How do self-concept differentiation and self-concept clarity interrelate in predicting sense of personal identity?

“It’s Allowed Me to Be a Lot Kinder to Myself”: Exploration of the Self-Transformative Properties of Solitude During COVID-19 Lockdowns

The Coronavirus (COVID-19) national lockdowns profoundly affected the lives of many, as significant portions of the U.K. population were involuntarily sequestered away from their usual social landscapes into newfound states of solitude. Many millennials (those between the ages of 25 and 40 at the point of study), having lived in an age of constant connection, found themselves in an extended period of solitude for the first time. The current qualitative study explores through Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) how some UK millennials were able to harness the unique self-transformative properties of positive solitude during the COVID-19 national lockdowns. Analysis revealed a narrative of self-discovery, as domains of positive solitude granted the participants freedom from the demands of performative social burdens and encouraged opportunities to engage with mindfulness and meaningful introspection. These activities, within the experience of solitude, encouraged an alignment of inward beliefs and outward behaviors for the participants, thus helping them to cultivate a more congruent self-concept and subsequently a heightened sense of authenticity and enhanced psychological well-being. Clinical implications leading on from the current study highlight the importance of mindfulness and other solitude-promoting interventions as a method to ameliorate depressive symptoms and improve psychological well-being.

Relations between attachment, identity and borderline personality disorder symptom severity in male inpatients with alcohol use disorder

Insecure attachment style and borderline personality disorder (BPD) symptoms are related to the severity of alcohol use disorder (AUD) and can also complicate its course and treatment. We propose a theoretical model of relationships between adult attachment style and BPD and AUD symptom severity in which the sense of identity is a mediator. The aim of our study was to test this model in a sample of male inpatients with AUD. Male inpatients with AUD (N = 114) aged 22-72 years (M = 43.05; SD = 9.84) completed the Experiences in Close Relationships-Revised, the Multidimensional Identity Questionnaire, the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test and the Borderline Symptom List 23. Results showed that the sense of identity fully mediated the positive relationship between attachment anxiety and BPD symptom severity. There was also a positive indirect effect of attachment avoidance on BPD symptoms via weaker sense of identity. Contrary to hypothesis, AUD symptom severity was not related to attachment, identity or BPD symptoms in our sample. Sense of identity could be a possible target for interventions for insecurely attached men with AUD to reduce BPD symptoms.

The association between attachment orientations and empathy: The mediation effect of self-concept clarity

Although earlier research had demonstrated significant links between attachment and self-concept clarity; attachment and empathy; and self-concept clarity and empathy respectively, there had been no studies examining these associations in conjunction with one another. Therefore, the present studies explored whether individual differences in self-concept clarity would mediate the relationship between attachment orientation (i.e., attachment anxiety and attachment avoidance) and empathy (i.e., empathic concern and personal distress). In Study 1, the association between attachment orientation and self-concept clarity was examined among 602 Hungarian university students. In Study 2, the relationship between attachment and empathy was investigated through self-concept clarity among 1000 Hungarian adults. The findings from both samples revealed that attachment avoidance and anxiety were negatively related to self-concept clarity. In Study 2, individuals with greater self-concept clarity showed greater empathic concern and lower personal distress. Attachment avoidance was associated with lower empathic concern, whereas there was no significant association with personal distress. Attachment anxiety was positively related to empathic concern and personal distress. Self-concept clarity partially mediated associations with attachment anxiety and aspects of empathy. These findings suggest the importance of attachment orientations in terms of their influence on the self with regard to interpersonal relations.

How Does Self-Concept Differentiation Work in Chinese Retirees: A Moderated Mediation Analysis

Self-concept differentiation (SCD) is a sign of fragmentation of the self rather than specialization of role identities for its robust relationship with psychological adjustment. However, little is known about the mechanisms underlying the relationship between SCD and psychological adjustment. The aim of this study was to examine the mediating role of self-consistency and congruence (SCC) in the association between SCD and psychological adjustment (psychological well-being, depression, and anxiety), and the moderating role of age in the relationship between SCD and SCC. This moderated mediation model was examined among 158 Chinese retirees (mean age = 71.12, SD = 9.13), who completed measurements regarding SCD, SCC, psychological well-being, anxiety, and depression. The results showed that SCC partially mediated the links between SCD and the indices of psychological adjustment. Furthermore, age moderated this mediation effect, which was found in mean and high-age participants, but not in low-age ones. Our findings indicate that, at different age stages, the internal mechanisms of SCD affecting psychological adaptation are not the same, and a low differentiated or highly integrated self can serve as an adaptive resource to maintain high subjective well-being of the elderly and protect them from anxiety and depression.

Nursing diagnoses of the self-perception domain in women in the puerperium

PURPOSE

During puerperium, women experience changes that may be responsible for disorders in the phenomenon of self-perception. Thus, the present study aims to analyze the nursing diagnoses of the self-perception domain of NANDA International Taxonomy II in puerperal women.

METHODS

Descriptive, cross-sectional, and quantitative study. The sample consisted of 153 women on puerperium followed in a University Hospital in a Brazilian capital. Data were collected through interviews with the application of an instrument. Data analysis was performed using descriptive and inferential statistics. The study was approved by the Research Ethics Committee (CAAE: 02849818.0. 0000.5208).

FINDINGS

The most prevalent Nursing Diagnosis of the self-concept class was Readiness for enhanced self-concept, which presented statistically significant associations with two defining characteristics. The risk for situational low self-esteem was the most prevalent Nursing Diagnosis in the Self-esteem class and presented associations to two risk factors. The Nursing Diagnosis Disrupted body image, present in the Body Image class, showed associations with 11 significant defining characteristics.

CONCLUSIONS

The analysis of the Nursing Diagnosis of the Self-Perception domain can assist in planning interventions directed to the specific needs of women in the puerperium.

IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING PRACTICE

This study may contribute to the development of specific interventions to the reality of the puerperal, encouraging the nursing professional to implement the Nursing Process in the clinical practice. It may also contribute to the refinement of the NANDA-II taxonomy and the advancement of nursing research, in addition to providing safe clinical practice grounded in scientific knowledge for planning educational actions in puerperal women in order to minimize the negative perceptions experienced by them.

You Can't See the Real Me: Attachment Avoidance, Self-Verification, and Self-Concept Clarity

Attachment shapes people's experiences in their close relationships and their self-views. Although attachment avoidance and anxiety both undermine relationships, past research has primarily emphasized detrimental effects of anxiety on the self-concept. However, as partners can help people maintain stable self-views, avoidant individuals' negative views of others might place them at risk for self-concept confusion. We hypothesized that avoidance would predict lower self-concept clarity and that less self-verification from partners would mediate this association. Attachment avoidance was associated with lower self-concept clarity (Studies 1-5), an effect that was mediated by low self-verification (Studies 2-3). The association between avoidance and self-verification was mediated by less self-disclosure and less trust in partner feedback (Study 4). Longitudinally, avoidance predicted changes in self-verification, which in turn predicted changes in self-concept clarity (Study 5). Thus, avoidant individuals' reluctance to trust or become too close to others may result in hidden costs to the self-concept.