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Plank L, Zlomuzica A. Reduced speech coherence in psychosis-related social media forum posts. SCHIZOPHRENIA (HEIDELBERG, GERMANY) 2024; 10:60. [PMID: 38965247 PMCID: PMC11224262 DOI: 10.1038/s41537-024-00481-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/20/2024] [Accepted: 06/16/2024] [Indexed: 07/06/2024]
Abstract
The extraction of linguistic markers from social media posts, which are indicative of the onset and course of mental disorders, offers great potential for mental healthcare. In the present study, we extracted over one million posts from the popular social media platform Reddit to analyze speech coherence, which reflects formal thought disorder and is a characteristic feature of schizophrenia and associated psychotic disorders. Natural language processing (NLP) models were used to perform an automated quantification of speech coherence. We could demonstrate that users who are active on forums geared towards disorders with a higher degree of psychotic symptoms tend to show a lower level of coherence. The lowest coherence scores were found in users of forums on dissociative identity disorder, schizophrenia, and bipolar disorder. In contrast, a relatively high level of coherence was detected in users of forums related to obsessive-compulsive disorder, anxiety, and depression. Users of forums on posttraumatic stress disorder, autism, and attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder exhibited medium-level coherence. Our findings provide promising first evidence for the possible utility of NLP-based coherence analyses for the early detection and prevention of psychosis on the basis of posts gathered from publicly available social media data. This opens new avenues for large-scale prevention programs aimed at high-risk populations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laurin Plank
- Department of Behavioral and Clinical Neuroscience, Ruhr-University Bochum (RUB), D-44787, Bochum, Germany
| | - Armin Zlomuzica
- Department of Behavioral and Clinical Neuroscience, Ruhr-University Bochum (RUB), D-44787, Bochum, Germany.
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Adelina N, Chan CS, Takano K, Yu PHM, Wong PHT, Barry TJ. The Stories We Tell Influence the Support We Receive: Examining the Reception of Support-Seeking Messages on Reddit. CYBERPSYCHOLOGY, BEHAVIOR AND SOCIAL NETWORKING 2023; 26:823-834. [PMID: 37870772 DOI: 10.1089/cyber.2023.0144] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/24/2023]
Abstract
Although social support facilitates coping and recovering from stressful life events, people do not always get the support that they need. Prior research suggests that the way one talks about stressful events to others may influence the support they receive. Given that people are increasingly relying on online communities for social support, this study adopted a person-centered approach (latent profile analysis) to examine how narrative variables related to the motivational themes, emotional content, and organizational structure of randomly sampled support-seeking messages (N = 495) posted on Reddit (r/Anxiety and r/Depression) influenced the quantity (number of comments and post score) and quality (type of support in comments) of support that they received. We identified five distinct narrative profiles of support-seeking posts, which in turn differentially predicted the quality, but not quantity, of social support people received. While commenters provided high levels of emotional support to all forms of posts, we found that coherence was an important determinant of esteem support. A combination of coherence, as well as agency and affective tone, were important determinants of instrumental, informational, and network support. The ways in which one talks about their problems influence the way others support them.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nadia Adelina
- Department of Psychology, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, Hong Kong
| | - Christian S Chan
- Department of Psychology, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, Hong Kong
- Division of Arts and Sciences, College of Liberal Arts, International Christian University, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Keisuke Takano
- Department of Psychology, Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich, Munich, Germany
- Human Informatics and Interaction Research Institute (HIIRI), National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST), Tokyo, Japan
| | - Placida Hoi Man Yu
- Department of Psychology, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, Hong Kong
| | | | - Tom J Barry
- Department of Psychology, University of Bath, Bath, United Kingdom
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Kapoor N, Hallford DJ, Altmann T. Cognitive dependencies and psychological health correlates of coherence in autobiographical reasoning. Memory 2023; 31:1205-1217. [PMID: 37599512 DOI: 10.1080/09658211.2023.2249272] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/23/2023] [Accepted: 08/14/2023] [Indexed: 08/22/2023]
Abstract
Autobiographical reasoning is a process by which an individual creates a coherent life account. The degree of coherence in autobiographical reasoning has been related to psychological health correlates such as depression and self-esteem in previous studies, but with inconsistent findings. Similarly, the basic psychological processes required to achieve coherence have been previously studied with regard to intelligence, but infrequently, and also with mixed findings. In the present study, we first developed and evaluated a German version of the Awareness of Narrative Identity Questionnaire (ANIQ) as an established measure of self-reported coherence. Second, we tested for cognitive dependencies on intelligence and memory indices. Third, we analysed its associations with psychological health correlates. We assessed a sample of 272 participants and thereof 189 participants again two-weeks later. Results supported the assumptions of the German ANIQ's psychometric qualities (factor structure, test-retest reliability, invariance) and validity (with regard to self-consciousness, self-concept clarity, and written accounts of personal turning points). We found coherence to be independent of intelligence and verbal memory, but partially dependent on figural memory. Coherence was related to depression, positivity, self-esteem, and self-esteem stability, but not to anxiety, substantiating its salutogenic effects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Niket Kapoor
- Institute of Psychology, University of Duisburg-Essen, Essen, Germany
| | | | - Tobias Altmann
- Institute of Psychology, University of Duisburg-Essen, Essen, Germany
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Dierdorp NH, Vanderveren E, Hallford DJ, Hermans D. A validation of the Dutch version of the Awareness of Narrative Identity Questionnaire (ANIQ-NL). PLoS One 2023; 18:e0287935. [PMID: 37368905 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0287935] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/04/2023] [Accepted: 06/15/2023] [Indexed: 06/29/2023] Open
Abstract
Individuals build a narrative identity through the construction of an internalised, unfolding life story based on significant autobiographical memories. The current study validated a Dutch version of the Awareness of Narrative Identity Questionnaire (ANIQ-NL), which assesses how aware individuals are of having a narrative identity as well as their perception of the global coherence within their autobiographical memories, specifically, in terms of temporal ordering, causal connections and thematic integration. The questionnaire was administered to 541 adults (65.1% female, Mage = 34.09, SDage = 15.04, age range = 18-75). The results of a confirmatory factor analysis provided evidence for a four-factor structure, consisting of awareness and the three coherence subscales. The factor loadings of the items varied between .67 and .96. Moreover, the ANIQ-NL subscales showed good to excellent internal consistency, with Cronbach's alphas ranging from .86 to .96. Furthermore, higher levels of perceived autobiographical memory coherence were found to be significantly correlated to lower levels of depression, anxiety, and stress symptoms. The ANIQ-NL was determined to be a valid and reliable tool to measure narrative identity awareness and perceived narrative coherence. Future research could utilise the ANIQ-NL to further investigate the role of narrative identity in psychological well-being.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Elien Vanderveren
- School Psychology and Development in Context, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | | | - Dirk Hermans
- Centre for the Psychology of Learning and Experimental Psychopathology, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
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Barry TJ, Takano K, Hallford DJ, Roberts JE, Salmon K, Raes F. Autobiographical memory and psychopathology: Is memory specificity as important as we make it seem? WILEY INTERDISCIPLINARY REVIEWS. COGNITIVE SCIENCE 2023; 14:e1624. [PMID: 36178082 DOI: 10.1002/wcs.1624] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/28/2022] [Revised: 08/02/2022] [Accepted: 08/26/2022] [Indexed: 05/20/2023]
Abstract
Several decades of research have established reduced autobiographical memory specificity, or overgeneral memory, as an important cognitive factor associated with the risk for and maintenance of a range of psychiatric diagnoses. In measuring this construct, experimenters code autobiographical memories for the presence or absence of a single temporal detail that indicates that the remembered event took place on a single, specific, day (Last Thursday when I rode bikes with my son), or multiple days (When I rode bikes with my son). Studies indicate that the specificity of memories and the amount of other episodic detail that they include (e.g., who, what, and where) are related and may rely on the same neural processes to elicit their retrieval. However, specificity and detailedness are nonetheless separable constructs: imperfectly correlated and differentially associated with current and future depressive symptoms and other associated intrapersonal (e.g., rumination) and interpersonal (e.g., social support) outcomes. The ways in which the details of our memories align with narrative themes (i.e., agency, communion, identity) and the coherence with which these details are presented, are also emerging as important factors associated with psychopathology. The temporal specificity of autobiographical memories may be important, but other memory constructs warrant further attention in research and theory, especially given the associations, and dependencies, between each of these constructs. Researchers in this area must consider carefully whether their research questions necessitate a focus on autobiographical memory specificity or whether a more inclusive analysis of other autobiographical memory features is necessary and more fruitful. This article is categorized under: Psychology > Memory.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tom J Barry
- Faculty of Social Sciences, The University of Hong Kong, Pok Fu Lam, Hong Kong
- Department of Psychology, The University of Bath, Bath, UK
| | - Keisuke Takano
- Division of Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, Department of Psychology, Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich, Munich, Germany
| | | | - John E Roberts
- Department of Psychology, University at Buffalo, the State University of New York, Buffalo, New York, USA
| | - Karen Salmon
- School of Psychology, Victoria University of Wellington, Wellington, New Zealand
| | - Filip Raes
- Centre for Learning Psychology and Experimental Psychopathology, University of Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
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Vanaken L, Waters TEA, Boddez Y, Bijttebier P, Hermans D. Reconciling a phenomenological with a functional approach to memory: narrative coherence and its social function. Memory 2021; 30:354-368. [PMID: 34895062 DOI: 10.1080/09658211.2021.2009877] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
Abstract
To date, the phenomenological and functional aspects of autobiographical memory have by and large been studied separately. This is quite remarkable, given that both can inform each other, and that investigating their interaction can add to the understanding of the (in)adaptivity of certain memory characteristics for our well-being. In other words, examining how particular features of autobiographical memory are adept or inept at serving specific functions, could help us to better comprehend and explain relations between memory and psychological well-being. We discuss previous attempts to integrate phenomenology with functionality and formulate three main directions for future research based on the current state of the art. The directions concern (1) focusing on functionality (adaptivity) and not merely on the use of memories in phenomenological work, (2) attention for the bidirectionality of the relation between phenomenology and functionality, and (3) the addition of narrative constructs like coherence to the traditional range of phenomenological features. We will illustrate our directions for the reintegration of phenomenology with functionality through the social function of coherent autobiographical memories. This framework could help to stimulate future empirical studies and pave the road for new clinical interventions to improve psychological well-being.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lauranne Vanaken
- Centre for the Psychology of Learning and Experimental Psychopathology, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | | | - Yannick Boddez
- Centre for the Psychology of Learning and Experimental Psychopathology, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium.,Department of Experimental Clinical and Health Psychology, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium
| | - Patricia Bijttebier
- School Psychology and Development in Context, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Dirk Hermans
- Centre for the Psychology of Learning and Experimental Psychopathology, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
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Vanaken L, Vanderveren E, Waters TEA, Bijttebier P, Fivush R, Hermans D. It's all in the details: An investigation of the subcomponents of narrative coherence in relation to mental health. APPLIED COGNITIVE PSYCHOLOGY 2021. [DOI: 10.1002/acp.3859] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Lauranne Vanaken
- Centre for the Psychology of Learning and Experimental Psychopathology, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences KU Leuven Leuven Belgium
| | - Elien Vanderveren
- Centre for the Psychology of Learning and Experimental Psychopathology, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences KU Leuven Leuven Belgium
- Department of Clinical Psychological Science, Faculty of Psychology and Neuroscience Maastricht University Maastricht The Netherlands
| | - Theodore E. A. Waters
- Department of Psychology New York University – Abu Dhabi Abu Dhabi United Arab Emirates
| | - Patricia Bijttebier
- School Psychology and Development in Context, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences KU Leuven Leuven Belgium
| | - Robyn Fivush
- Institute for the Liberal Arts Emory University Atlanta Georgia USA
| | - Dirk Hermans
- Centre for the Psychology of Learning and Experimental Psychopathology, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences KU Leuven Leuven Belgium
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Vanaken L, Bijttebier P, Fivush R, Hermans D. Narrative coherence predicts emotional well-being during the COVID-19 pandemic: a two-year longitudinal study. Cogn Emot 2021; 36:70-81. [DOI: 10.1080/02699931.2021.1902283] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Lauranne Vanaken
- Centre for the Psychology of Learning and Experimental Psychopathology, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Patricia Bijttebier
- School Psychology and Development in Context, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Robyn Fivush
- Institute for the Liberal Arts, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Dirk Hermans
- Centre for the Psychology of Learning and Experimental Psychopathology, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
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Vanaken L, Bijttebier P, Hermans D. An Investigation of the Coherence of Oral Narratives: Associations With Mental Health, Social Support and the Coherence of Written Narratives. Front Psychol 2021; 11:602725. [PMID: 33519609 PMCID: PMC7838430 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2020.602725] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/05/2020] [Accepted: 12/18/2020] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Research Questions In a first research question, we examined whether the relations that are generally observed between the coherence of written autobiographical narratives and outcomes of mental health and social support, can be replicated for the coherence of oral narratives. Second, we studied whether the coherence of oral narratives is related to the coherence of written narratives. Methods Pearson correlations and t-tests were calculated on data of two separate studies to examine the research questions. Results First, only thematic coherence of oral narratives was significantly, although moderately, negatively associated to symptoms of depression, anxiety and negative social interactions. Second, the coherence of oral narratives was higher than the coherence of written narratives. Only the thematic coherence of oral narratives was positively associated with thematic and total coherence of written narratives. Furthermore, correlations between written and oral narratives were stronger for negative narratives as compared to positive narratives. Discussion The ability to elaborate emotionally and make meaning out of important life events in oral narratives is, to a certain extent, related to better mental health and more social support. Furthermore, thematic coherence may be a relatively stable feature of individuals' narrative styles that is reflected in narratives of different modalities. Nonetheless, these topics need to be further researched to overcome present limitations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lauranne Vanaken
- Centre for the Psychology of Learning and Experimental Psychopathology, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Patricia Bijttebier
- School Psychology and Development in Context, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Dirk Hermans
- Centre for the Psychology of Learning and Experimental Psychopathology, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
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