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<td><span style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size:20px;font-weight:bold;">PsyPost – Psychology News</span></td>
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<td><a href="https://www.psypost.org/genetics-strongly-influence-persistent-anxiety-in-young-adults-new-twin-study-suggests/" style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; letter-spacing:-1px;margin:0;padding:0 0 2px;font-weight: bold;font-size: 19px;line-height: 20px;color:#222;">Genetics strongly influence persistent anxiety in young adults, new twin study suggests</a>
<div style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align:left;color:#999;font-size:11px;font-weight:bold;line-height:15px;">Aug 17th 2025, 10:00</div>
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<p><p>A large twin study suggests that while generalized anxiety symptoms often fluctuate from year to year during early adulthood, there is a stable core to these symptoms that is strongly shaped by genetic factors. The findings, published in <em><a href="https://doi.org/10.1017/S0033291725100640" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Psychological Medicine</a></em>, indicate that around 60% of the stability in anxiety from ages 23 to 26 can be explained by genetic influences. Meanwhile, environmental experiences appeared to play a bigger role in the short-term ups and downs of anxiety over time.</p>
<p>The research also provides evidence that anxiety in young adulthood tends to cluster into two distinct dimensions: physical distress and a pattern involving excessive worry and avoidance. Interestingly, the two symptom dimensions were found to share much of their genetic basis, even though they differed somewhat in how environmental influences shaped them.</p>
<p>Heritability is a measure used in genetics to estimate the proportion of variation in a trait—like anxiety—that can be attributed to inherited genetic differences between people. A heritability estimate of 60%, for example, does not mean that a person’s anxiety is 60% determined by their genes. Instead, it means that, across a population, 60% of the variation in a given trait can be linked to genetic differences.</p>
<p>This concept helps scientists identify which traits are more likely to have a strong genetic basis, which in turn can inform research into biological mechanisms and guide future treatment strategies.</p>
<p>Rates of anxiety have increased significantly among young adults in recent years, raising public health concerns. But while there is extensive research into anxiety in childhood and adolescence, fewer studies have explored how anxiety symptoms evolve during the twenties—a period marked by major life transitions, such as entering the workforce or living independently for the first time.</p>
<p>The researchers wanted to understand how much of generalized anxiety during this time of life is driven by genetics versus environmental factors. They were also interested in whether anxiety symptoms in early adulthood tend to fall into distinct categories, and whether those symptom clusters are shaped by different underlying causes.</p>
<p>“Anxiety symptoms are common among young adults and have become more prevalent in this age group in recent years, especially among females,” said study author Geneviève Morneau-Vaillancourt, Banting Postdoctoral Fellow at the Centre for Research at the Institut universitaire en santé mentale de Montréal and the School of Criminology at the Université de Montréal.</p>
<p>“Because we know that anxiety is heritable, it is important to understand how genetic factors influence its development during the early twenties—a life stage marked by important social, academic, and occupational transitions. The Twins Early Development Study (TEDS) offered a unique opportunity to examine the development of generalized anxiety in young adulthood, providing rich longitudinal data from six assessments between ages 23 and 26 (which were partly collected during the COVID-19 pandemic). The twin design also enabled disentangling genetic from environmental influences.”</p>
<p>The Twins Early Development Study is a long-term project tracking twins born in England and Wales in the mid-1990s. For this analysis, the team focused on data collected from 6,429 twin pairs between the ages of 23 and 26. Each participant completed a questionnaire measuring the severity of generalized anxiety symptoms on six occasions across this age range.</p>
<p>The team applied statistical models that are commonly used in twin studies to tease apart genetic and environmental influences. Because identical twins share all of their genes and fraternal twins share about half, comparing how similar each group is on a given trait allows researchers to estimate the degree of heritability.</p>
<p>They also looked at whether anxiety symptoms could be separated into different types using factor analysis, a method that identifies patterns of symptoms that tend to occur together. After identifying the symptom dimensions, the team repeated their genetic modeling separately for each dimension.</p>
<p>One of the central findings is that while generalized anxiety symptoms do vary over time, they also show considerable stability across early adulthood.</p>
<p>“Anxiety in the early twenties is common, and it matters,” Morneau-Vaillancourt told PsyPost. “These years are a sensitive period for mental health. Anxiety levels were moderately stable between ages 23 and 26, meaning that they also fluctuated over time.”</p>
<p>Genetic factors were the main contributor to this stable core. The researchers created a “latent stability factor”—a statistical representation of the trait that captures what remains consistent across time—and found that this factor had a heritability of about 60%. This is notably higher than the heritability estimates for anxiety at any single time point, which ranged between 39% and 46%.</p>
<p>In contrast, changes in anxiety symptoms over time were more strongly linked to non-shared environmental factors—those that differ between twins and might include life events, personal relationships, or daily stressors. These findings suggest that while someone’s underlying tendency to be anxious may be relatively stable and influenced by their genes, the expression of that anxiety can shift depending on what’s happening in their life.</p>
<p>“Genetics play a role, but they’re not the whole story,” Morneau-Vaillancourt said. “We found that the stability in generalized anxiety between ages 23 and 26 was largely due to genetics, whereas change was mostly explained by environmental influences.”</p>
<p>The study also found that anxiety symptoms in young adults consistently grouped into two main dimensions. One set of symptoms reflected “somatic distress,” such as physical tension or restlessness. The other was labeled “worry-avoidance,” which included excessive worrying and efforts to avoid stress-inducing situations.</p>
<p>While these two dimensions were distinct on the surface, they shared most of their genetic influences. That suggests that they may arise from the same underlying biological vulnerabilities. However, their environmental influences were less overlapping, indicating that different life experiences may shape how anxiety shows up in different people.</p>
<p>These findings have several implications for how scientists approach the genetics of anxiety. Studies that rely on single time points may underestimate the role of genes by capturing only a snapshot of someone’s symptoms. By instead focusing on stable patterns that persist over time, researchers may be able to increase the chances of identifying genetic variants that contribute to anxiety.</p>
<p>The study also points to the importance of considering both stability and change when trying to understand what drives anxiety. While genetic predispositions provide the foundation, environmental experiences—such as job stress, financial uncertainty, or social changes—may push anxiety levels up or down at different times. Notably, the study found evidence of stable environmental influences as well, suggesting that some life circumstances may have long-term effects on anxiety symptoms.</p>
<p>“Even if genetics play a role, it doesn’t mean that anxiety is inevitable,” Morneau-Vaillancourt explained. “It indicates that some individuals may have a higher probability than others of developing anxiety. Environment, life experiences, and coping strategies matter too and could make a difference.”</p>
<p>Because four out of the six data collection points occurred during the COVID-19 pandemic, the researchers also considered how this context might have influenced their results. While the overall structure of anxiety symptoms and the patterns of genetic and environmental influence remained stable, average anxiety levels were higher during the pandemic.</p>
<p>A new set of genetic effects appeared around the time of the first pandemic wave, possibly reflecting how stressful global events might interact with genetic predispositions in unique ways. The authors caution that more research is needed to separate age-related changes from pandemic-related effects, especially given the unusual timing of the study.</p>
<p>The study had a few limitations. The time gaps between survey waves varied, which might have affected how well changes and continuities were captured. Most of the data were collected during the pandemic, which may limit the generalizability of the findings to more typical circumstances. The researchers also used a less common anxiety questionnaire, which, while reliable, may make it harder to compare their results with other studies that use more standard tools.</p>
<p>Finally, the study focused only on young adults. To better understand how anxiety develops across the lifespan, future research will need to extend this kind of work into adolescence and the thirties and beyond.</p>
<p>The study, “<a href="https://doi.org/10.1017/S0033291725100640" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Heritability of generalized anxiety stability: a longitudinal twin study among young adults</a>,” was authored by Julia Funk, Geneviève Morneau-Vaillancourt, Elisavet Palaiologou, and Thalia C. Eley.</p></p>
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<td><a href="https://www.psypost.org/beliefs-about-desirability-shape-racial-preferences-in-dating-according-to-new-psychology-research/" style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; letter-spacing:-1px;margin:0;padding:0 0 2px;font-weight: bold;font-size: 19px;line-height: 20px;color:#222;">Beliefs about desirability shape racial preferences in dating, according to new psychology research</a>
<div style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align:left;color:#999;font-size:11px;font-weight:bold;line-height:15px;">Aug 17th 2025, 08:00</div>
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<p><p>People’s beliefs about how desirable they are to others appear to shape their own preferences in romantic attraction, according to a new study published in <em><a href="https://dx.doi.org/10.1037/cdp0000592" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Cultural Diversity and Ethnic Minority Psychology</a></em>. The research indicates that Asian and Black Americans tend to believe they are more attractive to White Americans than to each other — and those beliefs, in turn, predict stronger attraction to White partners. This dynamic, the authors argue, reflects how social hierarchies and racialized perceptions can quietly shape even intimate aspects of human behavior.</p>
<p>The researchers set out to investigate a longstanding pattern in U.S. interracial relationships. Data from the U.S. Census Bureau show that two pairings — Asian women with White men, and Black men with White women — are the most common types of interracial marriages. Previous research has pointed to factors like racial proximity, gendered stereotypes, and socioeconomic status to explain this, often focusing heavily on the preferences of White Americans.</p>
<p>But the new study took a different approach. Rather than emphasizing only who White people prefer, the authors examined what Asian and Black Americans believe about others’ preferences, and how those beliefs might influence their own romantic interests.</p>
<p>“There were many inspirations for this research topic, but one came from my experience growing up in Hawai’i and talking about my parents,” explained study author <a href="https://psychology.manoa.hawaii.edu/sakaria-laisene-auelua-toomey/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Sakaria Laisene Auelua-Toomey</a>, an assistant professor of psychology at the University of Hawai’i at Mānoa.</p>
<p>“When people asked about my racial identity, I’d say I was half-Samoan and half-White. They would often follow up by asking if my dad grew up in Hawai’i or moved from Sāmoa. What stood out to me was that people made assumptions about which parent was Samoan and which was White, without me ever saying so. That always stuck with me.”</p>
<p>“As I became more aware about common trends in racial preferences and racial-gender stereotypes, I began to wonder if those beliefs influenced how people interpreted my parents’ identities. This project grew in part from that curiosity to show that people are highly aware of patterns in interracial relationships and racial preferences, and that this awareness actively shapes their assumptions and preferences in everyday life.”</p>
<p>At the core of the research is a simple psychological question: If you believe someone is more likely to desire you, do you become more likely to desire them? The authors argue that this type of belief — called a metaperception, or belief about others’ beliefs — can shape attraction patterns and reinforce racial hierarchies in dating. In the United States, where Whiteness is often associated with power, beauty, and social desirability, the authors suggest that people of color may internalize these associations and come to prefer White partners partly because they believe those partners are more likely to reciprocate interest.</p>
<p>To explore this idea, the researchers conducted three studies involving more than 3,700 heterosexual adults in the United States. All participants identified as either Asian, Black, or White. Each study examined a different aspect of the connection between belief and attraction.</p>
<p>In the first study, the team asked participants to rate how attractive they believed their own racial group was to members of other groups. For example, Asian women were asked how attracted they thought White and Black men were to Asian women. Black men were asked the same about Black men’s perceived attractiveness to Asian and White women.</p>
<p>The results suggested that both Asian and Black Americans believed they were more attractive to White people than to each other. White men, by contrast, tended to believe they were more attractive to Asian women than to Black women, while White women believed they were more attractive to Black men than to Asian men.</p>
<p>The second study measured participants’ own romantic preferences directly. Participants rated their attraction to each racial group and then chose between two hypothetical dating partners from different racial out-groups.</p>
<p>Again, the results followed a pattern. Asian participants tended to prefer White partners over Black partners. Black women were more attracted to White men than to Asian men. White men favored Asian women over Black women, while White women showed a preference for Black men over Asian men.</p>
<p>In most cases, participants’ reported attractions in Study 2 aligned closely with the broader belief patterns observed in Study 1 about how desirable particular ethnicities were perceived to be. The findings suggest that individuals’ own preferences are shaped by their beliefs about how others perceive them. But there were also some mismatches between perceived attraction from others and actual reported attraction.</p>
<p>“While there weren’t any findings that were particularly surprising, one interesting pattern that emerged was that Asian and Black Americans often underestimated how attractive their ingroups were perceived to be by others,” Auelua-Toomey told PsyPost. “For instance, Asian men believed they were less attractive to Black women than Black women actually reported. So while people tend to be fairly accurate in predicting broad trends (such as which racial groups are more likely to prefer each other) they are less accurate when estimating how attractive their own groups are to others.”</p>
<p>The third and final study tested whether changing people’s beliefs about how attractive they are perceived to be could actually influence their romantic preferences. Participants were randomly assigned to read fictitious news articles that claimed, for example, that social scientists had found Asian women were more attractive to Black men than to White men—or vice versa. After reading the articles, participants were asked again to rate their attraction to different racial groups and to choose a dating partner.</p>
<p>The results suggested that shifting participants’ beliefs about who found them attractive tended to shift their own romantic preferences. Asian participants who were told they were more attractive to White people became more attracted to White people and were more likely to choose White partners. When told they were more attractive to Black people, Asian participants’ preference for White partners decreased — though in many cases, it still remained stronger than their preference for Black partners. A similar pattern was observed among Black participants: when told they were more attractive to Asian people, they showed greater interest in Asian partners and were more likely to choose them in hypothetical dating scenarios.</p>
<p>White participants were somewhat less responsive to these manipulations. White men consistently rated Asian women as more attractive than Black women, regardless of what they were told, and White women tended to remain more attracted to Black men than to Asian men. However, the researchers did find some flexibility in their responses, especially among women.</p>
<p>“The key takeaway for the general public is that people are deeply aware of (or at least hold strong beliefs about) patterns in U.S. interracial relationships and racial preferences, and this awareness influences who we find attractive,” Auelua-Toomey explained. “These preferences often reinforce the desirability of White men and White women, while marginalizing Asian men and Black women. Although racial preferences are often framed as personal or idiosyncratic, they are deeply shaped by the environments we live in. In a society structured by racism, our attractions are not immune to its influence and it is important to acknowledge that.”</p>
<p>The researchers emphasize that these findings do not imply that interracial relationships are inherently problematic or insincere. Many interracial couples report high satisfaction and meaningful connections. Rather, the study points to a broader cultural pattern in which beliefs about social status and attractiveness can be shaped by racial hierarchy, and those beliefs may subtly influence whom people pursue romantically.</p>
<p>“This paper is not an attack on interracial relationships, but an effort to raise awareness of how even the most personal aspects of our lives can play a role in maintaining systems of racial advantage,” Auelua-Toomey said.</p>
<p>The study, like all research, has some limitations. The participants were limited to heterosexual individuals who identified as Asian, Black, or White. Preferences and beliefs might look different in other racial or sexual orientation groups. The researchers also measured attraction and dating choices in hypothetical scenarios rather than observing real-world behavior. Further research would be needed to confirm whether similar patterns emerge in actual dating contexts or long-term relationships.</p>
<p>“The main caveat of our project is that we didn’t collect data on actual dating behavior,” Auelua-Toomey noted. “We don’t have behavioral evidence showing whether these beliefs directly influence decisions like asking someone out or swiping right on a person of a particular racial identity.”</p>
<p>Nevertheless, the findings point to a psychological mechanism that may help explain how racial hierarchies are maintained in everyday life — even in contexts often thought to be personal or apolitical, like romantic attraction. By highlighting the influence of beliefs about others’ beliefs, the study suggests that racial preferences in dating are not simply individual choices, but can be shaped by broader cultural narratives and expectations.</p>
<p>The broader aim of this research is to encourage people to think more critically about where their preferences come from. “While everyone has their own criteria when it comes to dating, racial preferences can be particularly harmful because they often dehumanize people,” Auelua-Toomey explained. “And importantly, people are aware that others hold racial preferences about them. Although this isn’t discussed directly in the paper (the data is available on <a href="https://osf.io/qnbg9/?view_only=fca70b39207c4716aefd3ec0c50f3552">our OSF repository</a>), we also found that people hold beliefs about why certain racial groups are attracted to others. Many of those beliefs are deeply rooted in White supremacist and racist narratives.”</p>
<p>The study, “<a href="https://dx.doi.org/10.1037/cdp0000592" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Romantic Racism: How Racial Preferences (and Beliefs About Racial Preferences) Reinforce Hierarchy in U.S. Interracial Relationships</a>,” was authored by Sakaria Laisene Auelua-Toomey and Steven Othello Roberts.</p></p>
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<td><a href="https://www.psypost.org/dark-personality-traits-flourish-in-these-specific-environments-huge-new-study-reveals/" style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; letter-spacing:-1px;margin:0;padding:0 0 2px;font-weight: bold;font-size: 19px;line-height: 20px;color:#222;">Dark personality traits flourish in these specific environments, huge new study reveals</a>
<div style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align:left;color:#999;font-size:11px;font-weight:bold;line-height:15px;">Aug 17th 2025, 06:00</div>
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<p><p>A massive new study suggests that growing up in a society marked by corruption, inequality, poverty, and violence may influence how willing people are to behave selfishly—even if it comes at a cost to others. The findings, published in the <em><a href="https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2500830122" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences</a></em>, provide evidence that aversive societal conditions are linked to the development of personality traits associated with callousness, exploitation, and moral disregard.</p>
<p>In an analysis of more than 1.7 million individuals across 183 countries and over 140,000 people from all 50 U.S. states, researchers found a consistent, though modest, association between adverse societal conditions and higher levels of what psychologists refer to as the “Dark Factor of Personality.” This general factor reflects a tendency to prioritize one’s own interests while disregarding—or even causing—harm to others, often accompanied by beliefs that justify such behavior.</p>
<p>Dark personality traits refer to enduring patterns of thoughts, feelings, and behaviors that are socially and ethically aversive. These include traits like narcissism, psychopathy, Machiavellianism, sadism, and spitefulness. Although each trait emphasizes different features—such as callousness in psychopathy or manipulativeness in Machiavellianism—research over the past decade suggests they share a common core.</p>
<p>This shared disposition, termed the Dark Factor of Personality (or simply “D”), is thought to reflect a general tendency to pursue personal gain at the expense of others, underpinned by beliefs that such behavior is justifiable. For example, someone high in D might believe that “everyone looks out for themselves” or that “most people deserve what they get.”</p>
<p>Just as intelligence researchers have identified a “g” factor that underlies cognitive ability, personality researchers argue that D underlies all dark traits. People high in D are more likely to behave dishonestly, seek revenge, exploit others, and rationalize unethical behavior. But what shapes the development of this psychological tendency?</p>
<p>The authors of the new study hypothesized that certain adverse social environments might foster the development of darker personality profiles. They refer to these as “aversive societal conditions” (ASC), measured by four factors: corruption, economic inequality, poverty, and violence.</p>
<p>The idea is that in settings where exploitation, injustice, and insecurity are common, self-interested behavior might be perceived not only as acceptable but as necessary for survival. In such societies, people may learn that others cannot be trusted, that cheating pays off, or that harming others is a legitimate way to get ahead. Over time, such beliefs may become internalized and crystallize into stable personality traits.</p>
<p>The study was motivated by “an intertwining between theoretical and pragmatic reasons,” according to lead author Ingo Zettler of the University of Copenhagen. “Theoretically, there have always been ideas that societal conditions contribute to the proliferation of certain personality traits in a society, but research has not looked too much into very aversive (or antisocial) personality characteristics so far. Pragmatically, we were able to collect survey responses from close to two million people from more than 180 countries, which, we believe, is a good data set to explore whether aversive societal conditions also relate to the proliferation of aversive personality characteristics across societies.”</p>
<p>The researchers created an index of aversive societal conditions across countries and U.S. states using publicly available data. Importantly, they focused on how these conditions looked about 20 years before personality data were collected, to examine whether long-term exposure during formative years predicted later personality tendencies.</p>
<p>The researchers drew on a massive dataset of individuals who voluntarily completed the Dark Factor of Personality questionnaire through an online platform, which offers feedback on personality. (<a href="https://qst.darkfactor.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">You can take the test here</a>.) After applying various quality control checks and matching participants’ self-reported country with geolocated IP data, the final sample included 1,791,542 people from 183 countries, and a separate sample of 144,576 individuals across 50 U.S. states.</p>
<p>Each person completed a validated short version of the D questionnaire. Items included statements such as “My own pleasure is all that matters” and “People who mess with me always regret it.” Participants rated how much they agreed or disagreed with each item.</p>
<p>For each country and state, the researchers calculated an ASC index based on corruption, income inequality, poverty rates, and homicide rates from 2000–2004. These measures were combined using principal component analysis to create a single score reflecting how aversive the local societal conditions were at that time.</p>
<p>Multilevel regression analyses revealed that individuals living in countries or states with higher ASC scores tended to have higher D scores. While the effect sizes were small, the findings were statistically significant and consistent across both the international sample and the 50 U.S. states.</p>
<p>The researchers found that average levels of dark personality traits varied systematically across U.S. states, with certain regions consistently scoring higher on the Dark Factor of Personality than others. States such as Nevada, New York, Texas, Louisiana, California, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, North Carolina, and Tennessee were among those with the highest average D scores. These states also tended to have higher levels of aversive societal conditions.</p>
<p>In contrast, states such as Vermont, Utah, New Hampshire, Oregon, Maine, Alaska, Minnesota, Idaho, Montana, and Colorado had the lowest average D scores in the sample. These states generally exhibited more favorable socioecological conditions during the early 2000s, with lower levels of violence, corruption, and poverty.</p>
<p>“We did expect to find a link between aversive societal conditions and the proliferation of aversive personality characteristics, but it was nice to see this replicating within the same country,” Zettler told PsyPost.</p>
<p>These findings suggest that people’s personality traits—specifically those related to selfishness, moral disengagement, and interpersonal harm—are not only shaped by individual or genetic factors but also by the broader social environment. This supports the view that personality development is sensitive to socioecological conditions, particularly during adolescence and early adulthood.</p>
<p>In societies marked by widespread corruption and violence, people may learn that exploiting others is normal or even necessary. Over time, repeated exposure to such environments may promote beliefs and behaviors that align with the Dark Factor of Personality.</p>
<p>Interestingly, the researchers found that this association was stronger among younger individuals and in societies that emphasize individualism. These patterns suggest that cultural values and developmental timing may moderate the influence of aversive societal conditions.</p>
<p>The results also held up when using alternative measures of societal aversiveness, such as an index of rule violations (including tax evasion and fraudulent politics), providing further support for the link between harsh environments and the proliferation of dark traits.</p>
<p>“I would say there are two main take-aways,” Zettler said. “First, the average levels of aversive personality characteristics differ across societies. While there are also many differences between people within the same society, there are also differences between societies. Second, reducing aversive conditions in one’s society does not only facilitate the life for several people in the society, but might also reduce the likelihood of very aversive (or selfish) individuals in this society in the future.”</p>
<p>While the study’s scale is impressive, there are still some caveats to consider. First, the researchers used online convenience samples, meaning the participants were not randomly selected and may not fully represent the general population. Second, although the analysis accounts for time lags to reduce the risk of reverse causality, the data are still correlational. This means the findings point to an association—not a definitive causal link—between adverse environments and dark personality traits.</p>
<p>Another consideration is the potential variability in the quality of the societal data used to build the ASC index. For example, some countries may underreport corruption or violence, which could influence the accuracy of the index. The researchers also acknowledge that they do not know how long participants had lived in their stated country or state, making it difficult to determine the duration of exposure to aversive conditions.</p>
<p>The study opens the door to further research on how environments interact with personality development. “We are continuing in trying to better understand the development of the D factor, as well as how it expresses in certain behavior in certain situations (e.g., based on different situational affordances),” Zettler said.</p>
<p>The study, “<a href="https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2500830122" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Aversive societal conditions explain differences in ‘dark’ personality across countries and US states</a>,” was authored by Ingo Zettler, Lau Lilleholt, Martina Bader, Benjamin E. Hilbig, and Morten Moshagen.</p></p>
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<td><a href="https://www.psypost.org/esketamine-nasal-spray-shows-rapid-antidepressant-effects-as-standalone-treatment/" style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; letter-spacing:-1px;margin:0;padding:0 0 2px;font-weight: bold;font-size: 19px;line-height: 20px;color:#222;">Esketamine nasal spray shows rapid antidepressant effects as standalone treatment</a>
<div style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align:left;color:#999;font-size:11px;font-weight:bold;line-height:15px;">Aug 16th 2025, 16:00</div>
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<p><p>A new large-scale clinical trial suggests that esketamine nasal spray, used on its own, may offer meaningful relief for adults with treatment-resistant depression. Participants who received esketamine without any accompanying oral antidepressant experienced a rapid reduction in depressive symptoms—often within 24 hours—and these improvements tended to persist over the course of the four-week trial. The findings were published in <em><a href="https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamapsychiatry/fullarticle/2836115" target="_blank" rel="noopener">JAMA Psychiatry</a>.</em></p>
<p>Ketamine was originally developed as an anesthetic but has gained attention in recent years for its potential antidepressant properties, particularly among individuals who have not improved with conventional medications. Esketamine, a chemically related compound and a more targeted version of ketamine, is the active ingredient in SPRAVATO®, a nasal spray approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.</p>
<p>SPRAVATO® was initially authorized for use in combination with oral antidepressants to treat adults with treatment-resistant depression. Until recently, however, it was unclear whether esketamine could be effective on its own, without the need for additional oral medications.</p>
<p>Roughly one in three individuals with major depressive disorder does not respond adequately to at least two oral antidepressants, placing them in the category of having treatment-resistant depression. For these individuals, the typical next step involves adding new medications to their current treatment plan. But oral antidepressants often produce side effects such as fatigue, weight gain, gastrointestinal problems, and sexual dysfunction—issues that can lead to poor adherence or discontinuation.</p>
<p>The researchers behind this new study set out to examine whether esketamine, administered as SPRAVATO®, could serve as a single-agent treatment for patients who either do not respond to or cannot tolerate standard antidepressant drugs.</p>
<p>“The size and scope of the global depression epidemic is staggering. There are more than 280 million people worldwide living with major depressive disorder (MDD), and significant unmet needs remain for these patient,” said Adam Janik, the medical director at Johnson & Johnson and lead author of the new study.</p>
<p>“When we started researching SPRAVATO®, there had been no new mechanism of action in the mental health space for more than 30 years, which left patients with few options. In fact, SPRAVATO® was granted breakthrough therapy designation by the U.S. FDA for its first two indications, highlighting the need for innovation in the space.”</p>
<p>“We’ve dedicated years to studying SPRAVATO® and bringing it to market – more than a decade of research, 31 global clinical trials and six years of real-world use – and we’re proud to continue our nearly 70-year legacy in psychiatry innovation.”</p>
<p>The trial was a phase 4, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical study, carried out at 51 outpatient centers across the United States between late 2020 and early 2024. The participants were adults diagnosed with major depressive disorder, based on standard diagnostic criteria. To qualify, individuals had to demonstrate a history of poor response—defined as less than 25% symptom improvement—to at least two different oral antidepressants during their current episode.</p>
<p>After discontinuing any previous antidepressants, participants were randomly assigned to one of three groups. One group received a fixed dose of 56 milligrams of intranasal esketamine, another received 84 milligrams, and the third group received a placebo spray. The treatments were administered twice a week over the course of four weeks. The primary measure of treatment effectiveness was the change in scores on the Montgomery-Åsberg Depression Rating Scale, which assesses symptom severity.</p>
<p>The efficacy analysis included 378 participants, with an average age of 45 years. Around 61% of the sample were women. All participants met criteria for moderate to severe depression at baseline, with average depression scores near the upper limit of the scale.</p>
<p>The researchers used both clinician-administered interviews and self-report questionnaires to monitor changes in depressive symptoms. They also assessed safety outcomes such as side effects, blood pressure, and potential signs of suicidality using standardized tools. In addition to immediate outcomes after the first dose, participants’ symptoms were tracked over time to assess sustained response and remission rates.</p>
<p>The results suggest that esketamine alone significantly outperformed the placebo in reducing depressive symptoms by day 28, the end of the double-blind treatment phase. Those receiving the 56 mg dose had an average symptom score reduction that was 5.1 points greater than the placebo group. Participants receiving the 84 mg dose showed an even larger improvement, with a 6.8-point advantage over placebo.</p>
<p>Notably, these changes were already apparent within 24 hours of the first dose. Both esketamine groups showed significantly better scores compared to placebo at that early time point, suggesting that the drug may offer much faster relief than traditional antidepressants, which typically take weeks to show effects.</p>
<p>The number needed to treat—an estimate of how many patients would need to be treated for one to benefit—was 6.5 to 7 for symptom response and slightly higher for remission, indicating a moderate effect size. These figures are comparable to or better than those typically seen with adjunctive use of esketamine.</p>
<p>Patients who continued into the optional 12-week open-label phase—where everyone received esketamine—also tended to show either sustained or further improvement in their depressive symptoms.</p>
<p>“SPRAVATO® as a monotherapy offers a safe and effective treatment option for people living with treatment-resistant depression, especially for those experiencing treatment-limiting tolerability concerns or nonresponse with oral antidepressants,” Janik told PsyPost.</p>
<p>As with previous esketamine studies, certain side effects were more common in the treatment group than among those given placebo. These included nausea, dizziness, headache, and dissociation—a temporary sense of detachment from one’s thoughts or surroundings. However, these side effects were generally short-lived and tended to occur during the dosing sessions themselves, resolving within a few hours.</p>
<p>“The safety profile of SPRAVATO® as a standalone treatment was consistent with the existing body of clinical and real-world data when used in conjunction with an oral antidepressant, and no new safety concerns were identified,” Janik said.</p>
<p>No deaths were reported during the study. Serious adverse events were rare and did not appear to be related to the treatment. Rates of suicidal thoughts or behaviors, a concern in some depression trials, were similar or slightly lower in the esketamine groups compared to placebo.</p>
<p>“The data confirms what our team hypothesized from the outset,” Janik said. “We followed the science, and the results reflect that SPRAVATO® is safe and effective, offering rapid and sustained relief for patients with treatment-resistant depression.”</p>
<p>Because esketamine has known psychoactive properties, the researchers took steps to minimize the risk of participants correctly guessing whether they had received the active drug or placebo. Still, many participants were able to tell, which is a common limitation in studies involving psychoactive treatments. Importantly, analyses showed that participants’ symptom improvements were not simply driven by whether they had experienced side effects such as dissociation, suggesting that the antidepressant effect was not merely due to expectancy.</p>
<p>“SPRAVATO® is approved for use in adults alone or in conjunction with an oral antidepressant with MDD who have had an inadequate response to at least two oral antidepressants and for adults in conjunction with an oral antidepressant for depressive symptoms with MDD with acute suicidal thoughts or actions,” Janik explained.</p>
<p>“Since its first approval in 2019, we’ve been focused on ensuring safe and appropriate use of this important medicine. All patients receiving SPRAVATO® are required to enroll in the SPRAVATO® REMS program and be monitored by a healthcare professional for at least two hours post-administration to ensure the medication is well-tolerated and monitor for any serious side effects. SPRAVATO® is never dispensed for at-home use.”</p>
<p>Although the trial provides strong evidence for the efficacy of esketamine as a standalone treatment, there are caveats to consider. The sample lacked racial and ethnic diversity, and participants with certain co-occurring psychiatric conditions were excluded. This could limit how broadly the results can be applied to more diverse or medically complex populations. In addition, the trial’s follow-up period was relatively short, meaning long-term safety and efficacy still require further study.</p>
<p>Future research may focus on better understanding the biological mechanisms through which esketamine works, especially given that its precise mode of action remains unclear. Additional studies may also explore how to identify which patients are most likely to benefit and whether the treatment can be safely and effectively integrated into broader mental health care settings.</p>
<p>“Our approach to MDD reflects the complexity of this condition,” Janik told PsyPost. “We’re advancing a pipeline of mechanistically distinct therapies aimed at addressing the biological drivers of MDD, including the residual symptoms that conventional treatments often leave unresolved.”</p>
<p>“We’re committed to exploring new mechanisms of actions to treat MDD, and we are investigating novel adjunctive treatments designed to improve outcomes for patients whose symptoms persist despite treatment with currently available antidepressant treatments.”</p>
<p>The study, “<a href="https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamapsychiatry/fullarticle/2836115" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Esketamine Monotherapy in Adults With Treatment-Resistant Depression: A Randomized Clinical Trial</a>,” was authored by Adam Janik, Xin Qiu, Rosanne Lane, Vanina Popova, Wayne Drevets, Carla Canuso, Matthew Macaluso, Gregory Mattingly, Richard Shelton, John Zajecka, and Dong-Jing Fu.</p></p>
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<td><a href="https://www.psypost.org/game-based-training-can-boost-executive-function-and-math-skills-in-children/" style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; letter-spacing:-1px;margin:0;padding:0 0 2px;font-weight: bold;font-size: 19px;line-height: 20px;color:#222;">Game-based training can boost executive function and math skills in children</a>
<div style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align:left;color:#999;font-size:11px;font-weight:bold;line-height:15px;">Aug 16th 2025, 14:00</div>
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<p><p>An experimental study conducted in Brazil found that a game-based cognitive training program called Cucca Curiosa improved executive functioning and mathematics performance in children aged 7 to 10 years. The Cucca Curiosa training program lasted one week and consisted of five sessions, each lasting an average of 13 minutes. The paper was published in the <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jecp.2025.106257"><em>Journal of Experimental Child Psychology</em></a>.</p>
<p>Executive functions are a set of high-level cognitive processes that support goal-directed behavior, including planning, working memory, inhibitory control, cognitive flexibility, and self-monitoring. These processes help individuals manage their thoughts, emotions, and actions in order to achieve objectives effectively.</p>
<p>In daily life, executive functions are important for organizing tasks, solving problems, making decisions, and adapting to changing circumstances. Strong executive skills help people resist distractions, regulate impulses, and follow through on plans.</p>
<p>In children, these skills play a key role in academic learning, social development, and emotional regulation. Well-developed executive functions help children pay attention in class, remember instructions, and switch between tasks efficiently. Deficits in these abilities are linked to difficulties with behavior, school performance, and peer relationships. Executive functions develop gradually across childhood and adolescence and are shaped by both brain development and life experiences. Early interventions, such as games that engage memory and self-control, may strengthen these abilities.</p>
<p>Study author Alanny Nunes de Santana and her colleagues set out to investigate whether a game-based cognitive intervention could improve executive functioning and math skills in 7- to 10-year-old children.</p>
<p>Cucca Curiosa is an electronic game developed in C# using Unity 2D. It consists of six different Portuguese-language activities designed to target executive functions. Each mini-game focuses on a specific skill and includes instructions on how the skill can be applied in everyday contexts.</p>
<p>The tasks increase in difficulty with repetition, and metacognitive strategies—techniques that encourage players to reflect on their thinking—are embedded throughout the game in the form of tips. These strategies guide players to ask questions, evaluate errors, and monitor their attention and performance.</p>
<p>The Cucca Curiosa intervention was delivered in five sessions, each lasting up to 26 minutes, with an average duration of 13 minutes per session. The full intervention was completed within one week.</p>
<p>The study included 112 children from public schools in northeastern Brazil. There were 28 children at each age (7 through 10), and half of the participants were boys. The children were randomly assigned to either an experimental group or a control group. Those in the experimental group completed the Cucca Curiosa training, while those in the control group did not receive any intervention.</p>
<p>Before and after the intervention, all participants completed a battery of tests assessing executive functioning and mathematics performance. These included the NEUPSILIN-Inf neuropsychological battery and the mathematics-focused TEMA test.</p>
<p>The results suggest that the Cucca Curiosa intervention led to short-term improvements in both executive functioning and math performance. Statistical analysis indicated that the gains in executive functioning may have contributed to the observed improvements in math.</p>
<p>“The current study provides new evidence that training EFs [executive functions] through the Cucca Curiosa electronic game intervention improves the performance of children aged 7 to 10 years in EF measures, notably WM [working memory], IC [inhibitory control], and CF [cognitive flexibility], and in mathematical activities that include counting, patterns, sequences, composition and decomposition, the four basic arithmetic operations, rational numbers, comparisons of fractions, natural numbers, and percentages. The presented intervention therefore represents a valuable approach to training EFs in typical children, with proven short-term gains,” the study authors concluded.</p>
<p>The study sheds light on the effects of the Cucca Curiosa game on cognitive functioning of 7-10-year-olds. However, it should be noted that children in the experimental group were fully aware of the intervention they are going through and could easily guess what study authors expectations are, while the control group participants were not included in any activities. This leaves room for the results to be a consequence of or at least affected by the Hawthorne effect. The Hawthorne effect is the tendency for people to change their behavior simply because they know they are being observed (for example try harder on cognitive tests).</p>
<p>The paper, “<a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jecp.2025.106257">Game-based cognitive training and its impact on executive functions and math performance: A randomized controlled trial</a>,” was authored by Alanny Nunes de Santana, Antonio Roazzi, and Alena Pimentel Mello Cabral Nobre.</p></p>
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<td><a href="https://www.psypost.org/gabapentin-use-for-back-pain-linked-to-higher-risk-of-dementia-study-finds/" style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; letter-spacing:-1px;margin:0;padding:0 0 2px;font-weight: bold;font-size: 19px;line-height: 20px;color:#222;">Gabapentin use for back pain linked to higher risk of dementia, study finds</a>
<div style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align:left;color:#999;font-size:11px;font-weight:bold;line-height:15px;">Aug 16th 2025, 12:00</div>
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<p><p>A large medical records study suggests that adults who receive multiple prescriptions of gabapentin for chronic low back pain may face a significantly increased risk of developing dementia or mild cognitive impairment. The research, published in <em><a href="https://rapm.bmj.com/content/early/2025/07/02/rapm-2025-106577" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Regional Anesthesia & Pain Medicine</a></em>, found that patients with six or more prescriptions were 29% more likely to be diagnosed with dementia and 85% more likely to develop signs of mild cognitive impairment within a decade. The association appeared especially pronounced in adults under the age of 65.</p>
<p>Gabapentin is a prescription medication originally approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in 1993 to treat partial seizures. Over the years, its use has expanded to include the management of chronic pain, particularly nerve-related conditions such as postherpetic neuralgia and diabetic neuropathy. It is commonly viewed as a safer alternative to opioids due to its relatively low potential for abuse.</p>
<p>Gabapentin acts on the nervous system by binding to a specific subunit of voltage-gated calcium channels in the brain. This mechanism reduces the release of excitatory neurotransmitters and helps diminish the sensation of pain. While the drug is not classified as a controlled substance at the federal level in the United States, its off-label use has grown substantially. Along with this rise in popularity have come growing concerns about its long-term effects on brain function.</p>
<p>“Gabapentin is a drug that was initially approved to treat seizures,” said study author Nafis B. Eghrari, a 4th-year medical student at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine. “It has shown promise in treating nerve-related pain, and it has become a popular choice to treat chronic low back pain, despite limited evidence.”</p>
<p>“Currently, there is a discrepancy on whether taking gabapentin increases a patient’s risk for developing dementia. Moreover, there lacks a strong understanding of how gabapentin impacts cognitive function and whether it contributes to neurodegenerative processes. Previous studies have shown mixed findings on this topic. Thus, we decided to explore this gap in the field.”</p>
<p>The researchers carried out a retrospective cohort study using deidentified patient data from TriNetX, a national health research network that includes records from 68 healthcare organizations across the United States. They identified adult patients who had been diagnosed with chronic low back pain or related conditions between 2004 and 2014. These patients were tracked for at least ten years following their initial diagnosis to observe any subsequent development of cognitive problems.</p>
<p>To reduce the influence of confounding variables, the researchers excluded patients with a history of conditions known to increase dementia risk, including prior gabapentin use, epilepsy, stroke, and cancer. They also used a method called propensity score matching to ensure that patients who received gabapentin prescriptions were comparable to those who did not in terms of demographics, medical history, and other medications taken for pain.</p>
<p>After matching, the final sample included 26,416 patients who received six or more gabapentin prescriptions and a matched group of 26,416 patients who did not receive the drug. The average age in both groups was just over 52 years, and a slight majority were female. The researchers tracked whether these individuals received a diagnosis of dementia or mild cognitive impairment within ten years of their first back pain diagnosis.</p>
<p>The study also included several subgroup analyses. Patients were divided into younger (ages 18–64) and older (65+) groups, and then further stratified into smaller age ranges. The researchers also compared patients who received 3–11 prescriptions to those who received 12 or more to explore whether the risk increased with more frequent use.</p>
<p>The results suggest that gabapentin use was linked to an increased risk of cognitive decline. Among all adults, those who received six or more prescriptions had a 29% higher risk of being diagnosed with dementia and an 85% higher risk of being diagnosed with mild cognitive impairment compared to those who did not receive the drug.</p>
<p>The risk was not limited to older adults. In fact, the increase in risk was more pronounced in younger patients. Among individuals between the ages of 18 and 64, those who received gabapentin prescriptions had more than twice the risk of being diagnosed with dementia or cognitive impairment compared to their non-medicated peers. Within that group, the risk was especially elevated for people aged 35 to 64.</p>
<p>“We were surprised to find this relatively higher risk in the non-elderly population,” Eghrari told PsyPost. “These results indicate that gabapentin may have a greater cognitive impact on non-elderly individuals, as elderly individuals are already at risk for neurodegeneration due to their older age. This finding warrants further investigation into the underlying mechanism of how gabapentin may impact cognition.”</p>
<p>The researchers also found evidence that more frequent gabapentin prescriptions were associated with greater risk. Patients who received 12 or more prescriptions were significantly more likely to develop dementia or cognitive impairment than those who received between 3 and 11 prescriptions. This pattern held true across both age groups.</p>
<p>While the absolute risk of dementia was relatively low in younger adults, the relative increase in risk among gabapentin users was striking. For example, among patients aged 50 to 64, those with 12 or more prescriptions were nearly twice as likely to be diagnosed with dementia compared to those with fewer prescriptions.</p>
<p>Gabapentin’s potential cognitive side effects have been noted in earlier research, including reports of memory issues, mental fog, and sedation. These effects have been observed in patients with chronic pain, spinal cord injuries, and even in healthy older adults. Some studies suggest that gabapentin may reduce neuroplasticity or interfere with normal signaling in brain regions involved in memory and attention.</p>
<p>At the same time, other studies have suggested the drug may be well tolerated, particularly in patients with epilepsy or agitation related to dementia. The current findings add to an ongoing debate and highlight the need for greater clarity about the drug’s long-term cognitive effects, particularly outside of its original use in seizure treatment.</p>
<p>The researchers suggest that the stronger association seen in younger patients could be due to the fact that older adults already face a higher baseline risk for neurodegenerative disorders, making relative changes harder to detect. It is also possible that age-related differences in how the body metabolizes gabapentin may play a role.</p>
<p>“In terms of clinical significance, I recommend that physicians prescribing gabapentin for chronic pain perform cognitive exams on a regular basis when seeing patients,” Eghrari said. “I’d also advise patients who are taking this drug to alert their physician if they notice any cognitive deficits, including confusion, poor memory, or slowed thinking.”</p>
<p>While the study included a large sample and attempted to control for a wide range of confounding factors, it remains observational. This means it cannot prove that gabapentin caused dementia or cognitive impairment. Other unmeasured variables could have influenced the results, such as dosage, duration of treatment, or severity of underlying pain.</p>
<p>Future studies could build on this work by exploring the biological mechanisms that might link gabapentin use to changes in brain function. Experimental studies in animals or long-term clinical trials in humans may help clarify whether gabapentin contributes directly to neurodegeneration or whether the observed associations reflect other factors.</p>
<p>“The key takeaway of this study is that patients prescribed gabapentin for chronic back pain should be closely monitored by their physician for cognitive decline,” Eghrari said. “Moreover, gabapentin should be prescribed with caution due to the associated risk of dementia/cognitive impairment. We hope to carry this research forward and explore whether there is a true causative relationship between gabapentin and cognitive impairment. We also plan to investigate the underlying mechanisms of how the drug may impact cognition.”</p>
<p>The study, “<a href="https://doi.org/10.1136/rapm-2025-106577" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Risk of dementia following gabapentin prescription in chronic low back pain patients</a>,” was authored by Nafis B Eghrari, Isabella H Yazji, Bryan Yavari, Gustaf M. Van Acker, and Chong H. Kim.</p></p>
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<p><strong>Forwarded by:<br />
Michael Reeder LCPC<br />
Baltimore, MD</strong></p>
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