, Vicki Bitsika, Christopher Sharpley, Linda Agnew, Nicholas Andronicos
Vicki Bitsika
To identify if age influenced the relationship between one of the central symptoms of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and physiological stress, the association between stereotypic behaviour (SB) and stress-related cortisol concentrations was examined in a sample of 150 young males with an ASD. Parent-rated SB was significantly correlated with cortisol concentrations for boys aged 6 years to 12 years but not for adolescents aged 13 years to 18 years. This age-related difference in this association was not a function of cortisol concentrations but was related to differences in SB across these two age groups. IQ did not have a significant …
Researching Depression In Prostate Cancer Patients: Factors, Timing, And Measures., Christopher Sharpley, Vicki Bitsika, David Christie, James Denham, Gillian Duchesne, Jeremy Couper
Researching Depression In Prostate Cancer Patients: Factors, Timing, And Measures., Christopher Sharpley, Vicki Bitsika, David Christie, James Denham, Gillian Duchesne, Jeremy Couper
Vicki Bitsika
Background: Due to the pressing need to understand the causal and associative factors of depression among prostate cancer (PCa) patients, a comprehensive research protocol for investigating depression in prostate cancer patients is suggested as a way of furthering the collection of data in consistent and informative ways. Methods: A detailed review of a range of predictors of, and buffers against, depression, plus methods of assessing depressive symptomatology and optimum time to collect data were used to develop a model for a comprehensive research protocol. Results: A model protocol is described that includes socioeconomic, genetic, endocrinal, immunological, physiological, psychological, relationship, and …
Variability In Depressive Symptoms Of Cognitive Deficit And Cognitive Bias During The First 2 Years After Diagnosis In Australian Men With Prostate Cancer, Christopher Sharpley, Vicki Bitsika, David Christie
Variability In Depressive Symptoms Of Cognitive Deficit And Cognitive Bias During The First 2 Years After Diagnosis In Australian Men With Prostate Cancer, Christopher Sharpley, Vicki Bitsika, David Christie
Vicki Bitsika
The incidence and contribution to total depression of the depressive symptoms of cognitive deficit and cognitive bias in prostate cancer (PCa) patients were compared from cohorts sampled during the first 2 years after diagnosis. Survey data were collected from 394 patients with PCa, including background information, treatments, and disease status, plus total scores of depression and scores for subscales of the depressive symptoms of cognitive bias and cognitive deficit via the Zung Self-Rating Depression Scale. The sample was divided into eight 3-monthly time-since-diagnosis cohorts and according to depression severity. Mean scores for the depressive symptoms of cognitive deficit were significantly …
Differences In Major Depressive Disorder And Generalised Anxiety Disorder Symptomatology Between Prostate Cancer Patients Receiving Hormone Therapy And Those Who Are Not, Christopher Sharpley, Vicki Bitsika, Addie Wootten, David Christie
Differences In Major Depressive Disorder And Generalised Anxiety Disorder Symptomatology Between Prostate Cancer Patients Receiving Hormone Therapy And Those Who Are Not, Christopher Sharpley, Vicki Bitsika, Addie Wootten, David Christie
Vicki Bitsika
Objective: The aim of this study is to explore the associations between hormone treatment variables and depression, and the nature of depression in prostate cancer (PCa) patients by comparing the severity and symptom profile of anxiety and depression in men who were currently receiving hormone therapy (HT) versus those who were not. Method: Self-reports of anxiety and depression on standardized scales of GAD and major depressive disorder (MDD) were collected from 156 PCa patients across two recruitment sites in Australia. Patients who were currently receiving HT were compared with patients not receiving HT for their severity and symptom profiles on …
Do Prostate Cancer Patients Suffer More From Depressed Mood Or Anhedonia?, Christopher Sharpley, Vicki Bitsika, David Christie
Do Prostate Cancer Patients Suffer More From Depressed Mood Or Anhedonia?, Christopher Sharpley, Vicki Bitsika, David Christie
Vicki Bitsika
Objective: This study aimed to compare the prevalence of depressed mood and anhedonia in a sample of men with prostate cancer (PCa) and to determine which of these key symptoms contributed most to the overall depressive status of that sample. Method: From Zung Self-rating Depression Scale (SDS) responses collected on 526 PCa patients, direct comparisons were made between the prevalence of the first two DSM-IV-TR symptoms of Major Depressive Episode. These symptoms were then tested for their predictive power on depression total score and Zung’s criteria for ‘clinically significant’ depression. Results: Mean scores for anhedonia were significantly higher than for …
Differences In Neurobiological Pathways Of Four "Clinical Content" Subtypes Of Depression, Christopher Sharpley, Vicki Bitsika
Differences In Neurobiological Pathways Of Four "Clinical Content" Subtypes Of Depression, Christopher Sharpley, Vicki Bitsika
Vicki Bitsika
Although often considered as a mental disorder, depression is best described as a behavioural-neurobiological phenomenon. In addition, although usually reported as a unitary diagnosis, Major Depressive Episode is composed of a range of different symptoms that can occur in nearly 1,500 possible combinations to fulfil the required diagnostic criterion. To investigate and describe the underlying behavioural and neurobiological substrates of these symptoms, they were clustered into "clinical content" subtypes of depression according to their predominant common behavioural characteristics. These subtypes were then found to possess different neurobiological pathways that argue for different treatment approaches.
The Role Of Melancholia In Prostate Cancer Patients' Depression, Christopher Sharpley, Vicki Bitsika, David Christie
The Role Of Melancholia In Prostate Cancer Patients' Depression, Christopher Sharpley, Vicki Bitsika, David Christie
Vicki Bitsika
Background: Although it is well established that prostate cancer (PCa) patients are more likely to experience clinical depression than their age-matched non-prostate cancer peers, and that such depression can have negative effects upon survival, little is known about the underlying nature of the depressive symptomatology that these men experience. In particular, the incidence of melancholic symptoms of depression, which are signs of increased risk of suicide and resistance to treatment, has not previously been reported in PCa patients. The present study aimed to measure the incidence and nature of Melancholia in PCa depression.
Method: A sample of 507 …
Treating The Client Rather Than The Symptoms: Moving Beyond Manualised Treatments In Psychotherapy, Vicki Bitsika, Christopher Sharpley
Treating The Client Rather Than The Symptoms: Moving Beyond Manualised Treatments In Psychotherapy, Vicki Bitsika, Christopher Sharpley
Vicki Bitsika
There have been some challenges to the reliance upon data from randomised controlled clinical trials when identifying ‘evidence-based’ psychotherapy treatments. Similarly, data show that use of treatment manuals does not result in uniform and beneficial outcomes, that some evidence-based treatments are little better than non-specific counselling and that the search for those therapies or components that are effective has been largely fruitless. In an attempt to extend the debate about evidence-based treatments and drawing upon those aspects of cognitive and behavioural therapies that have been shown to be effective in most settings, this article describes valued outcomes analysis and therapy …