Personality and phobias in adolescence: age and gender in psychopathological expressions

Journal of Mind and Medical Sciences Volume 6 | Issue 2 Article 17 2019 Personality and phobias in adolescence: age and gender in psychopathological expressions Salvatore Settineri Emanuele Maria Merlo Angela Alibrandi Federica Sicari Irene Pagano Dritto See next page for additional authors Follow this and additional works at: https://scholar.valpo.edu/jmms Part of the Mental and Social Health Commons, and the Psychiatry and Psychology Commons Recommended Citation Settineri, Salvatore; Merlo, Emanuele Maria; Alibrandi, Angela; Sicari, Federica; Dritto, Irene Pagano; Strangis, Fiorella; and Frisone, Fabio (2019) "Personality and phobias in adolescence: age and gender in psychopathological expressions," Journal of Mind and Medical Sciences: Vol. 6 : Iss. 2 , Article 17. DOI: 10.22543/7674.62.P304310 Available at: https://scholar.valpo.edu/jmms/vol6/iss2/17 This Research Article is brought to you for free and open access by ValpoScholar. 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For more information, please contact a ValpoScholar staff member at . Personality and phobias in adolescence: age and gender in psychopathological expressions Authors Salvatore Settineri, Emanuele Maria Merlo, Angela Alibrandi, Federica Sicari, Irene Pagano Dritto, Fiorella Strangis, and Fabio Frisone This research article is available in Journal of Mind and Medical Sciences: https://scholar.valpo.edu/jmms/vol6/iss2/17 https://scholar.valpo.edu/jmms/ https://proscholar.org/jmms/ ISSN: 2392-7674 J Mind Med Sci. 2019; 6(2): 304-310 doi: 10.22543/7674.62.P304310 Received for publication: April 6, 2019 Accepted: July 22, 2019 Research article Personality and phobias in adolescence: age and gender in psychopathological expressions Salvatore Settineri1, Emanuele Maria Merlo2,3*, Angela Alibrandi4, Federica Sicari5, Irene Pagano Dritto5, Fiorella Strangis5, Fabio Frisone2,3 1 University of Messina, Department of Biomedical and Dental Sciences and Morphofunctional Imaging, Italy University of Messina, Department of Cognitive Sciences, Psychology, Educational and Cultural Studies (COSPECS) 3 CRISCAT (International Research Center for Theoretical and Applied Cognitive Sciences) University of Messina and Universitary Consortium of Eastern Mediterranean, Noto (CUMO) 4 University of Messina, Department of Economics, Unit of Statistical and Mathematical Sciences, Italy 5 University of Messina, Psychological Doctor 2 Abstract Background: Although the understanding of adolescent phobias is important, this phenomenon has thus far not been adequately researched. This report, based on clinical experience, highlights prevalent phobic phenomena linked to personality characteristics. Methods: A sample of 241 adolescents from High School and the University of Messina, Italy was evaluated for phobic responses using the SAFA Scales. Personality types and aspects were assessed by the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator F Form. Results: The results were consistent with the reported literature and revealed that psychopathological phenomena such as anxiety, obsession, eating disorders and phobias decreased with aging; however, depression remained constant over time. Significant differences emerged regarding gender, with the presence of higher scores on all scales except obsession for the female group. Personality analysis revealed aspects linked to the relations between psychopathological variables, introversion/ extraversion (such as polar dimensions), and rational/ irrational functions. Conclusion: This research indicates that phobic phenomena may be underestimated in adolescents and links personality types and symptoms with phobic phenomena, indicating the potential need for interventions in adolescents. Keywords  Highlights ✓ Age, gender and personality attitudes are relevant factors to consider in the expression of adolescent psychopathological phenomena. adolescence, phobia, personality, psychological types, solitude ✓ Higher presence of anxiety, eating disorders and phobias emerged in female individuals, decreasing with age. ✓ Phobic expressions could be underestimated in adolescent individuals, such as their relation with personality. To cite this article: Settineri S, Merlo EM, Alibrandi A, Sicari F, Dritto IP, Strangis F, Frisone F. Personality and phobias in adolescence: age and gender in psychopathological expressions. J Mind Med Sci. 2019; 6(2): 304-310. DOI: 10.22543/7674.62.P304310 *Corresponding author: Emanuele Maria Merlo, University of Messina, Department of Cognitive Sciences, Psychology, Educational and Cultural Studies (COSPECS), Italy E-mail: Salvatore Settineri et al. Introduction Analysis of adolescent phobias is an important endeavor. Even though phobias are fairly common among adolescents, their prevalence may be underestimated, especially because a low number of individuals in this age group seek treatment (1). According to Grant (2), adolescence represents a period characterized by important physical, psychological, and relational transformations, determining a high vulnerability in terms of the occurrence of phobias. The majority of the phenomena manifested in childhood and pre-adolescence are characterized by a spontaneous remission as development progresses. In contrast, in the case of phobias, they may persist until full maturity if not properly treated. Various studies have investigated gender and age differences in phobias, with several (3-6) demonstrating greater frequency of social phobias in females. Other studies (7, 8) have noted that different types of fears change during the development of the individual. Most frequent disorders during adolescence are in fact social phobias and generalized anxiety disorders, while specific phobias are prevalent mainly in adulthood. In recent studies (9), the incidence of phobias worldwide has been estimated between 3% and 15% in the general population, together with the fear of heights and animals. Longitudinal follow up (10) has indicated that phobia onset in adolescence may predict a permanent effect manifested in adulthood, similar to other early predictive factors associated with parental neglect and economic adversity. The aim of the current research was to highlight the presence of phobias in adolescence and to evaluate the characteristics of those phobias, including gender and age differences. Phobias and specific fears were studied in relation to personality predispositions. Materials and Methods Study population The sampled consisted of 241 subjects, 182 (75.5%) females and 59 males (24.5%). The age of participants ranged from 14 to 24 years (Mean: 17.61, SD: 2.41). Observation instruments For evaluation of psychopathology and personality types, the following instruments were used. 1. The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator F Form (MBTI) (11, 12) assesses two attitudes (1): Extraversion, defined as the orientation of energy towards the outside, wh (...truncated)