Network dynamics of positive and negative affect in bipolar disorder

Effects of cigarette abstinence on negative and positive affect by depression symptom levels: A lab study

The current study investigated individual and group-level daily relations between affect and physical activity among 37 non-sedentary community-dwelling older women. The study expected that (a) positive affect would hold a significant, positive synchronous relation with physical activity and (b) negative affect would hold a significant, negative synchronous relation with physical activity over six consecutive days. Women over age 55 (M = 71.5, SD = 9.4) participated by completing four daily assessments (8am, 12pm, 4pm, 8pm) of positive and negative affect and physical activity on a hand-held computer Monday through Saturday. Affect was measured using the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS; Watson, Clark, & Tellegen, 1988). Physical activity was measured using the Physical Activity Scale (PAS; Aadhal & Jorgensen, 2003). The PAS provided information on the level (i.e., metabolic equivalent values) and time in a physical activity to be later calculated as estimated energy expenditure. Regression curve estimations were conducted to determine individual relations among study variables. Thirty-five percent of participants held a significant positive relation between positive affect and physical activity over the study period. For negative affect and physical activity, 13.5% of participants held a significant, primarily negative relation between negative affect and physical activity. For both sets of analyses, significant linear and quadratic trends emerged. Group-level analyses used structural equation modeling to test day-to-day relations between affect and physical activity. No significant paths from affect to physical activity emerged; however early-week positive affect and physical activity predicted mid-week positive affect and physical activity, respectively. Repeated measures MANOVAs were conducted to determine if there were within-day differences in affect and physical activity. The study found both positive affect and physical activity follow similar, significant cubic trends within a day. Participants began their day with low levels of positive affect and physical activity, reported highest levels by 12pm, and a steady decline the remainder of the day. Discussion focuses on the future development of reliable and valid measures of daily affect and physical activity, the use of handheld computers among older women, and potential intervention implications regarding diurnal variations in affect and physical activity among community-dwelling older women.

BackgroundThe World Health Organization ranks bipolar disorder (BD) as the 7th leading cause of disability. Although the effects on those with BD are well described, less is reported on the impact of BD on cohabiting partners or any interactions between the two; this requires in vivo data collection measured each day over several months.ObjectiveWe set out to demonstrate the utility of ecological momentary assessment with BD couples measured using yoked smartphone apps. When randomly prompted over time, we assumed distinct patterns of association would emerge between BD symptoms (both depression and hypo/mania) and partner mood (positive and negative affect).MethodsFor this pilot study, we recruited an international sample of young and older adults with BD and their cohabiting partners where available. Both participants and partners downloaded separate apps onto their respective smartphones. Within self-specified “windows of general availability,” participants with BD were randomly prompted to briefly report symptoms of depression and hypo/mania (ie, BDSx), positive and negative mood (ie, POMS-15; partners), and any important events of the day (both). The partner app was yoked to the participant app so that the former was prompted roughly 30 minutes after the participant with BD or the next morning if outside the partner’s specified availability.ResultsFour couples provided 312 matched BD symptom and partner mood responses over an average of 123 days (range 65-221 days). Both were GPS- and time-stamped (mean 3:11 hrs between questionnaires, SD 4:51 hrs). Total depression had a small but significant association with positive (r=–.14; P=.02) and negative partner affect (r=.15; P=.01]. Yet total hypo/mania appeared to have no association with positive partner affect (r=–.01; P=.87); instead, negative partner affect was significantly correlated with total hypo/mania (r=.26; P=.01). However, when we look specifically at BD factors, we see that negative partner affect is associated only with affrontive symptoms of hypo/mania (r=.38; P=.01); elation or loss of insight appears unrelated to either positive (r=.10; P=.09) or negative partner affect (r=.02; P=.71). Yet affrontive symptoms of hypo/mania were significantly correlated with negative affect, but only when couples were together (r=.41; P=.01), not when apart (r=.22; P=.12). That is, these angry interpersonal symptoms of hypo/mania appear to be experienced most negatively by spouses when couples are together.ConclusionsThese initial findings demonstrate the utility of in vivo ambulatory data collection in longitudinal mental health research. Preliminary analyses suggest different BD symptoms are associated with negative and positive partner mood. These negative effects appear greater for hypo/mania than depressive symptoms, but proximity to the person with BD is important.

There are well-established theoretical and empirical foundations for a negative association between trait positive affectivity and anxiety symptoms in anxiety disorders and a positive association between trait negative affectivity and anxiety symptoms, respectively. However, no previous meta-analysis systematically estimated to what extent trait positive and negative affectivity are associated with anxiety symptoms in anxiety disorders. The aim of this study was to conduct a systematic review and meta-analysis to obtain an evidence-based estimate of the associations between trait positive and negative affectivity with anxiety symptoms in anxiety disorders. We performed a systematic search including studies reporting estimates of the associations between trait positive and negative affectivity measures and anxiety measures in clinical populations that suffer from at least one anxiety disorder. We identified 13 and 14 eligible studies, documenting 19 and 21 mainly unpublished effect sizes from 1489 individuals that suffer from an anxiety disorder. We estimated an overall correlational effect size (r) using multilevel meta-analytic models accounting for within- and between-study variance components. The results of the omnibus models showed a small to moderate negative association between positive affectivity and anxiety symptoms (r = -0.19, 95 % CI [-0.30, -0.09]) and a strong positive association between negative affectivity and anxiety symptoms respectively (r = 0.53, 95 % CI [0.44, 0.61]). These associations are different from each other (r = .35, p < .001). The results are consistent with theoretical claims that anxiety disorders are highly associated with negative affectivity but to a lesser extent with positive affectivity. More research and systematic documentation are necessary to determine moderators of these overall associations.

ABSTRACTNightshift workers experience circadian misalignment thus negatively impacting many physiological systems which can change subjective states such as affect. The current study examined change in affect and affective state across a simulated first nightshift. Ninety sleep‐deprived college students (33% female) completed a series of surveys and tasks across four testing sessions during the night. The participants completed the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule at the beginning of each testing session. Using these affect scores, we derived four affective state types defined by high and low positive and negative affect (Self‐actualizing‐high positive affect with low negative affect, High affective‐high positive affect with high negative affect, Self‐destructive‐low positive affect with high negative affect, Low affective‐low positive affect with low negative affect). A 2 (positive affect/negative affect) x 4 (time) repeated measures ANOVA was used to examine change over time in the positive and negative affect scores. A Friedman test with a Wilcoxon Signed Ranks test was performed to determine if there was a significant change in affective state across the four testing sessions. The current results indicate that positive affect decreased across the night while negative affect remained low and stable. The four derived affective states changed across the night with decreases in the high positive affective states, and increases in low positive affective states. These results suggests that nightshift workers experience stress‐inducing conditions that negatively impact positive affect and affective state. Workers and organisations should anticipate decreased positive affect and positive affective states during nightshifts and consider appropriate mitigation strategies.

BackgroundImpulsivity is a prominent feature of bipolar disorder associated with various negative sequelae; moreover, it may be a precursor to shifts in affect or mood, but little is known about its association with affect on a day-to-day timescale. Ecological momentary assessments (a method that captures moment-to-moment ratings of psychological states by repeatedly sampling the same individual) of impulsivity and affect using mobile surveys allow for more nuanced examination of mechanisms of mood and behavior dysregulation. However, few existing studies have validated an ecological momentary assessment of impulsivity in bipolar disorder and examined its time-lagged associations with positive and negative affect. 70 participants with bipolar disorder and 102 healthy comparisons participated in an intensive longitudinal study: they underwent 14 days of ecological momentary assessment data collection annually for 1–4 years. Multiple measures of impulsivity and affect were collected using self-report, behavioral, and ecological momentary assessment modalities; these measures were compared, and levels of impulsivity were compared between bipolar disorder and healthy comparison groups. Time-lagged analyses using daily means explored the next-day predictive relationship of impulsivity on positive/negative affect, and vice versa.ResultsThe ecological momentary measure of impulsivity was moderately correlated with the self-report but not behavioral impulsivity measure. Bipolar disorder participants evinced higher self-report, behavioral, and daily impulsivity than healthy comparison participants. Time-lagged analyses revealed a bi-directional association between high impulsivity and high next-day negative (but not positive) affect. Post hoc analyses showed that impulsivity specifically predicted next-day anger and anxiety.ConclusionsOur multimodal assessment of impulsivity allowed for an examination of the day-to-day course of impulsivity and affect, crucial steps toward understanding the mechanisms of mood symptom and episode onset in bipolar disorder.

Does morning affect contribute to daily Cannabis use?

The aim of the present study was (1) to examine the longitudinal effect of negative and positive affect in the parent-child, marital and sibling relationship on adolescent internalizing and externalizing problems, and (2) to compare the strengths of these effects for the different family relationships, for internalizing and externalizing problems, and for negative and positive affect. In this longitudinal study, 280 families (father, mother, and two adolescents 11–15 years old) reported on their affective relationships. Adolescents also reported on their problem behavior. Our results show significant longitudinal effects of negative and positive affect of the parent-adolescent and sibling relationship on adolescent internalizing and externalizing problem behavior. Neither positive nor negative marital affect were significant predictors of adolescent problem behavior. Model comparison showed that the effects were similar for externalizing versus internalizing problems, and for negative versus positive affect. Our study supports the notion that the family system is important for adolescent functioning, as the different family subsystems have different effects on adolescent internalizing and externalizing problems. An interesting finding is the relatively large contribution of the father-adolescent and sibling relationship to adolescent problem behavior. Whereas these relationships are usually not the focus of intervention, our results suggested that these relationships also deserve attention.

In the context of eating disorders, the negative reinforcement model states that binge eating and purging reduce negative affect. Expanding on prior work mostly conducted with women, this study examines affective trajectories surrounding binge eating, purging, and exercise among sexual minority men. We conducted a 7-day experience sampling study with a community sample of 529 sexual minority men. Participants received eight daily surveys assessing positive and negative affect, binge eating, purging, and exercise. We assessed affective trajectories pre- and post-behavior using multilevel polynomial regression models. Across 7 days, 37% of participants binged, 10% purged, and 70% exercised at least once. Before binge eating and purging, negative affect increased and positive affect decreased, indicating worsening mood. After binge eating and purging, negative affect decreased, indicating improved mood. Positive affect increased post-binge but did not change post-purge. Results were consistent on binge-only and purge-only days (i.e., no co-occurrences of binge eating, purging, or exercise on the same day). Exercise followed a different pattern: before exercise, negative affect did not change, and positive affect increased. After exercise, negative affect increased and positive affect decreased, indicating worsening mood. However, negative affect did not increase after exercise-only occasions. These findings support the negative reinforcement model of binge eating and purging among sexual minority men. Surprisingly, exercise was not consistently associated with changes in negative affect and dampened positive affect. These findings suggest clinicians should incorporate affect regulation training in treating binge eating and purging to support sexual minority men navigate stressors.

Diener et al. (1995) used a multimethod approach to test a hierarchical model of trait affect. The model suggests that specific trait affects are related to each other by two, distinct, but negatively correlated factors. We report the results of a conceptual replication study that addressed several limitations of Diener et al.'s (1995) study. We used three ethnically diverse samples which included a group of undergraduates along with both of their biological parents. As such, in terms of generalizability, we improved upon the original study which was limited to a student sample by also including middle-aged adults as targets. Most importantly, we included measures of hedonic tone to validate the interpretation of the higher-order factors as positive affect and negative affect. Also, we did not average informant ratings to model individual rating biases. Further, we used item-level indicators rather than item averages as indicators of basic affects. Our results confirm Diener et al.'s (1995) model and demonstrate that positive trait affect and negative trait affect are negatively correlated and account for the covariance among specific affects. We discuss the implications of these results in the context of personality theories that consider positive trait affect and negative trait affect as independent factors related to extraversion and neuroticism, respectively (Costa & McCrae, 1980). We argue that this model cannot account for the negative correlation between positive affect and negative affect and that further research is needed to locate affect within the Big Five model of personality. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

Objective Non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI), the deliberate and self-inflicted damage of body tissue, typically serves an emotion regulation function. Both negative and positive affectivity have been associated with NSSI, as has low distress tolerance. In the current study, we tested whether relationships between both negative and positive affectivity and NSSI are moderated by the four facets of distress tolerance (tolerance, absorption, appraisal, regulation) captured by the Distress Tolerance Scale. Methods A sample of 531 university students completed well-validated measures of NSSI, negative affectivity, positive affectivity, and distress tolerance. Results Findings indicate that negative and positive affectivity, as well as the appraisal (i.e. negative perceptions of distress) and absorption (i.e. allocation of attention to distress) facets of distress tolerance, were directly associated with NSSI. Positive affectivity and appraisal also interacted in differentiating participants with recent, lifetime and no history of NSSI. Specifically, the association between negative perceptions of distress and self-injury was weaker at high levels of positive affectivity. Positive affectivity and absorption also interacted to differentiate between individuals with no history of NSSI and individuals who recently engaged in NSSI. Specifically, positive affectivity was negatively associated with self-injury, but only among individuals who allocate less attention to their distress. Conclusions Considering the independent roles of negative and positive affectivity alongside specific facets of distress tolerance and their interactions with emotional experience, may enhance understanding of NSSI. Prevention and intervention initiatives that assist regulation of negative affectivity, increase positive affectivity, and improve distress tolerance, may reduce the likelihood of engaging in self-injury. Highlights Negative and positive affectivity are independently associated with NSSI Appraisal and absorption facets of distress tolerance are associated with NSSI Positive affectivity moderates associations between appraisal and absorption and NSSI

Opposing scenarios about age-related increases and decreases in intraindividual variability are found in the literature: Whereas accumulating evidence indicates that cognitive functioning is characterized by an age-related increase of short-term variability, age-related decreases in variability could be expected in affective states on the basis of theories of emotion regulation and self development. We examined age differences in intraindividual variability of positive affect (PA) and negative affect (NA) and in contingencies among daily affect, daily stress, and daily events using up to 45 daily assessments of 18 young (20-30 years) and 19 older (70-80 years) adults. Whereas age groups differed little in average affect levels, older adults showed significantly less variability in PA and NA than young adults. Age differences accounted for greater variance in variability than personality factors. Multilevel modeling indicated that for young but not older adults, PA was higher (lower) on days with a positive (negative) event, and NA was lower on days with a positive event. There were no age differences in daily affect reactivity to appraised stress severity.

IntroductionRumination is a transdiagnostic risk factor to psychopathology that has mostly been studied in relation to depression (Nolen-Hoeksema, 1991). However, rumination may also occur in response to positive events and emotions (Feldman et al., 2008), and may be a protective factor as it is associated with higher positive affect (Harding et al., 2017).ObjectivesWe aimed to examine ruminative response to positive affect (RPA) in daily life and explore its relationship with daily positive and negative affect. We hypothesized that daily positive and negative affect would be associated with daily RPA even after controlling for trait-level RPA and depressive rumination.MethodsWe carried out a daily diary study with university students (n=178). After filling out the baseline survey assessing trait-level rumination, participants had to answer short surveys online about their daily affect and daily rumination every evening for 10 consecutive days. We analyzed our data with multilevel regression in R.ResultsIn line with our expectations, daily RPA was significantly associated with daily positive (β=0.16) and negative affect (β=-0.07), while trait-level rumination scores were not significantly associated with daily positive and negative affect. The within-person relationship was stronger between RPA and positive affect (β=0.17) than the between-person relationship (β=0.09). Daily and trait-level rumination were weakly correlated (r=0.218-0.284).ConclusionsUnder ecologically valid conditions, we found that daily rumination was more important in daily affective experiences than trait-level rumination. Understanding whether one’s current affect is more strongly associated with trait-level, state-level or even contextual factors may yield better intervention strategies for affective disorders.DisclosureNo significant relationships.

Economic inequality has been increasing as a global trend and has profound implications for subjective well-being. However, the affective dimension of subjective well-being remains relatively underexplored. The present research aimed to understand the psychological impact of economic inequality on individuals’ affect and the underlying mechanisms. We hypothesized that economic inequality would decrease positive affect and increase negative affect. Across three experimental studies ( N = 450), we found strong evidence that high economic inequality increased negative affect, but had no significant effect on positive affect. Moreover, we examined income as a moderating variable and found that income did not moderate the effects of economic inequality on either positive or negative affect (Studies 1 and 2). Regarding potential mechanisms, we focused on cognitive factors, as they represent the immediate psychological processes through which inequality-related information is interpreted and given meaning. Specifically, the present study examined three cognitive factors: system justification beliefs, social comparison, and attributions for inequality. The results showed that system justification beliefs explained the effects of economic inequality on both positive and negative affect, such that awareness of high economic inequality weakened system justification beliefs, which in turn elicited lower positive affect and stronger negative affect (Study 3). However, social comparison (Study 2) and attributions for inequality (Study 3) did not account for the effects of economic inequality on either positive or negative affect. These findings contribute to the literature by establishing the causal effect of economic inequality on negative affect and by identifying a mediating mechanism that accounts for the relationship between economic inequality and both positive and negative affect.

BackgroundMental well-being (MWB) may play an important role in physical activity (PA) behavior, but the independent associations of affective MWB indicators and depressive symptoms with PA are sparsely investigated in late adulthood. We investigated the associations of positive affect, negative affect, and depressive symptoms with PA during the COVID-19 restrictions across late adulthood.MethodsCross-sectional data came from two Finnish population-based studies. The younger cohort (N = 162, 56% women, 60–61 years) was drawn from the TRAILS study, and the older (N = 272, 60% women, 72–88 years) from the PASSWORD study. Data on PA frequency (1–7; from “not at all” to “approximately daily”) and perceived changes in PA (no change/increased/reduced) during COVID-19 restrictions were self-reported. MWB was assessed by positive and negative affect (International Positive and Negative Affect Schedule Short Form) and depressive symptoms (younger cohort: General Behavioral Inventory; older cohort: Geriatric Depression Scale). Associations between MWB and PA were analyzed using linear and multinominal logistic regression models.ResultsWhen each MWB indicator was investigated separately, higher positive affect was associated with higher PA frequency in both cohorts and with a higher likelihood of increased PA in the younger cohort; higher negative affect was associated with a higher likelihood of reduced PA in the older cohort; higher depressive symptoms were associated with lower PA frequency in both cohorts and with a higher likelihood of reduced PA in the older cohort (p ≤ 0.009 for all), In the final models including all three MWB indicators, socioeconomic, and health-related covariates, only the association between higher positive affect and higher odds of increased PA remained significant in the younger cohort (OR = 4.28, p = 0.006). In the older cohort, only the associations of higher depressive symptoms with lower PA frequency (β=-0.097, p = 0.024) and higher odds of reduced PA (OR = 1.26, p = 0.010) remained significant.ConclusionsPositive affect was independently associated with increased PA during the COVID-19 restrictions in sixty-year-olds. Higher depressive symptoms were independently associated with lower PA frequency and a higher likelihood of reduced PA in 72-88-year-olds. Positive and negative aspects of MWB have different relations to PA among people aged 60 and 70 + when one’s daily routines are restricted.Trial registration numberISRCTN52388040 (the PASSWORD study).