Browsing by Author "Martins, MJ"
Now showing 1 - 5 of 5
Results Per Page
Sort Options
- Facial emotion processing in schizophrenia: a review of behavioural and neural correlatesPublication . Grave, J; Soares, SC; Martins, MJ; Madeira, NSchizophrenia is one of the most severe psychiatric conditions, often associated with deficits in social cognition. Social cognition deficits are predictors of functionality in patients and involve theory of mind, attributional style, social perception, and emotional processing. In particular, facial emotion processing (an important domain of emotional processing) seems to be particularly related to cognitive and social functioning, and to positive and negative symptoms. Patients with schizophrenia have difficulties in processing emotional faces; however, those impairments are still far from fully understood. In this review, we addressed the behavioural and neural correlates of facial emotion processing in schizophrenia. Despite studies showing impairments in both positive and negative faces, the most consistent findings involved negative faces. Moreover, patients with schizophrenia showed abnormalities in the social brain neural circuit during facial emotion processing. While some studies described hypoactivation of brain areas related to emotional processing, such as the amygdala, others reported hyperactivation, leading to a high number of inconsistencies. The findings are limited by the experimental designs used, and the clinical and demographic characteristics of patients. Despite such variable findings, there has been growing interest in developing psychosocial interventions focused directly on social cognitive impairments in schizophrenia, with potential impact on patient’s ability to perceive emotional faces. We provide a critical perspective on current evidence and suggest new pathways of research. The understanding of the mechanisms underlying facial emotion processing in schizophrenia could enhance functionality and quality of life by providing innovative approaches to the interpersonal difficulties patients frequently experience.
- Pathways from paranoid conviction to distress: exploring the mediator role of Fears of Compassion in a sample of people with psychosisPublication . Martins, MJ; Castilho, P; Carvalho, CB; Pereira, AT; Carvalho, D; Bajouco, M; Madeira, N; Santos, V; Macedo, A
- Preliminary results of an Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) brief group intervention for psychosis.Publication . Castilho, P; Pinto, AM; Viegas, R; Carvalho, S; Madeira, N; Martins, MJAcceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) is a contextual-behavioral therapy with promising results in various psychological disorders, including psychosis. This study aims to compare the potential benefits of a 4-session ACT group intervention with the interventions commonly offered in Portugal. ACT participants improved in a wider range of measures and 2 of the 3 patients improved significantly in both symptoms, cognitive processes and positive indicators of adjustment (without any deterioration). Future studies should explore the relationship between participants’ clinical profile and benefits from ACT interventions.
- Proliferação celular e ploidia em esfregaços do colo uterino: estudo evolutivoPublication . Costa, FJ; Martins, MJ; Bombas, MT; Santos, PP; Diniz, M; Agapito, P; Manarte, A; Rodrigues, V; Oliveira, CF; Martins, MI; Oliveira, HM
- Social Cognition, Negative Symptoms and Psychosocial Functioning in Schizophrenia.Publication . Madeira, N; Caldeira, S; Bajouco, M; Pereira, AT; Martins, MJ; Macedo, AAlthough functional recovery could be advocated as an achievable treatment goal, many effective interventions for the treatment of psychotic symptoms, such as antipsychotic drugs, may not improve functioning. The last two decades of cognitive and clinical research on schizophrenia were a turning point for the firm acknowledgment of how relevant social cognitive deficits and negative symptoms could be in predicting psychosocial functioning. The relevance of social cognition dysfunction in schizophrenia patients’ daily living is now unabated. In fact, social cognition deficits could be the most significant predictor of functionality in patients with schizophrenia, non-redundantly with neurocognition. Emerging evidence suggests that negative symptoms appear to play an indirect role, mediating the relationship between neurocognition and social cognition with functional outcomes. Further explorations of this mediating role of negative symptoms have revealed that motivational deficits appear to be particularly important in explaining the relationship between both neurocognitive and social cognitive dysfunction and functional outcomes in schizophrenia. In this paper we will address the relative contribution of two key constructs—social cognitive deficits and negative symptoms, namely how intertwined they could be in daily life functioning of patients with schizophrenia.