A dual-factor model of mental health conceptualizes mental health status as a combination of both psychopathology and subjective well-being. Current literature indicates that complete mental health (i.e., low psychopathology, high subjective well-being) is associated with the best academic and social functioning among youth. Thus, the absence of psychopathology alone is not sufficient for student success. While research on interventions for improving subjective well-being, termed positive psychology interventions (PPIs), is increasing, PPIs for youth in particular lag behind similar interventions for adults. Additionally, a majority of youth-focused PPIs have targeted singular constructs (e.g., gratitude, character strengths), have neglected to include relevant stakeholders in youth's lives, and have not examined the impact of booster sessions on maintaining gains in subjective well-being. Research questions answered in the current study pertain to: (a) the impact of a comprehensive, multi-target, multi-component, small-group youth-focused PPI on students' subjective well-being and symptoms of psychopathology, and (b) the extent to which booster sessions can prevent students from experiencing post-intervention declines in subjective well-being and symptoms of psychopathology. To answer these questions, 42 seventh grade students were randomly assigned to either immediately receive the PPI or to a wait-list control group; all participants' subjective well-being and symptoms of psychopathology were analyzed across time. At immediate post-intervention, students who participated in the PPI made significant gains in all components of subjective well-being, and there was a trend for them to report less internalizing and externalizing symptoms of psychopathology relative to students in the wait-list control group. By seven-week follow-up, students who participated in the PPI exhibited sustained high levels of positive affect, and there was a trend for them to report sustained low levels of negative affect and internalizing symptoms of psychopathology relative to students in the wait-list control group. Thus, findings from the current study support this multi-component PPI as an evidence-based method for making long-lasting improvements in early adolescents' positive affect, a primary indicator of subjective well-being. Implications for school psychologists, contributions to the literature, and future directions are discussed.

The purpose of this paper is to use the model revised by Ferris et al. (2002) to study the the Effect of personal positive affect¡Bpersonal negative affect¡Borganizational formalization and organizational centralization on perceptions of organizational politics by SPSS 15.0 for windows and hierachical linear model( HLM). The sample consisted of 1890 employee selected from 41 organizations covering 9 industrial sectors in Taiwan. The data was analyzed by statistical methods are descriptive static, factor analysis, reliability analysis, correlation analysis and HLM analysis. For SPSS analysis,the major findings of this study as fallow: 1. perceptions of organizational politics were found have significant relevant with personal positive affect, personal negative affect and organizational centralization 2. perceptions of organizational politics were found have no significant relevant with organizational formalization. For HLM analysis,the major findings of this study as fallow: 1.Personal positive affect had a significant effect on perceptions of organizational politics. 2.Personal negative affect had a significant effect on perceptions of organizational politics. 3.Organizational centralization had a significant effect on perceptions of organizational politics. 4.Organizational formalization had no significant effect on perceptions of organizational politics. 5.Organizational centralization had moderate effect on the relationship between personal negative and perceptions of organizational politics. 6.Organizational centralization had no moderate effect on the relationship between personal positive and perceptions of organizational politics. 7.Organizational formalization had no moderate effect on the relationship between personal negative and perceptions of organizational politics. 8.Organizational formalization had no moderate effect on the relationship between personal positive and perceptions of organizational politics.

Emotional and external eating are common eating behaviours in the general population, while not disordered eating per se they have been linked to overeating, obesity and problems engaging in health behaviours. Theories of emotional and external eating have been around for decades however little is known of the factors that contribute to these eating behaviours. Emotional and external eating tend to co-occur, and high correlations between them have been reported. Some theorists have argued that they are not distinct constructs. The current study aimed to provide further understanding on the nature and distinction between emotional and external eating in a non-clinical sample. The associations of impulsivity, alexithymia and negative affect in emotional and external eating were investigated, utilising a cross-sectional design. These variables have been shown to be related to eating behaviour in clinical samples however there has been limited research in non-clinical samples. Emotional eating was positively associated with alexithymia, negative affect and lack of perseverance, the relationship with urgency was less clear. External eating was indirectly associated with depression through the mediating variable urgency. The results indicated that emotional and external eating do show some similarities in the variables associated with them, however, the pattern of associations were different for the two eating behaviours. It appears from this study that the theoretical distinction between emotional eating and external eating is warranted with emotional eating appearing to be directly associated with problems with affect regulation whereas external eating is indirectly associated with negative affect.

Previous research on symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) has suggested clinically significant impairment is experienced below threshold for diagnosis. Recent studies have provided evidence that measures of hopelessness, negative affect, depression, and physical activity are independently related with increased PTSD symptoms and impairment. This constellation of variables has yet to be examined in a trauma-exposed population, so it is unknown whether these variables collectively predict significant impairment and PTSD. This study examined if: a) both clinical and subclinical symptoms of PTSD will be associated with significant impairment as measured by indices of hopelessness, negative affect, depression, and physical activity; b) measures of hopelessness, negative affect, depression, and physical activity will significantly contribute to the categorical diagnosis of Clinical PTSD in trauma-exposed populations; and c) Measures of hopelessness, negative affect, depression, and physical activity will significantly contribute to the categorical diagnosis of subclinical PTSD in trauma-exposed populations. Results indicate that the predictor variables are not associated with either of the outcome variables. The full model including hopelessness, negative affect, depression, and physical activity did not significantly contribute to the categorical diagnosis of clinical PTSD and subclinical PTSD in trauma-exposed populations. Limitations and further directions are explored in the discussion.

One experiment examined the relationship between smoked marijuana and anxiety generated by the anticipation of a stressor paired with a salient, benign distractor. It was hypothesized that smoking one marijuana cigarette with an estimated &delta9-THC content of 26.25 mg, relative to placebo, would reduce anxiety generated by an anticipatory stressor paired with a benign distractor. In the experiment 14 marijuana users with a mean frequency of marijuana use per week of 2.07 (Range = 1-3) were administered one marijuana cigarette (active vs. placebo) per experimental session. A significant Drug × Session interaction was observed such that during the first experimental session, participants administered active marijuana reported non-significant decreases in negative affect, relative to placebo, while those administered active marijuana during the second experimental session reported significant increases in negative affect. This finding indicates that large individual differences in response to drug type (active vs. placebo) occurred within the participant sample. The results are discussed in terms of the influence of individual differences and contextual factors on the observed differential affective responses to &delta9-THC in order to identify which participants experienced the greatest benefit in negative affect reduction from &delta9-THC.

Yoga is an ancient tradition that in contemporary research has been shown to have positive associations with a broad spectrum of health outcomes. Although promising findings have been highlighted, research exploring the mechanisms underlying the use of yoga for enhancing mental health is still in its infancy. Researchers have shown that yoga can increase levels of mindfulness, which has been shown to relate to several aspects of general well-being such as low levels of anxiety, depression, and stress. However, limited study has examined how the quality of the relationship between the yoga student and yoga instructor affects state mindfulness during the yoga class. The present study used a cross sectional research design to investigate associations between levels of stress, negative affect, motives for yoga, relationship quality, and mindfulness during yoga classes. The sample consisted of 219 adults that completed measures of stress, affect, motives for yoga, mindfulness, and relationship quality immediately following a yoga class. Analysis of data indicated that higher levels of stress and negative emotional wellbeing increased the likelihood that yoga was practiced to address psychological motives rather than perceived physical health outcomes. Additionally, relationship quality with the instructor was found to predict greater state mindfulness during the yoga session. The present study highlights the importance of the relationship quality between instructor and student, and suggests that future research investigating the efficacy of yoga in optimizing psychological health should consider how health outcomes might be influenced by interpersonal relationships.

The current study utilized structural equation modeling (SEM) to examine the factor-to-factor relations and temporal associations between disturbances in negative affect (NA) and positive symptoms of psychosis (PP). Data were drawn from a large, public-domain data set (MacArthur Violence Risk Assessment Study). A dimensional approach was used to conceptualize and identify latent variables of NA (depression, anxiety, and guilt) and PP (hallucinations, delusions, and thought disorder) among individuals with a diagnosis of primary psychotic disorder. Results showed that anxiety, guilt, and depressed mood modeled an NA latent variable, and that hallucinations and unusual thought content modeled a PP latent variable. As predicted, results revealed strong, significant cross-sectional (synchronous) associations between NA and PP at each measured time-frame, suggesting that NA and PP occurred concurrently within the sample. Contrary to predictions, no significant cross-lagged effect between NA and PP was identified (10 weeks and 20 weeks respectively).

The general aggression model (GAM) has suggested that the interaction between person factors (e.g., personality variables) and situation factors (e.g., playing violent video games [VVGs]) can increase individuals’ aggressive behaviors through their cognition (e.g., hostile attributions), affect (e.g., negative affect), and/or arousal. The present study employed a modified competitive reaction time task to test the effects of shyness, violent (vs. nonviolent) gameplay, and shyness on individuals’ positive–negative affect, hostile attributions, and aggressive behaviors. In addition, the present study also employed structural equation modeling (SEM) to test the mediation (by cognition and affect) and moderation (by shyness). Results showed that playing a VVG increased aggressive behaviors, negative affect, and hostile attributions primarily among shy participants. In addition, the results of SEM also revealed that this moderating role was mediated by negative affect and hostile attributions. The present study supported GAM and showed that individuals’ aggressive behaviors are differentially susceptible to VVGs, depending on their level of shyness in a “for bad and for worse” manner.

Schizotypy is a sub-threshold syndrome associated with schizophrenia. Much of the research on schizotypy concerns its component features, one of which being blunted or constricted affect. While several investigations have addressed this common “negative” symptom within the context of schizophrenia, few have focused on schizotypy directly, and none have utilized psychophysiological measurement to examine affective constriction. The present investigation uses facial electromyography (EMG) to measure patterns of affective expression within a psychometrically defined schizotypal population when presented threatening and distressing pictures from the IAPS. Twenty-eight individuals with elevated schizotypal features and 20 healthy controls were recruited for this investigation. The participants observed the series of pictures and provided self-report ratings of affective valance and arousal while their physiological responses were recorded. The protocol used here closely matched that used by Bradley and Lang (2007) and produced a similar pattern of results across all participants on selfreported ratings and physiological measures. Results further suggest that those with schizotypal features did not differ from control participants in self-reported ratings of negative affect or autonomic arousal. A three-way interaction in facial EMG measurement revealed that while schizotypic males demonstrated the expected pattern of blunted facial affective expression, schizotypic females displayed the opposite pattern. That is, females with psychometrically schizotypy demonstrated significant elevations in negative facial affective expression while viewing distressing pictures. We argue that these findings reflect unidentified sex differences in affective expression in schizotypy, and we discuss implications for assessment and diagnostic procedures among individuals with personality disorders

Sleep problems are common among college students and are associated with numerous negative outcomes including anxiety, depression, executive dysfunction, and poor academic performance. When sleep is limited, individuals may suffer impaired cognitive capacities, such as reduced memory and difficulty focusing attention. Difficulty with these cognitive functions can result in difficulty disengaging from negative thoughts, thereby contributing to negative mood. Poor sleep contributes to negative mood states, but few studies have examined in what way poor sleep may exacerbate negative mood. The purpose of this study was to examine cognitive factors as explanatory variables between sleep and state affect. Participants were undergraduate students from a university in the Midwest. Participants (N = 150, completed baseline questionnaires and wore an actigraphy watch for one night. They returned to the lab the following day to complete additional self-report measures and a computerized cognitive control task. Participants were primarily female (66.67%, n = 100) and white (67.33%, n = 101). To test the hypothesis that the relationship between sleep and affect is explained by cognitive factors, a path analytic model was fit to the data. It was hypothesized that cognitive factors (i.e., Posner task performance, repetitive negative thinking, and self-report attention control) would explain the relationship between sleep (as measured by objective total sleep time and self-report sleepiness) and state affect. The hypothesized model yielded poor global and local fit to the data. While several direct effects emerged in the model, no indirect effects were statistically significant. The model was re-specified, adding paths where large magnitude correlational residual statistics coincided with statistically significant standardized residual statistics. The final model yielded good global and local fit to the data, with primary modifications being added covariances among control variables (e.g., GAD-7 and PHQ-8 scores) with cognitive factors. Overall, the results of this study indicate that the relationship between sleep and next-day affect is complex and cannot be simply explained by cognitive factors. However, the current study found several significant relationships among study variables, suggesting that sleep, cognitive functioning, and emotion are highly related constructs that warrant further study. Future research should examine alternative models incorporating these constructs to find a comprehensive model with utility that can explain the relationships among these constructs.