ORCID Profile
0000-0002-4339-2660
Current Organisations
University of Nottingham - Malaysia Campus
,
Deakin University
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Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 07-2018
DOI: 10.1016/J.BRS.2018.04.013
Abstract: Studies are increasingly investigating the therapeutic effects of deep brain stimulation (DBS) applied to a variety of brain regions in the treatment of patients with highly treatment refractory depression. Limited research to date has investigated the therapeutic potential of DBS applied to the Bed Nucleus Of Stria Terminalis (BNST). The aim of this study was to explore the therapeutic potential of DBS applied to the BNST. Five patients with highly treatment resistant depression underwent DBS to the BNST in an open label case series design. BNST DBS resulted in sustained remission of depression in two of the five patients, provided substantial therapeutic improvement two further patients, and had minimal antidepressant effect for the final patient. There were no operative complications and stimulation related side effects were limited and reversible with adjustment of stimulation. However, the time to achieve and complexity of programming required to achieve optimal therapeutic outcomes varied substantially between patients. DBS applied to the BNST as therapeutic potential in patients with highly refractory depression and warrants exploration in larger clinical studies.
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 28-02-2023
DOI: 10.1007/S10508-023-02534-5
Abstract: Recent reviews of the pornography literature have called for the development of valid and reliable measures that assess multiple facets of pornography use. Moreover, despite pornography use having important implications for romantic relationships, there are currently no self-report assessments of pornography use specifically within the context of romantic relationships. To address these limitations, the current paper reports on two studies regarding the development and psychometric evaluation of a 38-item multidimensional measure of pornography use within the context of romantic relationships: the Pornography Use in Romantic Relationships Scale (PURRS). Study 1 ( n = 739) reports on an Exploratory and Confirmatory Factor Analytic approach to determine the factor structure of the PURRS. Study 2 ( n = 765) reports on the cross-validation of the factor structure of the PURRS, before assessing the criterion validity of the measure. The PURRS exhibited good internal consistency, construct validity, and criterion validity. The findings suggest that the PURRS is best modeled by 13 first-order factors, though a higher-order factor structure comprising four broad factors may also be used. The PURRS significantly extends on past assessments of pornography use, and in particular, advances the assessment and study of pornography use within the context of romantic relationships.
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 09-2020
DOI: 10.1111/AJPY.12287
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 12-07-2023
DOI: 10.1111/SPC3.12827
Abstract: Although negative anticipatory emotions are typically seen as risk factors for poorer psychological outcomes over COVID‐19, emotion theorists suggest that this risk may be attenuated if balanced by the experience of positive emotion. Thus, the current study examined whether interactions between positive and negative anticipatory emotions were concurrently associated with psychological distress and greater personal wellbeing osttraumatic growth (PTG) at three distinct periods (i.e., pre‐lockdown, during lockdown, post‐lockdown), and whether associations varied by these three COVID‐19 time periods. The study utilizes two large longitudinal Australian s les, surveyed in 2020 prior to, during, and after a strict 4‐month lockdown that occurred in Australia. Overall, positive emotions attenuated the adverse psychological outcomes arising from higher levels of negative emotion (i.e., higher psychological distress and lower personal wellbeing). Observed effects varied according to COVID‐19 threat exposure. Specifically, the interaction was significantly associated with psychological distress prior to the lockdown for S le 2, and during the lockdown for both s les. The interaction was significantly associated with wellbeing (S le 2) prior to, and during, the lockdown but only marginally associated post‐lockdown. The interaction, however, was not significantly associated with PTG (S le 1). The results suggest that it is valuable for future research to consider greater emotional complexity (i.e., mixed emotions) over COVID‐19, and other stressors more generally, to encompass a more nuanced understanding of resilience.
Publisher: American Psychological Association (APA)
Date: 03-2023
DOI: 10.1037/VIO0000439
Publisher: SAGE Publications
Date: 10-04-2023
DOI: 10.1177/15248380231161012
Abstract: Negative, destructive, and abusive behaviors in romantic relationships can vary from explicit kinds of abuse and aggression to more subtle and seemingly innocuous slights against or ways of treating a partner. However, regardless of the severity or explicit nature, these behaviors all, to one extent or another, reflect acts of invalidation, disrespect, aggression, or neglect toward a partner, and could be considered maltreatment of a partner. The current paper proposes the term partner maltreatment as a broad overarching concept, which was used to facilitate a meta-analytic synthesis of the literature to examine the associations between attachment insecurity (i.e., attachment anxiety, attachment avoidance) and perpetration of partner maltreatment. Additionally, this paper situated partner maltreatment within an attachment-based diathesis-stress perspective to explore the moderating role of stress. Five databases were systematically searched for published and unpublished studies that examined the direct association between perpetrator’s adult attachment orientation and perpetration of partner maltreatment behaviors. We synthesized effect sizes from 139 studies ( N = 38,472) and found the effect between attachment insecurity and acts of partner maltreatment varied between r = .11 to .21. Our findings provide meta-analytic evidence to suggest that attachment insecurity is a significant in idual vulnerability factor (diathesis) associated with partner maltreatment and that when in iduals with an insecure attachment orientation experience stress, the tendency to perpetrate partner maltreatment is typically heightened. The findings of this meta-analysis provide empirical evidence for the importance of considering and addressing contextual factors, especially stress, for those in iduals and couples seeking therapy for partner maltreatment.
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 12-2018
DOI: 10.1016/J.JPAIN.2018.06.003
Abstract: Athletes seem to have higher pain tolerance than the normally active population. It is unknown whether psychological factors contribute to their supranormal pain tolerance. The aim of this pilot study was to examine pain-related psychological processes in ultramarathon runners ('ultrarunners') and to explore whether psychological factors mediate the elevated pain tolerance displayed by ultrarunners. Forty participants took part in the study: 20 ultrarunners and 20 age- and gender-matched controls. Participants underwent the cold pressor test using water cooled to 0.1 to 0.5°C and completed the Pain Catastrophizing Scale, Pain Anxiety Symptoms Scale-20, Pain Vigilance and Awareness Questionnaire, and Pain Resilience Scale. Immersion time on the cold pressor test was significantly longer for the ultrarunners (P = .007) and they also had lower scores on all Pain Anxiety Symptoms Scale-20 subscales (P ≤ .030). The 2 groups did not differ significantly on the other questionnaires. Mediation analysis revealed that reduced pain-related escape and avoidance behaviors accounted for 40% of the difference in immersion time between the groups (P = .020). Our results suggest that ultrarunners have lower levels of pain-related anxiety than the general population and that their supranormal pain tolerance is partially mediated by reduced pain-related escape and avoidance behaviors. PERSPECTIVE: This study investigated whether psychological factors contribute to the supranormal pain tolerance displayed by ultrarunners. It found that ultrarunners have lower levels of pain-related anxiety than nonrunning controls and that reduced pain-related escape and avoidance behaviors partially mediate their elevated pain tolerance.
Publisher: Center for Open Science
Date: 07-10-2020
Abstract: It has been assumed that the COVID-19 pandemic has negatively impacted parental and family relationships due to issues including economic problems, strains of home confinement and social isolation. Despite these assumptions, there has been little research to date investigating the impact of COVID-19 stressors on parents’ relationship wellbeing and loneliness. Hence, there is an insufficient evidence base with which to guide policy or action in this most critical arena. The current study reports data from a large national representative s le (N=1,829) of Australian parents, surveyed during the early phases of the COVID-19 lockdown. Drawing on widely studied relationship models of vulnerability-stress and stress-buffering, Structural Equation Models (SEM) were derived to test the extent that COVID-19 stressors, personal vulnerabilities (mental health problems, attachment insecurity), relationship adaptation processes (constructive communication, partner support), and the interactions between these variables, predicted relationship quality and loneliness. After controlling for pre-pandemic stressors, relationship adaptations buffered the negative effects of COVID-19 stressors and personal vulnerabilities on relationship quality and loneliness. The findings provide support for a model of stress-buffering over a model of vulnerability-stress. The findings have important implications for the identification of parents at risk of relationship difficulties and social disconnection during the pandemic, and for policy and practice in how best to strengthen relationships and human connection during COVID-19.
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 17-10-2018
DOI: 10.1002/ECE3.4564
Publisher: SAGE Publications
Date: 26-08-2021
DOI: 10.1177/02654075211034236
Abstract: Following the global outbreak of COVID-19 in March 2020, in iduals report psychological distress associated with the “new normal”—social distancing, financial hardships, and increased responsibilities while working from home. Given the interpersonal nature of stress and coping responses between romantic partners, based on the systemic transactional model this study posits that perceived partner dyadic coping may be an important moderator between experiences of COVID-19 psychological distress and relationship quality. To examine these associations, self-report data from 14,020 people across 27 countries were collected during the early phases of the COVID-19 pandemic (March–July, 2020). It was hypothesized that higher symptoms of psychological distress would be reported post-COVID-19 compared to pre-COVID-19 restrictions (Hypothesis 1), reports of post-COVID-19 psychological distress would be negatively associated with relationship quality (Hypothesis 2), and perceived partner DC would moderate these associations (Hypothesis 3). While hypotheses were generally supported, results also showed interesting between-country variability. Limitations and future directions are presented.
Publisher: American College of Physicians
Date: 04-06-2013
DOI: 10.7326/0003-4819-158-11-201306040-00002
Abstract: Sunscreen use and dietary antioxidants are advocated as preventives of skin aging, but supporting evidence is lacking. To determine whether regular use of sunscreen compared with discretionary use or β-carotene supplements compared with placebo retard skin aging, measured by degree of photoaging. Randomized, controlled, community-based intervention. (Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry: ACTRN12610000086066). Nambour, Australia (latitude 26° S). 903 adults younger than 55 years out of 1621 adults randomly selected from a community register. Random assignment into 4 groups: daily use of broad-spectrum sunscreen and 30 mg of β-carotene, daily use of sunscreen and placebo, discretionary use of sunscreen and 30 mg of β-carotene, and discretionary use of sunscreen and placebo. Change in microtopography between 1992 and 1996 in the sunscreen and β-carotene groups compared with controls, graded by assessors blinded to treatment allocation. The daily sunscreen group showed no detectable increase in skin aging after 4.5 years. Skin aging from baseline to the end of the trial was 24% less in the daily sunscreen group than in the discretionary sunscreen group (relative odds, 0.76 [95% CI, 0.59 to 0.98]). β-Carotene supplementation had no overall effect on skin aging, although contrasting associations were seen in subgroups with different severity of aging at baseline. Some outcome data were missing, and power to detect moderate treatment effects was modest. Regular sunscreen use retards skin aging in healthy, middle-aged men and women. No overall effect of β-carotene on skin aging was identified, and further study is required to definitively exclude potential benefit or potential harm. National Health and Medical Research Council of Australia.
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 10-04-2018
DOI: 10.1002/EJP.1213
Abstract: Fibromyalgia is a complex chronic disorder with few effective treatments currently available. One promising treatment option is repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS), a non-invasive brain stimulation technique that has shown promise in disorders effecting the central nervous system. We assessed the efficacy of a course of high-frequency (10 Hz) left-hemisphere dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) rTMS in 26 patients (14 active 12 sham) with a diagnosis of fibromyalgia. Participants underwent a double-blind stimulation protocol of daily (Monday-Friday) rTMS sessions over four consecutive weeks (total of 20 sessions 75 × 4-s 10 Hz trains at 120% resting motor threshold). Assessments were conducted at baseline, 4 weeks and at 1-month follow-up. Using mixed-model analysis we did not identify a group difference for our primary outcome measures. However, we found that patients in the active group compared to sham treatment group had significantly greater improvement in the Physical Fatigue (p = 0.045) and General Fatigue (p = 0.023) scales of the Multidimensional Fatigue Inventory-20 at the 1 month follow-up. In a responder analysis, we also found the active group was significantly more likely (2.84 times) to achieve a minimum 30% improvement in pain intensity ratings. (p = 0.024). High-frequency rTMS applied daily for 4 weeks to the left DLPFC induces significant relief from fatigue and a greater chance of clinically meaningful improvement in pain intensity in patients with fibromyalgia. These results suggest DLPFC rTMS may be a relevant therapy for fibromyalgia. This study provides evidence that 4-weeks of daily rTMS to the left DLPFC is able to improve fatigue in fibromyalgia. This novel finding provides impetus for the further investigation of the utility of TMS approaches for the relief of fatigue, an otherwise difficult-to-treat symptom, in fibromyalgia and related disorders.
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 08-2022
No related grants have been discovered for Laura Knox.