Marianna de Abreu Costa

Coping strategies are essential for managing stress and emotional well-being, particularly in high-demand settings like healthcare. In high-demand contexts such as the COVID-19 pandemic, coping strategies may play a critical role in shaping mental health outcomes. Understanding how specific strategies relate to psychiatric symptoms is critical for effective interventions. This cross-sectional study analyzed baseline data from 3,075 essential workers enrolled in the TelePSI project, a nationwide randomized controlled trial of brief telepsychotherapy. Participants reported coping strategies from a list of 22 options (in a yes/no format). Psychiatric symptoms-depression, anxiety, and irritability-were measured using PROMIS scales. Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) was used to identify coping dimensions, followed by correlation analyses. The most frequent strategies were watching YouTube (58.3%) and eating sweets (41.6%). EFA revealed two distinct factors: maladaptive (e.g., substance use, overeating) and adaptive strategies (e.g., physical activity, healthy eating). Maladaptive strategies showed weak positive correlations with psychiatric symptoms, while adaptive strategies showed weak negative correlations. Participants with higher symptom severity were more likely to report maladaptive behaviors. The findings reveal associations between coping patterns and mental health outcomes. Adaptive strategies were associated with lower psychological distress, while maladaptive behaviors showed the opposite pattern, indicating the multifactorial nature of mental health in crisis situations.

The mind-brain problem, which explores the relationship between the mind and brain and the nature of consciousness, remains a scientific challenge. It is not a purely theoretical issue; it profoundly shapes our understanding of human nature. This paper reviews evidence on mind-brain problem views impacting ethical, clinical, and academic domains. Evidence shows that dualism is prevalent, even among mental health professionals. This belief declines with age, likely due to generational shifts rather than maturation. Prevalent metaphysical assumptions embedded in academic training (e.g., physicalist reductive views emphasizing biological causes - gene expression and neurologic alterations) may influence this generational shift. Regarding ethics, radical determinism-aligned with a physicalist view of the mind-can diminish perceptions of responsibility, agency, and free will, affecting individual sense of autonomy and legal systems by portraying individuals as less responsive to rehabilitation and seen as more prone to repeat behaviors. In mental health, the mind-brain problem influences four key areas: understanding the origins of mental disorders, treatment approaches, patient self-agency, stigma. Deterministic views reduce patient self-agency, impacting adherence and outcomes, while belief in control enhances responsibility and positive results. Biogenetic models reduce blame but may lower perceptions of self-control and increase perceptions of unpredictability in patient behavior.

The Brazilian Journal of Psychiatry is the official publication of Brazilian Psychiatric Association (Associação Brasileira de Psiquiatria - ABP)

The Brazilian Journal of Psychiatry is the official publication of Brazilian Psychiatric Association (Associação Brasileira de Psiquiatria - ABP)