Rasskazova, E.I.

Background. Suicidal risk in adolescence and youth refers to one of the actual forms of autodestructive behaviour associated with socio-psychological factors.

Objective. The aim was to reveal the relationship between subjective dissatisfaction with the interpersonal communication and signs of psychological difficulties (aggressive behavior, substance use, anxious and obsessive thoughts, suicidal thoughts) in adolescents and young people with different levels of suicidal risk.

Methods. Participants filled in the interpersonal needs questionnaire (INQ-15) and a questionnaire diagnosing signs of psychological difficulties.

Sample. 92 adolescents and young adults aged 12–21 years without experience of suicidal thoughts, 132 adolescents and young adults with experience of suicidal thoughts but not actions, as well as 55 adolescents and young people who were treated in crisis hospitals for suicidal acts took part in the study.

Results. The Russian version of the Interpersonal Needs Questionnaire is a reliable and factor valid technique to assess the feelings of burdensomeness and thwarted belongingness in adolescents and young adults. Suicidal risk in adolescents and young adults is associated with interpersonal failure, loneliness, longing, which leads into feelings of burdensomeness and thwarted belongingness. In adolescents and youth with different suicidal risk, these feelings of burdensomeness and thwarted belongingness are associated with the recognition of psychological problems, and feelings of burden are associated with the recognition of aggressive behavior. The feeling of thwarted belongingness is associated with aggressive behavior only in adolescents and young people with suicidal thoughts and actions.

Conclusion. The association of feelings of burdensomeness and thwarted belongingness with the recognition of psychological problems in different suicidal risk groups, and the association of feelings of burden with the recognition of aggressive behavior indicates the importance of interpersonal communication factors in understanding subjective well-being in adolescents and young adults in general

Background. The COVID-19 pandemic has created an unprecedented model for psychology to explore the factors of adherence to recommendations, vaccination and protective actions in a situation of uncertainty.

Objective. The aim of the study is to reveal the relationship between attitudes towards health and readiness for treatment with adherence to recommendations and protective actions during the pandemic.

Methods. In November-December 2020, 523 respondents aged 18 to 65 filled in scales to assess their tendency for monitoring information about the pandemic, level of anxiety caused by the pandemic, vaccination, and protective actions during the pandemic, their readiness for vaccination, illness-related locus of control, self-efficacy in relation to treatment, “hypochondriac discourse”, as well as readiness for treatment and ideas on the specifics of medication.

Results. Respondents were more willing to actively comply with safety recommendations if they (1) had external locus of control in treatment — this effect was both direct and indirect, which implied higher pandemic anxiety; (2) believed in alternative medicine methods; (3) declared readiness for treatment; and also (4) valued health care as a resource conservation, which influenced compliance indirectly — through the higher pandemic anxiety. Adherence to self-isolation was higher with health being more important as a means of protection against risk (both direct and indirect effects) and indirectly (because of greater pandemic anxiety) as well as with an external locus of control for treatment. Vaccination readiness depended on the internal locus of control for illness causes, lower internal and higher external locus of control for treatment, and also distrust toward the medical system. At the same time, mistrust in the medical system was characterized by two indirect effects in relation to lower readiness for vaccination: on the one hand, distrust was associated with greater anxiety about the pandemic and therefore greater readiness for vaccination, and on the other hand, with greater anxiety about vaccination and therefore less readiness for it. Respondents reported better lifestyle control in cases of more pronounced self-efficacy, confidence in the importance of taking care of health and resorting to the methods of alternative medicine, as well as declared readiness for treatment. Outdoor trips were associated with self-efficacy and confidence in the importance of treatment with alternative medicine. Both of these effects were not explained by pandemic anxiety and vaccination anxiety.

Conclusion. Active and passive adherence to recommendations, as well as other ways of caring for health, depend differently on attitudes towards health and readiness for treatment.

Background of the work is associated with the high significance of an accurate assessment of the adaptive potential of a transsexual sent for transgender transition. To date, psychological constructs that make it possible to predict this potential look unconvincing due to the blurriness of these constructs, as well as ways to evaluate them. The ability for adequate self-assessment is proposed as a relevant construct.

Objective is to state the self-esteem of transsexuals at different stages of transgender transition in comparison with non-transexuals.

Methods. The anonymous questionnaire includes the M. Kuhn — T. McPartland test «Who am I» modified by A. Thostov, E. Rasskazova, V. Emelin (2014); «Cognitive Beliefs Inconsistency Study Method» (Rasskazova, Thostov, Abramova, 2015); «Satisfaction with Life Scale» (Diener, Emmons, Larsen, Grin, 1985; adapted by E. Osin, D. Leontiev, 2008). ANOVA is used in the SPSS 23 program.

Sample. Control group: 120 cisgender people. Main group: 151 transsexuals: Male-to-Female (MtF), Female-to-Male (FtM).

Results. Well-being level of MtF in final stage of transgender transition is equal to that of cisgender people, and FtM's level is lower (F = 8.384; P < 0.01). FtM in all stages of transgender transition give higher marks of social recognition of their self-identifications than MtF
(F = 8.996; P < 0.01). FtM rate their masculinity from the point of friends' view higher than MtF (F = 3.413; P < 0.05). MtF transsexuals in all stages of transgender transition rate their self-identifications lower than FtM (F = 3.532; P < 0.05).

Conclusion. FtM have an overestimation of self-esteem in terms of masculinity, social recognition. It is associated with psychological compensation of a lower level of well-being than MtF. MtF more accurately rate reality in all stages of transgender transition and do not resort to compensatory mechanisms.

Background. The present paper discusses the relevance of identifying oneself with a professionalism, the attitude to the profession and the role in the professional activity as an integral characteristic of the professional identity among representatives of different positions.

Objective. The identification of the relationship between the professional identity and satisfaction with professional activities (work process, working conditions, organization, choice of profession, etc.) and well-being in the workplace among representatives of various positions.

Sample. 11 558 employees (7,373 women, 63.8%, and 4,175 men, 36.2%) of a large energy company in the Russian Federation.

Methods. The participants filled in the questionnaire on the components of job satisfaction, the scales of the work involvement, the boredom at the workplace, the emotional exhaustion and initiative.

Results. The representatives of different positions are most satisfied with the benefits of their work for people, with their choice of profession and the profession itself and the labour process but they are less satisfied with the working conditions, payment, management and professional prospect. As for representatives of all the positions, involvement in the work, a low level of boredom and emotional exhaustion and initiative depend on not only the satisfaction with working conditions, payment, management and the professional prospect but also on the satisfaction with the choice of profession, the profession itself, its content, the benefit to people and the labour process.

Conclusion. Regardless of the position and satisfaction with working conditions, the satisfaction with the choice of profession, its content and benefits for people and the labour itself predict the involvement in work, initiative, a low level of emotional exhaustion and the boredom at work.

Relevance. Modern society creates the image of a successful person as actively interacting with different information flows, including an impressive stream of news content. This paper assumes that there is a personal need for tracking and spreading news that develops in the interaction between a person and digital world. The individual level of this need could explain the interaction with information (its critical and uncritical dissemination) and the subjective experience of its redundancy and inaccuracy, including those experiences and actions in a pandemic situation. 

The aim of the study was to reveal the relationship of the subjective need for news with personal values, beliefs about technologies (“technophilia”) and the dissemination of news about the pandemic. 

Method. 270 people (aged 18 to 61) filled out The short (Schwartz) Portrait Values Questionnaire (PVQ), Beliefs about New Technologies Questionnaire, Monitoring of Information about Coronavirus Scale as well as items on the subjective need for receiving and disseminating news, readiness for critical and non-critical dissemination of news about pandemics, subjective experiences of redundancy and distrust of pandemic-related information. 

Results. According to the results, the Need for News Scale allows assessing the subjective importance of receiving news and discussing them with other people and is characterized by sufficient consistency and factor validity. The need for regular news is more pronounced among men, older people, people with higher education, married people, people who have children, while the need to discuss news is not related to sociodemographic factors. For people who are more prone to technophilia it is more important to regularly receive and discuss news information with others, which, in turn, mediates the relationship between technophilia and monitoring news about coronavirus. The need for news dissemination mediates the relationship between technophilia and readiness for critical and non-critical dissemination of information about the pandemic.

Acknowledgement: The study was supported by the Russian Science Foundation, project No 18-18-00365 "Digital socialization of cultural-historical perspective: intragenerational and intergenerational analysis". 

Relevance. The spread of coronavirus infection is accompanied by the dissemination of information messages in the form of radical beliefsaffecting people’s behaviour. 

The aim of the study was to reveal the relationship between beliefs about coronavirus and its treatment, magical thinking, anxiety and the protective behaviour against to the pandemic. Methods. 402 adults aged 18–64 years old filled checklist including beliefs about causes, manifestations, consequences and control of the pandemic, Illness and Treatment Locus of Control Scale, Treatment Self-Efficacy Scale, Magical Ideation Scale as well as scales measuring anxiety and protective behaviour in pandemic and monitoringof information about coronavirus. 

Results. Factor analysis revealed three groups of radical beliefs about coronavirus: negligence as the cause of the occurrence and spread of coronavirus, a particular meaning of morbidity and negative consequences of the pandemic. 

Conclusion. Belief inthe negligence as a cause of coronavirus was more typical for people with an intrinsic locus of causes of the causes of illness but extrinsic locus of control of treatment and for those who were prone to protective behaviour in the pandemic. Belief about the particular meaning of coronavirus was associated with the magical thinking, the intrinsic locus of control of the causes of illness, less anxiety about infection and poorer compliance with self-isolation. Radical beliefs about the consequences of the pandemic were related to more frequent monitoring of the information about the pandemic, extrinsic locus of control of treatment but intrinsic locus of control of causes of illness and a pronounced anxiety regarding future negative consequences of the pandemic.

Relevance. In psychosomatics, subjective attributions of the causes of the disease are considered as one of the components of illness representation. In somnology, the disfunctional beliefs about illness reasons are considered as a factor in insomnia perpetuation. Study of the characteristics of subjective perceptions of sleep disorders reasons in good sleepers versus sleep disorders, as well as their relationship to well-being, can help to clarify theoretical knowledge about the functions of reasons’ representations in various illnesses.

Objective. The aim was to compare the subjective reasons of sleep disorders in good sleepers, insomnia, parasomnias and sleep apnea, as well as to reveal the relationship between beliefs about the reasons of sleep disorders and anxiety and depression.

Methods. The clinical group consisted of 77 patients with sleep apnea syndrome, 18 patients with parasomnias, 105 patients with chronic insomnia who filled the Checklists of Sleep Quality, Subjective Reasons of Sleep Disorders, Screening for Sleep Apnea, Epworth Sleepiness Scale, Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale. In 46 patients with apnea, 15 patients with parasomnias and 93 patients with insomnia, polysomnography was performed over one night. The control group included 102 people, 67 of them with periodic sleep complaints, and 33 without sleep complaints who filled Checklists of Sleep Quality, Subjective Reasons of Sleep Disorders.

Results. Good sleepers are characterized by a wide range of sleep problems’ attributions. In case of complaints for some sleep problems, the focus on emotional causes was enhanced while in case of chronic disorders, the number of reasons was narrowed to those specific for that sleep disorder. In both apnea and insomnia, subjective belief that sleep is disturbed by unpleasant sensations in the arms and legs was especially stressful for participants and was associated with depression and marginally associated with anxiety. Attribution of sleep disorders to life events was associated with a higher level of anxiety, especially in insomnia.

Conclusions. The data supports the hypothesis that some subjective reasons of sleep disorders are associated with psychological distress, regardless of the subjective and objective quality of sleep.

Relevance. Both personality and clinical psychology suppose many empirical examples describing the disengagement from activity and shifting to another one as quite effective: e.g., unfulfilled dreams and regret for them, severe illnesses or disabling conditions, etc. These examples demonstrate the importance of study of refusal from the goal and goal change as special self-regulatory processes that are not reducible to other processes of self-regulation (e.g., planning, modeling, achievement) and can be productive. Such studies require a validated measure.

Objective. The aim of this work was to validate the Russian-language version of the Goal Disengagement and Re-Engagement Scale, proposed in the self-regulation theory by C. Carver and M. Scheier.

Methods. 287 students and 4792 employees of a large production organization filled out the Russian-language version of the Goal Disengagement and Re-Engagement Scale (Wrosch et al., 2003a). The students also filled the Inventory of Styles of Behavior Self-regulation, a modification of the J. Kuhl’s Action Control Scale Test, a Cognitive Emotion Regulation Questionnaire.

Results. Both internal consistency and factor structure of the scale were demonstrated in both samples. The external validity of the scale is confirmed by the expected pattern of correlations with action / state orientation, behavior self-regulation and strategies of cognitive regulation of emotions. The results of the hierarchical regression analysis show that goal disengagement and reengagement differ from other aspects of  self-regulation of behavior not only structurally (at the level of their correlations with each other) but also functionally: after statistical control of the other aspects of self-regulation, goal disengagement and reengagement still predict a number of cognitive strategies regulation of emotions.

Conclusions. The psychometric properties of the Russian-language version of the Goal Disengagement and Re-Engagement Scale are sufficient for its application for research purposes. Further studies could focus on the differentiation of the process of goal change and other self-regulatory processes, especially their effect on the productivity, health, well-being.

The problem of differentiation of personal profiles based on MMPI is traditionally solved either theoretically with help of the 2- or 3-peak coding system, or is empirically based on the results of a cluster analysis of clinical scales. In the first case, the encoding system looks unreasonably complicated. In the second case, the results are vulnerable to criticism, on the one hand, due to interference of the scales themselves, and, on the other hand, due to not taking into account measurement errors and due to restrictions for clusters differentiated. In this paper, we propose an alternative based on the latent profile analysis of restructured clinical scales of MMPI-2. Based on the normative sample of the validation of the Russian-language Minnesota multifactorial personality questionnaire, second version, (MMPI-2, N = 1443), four types of latent profiles were identified: normative one with mean values for most scales and a small peak on the Hypomanic Activation scale, “neurotic” profile with an increase in the “neurotic triad” scales, “psychopathic-like” profile with high scores on all scales and peaks on the scales of schizophrenia, paranoia and psychasthenia, and “defensive / suppressive” profile with extremely low scores on all scales and a small peak on the scale of low level of positive emotions. Profiles’ comparison by the content and supplementary scales of MMPI-2 and "Big Five" traits suggests that in those having the “psychopathic-like” profile, the risk of externalized problems is maximal and the risk of internalized problems is high. Those with the “neurotic” profile have a high risk of internalized problems, while their distinctive trait is the experience of social discomfort. The analysis of “defensive” profile suggests possible difficulties associated with chronic suppression of emotions, in particular, somatization and sudden affect expressions.

Paper presents results of validation of the Russian version of The Revised Illness Perception Questionnaire developed by R. Moss­-Morris and colleagues for the diagnostic of patient’s beliefs about causes, duration, consequences, treatment of illness, and their ability to control it. The sample (N=80) included three groups of patients aged 17—26 years (mean age 20.2±2.8 years) with non­psychotic depression within mood disorders (n=33), personality disorders (n=22) and schizotypal disorder (n=25). In order to establish the external validity of the questionnaire patients filled Beck’s Cognitive Insight Scale, Illness­ and Treatment­Related Locus of Control Scale and Treatment­Related Self­efficacy Scale . Factor validity and reliability of IPQ­R was demonstrated . Patients of all three groups tend to explain their illness by personality and (to a lesser extent) situational factors, to believe in the importance and effectiveness of the treatment, in their ability to control their illness. They consider illness as short­term and not of a cyclical nature. Supporting the external validity of the questionnaire we demonstrated that beliefs about illness and its reasons correlates with results of the interview, cognitive insight, illness­ and treatment­related locus of control and treatment­related self-efficacy.

The paper analyzes opportunities and limitations of stage models in health psychology (trans-theoretical model, precaution adoption process model) comparing to traditional continuum models and actively developing self-regulation models. Theoretical basis for stage models (orientation to practical problems, analysis of behavior dynamics and associated processes, descriptive approach, understanding of the model effectiveness as an accuracy of classification and description of the transitions between stages) and problematic spheres (discrete/continuous process of change, descriptive/explanatory nature of the basic constructs). Heuristic nature of stages models is proved in solving the original problem of behavior description while their vulnerability to criticism is demonstrated because of the implicit transition to the problem of his explanation.

There is a growing interest in psychiatry and somatic medicine to the cognitive approach in psychology was associated with an increased interest in the psychological and behavioral factors involved in the etiology and pathogenesis of hypochondriacal disorders (HD). Th e paper gives a review of modern psychological approaches to hypochondriasis. First, we analyze the role of psychological phenomena in the diagnostics of HD demonstrating necessity of hierarchical and system relationships between development and dynamics of unexplained somatic symptoms, generalized anxiety and health anxiety. Second, four factors possibly precipitating, triggering or perpetuating disease are analyzed: somatosensory amplifi cation, health anxiety, motivational and personality factors, illness behavior, “hypochondriac” discourse adopted in contemporary society. The dynamics of hypochondriacal symptoms when each of the four factors dominate in the clinical picture is discussed from body regulation psychology approach and cultural-historical approach in psychosomatics. Possibilities of developing and validating a psychological model of hypochondriasis are suggested.

The paper discusses the role of hardiness in organizations and the issues of its assessment. The results of a study aimed at development and validation of a short 24­item Russian version of the Hardiness Survey by D.A. Leontiev and E.I. Rasskazova are presented. Using a student sample data (N=1285), a subset from the set of 45 existing items were selected for the short version that was subsequently validated in a large process plant employee sample (N=4647). Using confirmatory factor analysis, a one­dimensional structure of the test was supported (with a single hardiness factor and two independent method factors corresponding to systematic bias associated with regular and reverse­scored items). The resulting shortened scale showed high reliability (Cronbach’s alpha of 0.91). Convergent validity was demonstrated by predictable associations with other measures of psychological well­being, including dispositional optimism, optimistic attributional style, hope, general self­efficacy, tolerance for ambiguity, subjective vitality, life satisfaction, work satisfaction, and intrinsic motivation in academic and professional domains. The resulting short version of the Hardiness Survey can be recommended for diverse samples.

The paper is devoted to approaches to the quality of life in different human sciences (psychology, medicine, economics, sociology) and demands to the methods of the diagnostics. Major types of diagnostic instruments (population-based indicators and indexes, standardized questionnaires, individualized techniques) are reviewed; their strengths and limitations are discussed. 

Objective. Knowledge, expectations and fears about chemotherapy and radiation therapy for cancer, affecting the subjective well-being and emotional condition of patients, may indirectly affect treatment satisfaction and complaints of side effects.

The aim was to compare treatment representations in patients referred to radiation therapy and chemotherapy, and to identify its relationship with health anxiety and subjective well-being.

Methods and participants. 53 patients referred to radiation therapy and 63 patients referred to chemotherapy completed the Scale of Treatment Representation in Oncological Diseases, Illness and Treatment Self-Regulation Questionnaire, Satisfaction with Life Scale and Scale of Positive and Negative Experiences.

Results. According to the results, the key difficulties with regard to radiation therapy in patients are a lack of understanding of treatment process and a general concern about the need for it. Compared to radiation therapy, with chemotherapy, patients tend to be more doubtful about the effectiveness of treatment and more anxious about the need for it. Moderated mediation analysis demonstrated that lack of understanding, doubts about the effectiveness and anxiety about radiation and chemotherapy are associated with subjective ill-being indirectly - through a higher level of health anxiety.

Conclusions. Feelings of helplessness with regard to treatment mediated the relationship between doubts and confidence about treatment effectiveness and well-being in both groups. With radiation therapy, confidence in the need for treatment was indirectly associated with better well-being - through lower health anxiety.

The psychological model of insomnia based on cognitive model of insomnia and cultural approach in psychosomatics is discussed in this article. There are emphasized perpetuating factors of insomnia and different kind of behavior as insomnia consequences. Social psychological factors triggering and increasing anxiety and attentions to sleep are supposed: personality and culturally specific beliefs about sleep and insomnia (beliefs about sleep hygiene, sleep control, attitude to insomnia in the society). Different patients’ reactions to the insomnia — psychological dependence on medicine, sleep “ritual”, self-restrictive behavior, and active changes in life — influence on the development and treatment outcomes in a different manner.