Psychological distress is largely diversified, referring primarily to non-specific mental symptoms of depression, anxiety, as well as personality traits and multiple psychological (e.g., burnout), somatic, and behavioral problems. It develops in all ages, in healthy and diseased individuals, within both rich and poor countries, largely impacting general well-being of people globally. Psychological distress is fueled by overwhelming and sustained stressful conditions such as the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic (vulnerability to an incurable and fatal disease, lockdowns and imposed self-isolation, information uncertainty, economic insecurity, covid-19 burnout, etc.), different types of abuse (e.g., of elderly, children, and women), high workload and stressful nature of work (e.g., among frontline health professionals and family caregivers of patients with progressive and irreversible conditions such as dementia), suffering from a chronic or severe physical disease (COVID-19, cancer, diabetes, obesity), etc.
Social support, coping resources, individuals' resilience, and many other key factors can help people bounce back from stressful events to restore their homeostasis and retain their emotional balance. However, biological and psychosocial vulnerabilities can largely interfere with individuals' adaptive mechanisms resulting in failure to achieve homeostasis, and eventually severe forms of psychopathologies. The nature of such interactions is not completely understood.
Given the diversified and contextual nature of psychological distress, its underlying neurobiological and psychosocial dynamics remain unclear. Moreover, psychological distress alters quality of life, depletes individuals' coping resources, and promotes the development of unhealthy lifestyles as well as maladaptive and pathologized behaviors such as drug/alcohol misuse, emotional overeating, pathological gaming, etc. Under conditions of collective distress, research exploring people's self-management practices as well as psychosocial resources may promote adaptive capacity and provide therapeutic help to those who are severely endangered.
Despite the widespread of psychological distress and its grave adverse effects, it is commonly undetected. This is because of its subtle nature, which commonly goes unspoken of or masked by accompanied physical symptoms (e.g., fatigue, headaches, poor sleep, etc.) or behavioral dysfunctions (e.g., pathological gaming/eating, etc.). Therefore, sensitive and well-calibrated measures that can identify individuals with high proneness to psychopathologies are intensely needed.
This Research Topic aims to represent systematic investigations of the mechanisms, efficient assessment methods, and the most protective strategies against psychological distress.
This Research Topic is open to any subject area related to understanding the complexity of psychological distress. It welcomes original research articles and state-of-the-art reviews, which are focused on exploring the dynamics, methods of assessing, and management of psychological distress among different groups. A great emphasis is given to the translation of psychological assessment and interventions into clinical practice, exploring barriers and facilitators to their implementation, and their cost-effectiveness. Major studies that are conducted in multiple countries are also preferred in order to provide a deeper understanding of the mechanisms, prominent manifestations, and best approaches that can be used to handle psychological distress worldwide.
Topics of interest may include but are not limited to the following areas:
-Emotional regulation;
-Resilience;
-Evidencing wellbeing, emotional wellbeing and physical health;
-Stress and distress concepts;
-Medically unexplained symptoms;
-Violence, abuse, trauma, and trauma management;
-Mindfulness, yoga, stress management and emotion work/education;
-Mind/body therapies and 'talking cures';
-Herbal, natural, alternative, complementary, non-pharmacological interventions;
-Health capital and wellbeing;
-Holistic/integrated public health models and policies;
-Psychometrics, validation, and measurement.
Psychological distress is largely diversified, referring primarily to non-specific mental symptoms of depression, anxiety, as well as personality traits and multiple psychological (e.g., burnout), somatic, and behavioral problems. It develops in all ages, in healthy and diseased individuals, within both rich and poor countries, largely impacting general well-being of people globally. Psychological distress is fueled by overwhelming and sustained stressful conditions such as the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic (vulnerability to an incurable and fatal disease, lockdowns and imposed self-isolation, information uncertainty, economic insecurity, covid-19 burnout, etc.), different types of abuse (e.g., of elderly, children, and women), high workload and stressful nature of work (e.g., among frontline health professionals and family caregivers of patients with progressive and irreversible conditions such as dementia), suffering from a chronic or severe physical disease (COVID-19, cancer, diabetes, obesity), etc.
Social support, coping resources, individuals' resilience, and many other key factors can help people bounce back from stressful events to restore their homeostasis and retain their emotional balance. However, biological and psychosocial vulnerabilities can largely interfere with individuals' adaptive mechanisms resulting in failure to achieve homeostasis, and eventually severe forms of psychopathologies. The nature of such interactions is not completely understood.
Given the diversified and contextual nature of psychological distress, its underlying neurobiological and psychosocial dynamics remain unclear. Moreover, psychological distress alters quality of life, depletes individuals' coping resources, and promotes the development of unhealthy lifestyles as well as maladaptive and pathologized behaviors such as drug/alcohol misuse, emotional overeating, pathological gaming, etc. Under conditions of collective distress, research exploring people's self-management practices as well as psychosocial resources may promote adaptive capacity and provide therapeutic help to those who are severely endangered.
Despite the widespread of psychological distress and its grave adverse effects, it is commonly undetected. This is because of its subtle nature, which commonly goes unspoken of or masked by accompanied physical symptoms (e.g., fatigue, headaches, poor sleep, etc.) or behavioral dysfunctions (e.g., pathological gaming/eating, etc.). Therefore, sensitive and well-calibrated measures that can identify individuals with high proneness to psychopathologies are intensely needed.
This Research Topic aims to represent systematic investigations of the mechanisms, efficient assessment methods, and the most protective strategies against psychological distress.
This Research Topic is open to any subject area related to understanding the complexity of psychological distress. It welcomes original research articles and state-of-the-art reviews, which are focused on exploring the dynamics, methods of assessing, and management of psychological distress among different groups. A great emphasis is given to the translation of psychological assessment and interventions into clinical practice, exploring barriers and facilitators to their implementation, and their cost-effectiveness. Major studies that are conducted in multiple countries are also preferred in order to provide a deeper understanding of the mechanisms, prominent manifestations, and best approaches that can be used to handle psychological distress worldwide.
Topics of interest may include but are not limited to the following areas:
-Emotional regulation;
-Resilience;
-Evidencing wellbeing, emotional wellbeing and physical health;
-Stress and distress concepts;
-Medically unexplained symptoms;
-Violence, abuse, trauma, and trauma management;
-Mindfulness, yoga, stress management and emotion work/education;
-Mind/body therapies and 'talking cures';
-Herbal, natural, alternative, complementary, non-pharmacological interventions;
-Health capital and wellbeing;
-Holistic/integrated public health models and policies;
-Psychometrics, validation, and measurement.
