De Rossi Elena, Imperatori Claudio, Sciancalepore Francesco, Prevete Elisabeth, Maraone Annalisa, Canevelli Marco, Tarsitani Lorenzo, Pasquini Massimo, Farina Benedetto, Bersani Francesco Saverio
Experimental and Applied Psychology Laboratory, Department of Human Sciences, European University of Rome.
National Center for Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Italian National Institute of Health, Rome, Italy.
Clin Neuropsychiatry. 2024 Jun;21(3):195-204. doi: 10.36131/cnfioritieditore20240305.
Obsessive and compulsive symptoms (OCS) are cross-cutting psychopathological manifestations frequently detected in a variety of clinical and non-clinical samples. It has been suggested that impaired mentalization abilities and traumatic experiences during childhood may be relevant etiopathogenetic factors in the development of OCS. The purpose of the current study was to cross-sectionally assess these variables in a non-clinical sample, testing the mediational role of mentalization abilities in the association between childhood trauma (CT) and OCS.
667 participants (488 females; mean age= 29.76 ± 11.87 years; age range: 18-80) answered a survey including the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire, the Mentalization Questionnaire and the Obsession-Compulsion subscale of the Brief Symptom Inventory.
The mediation model was significant for the total effect (p< .001), showing that CT was positively associated with OCS (95% CI: .006; .019) and that this association was mediated by reduced levels of mentalization capacity (95% CI: .003; .009). Such results were significant controlling for potential sociodemographic and clinical confounding variables.
The findings contribute to elucidate the complex relationships between CT, mentalization capacity, and OCS, supporting the possibility that mentalization impairments, arising from CT, may affect top-down control mechanisms thus contributing to the development of OCS.
强迫症状（OCS）是在各种临床和非临床样本中经常检测到的交叉性精神病理表现。有人提出，童年时期心理化能力受损和创伤经历可能是OCS发展的相关病因因素。本研究的目的是在一个非临床样本中对这些变量进行横断面评估，检验心理化能力在童年创伤（CT）与OCS之间关联中的中介作用。
667名参与者（488名女性；平均年龄 = 29.76 ± 11.87岁；年龄范围：18 - 80岁）回答了一项调查，该调查包括儿童创伤问卷、心理化问卷和简明症状量表的强迫分量表。
中介模型对总效应具有显著性（p <.001），表明CT与OCS呈正相关（95%置信区间：.006；.019），且这种关联由心理化能力水平降低介导（95%置信区间：.003；.009）。在控制了潜在的社会人口统计学和临床混杂变量后，这些结果具有显著性。
这些发现有助于阐明CT、心理化能力和OCS之间的复杂关系，支持了由CT引起的心理化损害可能影响自上而下的控制机制从而导致OCS发展的可能性。
